The Síochán Ch. 03

The room had fallen into a deadly silence after Summer stopped speaking. A silence which was shattered when Kincaid suddenly muttered under his breath, "Oh, spare me another emotional diva."

"What do you mean by that, Kincaid?" Harlan snorted. "You better not be alluding to me with that comment. Just because you're a cold hearted bastard doesn't mean the rest of us have to be."

"Harlan, Kincaid," Lucas said with a weary sigh, his eyes never leaving Summer as he tried to nip the inevitable squabble which was about to break out between the two men. Now was not the time for them to be distracted.

"It has been a challenging meeting for you, Summer. Perhaps you need to take some time to think things through," Anton said in a kindly tone, rising to take her hand and turn her away from the man she saw as having betrayed her. "Come, walk with me a while. We do not need to speak."

"You can't leave now when it's just starting to get so interesting," Marcus laughed softly. "This has been the most entertaining meeting in a long time."

"Summer," Lucas interjected. "Perhaps it would be best if you took some time as Anton has suggested. We can continue the meeting later." He shot a quick, withering glance at Marcus as he spoke and the dark haired man just laughed harder.

Summer stared at all of them. She wanted to slap Marcus' smug face because he was enjoying her pain so much. Kincaid and Harlan were having a private, heated discussion and ignoring her completely. Lucas was looking at her with a slightly sad expression on his face and for a moment she actually felt sorry for him even though she didn't want to. She finally looked at Anton who was waiting patiently for her decision and she nodded her head mutely.

She didn't particularly want to be with any of them but if it was the only way to get away from Lucas then she would go with Anton. Lucas would only come to her if she were alone and right now she couldn't imagine ever wanting to speak to him again.

As soon as she nodded, Anton whisked them both away and she found herself in a Scrying Room. For a moment she thought it was her room but there was a subtle difference to the whiteness, almost the tiniest hint of blue rippling through the walls and the floor. "Where are we?" she asked quietly, her tone subdued.

"I thought you might like to visit with Nathaniel," Anton smiled gently at her. "I know he isn't here but this is his place. You've learned some pretty shocking things today, Summer, and I know you're dreadfully angry with us, Lucas in particular. But one of the things you learn very quickly here is that the concepts of right and wrong, good or bad, are just that, mere concepts when one is holding the fate of humanity in ones hands."

Summer's gaze was riveted to the Fountain as she listened to him. She wanted to go over and see what it was that Nathaniel had been looking at before he made the decision to leave. "Nathaniel lived here," she breathed softly, moving towards the Fountain as if drawn to it against her will.

"Yes," Anton said softly. "We used to spend quite a bit of time together Nathaniel and me. We were an unlikely mix, Zeal and Impartiality but we liked each other well enough. Before you look into the waters, Summer, I must speak with you about Lucas."

She halted and turned to face him. His handsome face was wearing a kind expression.

"I look at all sides to everything before I speak my mind, Summer," he said quietly. "Don't judge us too harshly. Don't judge Lucas too harshly. He volunteered to train you, knowing that he would bear the brunt of your anger when you learned the truth. You think he has hurt and betrayed you. His pain is no less than yours. He loves you in his own way. Your rejection of him will distress him greatly, but if he had the chance to do it over again, he would make the same choices even knowing what he knows now. He has learned that the greater good is so much more important than any one person's feelings. He didn't keep the truth from you out of malice, Summer. He merely waited until you were strong enough to be able to endure it."

She stared at him, her thoughts in turmoil. She had been with them long enough to be able to segregate her thoughts and feelings when she tried hard enough. She tried now, remembering the sadness in Lucas' eyes before she left. Her initial anger waned slightly. She was still completely shell shocked by what she had learned, but she could objectively look at Lucas' actions without allowing her emotions to run rampant. She could understand Anton's logic on the matter.

"But the good and evil thing, Anton. Maybe I can forgive the rest in time but I can't ever envision being able to take the life of someone who's only crime is to be a good person." Her distress was evident in her voice.

"It is our mission to protect all of humanity, Summer," he sighed softly. "We do so by ensuring that the balance between good and evil remains as constant as possible. You are so sure that good is the best option because you have been taught that evil is wrong. But there has to be a balance between the two of them, Summer. Too much good would be just as destructive as too much evil. Humanity would suffer under both extremes. In time you will come to see that too, though you probably won't believe that right now."

She didn't believe him. For her to reach that conclusion would mean that she would be leaving the last of her humanity aside and she wasn't ready to do that. She still thought of herself as being human. Hell, she didn't even know what she was now.

"Think on it, Summer," Anton smiled. "I will inform the others we will be postponing the meeting until another day. Take some time here and then think about what you have learned. I will ask Lucas to give you the space you need at the moment."

"Thank you, Anton," she said managing a weak smile. She turned back to the Fountain sensing him depart and thankful that she was now alone. She gazed down into the swirling waters of Nathaniel's Scrying Fountain and reach out with her senses. "What were you looking at, Nathaniel?" she whispered softly. "What did you see that made you turn your back on what you held so dear to you?"

The waters rippled and then suddenly calmed, the surface seeming to become like a mirror for a second before it changed into glass. Through the glass Summer saw a street with a wealthy house at the very end of it. Her breath caught and she felt a stab of pain in her chest as the vision before her shifted and she was inside the house, an invisible spectator....

"Father is going to be so cross when he finds out what you've done, Christopher," the pretty girl with long blonde curls laughed as she viewed her little brother who was completely covered in coal dust.

"I was only playing," the little boy whined in a high pitched voice. "Please help me, Summer. Father won't be home for an hour. Help me get cleaned up before he arrives."

Sixteen year old, Summer Melrose shook her head with a fond smile on her face as she regarded her ten year old brother. "Run upstairs and bathe quickly. I'll tidy up the cellar for you. Hurry, off you go!"

"But the water will be cold," Christopher grumbled under his breath.

"It will be but at least you'll be clean when Father gets home." She shooed him away quickly and laughing softly to herself, as she turned to walk down to the cellar to cover up his antics.

Summer stepped back from the Fountain with a startled gasp. Tears sprang to her eyes. She could remember that day as if it were only yesterday. They had managed to hide all signs of Christopher playing in the coal cellar from their father. Why had Nathaniel been watching her home? Why had that been the last thing he looked at before he left? And why hadn't he recognised her when he came to the house on the night of her death?

A sudden numbness overcame her and she bit down a cry. No one had answered her when she had asked which one of them had been going to kill her before Frederick came along. She didn't think they had refused to answer because they were sparing her feelings. No, they had refused to answer because the person who had been selected for that task wasn't in the room. They had known she was a danger by the time she was sixteen. Nathaniel had been the one chosen to eliminate the problem. Only he hadn't done so, he had left the Síochán instead.

She had come to the meeting looking for answers and had ended up with more questions. Suddenly unable to deal with any more, Summer took herself to her private rooms and climbed into bed. She closed her eyes and blanked her mind completely, succumbing to a deep sleep instantly.

To be continued...