“No.” She snapped, immeasurably annoyed. “I need answers. There’s no way I’ll be able to sleep if I don’t know where I am or how I got here or if I’ve lost my mind.” She paused and stared him down, “Or what you want with me.”
“It’s a long story.” He said quietly – hesitantly.
“It doesn’t look like I have anywhere else to be…”
He looked at her, his expression returned to its default state – poker-like. Eventually he nodded and settled back against the cave wall. He closed his eyes and started – not really talking to her, rather telling a story.
“Far back in history, there were two worlds. One was young and full of promise, its story yet to be written. The other was older – dark and consumed by greed and pain. Chance or fate or something unknowable brought them together and the darkness quickly threatened to overwhelm the light.” His voice was low and captivating. She found herself carried away by the gentle lilt of his words.
“At the time there were five people on the younger, brighter world. Five who were powerful. Gifted with the ability to call upon the elements that made up their world – Fire, Air, Water and Earth. Together they recognized the danger and realized they alone had the power to act. They needed to separate the two worlds while they still could, to protect everything they had grown to love. They wanted to allow their world to live up to its potential, to make its own mistakes and write its own history.
A wall was necessary, a Veil drawn down between worlds. It was a desperate and dangerous thing and though none of them ever spoke of it, they each knew that it would consume them. They poured themselves into the creation of the Veil, giving up their lives to it.
They succeeded – the Veil was the protection required, but in its making, a space appeared joining the two worlds, not one or the other, but something of both. It became known as the Between. The Five had given their lives willingly to the Veil. They ceased to live, but they continued to exist – they became the Source from which the Veil continued to draw its power. And the Source was vulnerable, with none of the Five left to protect it – if destroyed the Veil would collapse and the corruption would begin anew.
The Five had seen how easily the corruption spread, a festering darkness that fed upon itself, destroying everything it touched. They had also seen how susceptible the world and its inhabitants were to it. So they did the only thing they could to protect the Source, placing it in the Between, accessible only to those Gifted with power similar to their own. The Five died in the creation of the Veil, but a fraction of their power remained, continuing to live in generation after generation of the Gifted.”
Alex turned back to her, his blue eyes clear and alive. “Allyra, you are one of the Gifted. And we are in the Between.”
It was a lot to take in. Her first instinct was to roll her eyes and raise her eyebrows. She wanted to mock him for an overactive imagination. But there was conviction in his voice, belief sparkling in the endless depths of his eyes.
Ultimately, if she chose not to believe him – how would she explain the black portal in the Baobab tree or the trees made of pure metal swaying in the Walking Forest? Sure – it was possible that she’d lost her mind – perhaps it was all in her head and she was, in fact, in some institution bound in a straitjacket.
Not that it really mattered. This was her reality now. She had to survive it and then maybe she might make her way home – back to Jamie.
Allyra nodded slowly, hesitantly, while trying to make sense of his words. “Ok. I accept your premise, but I have some follow up questions.”
The corners of his lips lifted and he nodded.
She took a moment to gather her thoughts. “I would argue that the Five did a poor job of protecting themselves if anyone can just stumble into the Between unannounced.”
He smiled grimly, “It isn’t that simple – a Gate through the Veil isn’t easily opened. It requires the control of all four elements – Fire, Air, Water and Earth. The blood of the Five has been diluted in their descendants, to such an extent that the majority of the Gifted today can only call on a single element. Therefore, it generally takes at least four Gifted to attempt to open a Gate.”
“I was alone at the tree, there certainly wasn’t four people wandering around with me. For goodness sake – I was in the middle of the African bush! Unless they can do it remotely?”
“No, they need to be present and powerful – even then they can only open it on the night of a full moon, when the two worlds are most closely aligned and the Veil is at its weakest. But…”
“Right.” She broke in, “But – there is always an exception isn’t there?”
“Yes.” He replied simply, without irony. “There is – as I said, most of the Gifted control a single element. Infernos call on Fire, Atmospherics on Air, Oceanics on Water and Terras on Earth. Very rarely, an Elemental is born, someone who can call on all four, the closest throwback to the Five. An Elemental can open a Gate alone and at any time, though it is still easiest under the light of a full moon.”
“You are an Elemental.” She said. It was a statement, not a question. She suddenly understood – this was why he was so capable, because he was more. “Did you open it? Are you the reason I’m here?”
He shook his head. “No. As a final safeguard, the Five ensured that the Gates could only be opened in one direction. They cannot be
