Chapter 78 - QUILLKEY

Risens, let out an involuntary scream of emotion as the priceless relic he’d only just retrieved fell to the stone tile of the Raven’s Court. The casual indifference that Mother Raven had tossed the precious egg was shocking. Panic surged through his mind and body as he feared deceit.

What has he done?

What had she done?

Lunging forward he dove for the egg with his fingers outstretched to cradle it, to protect it from shattering on the rock he scraped painfully across the ground. He was a meter too short.

The impact of the crystal egg on the floor was tangible. He’d carried the item across the city, its weight causing him no strain as he traveled through the alleys. The ground trembled with a force far greater than the sound of it shattering. Like the quiet crunch of an eggshell underfoot the relic broke as it contacted the stone tile.

The force of its destruction hammered into him with a force that was entirely unexpected. He was helpless to resist as he wrenched up from where he’d sprawled on the ground. Like kicking a stray rock along the street, he was tossed across the Raven’s Court. Bouncing hard off the cracking tiles, he rolled once before slamming into the opposite wall. Chunks of mortar and small pieces of stone rained down around him as the derelict structured resonated with the impact of his weight.

Through vision blurred by dizziness and pain, he watched Mother Raven as she stood unfazed. She had been unmoved by the detonation that had thrown him mercilessly across the area. Her head was angled back, vision locked on the night sky overhead. Her arms were outstretched, her feathered cloak rippling in the grip of a breeze that seemed to only around her. The impact the force that had such a dramatic impact on him hadn’t disturbed anything else within the court. Cracking loose stones and crumbling mortar from where Risens’s body hit the wall was the only damage done. He struggled to regain his footing, his legs, arms and back aching from being rolled across the stone and the abrupt ending against the wall.

Her gaze followed her arms lowering back her arms back to the Raven’s Court that surrounded her. He saw for the first time the beginning stages of what looked like a grin. The corner of her lip pulled up, only a fraction, but far greater than it had ever seen it before. When their eyes met, there was no hiding the layer of moisture that covered their surface.

“What have you done?” Risens groaned.  He didn’t know whether to draw the blades or to cheer. Her show of emotion was as confusing as the action she’d just taken. Why retrieve an item only to smash it on the floor with such casual difference?

“What must be done, fledgling.”

In the wake of the explosion released from the shattering of the egg. A haze descended over the court. At first he mistook it for a trick of his blurred vision, yet he recognized it for what it was. A peculiar, glowing red particulate, hung in the air. Shining like stars in the night, untold thousands floated listlessly throughout the confines of the Raven’s Court. Risens extended his hand toward one of the glowing particles, like a firefly, it moved from his touch, though it didn’t retreat far.

Pain radiated up his legs as every step became agonizing. The force of the explosion that sent him careening had retained its hold. It felt as if the pressure of a great hand squeezed his body. Each pained step seemed to release him further from its unnatural grasp. A few steps ahead Mother Raven crouched slowly, inspecting something on the ground. The shape, the object that had moved withing the crystal remain indistinguishable, yet it remained on the stone where the egg that encased it had shattered. He expected to see the jagged pieces of the crimson crystal strewn around the tiles though there no traces of its presence. Risens wondered if the glowing particle’s floating in the air were the remnants of the shell that had protected whatever was inside.

Gritting his teeth, he moved cautiously right across the court. The glowing particles that were suspended around him shifted as he approached. In his wake they sealed the path behind him as he staggered forward. He stopped as he reached where Mother Raven kneeled on the ground. He was surprised to find her attention no longer was focused on the object, but on him.

He he watched her closely, curious at the drastic shift in her focus. There was a burning sense of expectation that lit her eyes. His gaze only lingered on her for a moment before it was drawn to the object, they remained at her feet. A dark haze,  like a thin black cloud of mist floated around it obscuring in details of its shape. Mother Raven pulled her focus from him, leaning her head close to the ground. As she exhaled a short whispered breath the cloud that shrouded the item disappeared, wafting away into nothingness as it caught in the breeze from her mouth.

As the smoke cleared a thin, black feather, no longer than the length of his index finger remained in its place. Risens’s curiosity mounted as he inspected the glossy sheen of the item.

“A feather?” He couldn’t hide the tint of disappointment that flavored his question.

“Again, you make assumption only using your eyes. You do not see the complexity of the moments,” Mother Raven’s tone was sharp as she responded accordingly, though now she never took her eyes off the delicate feather on the stone. “This is not just a feather but far more and you can even imagine. Pick it up because I cannot.”

“Why not?” 

“It is not meant for me, fledgling, but for you and you alone.”

Risens bent down, inspecting the small black feather for a moment. His gaze drifted from it to where Mother Raven perched watching expectantly, then back again. His overpowering curiosity was mixed with an insatiable desire to grab the object, the seemingly banal item.

Unlike the pull, the lure of power that had drawn him to the doors within The Roost, Risens could feel the strength and importance of the item. He understood without explanation that the seemingly ordinary item was far more consequential than it seemed.

Between finger and thumb he collected the feather, Mother Raven’s gaze following intently as he stood. Risens carefully rolled it between his fingers, visually inspecting the underside before rotating it to the top. The closely set, silky barbs had a sheen to them, reflecting the light of the moon and stars and the glowing red orbs above as if they were a solid surface.

He opened his mouth to speak when the first hint of sensation reached his brain. What started as a mere tingle, a slight pin prick against his skin flashed into unbearable agony. Around him, the glowing red particles suspended in the air started to move. Each pulsed brighter as their lazy hovering the air shifted to animated motion as they circled around him.

One at a time they pulled from the orbit that ringed him, darting back to the feather locked into his grip. Pulled by an attraction he could not explain as each shining particle connected with the feather, another brutal stab of excruciating pain radiated through his body. Unlike the localized feeling like the prick of a needle on a finger, every impact radiated through every fiber of his being.

He couldn’t scream. He couldn’t move. His feet were frozen to this cracked stone tile, particle after particles slammed into him. With an unconscionable force, thousands of tiny red orbs flashed through the air. His eyes blurred with tears, could no longer track the individual motion beyond when they separated from the wild spin that orbited him.

His thoughts became unfocused, untethering from the reality that surrounded. The pain moved beyond agony, replaced by a torture overwhelmed his ability to process the sensation. As quickly as it began, the last of the red orbs rejoined the feather.

With the finality of ita movement, the agonizing sensation ceased.

Blinking the moisture from his tear clouded eyes the blurred silhouette of a hunched, cloaked figure resolved. Mother Raven stood before him, watching him with a gaze that spoke of curiosity and excitement.

Her eyes were not focused on his, but somewhere lower. Her attention was directed entirely at his hand where he had held the feather.

Shock was the first emotion that sparked as his focus followed hers to his outstretched arm. The feather, the disguised item concealed within the crimson crystal egg was gone. The skin of his index finger no longer bore its natural hue. Where is flesh, slightly scarred by the unfortunate reality of his trade hd been, the entirety of his finger was now covered in an intricate black markings. Much like an elaborate tattoo, it appeared as if the feather he just held had been imprinted onto his skin. The design and the quality were unique and impressive. As he rotated his finger it appeared that the feather remained in the same position. Unlike its ability to disguise its form when inside the protective shell of the egg, now it worked to ensure its identity was unmistakable.

In the wake of the agonizing application, the hammering blows from the particles, the pain that had radiated through his body has faded entirely.

After a moment, his questioning gaze turned to Mother Raven.

“It is as it should be,” she whispered. “The Quillkey now belongs to you. With it, unconditional access is now in your hands.”

The explanation was vague and curious. Access to where?

“Will this lead to the Roost?” He inquired.

“The Quillkey will grant you access to the Roost and places beyond,” she responded

“What door will it open?” He scanned the walls of the Raven’s Court finding them unchanged beyond the further crumbling caused by the impact of his body.

“Whichever one you’d choose,” she noted. “The key will lead you to what is known as The Barren. It is a location without either place or name until you choose one.”

She stepped close, collecting his wrist in her hands. Risens felt the pinch of her fingernails pressing into his skin as she twisted his hand to view the Quillkey imprinted on his finger.

“The door will open when and where you choose it,” she instructed. “Be forewarned, until you close it, the portal will be accessible by all. Take care with whom you grant access, for uncertainty and danger lies within.”

“How do I open the door?” He asked.

Mother Raven stepped back, tilting her head slightly while her lips pursed into a frown.

You are the key,” she chided while tracing an arc in the air before her. “Must I do everything for you, fledgling? Create the door that you will enter.”

Risens bit back the retort that bubbled up from within. He stepped back from where Mother Raven stood his gaze returning to his marked hand. If he was to open the door anywhere he chose, how was he to do it? He expected questioning her further would lead to more frustration.

Moving passed her to the side of the Raven’s Court, he faced one of the decrepit walls. Hs gaze, staring beyond, not at the crumbling stone. Holding his finger out, Risens traced the outline, the upper peak of a rounded door the vertical side of the panel.

He waited, watching the stones. Anticipation brewing within stilled into anxiety as the breaths passed while nothing happened. Without instruction or guidance, he had no way to know how to open the door, merely conjecture and chance.

The slight distortion in the air caught his attention. The wall before him seemed to ripple as if the air itself was fluid. Where’s finger had first started tracing the line, the disturbance followed as if it were line of tight stitches holding together a taut section of cloth were rapidly removed, the wall seemed to split to peel back.

Behind it was utter darkness. Like staring into a starless night. Unlike the windSteps, the opening was still. No ripples or gently undulating waves disturbed the surface, rolling gently across its face. He understood with a glance that this was different from the portal that led to the roost as well.

He turned his gaze to Mother Raven.

“Where does it lead?” He asked.

“There’s only one way for you to find out fledgling.”

Risens took a step toward the mysterious, black portal he created in the wall. More appropriately between the wall and where he stood. He stopped as he reached the edge of the void.

He turned his attention back to where his cryptic guide stood waiting. She watched him with looks of expectation and longing etched into her face.

“Will you accompany me?”

“If it is your desire.”