Discovery: Altera Realm Trilogy (36 page)

"You wanted to see me?" Syney asked.

Amelia just smiled and stared at her.

Syney slowly understood, and tears sprung to her eyes. "Mom?"

Amelia started to tear up as well. "I'm so sorry that I sent you away. But I knew it was for the best."

Syney jumped up and walked a few feet away. "You sent me away?"

"I had to."

"What are you talking about?" Syney demanded. "Why would you have to send away your daughter? Who no one knows you had, by the way."

Amelia rolled her eyes. "So much like your father."

"And who exactly is Daddy dearest?"

"I can't tell you, but just know that he loved you as much as I did. Neither of us wanted to let you go, but they would have killed you like they did me."

Syney took a breath to calm down. "The Daemons?"

Amelia looked away. "We don't have much time, so listen. Don't trust anyone except Hunter. Everyone has a motive, and you need to keep yourself safe. And stay away from Mellisandrianna. Stay out of her sight. She is dangerous and has secrets that can destroy her."

"Then I need to find out what they are. Do you know?"

Amelia looked pained for a moment. "That's it. I have to go." She rushed over to Syney and embraced her. "I love you." She looked at her. "You are everything I could have hoped for."

She seemed to dissolve right then and there. Syney cried out for her, but the entire room started to dissolve.

Syney's eyes fluttered open, and she groaned as pain shot through her body. She looked up and into Gabe's golden eyes. "Do I look as good as I feel?"

"You looked worse an hour ago," he said with a smile. "But you never could be anything but gorgeous."

"You flatter me," she grumbled, and tried to sit up.

"Stay down," he said, pushing her gently. "You almost died. That deserves some rest."

"Did you..."

"No, not this time. It was...magic."

"Huh." She rolled her head to the side and saw a large glass window that looked out to the next room. Hunter stood there watching her. She smiled, and he quickly turned away.

"He's scared shitless. Blames himself. He doesn't know how to handle it."

Syney smiled at Gabe. "It's nice having a mindreading Vampire around."

He leaned forward and planted a kiss on her forehead. "Get some more sleep. It'll help the healing."

"I don't think I can," she said. A moment later she heard Gabe's voice in her head telling her to sleep, and she stifled a yawn. "No fair," she said groggily.

"You're welcome."

"Where's your shirt?" she managed before she fell asleep. She could have sworn she heard him laugh, but it might have been a dream.

Mellisandrianna

The queen swept into the infirmary with Grass on her heels. She looked around at the nearly empty room; only Syney's wolf and the Vampire were there. She sneered at both of them. A few green-clad doctors rushed out of the surgery bay to greet her. They scurried around, giving her updates on Syney. She had been stable the night before, but unconscious and not getting any better, and then that morning, when they returned, she was almost totally healed. They chalked it up to the Viloris' natural healing ability. The queen narrowed her eyes at them. The healing was always toward another person; they never had been able to heal themselves.

"You left?" she asked as cold as ice.

The head doctor looked at her and stammered that one of them had mentioned needing sleep and that it had sounded good and right at the time.

Mellisandrianna glanced over at the Vampire. He met her gaze and held it longer than most would, but he eventually looked away. She knew he'd had something to do with this; it had Vampire written all over it. She hated Vampires, even when they had been a staple in the palace. They were a nuisance and nothing more. "Leave," she said firmly.

"Um, me?" the doctor asked.

"Everyone. I'd like some time alone with Syney. Has she awakened yet?"

"Only for a moment. I put her back to sleep," the Vampire said smoothly.

"Hm. Now go."

The Vampire and the doctor—all of the doctors—did as she asked, but Hunter looked at her, not moving.

"Commander Leaf is outside. He will update you on the status of Syney's protection. I suggest you go speak with him," Mellisandrianna said, walking toward the swinging door that led to where Syney was.

"I shouldn't leave, Your Majesty," Hunter said quietly.

Grass scoffed. "Are you really disobeying an order from your queen?"

Mellisandrianna turned her icy stare on Hunter. After a moment he relented and walked out. She smiled at her victory and walked over to Syney's side. She looked much better than the reports had said. She wondered who had helped the healing along. She should have the secured section of the library checked to make sure it was still locked. She pulled the blanket down and examined Syney's midsection. Several scars lined her pale skin. The largest was on her right side. It was thicker and darker than the rest, probably from the knife moving after it had been stabbed in. That was the perfect place. She looked to Grass, who handed her a clear container filled with a green honey-like substance. She poured some of it onto her index finger and began to trace a symbol on the spot she had chosen. As she did she chanted some words. Once she finished, it shone blue for a moment before disappearing, as if nothing had been there at all. She handed the container back to Grass, who slipped it into his pocket. At that moment Syney moaned, and her eyes fluttered open. Mellisandrianna pulled the sheet back up to cover her quickly.

"Hello. You gave everyone quite a scare," the queen said with a smile.

Syney took a moment before speaking. "I'll be sure not to raise such a ruckus next time I get attacked."

"I'm sure that won't happen again," Mellisandrianna said. "We had an emergency council meeting this morning. Security will be tripled. We also are launching an investigation into who attacked you. We will find who was responsible." She looked over as Leaf filed into the room with Hunter, Fern, and Reed. "Right on time. I want you to feel safe, so we've added to your protection detail. I want a Protector on you at all times. Hunter will stay as your lead, of course, but you also will have Reed and Fern. I wanted a woman to do the overnight. Fern will be on duty in your room as you sleep."

Syney swallowed. "OK."

"Good. Now all you have to think about is getting better."

Syney grimaced, and her hand flew to her right side.

"Are you all right?"

Syney nodded. "Just some pain."

Mellisandrianna smiled. "It will pass." She looked to the guardians. "Take care of her—very good care." She turned and left the room. Everything had been a success. Now all she had to do was sit and watch Syney destroy herself.

Gabe

Gabe opened the small blue book. It didn't take him long to find the spell he needed and even less time to grab everything he needed to perform it. It was a relatively simple spell but one that took a lot of concentration. He would have preferred that a Magic User do it, but that wasn't a possibility. He couldn't do it here; he had to go to the place where it had been originally cast in order to undo it. But it wasn't too far—only a day's run for him. He stopped in to see Syney before he left. Princess Cass had worked wonders on her. She looked amazing and only complained about one spot that still hurt. She didn't understand why he had to leave, but he promised to come right back.

"I'm not sure Mellisandrianna will let you back in," Syney said. She was in another room now, one filled with beds. She was sitting up, eating.

"She won't even know I'm gone. I'm fast, remember?"

Syney laughed and then grimaced as she grabbed her right side. "Ouch."

"Did the doctors look at that?"

She nodded. "They can't find anything wrong. It's probably just something to do with the scar. It'll go away. And you'd better be fast." She paused. "You saved my life again, you know."

"All I did was carry you."

"Right. But it still helped."

He smiled at her and ran a hand down her face. "I'm a sucker for a pretty face."

Syney laughed again. "You'd better get going. Be back by tomorrow."

"I will," he promised. He knew he should be.

It didn't take him as long as he'd thought. Once he was outside of the Village, it only took him a few hours to cross into neutral territory. The lands of the Realm used to be flourishing and widespread, with large cities that anyone could come and stay in. Now it was full of abandoned cities and lands. He followed the Great Lake through the neutral territory and into the old Daemon lands. He stopped running and took in all of the crumbled houses and walls. The Daemon territory once rivaled the Magic User Village in vastness and its sheer number of people. The sight of everything ruined and on the ground broke his heart a little. He walked toward the center of the old city but was forced to stop at the beginning of a gaping hole in the ground. It had to be at least a hundred feet across and even deeper. He looked over the edge but couldn't see anything in the deep, vast blackness. But he could hear them below. Their heartbeats were there—but slow—and their breathing was deep. He pulled out the small blue book and combined the ingredients as needed. He held his hands over the mixture in a clear glass jar and repeated the words in the book.
"Vigilemus dormiens Daemones. Venit et petere tua iure locum in terris."
He felt the magic pull on his life force and the mixture flashed black. He picked up the jar and threw it into the hole. He heard it smash somewhere, and a vortex of black wind swept up out of the hole. Gabe covered his eyes for a moment as a bright white flash lit up the lands. When he brought his hands down, hundreds of people—or to be more specific, Daemons—surrounded him. He smiled. He had done it.

It didn't take him long to find the one Daemon he needed. His smile broadened at the sight of his old friend. "Hadrian!"

The older man smiled and walked up to Gabe, extending his hand. "Gabriel." He was handsome and tall, with dark hair cut short and even darker eyes. His smile fell. "How long?"

Gabe looked at him sadly. "A hundred and eighteen years."

Hadrian's face turned grave. "That long?" He turned away and spat out a curse. "How many has she gone through?"

"At least two since Lassinadrianna."

Hadrian shook his head. "We have to stop her."

"There's more." He paused. "It's Syney. She didn't die with Amelia."

He shook his head. "No. That's not possible."

"Amelia must have done something. Sent her away, through time. I don't know. But she's alive now and in the Village."

Hadrian's dark eyes flashed. "Then we have to do something about that."

"I'm working on it. Make sure everyone stays low. We don't need anyone knowing you're all back...yet. I have to return to the Village."

Hadrian grabbed Gabe's arms. "It is good to see you, old friend."

"And you. We'll make things right. I promise."

Hadrian gave a nod and turned to his people.

Gabe quickly walked out of the crowd then picked up speed once he was back in neutral territory. He made it back to the Village the next day, as he had promised.

Syney