Darkest Nyte Read online

  "I noticed a change in the energy around the Oracle about three years ago. Whether it’s a fundamental change to the Oracle’s energy, or an additional force combining with it, I can’t tell."

  "Why haven’t you mentioned this before?" She stared at the building, trying to sense something different.

  "Before it was a mild concern, something I kept an eye on." He sighed and leaned against one of the tall pillars. "Over the past few days, the change has accelerated."

  "The past few days? You mean, since Nyte arrived?" She planted her hands on her hips. "Rand, is this some kind of scheme to--"

  He grasped her shoulders. "Lucinda, the power increase is not a natural phenomenon."

  "That doesn’t mean Nyte had anything to do with it."

  He released her, his mouth set in a tight line. "Are you saying it’s a coincidence?"

  He stared at her, his blue eyes intense, waiting for her to arrive at some conclusion, she realized. It didn’t take her long. Rand had always told her coincidences didn’t really exist. The universe used the seemingly accidental incidents to draw a person’s attention to something.

  "Okay. So he arrived and one of the world’s great natural wonders changed in a fundamental way. I can’t deny it must have some relationship to Nyte’s arrival. But is it really that significant? I mean, I know I haven’t been here for a long time, but it can’t have been that dramatic a change. I can’t sense anything more than--"

  "Wait." Rand moved his hands over Lucinda’s head, deep concentration lining his features. He cupped his hands and drew them in an arc downward, as through placing a protective spell over her. The air around her seemed to vibrate, causing a throbbing in her ears. Not of pain, but pressure. She realized he wasn’t erecting a protective shield, but peeling one away.

  Her skin felt cold then hot then cold again. Energy pulsed against her like the beat of a thousand hummingbirds’ wings. Her equilibrium wavered. Rand’s arm linked around hers, and his other hand grasped her elbow to steady her.

  "Sit," he directed, leading her to a large, flat-topped stone. "I protected you from the energy so it wouldn’t overwhelm you when we first arrived. You’ll get used to it in a moment."

  She concentrated on deep breathing and allowed the energy to flow through her rather than trying to fight it. After a few moments, she no longer felt like a window with sleet pelting against it. The thrum of the energy still echoed through her, but she could cope now.

  She had never experienced anything like this before.

  "What do you think it is, Rand?"

  "It would be a formidable power source, if someone knew how to tap it."

  "Power source for what?"

  A shadow haunted the depths of his eyes. "If it’s Nyte’s, I’d be afraid to even guess."

  "Rand, it doesn’t make sense that Nyte has anything to do with this. He has amnesia--"

  "Or so he told you."

  "--and he’s just learning to use his powers."

  "Lucinda, why do you keep defending him?" The fierce emotion in his eyes startled her. "You took him into your home even though I warned you he was dangerous. You insist on helping him when--"

  She stood up and walked toward him. "You know I couldn’t leave him to fend for himself. Even if I hadn’t received The Call to help him. Not in his condition. I couldn’t do that to anyone."

  Silence hung between them, or as close to it as possible with the thrum of energy permeating the air around them.

  "You did it to me--when you decided not to believe my story," Rand said.

  His words, low and filled with pain, told her more clearly than any explanation, how badly she’d hurt him.

  "Rand, I never meant to hurt you. I...."

  She what? She’d chosen between duty and heeding Rand’s warning. She’d made the only choice she could. A choice she thought he’d understand.

  "You chose him. How could that not hurt me?" Blue fire raged in his eyes.

  When she’d chosen to train Nyte, despite Rand’s warning, he’d taken it as a rejection. How could she let him know how much she valued his friendship and still satisfy her duty to follow The Call and train Nyte?

  As if it was as simple as that. She cared deeply for Rand, her closest friend and confidant. And she had a tangled mass of growing feelings for Nyte. She’d been trying to convince herself it was just lust, but Nyte stirred something far too potent in her to be shrugged away as something so shallow.

  She couldn’t turn her back on Nyte, and if Rand were truly her friend he would understand that.

  "I know you have some reason to distrust Nyte, but I can’t let that stop me from doing what I have to do." She rested her hand on Rand’s arm. "But, Rand, that doesn’t mean I don’t treasure our friendship. You should know that."

  He clamped his fingers around her shoulders. "And you should understand that I can’t stand by and watch you be hurt by Nyte."

  "I guess we’re at an impasse."

  "That’s why I brought you here." Rand tightened his grasp on her. "I’m going to prove to you that Nyte killed Clarissa in cold blood. Then maybe you’ll believe he is dangerous."

  "How are you going to do that?" She couldn’t conceive of what proof Rand might offer that would convince her.

  "I’m going to use the energy of the Oracle to take us back in time."

  Her eyes widened. "Back in time? That far?"

  She had toyed with time travel spells before. Short distances, like days or weeks, weren’t too bad, but moving anything more than a year took a vast amount of power, and Rand was talking about centuries. What he suggested seemed impossible.

  "There are legends that, with enough power, wizards can break the spatial and time barriers we’ve experienced and travel unimaginable distances," Rand explained.

  "Legends? Rand, you’re the oldest wizard on Earth. You make the legends."

  He released his grip on her shoulders and sighed. The look in his eyes warned he was about to reveal something momentous.

  "Lucinda, I believe wizards visited Earth long before I was born."

  "Visited? From where?"

  He waved his hand at the night sky. "From out there."

  She glanced at the wash of stars streaking the night sky, a milky swarm of potential worlds that could sustain intelligent life.

  "You mean space travelers?"

  "Why not? If humans can travel to the moon, why can’t wizards cross the distances between the stars?"

  "I guess."

  "And if we can do that, journeying back twelve centuries should be no problem at all."

  * * * *

  Lucinda and Rand decided to return to her house to collect a few useful items to help in their journey. She didn’t want to draw Nyte’s attention, so she sensed where he was in the house then, when she was sure the den was clear of his presence, they materialized there. She switched on the light and sighed in relief to see her house still stood in one piece.

  She was relieved to be away from the constant thrum of energy around the Oracle. Home felt so much brighter and warmer after the cold moonlit-marble feel of Delphi. She smiled at the view of her familiar white bookshelves filled with her many books on magic and healing. She dug her fingers into one of the bowls full of small crystals on the shelf below her collection of pewter fantasy figures. She scooped up a handful of stones and allowed them to draw away the excess energy causing her to be so off center.

  She crossed the room and, as quietly as she could, opened the door a crack and peered into the living room to ensure they hadn’t disturbed Nyte. She didn’t want to explain what Rand intended to do. It sounded too much like she didn’t believe Nyte’s story. And she didn’t want to be waylaid by an argument between the two men. Nyte sat in the lounge chair beside the fireplace reading a book, Merlin curled up in his lap. She closed the door and turned back to Rand. He handed her the zippered canvas bag she kept in one of the boxes on the shelves. She took it and used it to collect together the things they needed. A half dozen cl
ear quartz points, a variety of colored crystals, a few amulets, and her spell book.

  "Don’t forget your crystal ball," Rand suggested.

  She crossed to the table where the six inch sphere stood on a stand of pewter sculpted into three dragons.

  "Mrreow."

  Lucinda held her breath as she turned around, expecting to see that Nyte had accompanied Merlin to the door. But Merlin stood alone, having pushed through the cat door, and stared at her with the curiosity that felines were known for.

  I need it for focus. Rand and I are going on a little journey into the past.

  She wrapped the ball in a soft cloth and stuffed it in her bag, then opened the cupboard to grab a stand more suitable for travel.

  Merlin crossed the room and jumped onto the table, then stuck his face under her elbow, causing the ball to roll out of the bag. She shoved it back in before it tumbled to the floor.

  "No, Merlin, you can’t come with us."

  Rand glanced up, his attention fixed on Merlin. "Why not?"

  Merlin trotted across the table and leaped toward Rand, who caught him neatly in mid-air. He settled into Rand’s arms and stared smugly at Lucinda.

  "Rand, have you forgotten? He’s not a familiar, he’s just an ordinary, everyday house cat."

  Merlin shook his head, as though something had irritated his ears, then he rubbed his face against Rand’s chest.

  You really are learning to suck up, aren’t you?

  "I think he may be useful."

  Useful? As a pain in the butt maybe.

  But Lucinda had long ago given up trying to talk Rand out of something once he’d set his mind to it. He often had feelings or intuitions, and even though she could see no possible use for Merlin--except as an annoyance--she merely shrugged.

  "Fine, but if he wanders off, you go looking for him."

  Chapter 8

  When they arrived back at Delphi, Merlin leaped from Rand’s arms and trotted along beside them as they made their way to the Oracle. The building, which was now merely a floor and some small remains of walls, was cordoned off with ropes to preserve the ancient structure by stopping the erosion that would be caused by countless tourists walking across the surface.

  Merlin leaped onto the ruins of a nearby wall, then made his way higher until he perched two meters above them. With the clear moonlight silhouetting his regal form, he looked like an ancient Egyptian cat god surveying his realm. Lucinda glanced at the nearly-full moon hanging high in the ink-black sky. Rand had chosen a good night for this little adventure. The energy of the moon in this phase would augment their powers--and they could use all the help they could get.

  Rand cast a spell to protect the temple floor from their weight, then he ducked under one of the ropes. Lucinda followed and crossed to the point where she felt the greatest flow of energy. She unrolled a small mat, set the crystal ball in the center, then placed the quartz points around the sphere to help focus the energy. She sat cross-legged facing the ball. Rand folded himself into the same position beside her.

  "I don’t have a picture of Clarissa, so I’ll project her image into the crystal ball. That way you can focus on her with me. Concentrate on taking us back to an hour before her last presence here on Earth."

  Merlin bleated.

  Rand wants to prove to me that Nyte killed Clarissa.

  Merlin bleated again.

  No, I don’t believe Nyte hurt anyone, but Rand does. Going back will give us both some answers.

  The moonlight shone on Rand’s face, exaggerating the sharp angles of his features. He stared deeply into the crystal ball, his eyes focused and intense. The snowflake impurities in the crystal, which gave it so much character, started to glitter, then swirled as though caught in a winter wind, but in slow motion. They twisted and curled in a slow spiral, then coalesced into the image of a face.

  Blue eyes, the color of lapis, stared back at her from the depths of clear crystal. She was stunning. Auburn hair cascaded over her shoulders. Delicately arched eyebrows and a classic nose framed her large, striking eyes.

  Lucinda’s gaze flicked to Rand. The depth of his pain showed clearly in his misty, blue eyes. He must miss her terribly.

  Merlin had moved beside Rand, staring at the ball with a more focused gaze than she would have expected from her feline friend. He sat close to Rand, as though to offer moral support.

  "She’s beautiful, Rand."

  Rand nodded. He did not remove his gaze from the ball, but he did blink a couple of times, resetting his features to an expression of indifference.

  Almost.

  "Now concentrate," he said, his voice perfectly level. "I will visualize the time and place we’re targeting. You focus on moving us backward in time."

  Just like when they drove together in a car, he was the navigator, and she the driver. Just as well. It was bad enough getting lost in spatial dimensions. Taking a wrong turn in time was an event she’d like to avoid. Anyway, he had been where and when they were going so he could get a clear fix on it.

  She closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath, relaxing her body. The moon shone down on her and she imagined the clear, crystal, white light spilling over her, enhancing the power building inside. She took Rand’s hand, wrapping her fingers around his, and felt his power join with hers. As she concentrated, she felt the energy emanating from the Oracle gathering around her, like a cocoon of flower petals pressing against her aura.

  The weight of her body diminished and she seemed to float upward, as though she were a hot air balloon rising toward the clouds. The sensation lasted for several moments until suddenly gravity seemed to kick in, and she felt as though she were plunging downward. Her stomach accelerated to the top of her chest, then dropped to her knees. She tightened her fingers around Rand’s, clinging to him like a life preserver in the wild currents of time.

  Passage of time in the normal sense was meaningless, but it seemed like an eon before the tumultuous ride slowed. As though they were skimming down a water slide, years splashed by like water droplets. Suddenly, she tumbled off the end and landed soundly on hard ground. Disorientation sent her senses spinning and she clutched Rand’s hand tighter.

  She opened her eyes to see they were surrounded by a dark mist. A residue from their long trip through the centuries?

  She pushed herself to her knees and peered around.

  "Don’t worry, Lucinda," Rand said. "I’ve enclosed us in a bubble of invisibility so no one will see or hear us."

  Through the dark fog, Lucinda saw the hazy shape of a lone figure. As the mist slowly dissipated, she saw that it was a man slumped on a wooden chair, his head resting in his hands. His shoulders shook in violent shudders and his anguish trembled through the air. Beyond him lay the charred remains of a room. The acrid smell of burned wood filled her nostrils as she watched him slowly lift his head.

  Her breath caught.

  He was a young version of Rand. Even younger than the one standing beside her. Probably only nineteen. The sorrow marring his tear-streaked face tore at her heart. She wanted to reach out and comfort him, to fill the void she sensed had been carved from his heart.

  The Rand beside her bolted to his feet. "We haven’t gone back far enough." He grasped Lucinda’s hand and closed his eyes. "Concentrate. We must move one hour further into the past."

  Reluctantly, she closed her eyes on the young Rand, knowing that as much as she wished otherwise, she could do nothing for him. He had to make his own way and recover from whatever horrendous event had befallen him as best he could. Whatever path he’d taken had shaped him into the man who stood by her side.

  She concentrated and they tumbled into time again, but they didn’t seem to move. She pushed as hard as she could, but to no effect. It felt like a barrier had been planted in their way.

  "Maybe we need some momentum," Lucinda suggested. "Let’s try a running start, focusing further back than this day."

  Rand nodded, then directed them forward in time a few months,
then they both concentrated on speeding back through time. They flung headlong into a very tangible barrier, then toppled back into regular time.

  Again, the young Rand from the past sat in front of them, grappling with his pain. She could feel it reflected in her Rand. She placed her hand on his arm. His muscles felt like steel bands beneath her fingers, drawn taut in anguish. Her heart ached for him. She didn’t want him to relive this awful pain.

  "This isn’t working," she said in her most gentle voice, trying to draw him from his emotional turmoil. "Let’s go back.

  His fists clenched. "But we’re so close. I need to know what happened. Why he did what he did." His gaze locked on hers, desperation glazing his eyes frosty blue. His fingers clamped around her upper arms. "Lucinda, we must keep trying."

  She eased herself from his grip--knowing he didn’t mean to squeeze so tightly it hurt--and held his hands.

  "Rand, if we keep this up, we’ll run out of energy. Remember, the Oracle in this time period is not the supercharged version of the time we left, and we only have so much of its energy stored in our crystals. Once that’s gone, we could be stuck here, with no power source strong enough to send us back."

  "But we’re so close." His words sounded as tight as a rubber band about to snap.

  "We might as well be a million years away. Whatever this barrier is, it’s stronger than we can overcome."

  He slammed his fist on the mat. "Nyte. This is his doing."

  Poor Rand. He was grasping at any explanation.

  "You think he erected the barrier? That doesn’t make sense. He doesn’t even know how to cast a basic protection spell, let alone--"

  The glare Rand sent her stopped her words. Mr. Skeptical didn’t believe that and she knew it.

  "Even if he could, why would he?" she asked.

  "He doesn’t want me to prove to you what kind of monster he is."

  She could sense the extreme vibrations in his energy field, a sure indication his stress level zoomed toward overload. She placed her hand on his shoulder.

  "We won’t find the answers you’re looking for here, Rand. We must go back."