Rae

We entered the portal and were whirled, swiftly, into the Faerie kingdom where we alighted. Its landscape never ceased to amaze me. It was almost like every portal travel had a way of reinventing the way I perceived the wondrous sights.

I breathed in the cool breeze with relish as I led the way to the Grand herbal garden. Nara and I were on a mission to pick up some rare herbs for Measer Fern. The druid had been working hard on a concoction that he wouldn’t divulge any information on yet. Faeries in their differing enchanting allure voiced out their pleasant greetings as we passed by the market square. 

“Nara, babe! Just the person I’ve been looking for,” a female faerie with bright blue wings called out before rushing towards Nara and dragging her towards a cake stall, hurriedly. “I need your exquisite tasting buds on this,” she offered in explanation for her behavior as she pointed to two sumptuously decorated cakes.

“No more needs to be said, Marigold. Who are the contestants?” Nara rubbed her hands together in anticipation as she eyed the delicacies, hungrily. Who could blame her? Faeries where the best bakers hands down. 

“Dawn and I,” Marigold answered, poking a bare-chested male with a harness, clutching his wand, across his broad chest.

“That hurts you know. Do keep your instruments of torture to yourself,” he grumbled, referring to her long nails. Marigold mimicked his speech, annoyingly, and he frowned at her. No doubt barely repressing the urge to push her head into one of the awaiting cakes. From their mannerism it was clear as day that they were siblings. 

Only siblings could be this bothersome. 

Nara was unfazed by their ongoing repartee as she tucked into the cakes with delight. Even offering me a bite which I declined, politely. She shrugged, signifying that I was missing out and continued her feast.

“Wait a minute. You’re not supposed to start now,” Dawn protested, finally noticing Nara’s actions. His arm was around Marigolds’ neck as he ruffled her hair, playfully, with his knuckles. However, now they were both transfixed at the record time it had taken Nara to consume almost half of both cakes.

“They taste delicious. That much I can tell you,” Nara replied with her mouth full before she turned around swiftly, grabbed my hand and skedaddled down the star-compass-rosette cobblestone pathway. 

“Argh! Let go of me you big oaf,” Marigold squirmed from under her brothers’ hold, behind us. “Hey Nara, I said to taste not devour!” she screamed after us, but we were so far gone that she could do nothing but chuck a few pieces of bismuth at us before she chuckled, lightheartedly. 

“I still love you Mari! More specifically your cakes!” Nara shouted back, chuckling along with her. “No joke. Those cakes were delish,” she complimented, finally slowing down to a relaxed stroll.

“I can tell,” I murmured with amusement, signaling that she had some cake crumbs by the side of her mouth. She dusted off the particles, comically, as I got lost in the wonderful sights that surrounded my vision.

Enchanted fireflies flittered about to light up the atmosphere before they came to rest upon tall silver-colored trees. Their wispy crystal leaves sparkled when hit by the bright energy star that replaced what we knew as the sun. Its magical mechanism ensured that it dimed at night to give off multicolored hues that were reflected by the magnificent wings of its inhabitants.  

The artistically arranged rows of stalls followed a swirl pattern that eventually led to the resplendent towering structure of Queen Liras’ castle. Its old age allure was every child’s fantasy dream come to life with gold-trimmings lining its windows, an ingenious connecting bridge, and clear waterfalls emanating from a spring within it.

An arch-shaped transparent stone structure acted as a backdrop against the whole castle. Its well-structured build was adorned with shinning cone shaped roofs and suspended above it was a milky way that harnessed the source of power that continually fueled their world.    

“Is it all gone now?” Nara’s tone disrupted my sightseeing and I looked towards her in confusion. “The cake crumbs?” she pushed, angling her face towards me.

“Yeah, yeah it’s all gone,” I replied, and she peered at me with great scrutiny. “What?”

“The insides of your mouth are turning blue,” she gasped, alarmed and I raised an eyebrow in disbelief. “I’m not kidding Rae. I saw it now!” her eyes darted about my face in a concerned manner and I tried hard to comprehend the possible meaning behind the oddity. Was the prolonged involuntary starvation finally telling on my body?

“Where exactly?” I questioned, trying to quell the rising anxiety in my voice and opening my mouth a little.

“Just right….” she started but I never heard the rest of her statement as she shoved a small piece of black forest cake topped with cherries and cream whip into my mouth. 

The taste awakened my sensations to its euphoric chocolatey essence and despite her trickery, I found myself relishing in the sugary-sweet goodness. 

“It’s good isn’t it?” an impish smile lined her features and she bounced in giddy excitement. “Absolutely no one declines cakes where I am and besides maybe a little sugar high would do you good,” she giggled, opening a small gate designed in the form of a butterfly.

“You got me worried there for a minute,” I chuckled as she turned to face me and walked backwards. “Maybe instead of been a druid, you should try your hands at acting. With the performance that you just pulled, you might just be the star of our generation,” I mused, and she bowed down severally with sass.

“You totally ate that,” she laughed and pulled out a neatly wrapped napkin from her strapped bag. Therefore, producing three slices of cake which she munched on. The female was as sneaky as they come.

“Don’t mind if I do,” I sing-songed, snatching up two slices from the napkin when she was unawares. 

“Don’t you dare Rae!” she cried, breaking into a sprint when I shoved the slices into my mouth. I ran ahead of her, our laughter filling the atmosphere until we came close to the quiet, euphoric herbal garden where I stopped.

She barreled into my back with force due to the fact that I had just halted. However, anticipating the impact, I was able to stop us from toppling to the ground.

“Rae, I am seriously going to ignore you for a month,” she groaned into my back and I smiled. 

The atmosphere was much more refreshing and calming here. It could be due to my love for horticulture and botany. For as I looked towards the vast rows of endless greenery, I felt a sense of peace in my being and relaxed. 

“My long-awaited guests have finally arrived,” Reynold, the head faerie horticulturist, murmured. He was bent over a large crystal table, magnifying glass in one hand and an ink pen in the other. As he observed a bunch of blood flowers and scribbled his findings unto the crisp parchment paper of a leather-bound journal. 

Reynold was a long-time acquaintance of Nara and I. Petite in size with dark emerald-colored locks and enchanting translucent wings that could assume different shades of hue depending on his mood. 

While it was said that an individual could wear their hearts on their sleeve, Reynold wore his feelings on his wings.

“Its awful quiet here today,” I mused, noticing that he was the only one present in the garden. 

“Yeah, where are the others?” Nara chimed in, walking towards Reynold but not before she shoved me, begrudgingly.

“Years of letting them off early every Friday has made them believe that it is now their lawful right as employees,” he grumbled, summoning a crystal stone which manifested from thin air. He placed it on a piece of paper which was beginning to fall prey to the wind current and continued his quiet study. “They even threatened to take me to court if I was ever to infringe on their inherent right provided for and protected by the constitution,” he huffed, incredulously just as he’s wings turned bright pink. 

Reynold was a creature of crippling bashfulness, framed with the quintessence of innocence despite being in his early thirties and blessed—or in his case, cursed—with a slight frame. So, it wasn’t surprising that he’s much heftier and sturdier subordinates could intimidate him.  

“The plot twist behind this whole charade is that they don’t get paid and while we have set rules and regulations, nowhere in the scroll does it present these so-called rights of employees that they keep clamoring for,” another item appeared from thin air upon the movement of his fingers and he muttered in regret just as his wings turned ashy. “Give them the liberty to travel to the outside world and they come back spewing gibberish,” directing the item my way, I caught the familiar scroll and released its string. The scroll unraveled to expose beautiful calligraphic lettering that continued down the length of the green fields and onwards, towards the mouth of the hill.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” I brought the scroll down, slowly, to bare my face and shook my head in disbelief. “Tell me you haven’t read all that,” I raised an eyebrow, still watching the unravelling of the parchment paper. Sheesh! That was one hell of a scroll.

“I have actually,” he admitted, clicking his fingers, and making the scroll disappear. “It doesn’t take much time really…” he started, waving off his great accomplishment as something insignificant but seeing Nara and I’s countenance he backtracked, shyly. “…. okay maybe that’s a lie,” he sighed, gathering the bunch of blood flowers up and placing them in a hanging glass vase. “How can I help you two anyway?”

“We are here to pick up a few herbs,” Nara replied, producing a list from her back pocket. “Enceph-ala-toss wodli,” she read with difficulty. 

“Encephalartos woodli,” Reynold enunciated with ease. “That’s a rare one. What is Measer Fern working on this time?” he enquired, walking down the rows of herbs with us behind him. 

“He won’t say,” I replied, noticing that the once lighted embers of the ball of energy where beginning to dim, slowly. It’s repressed glow hit the surface of the silver-stoned arched structure to reflect rainbow hues over the faerie land. I sighted the bottomless well just a few paces away and inhaled deeply. It was now or never. 

“Secondly, we need As-fo-idal,” Nara titled the paper, squinted at the lettering, and enunciated the words with hesitation.

“Asafoetida,” Reynold corrected her once more, and I sniggered at her struggle with the terms.

“If you can do a much better job, why don’t you come read it out loud,” she snapped, thrusting the paper into my hands.

“No problem,” I sassed, inhaling deeply before I impersonated an irritating nasal voice that was sure to irk her further. “After that, my kind Sir we’ll need Angelica archangelica, Pimpinella anisum, Attenborough’s pitcher plant, Laurus nobilis…. Should I continue?” I goaded with a smug smile before she snatched the list from my hands and huffed in annoyance.

“You know what, you can buzz off somewhere else while Reynold and I look for them, smartass cake thief,” she shooed me away, still hurt over the fact that I had eaten her cakes. 

“Fine Nara. I’m going,” I laughed, walking away from them but not before I heard her attempt to pronounce another herb name yet again and failing at it. Frustrated at her fruitless efforts, she gave Reynold the list and settled with gathering the herbs in a woven basket.

I walked down the familiar path, soundlessly, towards the bottomless well. With every step I took, the more my heart clenched, and the more my muscles resisted the command to keep walking. It had to be done. This was the only way I could move on.

I reached the floridly decorated well, finally, with great difficulty and peering into its murky depths, I caught the reflection of the darkened energy ball. My silhouette came to rest upon the water’s surface and dragging my fingers across it, I caused a ripple that distorted my features. 

“I’m here again,” I whispered, softly to the slow drifting wind current. “Only this time I’m alone,” I added with a humorless chuckle. A single droplet disrupted the wells’ gloomy surface and placing a finger to my cheek, I noticed that I was crying yet again.

I would allow myself to cry just this one last time. After this day, I would never look backwards again. She was my past now and it was high time I let her go.

My hand moved to my neck and drawing the jewellery out, I pulled it over my head and held it enclosed tightly within my fists. Its form pierced deeply into my palms, but still I refused to let it go. Afterall, it was the only piece of her that I was yet to dispose of. Slowly, I released the necklace and let it dangle above the well. 

Once, it swinged to the left. I failed to hear Reynolds’ shout of alarm instead I was fixated on the jewellery as flashbacks of my times with her flittered past my vision. Then it swinged to the right. Let it go Rae. The ominous presence cornered me, slowly, but even that failed to break my trance. Nara was screaming to get my attention now and the weather had taken a turn for the worse. It swinged to the left again but much faster this time. Come on Reynold, cut her off once and for all. 

The powerful blow was unexpected, to say the least. I rolled down the hill, earning a few grass burns on my way down. Nevertheless, I kept the necklace nestled, protectively, within my palms. I wasn’t letting it go like this. I encased myself in an air shield just in time before I fell into a steep ravine. Staggering to my feet, I rose my hand to shield myself from the flurry of dirt and earth matter that tore, rapidly, at my clothes. Strikes of lightning lit up the midnight sky and the clouds whirled together to form an angry cumulonimbus condensation that signaled the start of a destructive storm. What was going on?

“Rae! Rae are you okay?” Nara’s distressed call echoed from above the hill but for some reason I couldn’t see past the thickening darkness that was amassing by the second.

“I’m okay!” I shouted back. “What is happening?” 

“Rae!” Reynold called out this time. “Rea answer if you can hear us,”

“I can hear you loud and….” My statement was cut-off when a great lightning struck a tree just a few paces from where I was. I rolled away from the sparked embers that it emitted but not before I got burnt by one of such sparks. Air bending in this condition would only aggravate the weather and unfortunately, I couldn’t sense a nearby water source and so I gnashed my teeth hard in pain.  

“Oh no!” I heard Reynold gasp. “Never in my years of existence would I have thought that a Jerlion would ever be able to breach our protective barrier. Nora you go call for back up, I’m sure they’ve sensed the change but unfortunately these tricky beings are good at distorting direction. So, I want you to lead them here right on time. I’ll go after Rae,” he instructed, hurriedly to a reluctant Nora who was adamant on staying to help. “Nora it’s either you hurry, or he dies,” he thundered. It was quite out of character for Reynold to employ such harsh tones, so it only meant that the situation was one of grave severity.

In addition, it was quite disconcerting that despite the commotion and chaos, I could hear them clearly from below a hill that was relatively high up while they couldn’t hear a thing I said. Almost as if someone didn’t want me to be found. Also, what on earth was a Jerlion?

I had no time to ponder more on the matter as I sensed the swirl of a dagger whoosh past my face in a rush. I turned to the source of the attack and noticed a hooded figure clad in a scarlet robe, walking towards me.

“Do not come any closer,” I warned, amassing a ball of wind within my palms. I had never had an encounter with great animosity or ever being in a position where I had to fight to keep my life and yet it was as if my repressed lycanthropic senses knew exactly what to do. My elongated fangs caught the glint of the midnight ball of energy and my predatory stance was one of great defense. This individual was a threat and thus, needed to be eliminated.

The figure scoffed, silently, before rushing towards me. I created a wind barrier between our bodies in defense, but the presence broke through it like it was nothing and targeted a series of lightning my way. I swirled out of range, escaping most of them, however, the electric assault was relentless eventually striking me square in the chest. The burn engulfed my whole being in an excruciating heat sensation that crippled my senses. Consequently, I fell with my face forward in agony.

“Quite sweet that you wanted to take me on,” the voice jeered, drawing nearer to where I was sprawled. I couldn’t even tell if it was male or female and I didn’t really care.

Sighting the figure’s boots from under hooded eyes, I waited patiently till the presence was above me before I channeled an air blow straight to the individual’s kneecaps. The crunch of bone preceded the eventual fall to the ground and scrambling to my feet in anguish, I felt the raindrops fall from the sky and promptly forged an icicle-sword which I put to the presence’s neck.

“Who are you and what do you want from me?” I demanded but only received a melodious taunting laugh in return. I grew impatient at the unwillingness of the figure to talk and so with the tip of the icicle-sword, I removed the hood. 

The action revealed the mesmerizing features of a dark-haired beauty with amber orbs that shone with meekness. Quite contradictory to the ruthlessness she had exhibited just some seconds ago. Her fair skin shone with the essence of youth as did her sultry red lips encapsulate her compelling feminine essence. 

Instantaneously, my back ached with pain and my hands twisted away from her body of their own accord. The icicle-sword swung from my hands to hit the ground where it shattered into a thousand splinters. My legs gave out from under me and I fell onto the ground with rigid muscles that refused to move. My being was under her control.

She arose, healed of her kneecap injury, and straddled my form. Stretching out her palm to summon the dagger which had whizzed past me earlier, she held its metallic structure in her hand and angled it over my aching chest.

“It’s quite sad that you have to go,” she whispered, parting my hair to peer at my wide-eyed expression. “It’ll only hurt a little,” she added, holding the dagger with both hands now. I couldn’t decipher the feelings that shone in her eyes. Was it genuine regret or was she been sadistic?

I waited for the tilt of the dagger to pierce my awaiting heart as I reminisced on all the warm memories that I had created with Yil. 

Yil, I hadn’t said that name in weeks talk less of thought it.

Just as she had left without a note bidding goodbye, I would also leave. Only this time, I wasn’t coming back again.

The forceful thrust never came, however, and peering from an eye I noticed the confliction that plagued the depths of her mesmerizing orbs. 

“Rae! Shout if you can hear me. Rae!” I heard Reynold’s call and smiled, slightly. Just maybe the Sky Lordians were going to prolong my existence.

“Shit,” she cussed, placing the dagger in a hold by her waist. “Never make the mistake that this is over,” she hissed, bending down to regard me with quiet scrutiny. I couldn’t even form a proper sentence and instead settled with a defiant grunt. “You’re a stubborn one, aren’t you?” she chuckled, caressing my cheek. 

I felt the resistance, slowly, die out from my body as I was sucked into her endless eyes. My muscles became lax and my mind was shrouded in a thick euphoric fog of peace as my eyes rolled to the back of my head. I didn’t even feel the prick of the needle that served to draw out my blood nor did I register her soundless departure after that. Instead, I smiled at the utopic sensation as I soared higher and higher into the domains of ecstasy. Only to be dragged, painfully, down by a vigorous shake to the shoulders.

“Rae! Come to your senses,” the voice pleaded. “Or do you think he’s dead?” It asked, fearful of what the answer might be.

“He wouldn’t be breathing if he was,” another voice reprimanded with a snarky tone. “Besides, he doesn’t have any mortal wounds or scratches,” it added.

My eyes opened with great difficulty, however, the bright shine of the light bulbs dettered my will to try again and I kept them shut.

“He opened his eyes just now,” the voice which I now recognized as Naras’ squealed, hurriedly, and I cringed at the harsh sound.

“I know that,” the monotone voice, which was undoubtedly Measer Ferns’, snapped. “I happen to have eyes as well,” he added, dryly. 

I tried to sit up straighter, quite tired of laying down as the atmosphere was starting to become very suffocating. 

“No, you can’t get up now,” Nara rushed to my side and tried to stop my movements, but I was determined to sit up. Once, I was settled comfortably, I opened my eyes and noticed that apart from Measer Fern and Nara, Reynold and Queen Lira were also present.

The luxurious structure of a well-decorated guest room greeted me, and I deduced that I was probably in one of the quarters of Queen Liras’ castle.

“Ahm what’s going on?” I asked, confused.

“What do you mean? We were all worried sick when we couldn’t find you at the bottom of the hill. I even thought that you had fallen into the ravine,” Nara cried out, wiping away her tears. “And then to top it all off there’s this Jerlion, I still don’t know what that is because no one would tell me, who’s after you,” she finished, staring accusedly at Reynold and Measer Fern.

“We need to know what she or him looked like. Any distinctive markings that you remember? Hair color or build perhaps? Because it’s been years since we’ve sighted one and trust me, they don’t just appear for fun,” Lira mused with a finger to her chin. “That Jerlion was specifically here for you,” she added, looking at me.

“Well that’s where I can’t help you because I don’t seem to remember any encounter with this Jerlion that you speak of,” I looked back at all of them in confusion before I placed my legs by the side of the bed and got up to wear my shirt. They were all acting pretty funny. “All I remember was when I stood by a well….” I caught myself before I let it slip that I was debating on whether to dump my necklace to Yil at its bottom in a last resort to forget about her or not. “…. I don’t even know how I got here,” I whispered, quite shocked at the fact that I couldn’t seem to access a certain repressed memory. It was so close to the surface yet so far.

I was so overwhelmed right now and all I wanted to do was just to curl up and hide in my botanical garden. Was I so hung up on Yil that I now had abrupt fainting spells and memory loss? What exactly was becoming of me?

“You really don’t remember anything?” Reynold asked, incredulously and I turned back to him.

“No, I don’t,” I answered, simply. “And before you all rally round to start a pity-party on my behalf, at least let me keep my dignity and walk out first,” I ground-out as they all stared at me, not quite understanding the source of my abrupt annoyance. 

I was degenerating right before their eyes and they no doubt bore sympathy for me. It was quite thoughtful that they’d make up stories to cover up the real reason, I was laying in that bed in the first place. I could feel the fatigue deep down in my bones and I could guess what had happened.

However, with my head held high, I walked out with the tiniest shred of pride that hadn’t yet deserted me and walked towards the corridor with sluggish steps and an equally hurting chest.  
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