The Survivor - Veil Walkers Book One

Chapter Five

Home, Modern Era - Ming Yue

MING Yue rested a finger against the doorbell button to Danika's room. She heard the chime within and waited for a response. None came. She rolled a finger over it a second time, then a third. Concerned, she punched in the override code.

The wild energy emanating from the human-sized lump in the bed drew her attention before the door fully opened. Bad sign. Danika's life swayed along the line of rejection. Ming Yue whispered a prayer of thanks that she had come when she did and entered unbidden.

Her bun had slipped and felt loose around her neckline. She let her hair down and pulled it up again while she waited for acknowledgement. Once twisted in place, she pierced it with her precious hair stick. She adored that stick. It was the only part of her timelocked life that had survived four millennia of wear. It had broken at times, yes, but others had always painstakingly repaired it, filling cracks with melted gold and resetting gems as needed. She wore it every day. It was as much a part of her as her religion.

She hated when her bun slipped. It made her look unkempt, less authoritative.

Right now, she needed that authority. She must distract Danika from any lingering doubts about whether she played a part in Nathalie's death before she could mourn herself into joining her. "I know how scared, how confused, you are," she put on her best 'wise old woman' tone as she sat on the edge of the bed. "I have seen it 168 times, and I don't really have any words that will make it better. What's important is that you don't give up, don't lose yourself. You must remember who you are and what drove you to enter the portal."

Danika pulled away from Ming Yue's touch. Her form shuttered. Skills weren't needed to know the newcomer was sobbing. These first signs of rejection must be dealt with promptly. She hated to think of her as just another body for the cause, but that's what she was. If she made it, if she learned quickly, she just might turn some of the never-ending string of battles in their favor.

They needed her as much as she needed them.

"Something gave you the strength to walk into the unknown," Ming Yue continued, "even if you won't tell me what it is, it's important that you remember why. That reason will give you strength in the coming weeks."

She rolled to face the elder, peeking from under the blankets. "You look like Sumiko and her daughter. Are you related?"

Ming Yue smirked. "Only in how all of us are one family. I am Asian, yes, as are those two, but from vastly different cultures. I am from China, they hail from Japan. But no one here is related to anyone else by blood. Not anymore."

The blankets closed over the newcomer again. Ming Yue frowned. Worry about Danika's behavior had spread through the ranks, enough to concern even those who hadn't yet met her. Before, and even after, Nathalie's funeral, more deities had been invoked on the newcomer's behalf than the woman would ever know. "You'll find comfort among us in the coming days, and as that happens, you'll find your role in our family."

"I'll never be part of this family. I'm not capable enough. I'll just be a burden."

Well, that backfired. Ming Yue struggled to change the topic, only to have Danika do it herself.

"I saw all those portraits on the way here, but none of them match people I've met. Who are they?"

Ming Yue made a noise, a click of the tongue that signified many emotions, but, in this case, exasperation. "They're portraits of the dead. A few days after someone dies, their image appears on the walls. There are thousands of years of history hanging there, staring back at us."

The blankets slid away as Danika sat up to give her an incredulous stare. "They just appear?"

"It's one of many things we don't understand about this place," Ming Yue explained. "We think the compound was sent back in time by those far in the future, yet we can't move forward in time ourselves to explore that idea. You'll learn more of that in the coming days. As for the portraits, there are faces there who even I don't know."