Chapter Three
Reveal
I walked to the bungalow at the farthest, northeast part of the beach and sat down on a soft, cushiony lawn chair. I still couldn't believe my mother. Why would she try to tell me such an outrageous story? I leaned back, placed the book in my lap and opened it up. The handwriting style inside was in ancient script. Even the papers were tinted a dark, rusty yellow, signs of old age. The first few pages were in another language, but as I kept flipping through, the pages were written in English. It was a genealogy line with page after page of generations of O'Haydens with their dates of births and deaths.
Sometimes, it included their cause of death. After flipping through over a hundred pages, I noticed that very few of them died of old age, natural causes or diseases. The majority of the causes of deaths were murders, executions or accidents. Strange, I thought. What's wrong with this family? What surprised me even more was when I reached a section on the family tree where quite a few of my ancestors were actually burned at the stake during the Puritan era. On the last written page of the genealogy line were the names of my grandparents, my father and mother, and me. My mother had told me the truth. They all died on the same day, but in the book it said that someone named Gabriel killed them all. I hoped to myself that he was caught and imprisoned or better yet, executed.
After that, there were two hundred or so empty pages. I supposed that was where future generations of O'Haydens would be written. Past the empty pages began a new section with odd stories of magical battles, the history of magical beings and creatures, and the history of the O'Haydens.
The very last sections of the book were about spells and potion recipes, and an index of what each ingredient was, what it was for, what it did, what it could be used for, how to store it and where to find each ingredient.
I closed the book after flipping through the last pages and looked out across the lake. How creative some family member was to have written this large book, but it must have been written by several different family members over the years because of all the different styles of handwriting in it. So, either they all had a very creative imagination or some kind of mental disorder, which now my mother seems to be experiencing. I leaned my head back and closed my eyes as I continued to run through the events in my head from last night to this morning, thinking about what I was supposed to do now. I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew, strong hands were shaking me awake. I opened my eyes, blinking them into focus and Marcus was standing over me.
"Savina ... Savina wake up," he shouted impatiently.
"I'm awake. Will you please stop shaking me?" I asked, irritated. "What do you want?"
"Your mother's been looking everywhere for you," Marcus said, annoyed.
"I know. So?" I returned the annoyed tone.
"So? It's getting dark and it gets very cool out here at night this time of year. You should come back to the house now."
I looked around and noticed that he was right about it getting dark. I was shocked that I had slept all afternoon. I stood up to follow him back to the house.
"Well, let's go," I said sarcastically.
He rolled his eyes at me and I guess I deserved it. I was rude first.
"It's very beautiful down here," I said, trying to lighten the mood.
"Yes, it is," he agreed flatly.
"So, have you lived here all your life?" I asked.
"Yes, I was born here," he replied, keeping it short again. Maybe he didn't like me.
"I'm sorry I was rude earlier," I said, truly meaning it.
"It's okay." Again, short.
"You sure don't talk much, do you?" I asked him.
"I had a long afternoon searching for you and I am tired," he grumbled.
"Oh, okay ... again I am sorry. I just needed some privacy so I could think," I said, feeling a little selfish, knowing I should have told someone where I was.
"I understand. You had a lot of information tossed at you today," Marcus replied, sounding genuine.
"You know what my mother told me?" I asked, astonished.
"Yes. When you got here, I was actually surprised that you didn't already know. I can't believe she never told you," he said, dismayed.
I froze, stopping just a few feet from the fountain. "Wait," I ordered.
He turned, confused. "What? Did you forget something at the bungalow?"
"No." I shook my head. "Are you saying that you actually believe this crap about magic?" I asked a little too loudly.
He really looked confused now, as he took a step closer to me. "You don't believe what your mother told you?"
"Um ... no. Why? Do you?" I asked, clearly annoyed. What was wrong with this place where people actually thought that magic was real?
"Well ..." he paused, not finishing what he was about to say. He looked at the ground in an attempt to find the right words, but never did.
"Well?" I asked with my arms crossed over my chest, tapping my foot in annoyance. My stomach growled just then, breaking the silence. He looked up at me with a smirk.
"Maybe we should go in and get you something to eat," Marcus said, relieved.
"Stalling?" I asked, shaking my head and shrugging my shoulders as I followed him into the house and then to the kitchen.
"What would you like to eat?" he asked turning around to look at me.
"I can just make myself a sandwich."
"Nah ... my grandmother made lasagna and garlic bread," Marcus offered.
"Okay, I'll eat a slice," I replied, smiling and a little more excited. It was better than a sandwich. I stepped to open the cabinet to get a plate, but he beat me to it. "I can get it," I said stepping back.
"It's alright, I can fix us a plate," he said as he pulled two plates from the cabinet.
I sat at the table trying not to watch him dip out the lasagna, but his T-shirt was tight, showing the muscles in his arms. He sat across from me after putting our plates on the table. I looked down at the huge slice he fixed for me with wide eyes. "So, you think I'm starving?" I asked playfully.
"Well, you hadn't eaten all day, so I figured you would be." He was right about that. I was famished and very thirsty.
"Want something to drink?" I asked, standing up and heading to the cabinet to get two glasses.
"Sure, I'll take a glass of tea. It's on the third shelf to the right," he replied as he scooped a forkful of lasagna from his plate and shoved it into his mouth.
"Okay," I said, then fixed us both a glass of iced tea and went back to the table. I surprised myself by finishing the large slice of lasagna. I had to admit, it was delicious. "Your grandmother is an excellent cook," I said before finishing my tea.
"Yeah, I'm just glad there's plenty of work to do around here so I can burn all the calories. I just can't seem to refuse her cooking," he said with a huge grin.
"I'll have to remember that," I said sheepishly, embarrassed now for eating the entire slice.
He washed our dishes while I stayed seated at the table, not knowing what to do next or where to go. I was kind of hoping he would come back and talk to me. He was cute, after all.
"I'd like to show you something after I dry these and put them away," he said with his back turned to me, still finishing the dishes.
"What is it?" I asked, curious now.
"Wait here for a second. I need to grab a few things," he said as he disappeared down a hallway.
He was back within a few minutes carrying some clothes. Then, he waved for me to follow him. He led me through the glass double doors and across the foyer from the front doors. He flipped a few switches before heading through the doors. Still following him, we walked around the pool to the far south of the large patio surrounding it. He pointed at a metal patio chair, so I sat in it.
The whole patio and part of the back lawn—which was extensive—was lit up with tall lamps and security lights, casting a glow across the lawn. He walked past the patio and into the lawn, pausing at the very edge of the light. Then, he dropped the clothes he held in his hand onto the ground.
"Okay, I want you to stay put and don't get scared. Okay? Don't close your eyes or blink either," Marcus instructed.
Scared? Of what? I thought to myself. "Alright."
He kicked off his shoes and suddenly there was a brilliant light that consumed him. His body seemed to change and when the light faded, a wolf emerged where Marcus stood just moments before. I gasped and stood up, quickly raising my hands in defense, preparing for an attack. I knew that I wouldn't be able to outrun this creature. I looked past the wolf searching the dark edges for Marcus, but where did he go? Had this strange wolf somehow dragged him off? And what was that bright light?
Just as I was contemplating whether or not I could make it to the house, the wolf nodded at me. He wasn't growling or moving toward me. I looked into the wolf's eyes, hoping that Marcus was alright and would come to save me soon. Then, the wolf moved slowly toward me. I was frozen with so much fear that I couldn't breathe. The oddly large wolf picked Marcus' shoes up in his muzzle and started toward me again.
How odd. Was I imagining this? Was I still asleep by the lake and dreaming a strange, vivid dream? But I didn't actually feel asleep, and this seemed too clear to be one of my fuzzy dreams. The wolf, only a few feet away from me, stood at the edge of the patio but still on the lawn. He nodded again with the shoes still in his mouth. Then, he leaned his large head to the side as if he were thinking, and then tilted it to the other side. He sat Marcus' shoes down in front of him, sat down on his hind haunches and whined a few times. I didn't know what to think of this wolf that was sitting just a few feet from me, whining.
How strange, I thought to myself. Was there something wrong with it? And for crying out loud, where was Marcus? I gasped as the sudden realization hit me.
"Marcus?" Was I seriously asking this wolf if he was Marcus? I must be dreaming or just crazy.
The wolf nodded his head at me, as if to say yes.
I gasped so loud that the sound that came from my mouth sounded odd. "But how can this be? I must be dreaming. That's it! I'm asleep with a crazy induced dream from my mother's crazy lies," I said out loud and the wolf shook his head no.
No way was this wolf having a conversation with me. "Wait, you understand me?" Then I must be crazy if I'm not dreaming, I thought to myself.
The wolf nodded yes, bent his head down to the shoes and pushed them toward me with his nose, whimpering a few times again.
Oh my gosh, was all I could think. "Marcus, is it really you?" The wolf nodded, answering me again.
I suddenly had to sit down. My legs were like jelly and shaking. I sat down and stared silently at this huge wolf standing before me. A few minutes later, he got up slowly and walked toward me. I stopped breathing again, grasping the arms of the chair with what strength I had left, which wasn't much. The wolf, now only inches from me, sat down again. I took a deep breath, relieved that he hadn't killed me yet. Then he moved, taking me by surprise, and put a large paw on my knee. I wanted to scream, to run ... but I couldn't do either. The wolf whined again and leaned his head from side to side staring into my eyes as if to convey some sort of message to me.
Was this possible? I didn't want to be sucked into this delusion, but how was I going to ignore the fact that Marcus was there when a light appeared and suddenly a wolf emerged right where he was—not attacking me, but acting like a pet would for attention.
"Marcus, I just don't know if I can believe this," I whispered to the wolf, shaking my head in denial.
He nodded.
"I don't know what to say." My voice cracked as I said the words.
He nodded again and this time laid his head softly in my lap and left it there. I breathed in and out several times to calm myself. Slowly, I lifted my hand and placed it on his head by his ear. He stayed very still and I kept my hand still for a few minutes. Then, feeling a bit more comfortable, I began to pet him, stroking his fur. He was a very handsome wolf. His face and legs where mostly white and the rest of his body was a silky grey color. He picked his head back up and stared at me again, as if waiting for me to say something again.
"Wow, this is real, isn't it?"
He nodded again and it looked like he smiled. I smiled in return and he stood up. This time, I wasn't afraid. He slowly backed up and turned around. He walked back to the lawn and this time into the darkness. I saw the light again and before it was gone, I heard Marcus' voice.
"Stay right there. I need to get dressed," he shouted over to me.
"Oh ... okay," I stuttered, looking toward the ground immediately. My face grew warm, blushing.
Not even two minutes later, Marcus emerged from the darkness and came to sit beside me. I put my elbows on my knees and my face in my hands, shaking my head. He waited silently for me to pull myself together. I sat back up with my hands still in my lap, wringing then together, and took a few more deep breaths.
"Are you okay?" he asked me, sincerely concerned. "You look as white as a ghost."
"I ... think ... so. I ... I ... just can't believe this. You're a wolf," my voice broke throughout the entire sentence.
"Well, we're actually called Meta-Wolves. We shape shift into wolves," he explained
"But how?" I asked, still stunned.
"Like your mother said, you were born into a world of magic."
"My mother," I repeated, shaking my head, suddenly remorseful for the way I acted and treated her.
"I was actually surprised that you had no clue about us ... about magic ... when you arrived here yesterday. I can't believe your mother never told you before today," he said, shaking his head in disbelief.
"I can't believe it, either. I can't believe this is true. So, I'm half Wizard?" I had to choke out the last word.
"Yes. Your father and his family were all Wizards."
"Your grandmother and grandfather, too?" I asked, trying to sort all of it in my head.
"Yes, they're Meta-wolves, too," he smiled. "Maybe you should head back in now and talk to your mother."
"I was so horrible to her this morning ... rude ... disrespectful. I can't believe the way I behaved. Before today, I've never even raised my voice at her. I mean ... we had our mother daughter arguments, but nothing like today." I was blabbing now.
"It'll be okay. I'm sure she's forgiven you already," he offered.
I stood up and he followed.
"Okay ... I guess I'll go find her." I really didn't want to, but I knew I needed to go.
"She's probably in your room waiting for you," he suggested kindly.
I nodded and turned for the house.
As soon as I closed my bedroom door, I scanned the room. "Mom?" I called out nervously.
"I'm over here," she said softly from a sofa in the corner across the room.
I went to her, knelt on the floor at her feet and put my head in her lap, feeling so ashamed. "I'm so sorry for this morning, Mom. I'm sorry for talking to you like that, sorry for being disrespectful and, mostly, for not believing you."
She caressed my head, patting my hair. "It's alright. I'm the one who's sorry. I am so sorry I didn't tell you sooner. I should never have thought that this day wouldn't come. I was a fool to think I could keep you hidden in the human world. Please, forgive me." I looked up and tears were welling up within her eyes.
"You're forgiven," I said right away. "Will you forgive me?"
"I forgave you before you left the attic this morning." She smiled at me, dabbing her eyes with the collar of her shirt.
We hugged each other for a long moment and then I got up to sit beside her on the sofa.
"Mom, what does all this mean?" I didn't know how to ask it in any other way.
"This means you're where you're supposed to be; where you should have been years ago," she said with sincere sadness in her voice. She looked around me as if looking for something, "Where is the book?" she asked, looking around the room.
"Oh, I must have left it in the kitchen. I'll go get it."
"That's fine, but from now on, that book must never leave the attic room. We have to keep it safe."
"Safe?" I asked in confusion.
"There are some in our world that would love to steal such an ancient, powerful book. There are evil ones in our world just like in the human world."
"This is too much," I said, closing my eyes and lifting my eyebrows. I exhaled and opened my eyes again. "I'll go get it."
"No, it's okay. You can have your first lesson right now," she said, smiling at me.
"First lesson?" I asked, both excited and apprehensive.
"Yes. Now ... hold out your hands, palms up, and cup them. Close your eyes and picture the book in your hands."
I did as she said and waited, but nothing happened so I opened my eyes. I felt silly.
"Okay ... let's try something else. Close your eyes with your hands still out like that. Good! Now, imagine a small sphere of blue light in your hands," she coaxed me.
I tried as she said, but nothing happened ... again. "I can't. Maybe I don't have powers, Mom," I huffed, already feeling exhausted.
"You do have powers. You have more powers than anyone in over a thousand years was born with."
"A thousand years? Wow. Me?" I was confused but didn't care about that part at the moment. "Why don't you have powers, Mom?"
"As I said before, I fell," her tone and expression was disheartened.
"You fell? Like an accident? You can lose your powers from getting hurt?" I felt kind of silly for even asking that.
"No, I fell from grace," she said it slowly, kind of scared. I looked at her in wide-eyed confusion and she continued, "I am a Fallen Angel. When we fall from grace, we lose our powers, but we can still pass them on to our children."
It took me a minute to process what she had just said while she waited patiently. I figured she knew I had more questions, "I am half Wizard and half Angel?"
"Yes," she said, but she looked like there was something else that she was not ready to add. "Okay, hold my hands out and close my eyes ... now what?" I prompted her feeling more ready than before, then, sitting with my hands out in front of me, I waited expectantly.
"Imagine the blue sphere of light floating barely above your hands. Okay, don't think of the sphere as a solid, think of it as hollow ... transparent. Good."
When she said the word "good," I opened my eyes and saw a tiny blue flicker fade out quickly. "What happened?"
"You opened your eyes and stopped concentrating. Okay ... try again, but with your eyes open this time, if you can."
"Okay, talk me through it again, please." I was excited now.
"Imagine the blue sphere of light. See it ... misty and barely floating above your hand."
I concentrated while she talked and a delicate blue sphere slowly appeared, floating above my palms, just as my mother had said.
"Yes. Good!" she said, smiling proudly.
I gasped and the blue sphere dissipated. "Wow, I did it, Mom! I actually did it! It was beautiful!"
"I knew you could, Savina. Now, try again ... but this time without me talking you through it."
"Okay," I replied, then took a deep breath and began to think about the blue sphere of light. As I did, I felt a tingling in my hands and saw the blue sphere forming. I concentrated and it got brighter and brighter. It was amazing, beautiful, and I could feel the power within me, strong and instinctive. I played with the sphere, moving it from one hand to the other. Suddenly, I felt a strong surge and the blue sphere grew to twice its size.
"Good job, Savina! You're a natural! I didn't even have to tell you how to do that!"
"I didn't even know it could grow."
"See? You made my point. Now ... let's try and bring the book to us."
"Okay." I was going to let the blue sphere fade out, but as soon as I thought about the book it appeared within the blue sphere. Then, as suddenly as it appeared, the blue sphere exploded with bright light that blinded me and sent a shock wave of chaotic wind through my room. The whole room shuddered and I heard things clanking together and falling over.
"Wow! What was that?" I asked, in awe. Once I could see again, I saw that my mother was flung off the couch. "Are you okay, Mom?"
"Yes ... yes. I'm fine. I don't know what that was. That was a new one to me," she said from the floor.
As she finished talking, someone pounded urgently on my door.
"Come in," I shouted.
"Gillian, Savina, are you alright?" Rupert asked, hurrying to our aide. Marcus followed quickly behind him. Rupert helped my mother back up on to the couch.
"Yes, we're just fine Rupert. Thank you," Mom said, still shocked and amazed at me.
"What happened? We heard a loud explosion and felt the house shake," Rupert said, looking between each of our faces for answers.
"I was giving Savina her first lesson and, actually, I don't know what happened, but it worked," she confessed, looking down at my lap.
I followed her gaze and saw that I held the book.
"Wow," I said, truly amazed.
"Okay, just as long as you two are okay. Wow ... that must have been powerful," Marcus stated with a cute smirk.
"She was just conjuring the book from the kitchen," Mom answered proudly.
"Okay, I guess we'll let you get back to what you were doing," Rupert said as he put his hand on Marcus' shoulder. "Come on Marcus. Let's go tell your grandmother they didn't blow a hole in the house." Rupert smiled as he headed out the door. Marcus smiled then winked and shut the door behind them.
"That was amazing, Savina, but we must be careful. Now ... look in the book to the last handwritten page of the family tree."
I knew exactly the page she was speaking of. I opened the book right to it, as if there was a bookmark there.
"Now, read how and by whom your father and grandparents died."
"I already know; I read it earlier. It says they were killed by Gabriel." I looked up at her as a pained look came into her eyes. I guessed what pain that it was; she still missed my father. "Why did this Gabriel kill them? Was he caught?"
"No, he wasn't caught. You can't catch an Angel."
I gasped. "An Angel? But why?"
"Actually, he's an Archangel," Mom said, then continued, "A law was passed right before you were born, stating that angels and fallen angels were not allowed to have children with other magical beings. It was said that before they are even born, their powers are erratic, even in utero. Therefore, an Angel was sent to execute the child as well as the parents, if they didn't execute the child themselves after the birth," she said. The pain was still evident within her eyes.
"The parents are supposed to murder their own child? That's wrong and horrible." I was in shock and disgusted.
"Yes. Your father and I couldn't kill you. We knew from the beginning that you were special. We knew you'd be able to control your magic and that you would be strong enough to continue to control it. Your father put a shield spell on you as soon as you were born so you wouldn't be detected by the Angels. But when you reached three, you were already more powerful than your father and your power overrode his spell. Before we even noticed what had happened, Gabriel arrived to serve the sentence. Your father tried to tell him you were different, but as a soldier you don't feel, you just do. Gabriel struck your father first. Then your grandfather, angry at the death of his son, charged toward Gabriel, only to be struck down as well. Your grandmother tried to protect me and then she was struck down. Marcus' parents were in the room with us when it all began and Katie morphed into a wolf to try and protect you, too, but Gabriel got to her before Marcus' father, Jessie, was able to push her out of the way. He morphed and lunged at Gabriel, just as Michael came down to stop Gabriel, but it was too late for Jessie, too."
"Marcus' parents were killed protecting me," I said, shaking my head. I was the reason why his parents were dead. I wouldn't be surprised if he secretly hated me.
"Yes," she said closing her eyes. Then, she opened them again and her eyes met mine. "They all loved you so much." Sadness was written over her beautiful features and even some etched into the very wrinkles she acquired over the years.
"But this Michael, who is he?"
"Michael, one of the Archangels. He and Gabriel both are Archangels," she whispered.
"No way ... really? Then why didn't he come sooner and save everyone? Wait ... why did he save us?"
"He was on another mission, but when he learned of where Gabriel was, he hurried as fast as he could, even for an Angel. See, Michael and I were very close when I was an Angel. Michael knew of my love for your father, and he also knew when I fell. When you were born, I called on him and showed you to him. Instantly, he knew who you were before we even did. He knew that you were the child prophesied over a thousand years ago who would conquer a great evil. Not all Angels know of the prophesy, so Michael told your father to cast the obscurity spell on you. That way, you would be hidden. He knew your father was powerful enough to cast the spell to protect you, but no one suspected that you would be so powerful so soon and would counteract the spell." She took in a long breath before continuing
"Michael got there in time to stop Gabriel from executing you and me, but not in time for anyone else. Michael was grieved and angry with himself for not paying closer attention. Anyway, he asked Gabriel to stop and not to speak of this to any other Angel. As I said, Gabriel is also an Archangel and respects the code, so he backed off once Michael explained."
It was a lot to absorb and I didn't feel like talking anymore. I just wanted to think. "What evil am I supposed to conquer?" I whispered softly, as if the information had knocked the wind out of me.
Mom shrugged her shoulders. "Are you alright Savina?" She placed a hand on top of mine. Her motherly eyes searching mine for reassurance.
"Yeah, I just need some time to think." I felt like a cloud had just rushed over me and stayed settled there.
"Okay, I'll let you rest now," she said, patting my knee as she stood. "When you're ready to continue, you can come to me. Goodnight, my daughter. I love you." Then she bent over and kissed my forehead lightly.
"I love you, too, Mom. Goodnight," I replied as she left.
I spent most of the night laying on the oversized bed thinking. I couldn't grasp all of this— me, a magical being who was prophesied. Why me? I didn't feel powerful or even different. How was I supposed to be this person when I didn't even know that magic was something real until today? Now, I understood why my mother kept me away, but if I'm destined to do something huge, a person to save the world, I shouldn't have to wait until the last minute to be prepared.
I just wished my father were here to help me. I never really missed having him around until now. I couldn't even remember what he looked like or what his voice sounded like, but I wanted to. Then, I remembered about Marcus' parents. At least I had my mom, but he lost both of his parents. I wondered if he hated me. I wouldn't blame him if he did.
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(A/N: How are you enjoying 'Destined Oracle'? Please, remember to vote after each chapter.)
Word Definition/Description
Meta-Wolf : Destined Oracle's version of a shape shifter that shifts into a wolf.
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