Mistlyn

Chapter 25: Roc Body

The shards collected themselves, like magnets attracted to each other. Some created a rounded structure on top of a stalk, others stretched out into sets of five.

"They're forming a body," Cogaje gasped.

The Roc shards were coming together, creating a head, torso, limbs and phalanges.

"All in one," Cogaje said. "All the deities into one form."

The Roc body opened it eyes, flames flashing in it.

"Mistlyn," it said, "Cogaje." The Roc body bowed its head. "We thank you for resurrecting us from stone into flesh and bone. We will reward you a wish, one every ten years."

"Each?" I said. "Each one of us gets a wish, or we share a wish every ten years?"

"You each get a wish every ten years," the Roc body raised its right hand to its chest. It pulled two pieces of itself and handed one to Cogaje and one to me. "Whenever you have need of a wish, rub this stone and we will come to you, in one form or another. But do it only once every ten years, or we will not harken to your call. But," the Roc body added, "No wishes regarding life or death. We will not raise a Gone One, unless it is a special case, but most cases will not be special enough to us."

I took the shard and it sunk itself into my palm. I looked up at the Roc body in confusion.

"Breathe on your palm and the stone will remove itself."

Drawing my breath over my right palm, the stone disinterred itself from my flesh.

"And breathe on it once more while it is on your palm, and it will sunk back into your skin."

I did what the Roc body said and the shard disappeared back into the lines and wrinkles of my palm.

"Can we use our wish now?" Cogaje asked.

The Roc body bowed its head. "Do it now, if you wish, so that we may go. We have much work to do now that we are resurrected."

Cogaje looked at me. "We have to wish carefully," he whispered.

"You wish for one thing, and I'll wish for another," I said.

He nodded. "That's what I was thinking. I can say I wish that we're both taken to the Realm of Mote. And then you can wish that our families are raised, or at least try to. Maybe they'll think our case is special," he whispered.

Nodding, I turned to look at the Roc body.

"Have you two decided?" it asked.

Cogaje stepped forward. "I wish that Mistlyn and I are taken to the Realm of Mote, to where our Gone Ones are."

Nothing happened.

The Roc body cleared its throat. "You have to rub the stone first, before you make your wish."

The Lizsard Prince nodded. Running his palm over the Roc shard in his hand, he repeated his wish.

"Very well," the Roc body said. "We will take you two to the Realm of Mote."

The Roc body curled its finger, urging Cogaje and I toward it.

"I will lay a hand on your heads," it said, placing one of its palms on my head, the other palm on Cogaje's head. The hand was warm, but heavy, the stone weighing down on my skull like a hammer beats down on a nail.

Heat shattered through my neck, down my neck. The warmth propagated down my back, infecting my spine with tingles. The electricity vibrated all the way down my knees and feet.

"To the Realm of Mote you will go," the Roc body said, "But we will not go with you, we have decided. We have much work to do and little time to spare. Now," the Roc body said, "You will go."