Beckoning Light (The Afterglow Trilogy #1)(42)
Author: Alyssa Rose Ivy

“So then, Blake didn’t have anything to do with my mom’s death? It really was an accident?”

“Blake was not the Gerard, Charlotte. Please let me continue,” Ruth said calmly. I nodded, desperately wanting to hear more.

“More than twenty years ago, your mother participated in the same ceremony that you did last night. She recharged the power and selected her Gerard. Like all Essences, she was deeply in love with him, as he was with her. They dreamed of their future and the continued peace between the many worlds. One day, her Gerard was called away. His closest friend on the Guard had heard of an imminent threat in a distant village that only the Gerard could quell. The Gerard, always true to his duty, left Emma in the hands of the remaining Guardians, most specifically, her two brothers. Several days later, the friend returned with the Gerard’s lifeless body. The Guardian spoke of how they had been ambushed in an attack by warriors from several worlds. He claimed it had all been orchestrated by the Zatamans who wanted to capture the Essence.”

“Naomi’s people?” I asked, surprised to hear the name.

“Exactly. The Guardian also spoke of how in his last dying words the Gerard had appointed him to be his successor and pledged him to be the supreme protector of the Essence. Emma was wary; she did not trust this Guardian. None of us really did. The friend pushed his affections on Emma, but she denied him. Emma likely would have remained, still so broken by the death of her love that she really did not see any other option, but the Guardian pledged revenge against the Zatamans and all other worlds who aided them. They had killed the Gerard, and war was the only answer. Emma fought against this, trying to rally her people, explaining to them that causing war would only lead to more death and destruction.”

Ruth paused and looked at me, “Charlotte, you will learn that at our core, an Essence wants nothing more than peace.”

I understood what Ruth was saying. I had already felt the change in me, the desire to quell any conflict and keep everything tranquil.

Ruth continued, “The Guardian railed against Emma, saying that she had lost her mind after her Gerard’s death, had become a traitor to her people, and needed to be controlled. The public, angry, hurt, and scared, listened to the Guardian, finding solace in the idea of revenge.”

“This Guardian was Blake, right?” I already knew the answer.

“Of course. Blake managed to turn most of the Guard against Emma. They wanted to protect her, but he convinced them that she had lost her mind and the best protection would be to keep her under lock and key. Only one guard would not agree, her younger brother Monty. When Blake threatened to lock Monty up as well, he took his chance, released Emma, and ran with her to the gateway to the lost world, the one world that was not part of the rest.”

“You mean my home?”

“Yes. Your mother and Monty were able to escape and set up a new life for themselves. Emma knew that as long as she stayed close by the gateway her power would be close enough to keep her people strong, even though its effectiveness would gradually decline. She hoped that before that time, peace would be restored, and she could return. She met your father quickly and was pregnant with your brother within months of getting married.”

“Did my mom love my dad?” I wasn’t really sure that I wanted to hear the answer.

“Yes,” Ruth explained. “Of course, that love was nothing like her love for her Gerard, but it was a comfortable love. I know all of this because an Essence is always connected to the others that remain. In this way, you and I are connected.”

“Did Blake kill my mom?”

“I cannot prove it, but I can feel that her death was no accident,” Ruth said after a moment’s hesitation.

“But why? Didn’t killing her end the power and throw Energo into darkness?” I asked, trying to make sense of it all.

“I do not know for sure. By then, Emma’s power was dwindling; it had been too long since she had connected with the water. I believe that Blake had spoken to the elders and read through the history enough to realize that, although the Essence usually skips many generations, if a source were to die young, a new one would quickly appear. Blake assumed it would be Theodore’s daughter who would be the Essence, so he kept her in the castle.”

“Theodore?”

“Your mother’s older brother.”

“Oh.” I suddenly remembered that Ruth had said the Gerard had left my mom in the hands of her two brothers. I had no idea that my mom had another brother.

“When Theodore’s daughter failed to show signs of being the Essence, he probably worried that his plan had failed. But then, elders began reporting that young men were showing signs of the Guard, including Blake’s son, James.”

“Wait, so who is James’s mother?”

“She was a villager Blake met after your mother left. She died in childbirth,” Ruth said quietly. “When no one showed the signs of the Essence, he must have realized that Emma’s daughter was the Essence and sent James to lure you in. But it was not James who really lured you, was it?”

“No,” I admitted.

“Growing up outside of Energo, you are unique among Essences. You were given no warning, no instructions. How confusing it all must have been,” Ruth said gently. I nodded, encouraging her to continue.

Ruth explained that once my mother left, the fighting only intensified until Energo was at war with all of the nations. This completely destroyed the Pact, an organization consisting of representatives from the different nations designed to keep peace. It was similar to the United Nations. As long as my mother stayed within close proximity, Energo still had the power, and they were virtually undefeatable. Ruth looked sullen as she detailed the destruction that Energo had perpetrated on the weaker nations, all under the auspices of revenge and protection.

“How did you get here?” I asked, when Ruth stopped speaking for a few moments. I still didn’t understand how she had come to be locked in the dungeon.

“When I heard that they had found the Essence, I realized that the only chance we had was if I could get to you, try to recharge some energy and teach you,” she said with feeling.

“Teach me?” I asked, confused.

“Charlotte,” she said slowly, “as the Essence, you hold unbelievable power, but you must learn to use it in order to be effective. We have little time and must start immediately.”

“Why do we have such little time? What’s happening?” I asked nervously.