As I was about to mount my bike, I started to feel lightheaded. I sank to my knees, trying to realign my head without the fear of falling over. It didn’t seem to be helping, so I shook my head to clear the cobwebs. It wasn’t the way to start a trip, especially one where balance and clear vision was needed.
“No, but it’s the only way I could speak to you right this second,” I heard a woman’s voice say.
It was soft and sweet. Kind of like a stranger offering you a piece of candy, right before they kidnapped you. After being kidnapped multiple times, I didn’t want anything to do with whatever candy the woman was offering.
I looked around and I was no longer in my garage. I stood to try to get a better idea of my situation. I was in kind of a dark void it appeared and I saw nothing around me, person or thing. It was weird, even for a person who was used to having visions of the past.
“Where am I and who are you?” I asked the mystery speaker.
“We’re in a pocket of time that I like to visit if I ever need to speak to someone in private. I can tell you that doesn’t happen very often,” the voice replied. “It’s not often I find someone worth all the hassle.”
“Great, now who are you?”
“Why, Avery, I’m shocked you don’t remember me. Oh, that’s right, you currently don’t remember hardly anything about your past,” she said with a chuckle. “You know that’s your own fault. I think you could’ve worked a better deal. Anyway, back to your question. I’ve been called many things over the years, but originally people called me Clotho. These days when I meet with people, I tend to like the name Eva.”
“Well, Eva, what can I do for you? I was in a bit of a hurry back on Earth,” I replied.
I didn’t know what was going on and I hated the fact that I couldn’t see who was messing with me. If I needed to fight, I wanted to know what I was up against.
“Now, Avery, we’ve always been very close. So close, that if you quit being so whiny, I’ll end this little gathering by giving you a gift,” she replied.
“I’ll see what I can do, but you can ask anyone who’s ever met me, I’m not exactly known for my patience,” I said. “Do I get to see what you look like, or do I have to keep talking to this phantom voice?”
“Very well,” she replied, walking out from the shadows. “You really need to get those memories back. You never use to be this pushy.”
As she walked closer to me, all I saw was a relatively small figure in a cloak. When she got three feet away from me, she stopped and drew back her cloak. A small, young woman with long blonde hair and fair features stood before me. I still didn’t recognize her, so I waited for her to fill me in.
“I see there’s still no spark to remind you of who I am. Oh well, though I was hoping not to have to explain myself. I’m the youngest of the three Fates. I’m the one who brings life to this world. You being the queen of the phoenixes, and able to resurrect multiple times, has made us great friends over the years. I may have even facilitated you and that king of yours in populating the phoenix race a time or two.”
“So bringer of life, what can I do for you on this day?” I asked as I wondered if time had stopped back home or if Nate was totally freaking out.
“Technically, the answer isn’t either of those options. I’ve just slowed it down so much that when you get back only a second will have passed,” she said, obviously reading my mind. “As for what I want, I should think it was obvious by what my claim to fame is. I’m the source of life and that warlock you’ve been battling has stopped me from being able to do my job among the uniques. I’ve tried everything I can think of to counteract his magic, but it seems you’re the only one who can.”
“Just what do you expect me to do? I’m pretty sure I would’ve tried to fix the problem already if I had a solution. I have some general ideas about what needs to be done, but I have no idea who I’m fighting.”
“But the answer is in that head of yours. You’re gaining back those memories slower than I expected. Did you set some kind of timeframe up before you could get them all back?”
I looked at her like she had lost her mind, which I was fairly certain she had. What in the world did that question even mean?
“You really don’t know? I’m sure none of the people you hang around with knows either then, or they may have been kind enough to tell you,” she replied.
“Have you met Nate? He doesn’t like to tell me anything about my past. I evidently wrote a letter to myself, cautioning how fast I try to get my memories back.”
“Then it must have had a timeframe. Dang it. Since me and my sisters were there when you burned up, we witnessed most of the spell. I didn’t get it all, but I know that to get your full sorceress powers, you gave up your memories.
“I wasn’t sure if it was permanent or not, but the fact that you’re regaining some would indicate it was temporary. What really surprised me was the fact that you were able to look into the past and see part of your bonfire. I know for a fact you weren’t supposed to remember that,” she said with a smug grin.
“And what is that supposed to mean? Not only that, but how do you know what I’ve seen in my visions?” I asked.
I felt like I was talking with someone who knew way more than any one person should about another. I already had Nate and Rick to fill my quota of people who knew more about me than I did. I really didn’t need another person to add to that list.
“Maybe I do. I have a very keen interest in how your life turns out Ms. Avery. Being one of the Fates, I know when people are destined for greatness, and, babe, you are at the top of the list. As for why you weren’t supposed to remember that day in particular, I can’t ruin that surprise for you. Let’s just say that becoming a full-blown sorceress wasn’t all you accomplished that day,” she teased.
“So, since I can’t wave a magic wand and turn you back into baby maker extraordinaire, is there anything else I can do for you? You obviously know more about what’s going on than I do.” My time with her had been way more confusing than helpful in my book.
“I could probably help with some of that confusion, you know,” she said with a smile. It made me think of a bubble gum commercial where an actress showed off her pearly whites.
“Okay. If you’re feeling like answering questions, I have one that you just brought to the forefront. You said I didn’t become a full sorceress until I said some spell, how in the world was I able to charm the knife that should kill the warlock prior to saying that spell? On top of that, how could I even do a spell to become a sorceress?” I asked. “I was under the impression you had to be born one.”
“Good questions, both of course have the same answer. You’ve always been a little witchy. Okay, maybe little is an understatement. You were a dang good witch, but you’ve never really practiced your arts. If you remember your ABCs of the magic world, witches can read spells, and when you got a vision of a future that didn’t appeal to you, you spent three years finding the spells you needed to alter that future,” she explained. “Next question.”
“If I tell Nate that I met you, will he know who you are?” I asked. I wanted a second opinion on whether she was just some lunatic who broke out of an asylum.
“Probably not. We have met in passing, but I’ve never had one of these meetings with him, or any long meaningful conversations.”
“Do you know why I gave up my memories for the spell?” I asked. “That seems like an odd thing to have to do.”
“I know I mentioned thinking you should’ve worked a better deal earlier, but really for all the power you have, and the fact that you’re regaining your memories, you probably got off easy. I guess choosing to stay absent for so long was probably why you even got the option to have them returned at all. As you’ve been finding out with your little headaches lately, all magic comes with a price. At least the kind of magic that you sorceress types tend to dabble in,” she explained, by not giving me a direct answer that made sense.
“Do you know how I can learn
to control it? I imagine when I get my memories back I’ll know more, but until then, I’d like to be able to use everything I have in my arsenal without having to hot pack my head.”
“Hmm. When your nasty business in New Bedford is over, head north to Salem. A sorceress named Nadine lives there, and she can show you the ropes. She isn’t as strong as you, but she has you beat in experience.”
“Seriously? You’re sending me to Salem, Massachusetts to learn how to use magic. Could you get any more cliché?”
“Why not? Sorceresses aren’t born every day, you know, so there aren’t a ton of options. Plus, I think you’ll get a kick out of Nadine. She’s just a little on the eccentric side. Now, if there are no other questions, I think it’s time we get you back on your journey. You have important work to get done.”
“I’m not really sure if what’s been said has been useful, but I suppose it has. Having a trainer will be greatly appreciated, if your eccentric friend can actually teach me something. How am I supposed to find her when I get there? I don’t think walking down the street yelling her name will work.”
“Don’t worry, she’ll find you,” Eva responded with a little laugh. “Now, back you go, and I didn’t forget my promise of a gift.”
The next second I was in the garage back on my knees. “Talk about trippy,” I said, standing up. Everyone else was still getting ready to leave, and no one seemed to notice anything had happened.
“What’s trippy?” Nate asked.
“I just spent the last thirty minutes with one of the Fates, at least it felt like thirty minutes.”
“Really, which one?” Joseph queried.
“She wanted to be called Eva, but said she used to be called Clotho.”
“Well, if you have to meet one of them, she’d be the one I would choose. I hear they’re all a little nutty,” he replied.
“Evidently she and I are great friends from way back. She said her and her sisters were there the day I went into the fire. She claims that I instituted the memory loss and extended vacation in exchange for the new powers I have. She wants me to get my memories back as soon as possible, so I can break whatever spell is causing uniques to not be able to breed. Evidently, the bringer of life is getting tired of only working with humans,” I informed them.
“So did she actually answer questions for you?” Rick asked. “That has got to be a first in this lifetime.”
“You’re so funny,” I said, walking over to smack him on the head. When I did, I noticed a piece of paper fell from my hand that I didn’t realize I was carrying. I hurried to pick it up and unfold it.
“What do you have there?” Nate asked, coming closer to get a look. Not wanting to have to pass it around, I went ahead and read it out loud.
“There will come a day, in the year that the calendars end, that a bird will rise up and rule the nonhumans. Under her rule, peace will be known among the humans and those born with special abilities. She will form an organization that will battle the evils of this world and puts an end to the soulless amongst us. From her and her king, the next great oracle will be born, so they must be protected at all costs,” I read in my best narrator voice.
“What do you think it means?” Trey asked.
Since he hadn’t been with us that long, I refrained from saying “duh”. Instead I said, “If I were to guess, I think it means we now have the missing prophecy.”
“You putting an end to the soulless. I can see why a warlock wouldn’t be too happy with keeping you alive, sis. He wouldn’t have any friends by the time you got done,” Rick said.
“Well, we aren’t going to fight him sitting around here talking. Let’s finally get this journey underway.” I didn’t want to meet anyone’s eyes as I climbed on Winnie. I didn’t know how reliable prophecies were, but I didn’t like the instant feel of the weight of the world on my shoulders.
“Great idea, dollface,” Kyle said as everyone else got ready to leave.
I felt Nate’s eyes burning a hole into me as I started my bike. I glanced over his way to see what emotions he had going on in his mind, since I wasn’t really sure what to think. He pushed down the start switch as his smile widened when he saw he drew my attention.
“We’re going to have a baby.”
I rolled my eyes and let my clutch out as I rolled the throttle. I needed a few hundred miles to sift through the things I’d learned, and I didn’t need Nate jumping for joy because there was talk of a baby. The guy hadn’t even gotten to second base.
CHAPTER 6
There is never anything good lurking in the shadows