CHAPTER ONE: Silver
Silver Noble hummed the tune to "U Plus Me Equal Us, Calculus" by MTV's Mockumentary boy band. "Hey Ma! I'm home!" she said, tossing her bag on to the kitchen counter.
Alianne Noble looked at her daughter with a smirk on her face. "What's up dear?"
Silver smiled at her mother. Alianne was wearing tight blue jeans, a tank top, and her strawberry-blonde hair was in a no-nonsense ponytail. Her violet eyes were squinted because of the sun pouring in from the skylights, and her eyelids had a dark gold color brushed over them.
"Not much. Oh! I stopped by the library. I got these books. They are way awesome! It's about Tortall, and Alanna the Lioness, and this evil royal duke who wants the throne. It's totally awesome!" exclaimed Silver, jumping right into the explanations. Alianne looked very strange. "What's wrong Ma?"
"Uh, nothing. Just going to go work in the garden…." said Alianne faintly. "You, uh… You go enjoy your books."
"All right. Oh! I've got a date tonight, remember? Can I go shopping for some new outfit?"
"Sure. You've got your driver's licensee. Need cash?" asked Alianne, knowing her daughter was lying about the date.
Silver nodded. "Oh yeah! A fifty should do it."
"You're paying me back," Alianne muttered and handed over a fifty out of her jeans' pocket.
"No problem!" Silver said, grabbing her backpack, the money, and giving her Ma a kiss.
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Silver hopped into the red Corvette that was a sixteenth birthday present. Being seventeen, popular, and rich was so the way to go. Flicking in a CD and the keys, she pulled out of the driveway and down the street. She quickly took out the cell phone she had worked her ass off for.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Silver said into the phone. "Callie, it's me. Now, just get out your credit cards, your eye for boys, and get your pasty pale American ass out your door. I'm picking you up pronto. I've got a fifty from Ma, and the credit cards. Some body better get out so we can shop!"
"Silver Noble, you are out of your mind," Callie West snapped into the phone.
"What?" Silver asked innocently. "Me? Oh, come now Callie. Just, just trust me. You'll love this mall."
"Why?" Callie asked, not amused.
Silver sighed. Her friend could be so annoying when she wanted to be. "Look, Callie. This mall has an herb shoppe, candle store, Wiccan books, the whole enchilada. Also, clothes and Goth. And, we can't forget the needed things for a perfect day at the mall!"
"Boys!" Silver and Callie cried at once.
Giggling helplessly, Callie agreed. "All right! Pick me up in twenty. I need to take a shower. Oh, do they have a swim suit shop there?"
"Honey, this is California. There is a swimsuit store in every mall," Silver said, laughing. "I'll be there in twenty. Ciao!" Silver hung up. Sighing, she pulled the car into the dorm room she occasionally shared with her boyfriend. The boyfriend she was currently about to dump for the fact he had cheated on her.
"Huzzah," she muttered, locking the doors to the 'Vette. She took out the key to the front door and pushed the door open. "Todd?" she called.
"In here, babe!" he called from the living room.
Silver sighed and walked into the room, playing with the key chain that said: "CAUTION: I Go from Zero to Bitch in 3.5 SECONDS." Todd Carlyon, her boyfriend of six months, sat in the living room drinking a Coke. He was five feet nine inches of muscles, cuteness, sweet, adorable, cheating, slimy, and as much of a cute scumbag as you could ever get. His light brown hair was frosted gold in it's army buzz cut, and his chocolate brown eyes just made you go weak at the knees.
Except that Silver wasn't weak at the knees at this point. She was pissed from head to toe. Not only had he cheated on her, but he had cheated on her with The Most Evil Person In All Of Santa Monica, California: Lizzie Prakston, the world's most snobbish bitch in the world.
He got up to kiss her, but she put her hand out to stop him. "No," she said firmly.
"No?" he asked, puzzled.
Silver's eyes became slits. "Do you think I'm dumb? I saw you and Ms. Lizzie the Bitch practically ripping each other's clothes off at the multiplex. Bet you got some last night, hunh? If I don't keep you happy and entertained 24/7 then you go to someone who can meet your demands?" Silver smiled contemptuously. "Well, Mister Hot-Shot. Go be her little puppy dog. Because we are through." She turned on her heel, went into the bedroom, and got her things into her suitcase.
Todd just stood there, looking dumb. She had just finished packing her magick books when it finally dawned on him. "You can't do this to me!" he snapped.
"Why?" Silver asked, going into the kitchen and getting her herbs out of the cabinet. "I'm dising and dismissing you. Royally." She added in her Hispanic accent, the one that she had grown up with and the one that always pissed Todd off.
He backhanded her harshly. Silver straightened and gathered her things. "Have fun, Todd. I'm sure you'll enjoy a cold bed from now on." Putting the things in the car, she drove back home.
"Okay, I've got about sixty seconds to get over to Callie's house and get her and me to the mall," Silver muttered. She drove into the driveway and saw a car that she had come to hate. Mr. Spring, her mother's boyfriend, was here. Great, just what she wanted.
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Callie looked at her watch, pissed beyond words. Her green eyes squinted and she sighed, pushing dark brown hair out of her eyes. She fussed with the edge of her black halter top and pulled at her blue and white pleated miniskirt. Two minutes later, Silver's blood red Corvette pulled into the driveway.
"It's about time!" Callie snapped.
"Sorry," Silver muttered. "I had to drop my stuff at home and boyfriend number five was over."
Callie shook her head and got in the car. Then she took a really good look at Silver. This girl could win beauty pageants in her sleep, Callie thought with envy.
It was true. Silver Noble had long, silky dark red hair that reached to her butt. Her eyes were a beautiful silver-violet. The violet came from her mother, but Silver didn't know how the silver came into her eyes. She had never known her father, though her father must have had dark hair. Her mother's hair was a blonde-red. To get a dark red like Silver's, he'd have to have black hair.
Silver was basically whipcord and muscle over bone, and she was tall. About five feet seven inches, and that was a little tall, even for a girl of the 21st century. Her face was classically beautifully. The nose was small and pert, but it suited her face; it was perfectly boned. The eyes were almond shaped, and her lips were full and a rosy pink. The face was thin boned, yet graceful. Almost like a cat, she had the same thin bones. She could eat anything, and not gain a pound.
"Hunh?" Callie asked. Silver had said something.
"I said, what CD do you want to put in?"
"SheDAISY?" Calli asked hopefully.
"Single, Full, or Mix?"
"Mix, SheDAISY, LeAnne Rimes, and the others."
"No problem," Silver said. She took out the CD and put it in the CD player.
About the moment "Misery" by the Moffats was over, they had arrived at the mall. Wellfield Mall, the mall of dreams…. According to Callie West.
Parking the 'Vette was easy. Callie and Silver jumped out of the car, grabbed their bags, and went for the cosmetic department of Macys.
"Time to shop!" Silver cried out, flicking her silky red hair over her shoulder with a glimmer of fun in her eyes.
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The staff with the metal cap came down fiercely on Namir's shoulder.
"Argh!" she cried out in pain, going down on one knee.
Angelus threw the staff down and knelt next to her, his amber eyes worried. Namir was still holding her staff, and even though her shoulder hurt like hell, she twisted the staff, and delivered a smarting strike to Angelus' left bicep.
"Bitch!" he cried, grabbing his staff so he could defend himself.
Namir laughed. "Do you actually think that the granddaughter of Alanna the Lioness would let a sore shoulder get her to quit?"
Angelus snarled, "No! But the daughter of Master Thom would!"
"You forget my mother!" Namir snarled, laughing despite her harsh tone.
Manipulating the staff, she struck Angelus' feet out from under him. He fell back, dropped the staff, and pushed himself upward. He was now defending himself against an armed foe. Namir yelped as Angelus kicked her upper thigh muscle and she went down. Angel grabbed the end of her staff, and twisted it into a position that would crush her throat.
"Yield, wench," Angelus said, pushing the staff closer to her throat.
"Yeah, but then who would you get to warm your bed, my Prince?" Namir asked huskily.
Crown Prince Angelus of Contè made a face at his intended. If he had any say in the matter, she'd be his wife in a matter of months. He took the staff away, and helped her to her feet.
"Gods, Kel," Nealan of Queenscove remarked. "That daughter of yours really is following her grandmother's past!"
"Shut up Neal," Kel muttered.
Angelus grinned at Neal, while Namir looked annoyed. "No way," is all she said. She still had the staff in her hands. Seeing that Angelus wasn't looking at her anymore, Namir knocked his feet out from under him. She smiled down at him wickedly. "Well, my dear Prince. I do believe that is the second time today you have gone head over heels." Pivoting on the ball of her foot she walked away, chuckling softly.
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Kel watched as her husband argued furiously with King Roald.
"Oh, give me a bloody break," Thom snapped at his friend.
Roald looked at Thom and burst out laughing. Neal looked confused, but Alan looked like he was about to burst out laughing any moment.
"What?" Thom asked, sitting down next to Kel.
Alan grinned wickedly at his older brother. "Oh, nothing. You two are just arguing like Ma and King Jonathan used to!"
Thom looked perplexed, then he started to laugh. "Great Good Gods! You're right!"
"Well, you know what Ali would say…" Prince Jasson of Contè, Roald's brother, said. He looked hurt for a moment, then shook the mood away. After all, Alianne was his wife. She had been gone for seventeen years, though. "She'd basically hit you both over the head and say that Papa and Lady Alanna were tossing in their graves."
Alan nodded. "Thom, did you find a spell?"
"No," Thom said, sighing. "I know Ma hid books from us and Da knows where they are. But, he's not saying where they are. Or who they're by."
"Could it be that those books are ones that your uncle jotted down his spells in?" Neal asked.
Thom nodded. "The books are in most likely in her work rooms. Only one problem."
"What?" Kel asked, interested. She had only met the Lioness four times. The last time was in the battle Lady Alanna had died in.
"The spells are keyed to last as long as the room lasts. And Da would not appreciate me blasting the room to pieces just to get a few books."
"And why not?" Princess Kalasin, Roald's sister, asked. "After all, he just wants to live the rest of his life in peace. With Alianne just vanishing, and then Alanna dying about a year later. What would you expect?"
"Yeah, if anything, Papa reacted worse to the news of Alanna's death than your father ever did," Prince Liam, Roald's other brother, muttered.
"Yeah, well the two never got a chance to talk and forgive each other. King Jonathan felt he drove Alanna to her death," Neal said. He shrugged. "I guess in a way he did."
"What about Trebond?" Faith asked. Faith was Thom's youngest sister. Only twenty-seven, she had all of their mother's skills and dreams and wants. Though, Faith was not married. She didn't want to even think about marriage or children. The two things made her want to run for cover. Everyone looked at her. Faith rolled her eyes. "Oh, c'mon! Ma was from Trebond, originally. There's a tower there with two rooms, two work rooms, a study, and then tailors and a servants quarter. It's set away from the main fortress, and from what Maude and Coram always told me, it was Ma's and Uncle Thom's rooms. So, wouldn't there be books over there?"
"There isn't an overlord at Trebond," Roald said. "The fief is basically it's own little kingdom." He shook his head. "Very strange. They just severed any contact with the rest of Tortall the moment Alanna died."
"So, there would an excuse to go over to Trebond," Kel asked.
"Pretty much," Roald said. He grinned slowly, and thoughtfully. "I might even be able to say it's needed to make sure they are still apart of the country. And maybe they have a clue as to what Papa did with the Dominion Jewel."
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Silver's eyes widened at the necklace in the jewelry store. It was a one-of-a-kind Celtic necklace. It was a silver pendant with Celtic knots and hearts on the outsides of the blue stone in the middle. It wasn't exactly a blue stone, more blue-violet. With the pendant came a bracelet, ring, and earring set, with the same blue stone.
"How much is it?" Silver asked the sales clerk.
"Silver, you're nuts!" Callie yelped.
The saleswoman smiled. "Two hundred and forty-nine dollars and ninety-five cents."
Silver gnawed her lip. She wanted the necklace desperately. "How much without the chain?"
"The chain is sold with the pendant because it can't come off the pendant. It's hooked onto the sides. Would you like to see it?"
"Yes," Silver said automatically.
The salesperson brought it out, and gave the necklace to Silver. She brushed her fingertips to the jewel and suddenly a vision hit her….
Blue magic wove in and out of the Jewel. The Man Who Was Ruler was sweating. Four monsters came at them. Huge metal bodies of birds with the head and chests of humans. Stormwings, the word came to her almost automatically.
"Where's Alanna when you need her?" The Man Who Was Ruler asked himself softly. A tendril of his magic reached for the familiar violet magic of The Woman Who Battled Elementals. King Jonathan grabbed the tail of magic swiftly and destroyed the Stormwings quickly.
Shaking her head to clear it, Silver frowned. She took a good look at the jewel. Somehow it looked incredibly familiar. "I'll take the whole set," Silver said.
"Very good, Miss," the salesperson said. She took the necklace back and rang it up. A frown creased her brow. "Oh, how strange."
"What?" Silver asked.
"It's been marked down to ninety-seven dollars and sixty cents, and then down to forty-six dollars and twenty cents."
"Still," Silver said, "I want it."
"Yes, of course, miss. Just it was strange of the sudden price reduction."
Silver handed the woman her American Express card.
Twenty minutes later, Callie looked at the ring in awe. "I cannot believe you got this set for only fifty frickin' bucks!" She looked at the inscription on the inside of the ring. "Hey, what's this?"
"What's what?" Silver asked, sipping her iced coffee.
"There's an inscription on this ring. And on the back of the bracelet. Here, on the ring it says… 'Healing. War. Fertility. Death.' On the bracelet it says…. 'Creation of land.' Let me see the pendant."
Silver frowned and took out the black velvet box holding the necklace. She handed it over rather reluctantly. "What is it written in?"
"Looks like a mix of Latin and Gaelic. Okay, here on the pendant it says: 'Restore Life to That of Death. Possible are all things.'" Callie shook her head, shivering. "This sounds like magick. I'm getting very heavy vibes from these jewels."
"I got a vision when I touched the pendant. That's why I didn't care how much it cost," Silver said. She shrugged. "C'mon. I wanna go check out Meteorite. Maybe they've got some more Silver RavenWolf books. Or maybe some Scott Cunningham ones. I need to pick up the Magical Almanac for 2000 anyway."
"Sure, whatever," Callie said, putting the jewelry back in their boxes and putting them back in the bag. Silver picked up her shopping bags and her backpack.
"Wanna deposit this paid for stuff in the Vette?" Silver asked, shifting the bags from hand to hand.
"Then go get our nails done?" Callie asked.
"Sure, why not!" Silver said.
"No problem!" Callie said, grinning.
Silver suddenly put her bags down, and got out the pendant necklace she had just bought. She took it out of the box, put it on, and dropped the box back into the bag. "Let's go."
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Thom put his hands on his mother's old rooms. "Okay, let's see if blasting her spells will work," he growled. The rest looked on, fighting laughter.
Thom shoved his magic into the door spell so fiercely that the spell exploded. The sound of blazebalm exploding echoed down the long hallway. The door opened meekly at the result of Thom's blasting the spell.
The room was a perfect mess. Books were all over the place. Along with daggers, and old candle stubs. The torch scones were unlit, and blast marks were around each one. The bed had violet silk hangings to keep the light out. The covers were white with blue, purple, yellow, and green embroidery on it. The pillows were fine things, each one must have cost at least ten gold nobles.
The chest at the end of the bed was an antique, and was also costly. On the market in Port Caynn, it would go at fifty gold nobles and fifteen silver nobles at the cheapest rate.
Roald whistled. "No wonder Trebond is high up in the Book of Gold."
"What?" Kel asked.
"The Book Of Gold," Kalasin explained, "is the book that records the wealthiest families and Houses in the Eastern and Southern Lands. Trebond may be a fief that is focused mainly at defense, but they are wealthy. Not even Contè compared to the wonders that Trebond had. And I do say had."
"Yes," Neal said, looking at a woven tapestry hanging by the door. "Had. Lady Alanna kept Trebond up, though she never used the name unless in delegations. The treasury was very large. True, it still is. But, they say there is a curse upon Trebond. One placed by a sorcerer who had a grudge against the Trebond house."
"Trebond was the original royal house of Tortall. That was…. Oh, centuries ago. A Contè married in and that's how our house became royalty," Jasson muttered.
"Hel-lo. What's this?" Thom asked, looking at spell in a book. The others gathered close.
Interdimensional Travel
Interdimensional Travel is the travel of dimensions. If a life is in peril, call out this spell, and you will be saved. Though, once you stay in a world like the one you came from, you will die. Worlds upon worlds. Fantasy, and that you mock, could all be true. A most unconventional world with things about thee may be the world that saves your own. Do not be unwarned. This spell is for those in peril. Old Chitral will protect thee, or thou is in trouble. The Jewel of the Dominion Dynasty will protect thee no matter what.
Say four times, palms open to the sky or ground:
"Hakel mestive. Jethrel kelten. Weiche morbida tendre. Zacht bleistifte blandos matite. SO MOTE IT BE!"
Thom shook his head. "Interesting. Shall we give it a try?"
"It might work," Neal said. "I say go for it."
"I'll second that," Roald said.
Thom nodded. "All right." He began to chant the words his palms to the ground. Suddenly, as Thom was completing the second time, a thunder storm began to form. Thunder and lightning began to show. Thom kept right on chanting. When he shouted "So mote it be!" all hell broke loose. A huge portal opened up, and swallowed them in one gulp.
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Alianne looked at the books her daughter had brought home. Tortall. She hadn't heard that name in seventeen years. She hadn't ever expected to again…
She closed her eyes tightly. "Jasson…" she whispered, looking at the ring on her left hand.
She sighed heart-brokenly and picked up one the three books that had been with her when she had been thrown into this world seventeen years ago. It was her mother's journal. The others were out in the foyer. One was a book with things she and her siblings had written and drawn over the years, and the last was a book her grandfather had given her.
"Ma'll kill me for swiping her journal," Alianne said, tears falling down her cheeks.
Suddenly she heard a crash and many voices swearing and yelping. Alianne stood warily. She took out the dagger her brother Thom had given her when she was ten. Creeping out into the hallway of the main foyer, she froze. In the middle of the foyer people struggled to their feet. But that was not what made her freeze, and what had clutched her heart so tightly. These people wore clothes that were Renaissance aged clothes, or the clothes that Tortallans wore.
The dagger fell from her numb fingers. The people in the foyer froze.
"Did you hear something?" asked a redheaded man. He was bearded, tall, and looked a lot like Alianne's parents combined. Thom, Alianne though trying not to burst out and hug him to death.
"Yeah. I think it came from over there somewhere," Alan muttered. His eyes slitted and looked around. Something caught his attention. "Hey, Thom. Wasn't that the book we used to scribble in? All the gossip and vicious things and other stuff? And those drawings?"
Faith frowned, and picked the book up. She flipped it onto it's face and opened the back cover. The last page was covered in a huge web of scarlet ink. A doodle of their mother's shield, the griffin's feather that was tied into a page full of different feathers, and a little pyramid with a circle above it eclipsed by a moon stood out on the pages.
"It's our book all right," she said. She closed it and handed it to Thom.
Thom smirked a bit. "Alianne is here. She's got to be, the imp. Let's see." He opened the book and flipped to a page where he began to grin evilly. "Ali, if you don't come out, I'll read what you wrote in this book about a certain person."
"Do and I'll skin you," Alianne said, coming out into the light. Alan slammed into her, squeezing all the air out of her. Suddenly everyone was hugging her. "What are you all trying to do?" she demanded. "Break my ribs?"
That made everyone laugh.
"You don't know what it means to know your all right!" Thom said, wiping his eyes on the back of his hand.
Alianne smiled. "How's Ma? Da?" Alan and Thom froze, grief and sorrow passing their eyes. "Oh no… Are they…?"
"Ma died…. About a year after you disappeared. Da can hardly bear to see us because we look so much like her. King Jonathan died practically as soon as he heard what happened to Ma. Looks like he death-willed himself. I mean, after Queen Thayet died the year you disappeared…." Alan said, looking away.
Alianne bit her lip, tears welling up in her eyes. "Well, we all knew it'd happen sooner or later. Though, she was pretty young when she died. Forty-seven, if I'm not mistaken."
"Yeah," Thom said. "Some idiot archer got a lucky shot at her while she was fighting three off."
Alianne sighed, looking away. Tears began to slip down her face again, but this time, she knew that she wasn't the only one crying.
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Silver sighed. "Okay, Callie. Shopping is over. We've been at the mall for three hours!"
"Okay, true," Callie said, laughing. "And we've added seven tons to the Vette!"
"Almost!" Silver said laughing. "C'mon. Let's go over to my place and have a swim. And we'll see if Em, Lena, and Lana wanna join us."
"K. You drive, I call."
Silver handed over the cell phone obediently. She put the keys in the ignition and revved the car into life. She torn down the street and got on the highway. They stopped at Callie's house first, to drop off all their mall findings.
"Okay," Callie said. "Em can't come 'cause she's baby-sitting. Lena is open for an hour or two. Lana says she'll drive over. She just needs to tell her boyfriend to take a hike."
Silver laughed. "What is this? Tell your boyfriend 'Buh-Bye' week?"
Callie laughed. "Seems that way, don't it?"
"Oh, so very much," Silver muttered. "Let's go pick Lena up."
"You got it!" Callie said. "Let's get your mother's car. It's a convertible, and we need to drop your findings off before this car goes through the road!"
Silver smiled and pulled into the driveway of her house. When the car stopped, they each grabbed the bags. When they got to the door, Silver froze. There were voices coming from her house, ones she didn't know.
Callie looked at Silver, frowned, and pushed the door open. "Hey Ms. Noble! We're home!" Callie called in, she took a hold of Silver and pulled the girl inside the house and closed the door.
Alianne came out, a man with black hair and bright blue-green eyes following her. The man was most definitely Silver's father. There was no way he couldn't be. His face structure and dark hair and almond shaped eyes were all in Silver.
"There you girls are!" Alianne said. "Silver, your phone was off, or busy."
"I-it was busy," Silver said, staring at the man. "Callie and I wanted to see if Lena, Em, and Lana would be coming over to get ready for a date."
"You're lying," Alianne muttered.
"Not about the date. We've got a date to shop for boys," Callie said with a smirk. "Silver dumped the two-timing slug Todd, and Lana is just dismissing her boy. So, we are going on a date. With each other!" She grinned. "Silver, I'll take these up to your room." She looked at Alianne and the man. "Looks like you'll be busy for a while."
Before Silver could protest, weakly, Callie had the bags and was running up the stairs to Silver's room.
"So," the man said. "This is she?" Alianne nodded proudly. He smiled broadly.
"Oh, where are my wits?" Alianne said, smiling. "Silver, this is your father, Jasson."
Silver nodded. "I could tell. Looks run in the family I guess."
"Yes, they do," Jasson said dryly.
Alianne stifled a laugh. "Roald looked so much like his father, it was uncanny! While Lianne looked way too much like Queen Thayet!"
Silver's eyebrow raised ever-so-slightly. "Queen?"
"Yes," Alianne said. "And here comes the part you are not possibly going to believe. But first, I think you should meet your aunts and uncles. And some friends of mine."
Silver stood where she was, mouth set in a tight line. Her eyes were blank of emotion. But Alianne took a hold of one of Silver's hands and pointedly drew her into the living room.
There was a strange mix of people in the room, all dressed like they were going to one of the Renaissance faires Alianne ran. Callie came down, holding the bag from the jewelry store.
"Ms. Noble! Sorry to interrupt everyone, but you have to see this jewelry set that Silver bought! It's totally awesome! And, this is the best part! It was originally two-hundred something, but it got dropped right down to forty-something in the machine! It's not defected or anything! It's got this Irish-Celtic design as well. Silver, show her the pendant!"
Silver shrugged, and took the pendant out from under her shirt, slipped the chain over her head and gave it to her mother. Alianne froze, looking at it, for that matter, so did everyone else besides Callie and Silver.
"The Dominion Jewel," a man with red hair and hazel eyes breathed in reverence.
"The what?" Silver asked, not being at all polite.
"Papa, King Jonathan," Jasson said, "used this to stop many wars in Tortall. After he and Lady Alanna died, it disappeared. I don't know how many times we've ransacked the palace, but it wasn't there. I'd give a lot to know how it ended up in this world."
Silver looked at him, and backed away. "Tortall? Lady Alanna? King Jonathan?" she asked, looking at everyone in the room as if they were psycotic. Callie had the same look in her eyes.
"Yes," Alianne said. "That's where I'm from. Where we're from. Jasson is a prince in Tortall, but not in the line of the throne."
"Not unless Angelus acts up," another man muttered. He had black hair and blue eyes.
Callie put her hands on her hips. "So, basically, you're telling us that you all belong in a nuthouse."
The Tortallans looked at them strangely. Alianne sighed. "It's a place for people with problems. In other words, insane people. Schizophrenics and the like."
"Oh," some of them said. The others rolled their eyes.
Silver frowned. "If your from Tortall, you've got the Gift. Show it."
A man with brown hair and green eyes shrugged. Suddenly, emerald magic burst in the room, a little show of fireworks. Dark violet magic was added to that, along with different shades of blues. Alianne flicked a two fingers up at the candles on the mantle. Dark, dark violet magic raced to light them.
Callie and Silver looked at each other. "Parlor tricks," they said together.
Alianne raised an eyebrow. "You've never used magic. Let's see if it's instinct or knowledge."
Callie laughed outright at that. "Well, Silver sure does not tell you everything! We've been practicing magic for years!"
"Nine to be exact," Silver said. "Nine in three weeks. We've got a party then, anyway."
"Right! Oh, I've gotta warn Amara, Sam, Lena, Lana, Em, Astrid, and Jesa! We are gonna party! Can't wait!" Callie said, grinning as she threw her fist into the air on the word "party."
"That's what we do best," Silver said. "Party, shop, and break boys' hearts. The best things in the world. Malls, parties, and boys. Not to mention cars."
"Oh, no honey," Callie said, hand on hip. "The best things in the world are boys, cars, multiplexes, boys, and swimsuits. Speedo's to be exact!"
Silver sighed. "We've got to get you a guy who doesn’t mind wearing Speedo's." Silver looked thoughtful. "Actually, I don't think a guy like that exists."
Alianne frowned. "If you know magic, show it."
Silver sighed. "Today's the waxing moon, right?"
Callie nodded. "Waxing moon. Second Quarter was at 7:53 this morning. It's lilac incense and blue strengthening color. It's also St. Stunniva's Day. And the hour is," she consulted her watch, "moon. It's two, so it's moon."
"All right. Waxing is to draw positively towards you, waning is to banish. I believe we can do a certain spell in this time…. How about a rain spell?"
"The Perfect Storm spell?" Callie asked.
"Yeah," Silver said. "Why not?"
"Okay."
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Jasson frowned as the girls closed their eyes. Invoking the power that he had to tell when someone used magic, he watched as their auras began to pulse, then steady. Silver had absolutely no magic, that was what startled him.
"In this night and in this hour, I call upon the Ancient Power. O Goddess Bride and Consort Bight, I ask thee now to bring your light," the two chanted. They said some other words, not really paying attention to anything else. Suddenly, thunder and lightning sounded, out of a cloudless blue sky. Then rain began to pour.
Silver's eyes opened, satisfaction bright in her eyes. Callie just looked fatigued, but happy. A blue topaz stone on Silver throat was giving off a slight light in the Sight, but other than that, the two girls looked normal. And then the rain stopped.
Alianne frowned. "You didn't have the Gift when you were born."
"She still doesn't," Jasson said. "And I have no idea how that happened."
"So, magic bearing sorcerers admit they don't know all of magic? Amazing," Silver said rudely, crossing her arms.
Alianne turned on her and spoke a different language. Callie laughed her head off while Silver looked amused. "I'm seventeen, mother. Do you actually expect a girl of the 21st century is actually going to stand here and be lectured? Not in this life time, amiga." Turning on her heel, Silver walked out of the room.
"Bye all!" Callie said. "I'll call ya, Silk! We'll get together with Lana and the rest real soon, k?"
"No problem!" Silver called down. Then the distinct sound of a door slamming sounded and Callie took her leave.
"Bitch," muttered Alianne. "Ungrateful bitch."
"Who?" asked Thom.
"Silver," muttered Alianne. "If I had pulled that stunt with Ma, she'd've skinned me."
"True," said Thom ruefully. "But you're not Ma, and she's not you. Alianne, I have a feeling that if you drag that girl into Tortall, there is most likely going to be more than a slight temper tantrum. That girl knows how to use nature as power. And that is something only Master Numair and Uncle Thom knew how to do."
"Master Numair is dead?"
"No," said Thom.
"Maybe the fact that we staged this get together in front of her friend," drawled Neal.
"Perhaps," snorted Alianne. It was clear she didn't believe it in the least.
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Silver slammed her door and got out of her skin tight capris and short sleeve shirt. She walked into her closet, taking the bags with the clothes with her. She started cutting the tags off and throwing them onto hangers. She left out a red tank top and a white and blue pleated miniskirt.
She put the tube top and skirt on and then went to fix her hair into a loose bun on the back of her head. She unzipped her boots and decided to go barefoot. Opening her door just a tad, she heard her mother arguing with her "friends."
"So what? She's powerful, big deal! That gives her no reason to be rude!" shouted Alianne furiously.
"QUIET!" a man bellowed. Silver was impressed. "Ali, stop it. You just dumped a lot on the girl, have some pity! Even an adult would react to this news with some disrespect."
Silver could see her mother gaping and gasping and finally throwing herself on the couch very clearly in her mind. Snorting quietly with contempt, she padded quietly back into her room.
She sat down at her computer desk and booted the computer up. She got up and went over to the CD shelf and picked up Eminem's latest CD. Putting it in her CD player, she pressed "repeat" and selected track number two, "Kill You." Being the particularly nasty girl she could become when she wanted, she blasted the music.
She knew instantly that the music had reached downstairs, for her mother's voice called up, "Shut that blasted thing off now!"
Silver walked over to her computer, typed in the passwords to get into Windows and walked over to the door. "NO!" she called down, and slammed it again. And then voices rose, higher and higher. Silver began to get annoyed. She turned off the music, opened her door and walked down the stairs.
"What the hell is going on?" she snapped.
Alianne glared at her. The others, however, were highly amused.
"Well," said Thom. "I do believe that we've gotten her attention. Isn't that what you wanted, Sister Dear? To get her to come down and apologize?"
Alianne scowled at her brother.
Silver started laughing her head off. The others looked at her, and began to take in her strange outfit. "Apologize? Me?" howled Silver in laughter. "I haven't done that since I was seven!"
Jasson smiled. "So, what manner of dress is that?" he said, waving a hand toward her tube top and miniskirt.
"It's a tube top and miniskirt," Silver said. "Don't worry. I've got other things that show a hell of a lot more skin than this." Her smile was evil. "Anyway, I'll be having dinner in my room. I don't want to converse with….physcos. Tata." Turning on the ball of her toe, Silver walked out of the room, a small yet evil smile on her face.
Walking into her room, she made for the phone and pressed the connection to the internet at the same time. Dialing in a friend-who-was-a-boy's phone number, she flung herself on the bed and waited for Jett Marks to pick up.
"Hello?" asked Jett's little brother, Max.
"Hey Max, it's me. Silver. Is Jett around?"
"Yeah, hold on," Max said. Yelling at the top of his lungs, Max announced to Jett, and probably the whole block and house, that Silver Noble was on the phone.
"Hey Silver," Jett said, sounding as if he'd run a marathon.
"Hey. Wanna come over to my house for dinner? Kinda short notice, I know. But--"
"Sure! What time?" Jett said hurriedly.
"Now?" Silver asked.
"Great. See you in a few."
"Yeah, and uhm…. Come by my window. If my mother sees you, she'll flip. She and I got in a fight, and I want a bit of company."
"I totally understand. I'll see you soon." And he hung up. Silver sighed and lit a few of the candles in her room. Going over to her computer, she typed in a few "g2g"s into the windows that had popped up while she had been on the phone.
Then Lana signed on-line and quickly IMed Silver.
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Angelex: SILVER!
Sorceress: heyla lana. wuz ^?
Angelex: nm. is it true? did u meet ur father?
Sorceress: yeah, no biggie. annoying as hell. i got jett comin' over.
Angelex: *pouts* o come on silk! he's my boy! I marked 'im 1st!
Sorceress: tough. g2g. he's here. sorry, girl. first come, first served. and he is now mine.
Angelex: NOT FAIR!
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User Sorceress is not online
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Jett threw a pebble at Silver's window, to get her attention, which it did. She helped him climb through her window.
Jett smiled shyly at her. "Thanks for inviting me." He took a look around. "Where's the food, if this is gonna be dinner?"
Silver smiled in spite of herself. "Cabinet, hold on." She whisked out of the room and slipped into the kitchen. Grabbing the food, she slipped back up to her room. Ghosting in, she gave Jett a bit of a start when she caught him about to open a room which was well locked.
"That door only opens with a key," said Silver softly. "I got the food." Jett nodded nervously. Silver knew he liked her a lot. She put the food over on the desk, and pulled up two chairs. "It's take out, I hope you don't mind."
"Nope. Don't mind at all. What kind is it?"
"Good question," Silver said, opening the paper bag. "Ah! Chinese. Do you want some dim-sum--" he cut her off with a kiss. Jett broke the kiss, blushing deeply.
Silver looked at him for a second, her mind going at hyper-speed. He's cute, no girl friend. . . .Hmm… Good odds for me!
She stood up, and pulled him over to the bed.
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Alianne showed her family and friends to rooms, and was very surprised to hear that most of them were married. When Thom said it very softly, she had burst out laughing. He had given her an incredibly rude remark in K'mir which they had all learned from Buri and Queen Thayet.
Alianne moved out her bedroom and down the hall to go and check on her daughter. Alianne knocked on the door and heard someone move very quickly to the door.
"What?" snapped Silver, opening the door only enough for her head to stick out.
"I wanted to talk with you. About earlier."
Silver scowled. "Well I don't. I still say you and your friends are psyco! Good night." She closed the door and locked it.
Alianne stared at the door, more than a little irritated. Shaking her head, she returned to her room, where Jasson was waiting. Since Silver hadn't claimed her jewelry back, Jasson was examining them closely.
He looked up as she entered the room and closed the door. "I still can't read this," he said, holding up the pendant.
"I think that's because it's in a language that's neither Common nor anything we studied. It's a mix, I think. Looks like a mix of Latin and Gaelic. A friend of mine could translate it. The whole thing, I believe," Alianne said.
"Who is this friend?" Jasson asked.
Alianne laughed, "What? Suspicious? Jealous? Jasson, we aren't even married. Betrothed, yes. Married, no."
Jasson shook his head. "All right. But still," he said, kissing her softly. "I get jealous easily."
"Good," Alianne said, kissing him back. "You should." She picked up the phone and quickly dialed the number. "Hello, Jordan?"
"Alianne! Hello!" replied Jordan Marks, a friend who worked on the Renaissance Faires with Alianne.
"I was hoping you could come by and translate a few pieces of jewelry. My daughter just bought them and they had this weird inscription on the back on them. Etched in silver, and in a rather spiky script."
"Couldn't Jett translate it? He's over there now, I believe. Visiting your daughter," Jordan said.
Alianne frowned. "I haven't seen him. Are you sure he's here?"
"Max said Silver called, and Jett got all excited and rushed over there. And you say you haven't seen him?" Jordan asked, getting rather worried.
"Oh no! I am so sorry! I forgot that I did see him! And I'm sorry to have troubled you. I forgot all about Jett being able to translate Latin and Gaelic," Alianne said, her voice sounding rather tight and forced. Jasson was frowning and wondering what was going on.
"It's okay, people forget all the time!" said Jordan. "I'll see you at work tomorrow!"
"Yeah, bye," Alianne said, and hung up. She turned to Jasson. "Our daughter is becoming terribly like her grandmother," Alianne half snarled.
"Why?" Jasson asked.
"Watch," said Alianne. She opened the door and stalked over to Silver's door and knocked and said rather tightly. "Silver? May I please see Jett? We need him to translate something."
The door opened, and Silver looked at her mother as if she were insane. "Jett isn't here."
"Well, he's not at home," Alianne snapped.
"He should be. He left a while ago. I asked him to come over for dinner," Silver said. She was frowning at the way her mother's eyes kept flicking around the room. She opened the door further. "Go ahead and check. He isn't here."
"Don't mind if I do," snapped Alianne. Jasson followed Alianne into the room and stood against the door.
Alianne checked every nook and cranny of the room while Silver stood by her father, adjusting an athletic bra and skin tight shorts. "This is ridiculous," Silver muttered.
Jasson chuckled. "She's worried. Yet she forgets what she did at your age. What every girl does at your age."
Silver looked at her father, startled. "Most parents never want their children sleeping with anyone," she said startled.
Jasson nodded. "Some parents are like that in Tortall. But everyone knows it's bound to happen. I think your mother has stayed here too long. These ideals are starting to make sense to her, and that shouldn't happen."
"You've really missed her," Silver said.
Jasson shrugged. "Yes I have. We were to be married the day she disappeared. Her mother, Lady Alanna, was worried to death. A year later, Alanna was dead. Four months after Alanna's death, my father died. The baron of Pirate's Swoop is still alive, same with my mother. Mother, though, put my brother Roald as Regent the moment father died. Roald has an heir, but the mother died in childbirth. Roald stays unmarried for alliances." He smiled dryly. "I got out of that stitch rather quickly."
"Hunh?" Silver said. "I mean, I know women dying in childbirth is a high rate, even in a place full of magic. And I know that kings and royalty have to stay available for alliances unless they wish not to make one or unless there are none to make one with. But, how did you get out of it?"
Jasson looked impressed. "You sure did raise her to know politics, Ali," called Jasson.
"She learned that herself by watching politicians and debating," Alianne snapped.
Jasson smiled, and turned back to Silver. "I didn't, originally. I was wed for an alliance when I was seventeen. About two years later, she died of some sickness. I have no idea what it was, actually. That left me free to court your mother." He sighed, and smiled tightly. "It was a four-month courtship, and then, before my father found another bride and another wedding could be arranged, we announced we wanted to wed each other."
"I will never forget the look on Papa's face when you told him and Alanna that you and Ali wanted to get wed," Roald said from the darkness of the hall.
Jasson yelped and turned around. "Don't do that!"
Roald chuckled. "All right, scaredy cat." Jasson made a face. "Anyway, Silver. Jasson and Alianne told Papa and Mama and Alanna and George… Gods!" He laughed.
Thom came out of his room, yawning. "Okay, what is going on? Is this some sort of reunion? If not, can I please go back to sleep?"
Alianne had finished her inspection of the rooms. "Just because he's not here does not mean he wasn't," she snapped. "I don't want you seeing him again."
Thom took one look at Alianne's face, Silver's rebellious one, and Jasson's amused face and laughed. "So, Silver's sleeping with a boy? Lighten up, Sister Dear! You were younger, if I recall correctly. And it was that oh-so-handsome noble by the name of… Merric of Hollyrose."
Alianne blushed furiously as the others erupted into laughter, bringing the rest out into the hall. "That was not what it appeared to be!" Alianne snapped, still a bright crimson.
Silver grinned. "How old was she?"
"Fifteen," Thom said. "Ma nearly had kittens."
Silver looked at her mother. "Way to go Ma!" she said, grinning. "I only started nine months ago."
"On your birthday," Alianne yelped. Everyone shook their heads. "Okay, I told you. She's way too much like her grandmother!"
Roald clapped a hand over Alianne's mouth. "Ali, shut up. You've been in this world way too long. Your starting to get crazy ideals."
"So, you need a translation of something?" Silver asked.
Jasson handed her the jewelry. Silver took it and a flash went off in her eyes.
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"She's gone, Jon. There's not a trace of her," a woman with red hair and violet eyes said. Worry was deep in her voice and eyes. Liquid looked about to spill out of her eyes as well.
"Alanna," Jon said, "it can't be helped. Something happened to her. Not even the Dominion Jewel is helping."
Alanna looked sick, "Jon, you know what we have to do. The attacks have gotten worse. How are we suppose to protect ourselves against banshees? They announce the coming death to those of royal blood. I've been having one tail me for over six months. Yours has just appeared."
"The Jewel has to be tied to us, then we have to destroy it," Jon said, eyes grim.
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Silver dropped the jewelry and backed up, hand on her right temple.
"What's wrong?" Neal asked, coming over to check her pulse.
"I saw something. The last time I touched it, I saw something also. It involves these people. The first one was with someone with violet magic, and one with blue magic. And just now, two people were talking about something that announces death to those of royal descent and the destruction of a jewel," said Silver. "Anyone got Advil™?"
Alianne left the room and came back, glass of water and pill in hand. "Here."
Silver took the pill and drank quickly. "Anyway, I know this girl who can translate it. Can you get the rest of the jewelry, and not just the pendant?" Jasson left and came back, the bag in hand. Silver nodded and took it. "Someone pick that up. I'm not touching it again."
Thom picked the pendant up, and toyed with the jewel. "How can you talk to this person?"
"Internet Instant Messenger," Silver said. She hit the mouse, and the screen came back to life. Callie was on. "Good," Silver muttered. "She's on."
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Sorceress: Hey Callie!
LadyKnightCal: silk?
Sorceress: yea. anyway, you know those pieces of jewelry i got?
LadyKnightCal: yea
Sorceress: Good! do u remember what they said?
LadyKnightCal: y?
Sorceress: major import. spill the transes girlie.
LadyKnightCal: the transes sounds so familiar i went and checked out some books. prepare for freaky ville. those words are the same thing as page 30, bottom para, chap 1, book 4, SOL
Sorceress: u sure?
LadyKnightCal: gimme what they say again
Sorceress: can't....
LadyKnightCal: tell me if this sounds familiar. "In healing and war.... Fertility or death....New land from ocean depths....Return breath to the dead....Possible are all things?"
Sorceress: yea, sounds familiar. that's the transe of the jewels
LadyKnightCal: check LR. pg 30
{Silver grabs her book and flips to page 30, and is shocked as she reads the passage}
Sorceress: Callie.... this makes no frickin' sense!
LadyKnightCal: yes it does. do a spell. find out HOW this Dominion Jewel got split. call me when results r found
Sorceress: uhm.... okay. c'ya... & thanx
LadyKnightCal: np.
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"Everyone follow that?" Silver asked. Everyone nodded. Silver rubbed her face with her hands, and took the jewelry. "Spell? What kind of spell? Past life…. Give up thy secrets?"
Silver shook her head and opened the room that was locked unless Silver or one of her coven members opened it. Inside was a room with walls painted black with white dots. The ceiling was a painting of the sky at noon, clouds and all. A pentagram was burned into the floor. Herbs hung from every corner of the room, anywhere there was a hook or place that it could be hung, the herbs were hung. A huge antique cabinet was in one corner, near the window seat. It was a stained wood cabinet, and old. The handles were all gold and silver and glass.
The clear window panes had been taken out and stained glass had been put in. The curtains were a violet color with gold moons pattered on them. On the far wall, an alter had been set up. It was a mahogany wood table with inscriptions and symbols burned into the wood. It had gold and red cloths on the table. Sunflowers had been tied into a wreathe and placed around the statue Lana had made to represent the God. Red feathers had been strewn around the alter. A vinca, a vine plant, had been placed in the back of the alter, where it grew up a construct of wood that shaped into a moon and a rising sun. Red and gold candles had been lit, and a small brazier with a small fire had also been lit.
A white and a black candle had been lit, as well as a green candle. The green candle was in front of a statue carved to represent the Goddess. A wreathe of watercress had been made and was circling the statue.
"Bright Mithros," Liam breathed. "This a wonder."
"It's well enough," Silver muttered, still pleased. She walked into the center of the pentagram and put the bag there. Walking over to the cabinet, she selected a book and opened it. Quickly searching it, she got out a pen and quickly wrote something down on her hand. She got out a white handled dagger with an amethyst jewel with a gold moon charm on it. "You're going to watch?" she asked.
Alianne crossed her arms. "I want to see this."
"As do we all," Kalasin said.
Silver sighed. She walked over to the center and dumped the jewelry onto the floor. She got them out of the boxes and scattered them on the floor. Putting the velvet boxes back into the bag, Silver gave it to her father. She drew a deep breathe and began to walk counter clockwise of the circle. A white light shot up around the circle and the light made the form of a pentagram. Silver walked into the center and knelt.
She spoke a few words, palms outstretched over the jewelry and the pieces glowed. She spread her arms, and spoke again.
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"Alanna, how the hell are we going to destroy this Jewel?" Numair demanded.
"Patience is a virtue you must try to conceive Numair," Alanna said. "All we have to do is build up enough pressure to blast it."
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When the vortex over the pentagram circle opened, no one was prepared. When two people dropped out of it, yelling and screaming, no one moved. Silver stood, shaking. She took the dagger and pointed at the center of the floor and spoke a word. The light vanished.
"Who's there?" she demanded.
"Get off me!" came a yelp.
"Me get off you? How about you get your elbow out of my stomach?" said another voice.
Silver gathered the jewelry and dagger. Giving the jewelry to her mother she flipped the dagger into an attack position. "I said, who's there?" Silver said, her voice louder.
Then two people struggled to their feet. Everyone in the room gasped: It was King Jonathan and Alanna the Lioness. Both were looking younger than they had ever. Alanna looked eighteen at the most and the king looked twenty-two.
"Ma?" Thom yelped.
"Papa?" Roald breathed.
Alanna looked around. "Nice place," she drawled. Then a wisp of fog, or mist, appeared and it formed itself into a woman in ragged clothes. "Oh no. Not you again!" Alanna moaned.
The woman opened her mouth and a loud, piercing, screeching sound came out. It was like the sound of a tortured soul and the wailing of a lost child.
"ENOUGH!" Jonathan cried. "We got the point! We're to die! Oh! One thing, we're already dead!"
"Thee will die again, O gallant one!" the woman hissed.
Alanna rolled her eyes. "Really. Can't you people come up with some original phrases?"
"Thee will die, but in thy own world. By a foe thou had killed already."
Alanna paled, "Roger…."
Silver saw the banshee float over to her. "You will be next," she said. The banshee extended a hand whiter than marble and colder than the coldest of snow. Silver felt the fingers touch her brow, and fainted.
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"This isn't going to work," Harailt said, watching Alanna and Jon place Dominion Jewel on the small, circular table in the middle of the room.
Alanna sighed, and took her spot on the North side of the room. "Harailt, if you say it isn't going to work, it won't."
Numair scowled as Jon took his spot in the South. Harailt took the West side and Numair assumed the East. "I have to agree, Alanna. This isn't going to work. You two have to tie yourselves into the Jewel? That is impossible!"
Jon smiled, and shook his head. "Alanna?" he asked, beckoning her into the center. Alanna sighed and walked into the center.
"I hope you know what you're know what your doing," she muttered. She took out a white handled dagger with an amethyst jewel and a moon charm and cut her palm. She handed the dagger to Jon, still marked with her blood.
"Don't let that blood drop!" Jon muttered as a drop or two of Alanna's welled up palm. He swiftly cut his own palm, wincing as it sliced a muscle.
Alanna rolled her eyes and gripped Jon's bloody hand. They held their hands over the Jewel as the blood dripped all over the table and the Jewel. "One," Alanna said softly, closing her eyes and trying to recall what she had done to combine Lightning and the crystal sword together. "Born to rule, strong and pure. One--strong and silent, wisdom beyond years, selected by the gods to rule."
Now it was Jon's turn. A strong wind rose and whipped everyone's hair. "One," Jon said, taking his cue from Alanna's words. "Unbreakable and strong in will, pure in heart. One--mother and wife, Chosen of the Goddess, silent and commanding."
Now Alanna joined in. "A Jewel of a dynasty, made by immortal hand. Jewel of Life, Jewel of Destruction. Blue-violet depths, crafted by no mortal hand. Used to bind by these mortal hands.
"Two made One by this Jewel of Life, Two made One destroyed by this Jewel of Strife. Bound by blood, tied by soul, be destroyed by no man alone. Life and death, forever do not part, for these two lives forever are made One!" they shouted. A blinding white light rose from the Jewel, violet fire engulfed Alanna while blue fire engulfed Jon. Fire roared, becoming real, and the two screamed as the flames licked their skin. Harailt and Numair stepped back, eyes full of horror. And then the fire disappeared, as did the light.
Alanna and Jon lay on the floor, hands held. Numair and Harailt helped them to their feet, and Numair was surprised to see that Alanna no longer had scars on her hands, and no longer had any visible scars.
"Bright Mithros, what happened?" Harailt asked.
"We are One," Alanna said, her eyes meeting Jon's. "Forever. Nothing could part us."
Jon nodded. "Let's. . . .Let's test this first. Numair, attack Alanna."
"What?" Numair yelped.
Alanna nodded. "Yes. If the spell is correct, the spell will redouble on me and therefore Jon. If Jon sends magic to me, I should be able to deflect it. I'm not exactly sure on how this works. I took a bit of the Rite of the Voice and a binding spell I did between two swords. It's how I mended Lightning."
Jon nodded, and beckoned Harailt over to an attached room.
Numair gulped. "Alanna, I've never attacked you, because you know war magic better than most. Try not to hurt me, all right?"
Alanna smiled softly. "I promise."
Numair drew a deep breath and blasted Alanna with all the power he could muster. Suddenly, Alanna's face looked like she was in pain, and then blue fire surrounded her and absorbed the power Numair had thrown at it, and it vanished. Alanna looked stunned, but not as stunned as Numair did. When Harailt and Jon joined them, Alanna was examining the Jewel.
"It has to go," she said, eyes dead of emotion. Jon nodded, eyes also dead.
The four assumed their positions and began to concentrate their power on the Jewel. Suddenly, a huge blast sounded. The glass in the room had exploded, and still the Jewel remained in tact. Yells and screams sounded from outside the room as well. The four sorcerers ignored it, their main focus on the Jewel.
Alanna began to falter, and sent a plea to the Goddess. Power suddenly flooded Alanna's system. Jon was faltering as well. Alanna was screaming inside, and a presence settled over her, and began to redirect the overflow of power. Thom, Alanna thought, relief filling her. Strength washed into her and she sent half to Jon.
One more time, Alanna thought, drawing on the extra power her brother had sent flowing into her.
Yes, one more time, Jon thought. Alanna was mildly surprised she could hear his thoughts. Don't be, Jon told her sternly. We are one. Not one thing could part us, not even death.
A bond like that of twins, Alanna remarked sadly.
She knew Jon felt her agony, because love floated down the bond that was now between them. They linked and sent powerlines to Numair and Harailt. They both grabbed it. And then, the four pounded at the Jewel, and kept pounding. Then, it exploded. Tiny shards flew everywhere. Alanna's arm became bloody with the shards of the Jewel. Jon caught the chunks the Jewel had become. Harailt's right arm and side had been burned with the fire the Jewel had sent out, and Numair was unconscious.
"C'mon," Jon said, slipping the pieces into his belt purse. "Let's get to the Healers." He got Numair to his feet, and half dragged him to the Healers.
Alanna nodded tiredly, and felt a slight caress on her mind.
Don't ever worry again, said a voice in her mind so like Thom's Alanna had to choke back tears. Things might be different, but you have me, George, and now you have Jon. There are no secrets you two can hide from each other, now. I hope you know what you just did.
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Silver gasped, someone had thrown ice cold water on her. "The Jewel…. Exploded…. Bonded, life and death can never part. You two," Silver gasped, pointing at Jon and Alanna. "You bound yourselves to each other, and that's why he died four months after you did. He was practically dead when you died!" Silver gasped. Everyone stared at Alanna and Jon.
"Well, I guess one of my descendants had to inherit that lovely quality. Visions, ugh!" Alanna shuddered. "Hate them. Past, future, present. Ever know what was going to happen before it ever happened?" Alanna asked, crossing her arms.
"Wait!" Alianne cried. "What are you talking about? You two bound yourselves together?"
Both Jon and Alanna raised their right hands, where a gold scar in the shape of a waxing crescent moon was burned, or cut, into their palms. "By blood, soul, and magic," Jon said. "It was necessary. Not even death can part us. No secrets, we know each other's minds like we know our own. Every thought is not only just for us anymore. Not unless you shield and tell the other to leave your mind alone. Doesn't happen too often though."
"Stops us from fighting all the time. Extra protection, that sort of thing. Two made One, as the Bazhir say," Alanna said.
"Why?" Thom demanded.
"It wasn't needed!" Roald snapped.
Alanna looked positively annoyed. Jon crossed his arms and scowled.
"They do not!" Alanna suddenly yelled, two seconds later.
Jon didn't look startled, though everyone else was. "Thom, leave Alanna alone. She has her reasons, which I agree with," Jon snapped.
"I didn't--" Thom began, until another voice shouted into the room, "They deserve to know the truth!"
"No, they don't!" Alanna shouted. "Thom of Trebond, you have some nerve telling me what I should do! After all, wasn't it you who killed yourself? Don't begin to tell me how to handle my children!"
"Nor mine," Jon muttered.
The voice was quiet. "They still deserve to know the truth. You did it to save each other."
"Yes, we did," Alanna said, voice tight with anger.
"Yet you only speeded your deaths up."
"Is that so?" Jon snapped, blue eyes snapping with fury.
"Yes. You abandoned Thayet, while she abandoned George. Have you two any idea what the two went through? What they are still going through?"
Alanna turned away, rubbing her forehead.
"Uhm, he's right," Thom began. "Da…. He wanted himself dead when he heard the news. He still wishes he was dead."
"Mama…. She has never gotten over it," Roald said softly.
Alanna's face was tight when she turned back to them. "I didn't know it would leave them in Tortall. Frankly, I thought it would save them. Well, I guess it did, since both are still living."
"It's a curse to them!" Alan shouted, face angry. "Da can hardly look at us, it hurts so much! Save them? You cursed them!"
Alanna's eyes were sad, "At least he is alive. He knows he should be dead, and think that's why he believes he's cursed. Your father is sick, Alan. Sick with something no healer could cure. I was desperate to try and find something to keep him alive. And I did find something, my death. He knows what I did!" Alanna shouted, tears streaming down her face. "D'you think I wanted to leave your father? That I'd be happy to die? No. I did it so he could live."
"He said a life without you is a life not worth living," Thom said softly. He was looking at his mother accusingly. "And why did you bind to the king? Why not to Da?"
Alanna looked at her son with scorn so visible in her eyes that it was like a blow to him. "Life. Your Da didn't have any life left in his body. I did have a tie on him, a tie to his life force. I kept giving him my life, until he blocked it off. I would have bound to him, if he'd've let me. Jon offered, and frankly, I knew why he was offering."
Jon smiled sourly. "Thought you would. Even you can block certain areas of your mind off." He turned to Roald. "If I had a choice, an actual choice, maybe I would have insisted that the two bind to each other. Frankly, they couldn't. The only way the spell Alanna and I used would be for two who had similar blood. Alanna and I share blood, and not just because we are both cousins, but because of blood. She's a part of me in more ways than one, as I am of her. And I needed to bind to her."
"You are all too young to understand why or how."
"Try us," Thom growled. "All I know is that you two practically murdered Queen Thayet and Da."
Alanna's eyes clouded over; clouded over with fear. "No. Because explaining why, how…. I can't. Not even possible."
Jon looked tired. "It has to do with my father," he said with disgust. "Too many years of him not answering my questions, and things not adding up…. Why Alanna's father ignored her and her brother. The Gift, everything leads to my father and her mother."
"They had an affair," Liam said blandly.
"Yes," Alanna said tightly. Everyone except Silver, who was drinking as much water as she could, and Jon, who knew this story already, looked at her. Whenever she spoke about her childhood, her voice became tight and her eyes began to snap with fury. "An affair that created my brother and me."
"WHAT?!" Alianne, Alan, Thom, Faith, Kalasin, Liam, Jasson, Roald, Kel, and Neal yelled.
"You two are siblings?" Thom yelled.
"Unfortunately," the ghostly voice said dryly. "And most amazing was that Alanna almost married Jonathan!"
"That was before we knew," Jonathan snapped.
"Whatever," the voice said.
Alanna sighed. "Yes. Anyway, George knows this. And so does Thayet. We explained it to them, and they understood. What was not suppose to happen was that they wouldn't be bound to us. George was bound to me, true. But, I'm guessing, the Jewel destroyed that bond to place the bond I have with Jon."
"Is that why your father never let the palace know you two were born? And why he ignored you two?" Thom demanded.
A man who looked exactly like Alanna, except he had a goatee and was taller, appeared. "Yes. Exactly right. Father was furious with mother, and with King Roald. I don't really understand some of the details, but it was due to Father that Mother died that night. He hadn't come to see her once after we were born. She had thought she had done the unforgivable. She killed herself that night, with a crossbolt to the heart."
"And he blamed us, and King Roald, but never himself," Alanna said bitterly. "And King Roald didn't have the slightest idea that we were his children."
"How did you find out?" Alianne demanded.
Alanna smiled tightly. "Maude. She knew because Mother confessed to her, because Mother was so frantic. I think Mother realized that we were King Roald's because of bone structure. Built the same, face had similarities…. And so on."
"I found out by asking Mother and Father in the Realms of the Dead. She was incredibly reluctant to say a thing. Though, King Roald was quite shocked. His daughter was a lady knight! And had been in an affair with his son!" Thom said, laughing.
"Oh, Father must've loved that," Jon said dryly.
"Oh, he did," Thom said. "He did indeed."
Silver didn't look amused. "Can we bring this happy little family get-together somewhere else? I need to do another spell, and one that is absolutely none of anyone's business," she growled, looking at her mother.
"Fine," Alianne said, looking away from her daughter's glare. Everyone left quitely. Alanna was the last to leave. She was looking at Silver, almost sizing her up and weighing her. With a slight nod and a tiny smile, she left and closed the door.
Silver sighed. July 5th was Olde Midsummer. Still, she celebrated it on June 21st and July 5th. And since it was a day of power, it was good for her. She needed to do a spell to make sure Todd didn't come back. No girl had ever dumped him before, all of them were too afraid.
Silver's hands shook as she took out her Book of Shadows. She had never done this spell before, for it was a spell to get rid of a jealous lover. She had never thought something might happen where she'd need the spell. But that had been two years ago, long before Todd. She went over to her cabinet and took out the needed herbs.
"All spice, angelica, vervain," Silver muttered, taking them out. Then she took out a small white candle and a small black cnadle. She scowled at the word "sand" in the needed list. "Chopsticks, sand, and black 13-inch ribbon? What was I thinking when I wrote this spell?" Silver cried out. Sighing, she put the Book of Shadows on the podium she had set up to hold the Book or the books as she casted her spells.
She took out the key from her pocket and opened the door, and locked it behind her. Everyone was in her room. She looked at them, "Don't you have anything better to do?" she snapped.
"Frankly, no," Alianne said. Silver noticed that Alanna's twin had vanished. "Do your spell?"
"No. I need to get three things," Silver said. "And after I do that, you're all getting out of my room while I do the spell."
Alanna began to cough to cover laughter, Alianne glared at her mother. "It isn't funny, Ma!" Alianne snapped. "What three things?"
"Sand, chopsticks, and a thin, black 13-inch ribbion," Silver said. "And I know where to get the stuff. Bye," she muttered. No one moved; Silver glared. "OUT! I need to get changed into something else! Great Goddess," she muttered as everyone left.
She went over to her closet and took out her tight black jeans and a large, baggy black T-shirt. She grabbed the keys to her car and walked down the stairs. Everyone had asembled there and some were yelling.
"Bye," Silver said, walking out the door. As she got into the car, she used her cell phone. She quickly dialed Lena's home phone number and waited as it rung.
"Hello?" Lena asked, picking up the phone.
"Heyla Len. What's up?"
"Oh, nothing much. I heard you dumped Todd."
"Yeah," Silver said. And I think I'm in danger, she thought, but didn't say anything. "Do you have a thin, black ribbion at least 13 inches long?"
"Yeah, come on by and I'll give it to you. Oh, and be careful. I have a feeling that Todd is not pleased and is going to make you pay for dumping him."
"I know. I'm doing a spell to protect myself from him. I just hope it works. It says it's suppose to become active from within twenty-four hours to thirty-days. I want it active as soon as I can."
"Oh, that spell was in a book, wasn't it?"
"No. I altered it a bit. I've got a few herbs and such. Though, I'll follow the book's advice and do it at dawn down on the beach."
"Okay. I hope it works. Todd is bad news."
"Yeah, I know," Silver said and hung up. Revving the car into life, Silver drove over to Lena's house quickly. Knocking on the door, Silver felt someone watching her.
"C'mon," she muttered, knocking on the door again. About two minutes later, Mrs. Campton opened the door.
"Why, hello Silver! It's been a long time since I've seen you here!" Mrs. Campton said.
Silver smiled. "Hello Mrs. Campton. I've been a bit busy is all. Is Lena here?"
"Yes, she is. Why don't you come in and I'll go fetch her?"
"Sure," Silver said, shrugging. She stepped into the hall and sighed, jamming her hands into her pockets. Two minutes later Lena appeared, holding a black ribbon.
"Nice fashion statement," Lena said, giving Silver the ribbon.
"Thanks, Lena. I owe you one," Silver said, quite meaning it.
"Nah, just keeping a fellow Pagan safe," Lena said, grinning. Then her smile fadded, "Does Todd know what you are?"
"I guess so. I had a book of spells there, and lots of herbs. Those I couldn't keep at home without my mother getting suspicious."
"Then hope to hell that he doesn't know how to break spell," Lena said, voice tight. "Call me tomorrow morning, all right?"
"Sure."
"Need to get anything else?" Lena asked.
"Yeah, sand and chopsticks."
"Chopsticks!" Lena yelped, laughing.
Silver chuckled. "I know. But, that's what the spell says, so that's what I'll do."
Lena grabbed her jacket. "Hold on. I'll come with you."
Silver nodded. "All right."
Lena ran into the living room and said something to her parents. She briskly walked back into the hall with her jacket on. "C'mon," she said, freeing her light brown hair. "I'll help with the spell. Two are better than one, anyway," she said, her green eyes flickering with mischief.
"Okay, who do you know who could lend you chopsticks, or give you chopsticks?" Lena asked, as they drove along the main road.
"Amara," Silver said. "Dial her number, k? Speed dial five."
"Okay," Lena said. She pressed the speed dial and five and waited as the phone rang and rang and rang. On the sixth ring, Amara picked up.
"Heylas?" Amara asked.
"AMARA!" Lena and Silver cried at once.
"Heyla guys!" Amara said, laughing. "What's up?"
"Nothing," Lena said. "Oh, do you have a set of chopsticks we could have?"
"Yeah, sure. Why?"
"Spell," Silver said.
"Ah. Okay, I'll help. I'll be waiting outside my house, okay?"
"No problem," Silver said. "Bye." And hung up.
To be continued....