The Awakening (44 page)

26

W
e stood underneath the hulking picture. Gabriella kneeled down and gestured for me to copy. We stayed that way in complete silence for a moment until I felt the familiar grip of electricity. A voice emanated from within the painting.

“Alexander, Gabriella. Is everything alright? You both seemed troubled.”

My friend spoke without moving her lips, but I could hear her words perfectly, like we were on a telepathic conference call. “We are Faru. Please can we have a moment of your time?”

“Of course.”

With that we shuddered and were released from the grip. I stared in wonder as the picture began to swirl around like fresh paint on a canvass. At the bottom, where the end of Faru’s beard had been, the hole appeared. It grew in size until it filled most of the painting. The glass steps emerged from the middle and came to rest just in front of where we were knelt. Gabriella stood up and hurried inside, pulling me with her. As soon as we were through, the steps retracted and the painting was sealed again.

We made our way along the strangest corridor I’d ever seen. The floor underneath our feet looked like tropical ocean water - complete with rippling waves - but felt as solid as concrete. A run of silver trees like the ones I’d seen in the Sanctuary stood next to one another. They were so close together that you could barely see where one finished and the next began. Their branches arched over our heads, knitting together whilst their glowing leaves bathed the hallway in a warm golden light. A set of ornate doors at the far end swung open by themselves.

Inside was even more beautiful. The floor looked identical to frosted ice, but rippled like silvery water with every step we took. The walls were moving strips of light that rolled around each other and settled in different positions. They were solid one moment and transparent the next. Majestic plants the height of bungalows - with leaves of the brightest yellow- stretched up from the ground, giving the room a bright summerlike feeling. A spiralling silver staircase at the back of the room appeared to ascend into a patch of swirling blue clouds. A work bench stood in one corner. The half formed torso of a Golem sat on top, surrounded by numerous carving tools.

Faru was standing in the middle of the room, behind a shimmering crystal desk, which appeared to be hovering a few feet from the ground. Amusingly, placed on the desk were painfully ordinary items, like a cordless telephone and stack of newspapers. He was looking through a large rectangular book. Closing and setting it aside, he gestured towards the space in front of the desk.

“Please take a seat.”

I looked around confused by the clear lack of chairs. I watched as Gabriella motioned to sit down. In an instance, a shimmering silver tube reached up from the floor and flattened out into a circular surface, like a pin. It collected Gabriella and moulded itself to her shape. I shrugged and did the same. I was caught by a surprisingly warm, comfortable seat.

Faru sat down himself. Placing his elbows on the desk, he leaned forward. “I am assuming that this has something to do with Sophia’s sudden recovery.”

Gabriella and I exchanged a glance. “Among other things,” I said.

We told him everything, taking it in turns. About how I’d been dreaming of The Sorrow and how we suspected that there was a Rogue in the base. We reiterated about me somehow healing Sophia through Gabriella. We finished with the crazy events that had happened at Moon’s Edge. We told him what the voice had said, reading from the back of my handbook, where I’d written it down word for word.

Once we’d finished, Faru didn’t say anything for a long time. He simply sat stroking his beard between his finger and thumb, like a philosopher musing on the meaning of life.

My stomach lurched. “Wait, you
knew
? How could you know?”

He tapped two fingers against his temple. “When I merged minds with you, I saw everything. Including the nightmares.”

“How could you keep this from him? It’s his life!” Gabriella half-screamed, ignoring her usual manners around the Sage.

Faru raised a hand. “Please settle down Gabriella, I can understand your distress, but let me reassure you. It was not my intention to permanently hide the truth from Alexander, but merely to avoid unnecessary panic, until I had a clear solution to the problem and more details about why he was being targeted.”

My heart was pounding. I wanted to ask if he’d sealed the Veil. Or why he hadn’t told the other Sages he knew for sure. But I couldn’t. He’d know I’d been the one spying. Looking at Gabriella, I could tell she was thinking the same thing. Her expression was a mixture of horror and disbelief.

“Hopefully I can further alleviate your concern. The moment Rachel returned through the Veil, I used Fae magic to seal it. The Sorrow cannot travel through whilst that seal remains in place.”

I breathed a sigh of relief.
It’s done.

“But there are other doorways. Surely it could just come through those,” Gabriella countered, playing the game, even though we both knew the answer.

“We shall use our allies in Pandemonia to keep track of The Sorrow’s movements. As The Sorrow approaches each section of the Veil, we shall seal it and open the previous, effectively creating a moveable barrier. It will never reach Earth.”

“That’s a good plan,” I said and meant it.
I really hope it works.

“The four Elementals are the closest creatures to Gods in Pandemonia and are worshipped as such by the Luminar,” explained Faru. “They are as old as time itself and can see past, present and future simultaneously. They are mostly benevolent and seek only to exist in peace, rarely ever making contact with the world. Dragons however, the creatures worshiped as divine by the Umbra were malevolent. They were the first to pass through the veil, wreaking havoc on both sides. Eventually the other Elementals joined together to block Dragon’s foresight, allowing them to be slain by Chosen. After that, the Elementals retreated back to where they came from. But sometimes they release their words into the ether, and on certain occasions those words are picked up by those who can reach into the ether.

“Do you mean like a prophecy?” frowned Gabriella.

“I suppose you could call it that yes. Because their words transcend time, they can often speak of events that have not yet occurred.”

I suddenly remembered the tapestries I’d seen in the Temple. “Wait a second...when Selene touched me, I saw an image of a giant face made from trees and grass and stuff, like that picture in the Temple,” I said.

Faru nodded. “Then that confirms it. The words are Lafelei’s, the Earth Elemental. Hades has somehow managed to hear the words before we did.”

“Firstly you must understand that each soul is completely unique, like a fingerprint. The energy it gives off carries its own unique frequency. That is how I am able to single out and communicate with individual people when I need to. However, I noticed something when I compared the two of yours together.”

“What did you notice?”

“They are identical.

I frowned.
That doesn’t make any sense
. “I don’t understand. How is that possible?”

The words hit me like a sledgehammer, shattering my world. I felt the colour drain from my face. I stared at Gabriella, who wore the same expression of utter shock that I was probably wearing.
No, that’s not fair. No! No!

“Not actual twins of course. That would be impossible. But rather your
souls
are twins.” Faru scratched the back of his neck uncomfortably. “Or in simpler terms…you are quite literally soulmates.”

Relief washed over me. I had to restrain myself from leaping over the desk and kissing the Sage right on the lips. I couldn't stop my mouth from stretching into a delirious smile. I looked over at Gabriella, who appeared shell-shocked.
We’re soulmates!
I wanted to jump up and do a victory dance. Now it all made sense. Why I felt drawn to her. Why I felt so much calmer when she was near me. Why I could feel all those strange vibrations when she was touched me. Why I was able to-

“Wait. Does that have something to do with the fact that I was able to heal Sophia? “I asked.

Faru nodded. “I believe so yes. I think that when near each other, your souls somehow act as amplifiers to one another. So in touching Gabriella whilst she had a hand on Sophia, you were able to project your gift temporarily. I cannot be certain, but I would expect that the same would work in reverse.”

“But what does it mean?” she asked. “Us being soulmates?”

Faru shook his head. “That I simply do not yet know. All I do know is that you both act like magnets to one another. It is my belief that you were always destined to meet one another, and that a series of infinitesimal events transpired to make that meeting possible. I have never seen anything quite like this before. Only time will tell what it truly means.”

“So Lafelei’s words, about the twins-” Gabriella started.

“Are relative to you, I’m certain. However, Hades does not know that you are soul twins. All he knows is that the second twin, the one he believes to be a threat, had his Awakening this year. And since there has only been one…” he said trailing off.

“You mean me,” I said. “But how can I be a threat to Hades? I’m not a threat to anyone!”

“Only time will tell Alexander. But regardless, I believe this is why you are being targeted. However, only the three of us know that you are soul twins. And to keep at least one of you completely safe from The Sorrow, we must keep it that way.”

Gabriella stood up. “To hell with that. I don’t want Alex going through this alone. If we are soulmates, then that means we fight side by side.”

I was touched by her passionate words, but I stood up too, shaking my head. “No way. I’m not letting you get involved in this. You’ve done enough for me.” I lowered my voice, so only she could hear. “The other night, you asked me if I was going to protect you. This is how I can do that. By keeping what we know a secret.”

Gabriella tried to protest but I refused to listen to her arguments. I turned back to Faru. “We’ll keep it a secret.”

He nodded. “Good. Then I believe we should draw the meeting to an end here. I will attempt to decipher more of Lafelei’s words. I shall of course inform you if I discover anything further. In the meantime, carry on as normal and please try not to worry. I will ensure that The Sorrow never gets anywhere near you.”

“Thank you Faru,” I said and saluted him. Gabriella did the same and started to leave.

“Alexander, may I have a brief word in private?” asked Faru. I looked at Gabriella and made an
I don’t know
face. She headed through the doors.

Faru pulled something from his robes and threw it at me. I caught it and opened my hand. I felt a jolt of panic as I stared at the silver marble I’d dropped in the Temple.

“Please give that back to Delagio,” he said. “And the next time you decide to spy on one of my meetings, do try and be a little more discreet.” He smiled and then waved me out.

*

For the next few days, nothing happened. Still, after the chaotic events of the previous week, my anxiety levels had set themselves at high alert and seemed confused by the lack of threat around me. Every little noise would cause me to snap to attention. I felt constantly on edge. The next time I saw Gabriella at school, I asked her about it and she laughed, telling me it was a common for new Chosen to feel that way and that it would eventually subside.

I had decided to stay at home to keep an eye on Mikey. Even though I knew there were Guardians watching the house constantly, I felt better being around. Gabriella understood. We spent all of our free time at school together. Sometimes Tim would be with me, so we’d be forced to talk about ‘normal’ things. When he wasn’t, she filled me in on the happenings around the base. I learned that Sophia was getting better by the day and the doctors expected her to make a complete recovery by the end of the week. I was surprised to hear that Midnight had been in talks with Faru to convert her to the Coven, even though it made Sophia seriously pissed with him.

I’d made the decision to tell Mikey everything - I just hadn’t found the right opportunity. Not to mention the fact that he spent ninety per cent of his evenings hidden away in his bedroom with his new girlfriend. He only ever surfaced to grab food and drink and then retreated back into his love nest. I still hadn’t met her, because whenever she slept over, she’d be gone by the time I got up. I didn’t really care. I hadn’t seen him so besotted in a long time.
As long as he’s happy.