THE only light came from a little lamp suspended from the low ceiling and illuminated the corridor for a few feet forward and backward. Furthermore, it only got darker. Despite that, she took more steps forward, with her hands out ahead of her, searching where her eyes couldn't see. Soon, the smooth wall with a wooden texture grazed her palm. She gave it a light push, and it gave way like a door, but without a creak.
This new room had most parts obscured by darkness, with a pale blue light that could only be from the moon streaking in from the barred square window to her left, closer to the ceiling.
She questioned whether this was some sort of basement beneath the road when she saw the tires of a car whiz by the window. Her eyes peeled away from the steel bars to land on someone, up ahead, lying on the floor with their head down and cuddled in the crook of their arm. Were they asleep?
But when she looked to her right, the sight knocked the wind out of her lungs.
"Kara," she breathed out. Her sister's ghost light illuminated the space around her.
A wall of mist-or so it seemed-surrounded Kara, who sat on the floor with her head in her hands.
Was this where she had been all this time?
There was no other person except the person on the floor. She rushed towards her sister, but as she touched the mist wall, her hand flattened against it.
Though she could see through it, it stood firm, like a normal wall.
She slammed her fist against it. Once, twice, but it only created a ripple-like movement in the mist and this caught Kara's attention.
"Kara, it's me, Karyn," she whispered. Kara's eyes flitted up before darting around like she was searching for who or what had caused the disturbance.
"Kara! I'm here! I'm right here!" she said a little louder, and Kara jumped up.
"Karyn?" Kara's whisper was soft and feeble, like a prayer on a dying woman's lips.
"Yes! It's me. Can you not see me?"
"No, I can't. It must be this damned mist. How did you get here?"
"I... I have no idea. How did you get here?"
"I was following Jamie but something happened to Elowen and I wanted to help but I don't know how they captured us."
"Us?"
"Elowen is here too. She's over there," Kara said.
Her eyes rounded in horror as they flashed to the person on the other side of the room.
That was Elowen!
"That's... Is she alright?"
"I don't think so. Every time they take her and bring her back, she looks weaker."
"Have they done anything to you?" she asked, her hands clenching into tight fists on the wall of mist.
"No. Not yet, and I don't want to wait to find out," Kara said, with her eyes wide.
"How can I get you out? What is this place?" she asked, but Kara didn't get to answer as they heard a faraway door open, and then click close.
Both heads turned sharply toward the sound as voices soon followed.
"The girl is tight-lipped, but that's fine. We'll get the other one talking soon. That's where the secrets are and secrets are all we need," a voice said.
"How? She's a ghost," another voice said.
"I have just the way," the first voice replied, their voices now louder.
"Karyn, you need to get out of here now."
"They're going to do something to you!" Karyn whispered as the thought of what they could do to her sister set her heart racing.
If she was already dead, how did they want to get her talking?
"Go now before they see you," Kara said.
"But I can't leave you-"
"Go!" Kara forced her hand through the mist wall.
Karyn saw the light fading from the part of her hand that passed through, but the hand reached her. She felt a force push through her just before she sat up.
Her breaths came out in pants, as if she had just been running and the world spun around her, a blurry image of green. Was it a dream?
"Hey, hey, you're okay. You're okay," a familiar voice to her side said. As her eyes made out her environment, her brain finally translated the voice.
"Marcela? What are you-Where am I?" she asked with her eyes now darting around wildly. Although she sat in a bed with soft green covers draped over her, nothing about the room struck her as familiar.
The wallpaper was green with varying trees painted on it. There was a window to the side with a white curtain draped over it and a line of flower pots perched on the beam. Some steps beside the window were a small desk and chair to her right, and in front of her was a door.
"You're at our house. I'll go get the others. We've been waiting for you to wake," Marcela said before rushing out the door.
By others, Karyn knew she meant Gema and Jamie.
But how did she get here? A moment ago, she was in some dark basement with Kara and Elowen, and now it was daytime.
It was daytime!
She didn't go back home last night, and it was a weekday today, which meant she had to get to school.
She looked around. There was no clock, but the brightness filtering through the curtain made her think it would be late morning or early afternoon.
She buried her face in her hands as she filtered through various excuses for her sure-to-be furious aunt, but her brain felt like mush, churning and spitting out half-sentences. Regardless of her messy head, one thing came out clearly in the haze. She couldn't remain here longer. The earlier she got home, the better.
She rose from the bed and glanced down to find herself in an unfamiliar warm blue gown. Despite the spinning, she could still recall the outfit she'd worn when she traipsed around in the dark forest with Zack last night and it was not a gown.
She closed her eyes and groaned in frustration. That was a silly idea. What was she even thinking, going out there unprepared?
Before she could wallow in her anger at herself, the door opened, and in came Marcela, followed by Gema, Jamie, who had a dark purple discoloration just below his right eye, and Zack?
How was he also here?
She took a firm step back as her eyes, shining with suspicion, flicked from face to face. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest and couldn't stop her hand from seeking the silver pendant resting on her chest.
"Ryn, it's okay, calm down," Gema cooed with a step forward. Then she remembered. It all rushed into her head without warning.
The forest, the three figures, the blast of blue light, the pain. And finally, Jamie.
She had heard someone call out to him right before she passed out. That meant he was there, and that light had to have come from him.
She locked eyes with him.
"Karyn, let us explain. Zack has listened, and he understands," Jamie said, but she couldn't trust a word he said.
Her eyes flickered to the window and lingered. It was small. She could fit.
But she wouldn't make it in time. There were four of them, and the bed was an obstacle, too. They had all barricaded the door, so that was out of it.
"Ryn, we won't harm you-"
"No! Don't... Don't come near me!" she raised a palm to stop Gema, who had taken another step.
Zack then spoke. "Karyn. It's alright. Let's talk, okay? You're safe here."
Her heart, as if recognizing the calm timbre of his voice, began reducing to a normal rate, but her brain remained a mess.
"I... I don't want them here," she said.
"Okay. Okay. They'll leave. It'll just be us," Zack said.
"But we can't-"
"She doesn't want you here, now," Zack cut Gema off with a final tone. It wasn't up for discussion.
Once the door closed with the three of them out, Zack rushed to her and enveloped her in a hug. After the shock of it passed, though it didn't last long, she raised her hands to hug him back. She closed her eyes as she sank into the embrace, feeling the tension that gripped her fleeing in waves as she held on to his shirt at his back.
This had to be real. He had to be real.
"Are you okay? Do you feel any pain? Does anywhere hurt?" he asked as he pulled away with his eyes roaming around every inch of her, searching for any swelling or bruise. She couldn't help the warm smile that stretched her lips at the sight of the gesture. With a near-normal beating heart, she let him pull her gently with his hand wrapped firmly around hers till they sat on the bed.
"You realize your last two questions are practically the same."
He breathed out a chuckle.
"Yes, I'm fine and I don't feel hurt," she answered, but her smile soon flattened to a thin line, as her face became a myriad of lines of worry and confusion. She wanted to tell him about the dream she just had, but first...
"What happened? Where did you disappear to and how?" she asked with her hand rising to clasp her necklace, raising it from her chest, and caressing it through the light fabric of the gown.
"You were the one who disappeared."
She blinked. "What?"
"One moment you were there and the next you weren't. After I looked ahead and saw nothing, I turned back and you were... gone," he said.
"Then how did you find me?"
"After you disappeared, I knew exactly what had happened. It was a cloaking spell. Karyn, those figures were Gema, Jamie, and Marcela. And the bright blue light was from Jamie," he said.
She heard the words, but her brain was refusing to acknowledge them. What did he mean by spells? And how could Jamie have sent such pain at her, wrapped in a ball of light?
"What are you saying?" she asked.
"I'm saying they have magic," he said, and her eyes went wide.
She swallowed, and her heart picked up again, rushing in her ears. "Magic... but magic isn't-"
"It's real Karyn," he said, and she clamped her mouth shut.
For the first time, no rushing thoughts attacked her at once or one by one. Perhaps magic was not as unreal as she thought. Because how else could she see her dead sister? How else could she have survived a fire as an infant? And how else could Jamie have sent a blast of blue light that seared her chest?
Now it was staring her in the face and she couldn't run from the thought anymore.
Then his sentence replayed in her head.
"Wait. What do you mean you knew it was a cloaking spell?" she asked.
"Because I have magic. And so do you."
His words lost their calming effect and now they only brought a wave of nausea upon her.
Her voice came out as a mere whisper when she stuttered, "What? I can't. I don't-"
He took hold of her hand and each stroke sent a wave of ease through her, like a beacon calling on her to remain grounded.
"I can imagine how this must all feel to you, but you need to remain calm."
"How are you sure that I have magic?"
"I guessed before, but I always had a reason to conclude otherwise. But I suspected your feelings. There are only a few people in history that have had those. It's called The Sense. You feel things strongly and it's never wrong. I confirmed my guess with the fact you could see them even through their cloaking spell. When someone does a cloaking spell, it shields them from the normal eye. Only someone with the similar magic they used to create the spell can see them."
"So you're saying I could see them because I have the same magic they have?"
"Yes."
In a voice, tones softer than her usual, she asked, "Am I... the person they're looking for?"
"Yes," he said, and her heart plummeted. "They might have already figured that out, but they don't know about me. That, I'm sure of. I'm just here because I insisted and I, of course, had to put my skills to use and get answers from them."
"What—Why am I here then?"
"Jamie thought you were an... intruder, but Gema had already seen you and called out to Jamie but—"
"It was already late," she completed. "I heard when she did."
It was quiet again as she stared at their connected hands. She traced his long slender fingers with her eyes from the trimmed nails to his knuckles, which had swollen slightly and turned red. The sight made her frown as her hand fell from her necklace to graze the sight. She missed the way he stiffened as she did so.
"What happened to you?" she asked with concern filling her eyes. A momentary distraction from the turmoil that raged within her.
"I also thought Jamie was an intruder and sent a few punches."
Her head whipped up to meet his. "You did what?"
"But he's fine. Marcela patched him up nice."
She caught a faint twinkle of amusement swirl in his eyes and she couldn't help it. A bubble of laughs escaped her forcing her shoulders to shake in mirth. His laugh came, gentle, but the deep allure of his blended perfectly with the girlish tinge in hers.
It was only moments later that she finally sobered up. "Are you going to tell them? About your... magic, I mean."
"I don't trust them, so I'll keep it for now. They're being shady with the truth. But let's hear what they have to say first," he said, and she nodded in agreement.
A knock came next before Gema's voice followed. Even muffled by the door, Karyn could pick up on the undertones of impatience. "Can we come in now?"
Zack looked at her for confirmation, and she nodded. With a 'yes' from Zack, the door opened before they all stepped in.
The sheets gave a light rustle when Karyn shuffled slightly away from Marcela who sat on the stool beside the bed. Marcela noticed this but said nothing, pressing her lips into a tight line.
"How are you feeling now?" Gema asked.
"Not feeling any pain, unlike before," she said, giving Jamie a hard stare.
"My charms work efficiently as usual," Marcela said.
The steely expression in her eyes morphed to one of shock as her head snapped to find Marcela sporting a proud smile. "You used magic on me!"
Marcela wanted to say something, but Gema beat her to it.
"Ryn, we know the concept may be foreign to you, but magic is real and we have it. It's what we used to heal you," Gema said, revealing what Zack had told her some moments ago.
She tried to keep the shock on her face, but she couldn't muster such an expression with that intensity again.
"Though I believe it's not as foreign to you as we think it is, right, Karyn?" Jamie asked.
She caught the hint of suspicion in his tone and she flared. "What is that supposed to mean?"
Who was he to question her after firing that ball of pain at her? Marcela must have had the same thoughts as she voiced out.
"Jamie!" Jamye. Karyn recognized the inflection. It was the same way her aunt referred to him. "You should apologize after hitting her with such an amount of magic. You're lucky she didn't get worse."
For the first time, Karyn saw Jamie's expression soften. She caught a whiff of remorse in his face but she didn't buy it.
"I don't want his apology. It wouldn't be genuine anyway," she said and forced her eyes out the window. "How long was I out?"
If the blow was as powerful as Marcela hinted and she knew it was because of the intense pain she had felt, then she would have been out for hours. She needed to work out her lie for her uncle and aunt.
"About two days," Marcela said.
She whiplashed. "What!"
"That was the reaction I was expecting," she heard Jamie mutter but didn't care to respond.
"I've been out for two days. And I've been here all the while?" she asked, and Marcela nodded solemnly. "But... but what of my aunt and uncle and school?"
"After you passed out," Zack started, "We rushed you here, and Marcela started the healing process. By the next morning, your condition only worsened. I couldn't leave seeing you in such a state, so I stayed. Marcela also stayed and made more... charms. Gema and Jamie went to school but when the day ended, word had spread of your absence and people remembered Elowen was absent too, so they started speculating. That same day, they opened an official missing persons file for Elowen and they opened yours the next day."
"So you didn't go to school either?" she asked Zack.
"No, I didn't. The local police got my contact through school records and I said I'd been ill. Then, they came over to ask some questions for their investigation, so of course I had to go back, but not before Marcela gave me something to take that would make me feel and look ill."
"And they fell for it," Marcela said with a proud smile.
Karyn could feel the excitement ebbing from her and made a mental note to be wary of whatever Marcela would give her to eat or drink. She seemed to be an experienced charms-maker.
"When I got back, you were still the same and I've been here since, till Marcela rushed down to tell us you were awake."
"So everyone thinks Elowen and I are missing. What do they think happened?"
"Most people think you probably found out what happened to Elowen but got kidnapped too," Gema said.
"They think we're both in danger when in the actual sense, it's just Elowen," she said and rested her head in her hands.
Could she tell them about the dream she had? But telling them would require telling them about Kara, and she didn't know how they would react to that.
"Don't worry Ryn we came up with a plan."
At Gema's words, her head snapped up and she tried to ignore the look Jamie gave her as his eyes narrowed for a fraction.
"You did?"
"Since everyone thinks that the person who kidnapped Elowen also kidnapped you, they think you guys are together. So we plan to find Elowen first and then the two of you can go back together."
"And what would I be doing? I'm supposed to be looking for Elowen too. Do you even have a plan to get her back?" She rushed, worry creasing her brows.
"Well, that was what we were trying to—"
"So you don't have a plan yet," she cut Gema off before she shot up from the bed and stalked towards the door but Jamie stopped her by grabbing a hold of her arm.
"Let go of me!"
He didn't but his grip slacked. "Didn't you just hear what Gema said?"
"I heard her loud and clear." She wrenched her arm out of his grip. "But I'm not gonna sit here when you guys have no sure way of getting Elowen back while I have a better chance of finding her!"
As soon as the words came out, their faces morphed into similar expressions and she realized she'd slipped.
"Why would you have a better chance?" Gema folded her arms and tilted her head with her scrutinizing gaze set on her.
Zack's eyes narrowed as his face held a question. Marcela sat back and Jamie took a menacing step forward. She felt the air change, and it wasn't in her favor.
"Why do I feel you know something we don't?" Jamie asked.
Could she tell them? Could she trust them?
The questions held her back, but how else was she going to find a basement under the road—if that was what it was—by herself? She didn't have to trust them to tell them. They were her only help.
She sighed coming to one conclusion as she ran a hand along her face.
"Well, I—" she started but a strange pressure stole her words as it squeezed her chest and shot down her right arm. Her vision blurred, and she blinked rapidly to clear her head, but it only made it more fuzzy.
"Karyn?" Zack asked, his tone laced with worry.
She felt her consciousness waver and in the next moment, Zack was by her side.
"Karyn, are you okay? What...what's wrong?" Zack asked.
She opened her mouth to talk but cried out instead. It came out distorted like two people were screaming at the same time. Worry sparked in the air as Marcela leaped up from her seat.
Her scream reverberated through the room, echoing the intensity of the searing pain coursing through her arm. The hot white sensation seemed to radiate from a single point, spreading rapidly and consuming her entire limb. Every nerve felt like it was on fire, sparking waves of agony and forcing her to her knees.
She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping to shut out the pain as well. Tears pricked at the back of her eyes as the pain intensified and enveloped her senses. It was as if her arm was being wrung out like a wet cloth, causing her fingers to curl involuntarily, in a search for relief from the excruciating pressure.
"Karyn, what's wrong?" Gema asked, calling her by her full name this time.
"My... my arm, it hurts," she groaned before her eyes flashed open, shining with a glossy sheen as she directed her pained gaze at the sight.
"But it looks fi—"
The strangest of sites caught Marcela off and Karyn didn't know whether to scream in terror or agony as she witnessed a cut manifest beneath her elbow, leaving a trail of blood and pain as it tore down her arm. However, there was no object making the cut, only a dreary mist similar to the one that surrounded Kara in her dream.
♛
ITNC: As Karyn struggles to understand the truths hidden in her life, she learns the origins of a land built with Magic.
♛
Vote, Comment, and Follow for notifications.
~
The Sparkling Authoress,
Mis. A
❤️