The Legend of Valtera: Chapter 24
Drip. Drop. Drip. Drop.
Kael woke the next morning to hard rain beating down on the ground outside. He had spent the night on the sofa in the living room. After Alvie and Dal returned home, nothing much else happened. Everyone picked and nibbled at food and tea in silence before retiring to their respective rooms for some well-needed rest. Beda slept in Prea’s room, Dal stayed with Alvie and, in light of everything that had happened, the sofa had been offered to Kael. No one felt right about kicking him out, not after all he’d been through.
Kael moved into the kitchen and came to a rest in front of the window. His pain was fresh and his heart was broken, never to be whole again. He watched the rain fall on the other side of the glass and appreciated the solidarity. It was as if the universe was experiencing their pain, their loss and grief, and it too was overwhelmed by it all.
In this moment, he felt alone and, at the same time, not. The house was full of people, people he had a certain connection with, but at the same time, did not know. He didn’t know what the future held, but he had a place in this world and knowing that made everything a little more bearable.
Kael broke free of his reverie when he heard footsteps thumping down the stairs. Carr sped into the room with the energy only a child could muster this early in the morning while Beda followed shortly after.
“Hi, Kael,” Carr called brightly upon entry.
“Good morning, Carr,” Kael greeted, an unwanted smile tugging at his lips. “Morning, Beda.”
“Morning,” Beda responded, gathering the makings for tea. “How did you sleep, Kael?”
“As well as the situation allowed. No better or worse than the last few nights. How about you? How are you doing?” Kael inquired.
“I’m exhausted. And it still doesn’t feel real.”
“I know exactly what you mean. I’ve had some time and I still expect her to be there whenever I wake,” Kael added.
“I don’t really know what to do,” she confessed quietly. “She’s been with me for most of my life, my constant. I can barely remember a time when she wasn’t there. And I can’t see a future without her.”
Kael listened quietly to Beda’s admission and silently cursed himself. He loved Prea, but he had only known her a few months. Her friends and family on the other hand, had loved her far longer and didn’t know life without her.
“Come here,” he said quietly and pulled her into a hug. She remained tense for a minute before relaxing in the comforting arms of a kind stranger.
Beda pulled away, feeling slightly better, and studied the man before her. “I can see why Prea fell for you.”
“Really?”
“Definitely. You have a kind, but strong, and comforting presence.”
“Thank you. She talked about you and I can see why you two were close.” He moved over to the counter where the tea was waiting. “How about you sit down and I’ll make you some tea.”
“Thanks, Kael.”
* * *
The rain became heavy, the musical pitter patter loud in the background. Dal dragged Alvie down the stairs and into the kitchen, practically holding her up the entire way. Her eyes were red and swollen, exhaustion evident in every muscle of her face and body. Dal didn’t look much better, his skin pale and dark circles painted under his eyes. He dropped Alvie at the table with the others before making her some breakfast. Beda and Kael were nursing their own mugs of steaming hot tea, eyeing Alvie across the table.
He set tea down on the table in front of her, sat beside her and started rubbing her back as he had the night before. Alvie just sat there, head down and eyes glazed over. She didn’t even acknowledge his touch. Dal propped his head on his chin and looked across the table at Kael and Beda.
“Morning Dal, Alvie,” Beda greeted quietly. “We didn’t get a chance to do this last night, but this is Kael. He knew Prea.” Beda indicated the man sitting beside her. “Kael, this is Prea’s sister, Alvie, and our friend, Dal.”
Dal nodded his head in introduction and Kael responded in the same fashion. Alvie’s only reaction was a series of blinks. “You knew Prea?” Dal asked.
“Yes. I met her not long after she left here,” Kael began, eyes staring into his tea. “On the road outside of Ashton.”
“Could you tell us more?” Beda prodded. “You only mentioned how she…the end of the story.”
As if he had magical hearing, Carr came into the kitchen and sat himself down at the table along with everyone else. “I want to hear about Prea,” Carr said.
Kael was unsure how much information Prea’s family knew, but he had an idea on how to explain everything. “Do you have a book with the story of Aylin and Ciro? Or a map of Valtera? It would really help me to explain.” Carr left the room without speaking, seemingly going to retrieve the book. “I have to get something as well,” Kael added and left.
Kael and Carr returned and sat down at the same time. Carr put the book on the table and Kael placed the stone on the middle of the wooden surface. Even though Beda and Carr knew Kael had the stone, there was a collective gasp at the reveal of the mythical object. He looked around and saw wide eyes and open mouths, frozen in surprise and disbelief. It was one thing to know he had it, it was another to actually see it.
Now even Alvie was exhibiting some emotion, as if the stone had awoken her from a trance or deep sleep. She avoided the stone, but pulled the book to her so it was out of reach of everyone else.
“Not that book, Carr,” Alvie muttered quietly.
“Why not? Kael wanted to see the story,” Carr said. “That’s the only book we have with the legend.”
“Remember what Mama and Prea said about this book? About the stories inside?” They may be gone, but Alvie still respected their wishes, now more than ever it seemed.
“Yes, but I thought it would be all right to show them. They’re family, aren’t they Alvie?”
“Yes, but…let’s talk about it later,” Alvie said, stopping that line of conversation.
Beda, Dal and Kael sat at the table watching the exchange, all of them equally confused. They all knew of the story of Aylin and Ciro and the legend, but this book was different. Beda and Dal had seen it over the years, had it read to them, but neither had been allowed to see or read it themselves.
“What’s going on?” Dal asked, concerned about Alvie’s strange behavior.
“Nothing. You were saying, Kael?”
“Yes. We found the stone exactly where Prea thought it would be. In the center of Valtera, in the middle of the mountains. It was…breathtaking, indescribable. The mountain slopes sunk into a beautiful glen. Glaciers streaked down the mountainsides, before trees erupted and meshed with lush grass covering the land until it met a round sapphire blue lake tucked against the southern slopes. We made our way to the lake’s edge.” He smiled at the memory. “Prea walked right into the lake with barely a word, only saying she saw it in a dream, and disappeared. She surfaced a while later, stone in hand. We headed back soon after, climbing the mountains to the east and just after we crossed the summit…it happened,” Kael finished simply.
Silence extended after he stopped speaking. How was the conversation supposed to go on? He couldn’t just brush it off, but there didn’t seem to be an appropriate change of topic. Everyone just sat in uncomfortable silence, looking at the stone. Alvie’s hands clutched the book, her eyes never moving from the magical rock. It reminded Kael of how Prea looked when she stared into the fire. It was a kind of impassive expression that revealed nothing of what they were thinking.
Kael couldn’t stand it any longer and broke the quiet, looking to Alvie and Dal. “Beda was telling me yesterday about how Carr woke up. What happened?”
“Uh,” Alvie started, breaking free of whatever she was thinking. She wasn’t entirely comfortable with talking at the moment. “I was in the infirmary, treating someone, when he just came up behind me and complained about being hungry,” Alvie said, her voice cracking from disuse. “I nearly fainted in shock. I thought I was having a dream. I had to touch him before I believed it was real.”
“And then she hugged me so tight that I couldn’t breathe,” Carr added loudly, not wanting to be left out of the conversation.
“Yes, I did,” Alvie agreed with a hint of a grin. “I left my shift early and we came home from the infirmary and made some dinner.”
“I was so hungry. I could’ve eaten a horse,” Carr proclaimed. “Not that we eat meat.”
“Then I came over after work and nearly died when I saw them sitting at the kitchen table,” Dal noted, smiling.
Alvie pushed Carr’s curly hair out of his face. “We tried to explain what had happened, where Prea was and what she was doing. But it was hard knowing that she was out there and here he was, awake after all that time.”
“And you have no idea why?” Kael inquired. “No reason or explanation?”
“No, not at all. I don’t know how we can figure out how he woke, if we don’t know why he was unconscious to begin with,” Alvie said, her logical mind and medical training showing their colors.
“Beda and I were talking yesterday,” Kael began, glancing at Prea’s friend. “About the stone being responsible. I mean, if there’s no other logical explanation…”
“I don’t know how…” Alvie muttered.
“Well, Kael was thinking the closer he brought the stone to Beech, the better Carr got,” Beda explained.
“It’s the only thing that makes sense, not that any of this makes a lot of sense,” Kael added. “Actually, the first thing that came to mind was that it happened when Prea got the stone. But that was a while before Carr finally woke up.”
“When did Prea find the stone?” Dal wondered. “Exactly.”
“Hmm. Let me think.” He paused, counting the days in his mind. “I don’t remember the exact day. I think it was just under a month ago. About three and a half weeks.”
Beda and Alvie shared a look. “Wasn’t that when…” Beda trailed off.
“It’s impossible,” Alvie whispered.
“What? What happened?” Kael demanded.
“That was around the time Carr’s condition changed,” Beda answered and both Dal and Carr looked confused. “It was the day you went on a relay up to Birch, Dal.” He nodded in understanding. “I was visiting Alvie in the infirmary, letting her know Dal was going to be traveling and when I was there…something happened with Carr.” The girls exchanged another look.
“What?” Kael exclaimed.
“He, uh…started seizing for a few minutes and then it stopped,” Alvie said.
“Maybe the events were connected,” Beda muttered quietly.
“Like when she found the stone, it sparked something in him,” Kael finished.
“Yes.” Beda hesitated and turned to the boy. “But you didn’t tell us about Prea,” she accused Carr. “You didn’t tell us you saw her or talked to her.”
“What are you talking about?” Alvie demanded as she looked from Beda to Carr in confusion. “When did you see Prea? When did you talk to her?”
Beda quickly recounted what Carr had admitted the day before when they had first met Kael. When she was finished, all eyes turned on him, everyone staring at the little boy, expecting him to have all sorts of answers.
“I didn’t remember,” Carr said defensively, returning the gaze of all the adults. “I didn’t remember until I saw Kael yesterday. Then…then it sort of all came back to me.” His brow furrowed in concentration. After a minute, he shook his head. “I don’t know how I know, I just do.”
It wasn’t what they wanted, but it was all they were going to get from the little golden boy. Alvie studied her brother, trying to wrap her mind around what he was telling them.
“Huh,” was all she could muster and a few more tears escaped.
“She said we shouldn’t be sad, Alvie,” Carr whispered. “Prea doesn’t want us to be sad.”
It caught her off guard, how her brother talked as if Prea was still alive. He sounded so sure, like he knew exactly what she wanted. But then again, he was Carr and he could always sense more than most would think possible. It was his gift and his gift always spoke the truth.
Maybe I should be a little more like her, Alvie thought; Prea always trusted her instincts. If Carr believed what he was saying, and it appeared he did, then she believed him too. Alvie took a deep breath. “Welcome to the family, Kael.”
