Page 4 of The Void

Okay, so she could still shift into a dog. Check that off the list.

What about her other gifts?

She didn’t have as many as some of her ancestors had. The numerous powers the Li family djinn had boasted were an enigma to her.

She’d been stuck with shapeshifting, stopping time, and traveling to the Void. She could also travel to a place she called the Between, a space where no one could get hurt and time moved differently. Then there was her gift of giving visions. It was like Selene’s power of giving waking nightmares to all who touched her, but Mia’s visions were, well, good.

Mia couldn’t keep her dog form for too long, so she turned back into her regular form and started walking towards the mountains. How far were they, anyway?

Why had she never dared to travel on foot to them before? Sure, she’d appeared in her family’s cavern, which was hidden somewhere within those mountains, but she’d never explored beyond the sand or the cavern.

Something in her mind screamed for her to stop. To not go there. But she was hot, thirsty, and tired.

The two suns above her beat down on her, and she pulled off the dress’s long sleeves and bulky over-jacket before she overheated.

She’d never been in the Void longer than a few hours and had never spent more than a few moments in the desert. Usually, she only traveled there for a moment of peace and quiet.

Stopping, she closed her eyes and silently wished for a bottled water. She gasped when she felt one appear in her hand. She opened her eyes and smiled. She quickly tore off the lid and drank down every last drop.

If she could conjure a bottled water, what else could she do? She tried a few different things, but got frustrated when nothing else seemed to work.

After almost two hours of walking and not feeling she was any closer to the mountain range, she sat in the sand, frustrated.

What she needed was shade. She groaned and threw a handful of sand in the direction that she’d been traveling.

Suddenly, the sand a few feet away from her shifted and started to swirl. She jumped up and backed away a few feet, watching in amazement as a tall monolith rose slowly from the sand, twisting until it hovered over her almost a hundred feet.

When the sand around it stopped moving, she cautiously approached the tower. There, in the base of the solid stone, was an arched doorway made of wood. A large symbol was carved in the thick wood.

Down the middle was a large slash. On either side, two triangles were turned on their sides, their points crossing.

The symbol was beautiful… and somehow familiar.

Reaching out, she touched it with her fingers, tracing the line down the center. Suddenly, a blue light flashed and the door slowly opened.

She took a few steps back and then peered into the darkness.

Nothing like this had ever happened to her before.

“Welcome, Mia,” a soothing female voice called out to her. “Please, you are safe here.”

She stepped inside the door. The moment she was in the darkness, the door slammed shut, sending the room into complete darkness.

“I’ve been waiting for you,” the female voice said.

Suddenly, a light shone on a table that was filled with small plates of colorful food and a pitcher of water.

“Please,” the voice said. “Everything here you have conjured up yourself. Drink. Eat. While your powers rejuvenate and grow.”

“Who are you?” Mia called out.

“I am Feng, mother of djinn. Search your mind, you will find me.”

“Where are you?” Mia turned circles, but so far, everything else in the room was dark.

“I am everywhere. I have always been here, waiting for you,” Feng said. “Sit, drink, eat, rest.”

Another light appeared over a soft-looking bed.