Kiano woke up in a sweat. He gasped for air and looked around him in the desolate chamber. There was no one around. He dreamt about that dragon the entire time, but he could recall nothing other than its piercing eyes that bore into his own.
He was still in Freyskul. For how long had he been here? His eyes wandered to the ajar door, where a string of light shone through. His ears perked up. Someone was whispering outside the door.
Stepping out of the warm covers, he approached the door as the voices became clearer. His heart raced, pounding hard against his chest. One voice belonged to the female elf he had talked to when he first arrived at this shadowy place.
He gulped upon realising that she was discussing something that made his hair stand up on the back of his neck. She was talking about the creatures – the creatures that no longer prowled in Lordôm.
“We have to send the kid back where he belongs.”
This voice belonged to a male with a deep, gravelly voice who spoke in a flat and urgent manner.
“I know, I know, it’s just… You’ve seen the carnage for yourself. That kid doesn’t stand a chance against the beasts.”
“The Queen will take care of him, she always does. We must aid the humans before it’s too late; Hjarwa would’ve done the same.”
“That boy, he said he saw the dragon. What if it’s true? My father, he must be—”
“He’s dead. The boy’s mistaken. Did you not see him faint? He hadn’t eaten or drunk anything for several days! His mind played him a trick, Amelia, he was hallucinating, that’s all!”
“But what if—I’m not asking for much, just hear me out, what if it’s true? What if my father is taken as a prisoner?”
“Even if the boy is telling the truth, even if he does, the outcome is not much different. You must think of our people!”
Stolen story; please report.
“My father, he…”
“… Hjarwa would’ve wanted you to protect our people! Freyskul needs you now more than ever! This war is inescapable, and it is at our doorstep whether or not we want it! We have to choose a side, you know that more than anyone.”
“I… I don’t know what to do.”
“You know, Amelia, you know what to do. It’s either the Queen or the Almighty. Whose side we join is your call but remember that humans have been our allies since the dawn of time. But if you choose to aid the Queen, I’ll do as you say.”
There was a long pause after this. The female elf didn’t respond at once, and the prolonged silence seemed to never end. Kiano placed his hand on his thumping heart as he waited to hear her delayed response.
“Escort the boy home and send words to Druasdûr. I don’t know if the seal’s broken, but if it is, we must gather everyone and look for a solution.”
He recoiled. The door flung open, and he came face-to-face with the silver-haired guard he saw next to the female elf at the perron. He didn’t look startled.
Kiano stepped out of the desolate chamber and watched as Amelia turned round the corner and disappeared somewhere on the second floor of this majestic place. That was when he became sure. She was the daughter of the inmate who saved his life.
The guard told him to step on it, and he did as he was commanded. They descended the perron and ventured deep into the depths of the woods as the dark elves emerged from the shadows and watched them advance to the end.
Two crooked trees twisted to make a circular gap before them. A blinding portal showed up from thin air, right through the gap, and he stumbled into the guard as he backed away out of sheer surprise at the magical sight.
“Think of your village and enter, it will take you wherever you want, wherever you wish.”
Kiano hesitated. Amelia’s words about the savage beasts going berserk in Gartâr kept ringing in his ears. The guard reassured him as if he had read his bleak thoughts that second.
“The Queen will not harm one of her own, you’re safe as long as you stay away from the humans that pursue your kinsmen.”
Kiano drew a deep breath. He mustered up the courage to take a step into the portal. It devoured his entire arm. This startled him so much that he tried to pull his arm out of the blazing portal, but it sucked him into the shimmering lights in a flash and the portal narrowed until it went up in smoke and took him with it to the unknown.
It was like being inside the tree for the third time! But instead of whirling into the pitch-black darkness this time, he floated to the cadence of the flickering brightness that blinded his vision.
He distorted his face and was at great pains to ignore the whipping blasts against his face that felt like a thousand daggers.
The image of the little hut on the conical hill consumed his thoughts – the little hut where his mum was still waiting for his belated return with misty eyes.