They Who from the Heavens Came (The Wisdom, #1)

When Itzy woke the next morning, she was struck with a climbing sense of unreality. Had the previous night actually happened?

Her hands still held her phone. Embarrassingly, she’d fallen asleep with it, hoping Aidan would text. He hadn’t – but there was a message from Devon. She opened it:

Having a DVD marathon at Ash’s. Thought you’d like to join us. Do something normal, for a change.

Normal. That sounded good, actually. She sent a reply, asking when to meet them. Then she hopped out of bed and got ready.

She felt different, that day – revitalised in a way she hadn’t thought possible – bright and a little jittery. The result was that she stole into her mother’s room, rummaged through her things and came away with a pair of black jeans and a tank top so red it practically glowed.

Once dressed, she bent over and let her long charcoal hair hang down, its ends touching the floor. She gathered it up in her hands and swung back up to standing. She dragged her fingers through her hair, smoothing out the ponytail as best she could, and pulled it through a red hair band. When she moved, it swung side to side across her back.

She headed downstairs, when the doorbell surprised her. It was Oz, dressed head to toe in black.

‘Hi,’ she greeted him.

He looked uncomfortable. ‘Is…is your mum home?’ No doubt he wasn’t ready to meet her, yet.

‘No, she’s at work. Come in,’ Itzy invited.

He followed her inside and they moved into the kitchen, where they sat at the breakfast table.

‘Is this a bad time?’ he asked.

She shook her head. ‘I was going to Ash’s, but I can spare a few minutes.’

Oz nodded and stared around the kitchen. He looked like he was about to jump out of his skin. ‘So…how’d it go?’ he asked.

At first, Itzy didn’t know what he mean. Then it clicked. ‘I don’t know what to tell you. Aidan’s…very nice. And you were right. Aidan was behind that crop pattern. That’s how Aidan met our father and joined his mission to find the Wisdom.’

Oz gasped softly. ‘Why does he want it? Aidan, I mean.’

‘I can’t tell you,’ Itzy said.

‘Why not?’

Itzy reflected that if this had been a week ago, she might have felt nervous about holding her ground. But a lot had happened in that time, and the feelings Aidan had inspired in her were special.

So she said, ‘It’s his personal business, so it’s not my place to share. It would be a betrayal of trust, you know? But I know he was being honest with me, and he’s not up to anything dodgy. At least, no more than our father was.’

Oz considered this. Finally, he said, ‘You have feelings for him.’

Itzy didn’t answer.

‘Seth can see it, too,’ Oz said, as if he were putting together the pieces of an intricate puzzle. ‘That’s why he’s so bloody moody, today.’

Itzy shifted in discomfort. ‘I saw him, last night. He never asked how things went.’

Her brother shook his head. ‘Of course he didn’t. You know he fancies you, right?’

Itzy flushed. ‘I…yes….’

Oz grinned. ‘Who knew my sister was such a heartbreaker?’ he teased.

She smiled, embarrassed. ‘Well, I do have the shirt,’ she reminded him.

He laughed.

She quickly moved to safer ground. ‘What confuses me,’ she said, ‘is the Wisdom doesn’t sound like something you can touch – Aidan even has this idea that it’s some kind of knowledge of the Creator – but everyone talks about it like it’s a thing that was taken away.’

Oz stretched his neck. ‘It’s always been a vague idea to me,’ he told her. ‘I’ve never really understood it. I suppose Aidan and our father were hoping to ask the Ancients.’

‘Why?’

‘Every holy book ever written was written thousands of years ago, right? So if anyone knows the truth, it’s the Ancients.’

‘Would the original writers still be alive?’

Oz shook his head. ‘I doubt it. But they might have a clearer lineage. Think about it. You weren’t told where you came from, and I was kept in the dark about a lot of things. If we hadn’t developed these powers of ours, we could’ve gone to our graves not knowing the truth. But the Ancients might be different. They would be the pure race, the ones who didn’t mate with humans.’

Itzy made a face. ‘You realise how creepy that sounds, don’t you?’

He nodded, the trace of a smile on his lips. ‘Did you find out how they made the patterns?’

‘Yes,’ she said, pleased to be able to contribute something useful. ‘It was Verdi.’

‘The composer?’ Oz said.

She laughed. ‘No. Remember the younger boy in the field?’

More pieces clicked into place. ‘Can he control plants or something?’

‘I think so,’ said Itzy. ‘Do you think those energy readings could’ve been registering Verdi, and not Aidan?’

Oz shrugged. ‘Maybe. I’m not exactly an expert with that thing, and if they were together…maybe it was a mix. So what can Aidan do? Or the girl, for that matter?’

‘I don’t know about her, but Aidan controls the elements,’ Itzy recited. ‘Last night, right? I was cold and he made it warm.’ She was aware she was blushing.

‘How romantic,’ Oz said dryly. ‘Is that why we were all choking, that day?’

She’d forgotten about that. ‘Probably,’ she said meekly. Then she remembered something. ‘That’s why the plants let me go. I was being dragged into the corn, and then everything just just stopped, and I couldn’t breathe. He must have cut off the air, to choke the plants.’

‘Quite a dramatic way to save you.’ When Oz saw the look on her face, he added, ‘I’m not trying to criticise him. I’m just saying…maybe be a little careful, here. Seth may be jealous, but…Aidan sounds a bit reckless.’

Itzy didn’t want to hear it. She knew it was stupid and utterly unlike her, but she wanted the conversation to end so she could go back to the fantasy she had already started building in her head, against her better judgment.

But Oz was her brother. And after all those years, there he was, giving her advice, worrying about her, just like she’d always wished someone would. So she swallowed her childish protestations and nodded at him in assent.

He rewarded her with an approving smile that she recognised from photographs of herself, and that she knew came from their father.

‘Good,’ he said. ‘Now that that’s out of the way – there’s another reason I came here.’ He reached into a bag he’d brought with him and produced their father’s journal. He opened it a little past the middle and handed it to her.

‘Still trying to decode his last words?’ Itzy guessed.

‘Last page with writing,’ he said. ‘You should probably read it. Maybe you’ll catch something I’ve missed.’

She eyed him before daring to look at the book. There it was again, that old familiar handwriting she had grown up with.

I was wrong. All this time, I thought they would know, but they’re just as in the dark as we were. It’s not there at all. It’s here – on Earth. The Wisdom has been here, all along, but only one person can use it. And that person has no idea.

Do I tell them?

I’ve waited so long to know the truth of where we come from. Now that I do, it’s not what I expected. I feel like the butt of a lifelong joke. I am the creation of a God who didn’t know He was creating me. I wonder how much of my life has been my choice and how much was out of my control. All the things I regret – were they ever truly my fault?

I’ve attracted too much attention. It was what I wanted, yes, but now that I know the truth…I should never have wanted it. They will stop at nothing to get the Wisdom. I fear for the child who holds it. God forgive me for what I have brought on us all.

As before, there was a break in the writing, and lower down it read:

‘God forgive me.’

Here I am, still believing that holds meaning. How can I be forgiven by a God who made me do what I’ve been doing? Why should I need forgiveness?

Except I do. I do, because when they come for us, I can’t say what they’ll do. All I know is it won’t be good.

Itzy snapped the book shut, making her brother jump. She handed it back to him and said, ‘This is rubbish.’

Oz regarded her carefully with those eyes that matched hers so well. ‘That’s what I thought, too. At first.’

‘At first,’ she echoed. ‘You can’t be serious. You knew our father. He was insane. He had split personalities. He can’t be trusted, even now he’s gone.’

She’d said it out loud: he was gone. Yes, Stephen Loveguard was gone.

So why didn’t he feel gone? How was he still managing to meddle with her life?

‘I know,’ Oz agreed, ‘but what if we’re wrong?’ He chewed his lip. After a moment, he said softly, ‘He thought losing the Wisdom was what was causing the split personalities – the mood swings. He said it was killing us. If he was trying to find it again...I think he was trying to cure himself, so he wouldn’t hurt us anymore.’

The tragedy of this revelation hit Itzy like gunshot. ‘If you’re right...,’ she started.

‘...how can we go on blaming our father when he struggled so hard to save himself?’ Oz finished. ‘In the end, I suppose it was just too much for him; his dark half won out, against his wishes.’

In her heart, Itzy knew her brother was right. At last, she felt she understood what had truly killed her father. It was horrible

Oz cleared the emotion from his throat and moved on. ‘So let’s assume he wasn’t quite as crazy as we thought. If we really are in danger...should we turn a blind eye to it? What if it comes back to bite us?

‘Don’t let them get my children,’ Itzy quoted.

‘Exactly. The question is: don’t let who get us?’

‘The Ancients,’ she said, her eyes dancing.

Oz gave her a look, as if to say, Now you get it.

Itzy frowned. ‘But why would he kill himself, if at the same time he was worried we might be hurt? It doesn’t make sense.’

Oz looked discomfited by her question. ‘That emotional splitting does strange things to people,’ he told her. ‘You’ve felt it, yourself.’ He sounded like he didn’t believe this explanation, himself.

Something else occurred to her. ‘Oz…our father said an Earth child carried the Wisdom.’

Her brother nodded.

Itzy started. She didn’t know why she hadn’t seen it before. ‘To him, we would’ve all been children.’

Oz opened his mouth to reply, but Itzy cut him off.

‘Aidan,’ she whispered, her eyes seeing something that wasn’t there. Then she shook herself out of the daze and looked at him in alarm.

Oz looked surprised. ‘What do you mean?’

‘Oz. Dad knew him, in the last month of his life. He knew what Aidan was capable of. Oh my God.’ She threw her hand to her mouth. ‘All this time…Aidan has the Wisdom.’

Her brother held her eyes, black mirrors of his own. Finally, he said, ‘Alright, slow down. Why would Aidan be going to such lengths to find the Wisdom if he already had it?’

‘That’s just it. Dad said the child who holds it doesn’t know.’

Oz chewed his lip.

There was an electronic beep, as the microwave clock struck the hour. Itzy started. ‘I’m going to be late,’ she realised.

Oz got up from the table. ‘I’ll drive you over.’

Itzy nodded and grabbed her bag. She took out her phone and texted Aidan while she walked out to the Ferrari.

Soon, they pulled up outside the Morgan house and Oz switched off the engine. ‘Itzy,’ he said. ‘Will you be alright?’

She was texting Aidan for the third time in as many minutes. ‘Dad said whoever held the Wisdom was in danger,’ she said. ‘I have to warn him.’

Oz placed his hand over hers. The gesture forced her to look up. ‘Then what?’ he asked.

Itzy opened her mouth to answer, but had nothing. ‘I don’t know,’ she said.

Her brother shook his head softly. ‘Right now, all we have is a theory. You don’t know it’s true.’

‘But what if it is?’

He sighed and gave her a sad look. ‘Then there’s not a lot we can do.’

Itzy swallowed. She hated that he was right.

‘Go be with your friends,’ he said. He nodded his head in the direction of the Morgan house. ‘Distract yourself.’

‘How can I when –’

‘Itzy,’ he cut her off. He leaned toward her and looked at her intently. ‘Do you have any idea what I’d give to have some normal time?’

She was stunned. Oz always seemed so cool. It took her back when he let her see what lay under the surface.

* * *

When Itzy finally knocked on Ash’s door, Mrs Morgan greeted her with a hug. Ashley’s mother was a tall, slender woman originally from Trinidad, though her son had failed to pick up any of her accent and sounded pure West London.

Ash and Devon were in the lounge. The oversized TV was already on and a stack of DVDs sat on the floor beside it. Ash had a large metal bowl filled with buttered popcorn, which he nearly upended when he jumped up to meet her.

‘You’re here!’ he cried. He pulled her into a brief hug and left a friendly kiss on her cheek. ‘We were beginning to think you’d been abducted.’

Itzy rolled her eyes.

‘No, really,’ said Devon. She clambered off the large corner sofa and hugged her friend. ‘Where were you?’

‘Sorry, I was talking to Oz.’

‘About crazy alien stuff?’ Ash guessed.

Itzy glanced behind her, worried his mother might have heard. ‘Shh,’ she scolded. ‘But yes.’

They sat together on the sofa and Itzy filled them in. When she’d finished, Ash stared at Itzy like he no longer recognised her. ‘You went out…on a date?’

Itzy gave him an incredulous look. ‘That’s what you’re focusing on?’

‘Itz, no offence,’ he said, ‘but I haven’t seen you date anyone since…well, me. If you can even call two fourteen-year-olds playing video games together and going to the comic book shop dating.’

He had a point.

‘I knew there was something different about you today,’ Devon remarked.

Itzy wrinkled her forehead. ‘What do you mean?’

‘Oh, come on.’ She shot her a knowing look. ‘For one thing, there’s your clothes. I can’t believe you actually chose to dress like that without me having to force you. Last night must have been good.’ Devon punctuated her words with a wink.

Itzy threw a cushion at her friend. ‘Nothing happened,’ she said. Then she checked her phone. There’d been no reply.

‘Are you worried about him?’ Devon asked.

Itzy nodded. It occurred to her that she was bringing the mood down, so she forced a smile and asked, ‘What are we watching?’

Devon jumped off the sofa and knelt on the floor. Her jeans crinkled under the bend of her knees. She rifled through the DVDs and read out the titles. ‘Attack of the Killer Shrews. King Dinosaur. Fire Maidens from Outer Space.’ She arched one of her fair eyebrows at her boyfriend.

Ash grinned. ‘That’s in honour of Itzy,’ he said with a wink.

Itzy rolled her eyes and Devon snorted in response.

They started with Fire Maidens from Outer Space. It was a ridiculous film about a group of men who went into space and discovered a world populated by a group of beautiful women who had never seen men before. They instantly fell for the astronauts, which was incredible, because the men were chauvinistic and unappealing.

As it turned out, the women were the last remnants of the lost civilisation of Atlantis – where Seth’s ancestors supposedly hailed from. Madly, Itzy found herself wondering what the real Atlantians were like.

When the film ended, Ash disentangled himself from his girlfriend just enough to look at both her and Itzy, and asked, ‘Verdict?’

‘Three stars,’ Devon said.

Itzy choked on the remains of the popcorn. ‘Three! No. One, definitely.’ She held up her forefinger, to emphasise her point.

‘I’m rating it for the entertainment factor,’ Devon said.

Itzy bowed to this logic and upped her rating to a two.

‘Another?’ Ash eagerly suggested.

Devon laughed and shook her head at him, but he was already on his feet, changing the DVD.

‘I’m getting a drink,’ Devon announced. ‘Either of you want anything?’

‘No, thanks,’ Ash murmured as he impatiently fast-forwarded through the piracy warnings at the start of the film and found the DVD menu.

‘Just water, please,’ Itzy said.

She smiled at how at home Devon was there. She could picture the two of them living together one day. She would come by to visit, hopefully with a partner of her own, and the four of them would watch more of those terrible films Ash never seemed to run out of. She and Devon would declare them awful and Itzy’s boyfriend would jump in to defend Ash with some overly deep interpretation they never would have spotted no matter how hard they tried, and they’d all just laugh together and be –

normal.

Was that possible for her, anymore?

Itzy checked her phone again. At last, there was a message from Aidan:

Been thinking about things.

Devon returned and handed Itzy her water.

‘Ta,’ Itzy said as she took it.

Devon reclaimed her seat beside her, on the sofa. ‘Did he respond?’ She indicated the phone.

‘Yeah.’ She showed her friend the message.

Devon clapped her hands together in excitement. ‘More like he’s thinking about you,’ she freely translated. ‘That’s what you should tell him. Seriously. Text him back and say that.’

‘Devon, that’s crazy,’ Ash said from his place on the floor.

‘No, it’s called flirting.’ She snatched the phone from Itzy and started typing something.

‘Devon!’ Itzy cried. ‘What are you doing?’

‘Replying. Done.’ She handed back the phone and Itzy read the message:

Do those things include me?

‘Devon!’ Itzy scolded in horror.

Ash hurried over and read over her shoulder. He laughed, and then laughed some more.

‘I’m glad you’re amused,’ Itzy said. She slumped back and frowned.

The phone lit up with a new message:

Of course.

Ash read it out loud, and Devon said, ‘See?’

Yes, she saw.

Ash shook his head and pointed at the TV. ‘If that’s out of the way, may I remind you we have another film to watch?’

He shoved Itzy aside so he could sit next to her, and hit play on the remote. Itzy smiled to herself as King Dinosaur started.