Regali (A Walker Saga) (13 page)

She was so angry
, her hands were claws and her dark eyes narrowed. I guessed she also hadn’t appreciated being knocked out.

“This is the worst thing I’ve ever seen
, and we were about to become one of these husks.” She threw her hands in the air, her body encased in her blue flames.

“Fury, calm
, baby. Otherwise you are going to hurt someone.” Dune, who could touch her without burning himself, was running both hands up and down her arms.

She breathed in deeply, although it didn’t seem to be making it any better. I understood her feelings
: it was hard to calm down when faced with this room.

“What did she say ab
out saving them?” Josian turned to Lallielle, his generally jovial features creased with concern.

“She said that we needed to find a First Worlder to volunteer to sacrifice themselves so that their tethers could replace the ones lost from … my family.” Lallielle reached out a hand toward the suspended victims
, but she couldn’t quite reach Samuel’s foot.

The look on her face was pure devastation. I hoped I never had to lose a child
. I knew I wouldn’t survive it and Lallielle had done it twice in her lifetime.

We were all quiet
. I was considering the impossibilities of saving them. I knew Lallielle would never sacrifice another, and who would volunteer for something so –?

“I’ll do it.”

My breath caught in my throat at the sound of his words. Tears already filled my eyes as I faced him, and I was subconsciously shaking my head from side to side.

My guardian caught my eye
; his piercing blue were flooded with sadness.

“No
,” I whispered. “I need you.”   

He moved forward and took my hands into his weathered ones. “I have watched over you for years
. After losing my Hallow that was the only thing that kept me moving forward. I’m tired, Aribella, you are safe with your family and you have grown up so beautiful and strong. You don’t need me anymore.”

He shifted his head slightly to face the wide, stricken eyes of his oldest friend. “And if I can make this sacrifice for my loved ones I can think of no better way to join my Hallow.”

“I will not,” Lalllielle said strongly. “I couldn’t live with myself.” She turned away. “And I’m not even sure either of them deserve a sacrifice.”

“It is not your decision to make
,” he said firmly. “And despite my personal feelings for the woman, I do think Francesca is very important; she foresaw this entire thing.”

He turned his back on Lallielle. “Do you know how to reverse their tethers and replace
them with mine?” he asked Josian.

Josian regarded the devastation on his mate’s features for a brief moment before facing Quarn. “I don’t think this is the right decision
. You have many who love you, but it’s not my place to intercede in this choice if you’ve made it. I’ve seen something like this once, performed by one of the ancient ones. If you’re serious about this I’ll go find him.”

Quarn nodded his head firmly. “Yes, get him.”

Lallielle stepped forward. “I’m begging you not to assist him in this foolish plan.”

I
lent my support to her words by taking her hand.

She continued.
“He’s always been a self-sacrificing person. It’s part of his gift as a protector and what made him such a perfect guardian. But he doesn’t always make rational decisions.”

“Still standing right here, Lalli
,” Quarn said with a grin. “And you know my sacrifice could save more than just two. Depending on their tether loss, I could save many.”

Brace cleared his throat. “Don
’t diminish his gift. Take joy in the choice he’s making; it’s a most honorable way to die.”

I glared at him. “What?” I mean seriously. “I hope you’re kidding, Brace, otherwise you and I are going to have a serious problem.”

Brace and Josian genuinely looked confused. They couldn’t understand why Lallielle and I were so upset.

“Is it not honorable to die and save many?” Brace asked. “Walkers will release their energy if the cause is important enough.”

“It’s honorable to live for those that you love,” Lallielle choked out.

Quarn’s eyes
looked crestfallen. “Would you really punish me to a thousand lifetimes without Hallow? I am ready to release my essence and have new life reborn, or in my case restore life to those who had it brutally stolen.”

He’d struck a chord with Lallielle now
. I could see the resignation on her features, followed by the hot, heavy tears that signified her moment of acceptance. She was a First Worlder. They had a great understanding of life and how endless time wasn’t always a gift.

But I
had been raised on Earth. We fought and scraped to stay alive. We lived every moment. And I was not okay with this.

Without another word I wrenched myself free from my mother and turned to leave the room of horrors. They could make whatever decision they wanted, but I wasn’t standing around and watching my guardian die.

As soon as I was out of the room I traced back to Regali.

Abby.

Brace’s voice was soft.

Get out of my head, and don’t follow me. I want to be alone.
I all but screamed the words at him before slamming down my shields.

I knew it wasn’t his fault
. I was just so hurt and angry, and when I’d needed his support he’d sided with Quarn.

I was in Ria’s home, just standing there staring into nothing. I had traced there in the faint hope that I would find Lucy; she would understand.

“Abbs?”

I spun around and threw myself at Lucy.

“What happened? Is everyone okay?” Her voice sounded frantic over my shoulder. “You haven’t been gone long.”

It felt as if I’d been gone a thousand years.

Colton sidled out of the darkened room behind us. Ria followed him. I lifted my head to give them both a tear
-stained smile.

“Sorry
, I just busted in here without warning.”

Lucy was now holding me at arm’s length. “Tell me what happened
,” she said as she shook me.

Pulling away
, I started to pace the hard wood floor. I quickly detailed everything that had happened since I had left.

Ria remained quiet
. This problem didn’t mean anything to her. Lucy had both hands on her face, and her mouth open, and Colton leaned somberly against the wall. Finally I finished by choking out Quarn’s stupid plan. I brushed away the angry tears that wet my eyes.

“Are. You. Freaking. Kidding. Me?” Lucy’s blue eyes were wide and shiny. “Oh
, Ralph won’t have to kill himself; I’ll do it for him being such a dumbass.”

“I don’t understand the problem
–” Colton started.

I waved my hand to cut him off.

“Ignore the Walker men. They’re high on opinions and short on brains.”

Lucy forced a chuckle. “Brace is in trouble.”

I growled. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Can we stop
Quarn?” Lucy asked.

I gulped down a few times. “I don’t think so. He looked serious, and he misses Hallow. I think he truly believes that this is what his destiny is now.”

“It is honorable,” Colton managed to spit out between our glares.

I
rested my head on my hands. “If I have to hear that stupid word one more time.”

“I think, Abbs,” Lucy said as she reached out and took my hands from my face, “that maybe you should go back
. You don’t want to miss saying goodbye to Quarn.”

“My heart hurts
,” I whimpered. “I don’t want to feel this. Why can’t everyone just stay alive and be happy?”

She sighed. “I don’t want to be a bitch on top of everything, but you’re thinking like a child. We’re fighting a huge battle
. There are going to be deaths, sacrifices. It’s inevitable.”

I stomped my foot hard. “I don’t accept that, and even if I did this isn’t a random
, violent, unavoidable death. This is Quarn making the actual choice. He’s choosing this.”

“Yes
, but if he didn’t choose this, Frannie and Sammy would both die,” Lucy said.

A
nd I realized that she’d been pretty cagey about how she felt about Samuel’s involvement.

I guess what it really boiled down to was the fact that I loved Quarn, and I didn’t love either
Frannie or Samuel. To me, my loved one was worth more than any other, but Lucy was right: I was thinking like a child.

“I have to go back
,” I whispered.

“We
’ll go with you,” Lucy said.

Colton just nodded
, reaching out to take my free hand.

“I will wait here for your return
. We have much to discuss regarding the Seventine and the fringe,” Ria said.

She’d been so quiet during my meltdown I’d almost forgotten she was there.

“We’ll see you soon.” I smiled at her.

Clutching my friends close
, I pictured the room of horrors. I hesitated briefly before reaching toward a tether close to the door. It was time to trace us back.

I didn’t want to walk into the room. Colton and Lucy were hovering at the edge of the doorway, their faces reflecting the horror I could never forget. I knew they wouldn’t be able to see our family back in their far corner, so there was no point asking if Quarn was dead yet.

I felt Brace’s energy then
. He was moving toward me.

“You should go back there, Abby, he
’s waiting for you.” His deep tones washed away some of my ragged edges.

I felt relief and dread; I wasn’t too late. I had my head against the rock wall, my eyes closed so I couldn’t see Brace.

“I know it hurts,” he continued. “And I’m sure it’s the last thing you want to do, but if you don’t say goodbye you’ll always regret it.”

He didn’t touch me, which I both needed and would also hate right now, but he was sending warm waves of loving energy toward me. I pushed myself off the wall and my eyes caught on his face. The hurt I saw there, in the dark depths of his eyes, almost had me caving
, but my righteous anger dulled it enough that I could stride past without reaching out to touch him.

Lucy and Colton followed as I marched toward the small group still huddled in the far corner. Josian’s red hair was the first thing to come into view
. I could see he was talking to a Walker, a man who wore the indigo marks of Whar. I realized it was Ria’s father, Nos.

“Aribella
!” Josian exclaimed as I moved into view. “Come say hello to Nos.” He waved me toward them.

Lucy and Colton left me to join the others and I stepped up to the two imposing Walkers. Josian showed no negative emotion regarding my
earlier departure. I never felt judged by Josian, just love and acceptance. Rare even from one’s father.

I hadn’t paid much attention to Nos at the gathering
, but now I could see that he looked like the male version of Ria: the same stunning features and tawny-colored skin. And those purple eyes were watching me without even a single blink to break their stare. 

“Hello, nice to see you again
,” I said, my voice hoarse and flat.

“How did you find Regali and my daughter?” His voice was deep.

I threw a confused look toward Josian. How the hell had he –?

“Nos is a visionary
. It’s the Walker version of a soothsayer. He’s the one I’ve called for help in transferring the tethers.”

I examined him closer. “Have you had a vision of this happening?” I questioned.

He shook his head. “No, it doesn’t work like that for me. I have a vision about once every hundred years, but sometimes I just know things.” He paused. “I’m more of a history record keeper. There’s only one living Walker visionary. The successor is appointed upon the death of the predecessor. And you know you’re the visionary because at that moment all the knowledge of all previous visionaries is passed to you.”

“That’s how you knew so much at the gathering.”
And still he had not thought to tell me that his daughter was the half-Walker I would seek on Regali. Damn Walkers and their secrecy.

He nodded. “Yes, I hold the memory and history of hundreds of lives. It can get very hard to remember which memories are my own and which I inherited.”

“How long have you been the visionary?”

He blinked a few times. “I don’t know exactly.” He finally muttered, “
A long time.”

“And now you
’re here to kill Quarn?” I said bluntly.

“Aribella.” Quarn walked over from where he’d been hovering close by. “No one has to kill me
. It is a simple process – like going to sleep.”

“Yeah, going to sleep and never waking up
,” I mumbled.

“I do have this knowledge you seek, although I
’ve never performed a tether transfer,” Nos admitted.

“How many people will you save?” I had to know it was worth it, that my harsh, bossy, crazily protective guardian’s death was worth it.

“On top of Samuel and Francesca, there’ll be enough tethers to save ten others with similar losses to your brother and aunt,” Nos said.

I didn’t bother to correct him on the brother and aunt thing
; those two were not my family.

It was now or never.
There was no more time with Quarn. I took a deep breath and launched myself at him.

“Please. Please
,” I begged. “Please don’t do this. I need you.” Tears and desperation poured out of me.

I knew it was fruitless
, but I had to try. The others were right, though. Despite the fact I hated the word, Quarn was an honorable man and he would never walk away from this sacrifice.

“Aribella, I wish I could stay and help you save the world. But if there is one thing I have learnt from my years with you, it’s that you don’t need me. You mostly saved yourself
. I just got to witness all of the wonder.”

He pulled me tighter into the hug. “I never had a child
. Hallow didn’t want to take free energy from others, but you have been a daughter to me and I will always be with you. My tethers go to these people but my free energy will be reborn. I will find my Hallow again and the cycle will continue. This is the great life plan.”

I couldn’t speak, I was crying so hard. Eventually Josian had to take me away
. He gathered me in his big body and gave one of those bear hugs that he’s so good at.

“I can’t stand by and watch her pain any longer.” I could hear Brace’s terse tone. It sounded as if someone was holding him back.

“Right now she’s angry and upset. Give her space.” Colton’s voice was low.

“No.”

He was stubborn. And he was mine, for now at least. Unless the ritual worked
, I’d soon be losing Brace also. My mind shied away from that. I wasn’t strong enough to handle it.

“It
’s time.” Nos interrupted my morbid thoughts. “I must return to my clan. We were in the middle of an important meet when Josian collected me.”

Damn, Walkers were
also rude.

“That’s a true Walker
,” I heard Lucy say. “Wham, bam, thank you, mam.”

I don’t think most of them got the reference.

“I am an important person,” Nos stated.

And there was no snooty tone, just spoken as if it
were a fact. No one bothered to argue. The arrogance of Walkers was solid, and arguing just gave me a headache.

“What will happen to the rest of those in here?” I indicated the thousands of bodies.

There was a pause. No one wanted to answer, and I had a sick feeling what that meant.

“The Walkers are being awoken
. They have no tethers and will make a full recovery once their energy is allowed to replenish,” Josian said.

“And the rest … the First Worlders
,” I prompted.

Lallielle walked up then
. Her face was almost haggard in the harsh white light. She might have accepted Quarn’s decision, but she wasn’t happy about it.

“They
’ll be destroyed.” Her voice wavered. She cleared her throat. “If we wake them they’ll die slowly without all their tethers and turn into the reanimated dead.”

“Well
, that’s a bitch.” I shook my head.

There was really nothing more to say.

Nos led us over to the spot under Samuel and Francesca. My understanding was that Quarn’s tethers would spread to them first and then branch out to find those closest that needed them.

“Okay, it
’s time to say goodbye.” Nos gave one nod.

I stared at the floor while Quarn made the rounds. Brace was right behind me
. I could feel him, but he was still respecting my need to be mad at him right then and didn’t touch me. Lucy clung to Quarn for a long moment, her pale features red and swollen with tears.

“You stay strong
, Miss Lucy,” I heard Quarn say. “You and Aribella have a special relationship and it is this strength which will make the difference in the end.”

“I love you, Ralph
,” she said when she eventually pulled back.

Finally it was my turn.

I didn’t lift my eyes at first
. I focused on his worn boots instead.

“Where is my brave Abigail?” he said.

My eyes flew up. He didn’t usually call me by my Earth name.

“There, that’s better.” His blue eyes drilled into me. “I have one last piece of advice for you. People will come in and out of your life, make you promises that you know in your heart are false. Trust in yourself, trust in your heart and you will never be wrong.” He leaned in close to me. “Beware the tides of Lucas.”

I pulled back to see his face better. “What does that mean?”

“There is something there
. I don’t know what it is, but I just don’t want you to let your guard down with him.”

I nodded. That was something easy to promise.

“Well, my dear girl, this is farewell for now. I will see you again in another life.” He leaned down and kissed my cheeks and then my forehead.

I closed my eyes as he lingered there for a moment, breathing in the scent of Quarn. He was the first person to give me hope, the one to bring me to my life.

“I’ll see you again,” I promised him. “You and I are a team, Quarn.”

“Yes
, we are.”

I turned away then
, allowing him to move to Lallielle.

“Don’t say anything.” She held up her hand. “This is my fault
. I should never have sent you and Hallow to Earth. I made the wrong decision. I deserve to lose you too.”

He laughed. It sounded loud and grating in the cavernous hall. “Maybe you do need me to stick around and knock some sense into you. I have never blamed you
. Fate is not yours to circumvent, and your actions probably saved more lives than you know.”

“Always and forever
,” Lallielle said as they touched foreheads.

“Always and forever
,” he repeated back to her, and for the first time a tear trailed down his cheek.

Brace’s arms encircled me. I sank into his comfort.

“I’m sorry, baby, I’m so sorry.” He sounded sad.

I just pulled his arms tighter around me.

Nos had stepped up to Quarn now. I had to fight the urge to dash forward and rip them apart. Quarn locked eyes with me and I knew this was the last moment I would see that piercing blue. Lallielle was sobbing into Josian’s shirt front. She didn’t seem to want to look, but I couldn’t take my eyes off them.

Quarn gave me one last nod before turning away and facing forward. Nos leaned in close and with a few low words, which I couldn’t hear, energy encased Quarn. His eyes closed and I heard the breath expel from his body
. I waited for it to sound again, but it didn’t.

I bit back a moan of pain, watching as Quarn’s body started to rise. Suddenly there were visible tethers coming off him, at least twenty different ones. The cords stretch
ed out and as he rose three attached to Samuel, two to Francesca and the rest to seven of the people around him. At the same time, the thousands of other bodies around us started lowering to the ground.

Fully visible on the now empty ceiling
, the mass of energy which was gathered in the center of the room shifted, and for some reason I had pull myself from Brace’s arms and move toward it. I don’t know what made me do it, but I threw out my golden cord and without pause it extended itself and attached to the pulse of energy.

I hit the ground, landing on my knees.

I’d never felt a bulk of power like this. It was a living entity. It could create and destroy and level this world to the ground.

The well inside me jumped to attention
. It was happy right now and it wanted the energy. I started to draw it into me, waves and flows, masses of power. I didn’t know who I was anymore. There was nothing separating me and the energy. It took forever or seconds. I had no indication of time passing, but finally I swallowed the last bit of mist.

“Get rid of it, Red
. Release that power or it will kill you.” Brace’s words finally broke through the silent bubble that had been encasing me.

And now I could feel the mass pulsing inside
me. It was going to kill me; I could feel the laboring of my heart.

I had no choice.

“Protect Lucy,” I screamed.

I couldn’t hold it any longer,
and released it in one large explosion.

Even though
it had been floating on the ceiling before I’d tethered to it, it must have still been contained somehow. But now I’d set it free and it streamed out to connect with every person in the room.

The unconscious Walkers sprang to life, and they weren’t the only ones. The First Worlders opened their eyes. I watched in astonishment as every victim awoke, and not as reanimated
beings, but as themselves.