Maybe Fate: A Novel (New Adult Paranormal Romance) (41 page)

Pushing
off the wall, Valenforth moved past me down the stairs. “Forget
about that. It isn't important.”

Frowning
at his back, I watched him until he vanished downstairs.
Not
important? Hardly.

Trailing
after him, I found him standing in front of the wide glass doors of
his living room. Outside, it was the bruised color of night.

Drawing
up beside him, I looked out at the thick forest. “When are we
supposed to do this?”

Valenforth
folded his arms behind his back, considering my questions.
“Tomorrow. I need to bring Ethlyn back, first.”

“
Oh.”
I'd forgotten entirely about him. Like a puzzle piece that didn't
quite fit, I pushed him into place. “What happened to him?”

“
He
was destroyed. He's been rather... unstable. I wanted to bring him
back closer to the time we would attack, to avoid problems.”

Blinking,
I stared at my own reflection. “What kind of problems?”

“
Nothing
to worry about. I can summon him now, if you'd like to watch.”

I
shrugged halfheartedly. “Fine.”

The
twaelin peered at me, making me wonder what he was mulling over. In
the end, he opened the doors, gesturing outside. “Then let's
begin.”

****

I
knew, logically, I should have felt cold sitting outside in only
some jeans and a sweater. Especially with my feet naked, toes
wiggling.

Instead,
I just felt... bored.

“
How
long does this take?” I asked, folding my arms and eyeballing
Valenforth.

He
stood in the back of his yard, just before the tree line. There were
no lights around, and in my memory of driving with him that one
time, I didn't remember seeing any homes close by.

Shooting
an irritated glare at me, the man lifted his arms over his head. “It
will be over soon. I should give you a warning. Ethlyn won't look
the way he did before.”

“
Why
wouldn't he—”
I
know this, I should know this.

“
That
body is gone,” he grunted. “He'll be reborn to look as
he did the first time I created him, his default.”

Only
one thing he'd said clicked with me.
The
body he had, when he called himself Ethan... yes, that's right.
Skin-changing, that's what they're capable of.

I
didn't like having gaps in my memories. Walking through them, I kept
finding myself stepping into holes, knowing there should have been
more there.

Maybe
they really will return, like he said.

A
glow spun around Valenforth, fingers of energy that wove together
like a fishing net. One by one, they grew brighter. Coiling around
his body, they whipped around his forearms, his chest, before
finally centering in on his stomach.

There,
the color became a blue that resonated with me. I'd seen it,
somewhere before. I had seen that color.

That
energy.

Vibrating,
it shrank, his arms lowering as if to cradle it. Even as numb as I
was, this was a sight that intrigued me. Looking away was
impossible.

It
flickered, that light, becoming smaller. It looked like Valenforth
could close his hands, crushing the orb into nothingness.

When
he finally did, I held my breath. For a moment, the glow was gone.
Reddish heat shone inside his clasped fingers,
thumping
,
like a heart.

Finally,
in a great, jerking motion, he ripped his arms apart. That tiny ball
of power, it glimmered blue.

And
then it grew.

Staring,
I looked on while the energy took the shape of something with arms,
legs; something human.

From
the head, long strands of hair grew. They waved, like someone
drowning under the water.

The
radiance began to fade, revealing more of a defined body. Sculpted,
firm... superb.

His
face was square, jaw stronger than Ethan's had been; age-wise, they
still seemed similar. That flowing hair began to fall to his
shoulders, subdued by gravity, black as tar.

For
a moment, his entire form was visible from toe to skull. I saw...
everything. Distantly, I thought that the me from before, the girl
who had not endured death and returned, would have covered her face
and blushed.

Now,
I only looked on curiously.

His
bare feet touched the ground, arms hanging posed at his sides. When
Ethlyn opened his eyes, they were no longer that burning gold.

Clear,
blue, they focused on me. I didn't think they truly saw me, he
seemed half-asleep.

Valenforth
bent down, speaking softly into the man's ear. I couldn't hear, I
only watched as Ethlyn shut his eyes, a look of deep pain crossing
his gentle features.

When
the Corpse King backed away, the servant lifted his head. The
tortured eyes of a man who'd suffered so much stared back at me.

Where
does his sadness come from?

Raising
his arms, he inhaled until his chest shook. Around him, strands of
blue circled, shifting to become the threads of clothing.

In
minutes, Ethlyn was dressed in faded jeans and a dark grey sweater.
His feet wore shiny black boots, a fact I was a little envious
about.

I
wondered where they got their clothes from. They're made from THEM,
from their own energy. Interesting.

It
was a pointless mystery, but it had been solved.

“
Gale,”
he said softly, voice breaking. Valenforth placed his long fingers
onto the younger man's shoulder, as if comforting him. Ethlyn
flinched, glancing up at the twaelin, then back to me slowly.
“It's... it's good to see you.”

Unsure
what to say, I bobbed my head. “Yeah, you too.”
He
looks so different from when I saw him last—when did I see him
last?

Fighting
with my brain, a slippery thing, the imagery of sitting with Ethlyn
and drinking cocoa on campus floated up.
Is
that right? Was it then? Time feels so strange now.

“
I
told Gale that we'll be attacking the Queen of Dreams tomorrow. I'd
like to go over the plan with both of you.” Pausing,
Valenforth eyed us. “Shall we go inside?”

Ethlyn
shrugged the man off of him, turning and pushing through the sliding
glass doors of the house.

Valenforth
dropped his arms to his belt, staring after the other twaelin. “Come
along, Gale.”

“
What's
wrong with him?” I asked, not moving from where I stood.

“
It's
just the lingering effects from being brought back into a new body.
He'll be fine, just let him have his space. All that matters is if
he's ready.”

I
wasn't sure if that
was
all that mattered.

Turning
away from his emotionless face, I followed after Ethlyn and entered
the house that, even with all of us filling it, still felt ominously
empty.

****

“
It's
very simple in concept,” the Corpse King explained, gesturing
with his hands in the air. He was seated across from Ethlyn and
myself, the three of us surrounding the large dining room table.
“We'll be able to shift into the twaelin realm, then move into
her palace quickly. From there, we shouldn't have much blocking us
from reaching the Queen herself.”

Lifting
my hand, as if I were still in school, I waited for Valenforth to
look my way. “I'm probably missing something obvious. Why
can't we just shift or whatever into the actual throne room?
Wouldn't that be faster, and give us some element of stealth?”

“
If
we could, we would do so. Now, we—”

“
Why
can't we do so?” I asked again, cutting him off.

His
boggling stare was almost funny, in my mind. I wished Ethlyn was
enjoying it as much as I was, but he had his head on his arms on top
of the table, looking like he'd rather be asleep.

Valenforth
gave me a considerably long squint, but when I didn't even flinch,
he simply sighed and shook his head. “You're too forward in
your current state, Gale.”

“
Am
I?” The idea was interesting, at best.

“
Yes.”
His mouth twitched down at the corners. “The reason we can't
just appear in her throne room is a matter of energy recognition.
The Queen has built herself a small pocket, a place entirely made
from her own power. The only things that can appear within it must
be from her, the source of the tiny, private realm.”

“
I
see,” I said, understanding it better than I predicted I
would. “Alright. So what's next?”

There
was a chance I was pushing him too far. I could feel the waves of
frustration aimed at me, yet I
still
didn't care. Maybe I was too numb, maybe I was just confident that
he would do nothing to hurt me.

I
am his secret weapon, after all.

Setting
his palms on the table, Valenforth spoke crisply to Ethlyn. “Once
we are there, if we face any obstacles, you'll have to take care of
them. Do you understand?”

Raising
his head just enough to show he was involved in the conversation,
Ethlyn nodded. His long hair was falling over his face, hiding some
of his features, but the downtrodden cast to his eyes was plain as
day.

“
When
we face the Queen,” Valenforth said, pointing at me. “You
must stay focused. She's deadly, as you know.”

Touching
my stomach, I felt a quiver of sickness recoil through my head.
“Yeah. I've got that part.”

Ethlyn
looked my way, eyebrows wrinkling with such shame it penetrated my
dulled wall of emotions.

Again,
why does he look so sad?

“
I
will fight her if it's needed, as I expect it will be.”
Valenforth went on, ignoring the private moment I had shared with
Ethlyn. “The second she is down, incapacitated, you
must
strike, Gale.”