The Guardian (The Gifted Book 1) (12 page)

21
Unbelievable

Rhea's next stop was the library. Her assignment was for her creative writing course. She was to research mythical beings such as werewolves, fairies, vampires, elves, or any other mythical being and the worlds in which they lived.

Rhea couldn't help laughing to herself, thinking
, "I should research Grennal." But as far-fetched as that seemed, here she had a situation where she knew of another world, a world where people had magical powers, a place ripe for a fantasy tale. Rhea glanced at her watch. She had two and half hours before her research needed to be done. 

Entering the library, she headed for the computers to start searching the library's resources on mythical beings and their worlds. She'd Googled Luxatra years
before but had not thought to use the library's resources for another search. Although Google gave her a lot of hits on the word, nothing seemed to suggest that anyone was talking about the world of Luxatra. The library didn't yield any success, either.

She switched her search of the library resources to the topic of moon shadows. References to the moon tended to lean towards werewolves. A chill ran down her spine. Why had Grennal appeared as a dog? She mumbled to herself, "Nah! She was in disguise." Rhea glanced up after realizing she was talking out loud. It didn't look like anyone had overheard.

Rhea didn't like where the moon research was going and decided to research other worlds instead. After spending about thirty minutes on the topic, she found her inquiries pointing to the Celtic mythology of deities or Tuatha Dé Danann and their other worlds or domains.

"Perfect," she whispered to herself, thinking, worlds that couldn't be seen by mortals. Mortals? Rhea thought about what Grennal had told her over the years. She
had never described the people of Luxatra as fairies or gods or immortals. More questions popped into her mind. How long did people live? How old was Grennal?

She found her research could go on and on but decided to focus on getting enough to provide the foundation
for a writing assignment. The short of it was, she would write about what she knew to be true, but everyone else would find it unreal, unbelievable, the perfect fantasy tale.

~~~

Rhea headed for her writing class, feeling good about her research. The fantasy story wasn't due for a few more weeks but since it had to be more than a few pages, the extra time seemed reasonable.

Some of the students complained that they couldn't wrap their heads around that which didn't have some element of reality. The professor caved and offered another assignment, where the characters and events in the story couldn't be real but the story could take place in the
"real" world.

"Professor Campbell
," Rhea said, approaching the wooden instructor desk at the close of class, "I have a question about the assignment we just discussed."

"Ah, Rhea. How are you liking your window seat?" The professor grinned.

"Um. You said ... I thought it would be okay ..."

He shrugged. "Just don't spread it around." He winked. "What can I help you with?"

"The idea I have for my story is a combination fantasy and 'real' world. Is that okay?" She wasn't lying. The world was real, but he wouldn't know that.

"Sure. The objective is to get you writing about something you have created in your mind. Fantasy and
science fiction tend to make it easy to be creative, but as we saw today, any work of fiction requires one's imagination." Professor Campbell loved his work. Rhea had seen that gleam before, in her parents' eyes, when they had helped her with her science homework in high school.

As she thought about what the professor
had said, she cringed inwardly. Would it be considered cheating if she wrote about something she knew was real but everyone else would think was fantasy? "Oh, okay. So I can mix reality and fantasy?" Reality and fantasy, she could do that.

"Sure."

"Thanks, Professor Campbell." She decided her story would be based on real people but the events would be made up. She knew she was walking a fine line, but felt better knowing she was allowed to mix reality into the fantasy.

She pulled her knit hat low on her head and wrapped a scarf around her neck and chin, preparing to face the cold walk back to her dorm.

Her thoughts were in the other world as she sorted out her story's plot. She was oblivious to her surroundings as the autopilot for her feet kicked in. Head down against the cold wind that seemed to blow nonstop, she pressed forward quickly toward the dining hall, where she would grab a quick bite to eat before heading back to her room to study.

As she passed between two dorms and into the shadows cast as the sun set, she could feel the temperature drop and her body react with an extra set of chills. Without thinking, she pulled her scarf tighter
around her throat and dipped her head. She was so lost in her own thoughts that she didn't see the two men, partially hidden by a bush, step in behind her and the five students in front of her heading the same way.

~~~

Bestian and Gauvin kept their distance from the group, not wanting to draw attention to themselves.

Gauvin looked up the path. "I assume you think he's in the group ahead of us."

Bestian nodded. "We'll follow, see where he goes."

Gauvin nodded and watched the group in front of him, trying to determine which of the four men was their mark
, but had no success. When they reached the gap between the buildings that led to the open space they had watched the night before, four of the six turned towards the dining hall, while the other two followed the walkway to their dorm. That narrowed down the list to the three men who followed the woman through the glass doors.

"Now all we have to do is wait
. He has to come out eventually," Bestian said.

~~~

Rhea climbed the stairs to the second floor of the dining hall while she pulled off her hat and gloves and shoved them into her backpack. She grabbed a tray and picked out the healthiest of the choices, ready-made salad, a grilled chicken breast, an apple for later, and a glass for some juice.

She sat at a table next to the window and watched the people on the walk below as they came and went from the dining hall. As she watched,
a chill came over her, as if someone was watching her. It was just like the creepy feeling she'd had at the student center.

She continued watching the people outside going about their business and noticed two men sitting on one of the benches. They didn't carry the typical student gear, backpack, computer bag, or the like. They looked familiar
, though; she was sure she'd seen them before.

Rhea scanned her memory. Where had she seen two men
who didn't look like students? Locals. They must be locals from one of the rural areas outside of town. And then it came to her. She'd seen them hanging around the student center recently.

"Hey." Beth slid into the chair across from Rhea carrying a tray with cola and pizza.

"Hey." Rhea continued to watch the two out-of-place men.

Beth followed her eyes. "What? Now you have an interest in the rough and scruffy?"

Rhea couldn't refrain from laughing. "No! I just think it's strange that they're sitting there in the cold. They don't look like students. And I think I saw them hanging around the center the day of the RA meeting."

Beth watched the men as they scanned the windows above them, watching
the students eat. "They look like they're looking for someone."

Rhea nodded as she took a bite of salad.

Beth was starting to feel uncomfortable. "Do you think we should report them?"

Before Rhea could respond, two campus police officers cautiously approached the two men. "
It looks like someone already did."

Beth's body language became noticeably more relaxed. "Good. So, tell me how your day went."

Rhea shrugged. "Same old same old. Nothing exciting. Yours?"

"Boring. I'm so ready for spring."

Rhea said, "Three more months and I'm done."

Beth
gave her the evil eye but couldn't keep a straight face. "Don't rub it in. I have one more year after this semester."

The small talk continued as they ate their dinner. The two men were escorted away. Where? Did the police arrest them or just take them off campus? Trying not to make too big a deal about the men, Rhea put it to the back of her mind as she and Beth bundled up to walk the
twenty-five yards to their dorm.

22
Spring

The warm breezes of spring were a welcome relief from the icy winds and freezing temperatures of winter. Over three months had passed since Daen had been forced awake in the middle of night. He should have felt better after two months of only mildly interrupted nights, but he didn't. He couldn't avoid the feeling of being trapped.

He felt trapped in the apartment
, surrounded by buildings and people. He felt trapped by his limited abilities to find the woman he was supposed to help. He felt trapped in his feelings of frustration as his world moved ahead without him. He was trapped in this world and reminded of this fact each time he glimpsed his own world in the moon's shadows. He missed everything about his world.

His self-pity party was dispelled when he remembered he and Randell were going to spend the weekend with Randell's parents. He would be able to shed the confines of his space and get some practice in as well.

Randell continued to watch for any sign of a woman with a blue aura but wasn't having any luck. They'd taken to roaming the campus and town in the evenings to increase their chances of spying the woman or the two men Randell had seen.

As Daen waited for Randell to come home, he sat on the balcony, enjoying the sun and reading Raisal's journal once again. Each time he read the journal he was
struck by the last entry. A key, he'd initially thought, to the way home.

When the moon is out

And is bright,

Will you be able to see it.

When the moon is out

And Luxatra is dark,

Will you be able to touch it.

When the moon is out

And you are true,

Will you be able to feel it.

When the moon is out

And your desires are pure,

Will you be able to cross it.

It seemed to say if four conditions were met, he could pass into the shadows and be home. He'd often felt
that he had met those conditions, but it didn't work. He’d asked himself many times over the years, "Why would she write such a thing, in English, if it wasn't a message for her family, telling them how to join her one day?"

Daen thought back to when she had disappeared from Luxatra. He had been just a boy
, but he had known the family. They had been distraught, and over the years they had started to lose hope that she would ever come home. She should be there, he thought. Based on what Caille had told him. He couldn't help wonder what had happened to her. At least now he had something he could share with her family. He felt they would be pleased that she had found love and had a family of her own.

Daen stepped into the apartment from the balcony to get ready for his walk around campus. He was starting to think it was a waste of time
, but what else did he have to do? He had to try.

~~~

Rhea lay on a beach towel, soaking up the long-awaited sun and spring weather. The grassy area at the backside of her dorm was covered in towels and blankets hosting many of her dorm's occupants. The placement of the dorm's wings created a cozy U-shaped space where the sun worshipers were protected from the cool winds that seemed to blow year-round.

She'd been in her room
, trying to study, but couldn't help wanting to join the sea of bodies outside her window; all enjoying a spring day in the sun. The more she resisted, the more futile it became. Rhea had finally grabbed her towel and book and headed outside.

Now she was trying to read the last chapter she would need to know for one of her finals. The other courses would be over
in the first week of May when she turned in her projects.

The past few months had been quiet, her dreams less volatile, more under control ... or at least she wasn't throwing things around her room anymore.
As far as she knew, the two creepy men watching the dining hall hadn't been seen again on campus. And Grennal hadn't returned to visit, either.

Grennal's absence pr
eyed on her mind more than it ever had before, distracting Rhea from her studies. She kept reminding herself that the next bright moon sequence would start right before finals. If Grennal didn't show then, she would see her at home. She just had to be patient. 

Two feet appeared at the edge of her book
, forcing her to acknowledge their owner. "Hey."

"Hey." Beth sat
down on the edge of Rhea's towel. "Don't you just love this weather?"

Rhea rolled onto her back. "Yep."

Beth asked, "Did you hear about the laundry thief?"

"Laundry thief?"

Beth kept her eyes closed and her face in the sun as she explained. "Yeah, a couple days ago, someone stole the clothes from two dryers at the Laundromat in town."

Rhea scrunched her brows. "Where were the owners of the clothes?"

"Apparently they were next door at the music store, shopping for CD's."

"There are signs posted not to leave stuff unattended. It's a shame but ...." Rhea shrugged.

Beth shivered and chill bumps covered her body. She was sitting too high above the ground. She needed to lay flat to avoid the cool breezes that crept around the building. "Witnesses saw two men come in and take the stuff. One college aged and the other a little older." Beth glanced at Rhea to see if she had a reaction. "Since it had been two male students who had been doing laundry, no one stopped them." Beth scanned the sunbathers briefly, "It's getting chilly out here. I'm going in."

Rhea's pulse quickened slightly as she grabbed her things to follow Beth into the dorm. "So you think it was the same two guys we saw hanging around the dining hall a few months ago, the ones the cops carted off?"

"That was my first thought. It's warmer now and they probably want to ditch their winter clothes for something lighter. Do you suppose they're homeless?"

"I guess it's possible." Although possible, she didn't think it was probable. There had been something about the two men that bothered her
, but how could she explain? She imagined her conversation with Beth or the police: "Well ... I have a bad feeling ... No, they haven't done anything but mill about ... It's just a feeling." Rhea knew that wouldn't go over well, and besides, if she was wrong, then she would be making trouble for two innocent men.

They said their good
-byes when they reached the lobby, Beth turning towards the right wing and Rhea towards the left.

~~~

"Can you feel him?" Gauvin whispered as they passed through the bodies stretched out in the sun.

"No. You?"

"No." Gauvin was more grumpy than usual. They'd been forced to steal new clothes in an effort to fit in better. It wasn't the stealing he objected to. It was the getting caught part ... and that is what had almost happened. And now they walked the walkways around the residence buildings where anyone could see them.

The three men they
had seen enter the dining hall over two months before had been covered head to foot. They hadn't gotten a good look at their faces. Now that the weather was nicer, more of the students were outside. Bestian had decided it was worth the risk if they could just find the Luxatran who'd been evading them.

As they rounded the corner to the far side of the dorm, Bestian stopped.

"What? Do you feel something?" Gauvin was looking frantically from side to side.

"Just for an instant,
but now it's gone. I almost missed it. Come on, he has to be around here someplace.

"Maybe we'll recognize him." Gauvin tried to sound confident, hoping to put Bestian in a better mood. Living in the woods for two months had driven Gauvin inches from abandoning his partner, or worse.

They continued walking through the crowd of bodies, but didn't see or feel anything. Bestian was not going to be easy to live with tonight.

~~~

Daen heard the front door of their apartment close and he yelled, "I'll be ready in a few minutes." He finished pulling on a clean shirt as he stepped into the hall and saw Randell carrying a large stack of papers. "Giving out extra homework, are we?"

"Ha ha. Professor Campbell had a family emergency and can't finish his classes this semester. The junior faculty is dividing up his courses. I got creative writing." Daen dropped them on the coffee table and waved his hand over the stack
. "Care for a little light reading?"

Daen laughed
. "Maybe if I have trouble sleeping. Does this mean you don't want to make our rounds?"

"Nah! The papers will wait. Let's go."