Shadows Book 1 in the World of Shadows (7 page)

“
Is the peace complete in
Lumini then?” I asked curiously. It was hard to imagine, since even
at the caves where both people lived in such close proximity there
were scuffles and both races kept mostly to themselves.

Dathien hesitated, then shook his head. “I
wish I could say it was so. There's definitely more tolerance in
Lumini, and the people work together with the same goals in mind,
but I'm not sure if there will ever be complete and total peace
because we are so different from each other.”

“
Are you?” I asked before I
could stop myself.

He glanced at me, but didn't answer.

The closed gates at the entrance to the
Luminos castle resembled great bat wings tipped in spikes. Axon
merely had to nod at the dozen Luminos soldiers that guarded the
gates for them to be swiftly opened. The gates closed behind us,
and the noise of the city silenced almost immediately. We walked up
several steps and entered through towering, carved red-rock doors
held open by weary-looking Luminos servants.

“
I’m glad we made it before
dusk, even if just barely,” Dathien whispered.

“
Why?” I asked quietly,
trying not to gawk at the grand, towering hall before
us.

“
Because the inns in the
city aren’t trustworthy. I’ve never been able to rest well
surrounded by Nathos and Duskies I don’t know,” he
replied.

“
Dathien!” Marken rebuked
with a reproachful expression on his face.

Dathien shrugged, his gray cheeks touched
with red. “I was just telling her the truth. She should know that
she can’t trust everyone.”

Marken shook his head. “Well, make sure she
knows that includes Luminos as well. You’re quite biased,” he
concluded before turning away.

Dathien lowered his voice so that only I
could here. “Not biased, just practical. If we had spent the night
at an inn, the Luminos who are untrustworthy would be sleeping
along with the Luminos worth trusting. I left it out because it was
a moot point.”

I smothered a laugh and followed him up the
long hallway. Wool cloth dyed in green, yellow, brown, blue,
orange, and red lined the red stone walls and gave the impression
that we were walking through a rainbow. The cloth underfoot was
made of soft, long woven strands of wool tied with thread. It kept
the off-white color of wool, but the threads had been stained red
and black, reminding me of the foth from the streets.

Chapter 8

A Luminos servant led us up a flight of
stairs and down another long hallway. Axon’s voice was the only
sound as he spoke to the man in a low, steady tone. I caught only a
few shreds of the conversation which pertained to preparing our
rooms before the sun set. Apparently, royal quarters had been set
apart for Axon and several guests, but they had heard of the attack
in the desert on the way to Firen Caves and no one had known if
Axon’s party survived. The rooms were in a ‘state of disarray’, as
the servant put it, his face flushed and hands wringing
together.

Axon reassured him that any room at this
point would be welcome. His voice was light, but there was no
mistaking the dark circles under his eyes and the way our entire
party dragged their feet along the woven carpet. The servants also
seemed exhausted and I realized how inconvenient it must be for an
entire castle to become unproductive when the sun set. I also
realized that I hadn’t seen any Duskies since we entered the
castle.

“
Dathien?” It took him a
second to notice I was speaking to him, then the giant Luminos
smiled at me tiredly. “Where are the Duskies that protect the
castle until nightfall?”

His eyebrows pulled together. “Well, no one
is allowed in Lysus castle but the Luminos.”

A pit formed in my stomach and the hostile
glances from the Luminos servants that followed us made sense. “I
shouldn’t be here,” I whispered back.

Dathien’s brow dropped and his tone became
certain. “You’re one of us, now, Nexa. Don’t forget it. No one can
tell you that you don’t belong.”

I nodded because it felt like he expected me
to, but I was all the more aware of the suspicious looks and
whispers from the passing Luminos servants. At least at the Caves I
had had a position, somewhere I belonged even if it was a barely
tolerated role brought on by necessity instead of want.

I felt like an outcast under the gazes of
the light blue, green, and golden eyes that watched me from alcoves
and dark hallways. I realized, too, why they were worried. When all
the Luminos were unable to defend themselves, I would be free to
wander at will, kill them all, or even burn down the place if I
wanted. I glanced at the stone walls, doubting they would burn,
then laughed at myself. I could barely put one foot in front of the
other, and every wound from the Sathen ached as if rubbed raw. The
Luminos definitely wouldn’t have to worry about me tonight.

“
Your rooms, my Prince,”
the head servant said. He pushed open carved red rock doors tall
enough for three men to walk through standing on each others’
heads. The doors pivoted on hinges and had to be propped over so
that their massive size didn't push the steward over.

The doors revealed an immense stone chamber
the size of the dining room at Firen Caves, the largest chamber in
the cave system. The room had been painted a light gold offset by a
red dyed carpet and red plush furnishings. The far wall held huge
windows, the only windows I had ever seen up close. They showed the
spires of Lysus city stretched out below. Lights flickered along
the cobblestones as lamps were lit. A quick glance showed that no
Luminos were left in the streets, only Duskies preparing their
goods from the day to barter with the Nathos for their night’s
hunt.

“
Again, I apologize that
King Raden has already retired for the night. He will be anxious to
see you at first light if you are rested enough to have visitors
after your challenging trip.” The servant then threw me a guarded,
unfriendly look. “Are your accommodations as you would like, my
prince?”

Axon either missed the look or chose to
ignore it because he nodded. “Yes, thank you. Please leave us now
to our rest.”

The servant bowed and walked backward to the
door where he stopped again and looked at me anxiously without
meeting my eyes. “You’re sure everything is as you would like it,
my prince?”

This time Axon’s eyes tightened and I
realized he knew exactly what the servant was talking about. “They
are as I would prefer them, Steward” he replied in short, clipped
words. “Thank you and goodnight.” There was a finality to his tone
that left no room for argument.

The servant’s face paled and he bowed again,
then left the room and pulled the door shut behind him.

Axon fell on one of the couches with a sigh.
“Talk about pushing the matter.” He met my eyes and must have read
the mixed emotions in them because he gave a soft smile. “They’re
not trying to be rude, they’re just. . . used to certain protocols
and procedures. The best way to create chaos in a household is to
introduce an unknown factor.”

Dathien nudged me with an elbow. “You,
little minx, are our unknown factor.”

I blushed. “I don’t mean to cause any
trouble,” I protested.

Axon lifted an eyebrow. “No?” He laughed
when my mouth fell open, then waved a hand. “Regardless, we are all
exhausted and in need of a good night’s sleep. There should be more
than enough chambers for everyone. Please pick your quarters and I
will see you all at sunrise.”

He rose slowly and made his way toward the
closest room where doors twice as big as the rest of the others
lining the grand hall already stood partially open. When he opened
the doors wider, they revealed a second chamber almost as big as
the one in which we stood. A massive four poster bed sat in the
middle surrounded by exotic fur rugs, fancy red couches, half a
dozen dressers, and an assortment of other furniture I had never
seen before.

I tore my gaze away to find that the rest of
the Luminos had each chosen a room branching off from the main
hall. I hesitated, uncertain as to whether I could sleep on one of
the amazingly comfortable looking couches in the hall or if I
should curl up in a corner. Either way was more than welcome.

“
Nexa, one of those rooms
is yours,” Axon said.

I looked back to find him watching me from
the door of his room and shook my head. “I’ve already caused enough
trouble. I’d be more than happy to sleep here or in the servants
quarters or-“

He cut me off with a patient look. “Nexa,
you’re with me and you will be treated like one of my companions.
Now pick a room before I pick one for you.”

I grimaced at the challenge in his tone and
turned away. I knew he watched as I stalked to the closest room,
pulled open the door, then stepped inside to stop and stare at the
beautiful chamber.

The walls had been painted the red hue of a
sunset before a storm. Cream cloth covered two couches with carved
cloven feet like the lamaks, a soft white rug woven from loose
silky fur sat at my bare feet which felt dirtier for the whiteness
in front of them, lacy cloth hung from the four poster bed in the
middle of the room like soft cobwebs, and a cream colored blanket
beckoned to me from the massive bed which could have fit twenty
girls my size.

Then I saw the mirror on the far wall. I
forgot about my dirty feet and the richness of my surroundings and
walked toward it. The reflective glass was fit into a twisted metal
frame of vines, thorns, and beautifully worked flowers of a species
I had never seen before. The flowers themselves had been painted a
shade darker than the soft red wall behind it, darkening to almost
black at the edges of the petals. A table with an intricately
carved wooden chair, complete with cream colored cushions and
cloven hooves, was turned as though waiting for me. I put a hand on
the arm of the chair and stared at my reflection.

The girl that stared back was a stranger I
had never seen. Gray eyes the color of the sky at midday before a
rain peered into my own. My hair, a mix of the Luminos white and
Nathos black, had been chopped short and uneven by my own hand with
few strands longer than chin length because it always got in the
way while I did my security duty at the Caves. I knew the color of
my hair, but I had never known there was no pattern to the mix of
black and white; in some places the white and black patches were as
big as my palm, while in others they were mixed so finely it looked
gray.

I stared from my hair to my face, which I
had avoided looking at on purpose. Where other Duskies’ faces and
bodies were swirled in beautiful patterns of gray and pale, my face
looked as if someone had drawn a line down the middle and painted
everything on the right side gray with white patterns, while a
mirror image of white with gray patterns reflected it on the
left.

I realized looking down at my hands that the
patterns were the same, light on the right with dark skin
underneath, while there were dark patterns on the left with white
skin underneath. I don’t know why I had never noticed it before,
but mirrors didn’t exist in the lower levels of the Caves, and the
only times I had ever been to the underground pools, steam covered
the hot water which had to be boiled and cooled before it could be
used. What water there was in the upper floors was in cups and
great vats, and then the lighting was so dim that barely any
reflection could be seen; what little I had viewed of my features
never promised much.

I stared at my reflection. I had never seen
a Duskie that looked like me; I felt embarrassed to be so
different. I felt strange in my own skin.

“
Is everything
alright?”

I turned to find Axon leaning against the
open door of the room. He studied me, his expression saying that he
guessed my thoughts.

I dropped my eyes. “I just never knew. I’ve
never seen myself in a mirror before and it. . . .” My voice fell
away as I ran out of words to explain the disappointment I felt at
my appearance. I was a Duskie. That was all that had mattered at
the Caves and all that should matter here and to me. But it felt
like my own skin had let me down.

“
Don’t.” I looked back at
the firmness in Axon’s voice. He strode into my room and crossed
the carpet. “Don’t you dare be ashamed of how you look.” I turned
away, but he caught my chin in his hand like he had on our journey
to Lysus. “Nexa, you are beautiful, and different, and amazing.
Never, ever be ashamed of how you look, and never let anyone tell
you that you are inferior.”

He turned me back to the mirror and met my
gaze in the reflection, his light blue eyes insistent and sincere,
asking me to understand. “I didn’t choose you for our journey
because of your spunk or the way you seemed to show up in the wrong
places. In fact, that should have kept me from picking you.” He
took a deep breath and let it out in a rush. “It was your
beauty.”

I could only stare at him in disbelief.

He rushed on, his eyes holding mine in the
mirror. “You were so different, so wild and feral, unaware of how
beautiful you were. I had to get you away from that place and away
from how they treated you.”

I bit my lip to keep it from quivering and
felt my sharp canines bite into my skin; I wondered how much he had
guessed. I forced my voice to be strong, but it was thick with
doubt. “Did the others know why you chose me?”

A slight smile touched Axon’s lips. “I’m
pretty sure some of them guessed. Dathien’s pet name for you might
not have been a far stretch.”

I didn’t know whether to feel dismayed or
flattered, and having never felt either before in regards to my
looks, I didn’t know how to respond. I studied the reflection of my
face and tried to find the beauty in it, but I could only see the
dissonance, the strange gray eyes that looked older than I was, the
crazy hair, and the clenched jaw that held in my turbulent
emotions.