Sorcerer's hill

22

She made a decision. There was only one person she could think about - and she stood right in front of her.
"I don't enjoy you glaring at me, girl."
"I'm sorry, Mrs Rivers," she managed to get out, "but I need your help."
"I warned you before, you didn't listen. If you've got problems with Thane-"
"No," she cut her off. "It's not like that."
"Then what? I've got no time to spare!"
Keira looked around the inn, awkwardly. The chairs were properly positioned near each table, the shiny surface untouched by any drop of liquid or any crumble of food. "Shame you have only one pair of hands."
Mrs Rivers coughed and shifted on her legs. "I have other stuff to manage."
"But please-"
"Heavens, girl, what is it?" She exclaimed.
Keira sighed desperately. She was standing in the centre of the room, not letting Mrs Rivers go hide behind her bar. Even though a shot of whiskey was a bit tempting.
She knew this was a bad idea. She shouldn't trust anybody. But what was she supposed to do, then? This was the last day of the Fires. The last day they could save Seth - probably. And she was tired of waiting for answers to come to her. If she had to put up a fight, she better be prepared.
"I need to know more about Protectors," she whispered urgently. 
That got her a reaction. Mrs Rivers choked a little and stood there, bewildered. "So you know."
"Know what?" she asked carefully.
Mrs Rivers shook her head. "You're not safe."
"I know," Keira whispered, "You've said that already. But why?"
She suddenly had a feeling Mrs Rivers knew way more than Keira realized so far. The old lady looked at her with a mixture of pity and resilience. Did she actually know about Keira? All along? Was that why she always made her think she wasn't wanted and was supposed to leave as soon as possible?
"Don't you know what happened to Raven?" Mrs River whispered. 
"I know," Keira answered carefully, still trying to decipher Mrs River's intentions.
"Then you should know that no human is actually safe in Rosehold," she averted her eyes towards the door. "And even more now - when the Source is dead."
"The Source?" Keira thought aloud. Then she remembered. "You mean the tree at Melly's courtyard?"
"That one, exactly," Mrs Rivers nodded. "It has been a source of power for us."
"But I thought," Keira wondered, "It was a source of Melly's power."
"Not at all," the lady shook her head, confused. "It was a source of the magical power of  Rosehold. Once it has been destroyed, the magic here slowly depleted. It won't take long before there's nothing left."
"You mean you'd become humans?" Keira gaped.
"Humans..." Mrs Rivers tried the word on her tongue. "It's a future that will become true, whatever time it takes."
Keira tried to imagine Thane as a human. It was not an entirely strange idea, he barely used magic with her even now. "Would that be so bad?"
"For some of us, it means death," Mrs Rivers smiled sadly. "Our time on Earth was longer. We who are alive for more than a human lifetime - let's say the time will catch up."
"No," Keira frowned. That would mean... "Can it be prevented?"
"I'm sure it could be," Mrs Rivers nodded. "But no one has ever thought of away. I don' even think many creatures know about the truth," she paused and then, seeing Keira's face, added: "That our end is near."
Keira fell silent. She never thought of that. It all made sense - Thane's weird explanation of immortality. The way the people of Rosehold grew older and yet managed to outlive most humans. How could they not know?
"To be honest, Mrs Rivers," Keira smiled sadly, "do you think that anyone should be immortal? To never die? I don't think it's right. That's not how nature works"
"Girl," Mrs Rivers sighed. "Nature is magic and the magic is nature. They are bound together whether we like it or not. Nature keeps trees alive for centuries. It keeps magic alive - through us."
"That still doesn't justify anyone being alive longer than the other."
"It doesn't," Mrs Rivers smiled. "But that's how it is. Let me tell you something as someone alive when your grandmother was a baby."
Keira watched her carefully, wondering if that was a hint - but Mrs Rivers seemed to be talking purely for her to get a better imagination. She smiled internally, wondering if the old lady knew how truthful her statement was.
"The only truth is," the old eyes bore to the young ones, "nothing is persistent. Everything you, people, seem to be fighting for - it just disappears in a few years. Your career, education, love - it all goes away after a certain amount of time passes. And the world spins around as if nothing happened."
Keira felt slightly uncomfortable at that. "So what's the point of living, then? Do nothing? Fight for nothing?"
"Each of us has a main role in our life. But in the life of the Earth, we're nothing more than supporters. The only thing that should truly matter is to enjoy the time you have.  Fight for the things that matter to you. Do the things that bring you joy. Your life is unique - you have to make sure you live it well."
Suddenly, Keira's mother came to her mind. Did she live the life she wanted? Did she fight for what mattered to her? Was it a life to be remembered?
"What is it that you're fighting for, Ms Lester?"
Keira watched Mrs Rivers wink at her. She didn't care anymore if she knew about her identity or not. She felt as if she found a river stream that has never stopped. It started at a top of a mountain and ran down as fast as it could, taking everything around it as a memory and gift. It learned its way around the stones in it, how to caress the fish in its depth. How to pass the message of the mountain down to the valley and finally, pouring itself into the ocean, becoming nothing more than a drop of something bigger than it ever could be. Mrs Rivers was true to her name.
"I don't know many things about how magic works, I admit," Keira answered after a while. "But I know I don't want to leave Rosehold the way it is. I want to save it."
"Then do something about it," Mrs Rivers encouraged her. "But be careful. You're not the first one whose actions were based on saving the world."
Keira nodded, wanting to say something - but the door of the Inn opened and first villagers came inside, laughing at something only they could understand.
"I better go," Keira noted hastily and Mrs Rivers agreed. Before the lady could turn around, Keira couldn't help herself but ask. "What are you fighting for?"
Mrs Rivers smile turned pitiful at once. "That's the biggest irony of all." Suddenly, she seemed much younger, much powerful than ever, as if the thought ignited a fire in her that melted away her wrinkles and loose skin. "I'm fighting for peace, Ms Lester."

As soon as she left the Inn, her eyes caught the handsome dark man sprinting through the street.
"Ethan!" she called out but the dryad didn't even slow down, completely ignoring her call. The villagers passing by looked startled by the speed this young man run with.
Keira didn't hesitate for more than a few seconds before she ran after him. Her legs felt numb and the wind flying through her hair seemed to make this a difficult challenge - but she didn't mind her eyes watering and her muscles aching. She actually enjoyed following the dryad and as the distance between them kept being smaller and smaller, she felt a tilt of joy and satisfaction.
Finally, Ethan stopped in front of his house, breathing heavily.
"Ethan, wait for heaven's sake," she choked, out of her breath. The dryad finally stopped and looked at her. "What's going-"
"They're gone," he said without any further explanation. He didn't wait for her and barged into the house, leaving the door open.
"What?" Keira massaged her chest, her throat burning. She got inside just a second after Ethan, but he was already pacing around the living room, clearly frustrated. "What do you mean, gone?"
"She was-" she stumbled upon the armchair. He was not okay. "She was with me and- and, suddenly, she wasn't-"
"Hey, easy," Keira said carefully, raising her hands. "Slow down. Where were you when she-"
"We were with Dianthe," he breathed, his voice cracky. "We were taking her to Melly, to, to-"
Ethan held his head in his hands and let out a desperate cry. "I can't remember!"
"What?"
"I can't remember anything past having Dianthe in my arms and Lelia knocking on Melly's door."
"Then let's go to Melly-"
"I was already there, Melly let me in but no one was there. She said she didn't even saw us!"
"But you said you were-"
"I only remember standing in front of the door, not actually going in."
"What happened next?" she walked towards him, her eyes alert. She felt her heart pounding fast.
"I remember waking up in the forest - with no one around," he let out a deep breath. "Lelia wasn't there, nor Dianthe."
"God," Keira gasped. "When?"
"This morning," his voice sounded broken. "If anything happened to them-"
"They're fine," Keira said sternly, trying to believe her own words. "Let's find them."
"You think I didn't try?" he laughed at her, angry. "I've been everywhere!"
"Alright," Keira was taken aback, afraid to say something wrong. "Is there a chance they would leave for Feathermore?"
"Under those circumstances? Think, Keira!" he tried to hide his tears.
"I'm sorry," she sighed. "What can I do?"
He shook his head. "Melly's already looking for them with Joe. I met Thane on the way - he said he'd also help."
"Good," she mumbled even though she didn't feel good about it, at all. "What do we do?"
"Do you think I'd stand here if I knew?" he hissed.
"I mean, is there like a... dryad thing or something you could do?"
He looked at her as if she was crazy. "Do you even know what you're saying?"
"Yes," she frowned. "Perfectly aware, thank you."
She fell silent after this and watched him turn his back to her, walking frantically from one side of the room to the other. She tried again. "What about the tree thing? Couldn't that work?"
"It doesn't work that way," he muttered. "I've never been able to track a person through magic."
"Oh," she sighed, not really knowing what to do next. "Shall I go and fetch anyone I can to look for them?"
"I don't know."
Ethan was desperate - she could see that. And she could do nothing except try to come up with solutions. She was never good at comfort - and Ethan seemed to be needing one so badly. She couldn't even comprehend what he must've felt. His wife was missing and so was his child. It would be enough to turn any loving parent mad.
She wondered how to help. She had to do something - it wasn't like she could now just turn around and pretend she didn't know. How could she go on with her day while not trying to help?
That's when it hit her. "Maybe I can help."
"Keira," Ethan laughed bitterly. "You cannot help me-"
"Listen," she jumped to him, taking him by a shoulder. "I'll tell you something and you'll decide whether or not I can help, but," she tightened her grip on his shoulder, "you have to promise not to tell anyone."
Ethan had still a look of disbelief written on his face but she didn't give him a chance to form any sort of reply. "I'm a Protector."
His eyes widened and his mouth was hanging open. "What?"
"Yeah," she nodded, suddenly feeling awkward. "I guess."
"You guess?" he frowned. "On what basis?"
"I'm Raven's granddaughter. And also, I can see the horse. It's all kind of messy-"
"You're what?"
She shook her head. "There's no time for this. But I swear, I can help you. I just need you to show me how to do it."
"How to do what, exactly?" he asked, his voice still full of doubt.
"I think I can do more than just call on the horse," she wondered, unsure how to describe it. "I suppose I can also call spirits."
Ethan took a step back from her. "You're not."
"I- I was," her tongue was twisting in her mouth. "I saw my mother, and, she told me-"
She told him in a few sentences how she got into some kind of place where she met her dead mother. And what she found out.
"Theurgy," he breathed out, fascinated. He closed his eyes for a moment. "That could work."
"Really?" she beamed. "Then let's do it-"
"It's dangerous," he opened his eyes. "I don't remember anyone doing that sort of magic for years."
"Well," Keira curled her lips. "It's not like we have a better idea, is it?"
Ethan frowned and buried his hand to his hair. "Pretty much."
"Then tell me what to do."
"I don't know, Keira," he shifted a bit. "Theurgy is a really old practice. The spirits act through you and you act through the spirits. There's so much that could go wrong."
"How do you even know all this?" she wondered.
"I've been-" his voice became darker and deeper. "I saw it before I became a dryad - it's hard to explain. I've been a part of the magic."
"Whatever, I won't understand anyway," she waved her hand. "But can it be useful?"
"I guess it could be," Ethan nodded. "But what if things go wrong?"
"Shouldn't I be the one asking that?"
"Right," Ethan's lips curled. "I suppose it's a risk."
"The motto of my life."

She closed her eyes as Ethan advised her. Clearing her mind was harder than she thought. The thoughts seemed to spin around on their own, leaving no space for pause at all. Lelia, Dianthe, Thane, Melly... they all seemed to talk to her through her memories and imagination. She couldn't do it.
"I'm starting to think if we just looked around for them, we would be faster." Ethan pointed out.
"Just give me a minute," she hissed.
She took a deep breath and repeated his instructions. She saw darkness behind her eyes. She clasped her hands and tried to keep her position steady. She felt stupid and useless.
Ethan explained to her in just a few sentences the basics of Theurgy. She had to become numb to the world around her, just as it happened to her during the rain. She had to feel her body stop being her own, allowing the spirits to take her into some other place, allowing her to become another entity.
She knew what she was supposed to feel - but it didn't seem to come no matter how much she tried.
"Think of something important," she heard him say, clearly trying not to sound frustrated. "Think of someone."
She thought of Lelia. And Dianthe. She tried to imagine their faces, smiling at her during the Fires. Lelia giving her the bracelet. Their first meeting. This memory brought a smile to her lips.
"What?" Ethan asked eagerly.
"I just remembered something," Keira shook her head and opened her eyes a few seconds later. "I'm sorry, Ethan. I can't do it."
Ethan cursed. "Shit!"
"We can still go and look for them-"
But Ethan was already out of the door.
She was left alone in their house, feeling like a total failure. What was she thinking? That she was some kind of hero who would save the day? Please, Keira, she thought. You can't even save yourself.
She felt so powerful, calling herself a Protector. But what has she actually done? She only seemed to make everything worse.
Before she came, everything was well. Even though the people lived in a lie, hurting an innocent person, they seemed to live in some kind of symbiosis. And she disrupted this so-called peace.
Even Kayden seemed to not care too much about Thane when she first met them. He definitely didn't go after his throat. It was her presence and her involvement that made Kayden so furious about everything.
She was starting to doubt everything. Why didn't she leave early?
Why did she go to Rosehold at all? She was perfectly well in Oxford and her holiday could be literally anywhere she wanted. Why was she so stupid to come here?
Tears were slowly filling her eyes and her vision was blurry. She took a hasty breath.
Even her mother sacrificed herself for her - the only intention being to keep her from Rosehold for good. And Keira managed to throw that all away in just one stupid night at the bar.
"Oh, come on," she gritted her teeth, brushing the tears from her face. She was never the one to dwell on her failure for too long.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Come on, help me. Just this once, she thought desperately. She knew the stress would do no good but she had to try anyway. It was the only thing she could really do. 
"There you are," a voice called for her from the door. At the same time, the bracelet around her wrist sent a burning sensation throughout her arm, as if someone poured hot lava into her bloodstream through her hand.
She jumped at the deathly sound, trying to ignore her hand. Her eyes startled towards the source of the sound but before she could properly look around, a hand was around her throat. Kayden.
She grasped the hand that was unforgivingly closing around her throat and choked. "What do you want to do, kill me?"
"Not if I don't have to," he snarled.
She couldn't even recognize him. He looked so different. His eyes were empty. His messy hair fell over his eyes. The whites were so deep in red she could almost count the number of veins in them.
"Let me go," she managed to get out but he only chuckled.
"So you can call the stupid horse again?"
"I won't," she tried to say but her mouth didn't listen. Although she was a Protector, she was no match for him in terms of strength - there was no denying that. And yet, when the need for air became unbearable, her instincts took over and she swung her foot. It hit his knee and he cursed, loosening his grip. She bent down quickly and freed herself from his grip.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?!" they yelled at each other at the same time.
"What do you mean? I'm trying to help, you jackass-" she pointed her finger at him.
"And I'm trying to do the exact same thing!" Kayden yelled back. She could see the throbbing vein on his neck.
"By choking me? Yeah, that's a lot of help," she squeaked out angrily.
"You're dangerous," he said a little calmer as he straightened and rubbed his shoulders.
"How on earth am I the dangerous one? Are you even listening to yourself? Please tell me what went wrong in there," she pointed at his head, her look full of disbelief.
Kayden put on a fake smile. "This whole community, it makes me sick. And now, you're one of them-"
"You mean one of us," she clarifies, narrowing her eyebrows. She felt sad. "What happened to you? I really don't understand-"
He only laughed, furious. After he calmed down, he clenched his jaw. "Looking for the dryads, aren't you?"
She squinted her eyes, a cold wave rushing through her back. "What did you do?"
He clasped his hands behind his back, looking pleased with himself. "I only did my part."
"Part of what?"
He took a step forward and she jumped back - but he didn't come after her. He pointed at her wrist. "That must hurt."
"I've been worse."
He took another step forward. "Thane would be proud."
"Leave him out of this," she huddled in a corner. She desperately looked around her. "You can't do anything, there are people outside-"
"No, they're not," he smiled. "Everyone is looking for the two."
"Lelia is your friend," she gritted her teeth. "Dianthe's a kid!"
"And they're just as wicked as you are!" he yelled.
Her eyes were wide. Who was this person? She felt emotions change on his face so often it seemed to change every time she blinked. If anything, he looked stressed - he looked lost.
"Was it because of that evening?" she tried, carefully. "Because of what I did?"
"No," he shook his head. "I mean- I didn't know who you were-"
"But if you do know," she insisted, "you must know how is it even possible!"
"What?"
"Kayden," she breathed out, trying not to sound afraid. "Raven didn't die."
Kayden seemed to be struck by a lightning. He squeezed his eyes and let out a whisper. "How dare you say her name. After allying with her murderer!"
"Thane didn't-"
"You know who I mean! And Thane is no better, Keira. He's killer just the same!"
"And what are you? Are you sure you're not becoming someone who makes you so disgusted?"
"You say I'm disgusting? I'm trying to save this place-"
"How?!"
"By reviving the tree!" he yelled. His eyes darted around the room and his motions were out of control. "The tree needs a sacrifice - today's the Sacrifice - it all makes perfect sense-"
"Oh no," she gasped. Suddenly, it really made sense. "You want to sacrifice Dianthe."
He didn't answer her. He didn't freacking  answer her! She wanted him to disagree so badly she could feel every nerve in her body pulse. "Tell me I'm wrong."
He still didn't answer, avoiding her gaze. She noticed a slight shade of red creeping into his cheeks. "You don't understand."
"I perfectly understand a murder of a child!" she whispered, unable to shake the deadly feeling that crept into her.
"I don't intend to do that," he shot her a disgusted look, crinkling his nose. "She'll just become a human, that's all. She'll give her power to the tree."
"What the hell," Keira raised her hands into the air. "As if that was just fine, anyway!"
"What's so wrong with being a hybrid? I am one!" Kayden rubbed his neck. "And I've never- I've-"
"You didn't think of this yourself," she noted, slowly realizing the depth behind all this. "Who's with you?"
"No one," he said but she didn't miss the hesitation.
"Kayden," she tried to calm down her voice. "You're lost. You've just been confused, that's all," she took the rest of her courage and stepped forward. "Stop all of this. Come with me."
"You don't get it," he laughed hysterically. "You're the one who's lost! Can't you see the point in all this?"
"Then tell me," she pleaded. "How will that stupid tree save Rosehold?"
"I don't know," he admitted. "She told me it was the only way-"
"Who?"
He realized his mistake. Suddenly, a wave of fury washed over his face and he jumped towards her, closing the distance. "You bitch, you try to trick me!"
"I did no such thing," she dodged his hand that rose to her face. "You were my friend!"
"Friend," he spatted the word at her. "I was no such thing. You were just using me!"
"Kayden," she tried to take control of her burning hand which sent almost electric shots through her body. "Please-"
He once again grasped her neck. "We'll see about that."