Chapter 24 Declan
My world tilted.
“You think I’m the hero who will save the world from the most powerful sorceress who ever lived? Me? Declan-without-a-Gift Rea?” I laughed at the sheer insanity of the idea.
Kelsa nodded.
órla perked up, and I thought she . . . giggled? “It is kinda hard to think of you as heroic, especially with that puffy hair. I mean, really. What are you gonna do? Flick your curls at Irina?”
“Hey!” I shouted, right before flicking my hair in defiance.
órla fell into a fit of odd, owlish laughter that made Kelsa’s composure crack. My hands flew to my hips, making the two laugh even harder. I heard “teapot” through snorts, which only inflamed the hilarity.
Somehow, the magic of my mother’s laughter drew pain from my wounded soul, leaving me unburdened for the first time I could remember.
A goofy, boyish grin replaced my indignation as Kelsa reached up and wiped mirthful tears from my cheek.
My heart soared at her touch—at my mother’s touch.
She startled when I wrapped my arms around her and lifted her off the ground then held her close.
Kelsa stepped back and captured my eyes with her own. “No more of that ‘I don’t have a Gift’ nonsense. You, Declan Rea, are a gift. Beyond any magic or power this world offers, you are my greatest gift.”
I had never known the selfless, omnipotent power of a mother’s love until that moment.
I couldn’t speak.
Tears clouded my vision again.
“You know, some gifts can be returned, Kelsa. This one keeps leaking.” órla swiveled her head between my mother and me.
Kelsa barked out laughter as she reached down to pick up the tiny owl. “Oh, no, little Daughter, this gift is perfect. He will save us all.”
I sobered. “You say that with such confidence, but I don’t even know how to use magic.”
“Declan, everyone you know has one ability, maybe two, that showed up when they were young, and they learned how to use them mostly through trial and error.
If the error wasn’t fatal, they grew in their knowledge and skill.
Magic has a way of imprinting instructions in our minds, making it easier to comprehend.
For most people, learning to master, or at least become competent in, one Gift isn’t terribly challenging.
“But you are different.”
“That’s an understatement,” órla chirped.
Kelsa ignored her, but a hint of a smile quirked her lips as she spoke.
“I do not know all your magical abilities, but I suspect you will be able to master many Gifts within each of the pillars. This means you will have to learn different ways of shaping and wielding your Light.
Even your basic understanding of your own essence and how magic entwines itself within a person’s spirit will differ from most everyone.”
I struggled through a cavernous yawn, covering my mouth quickly.
“You had a challenging day,” Kelsa said, placing a hand on my arm. “That is enough for one afternoon.”
On cue, my stomach roared. “I guess I am a little hungry.”
“All right.” Kelsa smiled warmly. “Bring órla and follow me. While you’re getting settled in, I will conjure up something to eat.”
“Uhh . . . like . . . literally conjure up food?” I gawked.
She snorted. “Yes, literally, with my all-powerful boiling pot and frying pan. Now, come on.”
I watched Kelsa turn and glide to the far side of the cave where there was nothing but a solid wall of crystalline lattice. She placed a hand on one of the crystals, triggering an opening to shimmer before her.
“Coming?”
I woke sometime later to the thumping of órla’s feet on my chest. When I reached up to wipe my bleary eyes, she let out an excited hoot.
“I thought you were going to sleep forever.”
I leaned up onto my elbows. “No fear of that with you around.”
“I know. I’m super helpful like that, right?”
“Yeah, super.” I yawned and gave the owl’s head a scratch before standing and stretching my back.
I scanned the room, barely able to remember following Kelsa through the winding maze of tunnels connecting the Well’s cavern to her living area.
Unlike the corridors leading from the mountain’s entrance to the Well, the walls here were smooth, more what I’d expect in some noble’s mansion than in a cave.
Ayden would have been right at home.
Thinking of Ayden brought a smile to my lips—and twisted my heart. I left him alone on the mountain surrounded by Kingdom troops.
Was he all right? Had he made it back to Grove’s Pass? Where would the Rangers send him next?
Did he think of me?
I chuckled at my own teenage silliness. Each of us faced life-changing, world-altering events, and here I sat, wondering if a boy shared a crush.
But I couldn’t help myself. When I closed my eyes to sleep, locks of red hair fell across my face.
When dreams awoke in my mind, brilliant blue eyes greeted me.
I could feel his fingers grazing across my arms, then digging deep into the flesh of my chest.
I could hear him groan as our bodies ground together.
My body conformed to his, wrapped around his, blended into his so perfectly that I never wanted to be without his caress.
And yet, as I sat on the edge of the bed and wiped away the sweat my dreams had wrought, it was his laugh that I missed most. His easy confidence. His fucking arrogant chin.
“I need a cold bath,” I muttered to myself.
“I would settle for any bath. You smell like the inside of a horse’s ass,” órla peeped.
“órla, language.” I’d never heard the innocent little bird use such coarse words.
She giggled. “Hurry up. I’m hungry.”
I stood and slipped my shirt on, then absently trailed my fingers across the stone of the wall, wondering at the combination of crystal lattice and granite. At my touch, filaments glowed. The longer my fingers remained, the brighter they became, giving the room a pleasant, multi-hued light.
órla hopped onto a chair, pulling my gaze from the wall. “So, um, Declan, not to beat a horse and all, but you stink. Your mother asked me to . . . um . . . gently urge you to bathe and change into the clothes over there. She’ll figure something out with your filthy forest garb.”
“Beat a horse?” I stifled a laugh.
“As long as you don’t beat birds, whack away.”
I shook my head and padded over to the table opposite the bed. A washbasin filled with steaming water stood ready beside it. Soap, a stack of towels, and a neatly folded set of clothing sat upon the table, as though someone had just visited the room.
I soaked a cloth and pressed it against my face. How long had it been since I’d had a proper bath, or even washed my face? It felt amazing. I lathered up and watched the basin’s water turn an unsettling murky brown.
“You are so disgusting. Don’t you ever clean your feathers?” órla squawked from across the room.
“I’m doing it now, little one. Give me a couple of minutes, and then we’ll get something to eat. I’m starving.”
I finished bathing and donned the black trousers and sky-blue shirt my mother had laid out. Only then did I notice an intricate silver pin attached to the shirt etched in the likeness of an owl taking flight, similar to the Melucian Rangers’ pin on my uniform. I turned and offered órla a bow.
“To your liking, Your Highness?”
“I thought you’d never address me properly. You may rise, Sir Stinky.” She giggled and waved a dramatic wing in the air. “Now, be a good steed and pick me up. I’ll show you to your mother. This place can be confusing at first.”
“At first?” My eyebrows rose. “You say that like you’ve been here before.”
órla hopped onto my proffered hand. “Daughter of Magic, remember. I’m not just cute and fuzzy.”
I had no idea what that meant or how to respond, so I lifted her to my shoulder, where she perched and nuzzled my neck. “Hmm. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you’d gotten a little heavier overnight.”
órla nipped one of my thumbs. “You should never comment on a lady’s weight, Declan. Everyone knows that.”
I opened the door to find my mother standing there, knuckles poised to knock.
“Ready to hit me already?”
“Give her time. It shouldn’t take long,” órla said good-naturedly.
“Very funny, you two. I came to see if you were up.”
I looked past her, taking in the passage for the first time, then whistled. “This place keeps getting stranger and more impressive. I was so tired last night that I don’t remember seeing any of this.”
Kelsa turned to lead us through the tunnel.
“These walls were formed thousands of years ago by the Phoenix herself. Her magical flame bore tunnels and caverns, melting stone and crystal to a glassy finish. Her breath infused this mountain and its minerals with magic, hence the light you see glowing through the crystals.”
As the tunnel rose, its sides remained smooth like those in my chamber, an intermingling of glowing crystal and ancient stone.
The Well’s chamber was near the bottom of the mountain, making me wonder how much farther upward we would go.
We passed wooden doors in recessed grottos, their rounded tops mirroring the circular nature of the tunnels.
I drew breath and was surprised to taste a sweetness in the air.
It filled me with hope, revitalizing both my body and spirit, similar to the effect of the magical wine.
I feel like I’m walking through a dream.
The tunnel ended abruptly at a rough wall, starkly different from the rest we’d just passed. Kelsa placed her palm on one of the extruding crystals and was rewarded with the familiar liquid shimmer of an opening.
Through the portal appeared peaks of mountains across the island and, in the horizon, the undulating beauty of the ocean.
The calls of distant gulls mixed with the relentless rustling of palms.
I’d seen mountains from every angle, and I loved the humble beauty of snowcapped peaks, but this was altogether different.
Tiny hairs on my neck spiked, and a chill trickled up my spine.
Kelsa led us through the portal onto a landing.
The scent of savory meats caused my stomach to growl the moment we stepped outside.
Along with the meats, cheeses and various fruits had been carefully set on a table to our right.
My favorite wine sat in the center, waiting to Heal with its silky touch.