Elizah shuffled around her cottage, looking for the spare key she usually kept under the flowers. At the same time, Jayden just stood there patiently watching her.

“You know I could just melt the lock and we could get in right?” Jayden said after a few moments with a smile on his face.

“No, no, don’t do that. That’ll make it impossible to keep people out. Give me a minute. It’s around here somewhere,” Elizah said as she dug under a plant root and removed an old rusted key from the mud.

“Well, it’ll be a miracle if the door opens with such a battered old key,” Jayden said, and he watched as the door swung open.

“Well then, consider it your lucky day,” Elizah said, and she strolled in. She was hit by nostalgia as she observed the empty kitchen and dining room.

“It seems like they left a long time ago,” Elizah said softly, and she ran her fingers on the piano keys.

Jayden put a gentle hand on his wife’s shoulder and touched her right hand. It was scarred, but one could still see where the ring he had given her was, and it had been unharmed.

“Did you enchant the ring or something?” Jayden asked, and Elizah smiled with a fond gaze.

“Yes. I was far too worried that I would end up damaging it. I would never forgive myself if there was even a single scratch on it. I did it before the ceremony itself. It will keep the ring from crusting over with blood or ever being scratched,” Elizah said. She walked away from the piano and towards the room she had shared with Micah all these years.

Jayden peeped in, unsure of what he should expect from Elizah’s room, but instead just found a room with nothing more than two cots and a stuffy bookshelf.

“Welcome to my humble abode,” Elizah said, and she bowed, and Jayden laughed.

“Well, your new home is no longer humble,” Jayden said, and he clearly grinned.

Elizah laughed slightly and sat on her bed before she removed the sheets from the bed and dug her hands underneath the straw mattress.

Jayden just watched in awe as Elizah pulled out various things, from a sword to a pocket knife to a novel to random packs of seeds.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

“Spirits Elizah, what do you not have down there?” Jayden asked, and Elizah only grinned.

“It’s my stash of everything I wanted to hide. It’s a great hiding place since no one usually cleans under the covers. Wait, I still haven’t found it yet… ah yes, there it is!” Elizah said as she removed a small box, almost the size of one, to store a trinket.

“This was the only thing that father had left me when I was born. He said it was important and invaluable that I maintained it in my care,” Elizah said as she opened the box.

Jayden only let out a gasp as he saw the item inside the box. It was impossible, yet the object was right in front of his eyes.

“That’s the amulet Jade was talking about!” Jayden exclaimed as Elizah just continued to watch Jayden’s confused face.

“I expected as much, but each amulet is unique. And there can’t be two amulets that are the same,” Elizah said, and she took a book off from the bookcase.

“Can you read the text?” Jayden asked her, and he observed the writing on the bottom.

“Yes. I deciphered it a long while ago. It says ‘to be unleashed by the bearer of fate’,” Elizah said, and she flipped through the book again.

“But neither of us are seers in any way,” Jayden said with his face still confused.

“That’s where I know the story that Jade knows isn’t complete. There were six amulets, and there are supposed to be three destined to bring back the limits. There are some strange things that Jade isn’t right about. I can be sure that this is right because this is the oldest record that anyone made of the event. It had been copied multiple times and I took a long time to decipher it, but it was worth it,” Elizah said as she took a small notebook out from under her bed.

“So, what do you plan on doing about your father’s amulet? Do we tell Jade? I’m still not in favour of using them,” Jayden asked, and he held the amulet up to the sun to see the markings of someone trying to pry it open. It made Jayden think twice about what Liran’s true motives could have been, but he let the thought drift away for that moment.

“I don’t think we should. At least until we know that things are safe. I want to settle and have a normal life for a while. Without the meddling of fate,” Elizah said, and her gaze was wistful.

“What do you have in mind?” Jayden asked, and a small smile came to his face.

“Maybe settle down and have a real family. Maybe bring peace. Find my father, and bring back my mother and Micah. There’s a lot to think about,” Elizah said, and Jayden only smiled.

“There’s, of course, the more important stuff first, but I agree,” Jayden said, and he wandered in his mind. The thought of being free and away from his mother and father’s constant disapproval and finally being someone he wanted to be rather than everyone’s mould was always something he dreamed of.

“It’s all a fresh start, isn’t it? A time to see the world with new eyes,” Jayden said. Elizah couldn’t help but agree as she thought about the various possibilities she’d imagined for the future.