ENCHANTED Book 1: Witch's Dawn

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

MORTAL REALM: POLONIA

"Ruby, we've been walking in circles for almost two days now. Don't you think it's time we put an end to our pursuers?" Sapphire asked tiredly as they stopped to rest for the night.

Ruby looked at her sister apologetically and shook her head. She didn't know why, but she had an ominous feeling about them confronting Gazar and his men; without counting her personal feelings on the matter.

"Just a while longer, sister. The cave of worlds will soon be within reach, then we can leave this realm for a while."

"But that is not a surety," she complained frustrated. She was at her wits end and had begun to suspect that her elder sister's hesitation came from the issue of whom they were dealing with, not what. "The cave of worlds is hidden from mortals like us for a reason. What assurance do you have that we can find it before another day elapses?"

Ruby could hear the accusation in her sister's tone, and she grit her teeth to control her temper. Her nerves were frayed as well, and having her sister question her judgement right now, even if such suspicions were valid, did nothing to soothe or settle them.

She opted to ignore Sapphire and instead focus on securing their camp for the night. "I'll go put up the wards and detection spells. You both try to gather kindling and also forage for what we can eat this night," she said and strode away into the forest around them.

"What? Are you just going to give a deaf ear to everything I've said?" Sapphire asked angrily.

"Remember to stay within shouting range! Don't wander afar," she called back in response, leaving her sister to fume back at the campsite.

Amber sighed and got up from the log she had been sitting on after they had stopped. "I'll gather the kindling," she said and walked away from her testy sister.

The forest was silent except for the occasional rustle of leaves caused by the soft wind, and the noises made by small animals scurrying to their homes as the day began to give way to night. The setting sun caused a myriad of colours to burst through the sky: oranges, blues, pinks and even dashes of purple and lavender here and there. However, the beauty of it all did nothing to calm her like it normally did.

She loved her sister Ruby, and had the utmost respect for her as their leader and as the eldest. But, as much as she wanted to trust her judgement blindly, she had to agree with Sapphire on this one.

She just could not understand why her sister kept insisting they run away when she knew fully well what they were capable of; that Sorcerer and his men stood no chance! They had faced more powerful foes and had still triumphed over them, so what exactly was different this time?

She reached a small clearing and began to pick up some branches. She picked up enough to fill her arms and got ready to head back to the camp, when a shadow sitting against a nearby tree caught her attention.

She sprang into action immediately, dropping the wood she had picked up and quickly settled into her fighting form - battle axe at the ready. "Who are you? Come forward!" She challenged.

However, all she got in response was a painful moan. She moved stealthily towards the slouched figure and gradually made out the form of a young man. He looked worn out with dried blood splotches all around his tunic indicating that he'd been hurt many a time. But despite all these, he was the most handsome man Amber had ever seen.

His midnight hair lay on his head in adorable curls and his pale skin reminded her of fresh cream. The softness to his physique made her suspect that he came from a noble home. And she absently wondered if he was on the run from something or someone.

He let out another pain-filled moan, and his eyelashes fluttered as his eyes gradually opened. She felt her breath catch as she gazed into eyes that gleamed like emeralds. At this point her guard had been completely dropped: there was no way that the man before her could be a threat to her in any way, she concluded confidently.

Gazar gazed at the vision in front of him and found himself dazed for a moment by the beauty of the woman standing over him. Only he didn't really see the woman before him, but instead another with the characteristic auburn hair of each blood stone sister, and eyes as red as the rubies she had been named after that burned with her fiery spirit. He shook his head to try and return his focus, it seemed the after effects of the spell were more potent than he'd predicted.

"Are you alright?" She asked carefully.

Here goes nothing. "It seems I have finally crossed the great divide. Because no mortal could hope to be as dazzling or awe-inspiring as you milady," he praised spellbound.

Amber stared at him in confusion for a while, before his words registered and made her blush in embarrassment.

She cleared her throat to hide how flustered she was. "It seems your weariness has you made you delirious," she said dryly. "I am not an immortal; I age and die just as you do."

He stared at her thoughtfully for a while and hummed as he considered her words. "That would explain the pain I still feel from my injuries then," he muttered to himself.

He tried to take a deep breath, but the sharp pain in his left lung region reassured him that he was indeed still alive, and that if he wanted to survive the woman in front of him was his only hope.

Re-experiencing the pain of his broken rib seemed to have opened the painful floodgates of sensations from his other injuries that had been silent since he woke up. His Master never gave punishments in half measures. And if he failed at his task again today, it just might be the end of him. He began to sweat bullets and his breath rate increased to shallow raspy gasps.

"What's the matter?" Amber asked worriedly and she dropped down to observe the area he clutched at.

"I may not be dead now, but it seems like I am still meant to cross the great divide soon," he joked poorly with a weak smile.

Gazar watched curiously as a variety of emotions crossed her face. What would she do? If she decided to abandon him to his fate, his spell would eventually kill him, considering the amount of magic it was consuming from him.

He released a tired sigh and rested on the tree behind him again. 'Tis the price I have to pay for a spell such as this. If I return without results to my master, this time, he will kill me: either way I die, so I'd much rather choose the way I die. He closed his eyes resolved to face any fate that awaited him.

"I am here with my sisters," she suddenly said after the long silence. "We have a camp nearby with supplies that can treat your wounds and replenish your body."

He opened his eyes slowly and looked at her in gratitude, trying hard not to smirk at his victory. "If you would be so kind, dear maiden. I promise to leave as soon as I regain some semblance of strength in my body, and to repay your kindness someday."

Amber smiled at the earnest expression on his face and nodded her head. She would take him to their camp. Her sisters may be suspicious and reluctant at first, but they would both quickly come to realize - as she had - that he posed no threat to them and was a person in need. They never turned their back on people in need because they knew what it felt like to be on the receiving end.

"Can you stand" she asked him, ready to head back.

*** Another chapter... Was meant to upload this yesterday but several things came up so I ended up not doing it. Hope you guys enjoy this chapter as well. ***