Light My Fire [Nalu] {The FT Love Chronicles; Book 3}

Chapter Twelve

 Lucy stared at Eliana in silent shock, trying to take in what she had just told her.

“That's impossible,” Loke said. “How can you live in the spirit world and have a gate key, but not be a spirit?”

“It's a complicated story,” Eliana sighed, looking down at the floor.

“Eliana,” Lucy said, gently, “won't you tell me? If I understand you, I may be able to help—”

“No!” She snapped, stepping away from Lucy and Loke. “You won't want to help me—haven't I already told you that?”

“Yes, but you don't know that for sure.”

“Lucy is the best celestial wizard out there, and she really cares for her spirits. She won't abandon you,” Loke said.

The small girl looked at Lucy for several minutes before her eyes brightened with tears. “Promise you won't leave me?” She asked, voice thick with emotion.

Lucy grabbed her hands, squeezing them, “I promise—as log as you promise not to attack me again, alright?”

“What if I can't make that promise?” More tears filled her eyes, and she sounded sad.

“Why can't you?”

“It's part of the story,” she said. Her eyes fell to where she and Lucy were holding hands. “You should probably sit down if I'm going to tell you.”

Lucy nodded, relieved that Eliana seemed to finally be trusting her enough to open up. Whatever she is, it can't be that bad. Eliana is a sweet girl, so I don't understand why anyone would break their contract with her.

The three of them sat around Lucy's table; Lucy and Loke sat beside each other, and Eliana sat across from them. “Like I told you, I'm not really a celestial spirit. Honestly, I'm not really anything if you want to get technical.

“A long time ago, a group of three wizards who practiced dark magic wanted to create a way into the spirit world. They had heard that time passes much slower there, so they formed a plan to somehow get there, wait a few days, and then come back to the mortal world. The council was after them, so they decided that that was the best way to escape them. If they disappeared for a couple of years—a week or two in the spirit world—then the council would no longer be after them, and they could continue growing in power once under the radar again.”

“What does that have to do with you? Some foolish humans are always trying to get into the spirit world in order to live longer—it never works. Even if they do make it in, they are immediately kicked out, or they get trapped and die,” Loke frowned.

“They went underground for a while in order to begin their research and experiments. At first, they tried using magic runes, and all kinds of magic items to create a portal; however, none of them worked. After several months, one of the men came up with a horrible idea—what if they could somehow fuse a celestial spirit to one of them? That way, they would become the portal, and could open the gate to come and go from the spirit world as they pleased.”

“That's awful,” Lucy gasped, feeling gooseflesh rise on her arms at the thought of such an experiment. “How did they even get a spirit in order to make that possible?”

“One of the men was a celestial wizard. He treated his spirits like slaves, completely abusing his power over them. He was angry with one of his particularly disobedient spirits, so he picked that one for the experiment. After none of the three were willing to volunteer to be fused with the spirit, they came up with a different plan. Instead of sacrificing their lives in an experiment that might end in disaster, they chose to use a different human to fuse with the spirit. If they snatched one of the slaves from a nearby prison, no one would bat an eye, so no one would come looking for them—and they could avoid someone possibly discovering what they had been doing.” Eliana paused, taking a deep breath before she continued.