Reckless Magic (41 page)

39.

The gypsy woman still a mystery, the
train came to a stop in the humble, but beautiful town of Sibiu. I
exited the train, backpack in tow, to an outdoor platform. I
breathed in the less polluted air of the countryside and lifted my
face to the late afternoon sun, whose warmth I barely felt. I
pulled the hood up on my sweatshirt and took in another big
breath.

It was during that breath, that I
finally felt it; the small hum of magic coming from some distance
away. It was almost like a calling; the buzzing electricity
beckoned me to find it.

I took another big breath and let the
distant call of magic fill me. I may not have known exactly where
to go, but at least I had a general direction to follow.

I looked around for cab drivers, but
the smaller town wasn’t as convenient as the booming Western city
of Timsoara. In fact, the town looked nearly deserted. The tourist
shops were all closed and the streets empty. I didn’t know how far
the Citadel was from this small town, but it was too far to walk,
the magic could at least assure me of that.

I had no choice for now however, and
began to jog in the direction of where I felt like the magic was
located. The city was very hilly and I found myself walking up a
very steep incline when I finally stumbled upon a cab driver taking
a smoke and sitting on the hood of his run down Dacia.

“
English?” I asked, not
expecting much.

“
Da. English,” he smiled,
and I could see rows of gold teeth behind dirty lips.

“
Can you drive me?” I
pointed in the direction I wanted to go in.

“
Not that way,” he shook his
head rapidly and then spat on the ground.

“
I will pay you,” I said
clearly and pulled out my stack of Lei again.

“
Not enough to go that way,”
he looked back in the direction with an expression of
fear.

“
Please,” I said plainly and
when he shook his head no again, I resorted to begging. “Please,
please,” I cried out.

“
Why do you want to go that
way?” he asked with a thick accent.

“
I have to save my friend,”
I begged, helplessly. “Please.”

“
I will not take you all the
way, but I will get you close enough, da?” his expression was full
of pity and I was so thankful that I rushed over and hugged the
poor man. He spat his cigarette out and choked on the smoke,
completely surprised by the affection.

Before he could recover I hopped into
the back seat, a near replica of the first taxi I was in. I
exhaled, but was unable to relax. Once the driver successfully
started the stubborn car, my nerves only grew. I rehearsed again
and again the case I intended to make for Lilly, my stomach turning
into knots.

The cab drove out of the city and into
the winding roads of the mountains. The countryside only became
more beautiful; millions of trees in all different fall shades
blanketed the horizon. Their loveliness stretched out across the
rising hills and as the sun set lower in the sky, their reds and
oranges melted into one extraordinary canvas of color.

The center of magic grew stronger and
stronger the deeper we found our way into the lush forest; its’
call became more clarified. At this point I could have given
directions to the driver, but he seemed perfectly able to find the
way on his own. And as the magic intensified, the poor driver’s
speed decreased. The pitiable man was clearly terrified of a force
I would not have expected him to be aware of.

I watched him become more and more
agitated, lighting thin cigarette after thin cigarette, never
allowing his mouth to sit idle. I wondered what sparked his
anxiety, unsure if he was even conscious of exactly what he was
afraid of.

Whether it was his nervousness that
rubbed off on me or my own sense of foreboding I couldn’t tell; but
I did wonder if I shouldn’t be proceeding with a little more
caution. I thought of my purpose again though and my determination
was renewed.

Lilly, who had done nothing wrong, who
fought to save the very prince who condemned her. Lilly, sweet
Lilly, who had never said a hurtful word about anyone and
befriended me when no one else would. She wasn’t afraid of the
consequences of her actions when she defended Kiran, why should I
have been?

As the sun took its lowest place on
the horizon before it dipped below the never ending peaks and
valleys, the driver finally slowed to a complete stop. He looked up
towards the wilderness with mouth open, eyes wide, his cigarette
hanging precariously from his lips.

“
Multumesc,” I mumbled
quickly and threw my remaining stack of Lei in the front seat. He
didn’t respond to me, but as soon as the door was closed he
performed a quick u-turn and sped off down the hill.

At this point the magic was so strong,
I knew I was only steps from the Citadel. Completely unsure what to
expect next, I began my trek off the road and into the wooded
wilderness. There was a steep hill I had to climb, I was hoping at
the top I would be able to take in my surroundings a bit
better.

Time was of the essence, so I did my
best to hurry. Thankful for my devotion to yoga and the sudden
necessity of magic, I scaled the vertical incline. Despite the
electricity rushing through my veins, and the flexibility yoga had
blessed me with, I fell several times and began to sweat despite
the coolness of the evening.

By the time I reached the top of the
hill I was covered in dirt and my hair was soaked with sweat. I
did, however, get a better perspective once I could see more of
what was ahead of me. I saw the low glow of lights in the distance,
they encompassed a valley a few hills away from mine. The lights
stretched out in a square of sorts and I took this to be the
Citadel. I also felt the magic swirling about, indicating a large
gathering of Immortals.

For a moment I was seized with anxiety
and doubt. I forced myself to breathe, reminding myself for the
millionth time my purpose. I picked up my pace; running down the
next hill and doing my best to hike quickly up the following one. I
became more and more dirty and I smelled a distinct odor not at all
pleasing.

Eventually, I stood above the Citadel
on a surrounding hill. I paused for a moment to take in the sight.
The Citadel was huge, nestled into a valley surrounded by
camouflaging hills. It was bordered by walls as if it were once a
fort, or still was a fort of some type. Buildings lined three of
the inside walls, with more buildings built into the center. The
fourth wall was left as a type of entrance, only with large doors
that could be closed if needed.

The Citadel reminded me of some type
of medieval village, with a castle positioned towards the back and
clearly the most protected structure inside the walls. The spires
of the castle wound towards the sky, each window lighted by a soft
yellow glow. The streets of the city were littered with Immortals
of every color and race. Several men stood at the entrance gates
stopping people as they came or went.

I hiked down the hill and then around
the Eastern wall to the gates. I took my time so that I could
observe others enter through the wide doors, hoping to emulate
their example. The guards at the gate reminded me of Talbott and
had a strict, military way about them. I noticed that they also
carried both a gun and a sword attached at their belts. The people
entering the gates were all stopped and asked to give their first
and last name. They were then asked to hold out their palms so that
the guards could grasp their hands firmly. The people were all
clearly Immortal, I had no trouble reading that off of them, and it
made me wonder if the guards were searching for something
else.

I noticed one other fact about the
people entering the gate, making my nerves skyrocket once again.
All of the people, without exception were very well dressed. The
women wore expensive ball gowns and the men were dressed in full
tuxedos. Hair done, makeup done, expensive shoes, couture jewelry,
it didn’t matter, these people went all out.

I looked down at my pathetic shambles
of clothing and took a sniff under my armpit; not pretty. I paused
for a final moment to stop and reassemble my hair which was nearly
impossible to unhinge from the hair tie. Eventually I succeeded,
but not having a mirror around, I suspected I might have done more
damage than good. I smoothed out my Nebraska hoodie and took a
confident step forward. I’d made it this far….

“
Name,” a gruff guard
demanded when it was my turn. I could feel more than hear the
guards’ confusion with my appearance.

“
Eden Matthews,” I said
clearly.

The guard looked over his list, and
then over it again, clearly not finding my name. I hadn’t realized
there would be a guest list. The guard looked me over skeptically
at first, but then his expression turned to disgust and for a
moment I thought I might be in trouble.

“
Give me your hand,” he
grunted menacingly.

I obeyed, sticking out my palm and
allowing him to grip it firmly between his.

“
You’re name’s not on the
list. Who are your parents? And why do you look like that?” two
other guards walked over to listen to my explanation.

“
I go to school at
Kingsley,” I started to explain, realizing I knew nothing about
this people group I belonged to. “I came with Seraphina Van Curen,
we go to school together. My parents couldn’t come, they’re on
business in India,” lies tumbled out of my mouth built from random
pieces of overheard information, and I forced my magic into
submission, refusing to let it give me away. “I just went for a
hike, but I am going to shower and change before I attend the feast
tonight,” I offered a wide smile, but then closed my lips quickly
afraid of what my breath smelt like after not brushing my teeth
since the airline bathroom.

“
With Ms. Van Curen?” The
guard asked skeptically. I nodded my head affirmatively and pushed
a little magic his way, hoping he didn’t notice. I knew it worked
on humans, but I had no idea what the outcome would be on another
Immortal.

“
Please I would really like
to be ready on time,” I stared past the guards as if I knew exactly
where I was going once inside the gates.

“
They just started the
trial; you’ll have plenty of time before the feast,” the guards
made a path for me to fit through and the first guard nodded his
head for me to pass.

I rushed past them and into the narrow
streets of the Citadel. If they had already started the trial, I
didn’t have much time. From the top of the hill I was able to see
exactly where I had needed to go; but from the streets below I
could not have been more lost. I moved in the direction of where I
thought the castle was and let my magic lead the way.

I put all of my hope in the castle
ahead of me. I didn’t know for sure where the trial would be held,
but logic encouraged me to examine the castle first. I sprinted
full force through the mobs of people lingering about in the
streets. My sole purpose was to get to that trial before a verdict
was given.

Out of breath and out of willpower, I
stumbled into a square by chance. Tall edifices surrounded a
cobblestone piazza with an enormous fountain in the middle. The
square was lit up with a thousand lanterns strung together and
hanging from the buildings surrounding the fountain. Musicians
played Beethoven and I glanced over expecting to see an orchestra,
but was surprised by the eight or so Immortals that made up an
intricate string ensemble.

With renewed vigor I took the
remaining distance in strides and ran through the open castle
doors. The floors of the castle were marble and I was suddenly
sliding across the lobby trying to stop. Another guard looked up at
me from his post just inside the doors.

“
Trial?” I asked, breathless
and unable to slow down for a minute to listen.

“
Through those doors,” he
pointed to a set of brass double doors that were almost an exact
match for the ones at Kingsley. “But you can’t go in there like
that,” he glared disdainfully at my red sweatshirt and I realized
that he was probably right.

“
Bathroom?” I patted my
backpack like it had the answer to my disturbing
appearance.

He pointed to a door positioned behind
him and I rushed past. The bathroom was surprisingly modern,
despite the old world appearance of the place. I didn’t have time
to take a good look however and I got straight to
business.

I headed directly to the sink and
mirror and was almost horrified to see the image staring back at
me. My face was caked in mud and dirt and my hair was a big pile of
tangles. My mascara and eyeliner had dripped down my face. I looked
like a dirty raccoon. My clothing was completely ruined, not to
mention the fact that it didn’t match to begin with. I could only
do so much and decided to focus on my face.

I turned the cold water on and
splashed my face, scrubbing it roughly. Once it was clean, or at
least clear of mud and makeup, I focused on my hair. I ripped the
pony tail holder out and did my best to comb through the tangled
mess with my fingers. Thankfully it was greasy enough that my frizz
was actually more tamed than usual. I decided to leave it down,
hoping the length and color would disguise the bright redness of my
ridiculous sweatshirt that under normal circumstances I would have
been proud to wear.