The Vision (14 page)

When I opened my eyes again the sun was ascending over the mountains, and sparkling the vall ey with hues of pink and orange. I blinked against the morning sky as I pushed myself to my feet. There was no sign of the vampire anywhere, but a pile of black ash stained the gravel.

I stretched out my back and headed across the cemetery to look for Aislin, trying not to think about the disturbing image I had seen, or my father’s unsettling words.

Aislin ended up being exactly where I left her. She was gathering up her candles, looking rather pleased, which I took as a good sign that maybe the spell had worked.

But when she caught sight of me, her pleased looked slipped into a frown. “You didn’t find her.” I gave her a funny look. “Who…Oh! Aleesa.” I shook my head. “I completely forgot.” I turned around, preparing to leave to go search for Aleesa.

“Wait, Gemma,” Aislin called after me. “Why is your leg bleeding?”

I glanced at my leg, scarred with the bloody marks of vampire fangs. Then I let out a heavy sigh and told her what happened.

“So you saw the streets burning and my father was there?” Aislin asked as we walked the streets, looking for Aleesa.

I nodded. “I almost wondered if, you know, it was like the prequel to the ice vision I saw—the one in Vegas where the streets were empty and frozen over…I’m not sure though….especially since my dad said I needed to prepare myself.”

Aislin let out a shudder as we crossed the street. “God, what if that’s what it means—what if that’s what actually happens.

“I don’t know…But, if anything, seeing that makes me want to get into the mapping ball quicker.” We hopped over the curb and started across the park’s lawn, hoping to spot Aleesa.

“I don’t think she’s here.” Aislin sighed worriedly. “Where would she go?”

I shook my head, worried about Aleesa too. She was so new to everything and I feared something might happen to her. But I was also worried about what my father had said—

that I needed to prepare myself. I mean, was he doubting I could save the world? I let out a frustrated sigh. Why couldn’t he just give me a straight answer?

“Who is that?” Aislin asked.

I followed her gaze to a car pulling up in front of the park.

“Ah, crap.”

Aislin’s face dropped. “Wait, is that your car?” It was indeed a Mitsubishi Mirage. The door opened up and Alex stepped out, looking pissed. At first I thought it was because we had snuck out of the house, but then I saw a pair of bright yellow eyes peer at us from the passenger-side window.

“Did you two lose something?” he asked, his hands tucked in his pockets as he walked across the lawn toward us.

Aislin let out a guilty laugh. “Where did you find her?” Alex shook his head, annoyed. “She came running into the house, screaming at the top of her lungs.” He paused in front of us. “When I got her to calm down, she told me you two were at the cemetery and that there was a crying fire woman there.”

“Hmmm…that’s weird,” I said, trying to keep Aislin from getting a lecture. “Maybe she imagined it.”

“It’s okay, Gemma,” Aislin said, then fixed her eyes determinedly on Alex. “Yes, we were at the cemetery doing a spell which is going to hopefully remove the Mark of Malefiscus.”

“I told you not to use that book,” Alex said flatly.

“Well, you know what, I used it,” Aislin said with a fire in her voice. “And I’m glad I did because the spell just might have worked….I just need to try it out…” Aislin looked at me. “I would like to try it out on your mom, but I understand if you want me to find another person with the Mark of Malefiscus.”

“Yeah, because those are easy to come by,” Alex interrupted.

“Easier than you might think,” I said. When he gave me a confused look, I told him about the vampire as we headed for the car.

“So, you were bit by another vampire?” Alex asked, his eyes burning wildly with rage. “Gemma—”

I covered his mouth with my hand. “It’s okay, I killed it, everything’s good.” I lowered my hand, shivering from the sparks that flowed at my fingertips. “Besides, we have much bigger problems to deal with.”

By the time we made it home, a nervous tension was bearing down on us.

“So what do you think it means?” Alex asked. “That you’re not going to be able to save the world.” We were parked in the driveway. Aislin climbed out, eager to go and try her newfound power on my mom, and Aleesa followed in after her.

I gripped the door handle. “Oh, I’m going to save the world,” I assured him with an alarming amount of confidence. “I’m going to go up to my room and read that book from cover to cover until I find out how to get a hold of this Purple Flame.”

He gave me an intense look that made me squirm in my skin.

“What?” I asked, shaking my head at the breathlessness of my voice.

He shrugged. “It’s nothing, it’s just that you have this take charge attitude…and I kind of like it.”

I made no reaction as I opened my door. “Well, you need to stop looking at me like that.”

He kept looking at me the same way. “I’ll try, but I can’t promise anything.”

I tried not to smile, because I knew it was wrong, but as I turned my back to him to climb out of the car, I couldn’t do anything but smile.

I did exactly what I said and went up to my room to look through the Foreseer’s book. Aislin was in with my mother, who had more than willingly agreed to be Aislin’s test experiment. Aislin said it might take a while to get her new power to work correctly, but once she did she would let me know if it worked. All I could do was cross my fingers that it would, not only for my mom’s sake, but for the sake of others as well. I mean, who knew how many people Stephan had marked against their will.

But things weren’t going very well. Aislin tried all day to get the power to work, without getting any results. By the time day had crept into the late hours of the night, she was drained dry and decided to get some rest and try again tomorrow.

But even after the house had settled into its deep sleep, I was still awake, reading through the Foreseer’s book, which seemed to be going on and on. Finally I tossed the book on the floor in frustration.

“Why can’t I find what I need…” I trialed off as I stared at the Foreseer’s book opened up on the floor.
The Power of
a Foreseer’s Mind.

Suddenly, I had an idea. I shut my eyes and focused all my attention on seeing what I needed. But all I could see was light.
See past the light, see what you need to see
.

The Purple Flame…the Purple Flame…the…Purple…

I was energized, glowing. I could feel the energy in me, about to burst like an erupting volcano.

“Open your eyes, Gemma” a familiar voice whispered.

I obeyed and opened my eyelids. The massive crystal ball, in the center of the City of Crystal, burned in front of me, bright like the sun. People were strapped to it, tubes embedded in their skin, feeding energy to the massive ball.

“What you need is not in the book, Gemma,” the voice purred softly in my ear. “It’s in there. Touch it and you’ll see.” I glanced at the crystal ball nervously as I stepped slowly toward it. Taking a deep breath, I reached my trembling hand out to the glowing ball. It seemed to magnetize to me, or I to it, pulling and pulling and pulling me toward it, begging us to connect. And when I placed my palm on it, a fire lit up inside me. My pulse raced as energy whipped through my body. I was charged—powerful. I pulled back, breathing heavily at the sight of the Purple Flame burning in the palm of my hand.

The Purple Flame.

“One of these days, you’re going to have to figure things out without me,” The voice said and this time I recognized the voice completely.

I turned around. “Nicholas…”

But the only thing there was the lingering smell of flowers.

My eyes shot open and I bolted upright, lifting my hand in front of me. There was no fire burning in it. But I knew what the answer was. I knew what I had to do.

I put my shoes on and grabbed the Traveler’s ball that had been left on my bed, figuring it was probably best to enter the city the correct way. Then I shut my eyes, and a few seconds later, I was gone.

I landed with the gracefulness of a cat, and I touched my finger to my shoulder blade, feeling a temporary moment of happiness for the mark. I was standing at the entrance of the cave where the red rubies waved across the snow-white crystal wall and dark red crystals pointed down from the glittering charcoal ceiling. I immediately took off towards where I knew the massive crystal ball burned bright, my feet softly thudding against the translucent crystal floor that covered the flowing midnight river. I ran passed the area where Laylen had knocked Nicholas out once, and charged by where Alex, Laylen and I had made our escape from the Death Walkers. I reached the pair of silver doors with the Foreseers mark on top and slipped quietly into the room.

My stomach instantly rolled at the sight of the bodies strapped to the giant crystal. Just like the first time I had been here, their eyes were still shut, their bodies still slack with tubes sticking out of their skin.

I walked towards the massive crystal ball, shining so brightly it hurt my eyes. Yet, I didn’t look away. I held my breath and tried to block out the human bodies on each side of me as leaned forward and put my hand to the crystal. Energy zapped through my body and my heart sped up so fast I thought it was going to explode out of my chest.

I couldn’t breathe. It was too much. I yanked my hand back and gasped at the sight of the Purple Flame burning in the palm of my hand.

I did it by myself. I took pride in this fact; a kind of pride I had never felt before.

Instinctively I shut my hand, and the flame poofed out. I opened it again and Ta-da! the flame ignited.

“Wow,” I muttered under my breath. I opened and closed my hand a few more times, watching in awe at the sight of the Purple Flame lighting up and smothering out. But, finally, I decided I better leave. I could play with the flame when I got back. I shut my hand, suffocating the flame, and headed to the door, slipping the Traveler’s ball out of my pocket. I had been warned once not to use the power of the Divination Crystal so close to the massive crystal ball that supplied all the energy, so I figured I would wander a ways back down the hall before I took myself home.

I cast one last glance back at the people strapped to the crystal ball, their energy being sucked from them. One day, I would come down here and free them all, even if it meant there would be no more Foreseers. The world could live without Foreseers. I mean, look at what my father had done.

I turned back to the door just as it swung open and smacked me in the face. The Traveler’s ball slipped from my fingers and crashed against the floor, breaking into pieces of glass and rubies.

“Crap.” It was a good thing I had a backup.

A man entered the room wearing a silver robe that matched his sliver eyes. His skin was pale, his hair grey, and I had seen him before.

“Gemma,” Dyvinius said, startled by the sight of me.

“What are you doing in here?”

“A…um…would you believe me if I said I was lost.” I said innocently.

He stared at me blankly, either not getting or not appreciating my sense of humor.

“Sorry.” I deliberated my options. I could go all ninja on him—I mean I was a Keeper now. But kicking an old guy’s butt didn’t seem right. So I let three seconds tick by, and then I ran.

My shoes skidded against the crystal floor as I barreled around the massive crystal ball. I wasn’t sure what to do.

Did I dare risk using my power so close to a crystal loaded with power?

“Gemma,” Dyvinius voice came from right behind me.

Wow, he was quick for an old guy.

I decided the heck with it and shut my eyes. It was definitely time to go. But I couldn’t feel it, there was no power. Had the Purple Flame sucked the power out of me?

“There’s no use trying, Gemma,” Dyvinius said, in his monotone-like voice. “I have the place on lockdown. No one may leave or enter, even with a unique Foreseer gift like yours.”

So Dyvinius knew about my gift. Why did this seem like such a bad thing? Oh, yeah, because it probably was.

And what was this lockdown business?

I opened my eyes, telling myself to stay calm. “What do you mean you have it on lockdown? And how do you know about…my gift?”

He gave me a small smile, which looked creepy on his unemotional face. “You are your father’s daughter, aren’t you? How could I not know?” He turned around, his silver robe swishing lightly across the crystal floor. “This way please. We have much to talk about.”

Having no choice but to follow, I trudged along after him as he walked out the door and down the translucent crystal path. He led me over the bridge paved with bits of broken porcelain, underneath the pill ars, and through the tall, silver doors, saying nothing to me the entire time. The longer we walked, the more worried I became. What if he wouldn’t let me go? Or worse, what if he let me go, but took the Purple Flame away from me?

When we reached his silver throne perched upon the blue sapphire podium, he took a seat and stared at me heavily with his silver eyes.

“Gemma, I’m not sure if you fully understand our laws,” he finally said. “But we have certain rules to which Foreseer’s are supposed to abide to. The first and most important being never tamper with visions.” He paused, placing his hands on his lap and overlapping his fingers. “I’m not sure if you’re aware of this or not, but your father broke this law a long time ago.”

“You know who my father is?” I fidgeted around anxiously.

“How could I not?” he said with a blank tone. “You look so much like him.”

Absentmindedly, I touched the corner of my eye. “Why didn’t you say you did the first time you met me?”

“Because, back then you weren’t who you are now,” Dyvinius said with a glint in his silver eyes. “I see you heading down the same road as your father did.” I wondered if by “see” he actually meant
see
. “What road?” I played dumb.

He leaned forward in his throne. “Has anyone told you what happened to your father?”

“No.” I lied, wanting to hear his side of the story.

“Well, he was a lot like you in the sense of his power,” Dyvinius explained, not looking very happy. “He could use the power of the Divination Crystal beyond the boundaries of an average Foreseer, beyond what even I can do.” Hmm…What was he getting at here?

“Your father has done some unforgivable things.” Dyvinius paused, considering something. “And because of that, he will forever pay—he will forever be a prisoner in the Room of Forbidden, alone in his own mind.” I shivered, still a little shocked by the idea that the Room of Forbidden was actually a place in his mind. I had been in my father’s mind. But I assumed that Dyvinius did not know about this.

“Changing visions is a dangerous thing, Gemma.” Dyvinius curled his pale, thin fingers around the edge of the arms of the throne. “And there is severe punishment for it.” Punishment? As in the Room of Forbidden? But how could this apply to changing a vision back to what it was to begin with? How could it apply when I would be saving the world? God, I hoped it didn’t apply, or else I would end up stuck in my own head, just like my father.

“Now, I hope you will take what I said and obey the laws.” His silver gaze bore into me. “I wouldn’t want you to end up like you father.”

“I won’t end up like him,” I assured him, hoping it was true.

“Good.” Dyvinius seemed pleased, but it was hard to tell for sure since the man hardly showed emotion. “You may go.” He gestured toward the tall, silver doors.

I didn’t even question why he was letting me go. I turned around and headed down the porcelain path for the tall, silver doors. It took all my will power not to take off in a mad sprint.

“Oh, yes, and Gemma?” Dyvinius called out.

I stopped, but didn’t turn around.

“I look forward to the day when you come back for your training,” he said in a way that made me wonder if he thought I was never coming back.

When I returned back to the house, Alex was awake, reading his mother’s journal. I didn’t know how long I had been gone, but enough time passed that the sun was rising up from behind the mountains and softly kissing everything with light.

I don’t think Alex would have even realized I had been gone if I hadn’t Foreseed my way into the living room instead of my room, something that was entirely done by accident because I had been using my power a little too much and my weakened state was making me lose some of my control.

My sudden appearance in the middle of the living room scared him so badly he actually leapt to his feet and reached for his knife that was on the coffee table. But once his brain processed it was me, he relaxed. That is, until he realized my sudden appearance meant I had snuck away somewhere.

“What…Where have you…” He was pushing on the verge of a freak out, but struggling to control it.

Hmmm…what would be the best way to handle the situation?

I opened my hand and the Purple Flame ignited.

His face froze in shock, but the anger left. “Where...how did you…”

I put out the flame, sat down on the couch, and started to explain.

“You saw Nicholas?” It was the first thing Alex asked when I finished my story.

“No. I didn’t see him. But Nicholas’ voice was there…he told me what to do.”

“Why didn’t you wake me up?” Alex sat on the couch across from me, looking both hurt and irritated. “Why didn’t you take me to the City of Crystal with you?” I shrugged. “I’m not sure…I guess I just thought it was something I should do on my own.” I paused. “And I think you and I needed a little break from one another.” Okay, he no longer looked hurt, just pissed. “You think we need a break from each other?”

“I didn’t mean it like that,” I said quickly. “It’s just that…

didn’t you feel a little…weird after we got out of the hiding spot at your house?”

He gave be a blank stare. “I didn’t feel anything at all.”

“Don’t be like that,” I said in a sharp tone and then added a polite, “Please.”

He continued to give me the same blank stare, but I could see the struggle flickering in his eyes. He was trying to turn it back on…his emotions, instead of being the old uncaring Alex. And then, suddenly, it flipped on like a light switch, and the look he gave me made me want to run up to my room—I should run up to my room.

“Have you ever thought about what you’re going to do, after you fix the vision and everything goes back to normal?” he asked, leaning over the coffee table toward me.

My heart knocked in my chest. “I’m still not even sure if I can…I mean, I don’t even know what’s going to be waiting for me in the mapping ball.”

He smiled softly. “I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You’ve done a lot of things that seem hard at first.” I gave him a strange look. Where was this coming from?

He got up from the couch and took a seat beside me.

“Alex, I don’t think—”

He cut me off. “Just give me a second. I promise I’ll back off before things get too intense, but I have to say something, okay?”

I nodded, my voice barely a whisper. “Okay.” He sat silently for a moment, running his fingers through his dark brown hair as he deliberated his words. “You know, you and I are the same, I think.”

I gave him a
duh
look and gestured between us, at the invisible electricity flowing between us. “Well, obviously.” He smiled amusedly, getting what I meant. “But that’s not what I’m talking about.” He shifted in his seat, his knee bumping into mine for a split second, but it was enough to send a shockwave of heat through my body. “I mean, we’re the same in the sense of how we think.”

“I don’t…” I furrowed my eyebrows. Was I…like Alex?

He continued to struggle to put his feelings into words, I could tell because it was something I often did. Okay, so maybe we were kind of the same.

“I mean, we’re the same in the way we think,” he finally said, letting out a loud breath. “Like for instance, how neither one of us thinks about the future.” He paused, waiting for me to tell him if he was correct or not—if I thought about my future.

And this sad and unsettling feeling passed over me as I realized I hadn’t—not really anyway. I had never pictured what I would be, where I would go, or what I would do.

“I don’t,” I said, shocked by this sudden revelation. “I don’t think about my future.”

“Neither have I, really.” Alex flopped back in the sofa, his face twisted with confusion. “All my life I’ve focused on one thing…and that was being the Keeper my father wanted me to be.”

I slowly leaned back against the sofa, my brain running a million-miles-a-second. What would I do when this was all over? What would I do if I saved the world? What would I do with my life?

“We could go somewhere,” he said, meeting my eyes.

“You and I.”

I raised my eyebrows. “Just you and me?”

He cocked an eyebrow at me. “Why so doubting? Think about it. You put the vision back to what it was, and we no longer have to worry about my father playing out his crazy world-ending plan and you and I can actually do whatever we want for once.”

“Whatever we want.” The words felt funny rolling off my tongue, but in a good way. “Where would we go?” He shrugged, his eyes twinkling in the pale pink light that was flowing through the living room window. “Where do you want to go?”

God, the possibilities were endless, yet I couldn’t choose one. “I don’t know…someplace warm, I guess.” He laughed softly and it was a genuine laugh; the kind of laugh that lit up his bright green eyes; the kind of laugh that made my heart skip a beat. “And we’ll fly there, like how normal people travel because we’ll have all the time in the world…” he trailed off, his face growing serious. “We’ll have all the time in the world to spend together….forever, like we promised.”

I would have said something, but I was choking on the rapid thudding of my heart. I looked away at the floor. It sounded like such a nice plan…and what if it actually ended up happening—could it actually happen?

I felt his fingers graze across the back of my neck—

across my Foreseer’s mark—moving downward until they were touching my shoulder blade where my Keeper’s mark was tattooed.

My eyelids fluttered.
Oh my God
.

“Gemma,” he whispered with so much want.

And suddenly I knew what I wanted. A life I had never pictured before—a life I never thought I could picture. I jumped up and left Alex sitting on the couch with his mouth hanging open. I barreled up the stairs and burst into my bedroom. I ran over to my dresser and grabbed the mapping ball from out of the top drawer.

Yes, I knew what I wanted more than anything.

I wanted to fix it all, so I could live a normal life with the boy waiting for me downstairs.