Chapter 15: 14: PROPHECIES

Nightmare. Darkness. Fire.

Galusu ina bet giru.

Burn in hell forever.

Oh…they were all going to die.

Talitha’s piercing noise shocked herself awake. She heaved up to sit, body drenched in sweat and damp hair glued to her face. She screamed while holographic songbirds twittered cheerful morning songs, hopping around a cage projection activated by the window. Faint rays of sunlight filtered in through the blinds, now opened a slit by an automatic timer. That burning smell, the fire that enveloped her—it crackled her flesh, even though there was no actual fire.

Wild with confusion—fear—she ripped the sheets away from her body and clawed to the edge of the bed, clamoring for escape and throwing herself off the side. The sheets tangled her in place and she heaved heavy breaths as she fought to kick them off, the sensation of scalding hands wrenching her with real physical force back down to where she’d been laying. She tried again to fall to the floor, this time with bed sheets and all, until a gentle touch on her back rubbed her gently for attention. A soft voice resonated to her through her panic.

“Li.” That was Kalum beside her now, easing her. “Li—what happened? What’s wrong? You’re screaming—”

Talitha swatted Kalum’s touch away. “Don’t touch me!”

“Li, relax! It’s me—Kala!”

“Kala—”

“Yes, Kala! Kalum! I’m here.”

Reality returned in increasing, jolting doses. Talitha’s cries ebbed as her rapid scan of the room alerted her that she wasn’t hallucinating anymore. Instead, she was back where she’d curled up beside Kalum to sleep and Kalum was there too, guiding her down with passive assistance.

“Did you have a nightmare, hiba?” Kalum stroked Talitha’s hair as Talitha settled back, dark eyes studying Talitha close. “You’re shaking. Tell me.”

“There was…a shadow,” Talitha replied, frowning, still trying to regain her bearings. Details of the dream faded the harder she tried to remember them. “He was on fire.” She shut her eyes and gulped, mouth dry and parched. “I was on fire. He set me on fire. Kala—I was burning. Again!”

“You’re…you’re not making sense.”

“I know. But it keeps happening.”

“Nightmares.” Kalum frowned as well. “It’s the Dot. Has to be that Dot. That’s all it is. You’re still tripping hours later so you’ve taken too much. That’s why we have strict control over temple extracts. Everything’s monitored and measured for this very reason. Vulnerable minds, like yours, can lose touch and sometimes for good.”

“Ugh. Don’t remind me.”

“I have to remind you. I told you already that I wish you’d quit. You’re going to get hurt. You won’t realize you’ve gone too far until you’re regretting it. Like now.”

“Ah.” Talitha sighed, rubbing her forehead. “You know, Adam says that to me too. All the time. To quit the drugs. Quit taking venom.”

“Oh. Adam.” Kalum sniffed. “Does he say that?”

“Aye. He hates that I take them. Blames Spencer for getting me into it. He’s wrong—it was my decision alone to try it—but I’ll tell you, I’ve been considering quitting too. Especially…lately. Seems like a smart idea.”

“That’s nice that you listen to Adam that way. I bet he says lots of smart things that you listen to all the time. You guys do like to talk, don’t you? You two used to meet and chat for hours and hours.”

Talitha’s lids cracked open again. “What? What the hell?”

Kalum looked aside, adjusting the strap of her nightdress that had slipped down her shoulder with cool indifference. “I was just pointing out that Adam’s a really smart guy. So you listen to him talk and you talk back. Sounds like you do that a lot.”

“Kala.”

“Aye?”

“I thought we were clear—”

“We are.”

“So stay on fucking topic. I told you I’d get annoyed. I’m already close.”

“Okay.” Kalum nodded soberly. “Sure. No problem.”

Irritation pricked at Talitha and she stifled it, rubbing her eyes again. “Anyway,” she said. “I had the same bad trip last night after the fundraiser. Happened while I was awake.” She closed her eyes tight, touching her forehead as she recalled her moments in La Maria’s garage. “It’s been a while since I took that dose of Purple. I thought this was supposed to get better with time, not worse.”

“You hallucinated last night too?”

“Yeah. Saw the same kind of things. Felt it, too. Disgusting.” She shook her head. “It was so real then. So real this time. I saw something—or someone—that wasn’t there. A burning shadow. A presence with horns.”

“Horns?”

“Yeah. Horns. It was terrifying. Awful sounds and smell. Darkness just…surrounded him. Came from him. When he touched me I felt the darkness on me too like he’d stuck it onto me. But it wasn’t…real. It was all in my head. I lost time too during the trip and was out of it for twenty minutes. Didn’t feel like twenty minutes though. Happened so fast.”

“You lost twenty minutes?”

“Yeah. I don’t even know where I went or what I did during those twenty minutes. I’m kind of…scared. If it doesn’t sound stupid.”

“No, Li—it’s not stupid. This is serious. Why didn’t you mention you were having issues like that? Why didn’t you mention it last night?”

“This never happened before so I thought it’d pass on it’s own. I always take small amounts at a time and watch my tox levels. Do my own tests, more than I have to, just to make sure. I’ve been close to overdoing it once or twice back when I was feeling bad but this trip…I really did go over the line.” Talitha grimaced. “I’m regretting it. You’re right about that.”

“Li. This is terrible.”

“I only took that little bit before the party. I haven’t taken any more since.”

“Good. Throw it away.”

“I might. I’ll think about it.”

“Don’t think about it. Just toss it.”

“Okay. Okay.” She turned her head to meet Kalum’s concerned gaze. “Funny thing is, Jackal popped up right after I came down from the trip. I ran into him—literally—and for a second I thought he was the shadow I’d hallucinated.”

“Jackal was still around?” Kalum tilted her head. “I thought he was long gone. You didn’t mention that either.”

“I forgot. I had a lot on my mind after that. Now that I’m thinking about that trip again I remember talking with him. It was a quick conversation and he disappeared again.”

“What did he say?”

“He knew a lot about me but it was stuff from my bio. I guess he pays attention to Pender-Pal business. Makes sense with his background. He just wanted to make sure I was okay since he saw me acting weird on that trip.”

“That’s nice of him,” said Kalum. “To care. But I wonder, then, what he was doing out there at that hour. He didn’t want to talk to anyone or take any pictures while he had the audience. Not even talk to me, and he sang with me. He just…left.”

“I don’t know. It was another shock. I didn’t think to ask.”

“Hm. He’s a strange presence. I understood that during our performance. Something about him’s uniquely from this world and not our human experience. Even Mama…found him unusual. But he’s got magnetic appeal so a lot of people find him fascinating.”

“Yeah. He’s strange.”

“Aye.”

“I mean, look at his stage shows…his lyrics. I guess he’s like that even offstage. Savena also said he was weird but at least he was nice to me.”

“Probably looking for contraband when he found you. Wouldn’t shock me if he does business with Ivan or Spencer and they were dealing in that garage. He’d have better access to it than anyone with his connections though, so I don’t see why he’d bother to buy that here. He’s always overseas where the stuff's made. You should ask Ivan if he knows anything about Jackal and the contraband.”

“I think you’re right. Makes sense. Everyone’s trying it these days, since seda therapy’s so normal and a lot of the ingredients are copied from venom. I think I’m just affected more because I’ve been slowing down. This new stuff’s really strong.” Talitha spoke confidently and mostly to convince herself. “It’ll fade. I feel fine mostly. I know I didn’t take enough to permanently scar my mind. I’m not a…a junkie or anything. I’m not like Spen…like him.”

“Yeah. You’re fine.” Kalum’s mouth pressed tight for a moment as she studied Talitha. “You said you saw a presence with horns. We have horned presences in Isten Dar, cosmic deities and depictions of lesser gods. Not all are good manifestations. Some symbolize the darkest aspects of our existence. In deep native beliefs Ipirians believe they can communicate with those deities through ritual. That was the original point of salugalu, to make cosmic connections.”

“Great.”

“Those presences are tied with the legends of El-Akalut. Myths about portals to the underworld beneath that tree—and what natives believe about their immortality on Ipir. You’ve read these stories with me a couple times for service.”

“I remember. Some of them were disturbing. Maybe somewhere in my mind I have memories of what we’ve read and I ended up thinking about them like they were real. The Dot made me imagine seeing that thing yesterday because Purple’s a Stage Seven drip. You can’t get stronger venom than Stage Seven formulas.”

“Yeah. Could be just that Purple, or a buildup of all the Dots you’ve ever tried drowning you now. The drug’s supposed to mimic what happens during a real bite so it sounds like you experienced salugalu effects without any ritual. Really take the idea of quitting seriously. No rush is worth never being able to get your own mind back.”

“I will,” said Talitha. “I will.”

Kalum’s gentle touch stroked Talitha again. “You know, we do have our own ritual scheduled. We could try to complete an actual salugalu this time instead of, you know…fucking around. See if that shadow pops up again in your mind while you’re in limbo and seal it away from your consciousness. I can ask Mama—”

“No,” replied Talitha flatly.

“No? Why not? She’s the high priestess, Li. A master of the faith. There’s no better person to help you figure out what’s going on with you if you’re seeing those sorts of things.”

“I don’t want her to know. Okay? I don’t need anyone knowing I see weird shit. Or that I’m taking illegal substances. Not with my background, not with my residency status—not if we’re really planning to ever say something about us.” Talitha soured. “This is hard enough already. Your family will think I’m crazy. Or dangerous. They’ll keep you away from me. No need to make things worse.”

Kalum nodded slowly and sidled into the spot beside Talitha. “All right. I can do the ritual myself. I assisted Mama a lot of times as anchor for major interventions so I’m sure…I can handle a simple one alone from start to finish. You’re not too trashed on the stuff so I don’t think I can things worse.”

“Well, what happens if that thing does show up again in my mind? What’s going to happen?”

“Since I’m tasting your blood to link our passage and using complex ether blends I should—should—see the same visions as you on my end. If I can see what’s troubling you I’ll bind it with prayer and you’ll hear me from your own mind as it happens. It’s ceremonial but it works in the non-physical realm against non-physical concepts. Our temple guides have a lot of success clearing negative energy using salugalu. It might help until the venom’s completely out of your system.”

You are reading story Native Blood: The Cursed Planet (Book1) at novel35.com

Talitha turned her head toward Kalum. “Could that really work?”

“I think so. Sometimes just being understood on a higher level with confidence is enough to ease the strain of unwanted visions. But even if it doesn’t, things from inside your head can’t show up here in the physical world. Doesn’t work that way. They’re simply bad thoughts and you can manifest good ones just as fast to replace them.” Kalum pecked her on the cheek. “Anything goes wrong, we’ll end the whole thing and wait for the Dot to wear off on its own. Maybe we can ask Jonah about something you can take to get clean faster. Nightmares—and hallucinations—are just negative dreams. You’ll be fine.”

“All right.” Talitha nodded. “Let’s give it a shot. Might as well get some actual spiritual guidance this time.”

“Okay. We’ll try the ritual after the, ah…fitting.”

“Oh yeah. The fitting.” A smile, this time with genuine humor, crossed Talitha’s face. “Lucky number eighteen. Right?”

Kalum groaned quietly. “Just get dressed, Li.”

“It’s the eighteenth one. I know it. That was a different vision I had and it was also terrifying.” Talitha touched her temples with her fingertips, squinting a bit for added effect. “Eighteen. Eighteen. Eighteen fittings for a queen’s wedding gown. This extract business really does help you see things differently if you focus right.”

Talitha’s gaze followed as Kalum slid out of the bed without a response and left Talitha behind to figure it out alone.

☼ ☼ ☼

Kalum’s eldest sister Ava was in a heated argument with High Priestess Kazrut when Talitha and Kalum arrived in the kitchen, ready to go. Both of the elder Khelot women wore expensive clothing and gem-encrusted luxury COM devices on their wrists, their heads wrapped in prayer veils spun with a glittering gold thread that glinted when they moved. Personal assistant bots modeled after jeweled fluttering birds hovered gracefully behind them, responding to their spoken commands with melodic chirps.

Kazrut touched her forehead like she was holding off a headache when Ava jabbed the air forcefully in her direction, spitting out a few final words in tongue before sweeping away with chin raised. Talitha tried to greet Ava but moved aside when the angry priestess marched past her without acknowledgment.

“Sorry for that display,” said Kazrut, smiling at Talitha and Kalum. “Ava's upset over the wedding. She thinks we favored Kalum with the marital arrangements and all the fuss from the world preparing for so many generations has finally affected her. Shamefully, too. It dishonors us as spiritual leaders elected to lead this tribe.”

“Oh,” said Talitha. “Ava doesn’t like the marriage?”

“It’s silly,” replied Kazrut. “We arranged a fantastic pairing for her. She’s wedded to wealthy, devout investor in Unifaith who finds her lovely and tells her so often. You’ve met Chairman Macoy—he’s an honest and gracious man. Firm politician and self-made billionaire that’s friendly to Isten Dar, even if he doesn’t follow our ways.” The high priestess shook her head as she adjusted her veil. “It wasn’t Ava’s fate to be chosen for queen. The stars and the planets must align correctly to fulfill the prophecy. Happens for a short moment once every ten thousand years. Just once. Opportunities were missed before and time runs short. Ava knows every bit of that.”

“I agree, Great Mother.” Talitha clasped her hands behind her back, speaking brightly. “About all that star and planet stuff. It’s so cosmic, literally. But—do you think it’s possible that someone else could also be the right choice for queen? Maybe if you look into all the masses of birth data that exist for the same time period as Kalum you’ll see some overlooked chosen soul—”

Kalum pinched her. Hard. Subtly. Talitha stifled a grunt of pain from the twist of flesh, shutting up before she finished the question. That was fine, because Kazrut misunderstood Talitha’s intent anyway and launched into a lengthy listing of all the strategic marriages her Isten Dar sect, the Sect of Sisem, arranged to fulfill ancient native prophecies. Kings and queens, Kazrut explained, stood in their bloodline. Famed tribal chiefs as well as heritage of the original pureblood natives and traces of the divine prophet Raijim Isten himself. Kalum’s special birth was proof that all their work had paid off. A new beginning was approaching.

Kalum refused to look at Talitha after her outburst and turned away, glaring at the wall behind her mother. Not the best start to the day, she’d admit. Talitha grimaced.

Talitha, Kalum, and the Khelot women—all five of Kalum’s sisters—arrived at Kogo’s luxurious bridal showroom, the sort of place that launched holographic fireworks and sparklers whenever a guest passed through its towering arched entryway. Talitha took her place in the cushioned seat beside the high priestess and the older Khelot sisters to watch Kalum try on a series of selected bridal gowns.

Programmed projections displayed visuals of the Kingdom of Bhet as they waited. Glamorous clips of the Al-Bheti family’s many extravagant palaces and properties in the desert wildlands played on repeat. Whenever Kalum signaled that she was ready to reveal herself to her audience the clips would disappear, showcasing Kalum on the displays before she herself walked down a prepared lighted runway to model another dramatic design. At the end of the walk Kalum would rise on an elevated disc that spun in slow circles while hovering bots flitted about her, recording her from every angle.

Over the next four hours Kazrut and Kalum’s sisters held a private party within Kogo’s famous shop, drinking expensive imported wildland elixirs and spirits as they gushed over or tore apart each new gown that Kalum wore. To Talitha, all of the outfits seemed more ridiculous and overdone than the last. She sank low in her seat when Kalum glided towards them in a classic white selection, appearing lovely at last as a glowing angelic vision. Talitha’s mild amusement over the flamboyant displays shifted into a quiet, bitter reminder of why they were there—to push Kalum into a forced, unwanted marriage and fulfill the wishes of millions of other people.

Talitha failed at behaving herself by the end of that fourth hour, which she blamed on the holographic doves fluttering around the young priestess posing romantically beside a trickling fountain. The gowns, the fake smiles, and the gossip from Kalum’s sisters—all of it had made the day worse.

“You should try one on too while we’re here,” urged Marisa, the second-eldest Khelot daughter, to Talitha after the sisters had completed another devastating review of Kalum’s new look. “With your sun coloring you’d look lovely in a minted green.”

“Oh,” said Talitha. “I…I don’t know.”

“The assistant can snap a clip of you to send to Pendergast,” commented Janena, the second youngest, with a giggle. “Boys like that stuff—especially if you show a tasteful bit of skin. Leaves them wondering. We save clips of Kalum’s best to send over to Malek to view. She’s even shown him some selections for their first consummation.”

Talitha feigned a smile at the announcement. “Does Kalum know you do that?” she asked. “Especially the bit about…consummation?”

“Of course! She signs off on each clip with a kiss to the camera. See?” Janena showed a projection of a smiling Kalum in a sleek gown, spinning around before blowing a kiss. “That’s a good one there. She looks so happy, as she should be. This is exciting for her—for all of us. Everyone in the wildlands has been waiting for this for so, so long.”

“Wow.” Talitha’s smile remained static. “A kiss to the camera for Malek. Adorable. Almost unbelievable. She never mentioned she does that.”

“Are you going to try one on?” Marisa pushed. “Kalum’s got the editing program to put it all together the way you like. You can add music and animations to make it pretty.”

“I’ll think about it. Thank you.”

Talitha settled back in her seat just as Kalum arrived in the most ridiculous gown of all, one covered in real feathers plucked from jeweled songbirds exploding in every direction. Drooping tendrils of fluff flopped over Kalum’s face whenever she moved her head. Kalum froze when Talitha applauded, declaring in a loud voice that this was the best one yet.

“That one’s a real treat,” said Talitha, clapping extra hard as she rose from her seat and bellowed across the space. “Send a camera kiss to Malek of that one, K. Make sure to capture the feathers on your behind. It’s really stunning, the way it puffs out and gets in the way of everything. I mean, I’m stunned. I wonder if there’s a boudoir version. You know, for your consummation night.”

Kalum closed her eyes and touched her forehead. From a distance Talitha could see Kalum mouth quiet words.

“Oh…God.”

“Your sisters keep pushing me to try something on,” continued Talitha, loud. “I see how much fun these fittings are for you. Makes me wonder if I should have some fun today.”

“Li,” said Kalum, walking closer to the edge of the stage. “I forgot about…the thing. Just…please.”

“So.” Talitha turned back to the high priestess. “You’re saying there’s absolutely no way this marriage can be canceled? None at all?”

Kazrut, delicate in her mature wildland beauty, rested an uncomfortable hand on her chest as she surveyed Talitha. “My child,” said the wise woman of Isten Dar. “The blood’s mixed. Oaths were sworn. Prophecies have aligned between the Sect of Sisem and the Sect of Sinum. As I said…the stars must be correct.”

“And as I said, isn’t it possible that there’s someone else who can fulfill the prophecy with Malek? I’m sure if another woman born on the same day and hour as Kalum, even if it’s not the exact microsecond you’re looking for, wanted to be queen and agreed to have runes imprinted, things would work the same.”

“No.” The high priestess shook her head. “It would not.”

“You’re asking stupid questions.” Ava huffed at Talitha, the sight of additional fawning over Kalum leaving the eldest sister more sour than before. “You have Vangrali blood by luck of the draw but no real ties to our faith through intensive spiritual practice. No relevance to us. It’s impossible for you to ever understand holy matters with your limited mind.”

“I’m trying to understand,” replied Talitha. “Maybe my mind’s as limited as you say. But I don’t get why Malek, who wants to bring peace to the sects as much as anyone else, can’t marry another woman from Sisem—”

“Well,” said Marisa, her jeweled bot fanning her with gentle gusts of cool air. “Sounds like you know someone else is interested in Kalum. That’s why you’re speaking such blasphemy. To steer us away from what’s meant to be.”

“Blasphemy? What?” Talitha stammered. “No, not at all—”

“Kalum would curse our family and bring misfortune to all of Isten Dar if that were true. Her children with Malek, the Children Of The Sky, are supposed to save us all.”

“I get that. I really do. I’m not hinting anything either about Kalum. I’m saying—”

“Talitha!” Kalum gathered the skirts of the immense feathered dress and hurried off the stage in a rustle of fluttering noise, rushing over to where Talitha stood. Her dark eyes glimmered with quiet tears as she whisked a drooping plume away from her face. “I know you have questions. I’ve talked to you about it before. But right now you’re being rude and you’re insulting our ways!”

“I’m just asking.”

“Stop asking!”

“Peace, bukuriti.” The high priestess addressed her daughters in language that Talitha couldn’t understand and the Khelot sisters lowered their heads with severity. She addressed Kalum alone afterward in Unispeak with a placid, mellifluous tone. “Remain unyielding in your path against all doubt, my child. You are blessed. You will bring miracles to Ipir.”

Kalum nodded, looking down. “Yes, Mama.”

Kazrut’s attention moved to Talitha next, smile shining. “Talitha,” she said calmly. “Please speak. I’d be delighted to personally ease your mind on this matter. I understand your curiosity and I answer questions like yours often here in Union.”

“I’m fine,” replied Talitha. “They’re silly questions and Kalum's answered them before. She’s patient with me when I ask and I ask often. I was just…wondering, really.”

The high priestess folded her arms within her shimmering robes. “Our brethren in the wildlands are more devout. They demand greater obedience to their interpretation of the divine texts about the needs of Ipir. Concessions were made between our family and the Al-Bhetis in honor of the holy sacrifice. Kalum and Malek are children of the new Ipirian age and they’ll bring harmony for generations to come.”

“That’s…what I keep hearing,” said Talitha.

“So you understand how important it is that Kalum maintains her focus and strength until the day of her marriage. Many distractions will fall in her path but she must sustain. I trust, as her closest friend, you want her to succeed.”

“I do want her to succeed.”

“Wonderful. Karabiti seru.” Kazrut bowed to Talitha. “Blessings to you and all that you cherish.” She nodded at Kogo, who summoned to his side a dressing room attendant. “We have plenty of time for you to try on your favorite, Talitha. Go ahead and follow the assistant—she’ll help you get ready. See what it feels like to prepare.”

Kalum took a step back from the circle. “That’s a great idea, Mama,” she said, smoothing down the feathers of the gown. “You know, I’m getting tired anyway. I’ve tried on enough today. If I have to sample more we can make another appointment. Let…Li have the spotlight for a while.”

“You’re upset,” replied the high priestess. “Your nerves are affecting you. Sit down and relax until you can compose yourself. A bride—a queen—must always tame her passions from view.”

“Okay.”

“I don’t need to try anything on,” interjected Talitha quickly, already out of steam and dismayed at the sight of defeat on Kalum’s face. “I didn’t mean anything I said. I was just pointing out that Kalum makes a lot of effort to keep everyone happy.”

“It’s not a burden, Talitha. We’d love for you to enjoy this visit as much as Kalum. Kogo can find something perfect to complement you and you’re just the right age to think about your family plan.”

“The minted green!” called Janena, “Try a green one!”

Talitha maintained her polite smile. “Today’s about Kalum. I won’t take that away from her. She looks beautiful—really beautiful—in everything she puts on and deserves all the attention.”

“That’s sweet of you,” said the high priestess, beaming. “Thank you for your kind words. I’m sure Kalum appreciates your compliment.”

“Yeah,” snorted Ava. “Wonderful platonic praise from a friend. Not an eligible man.” Her sneer flashed at Talitha for a moment. “Only Malek’s opinion on our sister matters. Let’s see what the future king thinks about Kalum’s choices.”

“Kalum—try the sky blue one again,” said Kazrut, patting Kalum’s arm. “That one was pleasant. Blue is a color for meditation and that shade represents the soul of the children you’ll soon bear. Twins, I've foreseen, just as the holy texts say. I believe Malek may enjoy it even if it’s not your choice for bridal gown.”

“All right, Mama,” said Kalum. “I’ll try the blue.”

A pang of guilt struck Talitha as she watched Kalum trudge back toward Kogo and his staff. More difficult to behave than Talitha expected—and more difficult than ever to hide her true feelings on Kalum’s marriage.

You can find story with these keywords: Native Blood: The Cursed Planet (Book1), Read Native Blood: The Cursed Planet (Book1), Native Blood: The Cursed Planet (Book1) novel, Native Blood: The Cursed Planet (Book1) book, Native Blood: The Cursed Planet (Book1) story, Native Blood: The Cursed Planet (Book1) full, Native Blood: The Cursed Planet (Book1) Latest Chapter