The Halo Of Vakh (BOOK 1)

SORROW AND SOLACE

The Vakhor descended as they rose, the creatures of the dark pressing against them, taking away their vision. All she could see was the inky gloom, occasionally broken by a flash of red. Some strange force had kept her settled on her saddle, Aurora whining beneath her in fear. The black clouds travelled around her, but her eyes travelled over them unseeing. In her mind she saw the raging flames that had claimed her home, stretching and devouring the wood and stone houses into their green maws. The screams still rang in her ears, horrified, asking for an escape from the torment.

Her heart clenched painfully in her chest till she wanted to claw it out and throw it into the flames; then perhaps she wouldn't have to endure the rush of agony that came to her. The cheerful nest she had been living in had been overturned and she had fallen and got up only to be trampled over again. Her parents were gone, the rest of her family lost and her home shattered, all within the span of a week. She sniffed. She would end up with them soon; when the wind carrying them stopped, she would fall to her death. She would never have the chance to search for Cygnus, Joseryn, Orion and Lyra.

In her heart of hearts, she could feel they still lived. The soldiers might have taken them as prisoners but she also knew that Orion would do all he could to keep the others safe. Her worry peaked at the thought. Orion was reckless, especially when it came to his family and friends. His loyalty often pushed aside his self-preservation.

The darkness around them shifted, becoming brighter till Sapphire could see the sky overhead. The stars blinked at her and the longer she stared, the more she felt confusion settle into her brain. She turned her head and looked towards the ground. Her heart plummeted. They were hundreds of feet above the ground, speeding through the sky with no guidance. Her eyes turned to her right where she had earlier seen James. The old man was on his back, his face calm as he looked resolutely forwards. She heaved a giant breath. Despite the range at which they flew, she did not feel the pressure on her lungs, the lack of breath she felt every time she traversed too high up a mountain.

Down below, the landscape was level, the mountains, small studs in the distance, enveloped in a cloak of undulating black. The ground rushed below them rapidly, making her head spin. She looked back up, trying to make out the source of their levitation. For a few moments, she saw nothing except the neverending sky. But then, she made out the slight fog that surrounded them, extending like a large cloud over them. Looking closely, she distinguished what seemed to be hair, but then it changed and turned into an odd lump that looked like a disfigured face. Her heart skipped a beat.

A sylph. We're being carried by a Sylph.

Her previous troubles forgotten for the moment, she stared in wonder and confusion, trying to make out the outline of the creature. Every time she thought she had figured it out, the shape would change, making her believe she had never seen it. Perhaps, she was hallucinating. For so long she had thought all stories to be the construction of wishful thinking, and now that she had been presented with proof she felt like a fool. What other creatures were out there? She would love to see Dryads and dwarves. Maybe even the sirens that were rumoured to live in the depths of the Infari Soceana, the expanse of water between Falargimea and her neighbours, Nirin and Zurambh.

The most she could remember about the Sylphs was that they were one with the air and only a few people had actually seen and communicated with them. As for the dwarves, she had heard they were only found in Zurambh's mountains. And then, a laugh escaped her lips, high and hysterical as she remembered the wager with Orion. Ten Birals. She owed him ten Birals. The first thing she'd do when she met him again, she'd hand him the coin. If she ever met him again.

Her laughter died down and mingled into the tears that fell and dried rapidly on her cheeks. A yelp left her as the sylph dived towards the ground, the trees enlarging as they neared. Two feet above the ground, she felt the warmth around her leave and she toppled to the ground as Aurora landed with her back legs bent. Sapphire got up hurriedly, taking the reins and calming the mare. James approached her a few moments later.