Deception

6 ¦ The Magical Medallion

With reflexes like a meridian falcon, Lord Hesse leaped onto his saddle in one graceful movement. He pointed in my direction and roared in the guttural Gatál tongue. "Fol' kha ze!"

When they charged forward, I took off and ran through the rows of corn. I'd be very easy to track, what with my loud rustling and knocking down cornstalks like a frantic wild boar. But running on the open road was even more foolish, and I had nowhere else to hide on the wide, open plain.

There was no escape. I ran until my lungs burned and my legs cramped, but the horses were still gaining on me.

"Mama, help me!" I cried.

A gust of wind whooshed behind me, and I was sure they had me. Someone caught me in their arms, and my vision blackened. I screamed and kicked with furious vigor, elbowing my captor to break free.

My confused mind wondered why my captor was so small and scrawny. A youngling Rider, perhaps? Whoever they were, if they wanted to kill me, they wouldn't get me without a fight.

"Stop, Helena," a distorted, unrecognizable voice said.

My struggles came to an abrupt end when the ground vanished beneath my feet. I was in free fall, and my heart leaped into my throat. I couldn't even think. Just as suddenly, we both landed with a heavy thud on the forest floor.

My pulse raced in my temples, and I breathed in labored gasps as I tried to find my equilibrium. As soon as I could, I jumped up and fled, only to trip on a branch. The fall knocked the air out of my lungs, and my captor picked me up by the waist.

"Put me down!" I screamed.

My captor stood me upright. "Helena, please, it's me."

"Mama?" I cried in a muffled voice. I saw her despondent face and fell into her arms. "Mama!"

My mother gave me a tight hug and pulled away. "Shh, Helena. Be strong, my brave little hawk."

I struggled to breathe. "Papa ..."

"I know. I felt his soul depart from mine." She brushed my hair out of my face. "But we have no time to grieve. We must be strong. Listen to me, Helena. We have moments only."

I looked at her as though she were my only hope of survival. She unclasped a golden chain and put it around my neck. When I realized it was her precious pendant, I gasped. The large, heavy jewel had been crafted in the shape of a falcon with its wings outstretched. It looked like a heathen cross, and the gold setting was filled with rubies glimmering in the sunlight.

"This is the most precious item I own, and now it's yours," Mama said.

As soon as the medallion touched my skin, it disappeared even though I could still feel it like a heavy boulder upon my chest. I wondered whether Mama could still see it because she hid the medallion beneath my bodice with ease.

After she'd closed her eyes, Mama uttered an incantation in a foreign tongue. A powerful gust of wind tore through the trees and almost knocked me flat on the ground. Fallen autumn leaves swarmed around us in an unnatural whirlwind of vibrant yellow, red, green, and brown.

I gazed about myself in wonder. "Mama, what's happening?"

As I breathed in the air around us, an electric pulse raced through my body, triggering pins and needles. A warm heat coursed through my veins. I gasped when a translucent shield separated from my mother and hovered in the air before it attached itself to me.

"What?" I exclaimed. "No, you can't! Papa said this protects you from harm."

Soon the wind died down, and my mother opened her eyes. She lifted my chin until my gaze met hers. "Swear to me that you'll never take the medallion off or tell anyone about it. Your very life depends upon keeping it secret and safe."

"I promise." I swallowed the lump in my throat. "But what is it?"

"Magic will keep it invisible and protect you from death by spells or physical weapons. No one can take it from you, and as long as you keep wearing it, you cannot lose it." She whipped around when she heard the distant sound of hooves. "Listen carefully, Helena."

I nodded, trying to ignore the panic building inside me.

"When you're safe, you must find a man by the name of Darius von Kratvach."

"Darius?" I clenched my fists. "You mean that creep who defected to the Gatál? He's a power-hungry monster!"

"Quiet," Mama hissed. "Darius fights for us in secret."

"What?"

"If the Gatál ever catch you, ask for him. Darius can teach you the healing arts, and he'll show you how to wield my power. You need to be ready when you turn eighteen."

"And what happens when I turn eighteen?"

"You will receive all my power."

"What, you mean magic power?" I asked, frantic. "There's no such thing as magic, only science. That's what you and Papa always taught me."

"Science is magic comprehended, and magic is science misunderstood," Mama replied.

I grasped her arm with a firm grip. "Come with me!"  

"I thought it would be my privilege to pass on my knowledge to you," she said with a sigh as she swallowed visibly. "But fate has entrusted me to defend you. I'll do so until my dying breath."

"You can't stay here! The Shadow Riders will kill you, Mama!" A tear trickled down my face as I heard the thud of the Shadow Riders approaching. "We lost Papa. I can't lose you too!"

"I love you, Helena," Mama said, her throat hoarse with unwept tears. She kissed my forehead. "Always follow the light. You have that choice. Remember that." 

I froze in terror when I heard the Shadow Riders galloping towards us. As they drew nearer, the ground shook beneath our feet. Once again, I felt the dark lord's pull like an invisible hand drawing me closer to him.

Lord Hesse's voice twisted through the air like a snake. "I know you're here, Helena."

"Run, Helena!" Mama shouted.

"Mama, they'll kill you!"

Mama ignored me and yanked me back, severing the connection between the dark lord and me. Using the last of her strength, Mama raised her arms and put up a translucent forcefield to protect us as they approached. When the horses kicked the thrumming energy barrier, the shrieking stallions fell to the forest floor.

Two Riders leaped off their steeds and attacked my mother's forcefield with swords. They looked stunned as the energy field jolted their bodies with a loud crackling and a final zap. I wrinkled my nose at the smell of charred flesh.

Furious, Lord Hesse launched a spell aimed at my mother. A dark fog crept over her body as she struggled to hold the self-made protective barrier intact.

"Mama!" I screamed, but I couldn't move my translucent body.

When the dark magic faded, my mother was gone. A falcon burst forth from where she had stood and screeched as it flew to the heavens and disappeared.

Her soul ascended to the clouds, leaving me utterly devastated and alone.

Suddenly, one of the Shadow Riders burst through the forcefield and grabbed my hand. Again the ground vanished beneath my feet, and I fell through time and space. My only anchor was the vicious Rider.

I screamed in terror.

___

A/N: Thank you for reading. Why not give Helena's mother a vote for her valiant sacrifice?

Please keep in mind that this story is unedited. So if you see mistakes, awkward phrases, or things that simply don't work, please let me know.

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