Firebrand (28 page)

“No! I refuse to accept that. There has to be a way.” Shaking off the Mage’s hand, he turned to Amber. “Tell me. Tell me how to save you.”

A distant voice called to him. “
Father
.”

David’s eyes widened. “Did you hear that?” No one answered.

“
Father, hear me
.”

Louder this time, the voice filled his mind.

David turned in a circle, searching. “I hear you.” He pushed off Teezal’s hands as she sought to comfort him. “What must I do?”

“
Join her
.”

He didn’t hesitate. With a scream to reinforce his determination, he crossed his arms in front of his face and jumped into the light.

* * * * *

Inside the vortex, Amber had lost track of time and space. Sensations coming from her body seemed distant and she could not even tell what was producing them. Mixed with the cold fire that surrounded her was a sense of past and present.

Soon her body moved, almost of its own volition, up and down the light. Above her, a bright beam appeared and she moved toward it. The radiance above seemed like a fathomless sea of long ago memories, a dream haze misting across the cosmos. She felt something like the touch of skin and the deep ache of need as everything swirled inside her in a pleasure-filled dance of the senses.

She looked at those outside the light, tipping her head first one way and then the other. Who are they? She could not quite remember. She smiled. There was no need to remember, only the need to be enveloped by the light.

Outside the churning patina, someone cried and called out her name. Another voice pulled deep within her and then was silent, although she knew it was still there.

Everything would be all right. Somehow she knew that what she had come to do was done. A peaceful sensation surrounded her and a feeling like sleep covered her like a soft down blanket. Smiling, she settled into a warm embrace. Her eyes closed and she slipped away.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Amber didn’t know what death felt like but she knew she was alive. Sparkling golden rays filtered down through the treetops and fell on her face. The warmth and light had called her back from the darkness.

She opened her eyes and found herself laying in soft, deep green grass next to a winding river. The sound of rushing water sang in the cool air and a gentle breeze blew over her face in a caress. She smiled. Her body felt warm, light and serene. Nothing like the frantic current that had engulfed her right before David rushed to her.

David!

She bolted upright, eyes wide, heart pounding. The last thing she remembered before it went black all around her was David jumping into the vortex of blinding white light surrounding her.

Frantically she looked around. Her breath caught when she saw him. He lay on his side not far from where she sat. His back to her, she couldn’t tell if he was alive or dead. As she rose and ran toward him, he stirred and then stood, looking around as if disoriented. When he caught sight of her, he ran to her and scooped her in his arms.

She wrapped herself around his neck, his solid body against hers feeling like heaven. She buried her face in his chest and inhaled, allowing his scent to permeate her senses.

She pulled back. “You jumped into the vortex.”

“After the altar rose, somehow we got separated. When I saw you in there alone, I went crazy. I didn’t care about the worlds or the prophecy or what might happen, I just wanted you back in my arms. If I couldn’t get you out, then I would die with you.”

He stopped momentarily to drink in her beauty. “When Kubla grabbed me and pulled me back, forgive me but I thought about pulling the dagger out of my belt and…” He stopped, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply.

“You would have killed him?”

He ran his hands up her arms and pulled her gently back to him. “I would have done anything to get to you.” His brows furrowed. “But then I heard a voice. A child’s voice, telling me to join you.”

Wonder danced in Amber’s eyes. “A child?”

David placed his hand on her stomach. “I think it was our child.”

She put her hand over his. Together they felt movement inside her.

“Nothing else mattered after that,” David continued. “All I wanted was to be with you in life or in death. The last thing I remember was embracing you. After that, the intense pain as the light hit my body and then the relief of blackness. Then I woke up here. He turned in a circle, taking her gently with him, “Wherever here is.”

“I have no idea either,” Amber replied. She stepped back from him and looked around.

Above them birds of intense, exquisite colors flew. The entire area was filled with flowers that sent their fragrance wafting on the gentle breeze that blew. Fruit trees dotted the landscape in front of mountains with sparkling snow-covered peaks. A double rainbow arced in the vibrant blue sky.

“It’s beautiful but it’s not Everwood,” she said.

“I don’t think it’s even Ireland and it’s certainly not New York,” David added.

Just then, a breeze as soft as mother’s kiss enveloped them, “Welcome my children.”

They turned to find a man in pure white robes standing in front of a large tree, watching them with a smile.

“I know you,” Amber said. “You were the man with me on the parapet. You called yourself the Ancient One.”

The man nodded. “I told you I have had many names but I am the First One and this is my home.” He lifted his arms. “Where it all began.”

A smile grew on Amber’s face. “The Garden.”

The First One nodded and lowered his arms. He extended hand to Amber. “I am sorry for all you have endured but by your actions, you have ensured the future.”

Amber took the kindly hand offered. She looked at David. “I did what had to be done.”

“Come with me. Both of you. The worlds are back in harmony and we must discuss what can be.”

Together with the First One, David and Amber flashed to the top of a mountain to an area with ivory bridges and golden walkways. In the center sat a marbled palace with a domed top and columns of gold. They entered and walked into a large room with a simple wooden chair in the center with marble benches placed alongside it.

The First One sat and waited until Amber and David settled next to him. “Amber, your selflessness has reclaimed what was lost. Betrayal caused the fall into darkness and love has allowed an ascent back into the light.” He smiled. “You have done well, my child.”

Amber grasped David’s hand and held it tight. “I could not have done it without David.” She lowered her eyes to her stomach. “Or our child.”

“A child conceived from pure love,” The First One said, approval on his face and in his voice. “This time, temptation was conquered. With your intense devotion for each other as the catalyst, you both fulfilled your legacies and saved innocent lives. For that you will be rewarded.”

“I want nothing more than to raise this child with the man I love,” Amber said quickly, her gaze locked with David’s.

“And I, the same,” he agreed.

The First One rose. “And that you shall have. The Garden is yours.” The floor on which they stood became transparent giving them an incredible view of a paradise.

Amber looked briefly at the incredible sight before standing. She lifted her chin, her face stern. “Thank you but no. I want to go back.”

“Back?” The First One said confusion in his tone.

“You would give up a place where there is no time, no death. You will never hunger or hurt. Anything you desire would be yours. You will have your child in a place without pain, without fear, without tears.”

“Without sadness there is no joy. Without fear, there is no hope,” Amber said. “I need to feel everything to live.”

The First One looked at David. “And you want this also?”

David wrapped an arm around Amber’s shoulder. “Yes.”

The First One turned to Amber. “Then the powers you possess will be transferred back to the amulet that has stopped the Arpeggio Clock. There they will stay at rest, protecting the portal from collapse.” He cupped Amber’s cheek in his ancient hand. “You will be as close to human as one of your kind may get. You will age, albeit slower than most, you will feel the joy you desire but also the sadness that comes with that joy.” He lowered his hand. “And you will die. Like all those of the worlds to which you want to return.”

Amber nodded. “I understand.” She looked down at her stomach and cupped it protectively. “And our child?”

“You cannot make that choice for him.”

“A son?” David asked.

“Yes. A boy. When he becomes a man, he will have to choose for himself.” The First One returned to his chair. “All you can do is teach him of his inheritance and guide him in the way of the light.”

David and Amber looked at each other and nodded. “Agreed,” they said.

The First One glanced at the two of them and saw the love they had for each other. He clapped his hands together and laughed. “Well done, my children, well done.”

* * * * *

Dressed in regal robes and ceremonial gear, the small band of mourners stood quietly near the tri-cornered pool of Serenity. Long tapers of the everlasting flames surrounding it cast a surreal glow over the water as the mage spoke to the gathering of the courage of his granddaughter and the love she and David found in each other.

“A befitting tribute to the brave souls lost,” he said raising his hands and lifting his gaze to the sky. “I know that they would be proud and honored by this remembrance.”

Alara and Brian moved forward. They laid a garland of sweet Astor on the water and watched it float to the center. Kubla and Teezal extended their weapons over the pond in a proud salute.

Sean McTavish, having lost his only son, held back his grief as opened his hand to reveal a small mound of Chickle-Cherry seeds in his palm.

A traditional sign a renewal for the fae, the iridescent berries floated from his hand and suspended themselves above the water. In unison they began to circle and spin, before falling and hitting the water with melodious pings. From the center of pond, a ring of beautiful, fragrant blossoms appeared, each one a different color of the rainbow.

Alara touched Sean’s shoulder. “From seed comes life.” She said to him softly.

“And from life comes love.”

Threads of recognition wound themselves around Alara’s heart. She grabbed Brian’s hand as a water spout appeared swirling from the center of the pond toward them. At the water’s edge it collapsed. In its place a column of brilliant, other worldly light formed. From the center, like a door opening, David and Amber stepped onto the solid ground.

Alara rushed to them. With shaking hands, she reached out. “You’re alive!” Her words came like a rush of air from her lungs. “Can it be true?”

Amber took Alara’s hand and pressed it to her cheek. “Yes. Not only alive but with a most wondrous gift.” She moved Alara’s hand to her belly. “A gift of life and love for all of us, a son.” She searched out Brian McKenna. “I have both lost and gained a father at the end of my trials.” She held out a hand to him. “This child will know both.”

Brian took Amber in his arms. “My daughter,” he said, his voice breaking. “Nothing will separate us again.”

The crowd cleared a path for Sean. He ran to David and hugged his son tightly. “How did you survive the fire?” he asked, a mixture of surprise and relief in his tone.

David returned his father’s bear hug. “I don’t remember much after I ran to Amber. A flash of light, intense pain and then I woke with her in a place of peaceful tranquility where time has no meaning. A moment here, can be a lifetime there.”

“It was the Garden,” Amber interjected. “And we were there with the First One.”

The Mage raised his eyes to the heavens. “A miracle in itself.”

“He gave us a choice and we chose to come back. We want to raise our child, not in paradise but here, with the knowledge of the all the worlds of which he is so much a part.”

“Then come,” he said, extending his arms to Amber and David. “We will turn this day into one of rejoicing with a union ceremony in the ways of the three worlds you have saved.”

* * * * *

Gorash looked around at the destruction around him. Anything that could remotely remind him of the life he once led as a human lay shattered. He lifted his chin and let out a cry that echoed miserably off the moist stonewalls that made up his prison.

The success of the Triad brought him defeat and humiliation. Using the blood of the tri-bred had also dealt him a great blow. Somehow it had changed him. He could now no longer change to human form at will but needed the unique component in her blood to allow him to transform. He could no longer hide among the upworlders. For more than a year after the downfall he raged in the depths of his own despair. Tearing at his own skin, howling like a wounded animal knowing nothing would ever be right for him again.

An itch crept up his spine, the thorny hairs twitched and agitated him. His gaze moved to a far corner of the cave where a black velvet drape hung on rusty rings. He moved to it and pulled it back. The glare of the mirror beneath mocked him as he saw his grotesque features staring back at him.

He picked up a wooden club lying on the ground and cocked it backward, bent on destroying the image he raised it high when suddenly the silver mirrored surface glazed over with a milky fog. The mist separated and an image took shape, a woman reclining on a chaise reading a book.

Gorash dropped the club and smiled. “Hello Barbara.”

He ran his hands across the smooth surface as though he was actually touching her face. He saw her shiver, as though she could actually feel his touch. She closed her book and stood. She walked to the crib across the room and picked up a fat squirming baby.

A smirk of triumph curled his mouth when Gorash saw that on the child’s leg was an almost imperceptible birthmark, a three pronged trident the sign of darkness. His accompanying laughter rumbled through the underground domain and into the dark halls beyond until it shook the very ground on which on which she stood. With a small cry she crumpled to the ground and hugged her child close, her face a mask of sheer horror.

“Barbara” Gorash whispered, “it seems I have not lost after all.”

Again his perverse laughter rose as he touched the mirror, running a crooked finger over the image of the strawberry colored birthmark on his son’s leg.