The Unblessed Child Read online

  THE

  UNBLESSED CHILD

  R J KALDANIS

  Dedicated to those we love without boundaries, without reason and without hesitation.

  Copyright © 2020 R J Kaldanis

  All rights reserved.

  Table of Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Pronunciations:

  Aardriyah: ah - dree - yah

  Sonas: so-nas

  Pateras: Pat-air-es

  Chastion: Chas-tee-on

  Veros: V-air-os

  Teme: tem-ay

  Elin: el-in

  Iber: ee-b-er

  Kibo: K-ee-boh

  Mizu: M-i-zoo

  Sia: S-ee-a

  Hala: H-ull-ah

  Undina: ooh-n-dee-na

  Rachida: Ra-ch-ee-dah

  Sekher: Sek-er

  Geb: G-eh-b

  Lugh: L-oo-g

  Fand: F-on-d

  Jivan: j-ee-ven

  Ven Digo: V-en D-ee-go

  Rovik: R-oh-vik

  CHAPTER ONE

  memories

  Aardriyah awoke in a hot sweat, breathing heavier than she knew she could - at least until two weeks ago when the dreams had started. They always began the same, a soft voice lulled her into a pitch-black world, she stumbled, calling out, trying to find the source of the voice, wandering aimlessly out of her body. Then a face would appear, or at least that’s what she assumed it was, for it wasn’t human, it wasn’t animal, it wasn’t anything that she could easily or accurately describe with all the words in her vast vocabulary. It would float in front of her for a long time, no longer echoing her name. Sometimes it would change shapes into long tailed women of the water, large scaled beasts of fire and flame, light balls of floating air or heavily rocked formations somewhat resembling large humans. While some nights she recognised the creatures and beings from her books, other nights the formations were of beings that had never even been conjured by the most creative of authors or tellers of lore.

  Tonight it had morphed itself into an exquisitely petite woman with large wings similar to a dragonfly’s stretching out from her back. She was naked but her modesty was covered by shimmering scales of translucent greens, purples and blues. The scales adorned her head and cascaded down her delicate, glistening frame. Aardriyah realised that a light was reflecting off the scales and began looking for the source of it. It didn't take long to realise that in the black abyss beside the winged woman there were no other life forms, nothing else could be generating the light in this void of black nothingness. It dawned on Aardriyah the light was coming from where she stood – she was the light.

  The winged woman gave a small nod towards the dreamer, then fluttered away towards a world forming before her out of the blackness. Occasionally, the winged woman would look back confirming her guest was still in close proximity. Aardriyah wasn’t walking to follow but rather floating through effortless channels of air. The sensation of telling her body to move in the right direction was lost and she numbly seemed to follow without a choice in the matter. The first night, this startled her but she had become used to the routine of her body floating towards the world the creature was creating. The newly formed world she entered into was never the same and were places so fantastic or menacing, that she doubted they existed beyond her dreams.

  Tonight, she followed the winged woman into a world full of the most green and blue hues she had ever seen in her life. She glanced around in awe at the colours exploding from every direction, as she ducked beneath an arch of intricate vines and willow branches. She could swear she smelled a hint of jasmine and honey as they passed through forests while an array of dazzling tulips and daisies sprung from the ground. The winged creature danced and fluttered around the landscape, stopping to touch and embrace every flower and every new blade of grass. She guided the creeping vines over large fig trees, tall as the eye could see. Her smile beamed at each new formation of the forest she created, at the life springing forth from her hands.

  Aardriyah tried to speak, but no words came from her mouth. Regardless the winged creature seemed to hear her all the same and paused to turn and smile at the guest in this magical world. The winged woman seemed to pull Aardriyah forward, to show her what she could only assume to be the height of her powers of creation - a colossal waterfall that cascaded down a cliff side, reaching so high that Aardriyah could not see where it began. Rainbows reflected off the waterfall at differing heights, while a soft mist of cold water sprayed the flowers below. The winged woman dove into the turquoise bath created by the waterfall; it seemed to be a bottomless pool of turquoise water.

  Aardriyah smile reached the corners of her face, as she spent moments lost in the beauty of this world and forgot the usual path the dream would take after the pinnacle was reached. Right on cue and just as every other night, the world suddenly shifted. The once beautiful waterfall suddenly turned into a steaming flow of bright red lava.

  The winged woman made a life wrenching scream as she struggled to escape the now simmering hot pool of lava. Aardriyah looked on, frozen and unable to help the burning woman. She couldn’t do anything, trapped in time and space while the screams of horror, pain and agony reverberated through her soul. The winged woman saw her and reached out to her as flesh dripped off her exposed bones. The scream was so heart wrenchingly real that it was always enough to wake Aardriyah from her slumber in a frightening mess of erratic heart beats and hot sweats.

  As Aardriyah opened her eyes, she felt a soft hand touch her arm.

  “Ardy… are you ok?” Her little sister asked in a shaky voice. Aardriyah looked down at the white hair and blue eyes staring up at her in confusion.

  “I am now.” She whispered, as she opened her arms up and made space for the little girl in the bed. As Sonas crawled in and snuggled close to her big sister, Aardriyah immediately felt more safe and secure than she did only moments prior.

  “Was it bad again? Did someone get hurt?” Sonas asked in a timid but curious voice. The elder sister sighed, and slowly brushed away the long strands of white hair now taking up half her pillow.

  “Hmmm, someone.” She responded.

  “Well,” the younger sister yawned and sleepily responded, “it was just a dream.”

  “Very true my little miss, very true.” With those last words, Aardriyah heard Sonas breathing deeper and heavier and willed herself to follow her sister into slumber, once more.

  The next morning, Sonas smiled at Aardriyah as the young woman slowly made her way into the kitchen of their humble home. Her long hair fashioned in a loose plait trailing down the length of her back, covering the simple cotton night gown she wore. Aardriyah trudged towards the man standing before the fire, greeting him with a kiss on the cheek and muttering,

  “Good morning Pateras” while she moved towards the table.

  Her father barely flinched enraptured by the flames in front of him.

  “Aardy.” He simply stated in greeting.

  The middle-aged man resembled Aardriyah more t
han his other two children; he was short and round, with a thick head of white curled hair and a red beard the same hue as Aardriyah’s locks. He wasn’t attractive in any sense of the word, at least not from the outset, but there was something reassuring and warm about his presence. Aardriyah often complained that she had been handed the crappy end of the stick when it came to looks in the family. While Chastion and Sonas inherited their mother’s olive skin, thin white hair and large blue eyes, Aardriyah had somehow managed to get all the qualities she didn’t desire. Her eyes, she complained, were small and the colour of excrement after drinking too much red wine. Her nose was wide enough to drive a horse and cart across and her forehead was large, earning her the name ‘egghead’ in school. Most undesirable of all, her long hair was a fiery copper and curled whichever way it desired. While it was obvious her brother and sister had been born of water, her appearance was a constant reminder that she didn’t belong.

  Right on cue, the bright young spark at the table beamed up to her sister and quipped,

  “Aardy’s still tired, she needed me to protect her again!”

  The middle-aged man at the fire turned suddenly and made his way over to the table.

  “Again? Is that true?” He seemed concerned by the revelation that his daughter hadn’t slept properly for the twelfth night in a row. Aardriyah snorted in response, trying to shrug off the sleepless night before and the never ending nightmares plaguing her. Her father was unsatisfied with this response, but as an experienced father of a teenage daughter, he knew not to push further. Instead he responded,

  “Well aren’t we just so lucky to have such a brave water maiden in our house!” As he made his way to his youngest daughter and tickled her. Sonas giggled with excitement and wrapped her short arms around the man’s protruding belly, before racing around the table to embrace her big sister. In what seemed like the same heartbeat, she ran off down the short hallway of the domed house into the bedroom the sisters shared.

  “Hey - finish your fast meal you! You can’t be a brave water maiden without a proper start to the day!” Her father boomed.

  “I already finished!” Sonas responded,

  “No you haven’t missy! There is still-” as her father reached towards the bowl she had just left, he looked in amazement at the emptiness of it.

  “Told you so!” Sonas yelled back from the hallway, knowing full well that her father had just discovered proof of her finishing her fast meal. He sighed as he sat down at the table, keeping his eyes carefully on Aardriyah. She looked up from her bowl of fruits and chewed while staring at him, almost beckoning him to have a go at her - to lecture her for her lack of sleep, unwillingness to discuss it or for causing her little sister to bear the burden of her sleeplessness. Her father stared back a long while, before sighing and muttering,

  “Bloody fire heads.”

  “Bloody fire beards!” she responded.

  While anyone listening in might be amazed at the callous and loose use of words that were equivalent to some of the worst taunts in a water colony, the father and daughter passed the words freely, unharmed by the implications. Bearing a mark of the fire empire was considered a curse on this water blessed nation, given the unending hatred the two differently blessed peoples held against each other for as long as anyone could remember. While no one on this island had ever seen anyone blessed by fire, the stories surrounding their fiery red hair was considered a tell-tale sign of the enemy. Seeing her red hair as soon as she was born, Pateras knew he had to prepare her for the years of taunts set to follow her. He had told her at a young age to embrace any of the cruel names that people threw at her, to use them as the foundations for her strength so they would never be able to cause her to collapse. While it took a number of years to not cry or run away from the tortuous words spat out of children's mouths, quite often in cruel songs, she felt that now she was much stronger and hardly phased by the jibes she still faced. 'Fire head' was a phrase that no longer caused her shame or harm like it once had.

  The whirlwind youngster interrupted the exchange between her father and sister and ran back into the room dressed in her usual uniform for school. It consisted of tight white leggings, a long sleeved pale blue top, clinging to her body and covering the length of her neck. At the top of her neck a shining tear-drop shaped crystal was attached to a medallion flanked by two small shells on either side. It was pinned to a white satin ribbon that curled around her neck, emblazoned with the ancient script reading, “αἰὲν ἀριστεύειν” roughly translating to ‘Ever To Excel’ in the common tongue. The medallion shone a clear blue, unwavering in the constant light beaming from it. Attached to the ribbon around her neck were seven strings of pearl making deep semi-circle patterns trailing across her back - one for each level of the water magic she had mastered. Sonas’ hair had been fashioned back into a tight, almost perfect braid, making her the epitome of slick perfection. Aware of her impressive appearance and beaming crystal, she stood with her hands on her hips pride radiating across her face.

  “Look how bright it is!” She exclaimed, pointing at her crystal.

  “Must be from all the fast meals you chug down.” Pateras remarked, winking at his youngest. Aardriyah raised her eyes towards her little sister and managed to smile a little, smothering the growing pang of jealousy within her.

  “Pateras, can I visit Chasty after school? I want to show him my weaving, it’s gotten so good now!” The big blue eyes stared up to the man, and he gave in, just as he always did when the little ones eyes gazed into his.

  “I’ll see what I can do, little miss.”

  With that, Sonas squealed, gave her father a quick kiss, grabbed her bag and ran for the door.

  “Hey - don’t forget your cape!” He yelled out.

  “But…. Pateras… I don’t….”

  “Sonas… even the most talented water masters and maidens get the cold lung.” He responded, authority echoing in his tone. Knowing she couldn’t win the argument, she grabbed her patchwork cape and wrapped it tightly around her upper body, making sure to place the medallion atop for the world to see. Before she could race out the door, Aardriyah called out,

  “Love you.”

  “Love you more!” Sonas responded quickly.

  “Love you most.” quipped Aardriyah as she smiled and watched her sister without a second hesitation run out the door and begin her journey towards school.

  Pateras smiled upon his two daughters and their traditional morning greeting; as little as they had in this world, he was grateful that they had each other. He had raised the children to understand that some bonds were unbreakable and that his love for his children would come before anything else. It was something he tried so hard to ensure they understood, particularly in spite of what had transpired with their mother and their brother.

  “Do you really think Chastion will have time for us?” Aardriyah abrupted the silence, glaring at her father. He sighed and shook his head, disappointed by her doubtful tone.

  “He’s never too busy for family… you know that Aardy.” She rolled her eyes and finished the last bite of her morning fruit.

  Her brother had always been the favourite child since she could remember. He was so powerfully blessed by water that when they administered his first crystal test, he shattered three different crystals out of the pure strength his magic held. It didn’t take long for The Seekers to become aware of his potential and shortly after his sixth birthday, he was officially adopted into royalty. He was the final key in completing the four nation alliance of the water colonies, uniting them as the United Water Kingdom whilst earning himself the title of Prince. It wasn’t unusual for arranged marriages to be forced upon children of the blessed in each colony, kingdom or empire but when the two strongest heirs of the two most powerful water nations were daughters, it made producing an heir to solidify their union, impossible - or so everyone thought.

  The newlywed wives, however, figured that if a marriage could be
arranged then so could a family. They scoured the two remaining water nations yet to be united and found both a son and a daughter to secure the alliance and adopt into their family of powerful water masters, ensuring future prosperity and peace within the kingdoms. A small child, Kibo, of the Kingdom of Mizu was discovered first. She was a direct descendant of a long line of kings and queens of the land. She had passed her trials at the age of three, before she had properly learned to speak. In fact very few people had ever heard the princess speak that rumours began to swirl she didn’t know how, as all her energy must had been expended into mastering the magic of water. A year after adopting Kibo, at the age of five, and appointing her a princess of the realm, the newlyweds found a son from the last remaining water colony set to join in an alliance. Chastion was presented to the Queens during a royal tour of the water nations of Veros. Like everyone before them, they immediately fell in love with the charming water blessed boy. It wasn’t more than a week after meeting him, that the Queens approached Pateras and his wife with a polite request to adopt their son into the royal family to become the heir of the throne of water and the most powerful man in the four water blessed nations of the realm. While Pateras refused time and time again to let his son go, their mother was more easily swayed. It wouldn’t matter if both of the parents forbade it, the Queens ultimately could get what they wanted - it was just a matter of how. Stella, Pateras’ wife, was never overly maternal and aware of the sum of money and rise in society she would be granted, she eagerly gave permission for their son to be taken.

  Aardriyah was only four years old when she said goodbye to her brother, and she remembered little from that day other than seeing a spark in her father disappear forever. Her parents’ marriage never truly recovered from the loss of their son and Aardriyah never forgave her brother for shattering her once perfect world.