Snakes are everywhere, sucking on my blood. But I shut my eyes, forcing past the crawling sensation. Again, I picture the castle, the lake, the trees, the cars. I breathe deep, pushing my mind through the block. A pop. We’re falling not to the castle, but into darkness, a suffocating hole with no bottom in sight.
We’re falling into the unknown.
Chapter 9
The first time I was sucked into a vision, I touched a crystal ball and fell down a spiraling tunnel bursting with light. Ultimately, I discovered that my Foreseer power was unique and that I didn’t require a crystal ball to use it. All I had to do was close my eyes, sense the energy, and I was there; in the past, present, or future.
It’s like I’ve relapsed to the past when I had no control over my power. Aislin and Nicholas are nowhere to be seen. Just cold and darkness, the air thick like death. My hands are flared to my side as I hunt for something to grab onto.
“Aislin!” I holler, detecting the end approaching. “Aislin, can you hear me—” My body hits the bottom, like a bag of bricks tumbling off a cliff. The force sends shockwaves through my bones. Bracing myself, I stagger sideways.
“Gemma!” Aislin’s panicked voice rains down as she crashes to the bottom. A moment later, a loud thump as Nicholas hits.
“Are you okay?” I feel around, struggling to get my bearings.
“Nice job.” Nicholas moans. “You know this is exactly what they wanted. And it proves that you’re very predictable, Gemma Lucas.”
“What are you talking about?” The toe of my sneakers bumps into him. “Who are they?”
He shifts away from my foot. “The Foreseers. And I had my doubts—honestly I figured you’d be done asking for my help. Yet, you always show up, begging me for it.”
“How did they know…” I drift off. “They read the visions, didn’t they?”
“Nope, not this time,” he says. “This time you were betrayed by your own family. Ever heard of a little thing called memoria tea?"
“Memory tea?” I wonder. “Does that mean—”
Aislin claps her hands animatedly. “Oh my gosh, you got one right.” A pause of awkward silence. “My excitement was a little inappropriate for this situation, isn’t it?”
“A little,” I reply, stewing over what Nicholas said. “And the translation was kind of obvious… You say I was betrayed by my family and that my memory was tampered with.”
“Not your memory. Your mind.” His footsteps pad closer. “Your Aunt Nalina slipped you some memoria tea so that the Foreseers could have direct access into your mind and your thoughts.
“She did what?!” I knew the tea was bad news.
He gives a low chuckle. “So for the last day or so, they’ve seen your decisions—your thoughts.”
“All of them?” I cringe at the awareness of the Foreseers viewing some of my private thoughts, especially current ones about a certain faerie/Foreseer.
“What’s the matter, Gemma? Worried they might have seen some personal thoughts?”
“Why did they do it?” I ask, changing the subject. “So they could find out if I am trying to free my father?”
“Applause for the genius mind over here,” Nicholas hoots, applauding his hands. “She figured an answer out all on her own.”
“So what was up with the snake thing?” Aislin sounds undaunted. “And what is this place?”
“This is what the Foreseers refer to as the holding cell,” he answers. “And the snake thing was from the Serpent’s Mark on my back.”
“You act like you enjoy having this particular mark,” I say. “That makes me instantly not like it.”
“The Serpent’s Mark gave me the lovely gift of making you think snakes were crawling all over you,” he explains with hilarity. “It also is what hindered your power and took us all down here. It was a gift, you know, from a very important person.”
“I’m not going to even try to guess who,” I say. “Because I’m sure you won’t tell me.”
He chortles lowly, a deep grumble that puts me on edge. “You’re getting smarter by the second, well except for the fact that you ended up down here.”
“You know, it kind of seems like a silly way of doing things,” Aislin tells him. “Now you’re stuck in here with us too.”
I sigh exhaustedly. “How long does our imprisonment last?”
“For eternity and beyond, wah ha ha,” Nicholas jokes, then subdues his humor. “I’m not really sure. Until they find us, I guess.”
“Find us?” Darkness smothers my lungs. Claustrophobia creeps in. “If they put us here, then they should know we’re here.”
“Oh, they know we’re here,” he reveals. “It just depends on when they feel like freeing us. You’ve pissed a lot of them off with your nosing around and unlawful plans to free your father. Dyvinius is really upset. And since he’s the man with the power, you could be here indefinitely.”
“Indefinitely?” Aislin and I say, harmonized.
Stillness engulfs us. I sit down on the semi-soft ground and cross my legs, easing back on my arms. I hear Aislin shift as she takes a seat. Nicholas remains immobile.
“So have you heard of any recent events of a Lost Soul wandering around, possessing human bodies?” I opt to throw it out there.