Chapter Seventeen

Chapter 17: A Light Heart


Terryn gave the simple spell another go, quieting his mind and giving his entire concentration on the words he was speaking.
   "Ceo ke'veen." He said in a firm tone, his eyes squinting at the bolder he was trying to levitate. He could feel the magic leaving his core, moving through his finger tips, and move to the rock.
Elowen bit her thumb nail as she waited anxiously to see if he would harness his power this time.
She watched as redish orange magic poured out of his finger tips, and towards the rock. The tendrils caressed the rock, encasing it, and raising it up steadily.
She barely contained her shout of glee, scared she'd break his concentration.
He was much more powerful then she thought. This was the seventh test she had put him through, and he had passed them all with flying colors.
The bolder made it off the ground a good two feet before he let the magic go, and turned to her with an excited smile.
   "You're simply amazing!" She cried. "I could have never done that as fast as you have. It's simply amazing." She gapped in wonder.
   "So does that mean you two can start working on those wards so we can get out of here?" Dreyden asked. Coming over from the camp fire the others had made a little ways off.
Elowen nodded eagerly.
   "Really?!" Terryn asked in shock. "You think I'm ready for that?"
   "Oh definitely! You've already shown extreme knowledge and control over your power that we shouldn't have a problem." She said, hesitating a second when she finished that sentence. "If I've got the strength to do it." She added.
Dreyden thought for a minute. He didn't want to see her go into a coma again, and also knew that she had been performing a lot of spells lately, so her energy level would be lower then normal and they had to get it back up.
   "Tell you what," He said, coming to a decision. "Why don't you two start on this first thing tomorrow, after a good nights sleep and a decent breakfast? I'm sure you will both feel much better in the morning since both of you have been going at this for quite some time now."
Elowen smiled and thanked Eleyos for his clear thinking. It was true, she was very tired and her mind was beginning to get clouded.
   "Alright, lets do that then, I'm exhausted and just want to lie down before I pass out on all of you and become a nuisance." She remarked as they walked over to the small campfire.
   "You're never a nuisance." Dreyden whispered in her ear as they approached the others. She couldn't hide the blush on her cheeks that stood out against her pale complexion, but the smile wouldn't leave her lips either.
She sat down next to Sonera and Ysmay, as Terryn and Drey moved to the other side.
Ysmay handed Ellie a cup and she smiled.
   "Nothing like a good cup of coffee to give one some strength." She said with a smile. Ellie smiled back gratefully and sipped the warm drink, thankful for it as it warmed her body against the damp chill.
Ysmay gave a cup to Terryn as well, who smiled at her.
   "Did you see? I actually moved the bolder! That thing must weight several tons!"
Merek hid a chuckle as he saw the boys excitment.
   "Yes we all saw it Terryn. You're much more useful then we thought." He remarked.
Terryn beamed at him for a moment, then realized the stab in the back in that statement.
   "Oi!" He shouted.
The company laughed and couldn't stop even after Terryn had joined in with them.
When they finally died down, Elowen finished off her coffee slipped off her white robe and rolled it up to use it as a pillow. Then she lied down on the hard stone, covered in a bed of moss. Peace flowed over her like a river, allowing her mind to go still and fall into a deep sleep where she prayed dreams would leave her be.

{+++}

Tears streamed down her cheeks, her long blond hair hung loose around her shoulders, swept in her face by the wind and the storm. 
They had feared this would be their fate. 
Her eyes took in the flaming torches and the spears and swords held firmly in the grasp of the city she grew up in. They're resentment towards her and her family was like a knife in her heart. 
   "Feyeon!" 
She turned to see her beloved standing in the door way of the keep. He walked up to her and looked out at the walls. 
   "We must get the boys out of the city. It is not safe for any of us here." He said, taking her hand and guiding her into the keep. 
Two boys followed behind them, packs on their backs, their faces solemn and sad. 
Elowen realized the youngest, who couldn't be older then four years old, looked strangely familiar.
   "Mother, why must we go?" He asked, jogging a step and taking her hand.
Feyeon looked down at him with a forced smile.
   "We're going, because we need a vacation." 
The little boy cocked his head at her, his blue eyes piercing hers with curiosity. She could tell he wanted to ask questions, but he knew it was not the time to ask them.

{+++}

Elowen awoke, gasping for air, and jolting upright.
Her body shivered of the usual cold sweats that always accompanied the dreams. She pushed her fair hair away from her forehead and glanced around.
The fire was still burning bight, but the others were fast asleep.
After a moment, she rose from the ground and walked away from the camp, yearning for fresh air to clear her head.
   She found it in one of the cracks in the wall. Dawn was just approaching, the soft rays warmed her face and soothed her racing mind. She knew now her dreams were of the past. Feyoen, and her husband had indeed fled from Asmodea when her father died. He had been the only thing between his daughter and the rising rage of the city for what was viewed as betrayal to her people.
It was written in books that when the mob broke into the keep, they found no trace of the family, or where they had gone. This is when the line of the kings was broken because no one ever came back to claim it.

   "Ellie?"
The voice broke her out of her thoughts of the past, making her jump slightly. She turned her head and found herself looking into a piercing blue gaze full of curiosity.
The air got sucked out of her as some of the pieces fell in place. But she had let it show on her face, which he noticed.
   "What's wrong?" He asked.  
She hastily shook her head.
   "Nothing I just..." She sighed. She hated lying, she always avoided it as much as she could, and she didn't want to start now. He looked at her, knowing she didn't want to say what was on her mind, but having a feeling it was about him the way she was dodging his gaze.
   "I have something to tell you." He said, deciding to break the ice first. He watched has her breathing hitched and she slowly looked his way. Ultimately, she was a mess. There was dark circles under her forest green eyes, she was pale and her skin glistened with sweat telling him she hadn't slept well.
   "There are something's you don't know about me. And I know that if we're going to be friends I've got to be a bit more trusting." He started, feeling a bit dumb but did his best to ignore the feeling and keep going.
   "I -"
   "You're a Falionite." She answered for him.
He looked up at her in shock. He never told anyone that, he had lived most his life on Cevlon, so most believed he had lived there all his life. And he saw no reason to contradict them.
   "How did you...?" He asked.
She drew in a sharp breath and gazed up at the rising sun.
   "Ever since I...I died," She struggled to get that word out, still not fully believing she had died. "I've been having these dreams. I didn't know what they meant, but now they're far enough along I know what Eleyos is showing me."
Dreyden still hadn't the slightest clue what she was talking about.
   "It started out with the last princess Falion ever had. Feyoen..."
She spent the next half hour explaining the dreams she's had since she woke up from death. As she did, she watched Dreyden carefully, not sure how he'd react when she had learned his past. His eyes showed shock, but his face was marble. Hard and cold, showing no emotion at all.
When she was finished, he didn't say anything for a long time.
He looked at the still sleeping forms to make sure none of them had awaken before he went to speak.
   "It's true. You already know that."
She let out her breath as if she had been waiting for him to claim she was mistaken.
   "All my life I've kept that a secret. It weighed me down to the point I thought I might die from it's weight. So first off, I want to thank you." He said, meaning every word he said. Elowen smiled reassuringly and gratefully at him, knowing he meant it.
He waited a moment, expecting her to speak.
   "This is usually where the volley of questions come in, or the broken jaws, or the yelling, or something!" He said anxiously.
Elowen's smile grew bigger as she shook her head.
   "I know you better then most people who would do that. Just because you have a fancy title doesn't mean you, yourself has changed."
Drey was shocked by her level head, and how she handled the news. But something told him she had guessed it a while ago.
   "But I do have one question," She said slowly.
He nodded, knowing that was bound to happen.
   "How did you get to Cevlon? I know your family was desperate to get you to safety, knowing they had to preserve the line somehow. And I know your father was in a field when the Nigvourians attacked, but...what happened after that?"
He drew in a deep breath and propped himself up on the bolder Terryn had moved the day before.
   "Because my father was a Cevlonian, he still had his yerto. He had kept him hidden in a grove, in middle of the forest for emergencies like that night. Originally he had hoped to save us all, so he had several other yertos there so my brother and mother could come as well. But..."
The memory was a painful one as it flashed back into his mind.

He tore through the underbrush, ignoring the cuts he got from the branches and thrones. Falling several times along the way, but those weren't the cause of the tears.
When he broke through the forest and into the grove he saw three brightly colored yertos. His father stood saddling them up, tightening the straps, making adjustments. But when he heard the rustling of the leaves, he pulled out his long sword and stood ready. When Dreyden appeared out of the bushes, he quickly lowered his sword and rushed over to his son.
   "Drey! You're alright." He said, hugging him tightly. 
Drey had tried to keep the tears from falling, had tried to be the bigger man but he was only eight. 
   "Where's your mother and brother?" His father asked. 
That's when he lost it. 
His father's eyes grew misty when he realized the cause of his tears. He hugged his only living son closer and took a minute to get himself composed. 
   "Come, we must get you away from here." He said quickly. Leading him to one of the yertos. He gave him a lift up and quickly instructed him how to keep control over the massive bird. 
There was a yell, and the crunching of breaking branches could be heard coming closer. His father pulled out his sword and turned to the oncoming Nigvourian. 
   "You must go Dreyden!" He shouted of the battle cry. 
Drey was screaming at his father, but he turned and gave him a look that silenced him. 
   "One of us must make it out of here alive. You must take up your place on the throne Dreyden. It must be you! You're the one who has equal claim to both. you have to join the worlds together. Now go!" 
His father had made a hand signal to the bird Drey was on, and the bird ruffled out it's wings and took flight. Taking a devastated boy with him, and leaving behind a doomed father.

A warm hand was intertwined with his. His eyes snapped up as he saw Elowen's face close to his. Tears were in his own eyes, clouding his vision, but he couldn't mistake the sadness in her eyes as she squeezed his hand hard.
She knew.
She knew what that grief was like. She had been ripped away from her own family more times then she cared to remember.
He wasn't alone.
Drey rose from the rock and pulled her closer, wrapping his arm around her, resting his head on her shoulder.
Elowen was slightly shocked by the sudden embrace, but quickly hugged him back. She knew what a simple hug could do, even if it came from a stranger that understood.
She could feel his tears against her skin, her arms squeezed tighter as she tried to keep her own from spilling.
She had seen it. She had seen the whole scene. Before, she had never understood how much this boy had lost. But now she realized that he had lost more than any child should at such a young age. He had not only lost his home, but his family that loved him dearly, and because of that love, were willing to sacrifice their lives to make sure his was spared.
   "You're not alone Drey." She whispered, giving up the fight of keeping her tears back. His grip on her back tightened to the point she struggled a little to breath, but she didn't try to weasel out of it.
   "Thanks Ellie. It means a lot. Especially coming from you." He answered.
   "Ahem."
Ellie jumped in shock, pulling away from Dreyden and turning to see who was standing behind her.
It was just about everyone.
Merek had that look on his face that said 'I know everything, don't try to deny it', where as Ysmay and Sonera were giving genuine smiles like they were happy for her.
   "Well you two have been busy." Merek observed.
   "And if you mean by busy that we're simply getting to know each other then yes, Merek, we've been busy. But this is really not the time for that, so Terryn, you get a good nights sleep yes?" Elowen barely let him nod his head before she went on.
   "Good, then lets get to work. And Merek, keep your gop shut." She said in a playful but deadly tone.