The Protector of Esparia (The Annals of Esparia Book 1) (4 page)

“Thomas, look at him.”  She pointed to the large cat.  “What’s he up to?”

“What makes you think he’s up to something?”

She barely heard him.  Her concentration was on the tom.  He meowed twice.  “Something’s wrong,” she murmured.  “I know this sounds crazy, but a girl’s in trouble.  There.”  She pointed to the clump of bushes from where the cat had emerged.

A muffled scream, barely audible above the music, was heard.  “Did you hear that?” Jessica asked.

“Yeah, I did.”  Thomas stood up.

Moments later, tearing out from the bushes, came Ray.  He leaped to the patio and collided with two couples while crossing to the game room.

“Something’s very wrong,” Jessica repeated.

Thomas headed for the bushes with Jessica close behind.

Through the shrubbery, at the base of a large pine tree, lay the crying girl from the jeep.  She was curled up in a ball.   Streaks of wet mascara ran down her cheeks.  The blackened tears mingled with blood that oozed, unchecked, from the side of her mouth.

Jessica knelt next to the hurt girl.  She placed her hand on her head and stroked her hair.  Thomas helped her to a sitting position, allowing Jessica to cradle her.

“What’s your name?” Jessica gently asked.

“Jennifer.”

“What happened?” Thomas asked through clenched teeth.  His eyes held compassion for the girl, but his mouth was tight, in a grim line.

“Ray’s psycho.  I’ve only gone out with him a few times….thinks he owns me.  I’m terrified,” she sobbed.  “I had to do something, I just had to.  He flipped out.  I tried to run, but…” 

Thomas seethed, “Ray crossed a line.”

Jessica agreed.  “He’s probably high.”

“You okay if I leave you?”

Jessica nodded, then caught his hand before he turned.  “Thomas…”

“Don’t worry, I’ll be careful.” 

Left to themselves, Jessica helped Jennifer to her feet.  They pushed through the bushes and walked around the oblivious dancers to the game room.  While they were heading to the bathroom, Mark’s mom stopped them. 

“What on earth happened?”

“Her date got abusive,” Jessica answered.

Sliding her arm around Jennifer’s waist, the older woman took charge of the situation.  “First of all we need to call the police.  No one gets away with this behavior, especially at my house.”  Having been relieved from duty, Jessica went in search of Thomas.

She found him out on the front lawn talking with Mark.  “…temper.”  Mark said.  “Got into lots of fights when we were kids.”  He shook his head, “I always hoped he’d grow out of it.”

“He needs help.”  Thomas added.

“Hey,” Jessica called from the front door.  The two young men turned.

“How’s Jennifer?” Mark asked.

“Your mom’s taking care of her.  She’s calling the police.”  Jessica walked over to them and Thomas took her hand in his.

“Yeah.  Ray can’t get away with crap like this,” Mark sighed, “He bolted out of here before Thomas could let us know what happened to stop him.  I’m going back in. Oh, by the way Reddica,” he called over his shoulder, “that was a sweet fall you took before graduation today.” 

Jessica winced.  Thomas snickered.  “Not nice, Mark!” she yelled after him.  Looking at Thomas she moaned, “I hoped no one had noticed.”

“Well it was a little hard not to, but you were very graceful.”

“Thanks a lot, you’re about the fifth person to tell me that.”  Looking around the deserted yard, she asked,

“So Ray got away?” 

Thomas nodded.  “He was probably drunk before he got here. I saw him peel out of the parking lot just as I made it ouside.  I hope he doesn’t kill somebody.”

“My mom was killed by a drunk driver.”  She blurted it out without thinking and now she felt embarrassed.  Jessica never talked about her mother’s death.  She talked about her mother all the time, but never about her death.  Looking down at her shoes, she rubbed her toe in the grass.

“I’m sorry,” Thomas gave her hand a squeeze.  “I knew…, but I didn’t know how.”

“I didn’t mean to say anything; I don’t normally talk about it.”  Feeling uncomfortable, she stared out at the deserted street.  To her relief, Thomas changed the subject. 

“How did you know Jennifer was in trouble back there?”

“I didn’t know it was Jennifer in trouble, or exactly what was wrong.  I just knew…or rather felt there was a problem.”

“Yes, but
how
did you know?  Are you clairvoyant or something?”

“Well…um…uh, something like that.”  How could she tell him the cat had told her the girl was in trouble?  Or that it told her exactly where to look?  She didn’t understand it herself.  Seeing a psychiatrist was looking more and more appealing with each passing hour.

He seemed to accept her answer.  “Since you’re going to the U, and so am I, would it be all right if I look you up in the fall?”

Her mood brightened immediately.  “I’d be wounded if you didn’t.” 

A police cruiser pulled up to the home and for the next thirty minutes Thomas, Jessica, Jennifer and Mark’s mom gave statements.  After the policeman left Mark suggested, “Hey everyone, we’ve got karaoke.”

“Can you sing?”  Thomas asked.

“Not really, but if he’s got ‘I will Survive’ then I’ll give it a try.”

“Have you seen the alien version of that on the internet?  It’s great when the chandelier smashes her right when she gets to the chorus.”

“It’s not a chandelier, it’s a gigantic disco ball.”

“Oh, yeah.”

With the karaoke, the party took off again.  Even Jennifer, after being tended to by Mark’s mom, joined in a group effort and seemed to have a little fun.  Part way through an off key rendition of ‘Sweet Caroline’ by Neil Diamond Thomas’s watch alarm went off.

“Twelve-thirty already?” He looked at his watch in disbelief.  “I need to go, still gotta pack.”

“I’ll go too,” Jessica said.  “It’s been a long day and I promised Jennifer I’d give her a ride home.” 

Mark accompanied the three to the door.  “I’m glad you came, Jess.  Thomas would never have come if you hadn’t have said yes.”  He turned to Jennifer.  “Sorry about Ray.  If, uh, you ever need help, you can call me.” 

“Thanks.” Jennifer blushed.

“See ya, Tommy…told you she’s hot.”

Thomas turned several shades of red, but laughed good-naturedly.  “In the fall, Marko.”  Holding out an arm for each girl, he asked, “Shall we go ladies?”

When the three reached Jessica’s car, Thomas first took Jennifer to the passenger side.  After helping her in, he walked Jessica to the driver’s door.  “We should have done this sooner.  It’s just that school, sports, work...I just…” 

“I was pretty busy, too.”  She rescued him.  “I’m looking forward to the fall.”

“Yeah.  You’re…”  Their eyes locked for a moment and in that instant, time stood still.  The world around Jessica faded to shadowy gray.  All she could focus on were Thomas’s brown eyes and fleetingly, what lay behind them…Light, a bright white light.  It was so bright, it forced her to blink, and with that blink, the moment passed.

…pretty great.”  Thomas seemed unaware of what had happened. 

Jessica felt awkward.  Not only had another odd experience just occurred, but this one left her breathless. 

Jennifer prompted from inside the car, “Will you hurry up and kiss her so I can go home?” 

“Ah my dear Jennifer, one does not kiss the class black belt on the first date,” Thomas smiled mischievously.  “However…”  He kissed Jessica’s hand.  “See you in the fall,” he whispered in her ear, then opened the car door.  She climbed in without a word.  Jessica last glimpsed him through her rearview mirror as she drove away.  She could not wait until September.

Still shaken from her ‘bright light’ experience, Jessica found it difficult to keep up her end of the conversation with Jennifer.  However, she did manage to give one bit of advice before arriving at Jennifer’s house.  “If you think Ray’s going to be more of a pain, call Mark.  He offered to help and I think he’d come through.”  No wispy tendrils had escaped his lips when he spoke, so Jessica knew the proposal was sincere.

She turned up the radio and hummed to the music while making the short trip home.  She almost missed turning into the familiar driveway.  For the first time that she could remember, the house was not ablaze in lights.  A spotlight on the garage and a single porch light at the kitchen door were the only welcoming beacons.  She laughed aloud and tried to imagine the agonizing restraint it must have taken for her dad to keep the lights to a minimum. 

After parking in her usual spot, she slipped the key ring onto her little finger, grabbed her jean jacket from the car floor, and exited her vehicle.  Her wallet and bag were forgotten in the back seat.  Leaning against the car, she idly toyed with her keys.  She replayed every detail of the last few hours and wondered what it would have felt like if Thomas had actually kissed her.  A shiver of excitement shot down her spine.  She mechanically slipped her arms into her jean jacket and pulled it closed, hugging her arms in front of her stomach.

At length, she pulled herself back to reality and sauntered up the pathway leading from the driveway to the kitchen door.  She pulled the keys off her little finger and automatically poised the house key in her right hand, readying it for the lock.  With her left hand, she reached for the brass door knob, preparing to turn it when the lock disengaged, but the instant her fingers touched the metal, a small, white spark shocked her hand.  She jumped in surprise.  A low rumble came from the other side of the door, faint at first, but grew louder and louder with each passing second.  Then the door trembled.  Within moments it faded away, dissolved from white to gray, then ebony.  Even the porch lamp grew fainter and fainter until it too disappeared.  Only the moon, high above, provided light to the changing scene.  A cavern, six-feet high and four-feet wide, materialized in the space.  The shrill sound of rushing air blasted out, immediately followed by a faraway whistle.  The distant sound grew in volume, much like the increasing sound of a train whistle as it approaches the hearer.  Within seconds, an iridescent funnel of wildly spinning air, the source of the deafening sound, appeared deep inside the hollow.  The rotating cone hurtled forward until it reached the mouth of the opening.  Jessica stared in horror, transfixed before the swirling hole.
Run
, her mind yelled, but her muscles froze up. 
Run!
  This time the order reached her feet, but before they could respond, the spiral achieved full strength and, like a vacuum tube, it pulled her in.  She was swept upward, her body shooting forth, headfirst into a shimmering void.  Multi-pitched whooshing filled her ears.  The phenomenal speed of travel numbed her four extremities.  She couldn’t move.

This was not possible!  What was happening?
 
The internal pressure of the spiral immobilized her entire body.  Her arms were pinned to her sides and she could not turn her head.  Oxygen filled the darkened chute, but forcing it into her lungs took Herculean strength, and they burned with the effort.  She did not know how long this suction tube held her…minutes probably, but each second seemed an eternity.  Terror!  Confusion!  Paralysis!  On and on she hurtled.  Would this never end?  She did not want to die!  In desperation she squeezed out the air left in her lungs and screamed, “Daddy!” 

Her insides churned, her brain could not focus, and her extremities throbbed with intense pain.  Mind numbing fear warped into complete panic seconds before the hole mercifully spit her out.  She hit, then skidded and rolled along soft, mossy ground.  When she finally came to a stop, her head swam.  Breathing came in huge, deep gasps.  She could not, must not, pass out.  Inhale, exhale.  Inhale, exhale.  A sound…a footstep.  Someone was there.  Summoning her last bit of strength, she opened her eyes and barely lifted her head.  Two, bright golden-yellow orbs, outlined in thick black stared down at her.  Then darkness closed in.

Varnack

The green orb pulsed with power, its glow an ominous warning for any who dared come too near.  Two old men cautiously circled the pedestal upon which the golf ball sized sphere rested.

“Wh...what are we going to t…tell him?”  The shorter man stammered, his face pale, his eyes wide. 

“I don’t know,” his companion shook his head, “but we’d better come up with something.  He’ll be here any minute and demand an explanation.”

Jessica watched the white-haired gentlemen from high above them.  She clearly perceived their every action, heard each breath, and felt every anxious heartbeat.  The edges of the small room were shadowed and fuzzy, her focus of attention was immediately around the radiant, emerald ball.  Somewhere in the back of her mind she realized she wasn’t in her body, only an ethereal sense of spirit.  The feeling was extraordinarily liberating.  She felt light and free.

The distant sound of pounding footsteps disturbed the silence in the near empty room.  Someone rapidly approached.  He was agitated.  He?  Yes, she could sense it; a man’s energy.

“What are we going to say?”  The short man wrung his hands.

A heavy door crashed open, sending shock waves throughout the chamber.  A richly dressed man, complete with polished riding boots and gold fringed cape, strode in.  He stopped a few feet from the glowing crystal.

“Well?” he demanded.

“It began glowing ten minutes ago, my Lord,” the short man responded.

“We sent for you as soon as it showed life,” the other added.

“What caused this power?”

The men hesitated.  After a moment, the taller one stepped forward and bowed low.  “We honestly don’t know, my Lord, but…”

“You don’t know?” The Lord’s voice was low.  Each word crisply articulated.  “You didn’t trigger the pulsations?”

The short man, his face even whiter than before, shook his head.

“You’ve had three weeks to understand this thing.  Why have you been wasting my time?”

The tallest bowed once more.  “The magic contained within the persite has only been harnessed by a few.  What little I have read of Alderic’s writings refers to blood lines, and even then the ability to tap the power is sporadically inherited.”

“Which blood lines?”

“House of Saylon and House of Liedia are specifically mentioned, though I’m certain there are other random individuals capable of…”

The Lord held his hand up for silence.  “I’ve held his ball and though I am Liedian, it remained dead in my hands.”  He stared at the green light.

“I suspect there is a surge in the Expanse of Gonta, my Lord.  This ball is responding to that disturbance.”

The Lord nodded.  “You,” he suddenly pointed to someone in the shadows, “bring me the globe.”

A black clothed soldier walked out from the blurry darkness.  The uniform seemed familiar.  Jessica stretched her memory.  He wore the same colors as soldiers on the grassy knoll in her dream, those who held a proud woman and her two young sons captive.

The soldier marched up to the chest-high pillar and reached for the sphere.  At the instant his fingers touched the luminous orb, his back arched and his face contorted in agony.  A guttural rasp escaped his lips when he crumbled to the floor.  His body convulsed several times, then lay still.

Shocked, Jessica stared at the motionless body.  As if the persite was alive, she had felt its reaction to the foreign touch.  It was insulted.  She heard the soldier’s heart slow and finally stop.

For a moment the Lord also stared at the fallen soldier.  He turned back to the darkness behind him and pointed again.  “You there, bring me the globe.”  His voice rang cold.  The command was uncompromising.

Daenon.  Jessica finally recognized his voice.

Another soldier appeared from the dark.  He hesitated at the edge of the light, then slowly approached the stone pedestal, his eyes fixed on the ball.  He circled it twice.  When he reached for it, his hand shook.  Within an inch of the prize he stopped and dropped the hand to his side. 

Daenon drew a dagger from his belt.  “Take that thing now or I’ll kill you where you stand.” 

The man took a deep breath.  Jessica concentrated on the globe. 
Stop
, she moaned. 
There’s been enough death, don’t kill him.  Please, don’t kill him.
  Just before his fingers closed around the crystal, it ceased to glow.  He grabbed the persite.  Turning toward his master, a triumphant smile on his face, he held forth the crystal on his open palm. 

Plucking the ball with his free hand, Daenon slashed downward with the dagger, plunging it through the soldier’s palm.  Jessica flinched.  “Next time, don’t falter in carrying out my orders.”  He placed the ball back on its stand then addressed the two old men.  “Continue working on it.  Let me know if it re-activates.”

When the persite ceased to pulse, the shadowy edges of the room closed in.  With the word ‘activates’ echoing in her mind, Jessica surrendered to the dark.

* * *

Ohhh, the pounding in my head
.  Consciousness came creeping back to Jessica.  She lay on her side, the soft, mossy ground against her face.  The cool vegetation, its aroma and rough texture, helped to revive her.  What a ride. Were any bones broken?  She rolled onto her back and focused on the sky above.  Where was she?  A bright, full moon and a few stars lit the semi-clouded heavens.  Of course it would be nighttime, things like this don’t happen during the day.  Wait a minute, the whirling in her head slowed down a bit, one bright full moon and one three-quarter?

For several minutes she contemplated the alien sky, then pulled herself to a sitting position.  Two moons…maybe she was dreaming again.  The line between reality and insanity was not so distinct anymore.  Though, she raised a hand to her throbbing head, she never had a splitting headache in a dream before.  The evening air felt balmy, with a hint of a chill beginning to creep in, like late spring or, perhaps, early fall.  Pulling her jean jacket closed, she fastened the buttons.  Her hands shook.

A sensation of being watched pricked at her senses.  It forced its way through the fog of pain.  Alarm spiked in her throat.  Choking back the panic, she twisted around to face the foreign presence and found herself nose to nose with the same pair of bright, golden-yellow eyes she had encountered after her expulsion from the hole.  Blinking, she leaned back, trying to focus on the entire creature before her.  It blinked back and in one quick move, licked her entire face with its massive, wet tongue.

“Oh, yuck!”  She wrinkled up her nose in disgust and wiped the slobber with her sleeve.  Jessica stared up at the huge beast, trying to place him into a familiar category.  It took several seconds, but its appearance registered at last.  “Why, you’re a dog!” she blurted out.  Not just any dog, but the biggest one she had ever seen, and…he was laughing at her.  Little snorts came from his nose while his body gently shook.  A sense of wonder replaced her apprehension.

Reaching up, she tentatively stroked the thick, dark yellow fur.  He closed his eyes then leaned into her touch.  “Do you like this?”  He bowed his head at her question so she scratched behind his floppy ears.  He leaned his great head further in and nuzzled her cheek.  As he did, an image formed in her mind.  An image of a word, or a name, swirled like a specter upon her intellect.  An odd tingling sensation forced its way into her consciousness.  She closed her eyes in meditation, trying to ‘see’ the representation.  At last the impression became clear; Varnack. 

“Varnack?” she muttered, looking at the animal.  He nodded and licked her once again.  She wiped her face with her other sleeve, then scrambled to her feet to get a better look at him.  In the brightness of the two moons, she could see his coat bore the same golden-yellow color as his eyes, but with wispy, white stripes scattered throughout.  A black rim, giving the impression he wore thick eyeliner, defined his eyes.  An enormous animal, his shoulders came to her waist and his head to her chest.  He was about the size of a pony. Well-worked muscles swelled under the soft, short fur.  His tail wagged in wide circles.  Trust replaced her wonder.

“What’s going on?” she muttered aloud.  “I’ve got to be either dead, dreaming, or…”

A second impression sprang into her mind, forcing her to concentrate yet again.  The word ‘name’came into auditory focus as she heard it inside her head.  Not an actual voice, but speech none-the-less.

“You’re talking to me!”  She cried in astonishment. 

“Your name?”  The animal asked again.

“Jessica.”  She narrowed her eyes.  “Okay, this is just way too weird.  How can I understand you?  How are you doing this?” 

He cocked his head.  The impression came clearly, he did nothing…she did.  “Me!  I don’t think so!”

“Certain?”

“Yes.”  She grew a little less confident.

“Gift.”

“What gift?”  She didn’t remember anyone giving her a present.

“Talent.”

“Ohhh.”  Jessica eyed Varnack.  He sat in front of her on his hind legs.  One back paw came up to scratch his ear. 

She immediately thought of Sneakers and a comment her father had made.  ‘
As usual Jess, I’m amazed.  You and that cat have quite a relationship.  It’s uncanny how you two communicate
.’ 

Her attention reverted to Varnack.  “All people talk with their animals,” she rationalized.

He stopped his scratching and gazed at her. 

She frowned.  “But I actually hear words when Sneakers meows.”

She remembered the Siamese cat at Mark’s party.  The feline ‘told’ her about Jennifer’s situation.

Her mind raced.  Another impression from her new companion floated onto her consciousness.  She could not give an exact translation, but it had the general meaning of ‘I told you so’. 

“This is impossible,” she protested.

He shrugged his mighty shoulders. 

Before she could ask any of the questions circling her mind or begin to have the nervous breakdown that was threatening to fracture her tenuous hold on civility, he commanded, “Rain.  Go.”

“Go where?”  For the first time, she took notice of her surroundings.  Tall, pipe-like trees encircled the tiny meadow she landed in.  An undergrowth of dense, berry-laden bushes grew around the lofty trees.  Thick, spongy moss covered the few patches of open ground.

As if someone were turning down a dimmer switch, the light from above gradually faded.  Clouds covered one of the moons.  Stars vanished, one by one, behind the moving, billowy curtain.  She realized it would not be long before the second moon became obscured as well.  The wind picked up and the clear scent of rain floated in the air.

Varnack moved past her and she ran to keep up with him.  They traveled at a quick pace, taking advantage of the remaining moonlight.  Varnack wove his way through the compact trees.  The forest floor was smooth, oddly devoid of large pieces of debris, only small sticks and decaying leaves.  Within minutes the precious light slipped away and gloomy night closed in.  If she did not do something quick, she would probably lose him in the dark, so she grabbed onto his tail.  She felt mild surprise come from him when she took hold of the soft appendage, but he made no complaints. 

With the light gone and the wind gusting, they slowed their speed.  “It won’t be long before this rain hits.  The smell is so strong I can taste it.  I’m not looking forward to getting soaked,” Jessica yelled above the blustering weather.  Just when the first wet drops fell, the large hound shot through a wall of long willow vines and stopped. 

Jessica released Varnack’s tail and brought her hand within centimeters of her face.  The dark of these new surroundings was so complete she could not see her fingers. 

“Varnack, where are we?”  Her voice sounded flat in her ears, muffled, with no echo.  She could hear the wind rising in pitch, the rain splattering against the ground outside.  “Is this a cave?”  As if in answer, a flash of lightning gave brief illumination to the dirt enclosure.  Before it went dark again, she caught a glimpse of Varnack coming toward her with a large bag in his teeth.  He deposited it with a clunk at her feet. 

“A sack??”  Feeling the package, she fumbled for the opening.  “Where did this come from?” 

“Friends.”

A cord bound it at the top and Jessica worked to free the knot.  “So why aren’t these friends with us?”

“Not safe.”

“Not safe?  What…Ah, there!  I got the rope undone.  So what’s in here?”  Feeling inside, she found a glass container about the size of a pint jar, something large and squishy made of soft leather, and several small packages wrapped up in what she thought was fabric, tied with string. 

“Open glass.”

“You’re not a real conversationalist, are you Varnack?”

Holding the jar firmly, she removed it from the sack.  With her fingers, she probed the top and found nothing but a string tightly binding a waxen lid, which crumpled into pieces when she pulled the twine.  As soon as air came into contact with the powders of the jar, it glowed.  Startled, she tossed the container down and jumped back.  Within moments a bright light shone from the peculiar lantern.