Chapter 14
Chapter Fourteen
Cotton
The next morning, I woke early from the most comfortable bed I’d ever slept on in my life. I’d always thought the beds at the King’s Palace were too much, but this bed felt like sleeping on a pillow within the proverbial clouds.
The sun seemed to rise earlier in Arcadia than back home. When you stood in a patch of Arcadia, its natural laws still applied. It was very bizarre to think about.
Scarlett had questioned why we couldn’t walk back home if we were on the same plane of existence.
Valik had responded that we were over a thousand miles away, stuck in our little bubble of Arcadia.
Having witnessed some of the Syphon Bond’s effects, I found it difficult to want to leave the safety of the castle and venture out on my own.
But today, despite the unicorn debacle yesterday, I didn’t care.
I needed to get back to the Mystics and begin my work with Nell.
I sat in the hedge maze within the castle gardens.
A steaming cup of coffee warmed my hands as I hid inside the maze to have my own peace and quiet.
It was wild to think that I needed to further hide away from the world, but something about being surrounded by tall, winding hedges brought me solace.
I didn’t have to worry about the pressures of communication.
It exhausted me. More so than it had in years.
If I was going to be trapped in my own head, I’d rather be undisturbed.
Scarlett and Valik still slept. At least, I assumed they did. I planned to be halfway to the Mystics before they awoke and realized I’d left. Of course, I’d leave a note so Scarlett didn’t freak out too hard.
I knew she worried about me being here, which I appreciated.
But I was a grown man. I was the Inquisitor at the Royal Domain.
While not a Warrior, I was still considered one of the strongest fighters around, and my disability allowed me to read others like an open book. No one fooled me with manipulation.
Once I finished my coffee, I rose to my feet and wound my way through the hedge maze. Once I stowed away the coffee mug, grabbed my weapons, left a note, and strapped my gear on, I snuck out of the Celestial Castle.
Now that I knew my way to the Mystics’ land, I hurried my pace.
I maintained my focus on the path ahead, not allowing myself to get distracted by the foreign beauty of this untouched land.
It remained unclear to me how the Tempests hadn’t attached a Syphon Bond to this part of Arcadia yet.
The creatures native to this world didn’t seem immune to the bond, so why did the land when it was poisoned everywhere else?
I kept my senses open for any nearby energy, or rather, a void of it.
Things were quiet today. The permanent silence reminded me of life back home.
At least in Arcadia, it hadn’t been a modern society run by technology when it fell.
Something about seeing abandoned and rusted modern cars with corpses holding cell phones made it all a bit eerier.
Or maybe it was because it had been my world, my time.
I had experienced its downfall firsthand.
When I spotted the Mystics’ village down in the valley from the top of the hill, I knew I was close. Setting off at a near jog, I reached their land about fifteen minutes later.
The tiny homes and merchant stalls greeted me again, and Mystics who passed me by smiled at me kindly as I strolled down their cobbled street.
Finally, I reached the tall glass building where we met Talitha yesterday.
I wasn’t sure what to do or if I should do anything at all.
Somehow, Talitha had known to meet us upon our arrival.
And I didn’t feel comfortable enough yet to walk through the Learning Sanctum to get to the Healer’s Hive, especially when my visit wasn’t planned.
I waited awkwardly for several minutes, hoping my little trip hadn’t been for nothing, but just when I’d resigned myself to turn around and head back, the door to the glass building swung open.
“Cotton?” Talitha said.
I exhaled a breath, then dipped my chin to the High Priestess in both greeting and respect.
“What are you doing here? Is everything okay?”
I nodded, feeling guilty for worrying her. Unsure how to communicate what my purpose of being there was, I pointed in the direction of the Healer’s Hive.
“Do you need to use the Learning Sanctum?”
I shook my head.
Understanding lit her eyes. “Nell?”
I nodded again.
Talitha’s smile could have warmed the coldest day. “Follow me.”
Like yesterday, she led me through the Learning Sanctum and the gardens and beautiful courtyard behind it that led to the Healer’s Hive. “I assume you wish to begin working with Nell earlier than expected?” She looked over her shoulder at me.
I swallowed, prepared for the rejection.
“Let’s see what we can do to accommodate you and help to speed things up a bit,” she said.
As if it were her own office, she let us inside, gesturing for me to take a seat in the same spot I had the day before. Nell wasn’t in her office when we arrived, but Talitha assured me that she was on her way.
“I would stay, but there’s a ceremony this evening I need to oversee the preparations for. Make yourself comfortable, Cotton,” Talitha said before closing the office door with a quiet click.
Silence encompassed the room, but not the disconcerting type.
It was peaceful, one that filled me with hope that things might work out for me in this arena.
I could get by in life being nonverbal, but I was simply tired, especially being in a strange, new environment where the only person I depended on to communicate for me was Scarlett.
I valued my independence; plus, it wasn’t fair to Scarlett to carry that responsibility.
Now, I felt like I could become empowered again.
My knee bounced up and down in excitement as I waited, but just as quickly, it was wiped away with guilt.
What had I been thinking, just showing up here a week earlier than planned with the expectation that they would drop what they were doing to help me?
How did I allow my desperation to let me get this self-important?
I shouldn’t have come. I should’ve waited until next week. This was a fast way to burn the few bridges we had in this world. I wasn’t an entitled prick, and I wouldn’t start behaving like one now.
I jumped from the seat, intent on leaving before Nell arrived. At least then, she could return to her plans for the day without my interruption. As I spun to rush to the door, it swung open, and Nell’s kind smile greeted me.
“Cotton, what a lovely surprise. I came as quickly as I could. Is everything okay?” she asked, her brow furrowed, scanning my body as if checking for injuries.
I nodded, dropping my gaze to the floor to stare at the polished wood markings.
“Forgive me,” Nell murmured before slipping into my mind. “Is this better?”
Relief swam through me, disregarding how foreign it was to have someone speaking inside my head. “Yes. Thank you,” I replied.
“Oh, good. Let’s take a seat and have a chat about what’s brought you back so soon.” Nell held an arm out toward the chair I’d just abandoned.
“I was hoping I’d be able to start working on telepathy today.” I quickly added, “If you’re able to accommodate me, of course. I didn’t mean to…”
“It’s not an issue, Cotton. What about learning sign language then?” Nell’s expression fell.
“I still want to learn it. But I feel like that is more of a long-term solution, seeing as I would need to teach others around me sign language as well. And given the current circumstances…”
“I understand. Your frustration is valid, especially in a new environment. Am I correct in making that assumption?”
“Yes, ma’am. I need to be able to communicate right now. Even if it’s only for safety reasons. I feel trapped in my mind and like a burden when it comes to important situations.” I cracked my knuckles, the sound popping through our silent conversation.
“I see. Tell me, Cotton,” Nell began, leaning forward with her elbows propped on the desk. “Does this have anything to do with the encounter you had yesterday after you departed here?”
I narrowed my eyes. “How did you—”
Nell grinned, soft and jovial. “We have seers.”
“Oh. Right.” I said, not expecting that response.
“Are you aware that you are not fully Kinetic, Cotton? Talitha and I both sensed it yesterday but couldn’t be sure, considering we haven’t met many of your kind before. Only one other before you. But the vision proved that you hold some power outside of your typical capabilities.”
“I don’t know what happened yesterday. I made a last-second plea in desperation, and then a sigil popped into my mind as if someone placed it there…And suddenly, I intuitively knew what to do. But I’ve never done anything like that before.”
Nell chewed on the inside of her lip, staring at a spot on the desk, seemingly trying to puzzle something together. “Can you show me the sigil? Without drawing it?” She gave me a pointed look, insinuating there was a reason behind it.
With a nod, I inhaled and closed my eyes. “What do I do?”
“Simply envision the sigil. There is an energetic link to everyone’s mind. They’re attached to our Third Eye, which is situated in the space between our eyes. Once you conjure up the image in your mind, gently push it down the energetic link that leads to my mind’s eye.”
“Is the energetic link visible?”
“It is. Before you conjure the sigil, focus on the link. Clear your mind and let it present itself to you.”
I straightened my spine and tried to empty my mind. I’d never meditated before—at least, if that was what I was supposed to be doing. Meditation wasn’t a concept back at the King’s Palace. It was such a cutthroat environment that the practice never crossed our minds. But I’d try.