Page 83 of Their Trials

Just the thought of them waiting for me to return to them pulled me back from that line of desperation. With them, I could make it through this. Just because I couldn’t feel them clearly right now didn’t mean that they weren’t there, worrying about me as much as I was for them.

When I lifted my head and opened my eyes again, it was to find that I was no longer in the tunnel. Now, I was in an open cave, with rock walls on every side. Even the floor was a cold, damp stone. Green moss clung to the walls, absorbing the moisture and flourishing in the damp environment. Looking up, the lake was no longer visible, having been replaced with stalactites that dripped water onto my head in random intervals.

A sob of despondence slipped from my lips as I realized that my surroundings had now become more monotonous. Instead of being able to distract myself with the fish above me, I was now faced with nearly identical rock walls on three sides. The only difference from the dirt tunnel was that there was only one way for me to go now. If I wanted to make it out of here, I would have to plunge into the dark depths of this cave and face God only knew what.

With an exasperated sigh, I pushed myself back up, preparing to start walking again. For shits and giggles, I called out into the darkness, a prickle of awareness making me feel like I was being watched. The hairs on my arms and neck standing on end. “Hello?” I turned in a slow circle, squinting my eyes to sharpen my vision. “Is anyone there?” Deep down, I knew it was the Lady watching me, judging me.

I closed my eyes and leaned my head back, inhaling deeply and forcing my anger down with a concentrated effort. Yelling at her like I had earlier obviously wasn’t the best approach.

A soft giggle sounded from the shadows, a child’s laugh that echoed from the exposed stone barely reaching my ears. I set off after the noise, a sharp burst of excitement flashing through me at the thought that I wasn’t alone.

Forcing back the urge to run toward the sound, I walked into the cold, grasping fingers of the darkness. The light that had illuminated my path in the dirt tunnel was still present, but now felt like someone had placed a cloth over it, dulling the glow until shadows crept out from every angle.

I was leery of those shadows, especially after everything I had faced in Avalon up until now. Anything could be hidden in the dark corners, and I had no idea how to face it. I was truly at the mercy of whatever creature was luring me into their lair.

The giggle sounded again, louder this time, and I adjusted my trajectory to head in the correct direction, keeping my pace steady enough that I could continue scanning for any monsters that might jump out at me.

A flash of bright light had me bringing up an arm to block out the source, residual flares burning into my vision that remained even after my eyes were closed. Blinking, I tried to force my eyesight to adjust to the abrupt change to no avail.

Slowly, my vision cleared as the child’s laughter sounded out so clearly that I knew I was near the source. Removing my arm from in front of my face, I saw a ghostly baby girl lying in a field, the sight before me leaving me dumbfounded.

The stone wall remained, yet I couldn’t see it through the scene that played out before me. The images danced along as if being projected on the wall from behind me, though there was nothing when I glanced over my shoulder.

As I watched the specter before me of a smiling baby girl, a fae couple walked into the scene speaking in hushed tones, fear and worry etched into every line on their faces. The male was darker skinned with hair that was nearly white, but his eyes seemed so familiar. The woman was lean and willowy, almost as tall as the man. Her skin was pale with a pink tinge to it, a feminine blush coating her cheeks that complemented her strawberry-blonde hair.

Her movements struck a chord of familiarity, something that I had seen before, and yet I couldn’t place why I had such a sense of déjà vu. A lingering knowledge that I should know these people even though my brain couldn’t quite work out where I had seen them before. I just knew that I should and that what I was witnessing in this moment was important.

The couple whispered harshly to each other as the baby giggled again, swatting at a fae creature that resembled a butterfly with a meaty fist. The picturesque scene was marred by the utter fear that crossed the couple as they drew nearer the child, both pausing to glance at the baby’s antics.

“Jonathan, what are we going to do? She knows. She knows everything,” the woman whispered to the man beside her. Her voice shouldn’t have been audible, and yet, every word was clear, as if she had been speaking from right beside me.

The man sighed, running a hand through his silver-white hair. “I had hoped it wouldn’t come to this, but I made preparations anyway. I knew this might happen, Lenora.”

As soon as he said her name, I knew. Like a ton of bricks had fallen on my shoulders, I knew this was my mother and the man had to be my father. That even though she looked nothing like the woman I had known on Earth, it was still her. Still the mother, who had been broken by the events that took place in this scene before me. And now, I would bear witness to the conversation, privy to the discussion that would set into motion a wave of pain and heartache for everyone.

Chapter Forty: Rhowyn

My attention was entirely fixated on the scene before me, the one that would determine my entire future. The grief on my father’s face as he gazed first at me as a baby and then at my mother, gathering her in his arms and holding her tight, caused my own to swell. Grief at all the things I would grow up without, all the love that I missed out on, and a future that promised all the things that could never be.

Just looking at the love that shone on his face in this moment, I knew that things would have been drastically different had I grown up knowing him, had he stayed in our lives. I blinked long and hard, trying to force back the tears unsuccessfully as the first one and then another trailed down my cheeks.

Still, I couldn’t pull my eyes from the moment, needing to note every second and commit it to my memory. From the way he held my mother, stroking a large hand down her fair hair, soothing her as she shook with her own tears staining his tunic, I could tell that this was the hardest decision he had ever had to make in his life.

“I can’t do it, Jonathan,” my mother cried, face still buried in my father’s chest.

“Shh...” he consoled her. “For Rhowyn, you can do anything. It’s important that we keep her safe. For now, that means removing her from Titania’s grasp.”

“But what about you?”

“I’ll do what I’ve always done. I’ll continue to be a thorn in her side, disrupting her plans in any way I can. I’ll continue working with the rebellion and building a resistance to her reign.”

“What about Rhowyn?” my mother asked, turning to look at me briefly. “You know Titania will come after her if she finds out what she is.”

My father sighed, gazing at me longingly as baby me giggled at the fae creature’s antics, completely oblivious to the conflict going on around me. “I’ve arranged for a friend to help us. She’ll be by shortly to help us ensure that Rhowyn’s identity remains hidden and to create a portal to Earth without Titania’s knowledge. The main portals are always watched and guarded, so this is the only way.”

“And you’re sure there’s no other way?”

“The fate of Avalon depends on this working out. But I promise I will follow soon to retrieve you both when it’s safe.” He took my mother’s face in his hands, rubbing his thumbs over her cheeks, wiping the tears from her skin before he kissed her.

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