The Forgotten Sibling

Chapter 4

"What do you mean, 'his sacrifice'?"

Nova was staring at her angrily after she recounted what happened. Behind her, Nebulium looked at her sympathetically like I'm sorry what happened to you.

"It just feels like he's sacrificing himself for something," Riley said. "I don't know for what exactly, but all I know is that I'm part of it."

Nova's tail began to lash. Despite her anger, Riley knew she wasn't mad at her. She was angry because Jhaufyther had been hiding something from her all this time, but she couldn't do anything about it.

"What destiny? What sacrifice?" she snapped.

Nebulium laid his hand on her shoulder. "Nova, how is she supposed to know? Jhaufyther's usually like this: all cryptic and making things worse than they actually are."

Nova frowned at him. "That's the point. How are we supposed to panic if we don't even know what's going to happen?"

Riley's head still hurt from earlier. She woke up in a bed made out of feathers and Nova gave her some food and water to drink. She asked her what happened after she drank the water and devoured the bread. That's how she ended up in the situation now.

"I don't know," Riley admitted. "All I know is that it's something big, something potentially dangerous."

"Didn't you say you saw Comet Trail and Black Hole while you were... traveling?"

Murmurs of awe came from the Skelris. It wasn't often-very, very rare-that a human encountered the most respected and powerful Catwings to exist.

Riley nodded in confirmation. "For a brief moment, yes. They looked at me as if... they respected me. I don't know why."

"You're friends with Jhaufyther, Riley," Nova hinted.

Jhaufyther, the most powerful descendant of the ancient Catwings, and Riley's best friend. No wonder they respected her; anyone who's close with Jhaufyther is basically a medal of honor.

Nova gasped, and the rest of the Skelri looked at her with wide eyes. Riley didn't see what the deal was until she looked up. Above her, a holographic eye floated above her, bathing the room in a gentle light that was the exact same blue as Jhaufyther's eyes. Then, a white crown with blue gemstones settled itself in her head, looking serene in her black hair. White wings grew from her shoulders, speckled with blue dots. The last thing- as if the crown and wings wasn't enough- that happened was a plumy, bushy tail that grew out of her, resting on the ground.

Nova looked at Riley with awe and respect. She bowed, and the rest of the Skelri also bowed. Light slanted through the window to reveal their wings also sparkling with blue, although it was fainter than Riley's.

"Riley Ramirez-Hernandez, you have been blessed by Jhaufyther, the most powerful descendant of the ancient Ones," Nova recited. "You are now part of the Skelri, and a Blessed One."

It was strange to hear her last name spoken. She hadn't heard it in a long, long time. Riley now knew what Jhaufyther was talking about. By giving her his blessing, their bond grew stronger than before, which meant that no matter what happened, they would be able to heal each other both physically and mentally.

The Skelri got on their feet, talking among themselves about what happened. To Riley's relief, all of them looked at her and smiled. Nova came up and hugged her, and Riley wrapped her arms around her. "Please don't think I'm better," she begged. "I don't want to make you feel bad."

Nova laughed and withdrew. "Riley, I don't think that. You are better. Being blessed by Jhaufyther is one of the most wished things a Skelri wants. I am now second in command, and you are first. I promise that I will let you know if you make any mistakes, because that's normal. We learn from mistakes, don't we?"