The Key (28 page)

‘But, Matt, without hope, where are we?'

I shrug, and he says, ‘The worlds are so full of mystery that to shut ourselves off from hope, from dreaming, from believing in things that we cannot see, is to live a life without colour.'

‘So how do you explain King Richard's presence in Lathenia's palace?'

‘My father knew about our rescue attempt. Perhaps he
sent Richard to distract the Goddess and make our task easier.'

‘If that were true, our good King Richard takes his job very seriously! Wasn't it the
bedroom
they disappeared into?'

Arkarian has no answer. ‘All I know, Matt, is that we should keep this information to ourselves for the time being.'

‘Why? If King Richard is the traitor, he should be revealed. And quickly.'

‘If we accuse him and we're wrong, the real traitor will remain free, and we will have destroyed our King.'

Reluctantly I agree. For now at least. ‘All right. But Dillon and Neriah were there. They saw him too.'

‘Don't worry, I'll brief them. Just make sure you keep the key safe from … everyone. Right now we don't know who we can trust.'

‘The key is safe, Arkarian. At least it is as long as the ancient city remains impregnable.'

‘Jimmy is doing what he can, but he's only human.'

With these sombre thoughts we fall silent.

Arkarian speaks first. ‘The issue of the traitor is not the only thing distressing my father.'

Again, he surprises me. ‘What then?'

‘In these difficult times he feels that all who are to be Initiated should be Initiated by now, but there are still two left.'

‘Neriah?' I ask.

‘Yes, Neriah and Dillon.'

The thought occurs that
I
haven't been Initiated yet either. Arkarian replies without my having to voice these thoughts out loud. ‘Matt, there is nothing the Lords and Ladies of the Tribunal can give you, for you have been
trained by one who is higher. Your time in
his
realm was your Initiation. Nobody questions your right to be a Guardian of Time, nor your role according to the Prophecy.'

Arkarian's explanation is a lot to take in. These people don't even know me. How can they trust me so unconditionally? I try to shift the focus of our discussion. ‘Will Neriah and Dillon be Initiated together?'

Arkarian takes his time answering. ‘Neriah's Initiation will be held in a closed chamber. Other than Lorian and the Tribunal members, the only guests will be me … and you.'

‘Is this unusual?'

He nods. ‘An Initiation is something of great joy, to be shared.'

‘Then why is Neriah's ceremony going to be closed?'

‘Neriah is … a special girl.'

‘Well, sure, I get that. But you're not answering my question.'

‘It doesn't matter … for now.'

I would pressure him into being more specific, but I'm not sure I want to hear what he's got to say. ‘So when do we leave?'

‘Tonight. When you get home, brief Neriah on the details. Dillon will be here in a few minutes and I'll speak with him.'

I leave before Dillon arrives. It's not that I'm trying to avoid him, it's just that there's been so much happening, I could do with a few quiet moments to myself.

The chill air outside helps to revive me from the semi-daze I've been in since experiencing the destruction of Atlantis. I shrug inside my jacket and embrace the early evening air.

On the walk down the mountain it grows dark. And while I'm not hungry, haven't had the stomach for food since last night's mission, the tempting scent of Mum's cooking wafts towards me, making my stomach growl. Lights are on in nearly every room in the house. Isabel is upstairs in her room, which she now shares with Neriah. The girls are talking. I can hear their voices, deep in conversation. Mum calls them for dinner. I see their silhouettes make for the door.

Ever since discovering that Isabel's father is not my father, that in fact, my father is someone from … well, another world, so to speak, I've felt on the outside loop of my own family. Isabel once worried that I would be different after returning from my training. She was wrong, and yet she was right too. I'm the same person, the same flesh and blood, with the same fears and doubts and inexperience, but the things I can do now mark me as different. It makes me reluctant to use my powers in front of the others. Especially the power of changing shape.

Jimmy comes out carrying a heavy plastic bag. He sees me and stops. ‘Your mother's been worried about you. I told her you wouldn't be far away. Hold on till I dump this garbage and we'll go in together.'

Jimmy is hardly my favourite person, but since my time with Dartemis, I can at least tolerate him now – his presence I mean, here in this house. He runs back from the garbage bin and holds the door open for me.

I step inside at the same time Isabel and Neriah make it to the bottom step. Isabel stares at me with narrowed eyes. ‘Are you OK? You look like crap.'

Jimmy comes in behind me. ‘Cold's all he is, luv. Needs some of your mother's good cooking.'

While Jimmy and Isabel exchange a few more words, my eyes drift to Neriah. As usual when I see her, my chest constricts as if someone is holding a steel belt around my ribs, tightening it notch by notch. My breathing difficulties confirm I made the right decision about her.

For a second our eyes meet. What I see in hers nearly knocks me over. So much hurt, confusion, anger – a potent mix. ‘Neriah …?'

Her head shakes negatively, and without saying a word, she turns and heads straight into the kitchen.

Halfway through an awkward dinner I excuse myself and go out the back for some fresh air. I sit on the bottom step of the porch, inhaling the cold night air, until I hear Mum and Jimmy rummaging around in the kitchen. Dinner is over and they're starting to wash up. I decide to go inside when the back door creaks open. I look up and see Neriah. I freeze at the sight she makes. Her eyes reach across the icy distance between us. I become overwhelmed by a need to hold her.

‘I just wanted to say I heard about your promise to Dillon. A promise! Matt, that's so … final.'

Now I understand her earlier look and the awkward conversation at dinner. ‘Let me explain –'

‘I don't think you can, Matt. When Dillon first told me about it, I was really mad. I mean, I just couldn't understand. You see, I thought you felt what I felt and that all you needed was time.' Her head shakes. ‘But now I get why you don't want to have anything to do with me.'

‘What are you saying?'

‘You've still got feelings for Rochelle.'

‘What?'

She holds her hand out to stop me from getting any
closer. ‘Listen, I didn't come out here to lecture you. It's entirely your choice who you want to be with.'

‘You've got it wrong. I don't want to be with Rochelle. I'm uncomfortable just being in the same room as her.'

‘Exactly. Why are you uncomfortable when Rochelle's around? It's been a year since you found out the truth. Why can't you let her go and move on?'

For a moment I go blank. ‘Hell, I don't know!'

‘Your pain is making you blind and scared, and so you're running for cover. But like I was trying to say when I came out here, I understand. And, well, I also wanted to say, however long it takes for you to heal, I'll be waiting for you.'

With these words she spins around and runs into the house.

Inside me there's an overwhelming urge to run after her, to grab her and hold her as tightly as I can. But I fight this urge with everything I have. It would be wrong to let her think there could ever be anything between us. I have to tell her about tonight's visit to Athens. She needs to be briefed, prepared for what's about to happen. But right now is not a good time. I think I'll leave it up to Isabel.

This night just keeps getting weirder by the second. I put my thoughts of Neriah to the side for now, take a shower and go to bed. The sooner I fall asleep and get these Initiations over with, the better.

But sleep doesn't come. I toss and turn, then finally use my meditation training to settle my nerves. My breathing starts to slow and my body calms. As I do this, an image forms. But it's an image that doesn't belong to me and shouldn't be in my head. It takes a moment to realise what's happening. Isabel is having a dream. And I'm seeing it. The dream goes on and on. Vivid pictures flicker so fast it's like having an electric train storming through my brain. I wonder what it must be like for her. And then I understand what it is I'm experiencing – it's not a dream, it's one of Isabel's visions.

I get up and go into her room. She's thrashing around on the bed, gripping her head with both hands. Neriah is by her side in the dark, her large eyes looking frantic with worry.

‘She'll be all right,' I explain and sit on Isabel's other side. ‘It will pass in a moment.'
Hopefully!
I add silently. While I've seen my sister have visions before, several of
them, in fact, I don't remember them looking this painful.

If all the powers of the Named have magnified, what must Isabel's visions be like now? I try to calm her by putting my hand on her shoulder. She goes rigid, sits up straight and starts digging her fingers into my arm.
‘Matt!'

‘I'm here.' I try to keep my voice calm. The flickering images in my own head have ceased. I hope this means Isabel's vision is over now too. ‘It's all right.'

‘I saw … I saw …' She gulps deeply, her eyes looking wild.

I push her hair back from her face. ‘Take your time. Get your breath back.'

Her head shakes. ‘But you don't understand.'

‘No, I don't, but if you calm down you can tell me.'

She takes a deep breath, acknowledges Neriah's presence, then starts to explain. ‘There was so much. Fragments. Disjointed. Strange creatures. Some creatures I remember seeing in the underworld, but there were others too – grey and shadowy.' She shudders.

‘What were these creatures doing?' I ask.

‘The ones with wings were flying over the school. There were so many, they cast a shadow as if it were late afternoon.' She looks into my eyes. ‘Matt, they were armed with chemicals – drugs from Marduke's garden, and they were releasing them over the whole of Angel Falls!'

‘Do you know when this will happen, Isabel?'

She sighs and grabs both sides of her head. ‘Soon, I think.'

‘All right. I'm going to Athens tonight. I'll let the Tribunal know about your vision. There's nothing else you
can do, so try and get some rest.'

Neriah adds softly, ‘I'll stay right here beside you until you fall asleep.'

No! There's something else!
Isabel's thoughts come thundering into my head as she skims a brief look at Neriah. Whatever else she's seen, she doesn't want Neriah to know. I turn her face towards me and urge her with my eyes to go on.

I saw Rochelle
, she lets me know.

Only three words, but she says them with such intensity, I brace myself.

I tried to heal her, but the arrow went straight through her heart!

Stop! Don't tell me any more!
my own thoughts scream back. But she's not a Truthseer and doesn't hear me.

The arrow tip was poison
.

I take a deep breath and ask the same question I asked only a moment ago. ‘Did you get a sense of when?'

‘After the Citadel falls.'

I stare at her as if she were made of glass and I can see right through to her soul. ‘What did you say?'

Suddenly Arkarian's voice is in my head.
Is Isabel all right?

He's felt the vision too and is worried about Isabel. I let him know she's fine, just shaken. He tells me the Tribunal are waiting for Neriah and me to arrive, and that we should hurry.
I'll send Jimmy in to look after Isabel
, he adds.

A moment later a sleepy Jimmy comes running in and takes control. ‘What's going on?'

‘Isabel had a vision,' I explain.

‘All right, I'll debrief her.' He looks at Neriah and me. ‘Shouldn't you two be sleeping?'

Reluctantly I nod, then take Neriah out of the room with me. She won't get to sleep in there now, that's for sure. We're supposed to be in a state of deep relaxation for the transition to the Citadel to take place, but how do we reach that now, knowing what we've just heard? What
I
just heard?
After the Citadel falls!
Did Isabel really say that? What else did she see?

I open the door to my room and Neriah walks in and looks around.

I go over to the stiff chair at my desk and flop into it. ‘You take the bed.'

She looks between the bed and chair. ‘That chair is impossible to sleep in. Why don't you come and lay beside me, Matt. I promise I won't make a move on you.'

It's dark, but I think she's joking. I sense her smile more than see it. But it's not
her
making a move that worries me right now. I would love nothing better than to curl up in the comfort of her arms and wipe away the disastrous images of Isabel's vision. ‘Thanks, but I've learned to meditate standing up if I have to. The chair will be fine.'

She lays on the bed and curls her knees towards her chest. She looks cold, and the urge to warm her overwhelms me and makes me tremble. I take the three steps between us and lift the quilt over her. She snuggles beneath it and I force myself to turn away to the chair. Closing my eyes, I finally slow down and get the sense of immediate transportation. Suddenly I'm falling. I brace myself and land in a room in the Citadel.

Arkarian is there to meet me, a worried expression on his face. ‘Is she all right?'

He means Isabel. ‘Yes,' I assure him. ‘Jimmy's with her. He's going to go over her vision with her and try to put
some sense to it. Some sort of time frame would be useful.'