Trinity Awakening (23 page)

             
"And that's how she rescued Micah and Nina." Emma had been dying to tell Trinny the great news.

             
"What? You found them?" Trinny was so excited, she had been worried about Nina and Micah more than she had let on to anyone, and she had felt guilty that she hadn't been able to help them. 

             
"When I was on the river with the other Nixies holding back more of the Empress's dark army, one of the Elves that had been sent to track the missing Elementals managed to find me. I took the Dragus to the Empress lair and got them back in time to hold her off destroying the Ora while you were still healing it. I am so proud of you!" Lucille sat next to Trinny and kissed her on the forehead.

             
"Where are they now?" Trinny asked, hoping that she could see them.

             
"Nina stayed in Taeith, she is being trained by Morthos in the art of ancient Fairon weaponry, she said she wants to have a few back up skills to compliment her Elemental gifts. Don't know if I would have chosen Morthos as my trainer though." Emma said in a slightly annoyed tone, Trinny could tell there was a little more to Emma’s attitude with Morthos than she was letting on.

             
"Micah had to make sure his business was running fine in Chicago, but he will be here tomorrow sometime, he said he had important news for us. I didn't get to speak with him after the battle as we took you back here straight away, I didn't want you any where near Eviann while you were so weak."

             
"Mum? Why do you call her Eviann and everyone else calls her the Dark Empress?" Trinny had been waiting to ask her mother since before the battle, she sensed there was some connection between them. 

             
"I'll go make us some coffee." Emma said, feeling the need to leave the mother-daughter talk alone.

Lucille took a deep breath and looked out toward the star lit sky, the sound of crashing ocean waves was soothing to her. 

             
"I love the water, I couldn't bear to live away from it, that's why your father and I chose this place. He knew it was where I could feel more at home. A Nixie is strongest in or near water. It gave me strength to keep going when your father was killed, but it was you who gave me the will to keep living. I didn't feel I could ever go home again as I had caused so much pain."

             
"You explained that to me, about you and dad, forbidden love and protecting me, but who is Eviann?"

             
"I didn't tell you everything. You see, not only was our love forbidden, it was envied. I told you my sister knew about James and I. She only kept it a secret because she had fallen in love with James. She had already been jealous of me as I was to inherit the crown after our mother, being the first born, and James was just something else I had that she wanted." Lucille took a deep breath and looked back at Trinny. "I was meant to meet your father in our usual place as we did each week, but my mother had needed me to take her place at a council meeting with the Elves. I asked my sister to go and let him know I could not come, she was more than happy to do it. James was waiting when she arrived, but instead of giving him the message, she tried to seduce him, saying that she was the one for him and not me, that they should run off together. James let her down as gently as he knew how, telling her that it was I he loved, and that he looked upon her as a sister. It sent her into a rage, she even tried to freeze him in her anger, but he was to powerful for her, which only enraged her even more. She told him that she would make him love her, and that I would never have him, he tried to reason with her but it was like something had snapped inside her."

             
"What happened?" Trinny was still trying to comprehend what this had to do with everything.

             
"My sister had always been more interested in studying the darker side of our worlds magic, she spent hours reading over ancient scrolls, and during that time she had obtained knowledge that should never have been known to her. She had learnt about
Klania
, the old magic, and a
Klania
Verite, a dark crystal that could grant the bearer a wish. She spent weeks sourcing where the crystal was, she had made allies of the dark Elves who lived near the North Mountains,
they worshiped the ground she walked on, and did anything she asked. They tracked down the crystal for her. When she obtained it, she made a wish that James would love her and not me, and that she would have full control over him. But there was an ancient rule that she did not know about when using the power of the Verite. Wishes could only be made from a pure heart, and only made to benefit others, it could not be used for selfish gain. A heart with bad intentions could only draw power from the dark side of the crystal. When she found it did not work, she was furious, she broke the Verite, smashing it on a rock and cutting her hand, but slithers of the crystal entered her blood stream. It poisoned what goodness was left in her heart. Somehow she had new powers, control over the shadows and dark things in our world, her wish had been twisted. The evil that resides in our realm adored her, making her their Empress. Her thirst for power and control grew stronger, like an addiction. She was no longer happy to be just a Nixie princess, she wanted to rule our entire realm, and she wanted your father at her side."

             
"Eviann is the Dark Empress? She is your sister?" Trinny was amazed; she couldn't believe that her mother could be related to someone so evil.

             
"Yes. And all of this is my fault. If I had just followed the rules of our realm to not mix with another race, if I had not spoken to your father that day, the Fae realm would be safe and the realm of Cassis would still be here. She destroyed it all because of your father and I." Tears were streaming down Lucille’s face, Trinny could see the guilt her mother had been living with all these years.

             
"Mum! This is not your fault; you could never have known she was going to go that far. You followed your heart. Love is not a sin. She followed her desire to have something
that was never meant to be hers and envy lead her down a dark path that was her choice, and hers alone. You can't live with regret like this." Trinny held her mothers hand, wishing she could take away her pain.

             
"Your father would be so proud of you. He always knew you were a born leader, a true princess. He said you would outshine us all. He was right. I want you to know that we never regretted having you; you are the best thing that ever happened to your father and I. You are a gift, the one true blessing that came from our love." Lucille wiped her tears and smiled lovingly at her daughter. Trinny held her mum in silence for a long time.

             
"Coffee's ready." Emma called from the bottom of the stairs.

             
"This will be interesting, I don't think Emma even knows how to boil a kettle let alone use an espresso machine." Trinny gave her mum a kiss on the cheek and got slowly out of bed. "I'm starving, got any strawberry cheesecake down there?"

             
"I can't believe I have just told you that your auntie is an evil Empress and is out to destroy us all and you can only think of cake.” Lucille was smirking at Trinny.

             
"Well, a girls gotta get her strength up if she's going to go kick some Empress bootie!" Lucille laughed and helped her daughter down the stairs.

             
"He's here!" Trinny had been watching out all morning for Micah, she couldn't wait to get to know the man that was her fathers close friend. She was devastated when Werewolves took him just after they met. Lucille had closed the cafe for a couple of days so Trinny could recoup without disturbances. Emma had not left Trinny's side, making sure
her friend had everything she needed. Lucille could sense that Emma was hugely protective of Trinny, and the real reason she had basically moved in was because she was worried that something would come and try
take
Trinny away. Not that Emma’s parents had minded, as they were traveling a lot at this time of year.

             
"Lucianna and Trinity Gaia, it is wonderful to see you safe and well. Hello Emma, great to see you too!" Emma waved back at Micah and set off to make coffee. Lucille had been training her all morning after tasting the dreadful latte she had made them the night before.

             
"Micah, so good to see you. Trinny had been dying to meet you in friendlier circumstances." Lucille gestured for Micah to sit at a table. 

             
"And I. It is an honor to meet such an extraordinary young woman." Micah smiled at Trinny.

             
"My mum said you were a charmer." Trinny grinned back at Micah and sat at the large Jarrah table.

             
"I trust you are feeling a lot better Trinny? It was an immense amount of power you had to use to heal the Ora, it was astonishing to watch." 

             
"I'm feeling great thanks, I don't remember that much, but have been filled in on a lot since." She looked at her mother who was giving her a discerning smile.

             
"You said you had important news Micah?" Lucille asked with great interest.

             
"Yes. I wanted to tell you sooner Lucianna, but you left so quickly after the battle and I could only share this in person."

             
"What is it Micah?" Lucille looked concerned.

             
"When Nina and I were in the Dark Empress cells, there were other prisoners, an Elf that was killed helping us to
escape and one other...We tried to get him out, but there was nothing we could do." Regret covered Micah’s face.

             
"Who Micah? Who was the other captive?" Micah took Lucille’s hands and looked in her eyes.

             
"Jerriq!"

Trinny had only ever seen her mother look this way once before, it was when she was told her husband had been killed in a mining accident, crushed beneath twenty ton of rock. Lucille did not take a breath or even blink.

             
"Mum? Are you all right? Who is Jerriq?" Trinny could not get a word from her mother. Concern filled her amber eyes. "Micah?  What's wrong?" 

             
"Jerriq is James. Jerriq.... is your father."

             
It had been three weeks since Trinny had last seen Aarion, he filled her thoughts twenty four seven. She would talk with Emma for hours about their adventure in the Fae realm, it all seemed like a dream now. Some days she wondered if it really was. Her mother had not coped well with the news that her husband was alive and that her own sister had set up his death and kept him captive for the past three years. Lucille had spent a lot of time traveling to Taeith trying to get news of Jerriq. It was hard for Trinny to think of her father with a different name at first, but she was getting use to it. Her mother had found out that King Toron had sent an Army of Fairon Warriors to the Dark Empress lair to free her father, but they found only empty tunnels and cells, it was deserted. Elf trackers had been sent out to find where the Empress was hiding, they suspected it was in the North Mountains where most of the dark creatures of the realm resided. King Toron promised he would send word when he knew anything, but Lucille was determined to help in anyway
possible. The Nixie Queen had her people searching all the waterways of three different realms trying to get information to help her daughter. 

             
Trinny had taken her scooter out for a ride along the coastline; the sun had started its decline towards the oceans edge. She stopped to look out over one of the many beautiful white beaches along the West Coast. Taking off her helmet she closed her eyes as the salty sea breeze blew through her long blonde sun kissed hair. For an hour she watched the sun go down, the beautiful hues of pinks and reds filled the sky, it relaxed her.

             
"Beautiful!" Trinny was startled by the voice behind her, but she didn't have to look to know who it was. "The sunsets quite pretty as well." Trinny blushed at Aarion as he stood staring at her.

             
"How...how did you know I was here?" She asked trying to cover up her embarrassment at his compliment.

             
"Your mother said you had made a habit of riding along the coast in the afternoons, and with a little help from the
Keitha
it was easy." He held up the dark red smooth stone that had helped him track her down all those weeks ago.

             
"You walked here?" She asked.

             
"Emma dropped me not far from here, she said this was your favorite spot to watch the sun go down. She knows you well." 

Trinny nodded in agreement.

             
"What are you wearing?" Trinny had noticed that Aarion had on long denim shorts and a black 'Linkin Park' t-shirt that hugged his tone physic.