The Avallon Chronicles (BOOK I)

18 | Her Desire

Cithara's heart skipped a beat. She averted her eyes from Alvier, trying to stay silent.

"Answer me, young lady!" he added.

"I..." Cithara answered nervously that she could not even maintain eye contact with Alvier as she spoke. She knew that she was not allowed to leave Liberia.

"Stand up, and I'll send you back there! You're not supposed to be here!" said Alvier, "Besides, the stars will appear just a few moments from now."

"But -"

"Come on! Hurry up!" Alvier spoke.

"It's no use!" Cithara interrupted. "They... They kicked me out of the kingdom."

"Does your aunt know about this?" asked Alvier.

"N-No," she answered. "She warned me about this, but... but I didn't listen," she answered. Her tears began to well in her eyes.

"You neophyte fool, what are you even thinking?!" Alvier exclaimed furiously. "The last time I saw you, which was just last yeale (year), I told you that you should quit that useless and dangerous tinkering! And you know in that stupid brain of yours that I repeatedly told you that every time I visit Liberia!"

Tears began to fall from Cithara's eyes along with the sadness that flowed inside her emotionally wounded heart.

"You didn't even think of the danger you could encounter here! You do not belong here in the outside world!" Alvier scolded.

"I'm... I'm sorry," Cithara implored, wiping her tears away with her left hand.

"Now, where are you supposed to stay?" Alvier added. "Don't expect me to let you -"

"Well, I still have my father!" Cithara protested.

"Wha- I told you he is impossible to find! He might be dead!"

"Don't say that word, Ade! He's not dead!" Cithara exclaimed. "I will not stop finding him... even though I still don't know who he is."

Cithara hopped off the bed, and the feeling of determination ran towards her soul. "However, I know that I can feel it in my soul at the time I meet him.

"I will take you back to Liberia no matter what! Do you think Lady Aja wants you to be away from her?" asked Alvier.

"She doesn't even care that much about her niece. She loves her ruling more than me ever since she was announced to be the next queen," Cithara answered.

Alvier's eyes furrowed, his emotions boiling up. "You -," Before he could even grab Cithara's wounded arm, something caught his attention. On the lady's palm was a mark with the symbol of the Avallon Tree.

"How could this be?" he gasped, turning his back away from Cithara.

"D-Do, you know about this strange mark?" Cithara asked curiously. "I saw this once on one of the book pages that I read, but I still don't know how it got there."

"You can not be one of the chosen warriors. What might be that symbol mean?" he added, talking to himself.

"So the strange creature was right about me being a great help for finding the chosen warriors?" said Cithara in a serious tone.

"Wait a second, maybe you just put it there. It can't be real that you have a strange Sacred Mark," Alvier spoke, his mind filled with several questions that no one can answer right at that moment.

Meanwhile, in the dark forest of Sepphora came Wil, who was struggling to find his way out or even just to come back from where he entered in the first place.

He proceeded with his journey until he entered a peculiar place. He reached a place where there was a huge tree surrounded by fireflies. It was the most beautiful scene he had ever seen in his life.

"I've never seen such huge numbers of this creature dwelling in one tree," he beamed. He leaned closer, touching the tree's bark.

"A sylmora! Such a very astonishing plant species," he beamed.

A firefly was about to perch on his hand when suddenly, he heard a scream.

As he began searching, a feeling that someone or something might be following him arose. Leaves from different directions rustled every second, followed by the glances of a shadow flying side by side above the trees that encircled him.

He fastened up his speed, not looking back from where he came.

After a while, he saw movements from an area. He came near and saw a lady lying on the ground. But as soon as he saw someone approaching, he hid behind a tree and watched the scene present in there.

The shadows began to rustle again, with the wind blowing harder. He turned around and pulled out his rapier from the scabbard he had.

All of a sudden, he noticed that the stranger was leaving together with the lady he saw.

"I must not lose them. They might help me from this mission," he spoke, dashing towards the two and following them towards where they were heading.

Due to the thought that these creatures might still be dangerous, he remained stealthy.

He continued to follow them until they reached a small cabin just beside a placid river. As he came closer, he felt a connection with one of the creatures he was following.

"Is that? No! No, it can't be!" he spoke.

The creatures entered the cabin, followed by a moment of silence.

Wil paused as he encountered another majestic sight that he had never seen before. The wintry wind blew gently from the north, passing through the green grasses of the land. The trees danced with the whispers it received accompanied by the flowers swaying with them.

The fireflies gathered around a spot and formed different shapes as they turned to various positions. The creatures jigged with the sound of nature.

"This might be the farthest away from home I've ever been," he beamed, his mind filled with astonishment. He stood still as he felt the wind passing through his coffee brown hair.

He was deeply enjoying the view until all of a sudden, he found himself standing in front of someone with that creature's sword aimed straight towards his neck.

•○GLOSSARY○•

⚔️Yeale
- Enchantrian word: Year