28. Thayla
Thayla
For twenty years, I’ve wanted to know what was behind this barrier.
Ten-year-old me feared getting too close to it.
Twenty-year-old me craved to go beyond it.
Thirty-year-old me will finally step through.
No one rushes me as I hover my hand an inch away from the shimmering surface. Now that I know better, I feel him. The pulse of my father’s power hums beneath my skin.
In the few minutes we’ve been here, he hasn’t pushed or pressured me to talk to him. He thanked Derivius for bringing us, asked Creed how he was feeling, and has just…waited me out.
I’m not exactly sure if I have anything to say yet. Maybe after I see my mother and speak with her, that’ll change, but for now, I’ve simply accepted the things he explained. That doesn’t mean my hurt has suddenly vanished. It’ll take me some time.
Time I do truly hope we have.
“It is Elementrian power mingled with yours. It isn’t greater like we assumed. We just couldn’t sense you,” I mumble, glancing over at my father. “Did Willow do this?”
He shakes his head.
“When I created the barrier, I connected the power of Elementra that was thrumming through the realm and mixed it with my own. This is the most fortified barrier I’ve ever created.
There are permissions weaved in it. Once you pass through, there’s no passing back out.
If there’s a hint of intentions to harm in your essence, you can’t pass through, and then some …
such as yourself, can’t pass through at all without my permission. ”
I nod. That confirms what we already assumed.
“So Willow and her men had no problems when they came recently?” I ask.
“No. They had no trouble at all.” He chuckles low and lays his hand against the barrier. That small sound fades as he holds my gaze. “Are you ready?”
I peer over my shoulder at my men. They’re strong, silent supporters who are ready and waiting for me to do whatever I want to do.
I not only want to do this. I need to.
“Yeah,” I breathe. “I’m ready.”
With a dip of his head, his power flares in his eyes. I study how the circles of colors flare, never mixing or merging.
Slowly, as though he’s opening a door, a small passage splits in the barrier, and he releases a deep breath.
“Go ahead. I’m right behind all of you,” he says.
My men, of course, aren’t about to let me walk into unknown territory first. Creed instantly stalks in front of me and pulls his shoulders back. The other three fall in line behind me.
A small gasp escapes me as I pass through the opening and get my first glance at what it’s been hiding all these years.
My head swivels from side to side as I map out the foreign land.
Thanks to the late hour, the main source of light is from the moon and stars, but it provides enough for me to see the flourishing town hundreds of yards in the distance.
Pale lights flicker from what I assume to be homes that are all kinds of shapes, sizes, and designs.
The space stretches so much farther than I imagined it would.
My feet carry me a few feet forward, but fingers grip my bicep gently for a second, then let me go.
“There are more than gods who live here,” my father says. “Magical and powerful beings from around the realms who didn’t get out before the portals closed have made a home here. This is where they feel safe, but they are wary of new gods when they arrive.”
“Understandable. We don’t have the best reputation,” I mutter. “I assume that means we shouldn’t just waltz through their streets like we own the place.”
“No, we shouldn’t. It would be best if no one knew we came. I’m going to move us straight to our home. Hopefully, one day, I can bring you all back to see it all.”
Our home…
They had to make a home here.
Emotions block words from coming up and out of my throat, so I give him a bob of my head. He sees right through it.
“Do you see, way out there in the distance?”
My focus follows the direction his finger points. Way, way in the distance, a small beam of light cuts through what I assume are trees.
“Yeah, I believe so.”
“That is where we’re going. Nearly on top of the mountain. We can see across the Valorian Veil from our view.”
On top of the mountain…
I’ve always wanted to live in the mountains.
“Okay,” I mumble.
He gives me a tight smile, then glances at my men.
“Everyone ready?”
They all say yes with no hesitation.
I swallow.
“Yes.”
His power wraps around us not a moment later, and he whisks us through this new land. It’s the same as if we were starshooting anywhere else in the realm, and that brings me comfort.
Until his power fades from around me and I gaze up at the most gorgeous house I’ve ever seen.
It’s unlike anything I expected.
An enormous A-frame rises from the mountainside, and its sharp peak stretches toward the stars.
Towering panes of glass make up nearly the entire front of it, reflecting the endless night sky until the structure almost disappears into it.
Warm golden light spills from within, soft against the cool darkness surrounding us.
I turn in my spot slowly. My gasp catches in my throat. We’re standing along a narrow ridge overlooking the realm below.
Smaller mountains roll endlessly into the distance before giving way to forests, rivers, and valleys painted beneath the moonlight. From here, I can see farther than I ever thought possible. I can see Oddian. The barrier doesn’t block the view out. Only in.
It’s…beautiful.
Painfully so.
My attention drifts back to the house. Neither my father nor my men rush me as I scan every surface.
“Is she asleep? Does she know I’m here?” I ask quietly.
“She knows, and she’s waiting,” my father says, stepping to my side. “This is as far as your men and I go. Your mother asked that just you enter this time, and I…well, I can’t go in.”
His voice cracks the smallest bit, and my frown deepens as a sense of how much he misses her spears across my chest. I’m not a hundred percent certain, but I bet this is the longest the two of them have ever been away from each other.
I can’t imagine being this close to my men and not being able to see them.
At least since he’s a Beginning God, he can still talk to her.
“Are you all going to be okay out here?” I ask, focusing on them.
Riven smirks.
“We’ll be fine, angel. What’s the worst we could do?”
I purse my lips at him and his ever-growing smile.
“Be good. Please,” I say as I walk into his waiting arms.
Each of them showers me with affectionate kisses and sweet words. I soak up their warmth and support, then pull my shoulders back.
“When you walk through the entrance, you’ll come into the living room. Take the stairs and head straight back through the hall. There’s a single door at the end. Your mother is waiting for you there.”
I hold my father’s gaze and, hesitantly, reach my hand out toward him. He grips my fingers and releases a deep breath.
“I have no right to ask a favor from you, but I am going to ask,” he mumbles.
“What’s that?”
“Please don’t call her by her name. That will…” He glances at the ground and his jaw muscles flex. “That will crush her.”
My heart thuds even harder in my chest. That’s the last thing I thought he was going to ask. It’s almost unbearably sweet. He’s so worried about her. Worried that I might make her feel worse about being trapped here.
“I won’t,” I say.
His shoulders drop a fraction as he gives my hand another squeeze, then lets me go.
“Go on in. She’s been waiting a long time for this.”
When my feet finally move, each step feels heavier than the last. It seems to take a million strides to reach the front door, yet I got here before I blinked.
I spare a single glance over my shoulder. My men stand aligned, shoulder to shoulder, watching me, with my father right beside them.
My fingers twitch around the handle and I release a deep breath. The door swings open without a sound, and warmth immediately wraps around me.
The interior is just as open as the windows promised. Exposed beams climb overhead, disappearing into the towering peak of the ceiling. A stone fireplace crackles quietly along one wall while a broad staircase curves upward beside it.
It feels lived-in, peaceful without trying.
Like a home.
The door quietly shuts behind me, and I give myself one more moment to scan the room. I have a desperate desire to go run my fingers through the discarded plush blanket lying on the couch that’s facing the fireplace. I want to press my face against it.
I don’t allow myself to do that, though.
I take unsteady steps toward the stairs.
The smooth dark brown wood doesn’t creak or make a peep as my foot meets each landing one at a time. My fingers won’t stop trembling, even though I’m gripping the railing so hard I’m surprised it doesn’t groan.
I pause at the last step and stare down the short hallway. My walk to the single wooden door waiting at the end will be over before I know it.
One step. Two. Three.
Each stride is paired with a shuddering breath.
When I finally stand before the single barrier keeping me from seeing my mother, I hesitate. My finger traces over the beautiful carvings of the night sky chiseled into the grain.
For a fleeting second, I stare down at the pearly white circle scar on my palm. That’s what happened the last time I opened a mysterious door.
This door isn’t going to burn you.
You don’t even need a key to get in.
Just do it.
The dark bronze door handle is cold against my palm as I wrap my fingers around it. With one more breath and not another thought, I push the handle down.
Instead of the door swinging open, I fall through. My feet stumble as I get my balance, then my entire body freezes.
Stars. Stars everywhere.
I turn in a slow circle, scanning the night sky. My hand splays against where I swear the door just was only for my fingers to caress cool glass. A breathy, confused laugh leaves me as I continue to spin in a circle and walk forward at the same time.
No matter where my eyes land, all I see is stars and the moon.
It’s as though I’ve been starshot to the night sky.
The little laugh leaving me dies on my tongue and my twirling ceases in an instant. A being that nearly blends into the room since they’re dressed from head to toe in black, stands on a dais in the center of the room.
That can’t just be any being…
“Mom…” I whisper.
With slow, sure movements, she reaches up and undoes the headpiece she’s wearing. Long, unforgettable rose-gold hair spills out and flows to the floor. A rush of air shoves its way through my throat, and I take three frantic steps forward.
Only to slam to a stop once again.
Eyes as black as night peer at me when she turns around, and I backpedal. Her lids drift shut, and when they open once again, they’re the breathtaking blue I remember.
“What…”
I trail off, letting my gaze roam over her. This room. The stars.
Amick’s voice infiltrates my mind, and I’m suddenly thrown back into our room we shared in the carriage on our quest to find the first Binding.
“It was a large magnifying-glass-like dome that heightened the stars and brought them closer to the being so they could communicate easier with the Valories.”
“This. This is—oh gods.”
A gasping breath rips from my throat as my knees give out beneath me. I sink to the floor, laying my hand against my racing heart. My mother steps off the dais and slowly makes her way to me. She lowers herself right in front of me.
“Hey there, Thayla girl.”
“Mom…”
Tears instantly spring to my eyes and roll down my cheeks. There’s no hesitation in her as she reaches up and wipes them away.
“You’re the Messenger.”