Chapter 11

The sky opened up and it started to pour just as Stone and Persimmon neared Kasculbough Castle. They could see the merlons of the strong castle walls connected by the turrets up ahead in the distance. It wouldn't be long now before they were crossing the moat.

"Stone, wait." Persimmon took him by the arm. "I think I saw that bush move up ahead. Someone might be hiding in it, waiting to ambush us." She didn't want to have gotten this far and then be captured again just outside the castle.

"I've been tracking Sethor and his men," Stone told her. "By the prints I found, and the broken twigs and branches, I believe they already returned to Macada Castle because of the approaching storm. We should be safe."

"Then why is that bush moving?" She pointed, and huddled up next to him.

He chuckled. "Fang, is that you?" His dog shot out from behind a bush. A rabbit darted past him when Fang emerged. The dog barked happily. "Come here, boy. I'm back, and happy to see you." Stone got down on his knees and the dog sped over, jumping up on him and licking his face.

"My, someone is happy to see you," commented Persimmon.

"Fang and I have been through a lot together. He is a loyal companion, just like Aithrod."

"There they are!" Darium rode over atop his horse, being followed by his brothers. His raven flew by above their heads, landing in a nearby tree. "We were just coming to look for you."

"Didn't my father tell you that we escaped King Sethor's prison?" asked Persimmon.

"He did. But he also told us that since you weren't back yet you were probably captured again," Zann answered. "I decided we needed to set out to find you."

"Who decided?" asked Rhys, giving his brother a dirty look.

"All right, so it was Lira and the women who urged us to come after you," admitted Zann. "But what does it matter? Here we are."

"Right," said Darium. "We didn't come sooner because I knew Stone would get you two out of there, so I wanted to wait and give you a chance."

"Good job, Stone." Rhys nodded. "You seem to be worth your salt."

"Thank you for your admiration, but I must admit that it wasn't me who got us here," Stone told him. "It was thanks to Persimmon's powers that we are alive right now." He smiled at her and winked, making her heart flutter.

"Impressive," muttered Zann.

"Well, let's get you both back to the castle by a warm fire and into something dry," suggested Rhys.

"What happened to King Sethor and his men?" Stone still scanned the area, never resting for a minute, always on alert.

"We'll fill you in later. Come," said Zann, just as a loud crash of thunder rattled the air, making Persimmon jump. "We're not far from the castle. Give me your hand, Persimmon. I'll give you a lift." He reached down for her.

Persimmon rode atop Zann's horse with him while Stone rode with Rhys. Fang followed close behind. They were greeted excitedly by the women as soon as they returned. After a good meal and having changed into dry clothes, the Blackseed brothers and their wives, as well as Stone, Persimmon, and Stone's friend, Aithrod, all gathered around the fire to discuss the happenings of the day.

"How are the old couple?" asked Persimmon. "I feel horrible that we weren't able to bring back their son with us."

"Mr. and Mrs. Lithum are still in critical condition." Talia handed Persimmon a goblet of wine. "Don't worry. I'm sure you'll find their son soon."

"Even if we do, I'm not certain he'll come to see his parents." Stone lifted a tankard. "I mean, if he's one of King Sethor's soldiers, he's most likely not going to be allowed to come here."

"Nay, I don't suppose so. Not after what happened today," agreed Darium, throwing a few crumbs to his raven. The bird hopped around atop the trestle table looking for more to eat. "We never should have gone inside the walls of Macada Castle. It was a mistake. I should have known better. Things aren't the way they used to be since the death of two of Mura's kings. I need to remember that."

"Plus, you're not a Sin Eater anymore," said his wife. "Even if you were, King Sethor knows about all our magic, so it is understandable why you weren't welcome within his walls."

"King Drustan Grinwald of Evandorm and King Rand Osric of Kasculbough died and were replaced by Zann and Rhys," Medea explained to Persimmon.

"I see," she answered. "And it was a good thing, too. Were they just as evil as King Sethor?"

"You have no idea," answered Medea.

"I agree it was a big mistake to go to Macada Castle. Big." Elric appeared from nowhere as usual, climbing atop a bench. "Your stupid actions are now going to cause a war between Sethor and the rest of Mura. What were you fools thinking? The gods and goddesses of Mura are not happy about this at all."

"Who are the gods and goddesses?" asked Persimmon. "We don't have any on Lornoon."

"Yes, I'd like to know the answer to that, too," said Aithrod, eating as usual as he talked.

"We don't have deities on Taelgonoth, either," added Stone.

"I will answer that," said Talia. "Zoroct is the main god and the most powerful. He is god of power and might. Cnoir is the goddess of love and wealth, and Hapsren, who is my favorite, is the goddess of home and the hearth."

"Where are they? I haven't seen them," said Persimmon.

"They are not seen unless they want to be, which isn't often," explained Rhys.

"They can only be contacted by visiting the pyramids of the gods, which are temples to them," continued Talia.

"And where are these temples, or pyramids?" asked Stone.

"They're on the other side of the island. The magical side," said Elric. "Don't worry about it since you will never be going there. Now, back to the problem at hand. The war that you fools have obviously stirred up."

"Hah!" chuckled Rhys. "A war won't happen. Even if it does, we've got twice the amount of soldiers than they do. Not to mention, we have magic on our side now. If a war starts, we have no real chance of losing."

"Don't get cocky, Blackseed," warned Elric. "And don't think I'm going to risk my neck for the rest of you if a battle breaks out because I have no plans of doing so."

"It could happen, Rhys," Darium told his brother. "I mean, if King Sethor manages to take over the throne in Taelgonoth like he threatened to do, we will be at a disadvantage if he returns with help."

"Nay, we can't allow that to happen," said Aithrod, shaking his head. "If Sethor manages to get through the portal, kill our king, and return in command of King Helix's army, there will be many who will die. We need to stop this before it starts."

"It's already started," said Elric under his breath.

"You don't really think that this will really transpire, do you?" asked Talia.

"No one even knows when the portal will open again or if it'll appear in the same spot twice," Zann's wife, Lira pointed out.

"Don't say no one. Someone does know." Elric crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Persimmon. "Someone who can see the future, that is."

"Me?" Persimmon's heart leapt into her throat. This was the last thing she wanted to hear right now. These people needed help. Real help that she couldn't give them. She only wished that she could.

"Yes, you." Her father looked angry at her or mayhap it was disappointment. "You have Luna's gazing ball to see the future, so use it. What are you waiting for? You've said you've used it before."

"Yes, please do." Medea came to her side. "I'd like to find out just how your magic works. Mayhap you can even teach me to use it in time. I'd like that."

"If nothing else, you can tell us where to find Rancor when he's unprotected from King Sethor," added Aithrod. "That would help us out a lot."

"You can also tell us more about the son of the elderly couple. Mayhap if we can get him away from the king, he'll come to see his dying parents. Oh, do it, Persimmon, please," begged Talia. "We are all counting on you."

"I—I don't know." Persimmon looked down and ran her hand over the outside of the velvet bag feeling so nervous that she wasn't sure she wouldn't faint. She couldn't do what they were asking, but didn't want to tell them so. She had never actually told them she'd seen visions in the gazing ball precisely. Then again, she hadn't stopped them from thinking so either and now she regretted her action. They all depended on her for so much. In a way it was nice that someone needed her. Growing up, no one ever needed her and she felt so alienated. The only problem was they were counting on her for something she could not deliver. It terrified her and saddened her at the same time. She didn't know having friends and family would put her in such an awkward position.

"Please, sister." Lira's eyes showed desperation as she placed her hand on Persimmon's shoulder. "Don't push us away. Use your magic to help us. We're your family now. Family does not abandon each other."

Persimmon's gaze immediately flew to Elric. Her father was her family but had abandoned her just like her own mother had when she put her in the abbey. She was sure this wasn't the way family was supposed to act, but it was something she had no control to change.

Elric saw her looking at him and purposely turned his head the other way. She didn't care, she told herself. Just because her parents weren't there to teach her how family was supposed to support each other, didn't mean she should follow their ways and abandon the new family she had just found.

"Go on, it's all right." Stone looked over to her and smiled, making her feel as if he believed in her even though she knew she was about to let them all down. "Just hold up the crystal orb and look into it. You'll see the future just like you did when you saw us kissing."

"You kissed?" asked Aithrod in surprise.

"Oh, you kissed." Lira's face glowed. "How nice, sister."

Now Persimmon really felt uncomfortable. She didn't want everyone to know that she and Stone kissed. Her feelings for the man were private. And she really didn't want to have to pretend she saw something in the gazing orb when she didn't. My, how her deceit by first lying was getting her into a terrible tangled position.

"It is not that I don't want to help, it is because I can't control it," she blurted out.

"Can't control what? Yourself from kissing that big oaf?" asked Elric in disgust.

"Father, stop calling him that," Lira scowled at the elf. "Stone is our guest and we need to treat him with respect."

"That's right," agreed Zann. "At least until he's family. Then you can call him an oaf the way you do to me and my brothers."

"Enough with all this nonsensical jibber-jabber," snapped Elric. "Persimmon, use the orb to tell us what we need to know. Do it now. It is your destiny to step in and take over the skills of your late mother."

"Yes, Father," Persimmon found herself saying, only because she wanted to please the man and hopefully make him like her. She wasn't sure why this was so important to her, but it was. She'd always hoped to have a relationship with her father. One like he had with Lira. She wanted to feel close to him. And she longed to feel loved. It was something she'd wanted ever since she was a child. Now that her mother was gone, it was even more important to her than ever.

Persimmon plucked the orb from her pouch, feeling her nerves shaking from the stress. Holding it up to her face, she took a deep breath and closed her eyes. What was she doing? She couldn't go through with this. Nay, she didn't want to deceive all these nice people. Persimmon couldn't fool them since they'd all been so kind to her. They were family. Her family. A family whom she respected and trusted. Didn't they deserve the same from her?

"Open your damned eyes and tell us what you see. You'll never see a thing that way!" scoffed the elf. "You need to gaze into the orb if you are going to scry. Or have you been lying to us and you really can't use it?"

Her eyes slowly opened.

"Don't let him upset you, Persimmon," mumbled Stone. "It's not worth it. Take your time. You can scry, can't you?" he asked the latter part softly, sounding as if he had doubt.

Her eyes slowly lowered to the cold gazing orb in her hand. It didn't surprise her to see nothing but a dark surface. She couldn't even see those confusing colorful swirls like she'd seen before. Nay, she had no power to scry and no right to pretend that she did.

As much as she wanted to look into the orb and tell her father that he needed to return the gemstones to Stone or something bad would happen, she couldn't do it. Her sense of being a moral person outweighed any feelings of acceptance she could possibly get from Elric. Stone was right. She shouldn't let his Elric's ill feelings for her upset her, even if she didn't know from where they came.

Her eyes slowly lifted to see her father's disapproving glare. Medea walked up behind her and stretched her neck to look into the crystal, seeming ever so hopeful to learn how to scry from Persimmon. The rest of them waited with curiosity and anticipation on their brows.

"Persimmon?" came Stone's deep voice. "Say something, please, sweetheart. Can you scry to help us or not?"

It was no use. The crystal was still dark and her mind was closed off completely. She couldn't even get a vision in her thoughts. She quickly returned the orb to her pouch and pulled closed the ties.

"I'm sorry," she said, hearing the quaver of her own voice. "I am sorry, but I'm not able to help any of you. And the last thing I wanted was to disappoint you." She took off at a run for the castle, not waiting to hear her father's comments, and not wanting to look at any of her new friends since she had failed to help them when they'd really needed her. They were all counting on her, and sadly, she had let them down.

"Persimmon, get back here," ground out her father.

"Sister, wait. What's wrong?" called out Lira.

Persimmon felt strong emotions bubbling up inside her. Struggling to hold back her tears, she needed to get away from everyone and just wanted to hide. She ran over the cobbled stones of the courtyard. Since she didn't want to be trapped inside the keep, so she looked for perhaps a garden instead to hide in. Hopefully there she would find solace and not have to face the others after the horrible episode that just transpired.

Not finding a garden of any kind, she ran toward what she first thought was a small pond. She stopped suddenly, almost losing her balance when she realized it wasn't a pond at all, but instead a huge hole in the ground. It was a pit of some sort that looked to her to be an enormous oubliette.

"Oh!" Her arms swam through the air as she struggled to keep her balance and not fall into it.

"Careful, Persimmon." Medea appeared in front of her, having used her power to transport to get there in the blink of an eye. She reached out and steadied Persimmon to keep her from falling into the pit.

"What is that?" she asked, pointing to the hole.

"It is a pit that was used to catch a dragon," Medea said without blinking an eye.

"A dragon?" That alarmed her. She quickly scanned the sky.

"The dragon is not here now, don't worry. It was from my homeland."

"So, you're not originally from Mura either?" Persimmon reached up and wiped away a tear from her cheek.

"Nay, I'm not. But that's not important. The only thing that matters is why aren't you able to scry?"

Her heart jumped. "What do you mean?" Persimmon sniffled and wiped away another stray tear. "Why would you say that?"

"Admit it. You want us all to believe you can see the future in the orb but you can't, can you?"

"How did you know?" It was almost a relief that Medea knew her secret. It made Persimmon not feel so alone anymore.

"I am not the only one who's been suspicious. You keep ignoring my request to watch you scry and for you to teach me to do it. And you also ran away when we all needed your help just now, and didn't answer your father's question."

"Oh, Medea, you are right. I sadly don't have the ability to see the future like my mother did. I don't know why, but I just cannot do it. I am a failure. I am powerless, and I hate it."

"You are not a failure and far from powerless. You still have the ability to move things with your mind. We've already seen that."

"I do, but that's not enough. Now everyone will think I am a liar and a fraud. They will all hate me, just like my father does."

Medea rolled her eyes. "I'm sorry, but getting Elric's approval should not be a worry of yours at all. And don't think that everyone will hate you, because they won't. Especially not him."

"Who?" Persimmon turned to find Stone running after her.

"I will leave you two to talk."

"Nay, please stay with me, Medea." Right now, Persimmon didn't want to be alone with Stone.

"You need to tell him the truth, even if you don't reveal your lack of scrying to the others." Medea was gone in a flash, leaving Persimmon to face Stone on her own.

"Persimmon," called out Stone, running up to her. "What's wrong?" He stopped suddenly when he saw the big hole in the ground. "Don't stand so close to the edge of the oubliette. You might fall in." He put his arm around her waist and escorted her away from the pit. "What has you so upset? Was it something you saw in the gazing orb? Or was it your father?"

She paused for a moment before answering. Medea's words rang in her ears and she knew the girl was right. She had to let Stone know the truth. "Nay. I saw nothing in the orb. Nothing at all. That is what upset me." She took another deep breath and slowly released it, waiting for his response.

"Well, try it again. I'm sure it'll work now," he urged her. "It has to work. We need that information. Please, don't abandon all of us in our time of great need. The kingdom of Taelgonoth is counting on me to bring back the jewels and catch the thieves. I am in a foreign land and everything seems to be working against me. I can't complete my mission unless you help me, Persimmon."

It was going to be even harder now to tell him the entire truth. The rejection she was sure to endure when everyone discovered she couldn't scry to help them was going to be overwhelming. Persimmon had been through a lot lately and wasn't sure she could handle this. Oh, she longed for her mother right now. Her mother was the only one who could help her find comfort and tell her what to do. Even if she grew up without her mother for the most part, the times they did visit, her mother was always able to calm her down and even give her good advice on occasion.

"Take out the orb, Persimmon. Please, try again. Do it for me." Stone held on to her arm, looking into her eyes, believing in her even though he shouldn't. Then, he quickly kissed her on the lips, sending a surge of energy bolting through her. It was a good feeling, but at the same time only made things worse. He cared for her. Stone was a good and kind man. He didn't deserve someone like her.

She fumbled for the orb, doing as he asked, but her hands shook so hard that the gazing sphere slipped through her fingers. It hit the cobblestones at her feet. Instead of shattering, it began to roll.

"I'll get it," offered Stone, but she shook her head.

"Nay. Only I can touch it." She didn't know what real difference it made, but it was something that she'd heard her mother say through the years. It was the reason her mother never let her try to scry. Or so she thought. Right now, she wasn't sure of anything. Persimmon hurried after the orb, bending down to scoop it up just as it stopped at the edge of the pit. When she hunkered down to get it, something caught her attention from the bottom of the oubliette. She slowly turned her head and looked down into the water that had settled at the bottom of the deep pit, probably from rain.

There, shimmering in all white was the ghost of her mother!

"Mother," she whispered, feeling her heartbeat pick up. She'd purposely left her homeland of Lornoon because she wanted to stop seeing the ghost of her mother. It was something that started happening right after the woman's death. It frightened Persimmon and also made her miss her mother deeply. To her surprise, it seemed that her mother's ghost had followed her here to Mura.

"What did you say?" Stone stopped right next to her, staring down into the pit. "Did you see something down there?" His hand was immediately on the hilt of his sword. "Don't worry, I'll protect you."

Even though Stone stared directly at the ghost of her mother, he couldn't see her.

"Stone, look hard. Tell me the truth. Do you see anyone down there?" Part of her was hoping that he could see the ghost, too.

"What? You see a person down there?" He stretched his neck to look. "Mayhap King Rhys has imprisoned an enemy. No one could escape such a deep pit. And since there is water in there, they could drown."

Persimmon, you are not alone. You have people who care about you, came her mother's voice from the pit. This surprised Persimmon. The ghost of her mother had never spoken to her before now. But she'd also heard the voices in her head of the old Lithum couple, so mayhap this was some sort of power she had and it was growing.

"Can't you hear her?" asked Persimmon, feeling anxious, frightened and worried.

"Her?" Stone made a face and continued to try to see the bottom of the pit. "I hope to hell Rhys didn't imprison a girl. I'll have to ask him about it."

You have to unleash the crystal orb's power in order to use it. Persimmon saw the ghost of her mother slowly disappearing. You must help the others get the gemstones back where they truly belong. Their magic is powerful and cannot fall into the wrong hands. The apparition disappeared and then the pit was dark again.

"Is something happening, Persimmon? Please, tell me what it is." Stone placed his hand on hers and stared deeply into her eyes.

"I did see something. Someone, Stone. But I am not ready to speak about it yet." She stood up with the orb in her hand. "Please, don't say a thing about it to the others." She needed to think about what her mother just said. She had no idea how to the power of the gazing crystal or what her mother meant by saying the king's gemstones held magical powers.

"Hey, the orb seems to be glowing now," said Stone, his eyes fastened on the gazing ball in her hand. "Fast. Look within and tell me what you see."

"Huh?" She hadn't even noticed. Her attention dropped to the ball in her hand. To her surprise, once again she saw those swirling colors of blue, pink and orange. "Oh, I see those swirling colors again. They are so pretty."

"You must mean the portal, right? What else do you see?" Stone looked over her shoulder eagerly wanting to know more. You can scry, right?" he asked her again, sounding as if he wasn't sure if she could really do it.

Persimmon's excitement grew as the swirling colors started to part and the silhouette of a person actually started to appear but it was only a shadow. And then it all quickly disappeared as fast as it came.

"She doesn't see a thing. She's a liar, just like her mother." Elric's voice next to her only broke her focus and shook her nerves. Persimmon looked next to her to see her father with his rain of disappointment washing down upon her.

"Father, don't say that. Mother wasn't a liar." Her mother had been a good person and she wouldn't let anyone say otherwise.

"She was a liar, and so are you. I knew it all the time. Just admit it. You can't see a damned thing in that gazing orb, can you?" Elric crossed his arms over his chest and tapped his toe on the ground, waiting for her to answer.

"Don't speak to her that way," spat Stone, coming to her rescue. "Persimmon is a good and kind person and deserves respect. Quit calling her a liar. She has seen things in the gazing crystal and also sees something right now. Tell him, Persimmon. Tell him what you see."

By now, the rest of her new friends had hurried over to her, and crowded around her.

"What's going on, sister? Are you all right?" Lira was the first to get there.

"Shhhh, Persimmon is about to tell us what she sees in the gazing orb," said Stone, raising a hand in the air. "Please, sweetheart. Please, let this be true," he said to her in a mere whisper.

"Hrmmph! She sees nothing and has been deceiving all of us this entire time." Elric shook his head. "I'm not going to stay here and listen to any more lies. I'm leaving."

"Wait! I need my king's gemstones," said Stone, trying to stop him.

"The gemstones are not your king's and I will never let you have them." Elric dashed away in a blur.

"What did he mean by that?" asked Aithrod, hurrying over with the hound at his side. "The stones belong to our king. Why would he say otherwise?"

"What's happening?" asked Zann, walking up with his brother, Darium. Talia-Glen approached with Medea at her side.

"Quiet, everyone," Stone told them. "Persimmon is about to reveal to us what she sees in the gazing orb."

"She is?" This came from Medea. "Persimmon? What are you doing?"

"Oh, tell us, quickly," begged Talia-Glen. "I can't wait to hear."

Persimmon looked back down to the orb but now she couldn't even see the pretty colors or that strange shadow of a person. There was nothing there at all.

"Please, tell us," said Stone. "Everyone is counting on you."

"Yes," said Aithrod from the center of the group. "We need to complete our mission and return to Taelgonoth. Our king is depending on us to save his kingdom and we are depending on your visions to help us do it."

"We also need to find the elderly couple's son, don't forget," said Talia. "My herbs don't seem to be helping them. Alaina is with them now but said they probably won't live to see the morning."

With all the pressure building up inside her, Persimmon felt her head spinning. This was too much for her and she felt like she was about to snap.

"My father is right," she finally said, blurting it out before she could change her mind about doing it. "I am a liar," she admitted softly.

"Persimmon, no." Stone closed his eyes and shook his head slowly. "Please, don't say that."

"It's the truth," she told the group. "I have no power to scry, and never have. I wanted to impress all of you and especially my father. I wanted to feel special. To make you all like me. That is the only reason I pretended to be someone I am not."

"Oh, sister," cried Lira, sounding very sad. The rest of the group, including Stone remained silent. The dog whined and lay down with his nose between his paws.

It was happening already. Every one of them would start to despise her now and Persimmon realized that she had brought this all on herself. If she had just been honest with them all from the start, perhaps she would still have the adoration of her new friends and family. But sadly, after this, she realized she would once again be abandoned, rejected, and live the rest of her life alone.

"I don't feel well. Stone," she said, reaching out for him with one hand as her eyes closed and the dizziness overtook her. Any sound or sense of surroundings disappeared as Persimmon blacked out and entered a deep, dark, silent void that, to her, was worse than death.