Opulent (The Opalescent Collection Book 1) (17 page)

I
walked across sun-lit hills with Versailles trailing behind me on small stick legs. We came to a clearing where there were no trees and the only sound to be heard was the sound of running water. Versailles jumped ahead and pawed curiously at the soft ground. Each time she did so there was a splashing noise, but there was no water in sight. I looked down at the grass and saw my own reflection. 

“This is water…invisible water.”

              I dipped my hand down toward the ground to see if the water was actually there and found the chill and wet feel of the invisible element. The sky swirled a dim, eerie overcast and a loud crash echoed in the distance. The unicorn’s ears pricked forward in alert and then she cowered behind my legs for protection. I lifted her into my arms. There was a loud rumble of thunder and lightning cracked across the sky. The immensely strong winds pushed me back and my cape whipped in the air behind me as though a helicopter was about to land.

              Then a shape, a large distorted shape with a rigid outline, rose from behind the mountains, blocking whatever sunlight that shone through the black clouds. Then there was a sound of metal against metal, or even a train coming to a screeching stop, but a thousand times worse. I screamed, my ears pulsating from the deafening noise. I fell to my knees and huddled over the petrified unicorn until it was silent again.

              Her rapid pulse thrummed against my body as I looked up at the coal black sky. Versailles had her head pressed to my chest and her small horn stabbed me, but barely concerned me. Once I mustered up the courage to stand on shaky legs and look around, the ground began to quake. I looked back, heard the deafening noise again and saw the shape shimmer with vibrant colors. The color exploded in a wave of unbearable heat. It was raining fire.

              With nowhere to run to, I held my breath and jumped into what I thought would be the invisible water, but it was no longer there. The fire singed my back and my cape was suddenly ablaze. I threw it off and turned. The hills, it seemed, were steeper and I could not climb them. There was nowhere to escape.

              The fire stopped falling and the black shape advanced. It swooped down from the mountains and the screech came again. I huddled over the unicorn and felt the heat overcome me. Once I turned, the black shape stood over me like a fifty story building. I looked over to see that Valiant was gone. There was a loud hiss and I could not move.

“No,” was all I managed to say before I fainted.

              The air around me was hot and suffocating and I stayed where I was, in a shallow puddle of water. Versailles was nudging me awake. She was all right. I sat up and froze. The black shape stood, appearing gray against the starry sky. It sensed I was awake and moved closer. It bent over to see me with its dark slits for eyes and suddenly burst into flames with a horrible cry. I backed up quickly with Versailles beside me. Valiant flew onto my shoulder, his feathers tight against his body, watching in horror. The shape took form of a bird, a large bird unfathomable to existence. Fire covered its body from head to tail. Only its eyes were untouched by the flame. The two coal black eyes stared at me for a long time.

“Who are you?” The dark voice asked.

“I am Chenille.”

“Chenille what?”

“Chenille Noir, Queen of Catastrophe.”

              The coal black eyes studied me more closely. “What business do you have here?”

“The Star Pool…,” I breathed and gazed down at the invisible water that now reflected the night sky and all of the diamond stars.

“You are looking at it,” he remarked.

“I need answers. I need to find my son!”

              He looked down at the pool and back to me. “The Star Pool is dangerous. It may show you your deepest desires or your deepest fears.”

“I have a unicorn with me.”

              The bird laughed. “Do what you must, but I will warn you that if you use my Star Pool, you shall do whatever I please for as long as I request.”

“I don’t have that kind of time.”

              He shrugged. “Your choice to make.”

“Who are you anyway?”

“I am Obsidian, the great guard of the Star Pool, the last of the giant phoenixes.”

              Valiant flew from my shoulder and turned into his phoenix form to bow at the feet of the great bird.

“I must use the Star Pool.”

“Not tonight.”

“But why?”

“Because that is what I say.”

              I turned away. “Then I will just have to leave.”

“You can’t do that either. You are prohibited to leave until I say.”

              Escaping was an impossible task. Over a weeks’ time passed by and I begged to use the Star Pool every night and each time received the same dreadful answer.

“Come with me.” He said one night.

              Versailles and Valiant stayed by the Star Pool and waited for me while I traveled with the phoenix.

“I have no more goat milk to give to Versailles and without it she will die.”

“Teach her to graze like a unicorn mother would.”

“And what about me? What will I eat?”

“What would you like?”

              I shrugged. “I don’t know.”

“The nearest village is maybe fifty miles or so away and there is no way that I would leave the Star Pool unguarded for that long to travel there.”

“Couldn’t I go?”

              Obsidian stopped walking and poked me sharply with his beak. “You must think I have feathers for brains,” he hissed. “You shouldn’t possibly think I am stupid.”

              I continued to walk and he flew in front of me like a fiery bullet. “You are foolish.”

              I folded my arms impatiently. “Why did you take me out here anyway?”

“I took you out here so you would take your mind off of the Star Pool.”

“How could I? My son’s life is on the line and I don’t know where he is! I need to use the Star Pool! Don’t you understand?” I cried.

              He looked down at me gravely. “Follow me then.” He went back to the Star Pool and I followed close behind.

“Fine. Have your friend test the powers of the Star Pool.” He nodded toward Valiant.

              The little bird walked up to the water and glanced up at Obsidian. “Think of what you want most.”

              Valiant looked down at the water and it shimmered with many colors. In the distance there was fire lighting the sky. There were dozens of phoenix-like birds flying above the pool. Valiant looked back at me and then flew straight for his dream in the distance, when he smashed into something and burst into flames. It was as if a force field separated the dream from reality.

“Valiant! Oh what did you do? Bring him back!” I screamed to Obsidian.

              The bird shook his head. “This is what the Star Pool does. The Star Pool revealed his dream and he went for it. Once he realizes it is a dream, he might return. Or he might not.”

              I went to put my hand into the water when the bird’s beak snapped at me.

“Do you not understand? Do you want to turn out like your friend and many others that have attempted to try the Star Pool’s power? Its power is so great it haunts dreams making the good and the bad. It plays a big role in dreams and it is so that if one is having a dream, they must realize it is not reality for them to escape from it. Those that struggle with this often remember their dream as one they never forget...as a nightmare that haunts them.”

“Why would a unicorn recommend for me to come here if it is so dangerous then?”

              The bird shrugged his shoulders. I thought back to a dream I once had. “I had a dream, it was horrible. It expressed both my fears and desires. There was a glass wall in the dream-,”

“Did you break through?”

“I did. It shattered at my feet.”

              He looked at me calmly. “You had broken through the barrier between your desires and fears. Which side won?”

“My fears won.”

              He looked away. “Don’t tell me I didn’t warn you. You broke through the barrier in your dream…but who knows what could happen to you. All I can say is don’t forget that what you see may be a vision and if so it is real. If you get overwhelmed by your fears, you may not be able to tell what a dream is and what reality is.”

              I hesitated briefly and went for the water. The colors shifted and all the stars began to move in the reflection. I saw a young woman in a red dress and heavy black cape - Tetchra.  She held Fitzray in her arms, a smirk on her face. Hundreds of creatures passed her on the Bridge, all going to Earth. The stars revolved faster and faster until horror filled my eyes. The worst was going to happen, I knew. The sights and sounds became so real I screamed as loud as I could, but nothing changed. It became worse.

              I heard a voice echo my own. Pete appeared and pushed me aside, pulling me away from the pool. There was the screech of metal and Obsidian erupted in a fiery blaze, causing fire to cascade around the pool, preventing escape.

“Nobody touches anyone near the pool without my consent!”

              A golden beak shot from the fire and hit Pete with a mighty force.  Beside me came a cry.

“Mama!” It was Versailles.

              She stood close to the Star Pool and Obsidian pushed her closer toward the center where the deepest water was. I ran to her, knee-deep in water, and spread out my arms.

“Why are you doing this?”

“Don’t you see? The reason to have a unicorn at the Star Pool is so you can pay me for using it.”

“You can’t have Versailles!”

“I think it is too late for that,” the bird replied.

              I looked over to see the unicorn on her side in the water. There was a voice close to my ear. “She isn’t going to make it. Her pulse is dropping…pulse is dropping,” the voice said.

              A hand touched my shoulder, pulling me from the pool. The phoenix let out a scream and a wall of fire rose up and blocked my view. I faced Pete, felt metal scrape across my back and fell to the ground.  My body was suddenly bound to the ground by twigs. That did not make any sense. The voice came again calling my name, a voice I knew so well, calling out to me. I tried to call back and it became quieter and quieter still. A soft humming filled my ears, like muffled words I could not understand.

“Chenille, come to me. Listen to my voice. Listen to the words I speak. Open your eyes and decide what is true, Chenille.”

              My head, now in a complete daze, felt heavy and delusional.

T
he wind blew lightly over frozen, dewy grass. I woke with warmth pressed to my face. A figure hunched over me with its face pressed to mine, when suddenly the warmth departed and the chill stuck fast. I met dark eyes filled with relief.

“Your visions are over at last. I was afraid you would get lost in your own head, but I brought you back,” Pete whispered.

              I shifted uncomfortably with a searing pain flowing down my spine.

“A griffin came out of nowhere,” he continued, “and it scratched you. It’s gone now.”

              He looked down at me and smiled a dazzling smile.

“You were never like this…never like this on your planet.”

“I was enraged for all the wrong reasons and if I could go back, trust me, I would.”

“Were you angry with me?”

“No, not at all. I was going through the phase of every vampire’s life, back on my planet. I had stopped drinking blood and was drawn to yours. I was fed up with jealousy, but I would go back and I would have treated you better than what I did.”

“But you can’t change it.”

“You are right. I am still your Eternal Mate though and if a day came when you chose me instead of Lucian, we would be impenetrable. Our bond could split universes.”

              I closed my eyes. “That would never happen.”

              He smiled again, his gaze shifting to Versailles who ran over to us on unsteady legs.

“Mama,” she said, rubbing her head against my arm.

              I looked from the corner of my eye where Obsidian stood nearby. A large crow bowed before him and placed a large chunk of bread at his feet.

“For the great firebird,” it cried.

              The crow turned and looked at me with its beady little eyes and took a hop forward. One wing drooped to the ground and it struggled with its balance. Obsidian gobbled down the bread and walked up to the crow.

“Many thanks for the generous donation,” the phoenix replied.

              Pete got to his feet and held out a hand. Grabbing it, I felt my legs wobble, but he kept me steady. The crow still stared at me and tilted its head back, letting out a cry. Its body became a black blur and formed into a woman with a red dress and heavy cape. It was Tetchra.

              She looked at me and whispered words. These words made me dizzy and weak.

“It is a spell...the one mortals used to sing when under threat of a vampire attack,” Pete whispered in disbelief.

              A shout came from the distance and I looked weakly in the direction from which it came.

             
No, why has Moran followed? He shouldn’t have come
, I thought.

              Moran seemed to be walking in slow motion as my thoughts lost clarity. His body seemed to change completely. He was taller and stronger. His eyes became lighter. He turned into the vampire I knew and loved. Moran was really Lucian all this time.

              He stood alert, aware of the shape shifter’s spell-like lullaby. He ran toward me, put out a hand and began to speak. The words he yelled twisted Tetchra’s words and made them different, altering what she said to sound like nonsense, like a jumbled mess.

              She stopped at once, her gaze angrily settled over Lucian as she changed into a large black horse. Before she could move, Jasper landed and blocked her escape. Quickly she transformed into a black butterfly with tattered wings and flew, dodging each vicious swipe of Jasper’s claws.

              Lucian ran to me and placed a hand to my pale face. “I am going after Tetchra. I have stayed hidden from her for a while and now I must go and find our son.” He said.

“Pete and I can help you-,” I began.

“No! I don’t want you to get hurt, you are too weak. Go back to the palace where I know you will be safe.” He looked over to see the black butterfly flying higher away from Jasper.

“I have to go. Please go back to the palace. I will end this.”            

              With a swish of his cape, he ran to Jasper and together they were off. I slumped in front of Pete and waited for Versailles to come over to me.

“If only we knew where Tetchra was going, we could beat her there,” Pete said.

              I ran my fingers through the unicorn’s short mane and froze once Obsidian landed before us.

“There is a blizzard coming this way. I must retreat to the mountains. As for you, there is a small house that will offer you shelter a mile or so west of here.”

              He bid his farewells to us and flew up on flaming orange-gold wings. Pete led the way in the direction the phoenix had told us to go and Versailles pranced beside me.

“How long did you know that Moran was really Lucian?”

“I didn’t know at all.”

“When did you leave the house?”

“As soon as I got your letter.”

“You sound a lot better.”

“I get over colds pretty fast.”

              The dirt pathway became darker and dismal as the storm clouds raced over our heads. Pete’s snowy owl looked back toward me with golden eyes, searching the empty space on my shoulder for Valiant. Sadly, she turned and rose to the sky with a sharp cry. She broke through to a clearing where a small, decrepit house barely stood.

“Here we are.” I heard Pete mumble.

              I watched from the small window to the calm landscape outside. It was motionless like time itself was frozen. Beneath my crossed legs I saw grass breaking through decayed floors. Versailles kept her head down, looking around with scared eyes, aware of the storm that was to come. Pete looked around uneasily at the ceiling that was on a dangerous slant and then followed my gaze outside. He knew the ceiling would not hold as I did and was probably pondering the outcomes we would have to face if it did not. I said nothing, not to interrupt his thoughts. He sat beside me, eyed the window again, and rested his head in his hands.

“If you were Tetchra, where would you run to?”

“I don’t know what her intentions are, do I? Her intentions would relate to where she was going.”

“What does she want from us?”

“I don’t know,” I whispered helplessly.

              The house began to shake. The cold air seeped through the cracks in the walls and covered the floor with a light sprinkle of snow. Hail pelted the roof, the wind blowing even harder.

“Stay close to me.”

              Versailles cowered under my arm, pressing her head into my side. The wind blew to the extent of the door flying open, revealing the dark chill of a monster we hoped we would not have to encounter. The snow found its way in and piled up quickly. My Eternal Mate held me close, my head spinning for a moment, and then I remembered something.

“If you have read the book you shall find the key to save the Bridge and us from destruction.”

“What are you talking about?”

“An old woman told me that if I have read the book I will save the Bridge.”

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Well, what is the
book
?”

“That can be anything. You expect
me
to know?”

“The book…
your book perhaps
?”

“My book. You mean my journal?”

“Yeah, do you have it with you?”

              He stuck a hand into his cape pocket and pulled out the small black book with silver lettering on its cover.

“Ok, now to find a key. Did you ever mention a key?”

“I don’t think so.”

              He began to flip through the pages shaking his head and paused once he reached the last page. On the inside of the back cover there was a tab indicating a sort of secret compartment that I had never noticed before. He fingered the tab as he bit his lip and shifted his gaze toward the ceiling that let out a loud cracking noise. The roof was crumbling under the harsh pressure of hard packed snow and ice. Without warning, he stood, pulled me to my feet and threw me. I flew into glass, an icy chill embraced my body and I slammed into wet snow. The only sound I could hear was a cry of disparity.

“Mama! Mama! Ma-,” And then I could hear nothing but the loud smash of the snow bringing the roof to its end.

              The snow covered me in a blanket, leaving me numb and alone. There was nothing else in the blackness of the winter night but the smooth glow of the silver lettering of Pete’s black book beneath Clesta’s beam of orange light.

* * * * *

              When I realized I was awake, I sat up aching with cold. Versailles was beside me, wedged under my cape. I strained my eyes through the snow and spotted a patch of black on the ground. It was the book. I picked it up, placed it in my pocket and reluctantly turned to face the house. Its roof had collapsed and nothing was standing. There was only a pile of debris. Pete was not within sight.  His snowy owl swooped down from the pile of broken wood and landed gracefully on my shoulder.

              I turned to the sky where heat filled the air, turning the falling snowflakes to rain. Obsidian landed before me. The deep snow melted around him.

“I heard a crash-,” he paused and looked startled at the fallen house. “Are you all right?”

“Yes, but I can’t seem to find my friend, Obsidian.”

              The phoenix walked around the house and searched under everything, but shook his head. I brushed the snow from my pants and stared at the bird.

“We shouldn’t stay here. Please, take me to shelter.”

              Obsidian bowed his head and flew above me, scanning the ground below. I walked with Versailles who played in the falling snow. I failed to realize that I was standing on a pond, only a sheet of ice separating me from the water below. A deafening noise made me jump and then the ice under my feet split into billions of cracks.

“Look out,” a musical voice cried. An icy blue blur flew past me and before I could react, I was laying in a bank of snow. Someone shook me conscious, a kind voice calling for me to wake. I rubbed my eyes. A mermaid sat before me. Her tail consisted of light blue scales. Her aquamarine eyes sparkled when she saw my eyes open.

“Oh I am so sorry. The ice was breaking…I…I had to push you…I didn’t mean it, honestly,” she stuttered nervously.

“You saved me. That is nothing to be sorry for.”

“But still-,” she began.

“What is your name?”

“My name is Willow.”

“I am sure you know my name, right?”

“Oh, of course! You are Queen Chenille Noir.”

“You may call me Chenille.”

“Oh, what can I do to repay you for my mistake?”

“It wasn’t a mistake Willow,” I paused and looked down at the water, “but can you contact a friend of mine?”

“Yes. What is your friend’s name?”

“Princess Pearl.”

“Oh yes, yes I know her.” She smiled and went over to the water, gazed deeply into its calm, icy surface and gestured to me.

              Pearl’s face appeared in the water, like a reflection, clearly distressed. She rubbed the little snake Aura on her neck.

“Chenille,” she said, startled. “What a surprise! How is your journey going?”

“It could be better. How is it at the Bridge?”

“Uh...fine I guess.” There was shouting in the background.

“You
guess
? What’s going on over there?”

“Everything is under control. Don’t worry about a thing!”

              A blue dragon’s face filled the picture, pushing Pearl aside. “Minx! What is going on there?”

“Someone was spotted on the Bridge!” Pearl jabbed him with her elbow and her face appeared on the water’s surface again.

“But everything is fine, so don’t worry.”

“I am coming for you Mistress!” Minx cried, flapping his wings. “Where are you?”

“I am just a little west of the Star Pool.”

“I will be there in a few hours, stay where you are!”

              The water shimmered for a few seconds and Pearl’s face faded into a ripple of water. I looked up at Obsidian with a hard frown. “I need you to do me a favor.”

              The bird bowed his head before me and studied me. “And what will that be?”

“I will stay here and wait for Minx, but Versailles cannot come. It’s too dangerous for her. I need you to take her to my palace and then meet me at the Bridge. I have a plan.”