Hidden Truths
For many years, I walked around feeling like a ghost. People saw me but they only saw disappointment. Even while my parents were alive, the emptiness was there. The only thing that ever gave me comfort was my dreams. Well, that was until I met Doya.
Over the months, as Kumbuye and I struggled through everything, I called for him. He never answered. I thought I'd lost him. I thought...
"Doya?" I whispered into the darkness.
He stepped closer, letting the firelight catch his face.
My heart melted. He was real.
I was too shocked to move.
He came closer, and I could see him clearly now, then he said my name again.
"Dana."
My heart sank, I finally moved my legs with tears streaking my eyes. I rushed into him and hugged him.
"I tried, Dana," he whispered into my ears.
"Where have you been," I mumbled, still hugging him tightly. "I-I called for you, but you never answered."
I pulled back looking into his eyes.
"I'm sorry, I—" he choked out.
"I thought I lost you," I whispered.
He reached for me, cupping my face in his hands and wiping the tears off my cheeks with his thumb.
"I tried," he murmured, "I tried so hard to get to you... but I couldn't."
"I..." I trailed off. I wanted to press everything into that single sound, I missed you.
I closed the space. His breath hit my face and I jammed my lips into his before I could think. He pulled me in by the waist, deepening the kiss. His mouth was warm. A sob broke out of me and I tried to pull away but he held on, kissing me deeper.
When we broke the kiss, he rested his forehead against mine, then wrapped his arms around me and held me against his chest.
"Please... let's stay like this for a while," he murmured. I could hear his racing heartbeat.
I slid my arms around his back and held him closer.
We stayed like that for a while, until reality returned.
Kumbuye.
I lifted my head, turning to see past the fire where Kumbuye lay on the ground behind me.
I led Doya closer to the fire and we sat down together. Kumbuye had already fallen asleep.
"I thought you were dead." I muttered as I rested my head on his shoulders.
He laughed softly, tilted his head, and kissed my forehead. "I missed you."
I told him most of what I had been through, until I started to yawn.
"Sleep," he whispered against my hair. "I've got you."
---
The next morning, the cold woke me first.
A chill breeze rushed through my clothes, biting at my skin. I blinked my eyes open to the pile of gray ash, the remnant of last night's fire.
I sat up, checking behind me. Kumbuye was still fast asleep.
"You're awake."
I turned. Doya was sitting on a fallen log a few feet away, packing his bag. His back was to me, and that was when I saw it — the robe.
He wasn't wearing his usual silver. It was a deep blue fabric.
"You changed your colors," I said, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.
He turned to meet my gaze. "Yes. I got promoted."
"Oh." I blinked, staring at the blue fabric. "That's great."
He shrugged. "Not really."
I did not know much about what Doya had been through. He had said last night that he tried to get to me, but I still did not understand what he meant. I had called for him more times than I could count, and he never answered.
"Well," I said, "congratulations on your promotion."
He nodded.
We had not spoken about the kiss. I told myself I did not want to talk about it but I was curious to know what it had meant to him.
"Um... last night," I began, then trailed off.
"What?" He asked.
"Never mind," I said at last. "It's not important."
He nodded, "alright."
I moved closer to Kumbuye and rested my palm on his forehead, to check his temperature. The moment I touched him, he stirred in his sleep.
"You said you tried so hard to get to me," I finally said, breaking the silence.
Doya's head lifted at the sound of my voice. "Yes," he muttered.
"But I called for you," I said. "You never answered."
"I know," he replied. His hand rose to his face, rubbing down slowly. "I felt you. I just couldn't reach you."
"Why?"
"The veil wouldn't let me through," he replied. "Since the attack on the temple, I haven't been able to pass through it."
"I'm sorry," I whispered.
Losing the ability to veil-walk must have been horrible for him. I could not begin to imagine how he was feeling.
He shook his head. "It's not your fault."
"Well... how did you find me?" I asked, curiosity slipping into my voice.
He laughed. "You have a bounty on your head," he said scratching his head, then added, "I saw the posters. Yours and Kumbuye's."
"Oh." I joined him in the laughter. "Now, that's a story for another time." I said in-between laughs. Then the laugh died down and I asked again, "well, what I'm asking is, how did you know I was in the North?"
"Like I said, I felt you. All the times you called on me and every time you got scared, I knew, so I followed that fear."
"I thought only the veil let you find me when I was in trouble."
"I told you before," he said softly, "we're more connected than you think. Even I don't fully understand it." He stood up swinging his bag over his shoulders. "I may not be able to pass through the veil anymore, but I can still feel you. Still see you." He started walking to me. "And that hurts even more, knowing that I can't do anything from a distance."
"Oh," I blurted feeling my chest squeeze. Doya always knew his way around words.
"You still haven't told me about your journey," I added.
"It's not important," he muttered. "Let's just focus on your mission."
"Did something happen?" I pressed. "What aren't you telling me?"
He didn't answer. He just walked past me.
"Doya," I said, "if there's something wrong, you have to tell me."
He shook his head, brushing it off. "It's nothing, Dana."
Why was he lying to me?
I turned my attention to Kumbuye who was still fast asleep. I gently shook him, urging him awake. He slowly opened his eyes, groaning at the disturbance. "It's time," I whispered. "We have to move."
---
Days slipped by on the road. We survived on dried fruit, small rations of bread Doya had with him, and whatever little game Kumbuye managed to catch. His injury had improved. The bleeding had stopped and the wound was already beginning to close. Every day, he carefully applied the ointment the apothecary man had given us. Streams were frozen, but we found pockets of water under the ice, and snow melted over our small fires when needed.
The compass's glow grew stronger each day. I started to feel the Cranium's pull inside me. It was like a low him in my ears, that came and left, but I would swear that it was the Cranium.
There was very little conversation among the three of us. We most times only spoke whenever we stopped to eat, or rest for the night.
By midday, we stopped beside a cluster of trees. Kumbuye leaned against a tree trunk, closing his eyes as he took deep breaths.
I glanced at Doya. He had dropped his bag and was checking the contents, like he had been doing the past few days.
I crouched beside Kumbuye, brushing the snow from his cloak. "Kumbuye..." I began quietly. He opened one eye, still groggy. "I need you to do something for me."
He tilted his head slightly, waiting for me to say what I wanted.
"Doya..." I glanced at him, then back at Kumbuye. "I know he's hiding something. I can feel it. I want you to... try to... uh... see what he's thinking. Just for a moment. Only enough to know if there's danger or if he's holding something important from us."
He shifted beside me, a small smirk tugging at his lips. "Wary of him now?" he asked, amusement lacing his tone.
"Not wary," I replied, keeping my voice calm, "just... I feel like... I feel like he's holding... you know, something from us, something we're supposed to know."
Kumbuye looked at me, speaking in a more serious tone, "you know Doya won't like that."
"Yes, I know but... I'm doing this for us, so we'll be sure." I whispered.
"Sure about what?" He asked. "And you're not really the one doing anything, I am."
"Well, would you help me or not?" I hissed.
He exhaled, closing his eyes. He opened them back and kept his eye on Doya, furrowing his brows. I held my breath, watching him, peer into Doya's mind.
"Dana..." he whispered.
"What—What is it? What did you see?" I asked in a rush.
"There's something in his bag... a Containment," he replied, his eyes still searching for answers in Doya's thoughts.
"And?" I pressed.
"I... I'm not sure. But I think it's meant to hold something... more like someone's power." His face twisted.
"Okay..." I murmured, expecting more.
"I can't get further... he's blocking his thoughts," Kumbuye admitted.
"Keep going. Dig deeper," I urged, our gazes locked on Doya, who was still focused on his bag, oblivious to us.
Kumbuye's lips parted, "I think... it's meant to activate for you. But I'm not sure. It can hold... someone's entire energy."
My heart skipped. Why would Doya have something that could contain a person's energy?
"What else?" I asked.
"I... I can't. I'm not strong enough," Kumbuye croaked.
"You have to keep digging. We have to know."
"K... Dana, I—"
His words cut off as I noticed the blood trickling from his nose.
"Oh no." I whispered. "I'm... sorry. I had—"
He wiped the blood away. "It's fine," he muttered.
I drew in a deep breath. Whatever Doya was hiding I would find out.