The Mythos Trials

Chapter Fourteen, Part One

Gwen was beginning to wonder if the Alituran Outpost had even received their message—Rem requesting they shut down the dampeners so that she, Forneus, and Phenex could teleport to Terra Ventus—when Forneus wrapped his fingers around hers.

"The field is down. Time to go."

Gwen closed her eyes, willing herself to relax as Horus lent them a little extra 'push', infusing some of his godly power with Forneus's and Phenex's own. The effect was overwhelmingly nauseating, worse than even her very first time teleporting. Forneus's hand was reassuring in hers, Phenex's warm and comforting on the other side.

The dizzying, plummeting sensation in the pit of her stomach ebbed, leaving an ache of relief in its place. Gwen opened her eyes, the Valley of the Sylph no less impressive this time than it had been when she'd first landed there. Once free of both of their grasps, she flexed her fingers, willing circulation back into their numbed tips.

Though their original plan had been to sail west to Archaios, Forneus had suggested—almost at the last second—that they trek through Terra Ventus first. "Eurus might have more information on the pure ether than the elven clans," he'd said, earning a reluctant murmur of agreement from Phenex. "And if he knows where we might find the pure ether on the eastern continent, maybe he will be able to send word to Zephyrus in the west, and convince him to let us charter one of his personal ships. They are brothers, after all. I doubt he will refuse his request."

"Assuming Eurus accepts ours to begin with," was Phenex's reply. Even so, they had agreed it was worth a try, and Gwen, seeing no reason to argue against it, had simply gone along, eager to gather the next fragment needed to replace her seal.

Breathing deeply, Gwen followed Forneus through the valley, her gaze flicking from one side, where Livada na Samovila spread out in a vast array of exotic-looking wildflowers, to the Centaurian Glade, filled with long grass and the occasional red-leafed sapling that she'd come to recognize as Ignisian Maple. A warm breeze teased the hair around her cheeks, bringing with it the summery aromas of blossoms and damp earth; a scent similar to what Forneus exuded, in those rare moments when he made use of his earth magic.

There was something comforting in that scent, mingled with purple clover and clean linen. Gwen blushed at the thought, though she couldn't have said why. Her affection for Forneus went no further than what she felt for her parents, for some of her closest relatives. Perhaps it was the fact that, in spite of being acquainted with him in her childhood, she had only really known Forneus for the last three months.

Gwen rubbed her right forefinger along the adjoining thumb, idly tracing the markings etched into the golden band Phenex had given her shortly after she'd set foot in the Spectrum. The ring had become as much a part of her as her fingers and toes, as the diamond-encased phoenix feather necklace tethered about her throat, that she seldom noticed the weight of either one anymore. She was acutely aware of them now, however, actively trying to avoid the thoughts that had been niggling at the back of her mind on and off since meeting the two of them.

Three months may not have seemed long in the grand scheme of things, but when she thought of it in terms of how long it had been since she had seen her parents, it became a yawning chasm. And yet, there was a duality to it as well, the feeling of having been with Forneus and Phenex forever, yet not long enough. Would she miss them as much as she missed her family and friends, once they returned her home? What would life be like without them, after everything she'd been through—everything she had yet to go through?

"Gwen? Is there something the matter?" Forneus's voice roused her from her thoughts, laced with concern. "You've been very quiet."

"Yeah, I'm okay. I was just," she gestured at the flowering vines covering the valley walls, rooted deep within the cliffy crags, to the staggering of built-in doors below, "you know, looking around."