Chapter Eleven
I was intrigued by the amount of sea people I came across while walking down the condensed streets. The village was uniquely diverse and I wondered if it was due to remoteness from other landmarks. It brought up the theory that, perhaps, the offspring of the humans here were more likely to inherit the abilities of the non-human parent compared to the rest of Regnum. And if my information was anything to go off, I may be lucky enough to test the theory some day.
Pulling a travel-sized journal from the pocket of my pleated maroon skirt, I tilted my straw summer hat down, shading my eyes enough to read my notes. A salty breeze rolled up from the bottom of the hill that led to the docks, causing my short-sleeved ruffled, white shirt to sway roughly against it and for my hair to whip my eyes.
I should have cut it before I left…
Being on the inner crest of the country’s sea, the strong winds were unexpected and I was ill prepared for them. So horribly prepared that my small notebook flew from my hands and into the sky.
Letting a soft curse escape under my breath, I reached up to catch the book, not wanting to sprout my wings and cause a scene. My eyes would get me enough attention as it was, causing me to opt for a softer female oriented outfit to fit in better with the locals. Though, the sandals were impractical and not helpful when jumping for the stupid book.
“Come back!” Why I was shouting at it, I didn’t know. It didn’t make me feel any better as it then flopped onto the ground to then roll into the sand banks of the beach.
It’s going to be unreadable at this rate!
Keeping my head down to avoid the curious glances and my focus on the rolling bain of my existence, I had no time to stop myself before I collided with a slender female body.
“Ooomf,” came out as my rear end hit the ground and my spectacles hung off from one ear.
“Oh my! Are you alright?” A small, pale hand extended into my line of sight, offering to help me up.
Accepting the gesture, I rose to my feet and wiped as much sand off me as I could before facing the poor girl I ran into.
“I’m really…” my words caught in my throat at the young girl before me, perhaps only a couple of years younger than Aurora. There were enough illustrated books and stained glass windows in Hyperion to know those green eyes and that bright auburn hair. But it wasn’t her… was it?
“...sorry.”
Huh?
Her smile was bright, causing her eyes to take the form of twinkling crescents. Again her lips moved.
“I said that I’m really sorry. I wasn’t paying attention and just stood here like a scarecrow,” the young woman giggled.
Blinking away my confusion, I attempted to mimic her grin.
“Oh, no, I’m the one that needs to apologize. I was chasing after my…”
“This?” another female voice sounded from behind the girl. Looking over her shoulder, I could see a near identical young woman holding up my notebook. Though, her aura did not feel the same as the first’s. Her voice was not as light either.
“Yes, thank you,” I smiled and reached a hand out to take it.
“Why are you here?” the second girl inquired, her tone tight and her eyes held mine with ruthless suspicion.
The first girl gave a dismissive wave before speaking, “Oh, Leena, you’re always so rude! Can’t you let someone enjoy their walk without thinking they are up to something nefarious?”
Leena’s eyes continued to harden as she narrowed them.
“And you, Diana, are too trusting. You would think that your time in the capital would teach you to have caution. Whoever comes through here either lives here or used to live here. No one just shows up for no reason.”
Clearing my throat, I felt compelled to answer this girl, if only partially.
“Actually, I am here to find someone. A Healer who goes by Latonia Beckett. Have you heard of her?”
Both Leena and Diana’s eyes seemed to widen. How unusual…
“What do you want with her?” Leena continued to question, her stance stiffening.
How much can I tell them without them becoming more suspicious?
Letting out a deep sigh and lowering my shoulders, I figured it was best to give more truth than fiction.
“My community suffers from a blight that targets the females during childbirth. I’m searching for the last known descendant of Belinha to hopefully help find a cure and I heard that this village had a possible lead.”
Diana’s face softened, though Leena’s was tighter than ever as she glared at her twin - or at least sister I concluded.
“We’re her daughters,” Diana began, shushing Leena’s protests as her lips began to form words. “I can take you to her, but I cannot promise if she will, or can help.”
Hope…
“I understand, thank you, Miss Diana.”
Through wind and dunes we reached the top of a cliff overlooking the vast ocean as a lush, green forest sat behind a two-story cottage. Outside was a roofed well, enclosed within a wooden fence that extended around the back of the house. Many different plants grew in organized clumps, all staying within the boundaries of the fence. Some I recognized as vegetables, such as squash and beans, while others appeared to be herbs.
Following them into the cottage, which opened into a well-stocked kitchen with herbs hanging to dry on the walls and from the beams of the ceiling, I was greeted with an earthy, yet clean, aroma. On the ground floor there seemed to be one bedroom off the side of the kitchen behind the stairs. I assumed there were more rooms on the second floor.
As we moved in further, the back door opened, revealing a woman who looked similar to the other two, only older - my guess was by at least two decades. When she saw us she paused with a basket of freshly harvested carrots and cast me a curious glance before her face shifted into one of recognition. I was certain I had never met her before, but something about her said otherwise when she looked at me.
“Welcome home, girls. Who’s your friend?” Her voice was similar to Diana’s - light and warm.
“Uh…” Diana paused for a moment and then gave a light giggle before turning to face me. “I’m sorry, once again for my rudeness but…”
“Huri.” When she said it I wasn’t even sure I heard my own name correctly. Although she had been the one to ask the question, Latonia also answered it and spoke my name as if we were old friends.
Nodding, I stepped forward and bowed my head in respect. After all, I was in the presence of those who carried a bloodline even more renowned than my own. Removing my hat, I stepped forward.
“Yes, I am Huri of Thanatos and of the royal family in Hyperion. I have come here to ask for your help.”
The lines around her lips fell at my request as she put the basket onto the wooden table of the kitchen.
“Let’s go for a short walk,” she began and then looked at each of her daughters. “Girls, go finish your chores before dinner.”
Diana left through the front door, casting me a curious glance as she passed. Leena seemed to hesitate for a moment before also resigning to her mother’s orders. She continued to watch me with suspicion as she followed her sister.
Why is she so untrusting?
“Don’t mind Leena,” Latonia began, motioning me through the back door. “She has a strong sense for protecting her family. Though I’m not quite certain of where she gets it from.”
Latonia’s lips drew up into a warm, maternal-seeming smile as she ushered me out to the back garden.
Green leaves and sprigs covered most areas of the fenced in garden. Leaves attached to vines climbing up tall archways bearing deep purple grapes hung over our heads as we sat on a small stone bench underneath them. Plants such as lavender and chamomile kept the air around us fragrant and fresh. The back of my mind tugged at me to build something similar when I returned home and to share it with Aurora. The sense of peace brought on by the plants was something I would be curious enough to replicate.
“I knew you would be coming to see me, I just didn’t know when,” Latonia began beside me, though she didn’t face me. Rather, she stared with a sense of longing at the plants, as if they held the answers she was searching for.
“You see, I couldn’t even cure my husband of his impotence. He was never meant to give me children to continue our line…”
“But you have two,” I interrupted, inwardly slapping myself for my rudeness. I was just so excited to get some answers that my mouth and brain didn’t want to ally with one another.
She continued to look away from me, causing my stomach to cave. My eyes followed the path we had come from to the two teen-aged girls by the well. Both occasionally looked back at me - Diana’s green eyes were merely curious while Leena’s gaze was as hard as obsidian. They were the next generation of Belinha’s line, their genetics couldn’t lie about that.
“They are not biologically my husbands. Of course, he’s their father in every other way…” Latonia trailed, her gaze seeming to shift to the crashing waves of the ocean just off the side of the cliff. “I had the responsibility to keep the line going, no matter the cost, as I knew she would be coming back. I had to do my part in any way I could. So I kneeled at the tip of that cliff right there,” she pointed to the edge of where her cottage met the end of the land, “and I prayed for a miracle. When he came to me and offered me the promise of children, I readily agreed and accepted his embrace. After that day I was blessed with twin girls and he has never touched me since.”
“He?” I asked, attempting to piece together her words as I, too, stared out into the ocean.
“Cato.”
My breath hitched in my throat. The sea dragon that was Belinha’s first creation took it upon himself to keep the line going. Even though humans did not carry the same risk that female dragons had in childbirth, Latonia took a risk and it paid off. The mixing of human and deity genetics was not only rare, it was unheard of. I wanted to ask about it but I stopped myself. My curiosity could wait. The cost of dragonkind had become an epidemic that had gone unnoticed for far too long.
“Do you know why dragons have such a hard time conceiving and giving birth?” I hoped she would know. I hoped with my entire soul she would know.
“I attempted to study it once but could never break the wall to discover the root cause. Although,” she stood and motioned for me to do the same, “I have some old journals for you to keep if you want. Perhaps they can help. I have the gift of Sight, seeing both the past and the future. Every time I have a vision, I write it down.”
“Thank you, I won’t forget your kindness…”
She paused me with an open palm. Then she looked into my eyes, showing me a sorrow that I had only seen in those who lost the most precious people in their lives. There were no tears, but in my heart I knew that there didn’t need to be. Again, her eyes wandered, this time over to her daughters.
“Knowing and not sharing can be the cruelest experience in this world. I cannot promise you the survival of your baby sister, as I know the mortality rate is high, and I need you to understand…” she returned to my gaze, her eyes still sorrow ridden, “we can sometimes prolong the inevitable, but we cannot deny it. My own sweet and precious Diana will be proof of that when the time comes.”
I followed her gaze to the sisters. Diana had managed to pull a heavy bucket from the well, only to put her hand in it and flick some of the water onto her sister’s face, giggling the entire time. Although Leena seemed annoyed, she did not scold her sister and instead took the bucket and brought it into the house with a rolling of her eyes.
“I’m sorry for your burden,” I murmured, imagining her suffering from a loss that hasn’t occurred yet but would regardless.
“And no one but you will know of it.” Latonia’s voice solidified, implying the promise she was forcing onto me - which I accepted whole heartedly. Then she pulled a small, folded up, piece of paper from the pocket of her earth covered skirt and handed it to me.
Curious, I opened it right there to see a list of ingredients and measurements. My silent question when I looked up didn’t have to wait long for an answer.
“This medicine will not cure your kind but it may be able to prolong the lives of those who suffer from this ailment. At most, it offers them some borrowed time, maybe ten years at the most, but it’s all I have for now. Perhaps one day someone can come along and perfect it.”
Oh, gods! Heat rose to my cheeks and then streamed from my eyes. What she handed me was not only time but hope. Real, true, honest hope. If I could mass produce this then I could help all dragons and, especially, Aurora.
