Alora: The Portal Read online

  Kaevin gave him a silent nod as he moved to stand where they could face one another.

  “I awoke this morning in this house and heard a bird sounding a merry tune outside the window. It was the first time I remember hearing a bird sing since I was a child.” Daegreth’s eyes squeezed shut. “I can’t hear birds singing in Tenavae. All I can hear is Vindrake’s voice in my mind.”

  Kaevin knew he ought to offer regrets for his earlier harsh words. He’d been jealous and immature. With great effort, he formed an apology in his mind. “Daegreth, I—”

  “Kaevin, I need to confess something and ask a favor of you, though you hate me with good cause.”

  “I don’t hate you, although I don’t trust you, either. You’re not at fault, but Vindrake’s bond—”

  “No. You’re correct about me.” Though his voice was without inflection, he looked up with haunted eyes. “I killed him. I killed my best friend.”

  Kaevin felt a cold chill ripple down his back. He stared for a long moment before forcing his mouth closed. No proper response came to mind.

  Daegreth continued. “In the trials. Everyone must fight—it’s mandatory. Brivaene wasn’t gifted in strength or dexterity or weapons. He never had a chance of victory. He wanted to die—he didn’t wish to become a wendt. I killed him. I watched the life leave his eyes. How I longed to join him, yet my bloodbond made me fight to win.”

  Imagining in his mind if he were forced to kill Jireo, Kaevin’s gut roiled. For the first time, he felt true empathy for the boy whose bond made him his mortal enemy.

  “So, I want you to promise something. If this doesn’t work… if the bondmark returns, you must kill me. If there isn’t a way to eliminate the bloodbond, will you do that for me?”

  “Kill you? You want me to promise to kill you?” A wave of dizziness struck and Kaevin reached out to steady himself against the wall.

  “Yes, promise me. Please. I have no one else to ask. You can’t imagine how sickening it is to have Vindrake’s evil controlling your body.”

  “Still, I don’t believe I can make that promise.”

  “Kaevin, if you don’t I’ll eventually kill someone… Wesley. Brian. Karen. Alora.”

  “It may never come to that. Perhaps Vindrake won’t locate the portal. Or we may find a way to eliminate the bond. The council plans to search for a way to dissolve the soulmate bond between Alora and me; we may discover some method to remove your bond with Vindrake as well.”

  Why do I suddenly care so much for Daegreth’s life?

  “I would like that.” There was a hint of hope in his voice. “But if not, can I count on you? I would recommend killing me while I’m still bound.”

  Kaevin recoiled even further at the idea of slaughtering him while he was helpless to defend himself. “I’ll not sink so low—”

  “Kaevin, you can’t take the risk of setting me free. Not if Vindrake has control of my body. Don’t you understand? I won the tournament—the entire tournament. I might as well be a wendt. I’m nothing more than a foul creature, honed and trained to kill at Vindrake’s will. You must promise you’ll execute me before I can kill anyone else. Please.”

  Kaevin locked gazes with him, and saw the fear in his eyes. Not a fear of death, but of a fate far worse. “Fine. I’ll promise to do it. I’m certain it won’t be necessary.”

  Daegreth smiled as Kaevin freed his wrists and feet from the chair. He stood and stretched before moving to lie on the bed, extending his arms over his head to be secured to the scrolled metal frame.

  “I wanted an opportunity to speak with you alone tonight. However, next time we should have several men present when I’m unbound, for safety’s sake. Thank you for your promise, Kaevin. And don’t be concerned… If it becomes necessary, I’ll make your task easy. I’ll taunt and curse you and help you feel angry. That much I can do with Vindrake’s bond in control.”

  Somehow Kaevin didn’t think a few derisive words from Daegreth would make the task painless. He now felt sorry for Daegreth, and the feeling didn’t sit well with him at all. He struggled with a need to make amends for his previous unsympathetic attitude. “Daegreth. About before . . . I’m sorry I judged you harshly.”

  Daegreth opened his eyes wide. “You may have demonstrated disrespect to your father, but why should you apologize to me? You only spoke the truth about me. I might wish it otherwise, but it is truth nonetheless. You judged correctly that I am malevolent and your enemy, not to be trusted.” He closed his eyes again. “If I may depend on you to end my piteous existence should the need arise, I’m content. I’ll sleep better tonight than I have since I can remember.”

  “But you’re not a vile person,” Kaevin insisted.

  For a long time, only silence answered him. When Daegreth replied, his voice was so soft Kaevin had to lean close to hear his words. “I wanted to be a hero… When I was a little boy, I thought I would grow up to be a great warrior and fight for my people—like you and your father and Morvaen. I wanted to save lives, not destroy them. I detest what I’ve become with every ounce of my being. You’ve given no insult to me that I haven’t already given to myself.”

  “But still—”

  “Good sleep, Kaevin. Thank you, again. I’ll hold you to your promise.”

  *****

  “You’re really not anything like your brother, are you?” Alora plopped onto the couch beside Wesley, who’d been conspicuously quiet for the past three hours since his brother’s arrival.

  Steven’s dark curls bounced as he spoke with animated eloquence, explaining everything he understood about the universe, which heretofore had not included parallel realms. Tall and thin, his fingers appeared even longer with his emphatic gestures.

  His muscular twin—for the two really did appear almost identical in their facial features—sat on the couch, his hands and feet bound with zip ties. Daegreth wasn’t secured in place, a condition to which he only agreed because Brian was carrying his loaded gun.

  “No, not at all,” Wesley said. “I totally took after Dad, and Steven took after Mom. Dad likes to hunt and fish like me. Steven and Mom were always the intellectuals in the family.” He spoke without taking his eyes off his brother.

  “Makes sense. How old is he?”

  “He’s twenty-four—seven years older than me. By the way, where’s Beth? She hasn’t come over since Daegreth got here.”

  “Still grounded until tomorrow.”

  “For going to Laegenshire without permission?”

  “I think so. I don’t know for sure. She gets grounded a lot.”

  In a surreptitious motion, he pointed his nose toward Steven and Daegreth. “But it’s kind of creepy, isn’t it? How much they look alike?”

  Alora nodded. The resemblance, contrasted with their disparity of body types, was the stuff of sci-fi movies. Both had dark curly hair, though Daegreth’s was longer, and he sported a sparse beard. She centered the two on the image of her phone and snapped a picture, sending it off to Beth with a caption: Twins? What do you think?

  “How long is Steven staying here?

  Wesley shrugged. “No telling. He abandoned his research to come, but he’s always been flighty like that.”

  Alora’s cell phone vibrated with Beth’s reply: Awesome! I wish I could be there.

  She showed her phone to Wesley, who stifled a laugh, shaking his head.

  “You know Steven will want to go to Laegenshire and see it for himself, right? He hasn’t asked yet, but he will.”

  “I’ve already transported with him outside the house and back. So he knows we’re telling the truth.”

  “It’s not that he doesn’t believe you. He wants to observe and take notes or do some kind of experiment, I’m sure. He’s way too curious to be satisfied with our descriptions.”

  Right on cue, Steven motioned toward Alora. “I think I’m ready to visit this new realm now. Let me make sure I have everything I need. I know my cell phone won’t work, but surely the camera will function…”<
br />
  “You can’t take your cell phone or any other kind of camera.” Wesley answered before Alora could decide how to respond. “You can’t take anything metal on a transport. It just gets left behind. So we take ceramic knives, and I take my compound bows because they’re made of a composite instead of metal.”

  “No metal will transport?” He ran his fingers through his unruly locks. “But my pants have a zipper, and the zipper didn’t stay behind when Alora transported me.”

  “We think maybe small amounts of metal, like zippers, will transport.” Alora had been always been a bit confused about this issue. “But I know cell phones don’t go, because I’ve tried it.”

  “Ah! Then it’s probably stainless steel that won’t transport.” Steven paced, musing aloud. “So any metal with iron in it. Zippers are made of other metals—aluminum and nickel, I think. If stainless steel won’t transport, I can’t take a watch. Darn, I wanted to see if there was a shift in the time measured on two identical watches if one transported and the other stayed behind.”

  Alora whispered to Wesley. “He’s awfully smart, isn’t he?”

  Wesley rolled his eyes. “Believe me, he lets me know how smart he is all the time.”

  “What’s wrong with you?” Alora asked Kaevin, who sat with his arms crossed and a surly expression on his face.

  Kaevin responded with a sharp shake of his head, pressing his lips together until they blanched.

  “But touching metal or holding metal won’t prevent a person from transporting?” asked Steven.

  “Not unless the metal tightly encircles a part of the body,” Graely explained. “Warriors will wear a belt of iron to prevent an enemy from transporting them against their will. And a prisoner in shackles cannot be freed by transport. Yet an iron ring will simply slip off the finger.”

  “They have all kinds of magic over there,” Wesley added. “It’s kind of like Tolkien, with wizards and such. And some people can tell if you’re lying. And some people are strong like Hercules. And some people can open locks with their bare hands…”

  “We didn’t call you home so you could study another realm.” Brian grabbed Steven’s arm, stopping him in midstride. “We want to solve the mystery about Daegreth and how the two of you look so much alike. We want to know if he could possibly be related to our family.”

  “Well, I suppose we could send off a couple of DNA samples and see what we have in common.” Steven chewed on his lower lip.

  “Rather than determine why you look alike, you should find a way to save his life.” Judging by the shocked looks on his audience’s faces, Kaevin’s emphatic words seemed to take everyone by surprise. “Can you not find a way to remove Daegreth’s bloodbond with Vindrake? Can some of your fancy things with lights and buttons do something to his blood? Something to take away Vindrake’s power over him?”

  Alora’s sharp intake of breath coincided with a drink she’d been swallowing, causing a coughing fit. Since when is Kaevin concerned with Daegreth’s wellbeing?

  “A ‘bloodbond’ you say? Maybe it’s something circulating in his blood. I read about a blood filtering process… I think they called it plasmaphoresis.” Steven pursed his lips as his eyes narrowed. “It could be worth a try, right? But we’d have to find a doctor willing to do the filtering without asking questions.”

  “Blood filtering… What is this blood thing you speak of?” Daegreth spoke up for the first time, appearing less than excited about the prospect of having something done to his blood.

  “No worries, Daegreth.” Steven clapped him on the shoulder. “They just pump your blood out into this machine that filters the bad stuff out, and puts it back in. That’s all. No big deal.”

  “You have done this thing to yourself before?” Daegreth asked him.

  “No way. Not me; I’m afraid of needles.” Steven cackled with laughter as Daegreth furrowed his brows.

  “You should call Doc Sanders, Charles. I bet he could help us,” Brian suggested.

  Charles groaned as he pulled out his phone. “I’m sure the hospital will be thrilled to have Daegreth back again.”

  “Why would the healing house be thrilled?” asked Graely.

  “Sorry. A bit of sarcasm. They might not let him in at all. Not after he attacked the lab guy who came to take his blood.”

  “He can use my ID and be me,” Steven suggested, pulling out his wallet to retrieve his driver’s license. “With a shave and a haircut, no one will recognize him from before.”

  Charles stared at the picture on Steven’s card. “It just might work. Certainly worth a try.”

  “Meanwhile, I have other news from the council meeting last night in Laegenshire.” Graely raised his voice and waited until the room grew silent once again.

  “The council has decided locating and sealing the portal is even more important than removing the soulmate bond between Alora and Kaevin. Using the same logic as us, Vindrake must realize a portal exists near the place he kept Wendelle imprisoned. We must prevent him from traveling to this realm via the portal.”

  Steven sat up straight, with a rather eager expression. “So there are two different ways to travel between our two worlds? You can hitch a ride with Alora or walk through some kind of warped opening, like a wormhole?”

  Wesley buried his face in his hands, muttering something unintelligible including the words, “shut up” and “wormhole.”

  Graely’s brows creased together as he scratched the back of his head. “We can pass between our realms with a bearer and, at present, Alora is the only active bearer. We could also utilize the portal if the Tenavae opening weren’t located in the heart of Vindrake’s territory. Its location is the issue at hand. Should Vindrake find and utilize the portal, he would have access to all of this realm’s magick, and he wouldn’t hesitate to utilize this magick against the other clans.”

  “Are you saying he could bring guns and ammunition and bombs and such back through the portal to Tenavae?” asked Charles.

  “I’m not certain of the meaning of your words,” said Graely, his expression grave. “But anything can be carried through a portal; iron isn’t excluded as with Alora’s gift. His warriors could come here and retrieve any type of weapon in existence.”

  Brian and Charles exchanged a look of horror. “Guns and bombs are the least of it,” said Charles. “He could bring people back through the portal. Imagine if he joined with terrorists or people with access to nuclear or chemical weapons. He could destroy their entire world,” said Charles.

  Alora’s mouth felt dry as cotton. At her side, Kaevin wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulder, and she melted against him.

  “Finding and closing the portal is imperative,” said Graely. “The weapon you hold in your hand could go through the portal, Brian.”

  He nodded, staring at the gun as if it might explode at any moment. “We’ll help any way we can. What do you need?”

  ~ 9 ~

  As had become their habit after breakfast, Alora washed the dishes while Kaevin attended to the outdoor chores that once were hers. Hanging the dishtowel to dry, she kissed Uncle Charles on the cheek, announcing her intent to take a shower. But from her bedroom, she transported to the stable for a few moments of alone-time with Kaevin. She cherished these tender moments, finding no enjoyment from holding hands or tender kisses with an audience, especially a hostile one such as her uncle. His suspicious and critical observation threw water on any spark that might have otherwise kindled.

  “Good morning.” Kaevin leaned forward to press his lips to hers in a gentle kiss, tucking his chore-dirty hands behind him. Though his face wore a smile, Alora could sense something was wrong. And she suspected that “something” had to do with their heretofore-compulsory attendance at school.

  “Are you ready for the science test today?”

  His eyes narrowed as he turned away, retrieving the shovel and attacking the stall with vigor. “I’ve done what I can to prepare, but I doubt the results will be better than t
he last time.”

  “So… I’ve been talking to Beth’s mom about the possibility of homeschooling.”

  “Homeschooling? What’s homeschooling?” Kaevin continued to muck the stall, but she could tell his curiosity was piqued.

  “I’d go to Beth’s house, and her mom would teach me there. Her mom—you know, her name is Janice—she used to teach high school before Beth’s dad died and she was stuck taking care of the ranch.”

  “So you wouldn’t go to the high school any longer?”

  “No, I’d just go to Beth’s house on the days I had classes and study from home the rest of the time.” Alora bit back a smile at his rapturous expression.

  If only I had a camera to record the look on his face.

  “And me? What would I do?”

  “You’d go with me, of course. And you wouldn’t have to take any classes except for— Oh my gosh! Kaevin! What are you doing?”

  Kaevin lifted her, spinning and laughing. “Yes! Yes! Yes! Homeschooling sounds perfect!”

  Alora giggled. “Okay, but put me down.” She beat playfully on his shoulders, but he held her fast.

  “When can we start? Today? I must say I’m surprised Charles agreed. Father knows, as well?”

  “Well… that’s the thing. I haven’t actually talked to my uncle or your dad.”

  “Oh.” He loosened his grip, and she slid to the floor, still encircled in his arms. His mouth drooped. “Charles will never approve, and Father will take Charles’ side.”

  “I disagree. I think we have a good chance of convincing them. Janice is really excited about it, and she can use the extra money. It would free our schedule up a lot since I wouldn’t have to go to class every day. Even if I were in Tenavae, I could bring a book along and do my schoolwork. Janice says, if I work hard, I could finish high school in a year and a half, or maybe less. That way I’d be free to move to Tenavae permanently when I’m seventeen.”

  “I don’t believe you should mention that to your uncle. He doesn’t seem excited about the prospect of you living in Tenavae with me.”