The end of November had crept up without anyone looking thanks to unexpectedly busy social lives for the Resurrection Cultivators. Everyone seemed to have something to do or someone to see. Even Storm, one of the stronger introverts in the group despite appearances, seemed inclined to spend more time at his culinary class than not. No one asked him why, but the little smile Tasia always hid seemed to give more than one person a hint.
Rachel had retreated the opposite direction. Worry and fear gnawed at her until she could not sleep. Even Illusion magic from Rhya or Rodi's black poppies could not seem to help her stay asleep for long.
Her husband was still missing and she still could not reach out to him through their souls. She could not even reach him via the Hall of Records, and he had been given the ability to enter and exit that space at will thanks to being her Caretaker. As she sat on a swing in the middle of the largest park in Lux, she closed her eyes and drifted in and out of her thoughts.
She thought she had seen him when Raine had pushed to her second tier, but there had been no way to confirm it, and she had not seen him in the time since. It just did not make any sense anyway that Allister be Fitzgerald and not give any of them a clue as to what had happened or what he had been doing in the Immortal Fields. She couldn't shake the feeling she ought to remember something important, but with as much worry as filled her, she just lacked the ability to search her own memory or even the Hall. She had tried prodding Sam and Shana and even Edgar for any information, but Sam had no more clue than she did, and if Shana and Edgar knew anything, they—like Tasia—remained frustratingly silent on the subject.
Her best bet really would be to use her own Memory gifts to dig up some answers, but, then again, with other concerns on her mind as well, memory searching might be the last thing she really wanted to attempt. Unease churned inside her as she looked at the evolutions happening around her. She honestly did not know if she could go to another tier. Her mother had never reached her second tier until forcefully asking for it from Time during the, ironically, first half of the Chaos War that had involved the Ephemeral Plane. It had also been her final tier, putting her into fully bloomed state.
Rachel felt reasonably safe to assume her own trajectory should follow the same, where she may never need a second tier for millions of years. She may end up the only one of the first Resurrection Cultivators to not become a summoner, despite possessing magikry of her own. She could end up holding back the entire team in some way, and that stung. It stung no less to confront the fact that, inevitably, she would find them all in some sort of terrible situation after the lineages had been secured, and Tasia would force her to retreat so that she survived to support future High Princesses or Princes even if the rest of the team fell.
Honestly, nothing of her own life made sense at all. How she had come to be born in the Rebirth Era when she belonged in Resurrection, how she had ended up at the Care House, or why she had been frozen not just in her Seed but her majik as well. She knew only that she directly descended of Moira, Horatio's twin, and that she somehow had a relative that had been connected to Jean Kinsley. Tears began to well that she fought back. She sat in the perfect place and time to search for those answers, but as with her husband, she felt scared to even try looking.
Shadows began to billow up around her. She went very still and held her breath. The shadows did not have the perfect fifty-fifty blend of Light and Dark possessed by either Tasia or Rodi, and they did not have the seventy-five to twenty-five leaning to Dark more than Light possessed by Chance. In fact, they had the literal opposite of Chance that meant the owner was a Light Shadow, and she knew of two people who had that: her husband, and Fitzgerald. She did not know which name to ask, and so hunched her shoulders a little.
The shadows moved in until everything went so thickly gray that she could see nothing. It was a rich fog that prevented her from even seeing her own hands, yet she did not feel any fear. In the deepest part of her heart, she knew she was safe. Gentle hands suddenly emerged from the fog, and tender fingers wiped away her tears. Familiar wedding and engagement rings were just visible on both hands; the former on pinkies, the latter on thumbs. "Aldan." A little sob caught in her chest as she grabbed his wrists and refused to let go. "Come home!" she pleaded.
"I can't yet," his voice murmured softly in her ear. "I'm so sorry, Rachel. There's something else I have to do first. But I'm near you. I'm always near you." His hands framed her face as they had hundreds of times before. "Listen to me, my love. The answers you seek are out there waiting for you if you try to claim them."
"What if I don't have a pure Life Orb?" she whispered.
His lips softly brushed her temple, and she felt his smile. "You're a Defender Cultivator. What Defender has not gone to the edge of insanity, seen hell, and come back again?" His sigh stirred her hair. "Talk to the High Priestess. Let her take you on a walk through your deepest memories. The answers you find will reassure you at last. You have a pure Orb, you can evolve, and you will when it is needed."
She felt him starting to pull away and held on tighter. "Please come home," she whispered. "I miss you. This is so much more terrible than if you had remained in the future. I can't feel you anymore. I need you!"
She heard his breath break and then his lips touched hers warmly with confident familiarity. She could not hold him in return. All she could do was drown in a potent blend of love and desire. He slowly released her and stepped away, and she was left lonely and cold. "Aldan!" she called, only to feel something swell gently inside her mind. Sleep came on hard and fast, and she fell. She landed in his strong arms, and for a moment, she thought she saw his eyes watching her. There were worse things to take into sleep than the green eyes of the man who loved her.
A voice broke through her subconscious some time later. Her mind was always protected when she slept, so someone breaking through was distinctly noticed. Only three people had the ability to break through her barriers, but only one sounded like music incarnate. She knew it for the call it was.
Her lashes slowly lifted. Her gaze cleared and she saw Tasia standing next to her bed. Caramel eyes watched her intently. She immediately flashed on the way dragons watched things of particular interest, and the whimsy made her smile. "Hi," she yawned. She sat up and stretched. "How long was I asleep?" Another thought occurred to her and she frowned. "I'm home. How did I get here?"
"I picked up dead air from you out of nowhere, so I figured you must have finally sleep-crashed. Rodi found you, and he carried you home. You weigh significantly less than I do, and he handles me just fine." Tasia linked her hands together inside the wide sleeves of the peasant blouse she wore. Her eyes watched her friend closely. "You were sleeping peacefully in the park with a certain . . . shadowy presence nearby watching over you. He left when Rodi arrived, of course." She lifted a brow. "You're lucky that Siobhan has some spectacular magical and medical skill combined. Sleeping for five days straight could otherwise be fairly unsafe."
"What!" Rachel grabbed the calendar on the nightstand and stared at it. The electronic device updated automatically from the biggest and main clock in Lux via the same solar and electric channels that PCAs operated. The digits of November 29 stared at her. The last date in her memory was November 24. "Oh my god," she said weakly. "I really was asleep for five days?" When Tasia only lifted a brow at her, she raked her hands through her hair. "No wonder you forced me awake."
"A little ironic for an insomniac to force someone to wake up, but Siobhan and Raine alike concluded you had fully replenished yourself. For what it's worth, that dream-inducing power that those with deep enough connections to the Immortal Fields can use is some of the best stuff out there for restful sleep. We'll, uh, skip over how and why someone with that would have used it on you. For now." Tasia sat next to her on the bed and seemingly did not notice the little blue and white dragon sitting on her shoulder. Haeth had simply become another part of her attire in some ways, and more than Striker felt compelled to be near her side at all times. "Do you want to talk?"
Rachel hesitated and then remembered what Aldan had said to her those days before. Tasia's role as High Priestess was very encompassing and covered some important and sacred duties that included marrying off Lower Rulers, offering guidance and wisdom, and even stepping in to rule for the High Queens if they were indisposed. There wasn't a single member of the royal houses who had not gone to her at least once for advice.
"I've been thinking a lot about my origins," Rachel finally admitted. "As in my actual birth, not where my Seed came from. Claret and Sabin are my real parents, there is no mistaking that, but I just want to know. How did I end up at the Care House, and why? I feel so much for Emily and Ryan, you know, with that not really knowing. But at least they have vague memories of why they landed there. I don't even have that. My earliest memory is from around age three; as a Memory Cultivator, I should be able to remember back to age one."
"Come with me." Tasia stood and headed out of the room, and Rachel followed curiously. When Tasia headed up a tiny staircase to the attic, Rachel hesitated briefly. She knew that the area at the top of the house was a sacred space to the priestess. She continued up the stairs slowly; she had been invited, so she would at least be able to satisfy her curiosity.
Tasia opened the door and held it for Rachel to enter. Even before Rachel stepped across the threshold, she distinctly sensed Tasia's arcanistry as the power of Shadow and Ice with a slight tang of Glass—the latter a holdover from Byron Ranunculus' own power in her lineage. Her arcanistry did technically include all elements and arcane forces, but only the elements that doubled across magic and majik could be felt in the air. Interestingly, she also distinctly caught the feel of additional Shadow from Rodi, and even Water from Ryan. The other two witches were the only others actually of the Faith besides Tasia, though all witches answered to her in the end.
The attic wasn't very big, but it was large enough to hold a pentagram drawn on the floor and a wide wooden trunk; Tasia had conjured it up and would dismiss it when they left. An altar sat across from the trunk, and Rachel padded over to look. She knew she was a witch, but she had never really considered the Faith aspect of worship and ritual that made such a big part of Tasia, Rodi, and Ryan's lives.
She started to reach for a shimmering globe of what looked like a green gemstone with black shadows, and then hesitated and glanced at Tasia. Her friend was leaning against the closed door with her arms crossed and a soft smile on her face. "Go ahead," she offered. "You won't damage anything by exploring. You're welcome within my space at all times."
Rachel picked up the globe and rolled it between her hands. As it settled into her palm, it felt as if an electric current had run through her skin. It startled her so much that she almost dropped it. The sensation swiftly became one that was soothing, and it took all her willpower to put it back down. It reminded her of Aldan's eyes; the green holding moving shadows. "Is this a chrome tourmaline from Statice? It looks like our sacred stone," she said.
"In fact it is," Tasia offered. "The other globes are amethyst, opal, amber, agate, citrine, rose quartz, apatite, ametrine, aquamarine, labradorite, and pyrite." She laughed. "Leave it to the odd Statice to have a stone that has no colors in common with their flower. But then, the very nature of chrome tourmaline is dual-toned, so perhaps that is fitting in the end considering it only has two Defenders across time."
Rachel looked at her wide-eyed. "You have globes from all sacred stones belonging to each world in Blossom, and then some? These can only be found on each world specifically! I mean, amethyst from Iris and labradorite from Aria is logical—your wedding clips even have them—and I can understand pyrite from Ranunculus, but how did you get the others?"
"I asked." Tasia smiled. "Stones and wood born of each world are particularly powerful, and they allow me to better aid the kingdoms as needed. I received the pyrite as a gift of sorts." She walked over and watched as Rachel studied what looked like a large oval-shaped marble stone lined with tiny cracks that only made it lovelier. "Isn't it nice? Haeth gave it to me."
"Amazing." Rachel lightly ran a finger down the faint cracks in the stone and then put it back. "So this is where you study with the two boys? I was beginning to wonder." She turned in a slow circle to study everything. "Is your power stronger here?"
"Safer," Tasia corrected. She walked over to the trunk and knelt down to rummage in it. "Name your favorite color."
"Green," she said instantly. "But not normal green. The kind of green that can be translucent in light and dark in shadow." She glanced again at the globe and back again. As she saw the smile on Tasia's lips, her cheeks turned pink. She had just neatly described Aldan's eyes, hadn't she? "I mean . . ."
"Don't retract it," Tasia chided. She stood up with a slender green candle in her hands. It had darker veins running through it. "It is not unusual for a soul mate to find the most beautiful color in that which exists inside their lover's eyes. I have a particular fondness for black with magenta tones myself." She walked over to the center of the pentagram and set the candle in a holder on the floor. "Sit down."
"Okay." Rachel mimicked her cross-legged position and watched with interest as the priestess lit the candle merely by glancing at it. "It's never not really fascinating when one of you does that. I mean, Sherry can do it because Rulers of Aster can immolate things, but she can't just stare at things and make them catch fire. Well, other than her husband." She tilted her head slightly as the haunting scent of sandalwood and time lifted into the air. "What're we doing?"
"Meditation. You're going to take a trip into your deepest memories and see if you can't find something from before you were three. They're there in your subconscious even if they aren't in your waking mind. We're going to step into your Life Orb, basically."
Rachel took a deep breath and curled her hands into her pajama pants as she felt the stirring of nerves. Despite what Aldan had said, she still wasn't certain her Life Orb would be pure enough. She had not suffered as badly as her friends during the Arian War. "Okay. What do we do?"
"Close your eyes," Tasia murmured softly, and it seemed as if her voice echoed in the air around them with a vibrant and comforting music. "Relax from your feet upward, going through every muscle along the way. Then just let go."
Rachel relaxed without being aware of it and her eyes closed. The world seemed to fade away from around her. Her head felt light and it was as if she could no longer feel her body. She felt so secure, so safe, that she had no choice but to simply let go.
Everything behind her eyes went white. She found herself standing in a long hall of doors, and it felt blindingly bright. She blinked a few times, and the glare faded enough for her to see a tiny purple dragon sitting on the ground in front of her. It was probably no bigger than her hand, and its wings looked translucent gray like storm clouds.
It cocked its head at her and then stood up and began running down the hall. She didn't hesitate as she gave chase, not even questioning why the dragon would be there. When the dragon stopped in front of a door, she knelt and scooped it up with one hand. It really was small enough to fit in the palm of her hand, and a tiny bow around its neck made it only cuter.
It gave a cute squeaking noise and then disappeared through the door. Rachel paused and then reached out a hand and slowly opened the door. Wind gushed around her face, and it was as if she suddenly looked through the eyes of another. Her heart pounded dully as she realized she looked through her own eyes as a child.
She was looking out of a crib through a window, and she recognized the Vericity landscape with some shock. She turned and looked at a woman who hummed a soft lullaby. They had the same brown eyes, she realized distantly, and bronze skin tone.
The scenery changed, and she saw herself sitting on the floor watching as the woman and a man talked in low voices. She could see some familiar sights of Lux out the window. A third woman walked up to the man and woman and spoke softly. Rachel thought for certain she was mistaken, that she wasn't seeing what she thought she was, but then the newcomer walked over to her and knelt to pick her up.
The shock of what she saw yanked her out of her memories with a gasp, and she found herself staring at Tasia across the floor. The candle had burned down to the holder, and it burned out entirely as she slowly looked around the room to reorient herself. She let out a soft breath. "I think I was born in Vericity. I moved here when I was two. And . . . Mom is the one who took me from my birth parents."
"Really." Tasia's eyes flickered as her pattern mastery kicked in.
"Yeah. What the hell does it mean?"
"Let's grab Storm and see if between the two of us, we can figure it out."
They found the younger pattern master sprawled on the couch with a book in the family room. He looked up curiously as they approached. Without preamble, Rachel said, "I was born in Vericity, moved here when I was two, and taken to the Care House by Mom when I was not much over that. I met Shana a many years later, and then within a month or two of that, met Mom for real. But she definitely had no memory of meeting me, though she did say she thought I was familiar, and we always assumed that familiarity bred from her being my real mother and our shared connection back to Moira and Horatio. She has only ever once had memories deliberately blocked from her by a higher power, and those were related to Dad in order to protect her until he got reborn. So . . ."
Storm slowly sat up from his reclining position, and his eyes grew unfocused as he began shifting through the information thrown at him. His mental processes picked up and began racing so quickly that Tasia and Rachel both heard the static without even bothering to scan. He shook his head slightly, and his eyes went back to normal. "I need more information," he said apologetically. "If Aunt Clara wasn't involved, it'd make sense. But . . . there's something missing."
"You're telling me," Tasia muttered. "Alright. Let's take another tactic. Old periodicals can have useful news, and conveniently, nearly all for the last hundred years have gotten scanned and saved electronically for most to access." She went over to her PCM and sat down to begin typing. She could almost hear Rocky muttering at her for what she was about to do, but she didn't really care. If he couldn't make programs that could keep her out, she would keep getting into Chivanti Corporation's very useful databases of just about everything.
Chivanti had the largest collection of scanned periodicals on the landmass—if not the world—so she clicked through many different articles and copies until she got to the time period she wanted. Roughly Year 5096 to 5097 of the Royal Era, only a handful of years before it had changed to the Rebirth Era, in fact. "Ah!" she said. "Damn, right under our noses. I found an internal piece from Chivanti itself. A 'meet the new hire' type thing. 'Francis Hamilton comes to us from Vericity,'" she read. "'His wife, Alicia, is known for her special gifts and nearly prophetic way of knowing things. The couple has a young daughter named Rachel.' Huh. That's it. Doesn't say why you were given up, though the 'almost prophetic' thing tells me she's the one you get your majik from, and she's probably a Sensing witch like you as well. She must have seen something."
"But how does Mom fit in this?" Rachel asked skeptically.
"To find that out, we'll have to talk to your birth parents," Storm noted. "They should still be around, right? No knowing how old they were when they had you, but even if we assume you were a late-in-life surprise, the current date of RBE 29 aligns with you being your current age since you were born in RBE Year 4975 which aligns to RE Year 5095. After all, the two Eras move at the same pace. So with you being thirty-eight, and we assume that, say, your parents were forty when they had you, they would still only be about late seventies now, and humans can easily live past a hundred. Finding them sounds perfectly logical, and maaaaaybe a little as if it is supposed to happen?"
Rachel hesitated for long moments and then nodded. "Okay. Let me go get changed. Will . . . will you two go with me?" When they rolled their eyes, she had to smile. "Okay, I get it. Dumb question. I'll be right back."
Tasia closed the PCM and watched her run up the stairs quickly. She then smiled at her little brother and propped her elbow on the back of her chair. "I guess I really am a bad influence. You're getting quite good at not telling the whole truth yourself."
Storm grinned cheekily. "But I can still lie to someone's face if absolutely needed, which wasn't this time." The smile faded into a thoughtful expression as he tilted his head. "The Vericity thing cannot be just a fluke. We knew Rachel's bloodline had a connection to Jean as much as the rest of us did, though we were sketchy on the details because of how her birth fell. We have a five thousand year gap, but hers would be much closer. Honestly, I'm not convinced that perhaps what froze her Seed might not have been someone with . . . certain gifts where Cultivators are concerned?"
Tasia nodded. "I will not deny that I've often thought I felt a sort of . . . residue inside her that felt as if it came from my lineage, in a way separate of the ancestral familiarity the rest of you give me. If her mother as a witch happened to be friends with Jean, and upon Rachel's birth, Jean realized the potential danger and fallout, she could have easily and safely frozen Rachel's Seed for her so that it could only be thawed when she came into contact with Clara, the Statice Cultivator. As High Priestess, all worlds accept us as ally and friend, not just Protea, so she would have had tacit permission from Statice to do such a thing."
"And at the point Rachel was born, that just could not happen yet. It was years off from the Ranunculus War that heralded the end of the Royal Era and transitioned to Rebirth, and until that transition happened, the Resurrection Era did not technically exist at all, not even to Clara's knowledge across timelines as the only one of her. When it did exist, Clara still could not see much of it—because of Rachel already existing." Storm tapped a finger on his chin. "And, really, I think Aunt Clara's lack of memory is actually perfectly logical. I'm calling godly interference again. Though whether that lays with the High Goddesses or up to the Ultimate Goddess level, hard to say. Either way, boils down to Aunt Clara being a meddler. I think that's inherent in the Statice lineage as a whole. She would not have been able to stop herself from interfering in Rachel's life and probably altering the course of events regarding her own life as well as Shana's. Safer just to lock her up as well until everything is in place. When it comes to those of Statice, more than ever timing is everything!"
Proving it, Rachel came back down the stairs and ended the conversation. All three grabbed their jackets and shoes, and the two dragons tagged along by riding on Tasia's shoulders invisibly. Only witches would be able to see them since they effectively hid themselves between the physical realm and the Plane. It kept Others from seeing them and reacting poorly. As much as witches had come to be accepted, Others did still react poorly, and may react worse to dragons. That did not change until closer to the Resurrection Era, and even then an Other could still be found.
Locating Rachel's birth parents was not hard. Storm merely used his Finding skill to pinpoint the genetic code of Rachel's power and then match it to another in the city. The house they uncovered sat in an upscale portion of town, and it was two stories high with an almost cookie house look to it. Cute, and sweet, and the right tones to almost look edible. It was already decorated for the winter solstice coming the next month, and a teddy bear sat next to the front door with a balloon in its hand. The balloon had started to deflate a bit, but it still read Happy Birthday.
Her heart beating so hard it was a wonder it didn't leap out of her chest, Rachel drew a deep breath and lifted a hand to knock on the door. She wasn't very loud, and Storm nudged her in the back slightly. She cleared her throat and knocked again louder. She held her breath.
The door opened a few moments later by an older woman who, despite creeping on seventy in age, looked remarkably youthful overall—almost as if Time herself was fond of her. She had a slender build without much of a figure, though she had a fair bit of strength, and her bronze skin looked beautifully offset by her brown eyes and black hair.
Rachel's heart leapt into her throat as she realized where she had gotten much of her appearance overall. As much as she closely resembled Clara in perhaps eerie ways, she even stronger resembled this woman. "I . . ." she started. She swallowed hard. "I . . . that is . . ."
Alicia Harrison studied the woman standing in front of her for long moments and then tears gathered in her eyes. She stepped back to allow them to enter. "Come in, friends. Please, come in." She shut the door behind them and added, "Haeth and the other dragon are welcome in my home, of course. All are welcome. So mote it be."
Haeth and Striker appeared on Tasia's shoulders, and Haeth said, "It has been a long time, Alicia. It is good to see you well."
"And you, my friend. I am happy to see you found this special person." Alicia walked over to the wall where many photos hung and took one down in particular. "I think this will confirm what you pattern masters may have already been guessing."
Tasia took the photo as Rachel and Storm looked around her arms, and they found themselves holding a framed shot of a much younger Alicia standing with an arm around another young woman—whose auburn hair and eyes seemed to strongly imply she had a relation to the sorceress in the room. Rachel outright recognized her, and even Storm felt she looked familiar. "That's what I thought," Tasia murmured. "You were friends with Jean."
Alicia smiled. "Jean and I grew up together as almost sisters. I was ten years her elder, but she always seemed the older of us. I was thirty when you were born, Rachel, and even before you were born, Jean told me very sincerely and seriously that someday you would be best friends with the third descendant of her lineage. I never questioned her, for obvious reasons."
"Gee, she sounds like someone else we know and love," Storm murmured drolly.
"Shut it, Stormy," Tasia muttered.
Alicia laughed, and the sound strongly resembled Rachel's laugh as well. "Oh, my. That's familiar too! Alan and Jean always sniped at each other like siblings, too. Little wonder they didn't get far as a couple before she told him to go after Lisa." She studied her daughter and then gently caught her face in her hands. "I always hoped to see you as an adult before I died. I hoped so much to tell you everything about why we gave you up. Your father . . . well. I'm sure he's a special spirit guiding you now."
Tears glittered in Rachel's eyes as she realized that she would forever be denied the chance to meet her birth father. You couldn't have everything. "A friend with Ghost Sight has always said he felt like I had someone protecting me, so I think you're right." She took a long breath. "So. Why? I know the Care House allows for a safe drop, for parents to leave a child without questions if for some reason they cannot raise them, but . . . why?"
"Sit down, everyone." Alicia went into the kitchen for a few moments and then came back with a plate of cookies, two glasses of cider, and one of milk. She handed the milk to Tasia and had to smile as the younger woman eyed her. "Been there and done that, my dear. I added some peanut flavoring to it. You've been craving peanut butter, yes?" She grinned as Tasia immediately drank her milk. "Genetics. It was almonds for Jean."
She sat down and settled back in her chair while the others helped themselves to cookies. She had waited a long time to tell this story. Having Jean's descendant there made the moment all the sweeter. She missed that cranky old witch fiercely. Being reunited in the Realm would be a wonderful moment. "I'm sure you're aware by now how old and ancient our lineage is. It goes all the way back to Moira, the twin sister to Horatio, both children of Time and Eternity. I think it was roughly, hmm, a hundred years ago when majik entered the line. Most of us since, thanks to that connection to Moira, had the Sensing skill by default, and we leaned toward Nature as a Flower Element. Perhaps because of its irony as the opposite of Memory, something we could not have."
"But Rachel was born with Memory," Storm murmured.
"Startled me, to be sure!" Alicia smiled. "It wasn't until recently when everyone realized there were two of each Blossom Defender running around—including two of Statice where there never has been before—that I began to understand everything. A Statice Dual Cultivator who possessed offensive magic? It had to be you, Rachel, since you come from Moira who was said to fight for Time. Horatio's daughter, the first and previously only, Statice Dual Cultivator was defensive in magic, echoing to Horatio's role as defender of Time."
"How does Mom—I mean Clara—fit into this anyway?" Rachel asked. She shook her head a little. "I mean . . . it doesn't make sense."
"You may call her your mother for that is what she is, and clearly what she has been wonderful at." There was no jealousy inside Alicia's voice or heart. Just gratitude that her daughter had been loved so very deeply. "You were a few days old when I realized you were so much more than I had thought possible. I was tickling you when a symbol appeared over your heart and your upper left arm. A statice blossom. I knew it had to be a Flower Mark. Jean happened to be with me when it appeared, and she told me . . . told me that it could be dangerous. That you may well be in risk of your life. For your own safety, she froze the Seed inside you and said that someday when it was safe you could thaw and uncover your destiny."
"Called it," Tasia told Storm. "That explains the residue."
Alicia nodded. "When Rachel was a year old, we moved here to Lux after Francis was offered a position with Chivanti Corporation. We had been here barely a month before a woman named Clara Memoria showed up on our doorstep. She introduced herself as the Librarian to the Hall of Records, and she smiled as she called me her cousin." She smiled as well. "There is not technically any blood between us any longer because of so many millions of years, but our power still connected, and she is old enough to remember our ancestors. She also . . . bore a resemblance to me, and to you, Rachel. An eerie one, enough to forget the distance of time. She told us much what Jean had, that there was something great ahead of you, but for your own safety and the safety of the wars you must someday fight, we had to give you up."
"It must have broken your hearts," Storm murmured. "Giving up your child and knowing she would someday enter into wars."
"Killed us. We cried ceaselessly after surrendering her to the Care House." Alicia held Rachel's hand to her cheek as new tears fell. "But looking at you now, I know that what we did was right. You're a wonderful, strong, and confident woman. And married." She squinted at the rings on Rachel's hands. "Dish, child. Tell me everything about this Caretaker of yours."
Rachel did not know whether to laugh or cry; her emotions had become so volatile. "He's funny, and smart, and sweet, and handsome—oh my gosh is he handsome!—and he has Telepathy like me, and he also has Present Sight and other unusual gifts and he's just . . . perfect to me." And painful to think about right then. She dug out her PCA and opened where the photos she had taken with the device had been saved. She found one in particular and offered the phone to her mother. "That's us with our twins. Your grandchildren. Relisha and Percival. Relisha is the next Ruler Cultivator of Statice after me. Percival is just a little ball of majik and charm."
"Oh my. Oh my oh my." Alicia gave another laugh that almost became a little sob. "I'm a grandmother."
Tasia leaned over to touch the phone, and a copy of the photo appeared in her other hand. She offered it with a smile. "I think you need this."
Alicia took it and held it close to her heart as she continued to look at her daughter. "I'm so glad you've had a wonderful mother to raise you. I hoped she would be your mother. I saw the love in her eyes as she met you."
"I had a wonderful mother and father, actually. And surrogate aunts and uncles. I never lacked for any love. And . . . there's something Mom likes to say. That people are half nurture, and half nature. So if I'm a wonderful person, then half of it comes from her and Dad, and half of it comes from you and my father."
"Damn it, don't make me cry more!" Alicia wiped her eyes with her sleeve and got to her feet as the others did. "Please, come back and visit me before you leave for where you belong. And bring your husband with you. I need to make sure he's good enough for you."
"He is," Rachel said with utter conviction. She smiled. "Cultivators don't choose inferior mates." She shrugged into her jacket and put her shoes on before opening the front door and stepping out into the autumn air. She picked up the bear on the steps and turned to look at Alicia with a smile. "Can I keep him? I think he's supposed to be mine, right?"
"He is! I'm just sorry the balloon is dying."
Storm side-eyed the balloon and then blew a few sparks at it. The air inside recharged and the balloon swelled up to float again. Alicia grinned. "So very Alan of you! Too bad there's not more of Lisa in you."
Tasia grinned. "We'll come back by with all our friends. It includes Storm's sister Raine who is like Lisa, and our friend Ryan who is also descended of Alan and Lisabelle. And maybe a few other familiar sorts, like Chevon's descendant."
"Oh goddess. Cranky?"
"To the extreme."
"That's not a surprise." Alicia walked with them partway down the sidewalk and absently rubbed her eyes as more tears threatened to overflow. She had gotten more than she had ever dared dreamed of, including seeing her daughter and learning of her grandchildren. She lifted a hand and waved, and she smiled as Rachel turned around to wave as well.
The familiar sensation of evil approaching hit Tasia, and she whirled around sharply. "Alicia!" she shouted.
Rachel was already moving even as Tasia shouted, and she knocked into her mother hard enough she went stumbling to the ground. Rachel was left standing in her place and the ball of energy shot straight into her back. It furrowed back out the front and brought with it a glowing Life Orb that resembled those of the majority of Resurrection Cultivators and therefore shouted of purity.
She collapsed on the sidewalk, and Storm and Tasia darted toward her as quickly as they could. A whip lashed out from the side, and Tasia intercepted with her arm. The coils bit into her skin deep enough to make gray blood fly, and she grabbed onto the strip of leather. She yanked sharply and brought Alloran out of the side and into plain view. "Nice try!"
Storm took the Life Orb and turned Rachel her over onto her back. Alicia tried to struggle to her feet but couldn't manage it before collapsing back down to the cement. She did not think anything was broken, but she hurt from head to heels. Before she could try again to stand, a man stepped in front of her and his heavy armor obscured her view.
"Stay down," Fitzgerald told her softly. His eyes met Tasia's. "I'll protect the lady. You take care of our . . . problem."
She smirked. "With pleasure." She released the whip and took a gliding step toward Alloran. "Put up or shut up, cousin."
Alloran took a few steps back warily; he knew he didn't dare fight her lest she defeat him entirely. Choosing once more the coward's route, he broke a vial on the ground and let it bring forth a Gensome as he disappeared.
Her all-seeing eyes flickered with knowledge and Sight as she looked at where he had been. "You can't run forever." She grabbed her Mask to call her armor and then went after the monster to keep it distracted. Rachel had right to destroy this beast, so she would hold it off until Rachel pushed herself to that so needed second tier.
Storm waved to get Fitzgerald's attention. He looked over, and Storm looked at him and then Rachel and then back pointedly. He got the point and moved over to kneel beside Rachel. Storm immediately donned his Mask and went to kneel beside Alicia to keep her safe. Fitzgerald barely noticed as he eased Rachel into his arms. Her hands had clutched around the Life Orb almost painfully, and he said softly, "Rachel."
Her eyes opened slightly, and her fingers tightened more on the Orb she held. "I know," she managed to whisper. "I know. Help me up." She got back on her feet with his help and then leaned on him heavily as she let the Life Orb rotate in her hands until she could find the memory holding her back. It didn't surprise her which it was.
During the Realm War, when they had been fighting to make their way through the Forest Of Gloom, she had been utterly useless to all of them. She'd had no real experience in battle as an actual Defender, and in the end she had nearly gotten her mother killed. Tears slid down her cheeks and she closed her eyes. "I was useless!"
"No." Fitzgerald's voice was so firm that it brought her eyes back to him. "Never that, Rachel. Almost everyone starts out not knowing what to do." His hands framed her face, and he held her gaze intently. "You didn't even think you had a pure Life Orb, did you? You're not useless, Rachel. All of us count on you, depend on you. That memory is just a part of who you are, like all the rest. You more than anyone know the importance of every memory, good or bad."
"He's right!" Haeth's voice came suddenly from next to Rachel as she circled them slowly. "He's exactly right! You are the Apprentice Librarian to the Hall of Records, and someday you will be fully in charge! Awaken your true power as a descendant of Time! You alone were chosen!"
"I am a descendant of Time," Rachel whispered. Her eyes began to glitter. "I am proud to be chosen!"
Her Life Orb flared black around her hands and Fitzgerald hastily dove free as the majik circle cast around her feet. The Orb dissolved as it return to where it belonged and her Defender Flower Mark began to glow hotly. It abruptly grew in another statice blossom and she grabbed her Mask from its bracelet. She yanked it on to call up her armor and she could feel the magikry inside her body more potently than ever.
She called out her ankh and her wand alike and looked at them both. The Memory Ankh had once belonged to Moira and marked Rachel's role as her sole direct descendant who would fight for Time. The wand had been made from cypress and chrome tourmaline, both from Statice. She wanted to use her wand to access her summoning skill, yet she just felt as if her ankh should be her ritual tool, like Tasia used her sword. The ankh was in fact an ancient symbol of the gods that represented eternal life, and many members of the Faith used it as well. So why did she feel as if something was missing?
"Rach!" Tasia shouted from where she had the Gensome pinned with her sword. She held up her free hand and a familiar globe of chrome tourmaline appeared. "I can get another. This has bonded to you!" She tossed it to Rachel without looking.
It landed in the air in front of Rachel via her Telekinesis and fell no further. She sent away her wand and then took the globe and touched it with her ankh. The two merged together and the globe began to hover suspended in the loop of the ankh, held aloft by the magikry of Memory. She swung the ankh lightly and found it weighed less now, and just felt . . . perfect. "Wow." She took an offensive stance on a smile. "My turn to play, Tasi! Move out of the way!"
Tasia grinned and lithely flipped back out of the way of the monster. She walked over to where Fitzgerald stood and gave him a single a look that said volumes. The sorceress was not happy about the stress Rachel had been suffering. He could only shrug a bit helplessly. He did not like it either, but he had no choice. She eyed him and then walked over to help Storm put up a shield around Alicia; better she do it via magic than he drain himself via his majik. Like concentrating their majik into a concentrated blast, a strong enough witch could also concentrate it into a shield. That took more practice and a higher strength since it needed to be maintained and not just fired.
Rachel used her ankh to draw an invoking pentagram in the air and discovered it a comfortable gesture. "Summoning!" She hurled the pentagram into the air, and time itself seemed to slow down around everyone. "Immortal Clock!"
The ominous ticking of a clock filled the air as the familiar twenty-four hour wheel appeared under Rachel's feet. The hands spun slowly at first and then ever faster, trailing a shadow in its wake. Rachel leapt back out of the way just as the hands tore free to hover in the air like weapons. The clock face pushed up from the ground and kept on going until the entire tower had come free and loomed over the ground. Rachel calmly stepped up beside the clock and snapped her fingers.
The hands fired through the air and skewered the Gensome to the ground no matter how it thrashed. The clock itself lumbered closer and then began to teeter on its base. It fell over with immense force and smashed the Gensome with such power that it exploded into fragments. The clock dissolved into the air along with its hands, and time began to move normally again as the dust settled.
Rachel let out a little breath and then turned and began to walk down the sidewalk to where her friends and mother waited. She stopped and looked back over her shoulder, and she saw as Fitzgerald lifted a hand and walked away into shadows. "I'm waiting for you," she whispered.
Alicia had not been badly injured. Just some scraped palms and a sore knee that got tended at the hospital. She had a strong suspicion the doctor with the long and fluffy white hair might have done something downright magical, though, as she felt near no pain by the time she got home. She let herself into her house and then stared in surprise at the sight of what appeared to be a photo album sitting on the hall table. It had been tied with a yellow and purple ribbon holding a single iris flower.
She opened the album and discovered a chronicle record of Rachel's entire lifetime. Her childhood from age ten up through adulthood, her marriage, and the birth of her children. Her and her friends from recent years, including an almost nostalgic shot of Tasia showing her how to make a wand. Some more formal fine arts and fashion photos had been added as well, including a beautiful figure study that had a familiar famous photographer's signature on it. Six degrees of separation? In Blossom Field it felt more like two. She ran her hand over the cover and smiled. "Thank you, cousin. Thank you for everything and most especially for loving her."
You're welcome, cousin.
The soft voice was familiar and unexpected. Alicia smiled and held the album closer for a moment and then went on with her life. She had played out her role in time, now knew how it would end, and she felt pretty damn proud of it. Everything had worked out after all.
©Stacy J. Garrett. Do not reprint or redistribute without permission.
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