Celestial Gardens(The Last Star Trilogy #2)

I huffed and fell in my seat. “Can we stop now?” I begged.

“I suppose so,” Hellen allowed.

We’ve been doing this for hours and everytime I tried to manipulate that stupid stone both my temples started aching. It was the same thing that happened when I Stargazed. I feared I would collapse any second.

Hellen put the stone on the table in front of me and ordered that I try to make it hover again. I concentrated hard enough and I finally got it up in the air. I had to keep floating for five minutes, with much effort I did. It landed on the table with a thud.

“Why are you having so much difficulty?” Hellen wondered out loud. “It’s a stone from one of Virgo’s Stars then you should be okay with conducting it. Just like you do with your Constellations.”

“I don’t know. Maybe it’s because I haven’t done it in a long time. Or maybe because that stone isn’t the one I normally use.” I gulped.

“Like I said, neither of those things should matter.” she repeated. “Did you use a stone from Virgo or Ophiuchus?”

“Virgo.”

“Have you tried Ophiuchus?” she asked. I shook my head.

“Maybe that will work better. Although it shouldn’t matter.” she said patiently.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” I said in a low voice.

“I think that’s enough for one day.” Hellen said. “I’ll call you for your next class, we’ll try to do it at least two times a week.”

She put the stone in my hand and I hid it in my pocket. I was afraid I might get it out of control and accidently hurt someone with it but I promised Hellen I wouldn’t practice on my own. The cold air brushed my skin and I pulled my sweater tighter. The sky was pink and orange, it was almost lunch time but I wasn’t hungry.

My plan was to hide until I no longer could. I first went to the archery range it was empty but after a while I saw some people coming towards me and ran. The weapon’s room was locked but the gym was empty and my last option since the girls’ room was too vulnerable for me. Everything was covered in a blanket of dust, I didn’t bother turning the lights on because they pierced my eyes. I sat in a corner staring at the walls. My head still hurt from my first astronomy class. In middle school I could Stargaze and manipulate Star Stones in my sleep and now I couldn’t do it without having a fear of losing consciousness.

The door creaked open. I held up my hand, shielding myself from the Starlight shining on my face.

“Annabelle?” Tristan called. I debated staying quiet. But the truth is it was freezing cold in here and I was exhausted.

“I’m here.” I said. He rushed to my side.

“What are you doing here?” he asked.

I got to my feet and leaned against the wall for support.

“I was supposed to be hiding,” I told.

“Come on,” he said. “Let’s get you to your room.”

Tristan waited outside the girls’ room until I went inside. No one was there except Raelynn, she sat on my bed with a bowl of broth and a stale bun. The broth smelled good and despite my plan to not eat anything I drank every last drop of it. The bun was alright. I could feel the warm liquid go down my throat. Raelynn went to the training area and I followed her. Phoenix was giving archery lessons and Nathan forced me to stab a dummy for practicing how to use a dagger. I regretted doing that because there was no point. Raelynn had me on the treadmill for what seemed like forever. Phoenix didn’t push too much during archery and abruptly I wasn’t terrible at it this time. Looks like the practice paid off.

I couldn’t sleep that night. I was fighting hard to keep down my dinner, threatening to spill until I could no longer hold it in. I was standing in the bathroom for half the night because apparently the plan was to empty my stomach. I went outside for some fresh air and I wasn’t the only one who was having a tough night. Tristan was standing near the training area staring at the sky. I squinted my eyes to make sure it was Tristan, I couldn’t see that well since the training area isn’t that close to the girls’ quarters. I sauntered towards him and noticed that he was Stargazing because Capricorn was lit above us. I was tempted to do the same with Virgo and Ophiuchus.

“Hi,” I greeted.

“What are you doing up this late?” he asked, concerned.

“I can ask you the same thing.” I said.

“Couldn’t sleep?”

“No, you?” I said.

“No, you have no idea how loud the snoring gets in the boys’ room.” he joked.

“I can imagine although some of the girls aren’t much different.” I told.

“How are you feeling?” he questioned, hesitantly.

“Honestly, I don’t know.” I stated.

“I heard about your dad,” he added quietly. “It’s okay. You’ll get used to her.”

“But I don’t want to,” I shot back. “It doesn’t matter anyway. I’m never going to see her again.”

Tristan stopped conducting Capricorn and went on staring at other Constellations. He seemed particularly interested in one small one which I couldn’t tell which one it was though. It only consisted of three Stars, that’s when I realized what it was.

“The Summer Triangle.” I whispered.

“Yeah,” Tristan confirmed. “That’s how Crimsyn State is protected.”

“How does an asterism protect this place?” I wondered out loud.

“Those three Stars,” he pointed to Altair, Denab and Vega. The brightest Stars in each of their Constellations, Aquila, Cygnus and Lyra respectively. “They form the asterism that keeps Crimsyn State safe from any outsiders. And we can’t just walk out of here. When those Stars align they remove the hidden barrier around Crimsyn State and when they go back in place, when they make the imaginary triangle, that’s when we’re protected.”

I stared at the asterism in amazement, a little embarrassed as well since I made such a big deal about not being protected. An asterism was a group of Stars smaller than a Constellation. I had seen the Summer Triangle before but I didn’t know it concealed Crimsyn State.

“How do you get the Stars to align?” I asked.

“Well, as you may already know, asterisms can’t be fully controlled unless they’re made out of Stars belonging to the same Constellation. Neither of us could do it because we had no descendant of Aquila, Cygnus or Lyra but we had to bend a few rules.”

“How so?” I asked curiously.

Tristan hesitated. “Since we have five descendants of the Twelve Major, not counting you at the moment. Me, Nathan, Anthony and Raelynn concentrated hard enough on our Constellations’ power and used that strength to move the Summer Triangle and reveal Crimsyn State.”

I was confused for a moment but then I slowly started to understand. “That’s how you’re dad got inside and outside. He didn’t just walk in here.” he added.

“Now I’m reassured,” I sighed. “But you’re controlling someone else’s Stars. Is that even safe? Or legal?”

“It’s safe if you have a lot of Constellations with you. And it can’t be just some ordinary Constellation. It has to be a few of or all of the Twelve Major otherwise you won’t survive. Especially not an asterism. I can’t say whether it’s legal or not since King Jaxon has already taken seventeen Constellations from people.”

“Seventeen?” I repeated. He’s been busy.

“Yeah,” he nodded.

“Why is he even doing that?” I wondered out loud.

“He’s just power hungry. He’s taking more than he can.” Tristan said.

“I hope we can stop him.” I prayed.

“Me too,” Tristan agreed.

After minutes of silence I realized, “If Hydra is as powerful as the Twelve Constellations then we need all the descendants here.”

“We already have six, you’re a double threat since you have Ophiuchus in you too.” he said.

“But we need six more.” I said.

“I was supposed to bring Aries, Gemini and Sagittarius but they were in their home provinces. It was a hassle traveling with my family anyway.” he told.

“And what about Libra, Scorpio and Leo?” I asked.

“We’re hesitant about Scorpio since they have close relations with the Hydras. Although, Libra and Leo, we’re working on them but since everyone is in their home province, it’s hard to communicate.” he answered.

“It’s said we lost Scorpios, McKenna might me stuck up but I have nothing against her Constellation,” I said.

“Or any Constellation.” I added quickly.

“Still we’re hoping for Leo and Libra. I think it’ll be hard for Libra too since they’ll want to stay neutral to balance it out.” Tristan said.

“Well, that’s what they stand for. Balance scales.” he smiled.

“Representing equality may not necessarily mean they become neutral. They could choose the side which is fighting against injustice.” I said.

“I hope they do, I don’t want us to lose another good Constellation like Scorpio.” Tristan prayed silently. We were both doing the same.

Hellen would call me two or three times a week but I’d never get used to the frustration and fatigue each class would bring. I woke up early, had a light breakfast, workout with Raelynn and Phoenix, we’d practice archery afterwards and Nathan would give me a sword fighting lesson after lunch. I washed up before dinner and had no problem closing my eyes at night. That had been my routine for the past few weeks. I was restless sometimes, and my pain pierced my temples from every class with Hellen but eventually I got used to it. I had been doing this for weeks. I was okay with the food too, I learned it didn’t taste as bad as it looked if you’re making conversation with someone and distracted by the flavourless meal.

Alfred was always busy and Hellen found it harder and harder to make time with me. One day she seemed so frustrated I felt guilty about giving her such a hard time. Nonetheless, she didn’t drop her only student. She didn’t even get annoyed by me or scold me even. I felt bad that I was inferior around her. But it’s something about her posture that sends a chill down my spine, makes me frightened or cautious and everytime I fail there’s this fear of getting yelled at. I decided to ignore it though. I hadn’t Stargazed in a really long time, maybe that’s what was making it difficult to manipulate the Star Stone. I Stargazing before my surroundings starting dissolving around me and I had to massage the pain from my head and rub my eyes until they could focus clearly.

I had become more serious about the rebellion ever since my talk with Tristan. I’ve been energetic during training even though it tires me out in seconds. I haven’t complained about the unhealthy food or bad living conditions. It’s not so bad. But what I’ve wanted to do since that night I talked him was to bring Amara, Lyra and Lewis here. I wanted to talk to Alfred about negotiating with Libra and Leo but even if they did agree, I doubt Gwendolyn Leo would be serious about this or would even care. She just wants to be the centre of attention. Like all Leos, she has a desire to be loved, other Leos that I’ve met, members of Gwen’s family, aren’t like her at all. They’re not begging you to love them, unlike Gwen. She does have a tragic backstory. Losing her parents and all. I cursed under my breath, another Constellation we might have lost. Such a powerful and impressive one to. Because of my past feuds with her I was naturally annoyed by her. No matter what she did, I was irritated. I had to remind myself that this is no time to settle arguments because of personal grudges. This is not about me.

Who else do we have? Libras.

Violet Libra was kind and gentle, a lover of beauty. But I suppose everyone had a negative side. She’s also unreliable, lazy and maybe even superficial. Like all the other Libras. I don’t have anything against anyone. I’m not implying that my Constellation gave me perfect traits but with their balanced rights and harmony how are we going to get this war started? But it’s already started. It’s been going on for years.

It’s just been concealed from the entire population of Stellaregno. Now it was out in the open. We have to get Lyra, Amara and Lewis here. At least we’ll have eight Constellations that way. Nine, if you count Ophiuchus. For the first time I felt good about myself, I was a double threat. Only if I managed to redeem control over my Constellations.

I twisted and turned in my sheets. I couldn’t sleep, again. Phoenix was snoring her way through the night in the far corner of the room. Raelynn, she seemed bubbly and happy the first time I met her even though she could have gotten arrested for blowing up the dungeon at the time, she had been aloof in Crimsyn State. Sure, she was kind and generous but she only talked if someone else started the conversation. She’s progressive too, that another good thing about Aquarius’, they’re committed to fighting for a cause.

According to Tristan, that’s why it was so easy to persuade them into joining the rebellion. Aquarius was the first Constellation after Ophiuchus, I hadn’t met any other Aquarius nor did I ever ask Raelynn about her family. She didn’t have any siblings, maybe her parents stayed in the Family Compartments. That’s where Nathan’s mom, Phoenix’s and Tristan’s parents had been moved. I guess only the toddlers lived with their parents.

I could see the sky turning from blue to orangish pink from the Starlight pouring in underneath the door. I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling before Phoenix’s alarm clock pierced my ears. That roused everyone except Phoenix herself. Usually she’s the first one awake but lately she’s been exhausted, training herself and teaching others. But she is the best even though she may be rude and ignorant of others’ feelings. Those are two of Taurus negative traits. I thought I’d never find anything good about her. But I slowly realized that she’s reliable, ambitious and has an eye for beauty. She does have an obsession with the colour black and tries to find the beauty in it, but I don’t think that’s an official Taurus trait.

There was a knock on the door as soon as I stepped out of the bathroom. Everyone else was in line for the bathroom at the other end of the room so I unlocked the door, revealing an overworked Hellen standing in the cold, wind blowing her messy grey hair in her yellowish green eyes. Without saying a word she put her hand on my shoulder and pulled me out of the room, trying to be discreet. Her expression was calm and she had a ghost of a smile on her face, as always. I didn’t object as she lead me to the Conference Hall Building with her arm around my shoulders.

We entered a small room with a bookshelf against one wall, I window with curtains draped on the other wall. A desk with two chairs on each side, it was piled with books and notes and the pen was dripping ink. She switched off the lamp on the desk and stared deeply at the map of Stellregno plastered on the wall behind the desk. The only sound was of the clock ticking, I couldn’t even hear my own footsteps on the carpeted floor. She rummaged through one of the drawers in her desk and carefully placed all the papers in it. She stacked the books and sat across from me.

“I wanted to have our class yesterday but something came up.” she explained. “Sorry to drag you here like that but I really had to start early.”

“That’s okay.” I assured. The stone from Virgo was sitting on the desk untouched, Hellen didn’t notice until it glowed blue when I lifted it into the air.

“Oh, we won’t be needing that today.” she said.

I kept the stone back in my pocket, trying not to look too embarrassed.

“What are we doing today, then?” I asked.

“Annabelle, I need assurance that you are fully, one hundred percent dedicated to our cause.” she said gently. I opened my mouth but was stopped by her holding up her hand.

“Words aren’t enough.” she stated.

“What do you want me to do?” I asked, perplexed.

“With a full heart and full spirit of the rebellion, of Crimsyn State, I need you to swear by Ophiuchus that you will do whatever it takes to help the cause and help us win.” she said, determined. “Whether we win or lose in the end, your effort and courage will be an inspiration.”

She should’ve done this in front of witnesses, just in case I break my vow and she’s left with no evidence to punish me. But since she’s making me swear on my Constellation, an audience is not necessary because I’ll be disciplined by the Stars. Probably lose my sanity or jump off a building, that’s what I’ve heard. Maybe not that painful but something of the sort. It took me a while to answer. Was I really willing to give up everything for the rebellion? I had already lost my home. What about my friends? Would I sacrifice them? Or even myself? If it ever came to that.

“I promise to do whatever I can to help this war. To help the cause and I will be here till the end.” I said, and I mean every word of it. “I swear by Ophiuhcus.”

I could imagine Ophiuhus waking up, becoming aware of my vow. It felt like someone had tied a knot on my rib and tugged on it. “And Virgo.” I added quietly. Again, the same feeling.

“Thank you.” she smiled.

“Is that all?” I asked.

“Not quite.” she said. “Annabelle, with your inability to control the Star Stone, I am concerned about your health. It shouldn’t be so hard and excruciating.”

“I’ve been training and taking all my meals regularly.” I confessed.

“Health isn’t only taking care of your body. It’s cleansing of the mind and heart.” she quoted.

I have a feeling I was in for a spiritual lecture about taking care of yourself mentally and physically. After a restless night I wasn’t in good shape for training so, ironically, I preferred sitting in a chair and listening to an elderly over that.

“What’s wrong, Annabelle?” she asked, concerned. “I know it’s hard. To leave everything behind and come here. That’s a brave choice, people might think it’s selfish but you have to have faith in yourself and the people around you. You’re not alone.”

“I know, but...” I trailed off. How am I supposed to tell her that I’m having trouble Stargazing? I don’t fully trust her. For some reason, she gives me goosebumps and her voice tickles my ear, not in a good way. In a way that it echoes in you skull repeatedly.

“I just...just...” I stammered, pressuring myself for a good excuse. “I’ve never experienced a war before so I guess I’m mentally disturbed.”

“I see. It’s alright.” she assured. “You’re trained and safe. You can fight when the time comes.”

I nodded. “Annabelle, you are the last living descendant of Ophiuchus, successor to Eloise Ophiuchus and your Constellations combined are as powerful as Hydra and can you can defeat them.”

“Honestly, I don’t see the speciality in Ophiuchus. Virgo is the second largest Constellation and I can fight Hydra with it’s help.”

“Dear girl, you have no idea what Ophiuchus is capable of.” she said, aghast. “Yes, Virgo is almost the equivalent of Hydra but this rebellion is about Ophciuhus because of the legend behind it.”

“Legend?” I repeated. “It’s not a legend. Both the Constellations just happen to be tangled up and Ophiuchus is just a man grasping the sea snake, Hydra.”

“It’s fate.” she whispered loudly. “It means you have the smallest control over Hydra, and since the Hydras are trying to steal power from the other Constellations you can stop them.”

“One small power cannot help me defeat a king.” I insisted. I felt bad about stomping on her optimism.

“It can and it will.” she pushed. “You are the only one who can. Only The Last Star can.” She added winked at me as she spoke the last bit. I smiled. Alfred had called me The Last Star when we first met, another way of saying that I was the last person with Stardust from Ophiuchus in my blood, I didn’t know how big of a deal it was then.

There was a long pause. I felt like I owed an apology to Hellen for being self-critical after I promised to be brave. But then the realization hit me that I should apologize to myself. Right, that’s going to happen.

“When the time comes, you will grasp Hydra and save us all from extinction.” Hellen said confidently. I nodded in agreement.

“But no pressure!” I joked. Hellen chuckled.

“You have tons of help from us,” she assured. “We’re with you and you’re going to defeat King Jaxon and the other Hydras.”

“I hope so.” Because if I don’t we’ll all either be enslaved or dead.