The Messenge (Iva and Nick) novel Chapter 442

+25 Points

Consequences

For a long moment, the witch seerned to have forgotten how to breathe. Her gaze moved from Caleb’s face to the amber stone and back again, as though she expected one of them to dissolve into smoke and reveal that this was some elaborate deception.

Finally, she whispered, “You travelled back in time?”

“Yes.”

“How far?”

Caleb hesitated.

“Far enough…”

“And you remember the past events?”

“Every one of them.”

Her face paled.

“That is impossible.”

“Apparently, it isn’t.”

Melisandre approached the table again, but this time she stopped several inches from the stone. She lifted one hand and began murmuring a diagnostic incantation, moving her fingers through the air above

the amber surface.

The candles flickered.

A thin silver line appeared between her fingertips, descending towards the stone like a strand of moonlight.

The instant it reached the amber surface, the light snapped.

Melisandre recoiled with a sharp gasp.

Caleb reached for her arm.

“What happened?”

She stared at the stone, her face drained of colour.

“Something answered me.”

“What do you mean?”

“I tried to determine whether the stone was still carrying temporal magic.” Her voice had dropped to a whisper. “But what I felt was not a spell. It was a presence.”

Caleb’s stomach tightened.

+25 Pointe

“What kind of presence?”

“I don’t know.” She looked at him sharply. “But it was aware of me.”

The amber stone pulsed once.

A faint sound filled the room, almost too soft to distinguish from the crackling candles.

A whisper.

Melisandre heard it too.

She backed away from the table, her hand flying to the silver chain around her neck.

“What did it say to you when you used it?” she demanded.

Caleb’s expression hardened.

“It told me that the right choice was not always the one that granted the greatest reward.”

The witch closed her eyes briefly.

When she opened them again, the fear in her face had become something more focused, more dangerous.

“Then you must listen to me very carefully. If the stone has a consciousness of its own, you cannot assume that it brought you back for your benefit. And if it has chosen you, there may be a reason that has nothing to do with what you want.”

Caleb looked down at the amber stone.

“I don’t care why it chose me.”

“Then you are already making a mistake.”

He raised his eyes.

Melisandre held his gaze.

“You may believe that you have been given a second chance to change your past. But time is not a door you can walk through and close behind you. Every change has consequences, and some of those consequences may not become visible until it is too late to undo them.”

“I understand.”

“Listen to me carefully, Caleb,” she finally said, turning towards him. “Whatever you have experienced, whatever you remember from the future you left behind, you must not allow that knowledge to become weapon you use carelessly.”

Caleb’s jaw tightened. “Someone is manipulating my family. If I know what is coming, why should I stand aside and let it happen?”

“Because knowing the future does not mean you understand every thread that holds it together.” Melisandre stepped closer, lowering her voice. “One altered conversation, one unexpected warning, one decision made differently can create ripples through time. You may prevent one tragedy only to cause

225

Consequens

another, and you might not realise what you have destroyed until it is too late.”

He looked away, his thoughts immediately turning to Iva.

+25 Points

He had already changed something simply by embracing her beside the lake, by approaching her with a tenderness she had not expected from him. Perhaps it had been insignificant. Perhaps it had changed nothing at all. But he could no longer be certain.

“Then what do you suggest I do?”

“Keep your knowledge to yourself. Do not tell a soul what has happened-not your parents, not your friends. The moment other people learn that you remember a future they have not lived, they may act differently, even with the best intentions. You cannot predict the consequences of their choices.”

Caleb’s expression darkened.

The words struck deeper than he wanted to admit.

He remembered the life they had built, the promises they had made, and the child whose laughter still lived inside his heart. Every instinct urged him to reclaim that happiness, to guide Iva towards the future he remembered and prevent anything that might separate them again.

But perhaps that was precisely the danger.

“Should I change nothing, then?” he asked.

“Change events only when absolutely necessary. If someone’s life is in immediate danger, you must use your judgement. But do not interfere simply because you believe you know how things should unfold.” She paused, her expression grave. “Even if you avoid the mistakes of your previous life, your future will not necessarily resemble the one you remember. Time has already been disturbed. You must accept that the path ahead may lead somewhere entirely different.”

Caleb absorbed her words in silence.

“And the price?” he finally asked. “You said the stone might demand a sacrifice. What will it take from me?”

For the first time that evening, Melisandre had no answer.

She glanced towards the amber stone, now resting quietly on the table, its golden glow, almost innocent.

“Only time will tell.”

Caleb gave a humourless smile. “I was afraid you would say that.”

“Be careful, Your Highness. You have been given something that many would destroy kingdoms to possess. Do not assume that a second chance is the same as a free one.”

He retrieved the stone and slipped it into his pocket.

“Thank you, Melisandre. For the potion, and for your advice.”

“I hope you remember it.”

“So do 1.”

VERIFYCAPTCHA_LABELVerify