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I'll be posting my story here as well!  If you're interested in it, please feel free to follow my other account: ManuWrites

Thank you if you take the time to read it!

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Next Chapter:

All Chapters HERE.

CHAPTER 60: PREAMBLE

                “…I’m sorry I didn’t keep my promise.” Malia pressed her forehead against the tree that had once been Gabrielle, her hand caressing the deep ridges of its bark, “I’ll be going now. You never liked wimps, after all.”
                By then the princess had spent long minutes in the sole company of the golden flowers and the sunlight that interlaced them; Kadem had granted her privacy to shed as many tears as she needed. As Malia stepped back, she couldn’t help but see the spectacle before her as a generous gift from the benevolent tree. Beauty is Meaning. Beauty is Justice. Beauty is Love. None of those seemed sufficient, and yet they were all appropriate: her master was beautiful.
                When she finally joined her friends, she found them waiting for her. The somber air let her know Kadem had filled them in. Gorken was the first to move, hugging her in comforting silence. Aldous and Bayard followed suit, quietly gripping her shoulder and patting her head respectively.
                For a change, Licorice was the one to disrupt the stillness, “I would keep the mourning to a minimum. Trees often lead richer lives than most humans.”
                “They really do!” Hedera nodded reassuringly.
                Malia had no words to express her gratitude. Somehow, along her aimless path, she had ended up surrounded by the warm affection of people who cared for her in the most precious of ways, be it through serene solidarity, or awkward gestures, or by simply being there. With her, for her. “I don’t say it enough… But I love you all. Thank you.”
                She sat at the table then, eager to show them that she was fine, “There’s no better method to overcome grief than to drown it in Kadem’s…” she stopped herself from using an insulting, and yet honest, term, “…cuisine. We did say we would talk after eating. I can’t keep delaying everything. ”
                Malia found her own statement to be unexpectedly accurate: focusing on swallowing the silver witch’s tasteless food hoarded all of her mental capacity, to an extent that almost untied the forlorn knot in her chest. Almost.
                When they were done eating, the members of the party took turns retelling what they had done, and seen, and accomplished since their last stay at the silver woman’s lair. “You went out seeking to prepare for what would come after we broke the spell.” Kadem said, “You found the allies and the order we needed to ensure the realm wouldn’t unravel into bloody chaos as soon as we shattered this forced normality. Now it is time to aim our attention at our main objective: to break the spell my brothers cast.”
                The silver woman stood up to retrieve pieces of parchment from a shelf, “Just as you were playing your part, I was playing mine. I’ve thoroughly decoded the spell, and the conditions we must meet to crack its foundations. I wrote these for you, Plum.” She handed Malia a bundle of notes, “You can study them later. Despite your failure at recruiting the help of other ancient demons,” Kadem turned to the twins then, “You’ll have a much more crucial role than I anticipated. I had already mentioned that the existence of two stone seals meant Plum and I had to break them at the same time… but I didn’t know how precise that prerequisite truly was. It isn’t enough to just break them around the same time. Our magic must be applied simultaneously. It would be almost impossible to coordinate such synchronized magic when there are so many variables at play, including of course the intervention of the white maiden and her dragon. Which is why,” Kadem pointed at Hedera and Licorice, “please tell me your bond allows you to communicate in real time, even from afar.”
                “You’re lucky it does!” Hedera smirked proudly.
                “As long as there is earth between us, my sister and I can share our consciousness at will, no matter the distance.” Licorice added.
                Malia realized how nervous Kadem had been when she saw her shoulders relaxing along with a deep sigh; the silver witch’s every hope had been hanging on the twins’ confirmation. If Licorice and Hedera weren’t with us, if they weren’t twins…
                After Kadem adjusted her composure, she opened a map on the table, “Then we can proceed. The white maiden said they would be waiting for us at the stone seals, so it’s safe to assume the dragon will be protecting one, and she the other. But since we don’t know who’ll be north and who’ll be south, we should split up in a manner that allows us to stand a chance regardless of who we run into. I can handle myself, so I’ll head to the northern stone seal with one of the twins. Plum, you’ll go to the southern one with the other twin. We should keep groups to a minimum; the more people there are, the more potential enemies those are if we encounter the white maiden and her influence on the will of others.”
                “But what if she runs into the dragon instead?” Hedera chimed in, “Lico and I can help out against the maiden, but we can do nothing against him.”
                “I’ll go with Malia.” Gorken said, “Being from the Guardian clan will finally serve a purpose. If someone can hold off the dragon, even if just a little, it has to be me.”
                “Are you sure, boy? We don’t need careless bravery… and the dragon isn’t the only one you should be ready to face.”
                “I’m sure.” Gorken’s gaze was unyielding.
                “Very well then.” Kadem exhaled, “All that’s left is for Plum to study my instructions, and to decide the timing… You told me you already arranged for Aldous and Bayard to be in charge of communicating with the human rebellion and with the Eirians, to organize our combined actions. Are you boys ready?”
                “That’s why we’re here.” Aldous bumped Bayard’s back with his only fist.
                “Rest while you can, children.” Kadem concluded, “Once Plum is ready, we’ll depart.”
                They all took the witch’s words to heart: Aldous and Bayard washed themselves exhaustively at the well, eager to cleanse off the dirt from the travel, while Licorice and Hedera followed them outside for no immediately apparent reason.
                Malia returned to her master’s tree, pages in hand, to read and learn everything the silver woman had transcribed. She sat by the shade of the golden foliage, running her eyes over the words until they went from extraneous notions to familiar cadence. The hushed arrival of dusk hid the handwriting on the parchment behind an ashen veil, but by then Malia had memorized it. The warm breeze turned to chilly wind, inviting her to go back inside. Before she could stand up, she heard the footsteps of someone approaching. She didn’t need to look to recognize the owner of the stable strides.
                Gorken sat next to her and handed her a tunic, “This might not be the frigid south, but still… a shelter from the cold is never unwelcome.”
                “Indeed.” Malia smiled, putting on the garment, “Thank you.”
                They sat quietly, together, for some time. Then Gorken spoke, “Are you afraid?”
                “I’m afraid of not being sufficiently afraid.”
                “…I’ll need you to elaborate on that one.”
                “I’m excited, Gorken. When I read Kadem’s elaborate notes and I realized I understood them, I was thrilled. I know I should be scared… What if I’m just a reckless idiot who’ll blindly rush headfirst into tragedy? I already failed my master… I wish I could be smart, or cunning, think of all that could go wrong and mentally prepare for it…”
                “Sometimes, it’s fine to be a reckless idiot. Blindly leading the charge inspires others to follow. That’s your job. And it’s the job of cautious cowards to keep the reckless idiots alive. So I’ll do just that. I won’t let you rush into tragedy. This is only the beginning.”
                “…Is that really something a leader should say?” Malia leaned her head on his shoulder, “You spoil me too much.”
                “You’re the one who loves corny stuff. Don’t blame me now.”
                “What about you?” she gripped his hand, “Are you afraid?”
                “I’m always afraid. That’s the job of a cautious coward.”
                “You’re not a coward.” Malia whispered.

                Gorken’s coherent rebuttal got lost in her kiss.

Description

I'll be posting my story here as well!  If you're interested in it, please feel free to follow my other account: ManuWrites

Thank you if you take the time to read it!

Previous Chapter:
Next Chapter:

All Chapters HERE.

CHAPTER 60: PREAMBLE

                “…I’m sorry I didn’t keep my promise.” Malia pressed her forehead against the tree that had once been Gabrielle, her hand caressing the deep ridges of its bark, “I’ll be going now. You never liked wimps, after all.”
                By then the princess had spent long minutes in the sole company of the golden flowers and the sunlight that interlaced them; Kadem had granted her privacy to shed as many tears as she needed. As Malia stepped back, she couldn’t help but see the spectacle before her as a generous gift from the benevolent tree. Beauty is Meaning. Beauty is Justice. Beauty is Love. None of those seemed sufficient, and yet they were all appropriate: her master was beautiful.
                When she finally joined her friends, she found them waiting for her. The somber air let her know Kadem had filled them in. Gorken was the first to move, hugging her in comforting silence. Aldous and Bayard followed suit, quietly gripping her shoulder and patting her head respectively.
                For a change, Licorice was the one to disrupt the stillness, “I would keep the mourning to a minimum. Trees often lead richer lives than most humans.”
                “They really do!” Hedera nodded reassuringly.
                Malia had no words to express her gratitude. Somehow, along her aimless path, she had ended up surrounded by the warm affection of people who cared for her in the most precious of ways, be it through serene solidarity, or awkward gestures, or by simply being there. With her, for her. “I don’t say it enough… But I love you all. Thank you.”
                She sat at the table then, eager to show them that she was fine, “There’s no better method to overcome grief than to drown it in Kadem’s…” she stopped herself from using an insulting, and yet honest, term, “…cuisine. We did say we would talk after eating. I can’t keep delaying everything. ”
                Malia found her own statement to be unexpectedly accurate: focusing on swallowing the silver witch’s tasteless food hoarded all of her mental capacity, to an extent that almost untied the forlorn knot in her chest. Almost.
                When they were done eating, the members of the party took turns retelling what they had done, and seen, and accomplished since their last stay at the silver woman’s lair. “You went out seeking to prepare for what would come after we broke the spell.” Kadem said, “You found the allies and the order we needed to ensure the realm wouldn’t unravel into bloody chaos as soon as we shattered this forced normality. Now it is time to aim our attention at our main objective: to break the spell my brothers cast.”
                The silver woman stood up to retrieve pieces of parchment from a shelf, “Just as you were playing your part, I was playing mine. I’ve thoroughly decoded the spell, and the conditions we must meet to crack its foundations. I wrote these for you, Plum.” She handed Malia a bundle of notes, “You can study them later. Despite your failure at recruiting the help of other ancient demons,” Kadem turned to the twins then, “You’ll have a much more crucial role than I anticipated. I had already mentioned that the existence of two stone seals meant Plum and I had to break them at the same time… but I didn’t know how precise that prerequisite truly was. It isn’t enough to just break them around the same time. Our magic must be applied simultaneously. It would be almost impossible to coordinate such synchronized magic when there are so many variables at play, including of course the intervention of the white maiden and her dragon. Which is why,” Kadem pointed at Hedera and Licorice, “please tell me your bond allows you to communicate in real time, even from afar.”
                “You’re lucky it does!” Hedera smirked proudly.
                “As long as there is earth between us, my sister and I can share our consciousness at will, no matter the distance.” Licorice added.
                Malia realized how nervous Kadem had been when she saw her shoulders relaxing along with a deep sigh; the silver witch’s every hope had been hanging on the twins’ confirmation. If Licorice and Hedera weren’t with us, if they weren’t twins…
                After Kadem adjusted her composure, she opened a map on the table, “Then we can proceed. The white maiden said they would be waiting for us at the stone seals, so it’s safe to assume the dragon will be protecting one, and she the other. But since we don’t know who’ll be north and who’ll be south, we should split up in a manner that allows us to stand a chance regardless of who we run into. I can handle myself, so I’ll head to the northern stone seal with one of the twins. Plum, you’ll go to the southern one with the other twin. We should keep groups to a minimum; the more people there are, the more potential enemies those are if we encounter the white maiden and her influence on the will of others.”
                “But what if she runs into the dragon instead?” Hedera chimed in, “Lico and I can help out against the maiden, but we can do nothing against him.”
                “I’ll go with Malia.” Gorken said, “Being from the Guardian clan will finally serve a purpose. If someone can hold off the dragon, even if just a little, it has to be me.”
                “Are you sure, boy? We don’t need careless bravery… and the dragon isn’t the only one you should be ready to face.”
                “I’m sure.” Gorken’s gaze was unyielding.
                “Very well then.” Kadem exhaled, “All that’s left is for Plum to study my instructions, and to decide the timing… You told me you already arranged for Aldous and Bayard to be in charge of communicating with the human rebellion and with the Eirians, to organize our combined actions. Are you boys ready?”
                “That’s why we’re here.” Aldous bumped Bayard’s back with his only fist.
                “Rest while you can, children.” Kadem concluded, “Once Plum is ready, we’ll depart.”
                They all took the witch’s words to heart: Aldous and Bayard washed themselves exhaustively at the well, eager to cleanse off the dirt from the travel, while Licorice and Hedera followed them outside for no immediately apparent reason.
                Malia returned to her master’s tree, pages in hand, to read and learn everything the silver woman had transcribed. She sat by the shade of the golden foliage, running her eyes over the words until they went from extraneous notions to familiar cadence. The hushed arrival of dusk hid the handwriting on the parchment behind an ashen veil, but by then Malia had memorized it. The warm breeze turned to chilly wind, inviting her to go back inside. Before she could stand up, she heard the footsteps of someone approaching. She didn’t need to look to recognize the owner of the stable strides.
                Gorken sat next to her and handed her a tunic, “This might not be the frigid south, but still… a shelter from the cold is never unwelcome.”
                “Indeed.” Malia smiled, putting on the garment, “Thank you.”
                They sat quietly, together, for some time. Then Gorken spoke, “Are you afraid?”
                “I’m afraid of not being sufficiently afraid.”
                “…I’ll need you to elaborate on that one.”
                “I’m excited, Gorken. When I read Kadem’s elaborate notes and I realized I understood them, I was thrilled. I know I should be scared… What if I’m just a reckless idiot who’ll blindly rush headfirst into tragedy? I already failed my master… I wish I could be smart, or cunning, think of all that could go wrong and mentally prepare for it…”
                “Sometimes, it’s fine to be a reckless idiot. Blindly leading the charge inspires others to follow. That’s your job. And it’s the job of cautious cowards to keep the reckless idiots alive. So I’ll do just that. I won’t let you rush into tragedy. This is only the beginning.”
                “…Is that really something a leader should say?” Malia leaned her head on his shoulder, “You spoil me too much.”
                “You’re the one who loves corny stuff. Don’t blame me now.”
                “What about you?” she gripped his hand, “Are you afraid?”
                “I’m always afraid. That’s the job of a cautious coward.”
                “You’re not a coward.” Malia whispered.

                Gorken’s coherent rebuttal got lost in her kiss.