Finding Heathcliff

Eleven

The moment the heavy door of her Uncle's chamber closed behind them, Astrid's legs gave way. If it wasn't for Orion's arm finding its way around her waist quickly to support her, she would have fallen to the floor.

He steadied her and drew her close, then brought one of his hands to her chin, tilting her face up, and kissed her fiercely, making her feel all of his excitement in that kiss.

And for the first time ever, Astrid thought that Orion's kiss felt wrong. She pushed away from him and leaned against the cold wall behind her instead, pressing the palms of her hands to the safe, damp stones, inhaling the faint musty scent of the centuries old castle. However cold, empty, and unfeeling this place had often seemed, it was her home, and she had never been away from it for more than a few hours at a time. How was she supposed to leave now, for who knew how long? The world outside was a mystery, a dream... a nightmare. Would she ever come back?

Why was Orion so excited about the trial? How could he see it as an adventure? Why... why did he always insist on kissing her, and more, if he kept saying that he didn't believe in love, why did he want to marry her? Just why was she feeling as if someone had suddenly pulled a carpet from under her feet, and the reality around her was beginning to crumble into dust, leaving her with nothing but the task she had accepted, ahead of her?

"Astrid," Orion murmured, confused by her long silence.

She let him wrap his arms around her and pull her into him again, still refusing to let him kiss her. He would have to answer a few questions first, the moment she collected her wits.

Hot tears flooded her eyes as she recalled the images of her parents, which her uncle had shown her, and Orion let her sob for a few instants, caressing her hair patiently. Finally, she calmed down enough to take a deep breath, wipe her tears, and pull away from Orion. There was nothing she could do to bring her mother and father back to life, and she had no time to waste crying now. The next Black Night would happen in less than two weeks, and Astrid meant to find the demons before they could kill anyone else... That thought made her recall how angry her uncle became when she called the fallen angels by the name she had found in her book. Demons. Why...? She took another steadying breath, resolved to believe that not all the information she had found in books was true, before she took a step away from Orion and looked into his eyes.

"How much of what Uncle Arcturus told me, did you know?" she asked seriously. She needed him to be honest with her; he was the only person she could trust. At least she had thought so until now.

Putting a finger to his lips while pulling her away from the door and down the corridor, Orion whispered, "He told me about the Black Nights and your trial a week ago. I couldn't tell you; he would have found out. But I was glad to see that you found that book on angels, I didn't tell him, we'll need all your knowledge now! You'll succeed, Astrid, and then we'll finally get married, I can't wait!" He pulled her into him again, crushing her against his body, the sudden motion making the flames of the tall torches standing along the walls flicker and hiss, sending the scent of turpentine and burning wood aswirl around them.

"How can you know... I will succeed... Orion?" Astrid spoke with difficulty, trying to push his hands off her-- he was everywhere; she couldn't breathe. She had never seen him like this before and this really wasn't the time for such behaviour.

"Orion!" Astrid managed to call, voice laced with desperation.

At last, he let go of her, settling for kissing, and then keeping her hand in his as they resumed walking towards her part of the castle, followed by the echo of their footsteps.

"I know that you will improve the treaty because I want you to. We will do this together. I can't wait to sit on that throne, imagine, Astrid, the two of us, the rulers of Eurovea!"

Astrid shook her head; this wasn't her dream. The only thing she dreamed of right now was finding the fallen angels who killed her parents and...

"Did you see all that light?" Orion's dreamy voice scattered her thoughts into the dark, moving shadows flooding the corners of the long corridor which the torchlight didn't reach.

"And what about the fire? Now you must admit that magic exists," Astrid said, a smile tugging at her lips for the first time since she had left the library hours ago.

"I... am not sure what Deimos did with the fire, but the light in your uncle's room was no magic. That's technology," Orion said, even as they reached Astrid's chamber. "Electricity."

"What are you talking about?" she asked, opening the door and letting him enter, her curiosity making her forget that she meant to be angry with him. "Technology doesn't exist."

She closed the door and followed him to her bed where he had already sat, patting the place at his side.

"Of course I heard the rumours," he said, wrapping an arm over her shoulders, pulling her down onto the dark covers with him, "but I wasn't sure until tonight. Regent Arcturus uses technology. We only saw electricity but there might be more, and once we replace him it will be ours..."

"That's impossible. How could he produce electricity?" Astrid asked, eyes intent on the canopy of her bed stretching like night sky above their heads, trying to recall what she had read in one of the books her tutors had made her study, about electricity. The only thing she remembered, though, was how lightning was used to produce electricity to revive a dead body by an eccentric scientist in one of her favourite Victorian novels.

"Solar power. Wind. The waterfall... I don't know how he does it, but that was electricity in that room," Orion muttered, his eyes intent on the midnight-blue canopy just like hers.

"That's impossible. We lost all technology centuries ago," Astrid insisted, but Orion ignored her entirely as he continued.

"Technology is still used in some parts of the world. It wasn't lost, but forbidden in Eurovea by Queen Rhea."

"Queen, who?"

Orion sighed. "The queen who led the people inland and founded Starling after the last large earthquake, Astrid. If you had ever shown at least some interest in the history lessons, our tutors would have told you all this, just as they told me."

He leaned on his elbow, pressed a kiss to her lips, then stared into her eyes as she asked, "What does it mean, why was it forbidden?"

Did the queen who forbade technology also choose the people for her new town and castle by lottery? Or did she handpick her favourites? Astrid mused, waiting for her fiancé to answer.

"Life without technology makes people weaker, more dependent on the ruler, I think. Your uncle is a clever man to keep it to himself."

"Is he?" Astrid asked, sitting up before Orion could kiss her again. It didn't feel so to her. Uncle Arcturus was dishonest to his people. A liar.

"Come on, Astrid, cheer up! This is wonderful! Let us go and come back quickly, it's so exciting..."

"Do you really think that my uncle will just step down and let me replace him if we come back?" Astrid interrupted him, trying to talk some sense into his ecstatic mind. "Just like that? Aren't you scared of Deimos?"

"What?" Orion asked, looking nonplussed as if she just woke him up.

"That fire was magic, Orion, magic much more powerful than your technology."

He shook his head, caressing her cheek, disbelief colouring his voice as he assured her, "You don't have to be afraid of Deimos. We will send her away, with the regent, the moment you are crowned. I don't know what she does, but I don't like her." Orion shuddered lightly.

"I'm not afraid, Orion, I just don't trust... Whatever. Forget it. Go, please, let me pack."

He stood up and pulled Astrid to her feet without further argument. "Let us leave at sunrise tomorrow. I'll speak to the captain of the guard about the regent's order. Sleep well, my queen."

Astrid wrapped her arms around him this time and let him kiss her, realising that from tomorrow it would be just her and him in the world they didn't know. They only had each other from now on.

Then he was gone, leaving her alone.