The Broken Destiny (7 page)

CHAPTER THREE

Pieces of a Falling Star

A
shimmering star flashed before my eyes. I thought of my wishing star and assumed that I was being taken away to another world; imagined I was being whisked away to the far and beyond, where my dreams would be effortlessly realized and love would hold me tight – where it would be safe. I wanted to go to that place in my mother’s journals, the place she called Heaven. But, I began to shiver as the sharp pain in my thigh returned – I had sorely been mistaken. When I opened my eyes, a bright light clawed at my sight; I shut them again, forcing down the tears. I became aware of someone, or something, moving near me. I could hear footsteps crushing down on sand and stone. I was being carried by arms that held me close and as I tried to kick myself free, a raspy voice called out to me. “You’re okay! I won’t hurt you,” it said.

Forcing myself to look again, I squinted up trying to focus on what was in front of me. Finally, my sight returned and a black-haired, blue-eyed face came into focus. The next thing I noticed was that he was Minoan, a male. I had never been so close to a male, never mind a Minoan man. I felt heat rush up to my ears at that revelation.

“Maya…” I tried to call out in panic, but the words got caught in my throat. It felt like a fire was burning me from the inside out. I struggled to swallow, simultaneously forcing down more tears.

“Shhh, don’t try to talk. We’re almost there,” he uttered.

My teeth chattered from the cold. His strong arms pulled me in closer. My heart raced and I shut my eyes once more. I began shivering uncontrollably. His grip tightened around me as he pulled me in toward his chest where it was safe and warm once again. Disorientated and exhausted, I felt myself slip away and into a stranger’s warmth. The last thought that crossed my mind was that my wish upon a star had just come true. I willingly fell into the unknown.

When I woke I found myself in a dark room, a low flame casting shadows on the roof above me. I could hear voices in the distance, muffled and deep. I couldn’t make out their muttering but I heard someone whisper “the change has come.” Trying to pull myself up, I fell back down again when a wave of nausea hit my stomach like a ton of bricks. Head spinning, chest on fire, I let out a soft moan hoping for some relief. Lifting up a hand that felt like it didn’t belong to me, to steady my head that was about to explode, I called out to Maya through the darkness.

“Ava?” she called back.

I tried to sit up once more but the pain assaulted every inch of me. All at once, I fell back onto the pillow and into blackness. Nightmare after nightmare taunted me. I fought from one terrifying image to find myself in the next. Horrifying faces glaring, dark claws grabbing at me and snarling teeth stalking me. I kept hitting my hands against a cold pane of glass that wouldn’t break until my hands bled and my knees gave in. I couldn’t get out. I begged for someone, anyone, to pull me out of the pit of eternal nightmarish torture in which I found myself – every time I fell asleep. I cried out to no one in particular – just started screaming. Once I woke, I was troubled. I would never know
if
I
got out of my glass box or how I got out. Did I just give up? I couldn’t remember the sequence of images but no matter where the nightmares took me, it was always a terrifying experience that left me feeling distraught and traumatized. Too exhausted to let my mind wonder any longer, I drifted off once more.

The following morning, I woke up in a strange room to a kaleidoscope of colored bottles swimming before me. I closed my eyes, counted to three and opened them again. The bottles spun into focus, a faint light illuminating the rainbow of stars being reflected from their halos onto a table and ground below. I felt a hand brush over mine and looked up to see Maya’s bright eyes blinking over me. She held out a cup of steaming hot tea. Pulling myself into a sitting position, my mouth tasting like I had swallowed a desert of dirt, I accepted the cup, took a huge sip and immediately spat out the horrid taste.

“Gross! What was that?” I croaked.

She pulled back and shot me a look of disappointment.

“It’s my favorite,” she said a matter-of-factly, looking down at the white sheets, ‘a tonic of ginger and lemongrass with some honey.” She ground her foot into the carpet.

I took another sip trying very hard to be open to the strange taste.

“Okay, it’s not
that
bad,” I croaked softly, in an attempt to soothe her disappointment.

She smiled, turned swiftly on her heal and threw some clothes at me with a weak smile.

“How are you feeling?” she asked.

“Not sure yet,” I replied, putting the cup down on the barrel-like side table. Rubbing vigorously at my eyes – it hit me. “I feel worse than crap,” I said.

“Get dressed. I know exactly what you need,” Maya declared, grinning at me.

My body swayed in protest as I forced myself to get up. I had to hold onto the bedpost to catch my balance. I pulled on the brown tights and slipped into the white sweater, which was way too big for me. Maya laughed and passed me my boots.

“Cute,” she said.

I shoved the feeling of anxiety back.
The Council will have my head for this
, I thought.

I put the boots on as quickly as I could. Quietly, we crept through the cottage and moments later made our way toward the marketplace, the sun rising over the ocean’s horizon. The deep purple sky, fading into soft lavender as it touched the dark blue water. Birds singing their hellos, it all felt so surreal. Never had I woken up to the beauty of the ocean, always staring into the rolling hills from my window, the ocean blocked from my view. Still feeling unsteady on my feet, I grabbed onto Maya’s hand as she lugged me through little foot paths. I glanced back at the quiet market place; too early for any of the stalls to be open, something I was thankful for. I did not feel like making a public appearance anytime soon. Rubbing at my eyes once more and trying to regain my focus on the view ahead, my mind touched on foggy memories of the day before, flashes of spears and dark figures – me, falling over the edge of the bridge. I felt nothing, no emotion, just the cold numbness. Coming to a stop near the water’s edge, we sat down on some rocks, waves gently rocking back and forth. The ocean was calm as was the air. I took in a deep salty breath, unlaced my boots and set them aside on the cold sand beside me. As the breeze gingerly ruffled my hair, I wrapped my arms around myself for warmth, closed my eyes, took in the cool air and listened to the water breaking softly below our feet, thankful for that moment – for I never knew what would happen to me once I returned. Maya was silent – too silent – but I was enjoying the calm after the chaos and I didn’t want to talk about the attack, the nightmares or anything else. Saying it would make it real. At that point it only felt like a very bad dream. I didn’t want to think about what might have happened to me, or to us. I wanted to climb back into bed and never show my face again. I bit down on my lip and shoved the guilt down, burying it beneath the surface. I spent a huge amount of time trying to withhold my feelings.
I should not have left Sam,
I told myself, but I then realized that perhaps it was better that I had as I wouldn’t want anything to happen to her.
Maya seems to be prepared, while Sam and I have no experience in self-defense,
I thought to myself. Time stretched out until it felt like we had spent the entire morning on the beach avoiding the world. The sun had slowly heated the rocks beneath us. I ran my hands over their warm surface wishing summer would return to Poseidon.

Maya and I eventually decided to return to the village before her Mother got too worried. As we neared the marketplace an unnatural hush flooded my ears. Maya and I looked at each other in a way that confirmed my suspicions, something was amiss. The usual hum from the hustle and bustle of the busy morning market was non-existent. An abrupt jolt struck the pit of my stomach as I grasped how much things had changed. Minoans stopping their daily routines had never happened in my lifetime on Poseidon. As we hurried through the valley, lush, green ferns swept drops of dew down the back of my boots, dampening my tights making them stick to my skin as we walked faster and faster along a narrow path that cut through the valley toward Arriana’s cottage. Rolling my sleeves up above my elbows, stroking the foliage as I scurried past, I marveled at how the plants had survived in the absence of rain. Spreading the droplets between my fingertips, I smiled to myself. The village surrounds were truly beautiful. I could see why Maya loved living here and thought that perhaps, I could one day make a living amongst these folks, away from tight rules and bad regulations. Built on the side of a mountain, little streams stretched between the little white cottage-like houses, oak and maple trees adorned every hill between the silver barks of silverwood trees. White stone bridges arched over pools of water in the distance. I imagined how this corner of Poseidon must have been engulfed in the bright colors of autumn a few years ago. But the loneliness of winter had lingered in the air and in my bones for far too long. The path was dimly lighted by the small amount of sun that stole through the thick twisting branches above. I hadn’t noticed the sheer beauty of the path in the early hours of the morning. I had been too overwhelmed by what I thought to be fatigue. At the end of the path, a small fence emerged out of an overgrown lawn. Maya walked to the small russet gate, it creaked softly as she swung it open. I picked up on Maya’s concern; I too felt the pinch of worry as we neared the little white cottage wedged tightly between two gigantic trees. We stepped onto the porch, our boots thumping on its surface and stood facing the front door silently. Maya hesitated giving me time to reflect on the round, timber door, adorned with golden hinges and strange symbols carved into its soft metal edges; the door that stood between me and my fate. Maya turned the beautifully engraved doorknob and the dark door swung open smoothly, the fire from within immediately touching our faces as we stepped inside from the cold. I hadn’t felt the reality of the cold until just then.

“Mom?” she said awkwardly.

Suddenly, Anaya welcomed us with a bow of her head from behind the door, like she was waiting for us, and then leaned down to kiss Maya on her forehead. Four older faces turned toward us. Their hair plaited behind their heads, deep crow’s feet around their crystal blue eyes, smiling solemnly out of politeness. They could have passed as identical quadruplets. All Minoans looked similar in that they all had the same tanned skin, square features, light eyes and straight, thick, black hair pulled tight against their heads. Maya bowed, punching me in the stomach to get me to mirror her.
Awkward
, I thought to myself as all eyes fell on me. A crowd had gathered in the small cottage, making me panic and think of how unwelcome I must have been just then. We were interrupting what seemed to be an assembly of elders and Minoan Council members. Recognizing the Council Symbols on their beads, I bowed hesitantly, not sure whether I should maintain eye contact as a sign of respect as we did for our kind. I decided to maintain eye contact anyway – it was my way. Their harsh faces broke into broad smiles as they returned the gesture, the laugh lines around their eyes, not crow’s feet as I had originally thought, deepening. Each Minoan Council member wore long, deep-purple caftans. Golden stitching circled the hems of the sleeves and meticulously woven symbols adorned the collars. Around their necks hung long strands of turquoise and pearl beads, which clattered as they stood back to let us pass. Their peaceful auras made me feel at ease as I passed by trying not to stare; they were a gorgeous race.