Sapphire (19 page)

Before she could even blink, one of the women
sitting nearest to her screeched like nails across slate, and giant
bird wings erupted from her back. Her feet turned to talons,
followed by a long snake-like tail. A demonic face, ugly enough to
curdle blood, bubbled and replaced her angelic one. Orin choked on
his food. She screeched once more, beating her great wings, then
morphed back, smoothed her long hair and smiled sweetly at
Shawna.

“Yeah,” said Lula in a very high-pitched voice.
“They are.”

Orin was still coughing and choking on his food.

“Please, Broga,” Sirrush said softly. “Do not
frighten our guests, they will lose their appetite.” He patted a
napkin to his mouth, took a sip of the fire-mead, and smacked his
lips. “Ah, now, why don’t we adjourn to more comfortable premises.
We have important matters to discuss, I believe.”

Mira looked up from the grasses that had been
brought for her. Shawna could tell their host could care less
whether they actually ate the exceptional meal or not. It was all
play-acting. This was not at all what she thought a dragon would be
like. They followed him and the harpies down a long hallway full of
tapestries, sculptures, huge iron doors, and finally entered the
courtyard where the tower stood. There was no ground, only four
long stone bridges stretching over a circular cavern and connecting
to the tower, whose base disappeared into the ravine far below.

The deep rumble of waterfalls shooting up the
tower’s sides was deafening.
Up?
The falls weren’t falling,
they were rising. Amazed, Shawna looked down and saw there was
nothing below them, just bottomless space into which the water
vanished. She felt herself weaving, disoriented by the fathoms
below. The columns of clear water shot upwards from nothingness.
They arced like an umbrella through large slits at the ceiling and
fell into the aqueducts, creating the falls outside. Orin put his
hand on her arm.

She looked around at him and felt solid stone
beneath her feet again. Then felt even better when she saw Antares.
He was scuttling along on his belly, ears flat, eyes wide, every
hair on end like the ledge was suddenly going to crumble away.
Sirrush was waiting for them across a narrow bridge at one of the
tower’s tall doors. Another ledge surrounded the tower, giving
access to all the other bridges leading off to sections of the
castle, but they were going inside the tower.

“Do come in,” he said. “I insist.” The door opened,
and all that could be seen beyond it was a solid sheet of black
rising water. He walked straight through it.

“Nope,” shouted Lula into Shawna’s ear. “I choose
life today.”

Mira started walking across the unsupported stone
bridge. Shawna and Lula looked at each other as she confidently
walked right through the strange, rushing water and disappeared.
They turned to look for the door they’d entered through, only to
find Antares huddled miserably against the wall. He looked like he
wasn’t going to budge until either the door reappeared, or the
water disappeared.

“We’ll go together,” said Orin.

He offered his hand. It was amazing how quickly her
fear dissipated when the thrill of touching him was in front of
her. She put her hand into his.

“You’re going?” shrieked Lula as Shawna shrugged and
began walking onto the bridge with Orin.

“We can’t just stand here,” Shawna yelled over the
deafening noise, but then thought otherwise when she reached the
liquid ebony wall beyond the door.

She let his hand go and slowly reached her fingers
forward. Lula was still hovering a few feet away yelling, but
Shawna ignored her. Just as her fingertips were about to touch the
roaring water, she closed her eyes and felt…nothing. She opened
them. Her hand was through, but she felt absolutely nothing. Not a
droplet of cool water touched her skin. Orin smiled at her, and
they stepped through.

“Nice of you to join us,” said Sirrush.

Mira stood near him, looking like an obsidian statue
molded from the dark waters. There was nothing but the faintly
illuminated rising walls of water, a dark glassy surface beneath
their feet, and silence. A golden streak blasted through the deluge
and smacked straight into Mira’s nose, making her snort and toss
her head in surprise.

“I’m glad your nose is so soft,” said Lula, rubbing
her head in a cloud of fairy dust.

Mira snorted violently. Lula tumbled through the
air, then righted herself and looked horrified as large boogers
dripped off her wings and dress. Shawna laughed, then quickly
stifled the invasive sound.

“The Mirror of Acumen,” Sirrush said, sweeping his
arms around the silently rising walls of water.

Shawna looked up to see pure darkness reflected
above. She looked down again and clutched onto Orin’s arm. He laid
his hand over hers. It looked like they were standing on the black
liquid. It rippled whenever they moved.

“This,” Sirrush continued, “is where truth has been
held for thousands of years. Events of the world sink into dark
depths, sometimes to be forgotten, sometimes to be remembered,
sometimes to be twisted.” He looked at Shawna, and flashed his
disturbingly charming smile.

Her nails dug into Orin’s arm.

“Hey,” he whispered, loosening her death-grip. “It’s
okay. We’re all here with you. This is what we came here for.” He
looked into her eyes, and she nodded.

“Watch,” said Mira. “Listen.”

The liquid darkness below was turning into shifting
shapes of light. Shawna gasped. The shapes became an image of
treetops rushing past as if they were flying rapidly above the
canopy. Sirrush’s deep voice echoed in her ears.

“Hundreds of years ago there were many of them.” The
trees turned into a wide plain, and she saw black shapes moving as
one across its vastness; they were unicorns, millions of them.
“Your world was once ruled by factions of powerful sorcerers from
another realm.” He was staring at Shawna, but she averted her eyes.
“Each family continuously fought for dominance over all the realms,
and for the secrets to each other’s powers. War was a constant for
many generations.”

The unicorn herds vanished to a succession of
battlefields, burning villages, and fallen bodies. She gaped at the
miraculous vision beneath their feet. Sirrush looked down, and she
glanced up at him.

“One family, however, discovered a dangerous secret
that ended the wars forever.”

A vision of a large town swept past to rest on a
magnificent castle upon a hill overlooking a valley. Their view
swooped down to three women standing on the balcony of a tall
tower. All Shawna could see were the tops of their hooded heads.
Below, thousands of people surrounded the castle. At first she
thought the castle was under siege, and then she realized everyone
was either cheering or crying.

“Three sisters had discovered the power unicorns
held.”

Shawna’s eyes narrowed. Within the hand of the
middle sister was a single glowing silver spike.

Unicorn horn!
She covered her mouth and
looked up at Mira, who was standing perfectly still, transfixed on
the scene unfolding beneath.

“The unicorn holds more magic, more power, than any
living thing in the world, and once your kind realized what could
be done with such powers…the unicorns were massacred.”

Shawna felt faint when the image swept over
countless bodies of slain unicorns, their horns gone. The entire
land was soaked with blood.

“The family made sure they were the only ones that
held this tremendous power. They were able to overthrow every
sorcerer that opposed their rule. With their supremacy, the wars
were stopped, the ill cured, famine vanished, and human kind seemed
to know true peace for the first time.”

Shawna now saw peaceful village after village of
happy people going about their daily lives.

“But at a cost. This epoch of peace and power was
the beginning of an end.”

The liquid mirror began to darken. She jumped and
stepped backwards. Red glowing eyes were appearing and looking up
at them. Molochs materialized, snarling and snapping up at their
feet, as if they were standing over a glass cage.

“Such power cannot be taken without consequence. The
magic of unicorns is nearly limitless. It balances and binds the
very world we live in.”

Shawna didn’t realize how hard she was gripping
Orin’s arm until he pried her off and weaved his fingers into hers.
She was too horrified to even notice as images raced and flashed
below of complete destruction and death. Molochs swarmed the
villages, decimating everything and everyone. A view of a massive
army, led by one of the sisters, emerged. There was another flash,
and not one soldier was still alive, at least not as they had been.
Their lipless hissing, and their bloody eyes made Shawna shiver.
Even the earth itself was an arid desert. Emaciated shapes
blanketed the land for miles, moving like a black tidal wave.

“The power your ancestry stole led to our world’s
destruction.”

“Stop,” Shawna whispered. “I don’t want to know any
more.” She shook her head, revolted by the devastation beneath
her.

“Stop?” said Sirrush, his grin not touching his
eyes. “Your flesh and blood did not
stop
.”

She wanted to look away, but the images below
trapped her. The molochs were replaced by the three sisters on a
mountain top, standing before an enormous stone arch.

Sirrush went on. “They tried to mend what they had
done, but it was too late. In desperation they called upon the
unicorn lord, Lesath.”

Light from within the arch was licking the edges of
the gigantic stones.

“After many years of genocide, Lesath and only one
other fled to their realm and sealed it. Yet, even after all
humanity had done, he was still willing to listen; still willing to
forgive and mend their wrongs.” A large gleaming black horn,
flashing with points of gold light, began to appear from the
archway.

“However,” Sirrush said slowly. “The souls of
man”—his eyes snared Shawna’s own—“and of woman, are not so easily
forgiven. One of the sisters was cunning, power-mad, convinced she
was above any power in existence. How could she not believe it,
having been immortal for ages from the unicorn’s power.”

Brilliant light erupted like billowing smoke from
the massive arch, and a piercing neighing scream echoed across the
mountain range. Shawna shut her eyes. When she opened them again
the sisters and the unicorn were gone, only the dark arch upon the
mountaintop stood with the stars.

“She betrayed Lesath, betrayed even her own people,
and ultimately every living creature in this world.”

Sirrush had paused, his chiseled face seemed ancient
and worn like the mountain.

“Those that brought this devastation had sealed the
world’s fate. Unless what your kin has done can be reversed, all
sentient life will soon be destroyed.”

From a bird’s eye view, Sirrush’s castle swam into
focus.

“The molochs are a monstrosity, an…emptiness,
created by your kind’s intentions. It has cursed
all
of
us.”

She felt like she was falling into the endless
crevasse surrounding the tower.

“Do you understand?” he said.

She nodded slowly. It felt like invisible hands were
suffocating her as she asked, “What did she do? The sister, how did
she betray the unicorn lord and create the curse?” She couldn’t ask
which sister it had been. She was sure she knew.

He didn’t say anything for a few breaths, and she
felt her heart couldn’t continue beating so rapidly for much
longer. His eyes slid from hers to the stones at her neck. She
raised her hand to cover them. They were growing warm.

“The stones,” she exhaled, looking around at
everyone, and resting on Mira.

She stared at her horn.

Though she had nothing to do with the horrible
events, she suddenly felt like a murderer nonetheless.

“What happened then?” Her voice was rising, and her
breaths were becoming shallow.

Sirrush glanced at the stones, then said, “Even
though she only shattered the tip of his horn, he no longer could
exist as he was. He hid the realms and their guardians, so no one
could ever open them again.”

“Except me.”

“Except you.”

“But, why?”

Mira answered her this time. “Because of who you
are.” She stepped towards her. “And because…I chose you.”

“You chose me?” Shawna’s brow furrowed.

Mira tucked her head as if thinking about how to
begin. “When I stayed behind, I was the last of my kind. I knew the
only way I would ever find them again, would be to transfer some of
my own power to a human child, especially one of your lineage. And
when Sirrush,”—she pointed her horn at him—“spoke of two such
children that possibly had that power, I searched for them.”

Orin was breathing heavily and stepped away when
Mira looked at him, his fists clenched.

“One I was unable to find.” She swung her head to
Shawna. “The other I discovered just before one of the sisters did.
Otherwise, I would have been too late for you as well.”

“You.” Shawna flexed and un-flexed her fingers. “You
gave me these powers?”

“You already possess the powers I gave you. But you
also possess the powers of your kind that caused all this
destruction. I made sure the power I passed to you would be enough
to keep that darkness within you repressed.”

“Darkness,” said Shawna, taking a deep breath. “You
mean, choice.” Her eyes stayed fastened onto Mira’s.

“I mean what I say,” Mira replied steadily. “Your
will is still your own.”

“
Is it?
”

Tension filled the tower. Gold dust was clouding
around Lula, and it was her sneeze that finally broke the
silence.

“It is,” said Mira. “You will understand when the
time comes.”