I lay on the damp stone floor as a young woman braids my hair.
She has dark skin, green eyes black braided hair and a birthmark on her cheek.
"Oh goodie. You're awake" the girl says and puts a bead to hold the braid.
"Who are you?" I ask my head spinning making the ground look to be moving.
"I'm your sister Ilvtan" She says and I can hear Tolx and Rivy shout for me.
"We need to go" I say standing up and almost falling back but Ilvtan catches me.
"Careful we don't have to hurry" she says
"Yes we do" I say trying to stand on my own.
"I don't have much time to get to Pelrata"
"Why are you going there? The war isn't over" Ilvtan says
"Arox has my family" I say
"Ilverna they're dead" she says trying to calm me down
"My name is Niztal Navieta and Arox has my lifing and breathing family" I growl at her and she jumps back as Tolx finds the cave.
"Niz? You in here?" Rivy asks his voice echoing in the cave
"I'm here" I call back
"Shh" Ilvtan hushes "Or they'll find us"
"That's the point" I say and see the two boys stand on the other side of the river Rivy looking unsure at the water but Tolx just ignores it and walks through.
"Tolx What are you doing?" Rivy asks
"Getting over the river and don't say my name" he snarls at Rivy
"Tolx!" I call and he stops in his step listening,
"Niz? Are you okay?" He calls
"Yes, I'm fine" I call back as he gets up on the other side.
"Stop talking they're getting too close" Ilvtan says as I take out the beads in my hair holding the braids.
"They are my friends" I say
"No, they are from the Rising Sun" she says
"Yes I know" I say "Tolx how did we meet?" I call
"What?" He says confused
"Just answer the question"
"You were friends with Lolyth and came home with her one day, she was showing you her knife collection and you threw one of her knifes at me" he calls
"See it's him" I say and walk forward after the ground stops moving.
"I can't let you go" she says and I feel as though my head is being crushed.
I try to hold down a scream of pain but I can't. I don't even hear the scream, I fall to my knees as my nose start bleeding.
"NIZTAL!" Tolx calls as the crushing stops.
"You are not leaving" Ilvtan says crouching besides me taking a lock of my hair and putting it behind my ear.
"Yes, I am" I say and force myself to stand up.
"Ilverna Stop, I don't want to hurt you" she says
"Then don't" I say and walk towards Tolx that's running.
"It's his blood on your hands" she says and a moment later Tolx falls to his knees in pain his nose and ears bleeding.
"NO! STOP!" I yell angry and remember my so called training.
See what I want and let go of everything else.
I close my eyes, draw a breath. Hold. Let go. My hand twitches and there is a protective shield around Tolx and he stops screaming.
"How did you?" She asks and I can feel something warm dripping from my fingers.
"Practice and patience" I say as a circle of fire surrounds me and her the flames licking at my fingertips.
"She passed her power onto you?" She asks
"Don't know don't care. Leave my friends alone and I'll let you take your place as queen" I say and something dark flickers in her eyes.
This isn't Ilvtan this is something else.
Shapes on the walls start to glow and it continues the pattern in the box.
The ravens wings shield the reality from the Reaper guards.
To hold the pure truth without any lies is a sight only those who cannot see hold, for the raven will guide them through life but only if they have trust and honesty can they truly become what a open heart can offer.
Power.
Never doubt an action.
Focus.
Listen to those around.
Sight.
See the opponent.
Blindness.
See through your opponent.
Control.
Feel, hear, smell, sense, see and release.
To harm without hesitation is only a work of a warrior.
To heal without failure is only the work of a healer.
To command without second thought is only the work of a leader.
What are you?
"Harm. Heal. Command" I repeat
"see with blindness."
"What are you jabbering about?" The girl/Ilvtan asks me
"I am nothing" I say and close my eyes and repeat the words in my mind,
Never doubt an action, to protect.
Listen to those around you, Rivy.
See the opponent, a demon.
See through my opponent, curses.
Feel, heat from the fire grows.
Hear, the cracking of stones as the supposed to be Ilvtan shifts uncomfortable.
Smell, sweat of fear and frustration from Ilvtan.
Sense, Ilvtans ghostly hand on my shoulders.
See, I open my eyes and see a demon in the other circle.
Release, I let down the fire and the demon charges at me cursing rapidly.
I swiftly move out of the way still Ilvtans hands on my shoulder.
"You bloody disgusting creatures" the demon says
"This is my curse to protect and you are destroying it"
"Don't let it get you" Ilvtan whispers in my ear letting go of my shoulders and I move back into the tree before climbing it and sit at the top.
"You fucking witch! Come down and face me you fucking coward!" It yells at me as the tree catches on fire,
White fire, not mine.
"What have you done?! Bloody bastard! You ruined it! Fucking Cloud shithead!" It yells and it melts as the tree burns.
It continues to curse at me until it's gone and the tree has burnt down to a girl.
Tolx lays unconscious on the ground next to the tree and Rivy looks around confused how he got from one side of the river to the other.
"Ilvtan?" I ask carefully as the girl coughs her green eyes glowing from behind the ash.
"Ilverna?" She asks just as carefully.
"Niztal Navieta much rather" I say and she steps better into the light from the shapes on the walls.
"Who are you?" She asks Rivy
"Rivy hair of the forest" I state
"Lady Ilvtan hair of Cloud" she introduces herself as I sit beside Tolx feeling weird seeing him this helpless.
"And he is?" She asks
"Tolx Ly Werkon" I say
"Ly?" She asks surprised
"Mother was a Queens first hand servant in Rising Sun" I explain because only the families who are considered for royal partnership have the name Ly.
"What does Ly mean?" Rivy asks
"He can be assigned to partner with Eltyr if she chooses him now that there is no king and queen to choose for her" Ilvtan explains
"That's sad" Rivy says
"It's like this in all kingdoms in our land or another" I say and Tolx shoots up drawing a breath quickly.
"We need to get back to the wagon" Tolx says and I help him up because arguing with him is useless.
"Who are you?" He asks
"Lady Ilvtan and hair of Cloud" she I traduces herself with a small princess like bow,
"Okay, come on" he says unimpressed and we get out of the cave.
We reach the end of the woods and hear laughter.
Adult men laughing.
Tolx sneaks up to the wagon with Rivy behind him because I'm too clumsy to sneak up on someone.
"I got' nothin' he said" one of the men says
"You bloody bastard" another say and they are obviously drunk.
"What? We be rich after sellin' this" the first man says.
"I killed the bastard so I get more" a third man says
"Imma kill you if you take more than us" the first man says but then they stop talking probably listening because Tolx and Rivy stop as still as rocks.
"Hello beautiful" a man says behind us gripping our arms
"Mind if you join us?" He asks and the men come into view, two tall, one short but all muscular with the body build of warriors. They wore armor with the red crown on their chest plates.
"My my my. What beautiful creatures" the first one says the short one
"The king doesn't usually let us have guests" the second one says greedy
"He can sit on a sword for all I care" the first one says but the third one doesn't speak as I feel like I recognize the look he has in his eyes.
"Ealoxk?" I ask and the two laugh but then the second man starts to laugh up blood and the short man watches in horror as the man falls forward with a sword in his back.
"Bloody-" the first man starts but can't finish because Tolx slits his throat.
The third knight throws a Rising Sun throwing knife at us and it hits the man holding us in the throat.
He takes off his helmet and reveals Ealoxk.
I run towards him tears in my eyes and hug him happy to know he's alive.
"We need to hurry" Ealoxk says
"Where's Foxinir?" Rivy asks
"Dead, Who are you?" Ealoxk asks Rivy with no emotion what so ever.
"Rivy" he says in shock
"Well we need to get going if we want to be in Pelrata by the Last summer sun day" Ealoxk says fetching four horses
"Put on armor, girls Foxinir must've been making some women armor" Ealoxk says and we all do as told and he is right Foxinir had been working on women's armor three all of them ready but a forth only the upper half done.
"Tolx take the biggest, Rivy take the black one, Lady Ilvtan take the fastest" Ealoxk says but Ilvtan hesitates a bit
"I don't know how to ride a horse" she says ashamed.
"Niztal take the fastest, Lady Ilvtan you're with me" Ealoxk says and we all mount the horses and Crimson horses are way bigger than Rising sun horses but not as big as a Pegasus or a unicorn.
"Wait" I say getting off my horse and run inside the wagon.
I grabs horse bag and put the cloaks, the box, Ealoxks lion, water bottles, rings, Tolxs axe, knives, a sword and one dagger, Fox meat and apple grass before coming back putting the bag on the horse before mounting him.
We start riding towards Lerckdor and when the sun rises I can see the ruins of the city.
We ride through it without a stop as we pass what seems to ruins then sand.