Lion's Gift

Chapter 27

Abacus and I finally reach the dais, and as I look behind myself out of my periphery, the hall shrinks until it is back to the same size it was before. He turns to me before we fully step into the circle around the dais.

"You may call us Spirits, my dear, with a capital S. Do you know what we call this border?" He asks, gesturing toward the ceiling while I shake my head, "We call it Memory Lane," I look at him, confused but not showing it, at his words. When he spoke Memory Lane, I swear he was speaking in a different language, with his voice turning deep and guttural, but it isn't any language I know how to speak. Yet, it is. How else could I have understood what he said?

"My Queen," He starts, putting both hands on my shoulders, "You are close," I want to wrench myself out of his grip, but my gut tells me not to. My mind starts to spin, and I quickly look toward the dais. Every throne is full, with different kinds of humanoid figures, male and female, and all of them are at least middle-aged, but the three most impressive thrones on the uppermost level of the dais sit empty.

I see an elderly woman with hair the color of a raging fire, swirling above her head and defying gravity, skin the color of the dark purple-tinged shadows fire casts, and eyes the color of blue flames. I see another middle-aged man with long hair to his shoulders the color of lichen and moss, skin the color of fresh, healthy dirt, eyes a cutting black, and swirls of green magic around his wrists as he livens up the moss on his throne. I see one child, looking maybe eight or nine years old, with pale blond hair, pale skin with little freckles, and pale robes almost the same color as her hair. She also has iridescent wings coming out of her back, joined right where I expect her shoulder blades to be.

The Spirits all start to murmur at once and my hearing sharpens. I can suddenly hear each of their conversations.

"Can we talk to her?" One says, curiosity leaking into his tone.

"No, silly, are you stupid? We know the Fallen Dark are marching toward the castle as we speak, in a few moments the Lion will present himself and confirm whether she is the right one. Soon after her Transformation, the army will break through the castle wall, if everything goes exactly to plan," A woman voices out with a bossy tone.

I turn again, overwhelmed, to the other side.

Just then, I notice the huge lion a few feet away from where Abacus and I are standing, and I almost take a step back. It is large, larger than any real-life lion. Its head looks like it comes up to my chest almost, and its head is about as big as double a real lion's head. It is still a beauty, with smooth fur gleaming like gold, stunning eyes like molten gold, lean muscles rippling under its skin, and a full mane of hair. I look at its mane in confusion, as the colors catch my eye. The lion has brown-gold hair, mostly chocolatey-brown, with gold, bronze, red, and auburn natural highlights. It looks exactly like my own hair.

Abacus watches as the lion holds my gaze with cunning, intelligent eyes. I blink, and I disappear from the hall. Instead, I am standing in a vast grassland, in front of a dead tree.

Small mewling sounds echo in my ears and I look down, noticing a small lion cub at my feet with soft blue-gray eyes. I remember that lion cubs have blue gray eyes until they grow older and their eyes turn orange yellow. The little cub breathes lightly, and I notice gruesome claw marks all over its stomach and body. It stops making any sound for a moment before letting out a loud cry.

I fall to my knees and try to touch it, to help the thing, but my hand only passes through, like an apparition.

For a second, the little cub and I lock gazes, and I am whisked back to the large room. It seems as if no time has passed since I had that weird vision. The whole room is silent, as opposed to the mutterings of the Spirits before this. Out of the corner of my eye, I see the large flower bud starting to open, showing a peak at its vibrant red petals and glowing yellow stamens.