Eliza's Shadow (14 page)

As a consequence
of the inequality between tribes of humans, the severed growing majority became
increasingly suspicious and fearful of the magical minority. Over the
centuries, there were many unnecessary battles between the ordinary humans and
witches. To maintain peace, the magical minority receded further and further
from ordinary human culture developing a discrete society of its own,
coexisting amongst ordinary humans but shielding the existence of their bond
with Heka.

And so here you
are for what reasons, we do not know. You may be the product of a long
bloodline of the magical minority or you many not. It is possible the magical
gene, long dormant, has emerged within you and you are a rare aberration
amongst the tribe of severed humans. Regardless of your reasons for being, it
is important you understand your resources and your community.

By the fact that
this book has fallen into your hands, it is obvious you have been identified by
others of the Heka Society. Our society has citizens in every geographical
location and we make it our business, as one day you will, to identify others
of our kind and bring them into the fold. The governing body, the Heka Council,
is supported by the Heka Service. The Heka Service polices the behaviors of our
citizens. All members of the Heka Society will be asked to serve at least one
term in the Heka Service. If you have not already been contacted by your local
Service Agent when the time comes they will find you.

Good luck to you
in your growth and development. May this primer serve you well until it is time
for you to part.

Most
Sincerely,

Dr.
Atticus Abernathy, PhD Heka History

I gasped at the next page.

Table of
Contents

Lesson
One – The Discipline of Mind Manipulation

“How could it know?” I whispered without looking
up.

Ren clambered closer, his face hovered above the
Table of Contents next to mine. His cheek graced my skin lightly sending a
feathery ripple down my spine.

“Mmm… interesting. The book is not animate only
bewitched. It prescribes lessons that should be helpful to the student based
upon the student’s natural inclinations and gifts.” He said, studying the page.

“Why is there only one chapter?” I asked.

“It’s all you need for now, I suppose.” He said
with a shrug.

“Master it and more will follow.” His eyes shifted
from mine suspiciously. I wondered what he was holding back.

“How will it know when I’ve mastered the lesson? I
mean, I can read it obviously but that’s not exactly the same as mastering it,
right?” I asked. My level of concern rose as I reflected on the incident with
Jane. In the area of mind manipulation, I had a lot to learn.

Ren hesitated to meet my gaze. His fingers twirled
the beaten twig rapidly as his eyes met mine warily.

“Eliza, I should warn you. This is not like
school. These lessons are meant to prepare you for the absolute worst case
scenario you could possibly encounter. At times, the tests can be quite
difficult both mentally and physically. That’s why I’ve waited to give you the
primer until now.”

My heart fluttered and my ears grew hot.

“What do you mean? You’re making me nervous. I
know how to study. As long as I can study, I’ll be ok.” I stammered my eyes
locked with his firm gaze.

Ren’s expression softened. “Don’t fret but also,
don’t get too caught up on studying. Trust your instincts.” He offered,
scrambling to his feet.

“I guess you’d like to go home to begin your
studies.” He said, though I took it more as a suggestion than intuition.

I did have a gnawing desire to delve into my
newfound treasure.

“How could you guess?” I said with a hint of
sarcasm.

Ren leaned toward me and reached for my hand. I
tucked the book tightly under one arm before reaching for his in return. As he
pulled me up I rolled awkwardly off balance from protecting the book against my
side. My foot slid out from under me. As if in slow motion, I watched the
lantern crash to the ground. The glass shattered instantly. A rivulet of oil
slid from the cracked lantern and within seconds the flame raced after it
chasing the slick into the grassy field.

The tendril of fire dashed across the open field
toward the rocky cliff. Panic ripped through my chest as I steadied myself and
reached for the flame as if attempting to catch it. Suddenly a gust of wind
rolled in from the ocean, feeding the trickle of fire. The dry grass ignited
and drew the fire across the field at an alarming rate.

I found myself alone in the field surrounded on
three sides by the fire. Frantically, I searched the landscape for Ren. The
blaze grew bright and hot. Its fingers reaching ever higher for the sky, sparks
popped and exploded all around me crackling menacingly. Smoke clouded my vision
and irritated my lungs. The light made it difficult to see into the darkness.
Several yards from my side, movement caught my eye.

Ren had dashed to a spot precariously positioning
himself between the spreading blaze and the forest. From my weary assessment he
was pinned within a few feet of the dense woods. The wall of fire seemed to
lick and taunted him. He crouched low as if positioning to attack and spread
his arms wide at his sides. His face was fixed in a calm mask of concentration,
his eyelids low leaving slits for vision.

I assessed my position and scrambled to cobble
together a plan of action. The blaze was rapidly engulfing the field but would
likely slow considerably when it reached the forest line. It seemed the only
logical move would be to run as fast as possible to the car to escape the fire
then contact the emergency services. I considered the gravity of my terrible,
clumsy mistake. What a stupid fool, I was.

Despite my shaky limbs, I managed to scramble
awkwardly to Ren’s side. I was surprised to find him breathing deeply and
staring with concentration into the wall of fire. His body was poised, legs
bent and slightly askew one before the other, arms wide, back and neck straight
and sure. Though the strain of the position and the waves of heat rolling
against him should have caused him to perspire, he appeared cool and peaceful.

In my state of increasing panic my instinct was to
attack him and drag him with me through the woods to safety but something
penetrated the fog of terror and stopped me in my tracks. A sense of calm and
presence of mind returned. Though I stood within no more than two feet of a
hungry wall of flame I began to relax and focused on Ren’s face, his arms and
hands. He didn’t turn or acknowledge my presence in any way, yet I was certain
he was as aware of me as I was of him. The pounding blood in my ears receded
replaced with the crackling pops and creaks of the fire and muffled puff of the
sea wind meeting the flame.

I realized then that Ren was no longer still. He
was gently moving his arms inward and had begun to inch ever so slowly closer
to the wall of fire before him. As I watched his careful creep, I noticed that
the ground he stood upon was black, charred by flames. It occurred to me in a
sudden flash that he was attempting to corral the blaze. He repeated the gentle
motion sweeping his arms out to his sides and bringing them in to the center
stopping short of joining his hands and crept forward.

After the first few feet receded it appeared that
the blaze was retreating at an increasingly rapid rate. Within minutes, I could
see the entire perimeter, which shrunk at an equal rate from every point,
resulting in an orb of fire.

With the fire a safer distance from the woods, I
became aware of the chorus of rustling and cracking in the dark at my back.
Hesitantly turning to locate the origin of the sound, I found an array of
glassy eyes reflecting the orange light of the fire, their keepers safely
guarded by tree limbs and shadows. Careful not to draw attention to my
presence, I edged away from the tree line in pursuit of Ren.

By the time I reached him, the fiery orb was no
larger than a boulder on the beach and shrinking fast. Ren was standing at full
height, easily pushing the flame into submission. As it shrunk to the size of a
candle, Ren stooped carefully and reached for the benign ball of light.

“Here we are.” He said quietly and extended his
hand toward me.

His fingers retracted revealing the flame like a
firefly on his palm. I blinked at the little light too shocked to form the
words of apology that could only begin to describe my regret.

“Should we keep it?” Ren asked earnestly frowning
at the light flickering in his hand.

I wrinkled my nose and shook my head. If I never
saw that fire again it would be too soon.

He slammed his fingers over the tiny flame and
brought his fist to his lips. With a puff into the cavern of his fist, the
flame vanished. A wry grin appeared on his lips.

“Could have happened to anyone.” He said and
lightly patted my shoulder. Turning from me, he scanned the forest edge before
walking casually in that direction.

I sighed with relief, gratitude, and a new deeper
sense of embarrassment for my clumsy mistake. For a moment I considered staying
in the field and making my way home in the morning light. The thought of
crawling back into Ren’s car and enduring the silent drive home seemed too much
to bear. But a brisk wind whipped over the cliff carrying the scent of scorched
earth and it caused me to reconsider wallowing on the seared field until
sunrise. Shamefaced, I plodded in Ren’s footsteps. Odd noises bobbed in his
wake. As we neared the tree line, Ren slowed.

Too uncomfortable to instigate conversation, I hung
a few feet behind him, waiting for him to make a move. He made soft, shushing
noises and motioned for me to join him. Intrigued, I crept to his side.

“I’m telling them that all is well and they should
go about their business.” He whispered.

Dulled from the stress of the evening events my
mind was slow to process his meaning.

“Who? Oh! The animals?” I asked.

“Sounds as if a mass stampede was about to ensue.”
He said softly, his eyes focused on the trees.

My ears pricked with alarm.

“Over the cliff? Wow, that would have been really
bad. Not that it wasn’t bad enough.” I stammered.

“Oh no, not this direction, away from the fire, of
course. They’re not suicidal.” He said and laughed.

“That should do.” He said mostly to himself with a
final sweep of the dark.

Turning his attention to me, Ren reached for my
arm and urged me back to the field.

“We should wait until the path has cleared.”

I nodded absently following him back onto the
charred ground. Reaching a suitable distance from the forest, Ren flopped to
the earth and groaned with exhaustion. I sank to the ground next to him and sat
stiffly with my knees pulled to my chest.

After a few moments of silence, I couldn’t contain
myself any longer.

“Ren…I … I’m so sorry. Really, that was stupid. I
can’t believe that happened.” I said meekly.

By now, the moon had taken a more commanding
position in the sky. The deep blue of its canvas had turned a fathomless black.
A harsh wind from the sea bit my cheeks and chilled my bones as it whipped
around my face and penetrated my clothes.

Ren sighed again expelling what sounded like
frustration.

“Eliza, I said it could happen to anyone and I
meant it. Stop murdering yourself about it, will you? I’m so tired.” He moaned
and let himself fall backward laying his head on his outstretched arms.

I hugged my knees tighter, still reeling from the
fear and panic of the evening and unwilling to forgive myself. The cold wind
froze the small tears that gathered in the corners of my eyes.

Ren tugged lightly on my coat sleeve.

“Why don’t you lay back a moment and look at the
stars with me? We need to leave soon.” His plea tinged with disappointment.

Reluctantly, I lowered myself to the ground, the
freshly singed grass crunched below my head. A smoky musk wafted up to my nose
but the wind quickly whisked it away. Ren lay comfortingly close without
touching me. I detected his even breathing beneath the muffled din of the
gusting sea wind.

The moon had grown large and distinct enough to
see the grey patina of its surface with the naked eye. I squinted my eyes
focusing on the imperfections, like grains embedded in marble.

The fire was an accident and no one was hurt, I
reminded myself. Really, it had just been the perfect ending to a day pocked
with mistakes. I closed my eyes against the radiance of the moon and its
minions. Mistakes were to be expected, I thought, and clutched the book at my
side. The ground beneath me had grown cold and I shivered.

Ren’s arm dropped to my side. His fingers ran down
my sleeve and found my hand, gently encasing it. I struggled to swallow the
lump that caught in my throat. He made no attempt at conversation but squeezed
my hand. I forgot the cold, my attention absorbed by the warm fingers wrapped
around mine.

“Well, I think it’s safe to walk the path now. We
better get going before we freeze to death.” He said still firmly clasping my
hand. He rolled to his side and pulled me to my feet.

10

I climbed the stairs with effort,
my feet plodding ahead as if strapped to bricks. The hollow echo of my
footsteps in the stairwell aggravated my nerves. My palms sweated and slipped
against the binding of the primer in my hand. Glancing at my watch I noticed it
was only eleven o’clock, though it felt much later. As I climbed and considered
Ren’s words of warning, I fought with the idea of delaying my studies until the
next day. Was I ready? Would I ever be? Did it matter? From the moment the book
slipped into my possession, I sensed the wheels of something greater had begun
to creak.