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Belian ~ be-lee-an
Din Rae ~ deen-ray
Urden ~ oo-r-den
Varael ~ va-rah-yell
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FINALLY, she had done it, yet she hadn't expected the act to leave her overwhelmed and drained at the same time. She could sense the crackling energy, feel its pulsating force tapping, and hear it thumping on her heart like an external visitor on her soul's door.

It lay within her grasp, almost like a tangible entity, demanding even more of her energy to resist its allure. She even had her hands clenched on her thighs to stop herself from physically reaching for her necklace. The weight of the necklace pressed down against her chest, brimming with immense power - power she had successfully locked away within herself.

To force her mind off the energy and disorientation she was feeling, she focused her eyes on the moving world around them.

The city of Belian glittered under the sun. It had more structures and monuments than Emerfield or Cathurva combined. Most of the structures were highrises, stretching far up into the sky, all varying designs and architecture she had never seen before. Dohlia had told them there was a glass mine here, and it was the largest ever in Yhulja, and the town people—or rather townfold—called it their Mini-Pride.

Amidst the shimmering surroundings, Karyn's gaze fell upon the structures, all of them marred by cracks. Some cracks were barely noticeable, while others were long and jarring, leaving her wondering what caused the cracks and how long before they would give way.

The threader they sat in, unlike the one at Vesper's shed, had doors and windows that were down for fresh air. This one also had more space as she sat at the back with Salome between her and Jamie, while Zack sat in front beside Dohlia.

They had swapped their shirts and gowns for tees and jeans and this time, she couldn't find the difference between them and the regular clothes she wore back on Earth. Even Wlerden had some mundane within its extraordinary sheen.

Dohlia had offered to drive them to the station, which was fifty minutes away from the house, giving Karyn enough time to notice how devoid Belian was of red guards. But she was quick to reason when she recalled Zack saying no SiatJan had ever risen from Yhuljan glass.

Where there were no SiatJans, there shouldn't be any red guards, right?

A popping sound echoed within the threader, and all eyes fell on the small square screen beside the steering wheel. The letter Q popped on the screen before Dohlia tapped the button on the left side of the screen. What showed next was a series of letters and numbers, all in an arrangement Karyn couldn't understand.

The threader slowed for a bit as Dohlia's eyes scanned the screen. When she had finished, she tapped the button on the right and the screen went off. The woman increased her speed and, with her eyes fixed on the road, she asked, "Thought yer wanted a low profile?"

Zack was the one who replied. "Yes, that's what I said."

"How does killing a Red Guard look like a low profile?" the woman said in a calm voice. While Salome gasped in response, Karyn met the woman's dark blue eyes through the rear-view mirror. "Hope that was not yer intention?"

It wasn't just the look Dohlia gave her, but also her tone that made Karyn conclude that the woman knew they were the culprits.

"How did you know that?" Jamie asked.

"That's what that message said. The man who sent it knew about me having guests today and was wondering if those guests were running away from something. Red Guards, perhaps."

"Do they have a suspect?" Zack asked.

"Word is two girls did it," Dohlia said and when Salome gasped again, she added, "Two girls is a very broad and vague suspect list. They would need eyewitnesses to the crime and a very clear retail of what happened for yer both to be on their radar."

"We never said it was both of them," Jamie said, and when the woman shifted her mirror to give her a view of Jamie, her eyes met his stern ones.

"Yer didn't have to say it. The girls had it written all over them. But," she readjusted her mirror and set her eyes back on the road as they made a turn. "Yer need not worry. All yer need to do is keep yer heads low, which means staying away from Red Guards. If yer see them, yer go the other way. Stay out of their steel's sight and they won't even notice yer. Worked for so many."

The ride continued quietly before Jamie spoke. "How can we trust that this information stays with you?"

At Jamie's question, Karyn caught a bit of sight of Zack's frown. Her hands drifted down to find his fists clenched.

"There are things one can't sell after buying them. I'd rather have me fingers cut off than give out information one paid me to keep. No matter how small the payment was," Dohlia said through gritted teeth. It appeared Zack wasn't the only one annoyed by Jamie's distrust.

"Just making sure that—"

"There's nothing to be sure of. Dohlia is a credible woman who lives and would die by her principles. I know you don't trust me, but that is no reason to doubt the people I work with." Despite his steady delivery, Karyn could sense the underlying tone of frustration.

The rest of the ride went with no words said until they arrived at the station. Once Dohlia got them tickets, she bade them goodbye, but only after she had a prolonged conversation with Zack. One that ended with smiles on their faces and a light laugh from Zack at something the elder woman had said. Zack bade her goodbye with a hug and by the time they had settled in their seats, Dohlia was no longer in the crowd.

They were in a four-seater by the window. Jamie and Zack sat side-by-side while she and Salome sat opposite facing them. A while after the train had started, Jamie spoke. "I'll try contacting Gema."

"I'll come with you," she offered. Anything to flee from being alone with her thoughts. Thoughts of blood and the dead guard.

They got into a room that had a sign reading Waiting Room on it and they found it empty.

"I've already connected to you. I don't know how you did it, but you reached out to me. The principle, as I've once said, is to clear your thoughts and leave just one thing that reminds you of that person until that thought consumes your whole mind. It's our gems that are connected like phones that help us access each other. All you need now is to solidify your link with me and you'll automatically connect to the others. Are you going you ready to try again?"

She nodded, yet her nod was as weak as her resolve and Jamie must have sensed it because he let out a sigh and looked behind her, casting a glance at the door.

"I've... killed someone before," he started. "Actually, I've killed more than one person. The first was the hardest, yet it didn't get easier any other time. After my first, I got stuck in this endless loop of guilt and trying to justify what I did. I know what it did to me and I can see what it's doing to you. I can understand if you're here because you don't want to think of what happened, but this is not the exercise to use."

She soon let out a sigh of her own. There was no way she could clear her thoughts. Not right now.

"Fine. I'll... head back."

He gave her a confirming nod before she left him alone.

"That's it?" Salome asked once she got back to their seat.

"No, I'm uh... not ready for that now," she stated before she felt Salome's hand over hers.

She lifted her head to meet Salome's warm smile. How the young girl had remained steady after everything she had seen baffled Karyn. While mere flashes of what happened tormented her, Salome had witnessed the entire ordeal, yet the young girl was the one comforting her.

The ride had taken hours, and they had to make stops, with the journey lasting throughout the night. By the next morning, Karyn remained awake. Both Jamie and Salome had slept, and even Zack had his eyes closed at some point, but she didn't. She couldn't and even sleep dared not to give her any relief, almost as if it too were punishing her for her actions.

Finally, they got off the train with Salome in a lighter mood and her tongue full of praises.

"We are a bus ride from Gema and Marcela," the young girl stated, and Jamie, whose cough had reoccurred during the night, nodded in response. Zack offered to get the bus tickets since he knew his way around granting Jamie some rest.

Nothing but glass formed all the buses around, making her wonder what their engines would be like. Would that also be of glass? The bus had few passengers, and the ride didn't last as long as the train or the ride they had to the station.

The structures in Thetln, made of opaque glass, lacked skyscrapers—a stark contrast to Belian architecture. The houses had a peculiar shape to them and each had something distinct to it, as many as they were. Whether it was the curve of the roof or the inward bending of a door. She appreciated the uniqueness of the place and the serenity it brought.

Karyn didn't know how much she missed them until she finally laid her eyes on the two female Wielders. She also looked forward to the reunion, but her anticipation paled in comparison to Jamie, who was already darting down the block and towards the rest of their party even before she stepped out of the bus.

Salome had called out to him to wait, but he had already reached Marcela before he enveloped her in a tight hug. From the distance, Karyn could see how his shoulders deflated, almost as if he had sunk into the embrace.

The closer they got, the more she caught sight of their interaction. Marcela pulled away to lift her hands to his cheeks, striking her thumb against them as she muttered into the single-breath space between their lips.

Only when they were close enough, did she hear Marcela.

"Oh, how I had missed you," she said while he nuzzled his face into her neck.

"I'm sorry I left you, I—"

"You have no fault in how things turned out," she cooed as she ran her hand through his hair. He raised his head and her hands came to rest on his cheek while she studied his face with adoration. Then a slight frown formed between her brows and her lips turned downward.

"Oh avorme," she started. "You look—"

"Terrible," he completed as her thumbs drifted up before pulling down his cheek to inspect his eyes.

"It's that time," she said, and he simply nodded.

"As much as I love seeing you two with lovey-dovey eyes for each other," Gema said, making the couple aware of the others. "Am I not deserving of a hug?" the Rubian probed with a mock pout before she moved in to hug him while Marcela moved to the other three.

"Pardon me. How are you both?" she asked Salome and Karyn before giving both of them hugs. She acknowledged Zack with a look and a nod, to which he responded the same.

"We've had one heck of a journey," Salome groaned. "I want to be grateful it's over, but I have a nagging feeling that it's not."

"You all look drained, especially you, Karyn. Have you had any rest at all?" Marcela asked, concern shining through her eyes. But she remembered Jamie's words and actions.

"Not until Jamie tells me what he's been keeping from me."

"You're right," Marcela sighed. "There is something, and we were the ones that told him to wait until you all got here. Once you get settled and freshened up, we will talk."

They left in a group, unknown to them that a man stood in the distance with his eyes trailing them.

♛ ♛ ♛

EVEN while asleep, Karyn's brain didn't want her to forget even the simplest details. She awoke with a throbbing headache. Her muscles now aching as the full effect of her lack of sleep and hyper state of action finally weighed down on her.

The room was a small one with three others, all in a bungalow. The intricate glasswork that adorned every corner of the room, from the floor to the walls, chairs, and table, filled her with amazement as she took in every detail.

The only thing she could say was not of glass was the mattress she sat on. She found Salome asleep on the bed next to her and her eyes drifted to the window to find the world outside dark. Though her sleep felt like minutes, it must have been longer than that, given how the sun was still very much out when her head hit the pillow.

After rinsing her face, she stepped out of the room to hear hushed voices. With each step closer to the open door of the room, the words became clearer and more distinct to her.

"If what you're saying is true—"

"It is," she heard Marcela interrupt Zack.

"Then we must act fast. We can't let it get worse than this," Zack said. Along with the urgency in his tone, there was an underlying notion she couldn't exactly grasp in his tone.

What could they be talking about?

She stepped in before anyone could say anything further. She found Gema, Marcela, and Jamie seated on three out of four chairs in the room while Zack stood behind the last one.

"Ryn, I trust you rested well."

"I didn't," she quipped. "What were you guys talking about?" She had enough of people keeping things from her. If they were a team like Gema always said, why were they hiding things?

"You," Jamie said. "We now know what's... what's happening... to you," he said between coughs.

"You might want to sit down for this," Marcela said, pointing to the empty glass chair. She watched them carefully but moved to sit.

"Told by who?"

"Your aunt. Helen as you know her and Olwyn as we know her," Gema said.

Karyn's eyes immediately darted across the room. "Is she here?"

"No, we met her at Louriville on our way back to the Mansion after the portal had closed."

The silence scratched at Karyn, and she couldn't handle it. "Well, spill it out then!"

"Karyn dear, the reason for your recent... actions is because of what we call Din Rae. Otherwise called, The Source of the Faceless."

"When you were little," Gema started. "A while after your seventh birthday, your parents noticed some... changes in you, like what we are seeing now. You were a gentle child before then, so the changes were a stark contrast to who you were. You would wake up frustrated, which would lead to extreme tantrums. Then a bout of amnesia sometimes, dizziness, paranoia, hallucinations, and back to frustration, and the cycle continued. But it kept getting worse every time. The tantrums worsened, and the amnesia lengthened.

"Then your parents started seeking answers. With Olwyn being the closest person alive to your parents, they told only her. It was after some research they found out you had Din Rae in you. It's called Source of the Faceless because that's what it is. They don't know how you got it or when exactly. At first, Olwyn thought it was because you were born on a special day, Daeve don Raele, which makes you a Varaele and predisposes you to a... dark side. Combined with the fact you now had Din Rae. Things weren't looking good at all. They kept making findings until they contacted a woman, Wineria, and her husband, Akibrus.

"The two claimed to have removed Din Rae from someone and they were willing to help you. The king and queen arranged for the couple to come to The White Castle, but only Wineria could make it. They had everything planned out, but at the last moment, things went haywire and you sort of triggered some elements. Creatures of the land that prowled and searched for you. Or rather, the Din Rae in you.

"During the altercation, Wineria died, but she told them to go to Akibrus, who stayed back in Urden, their hometown in Dhandria. But on their way there, something happened, and they found themselves on Earth. Olwyn thought it was sabotage, that someone knew what they were doing and sent them to Earth. But while there, they got to Emerfield, and they found a group there that promised to help, but the group had lied. Turns out, this group was also with the person who had sent them to Earth. Olwyn said you even found out who the person was and told your parents but before she had no choice but to make you a Turund when they murdered your parents in a fire and even she wasn't able to get the name from you. She made you a Turund to protect you. If you couldn't recall anything, the group couldn't use it against you. She also felt if you didn't remember, that could delay the manifestation somehow. She held on till, as you know, we arrived. Her theory was right, but now that you're using your powers, it's brought it out again and we must act fast."

Karyn gave herself some time before she spoke, her eyes fixed on the glass beneath and her brows together in a frown.

"You're telling me that this... thing inside me is the reason my parents went to Earth, got killed there by the order of someone here, and these SiatJans that have destroyed things for how many years are actually after me?"

"That's one way to sum it up," Gema agreed. "Maybe you've been feeling some things we said, dizziness, unexplained paranoia. We've seen the outbursts first hand."

That made things make sense. She didn't know when exactly the frustration and discomfort of it all started, but she knew it was not long after they had arrived at the Mansion and by then she already knew how to use her powers.

"So I'm the reason for all this... destruction."

Marcela rushed to hold her hand. "No, you are not."

"You just said they're after me!"

"Yes, but now is not the time to shoulder the weight of the world. Now we find Akibrus and complete what your parents always wanted. To get the Din Rae out of you once and for all."

"What of my memories? Shouldn't we be thinking of that too? You said that Olwyn removed them to protect me, but what if she was wrong? What if the leader of this group is the key to all this? That alone tells me who to hold accountable for my parents' murders and that's all I want. Shouldn't that be our priority?" she questioned, her voice rising with each question.

"It is a priority, but not the first," Jamie said tightly.

"It has to be! I can't keep going on without my memories, don't you understand?" she yelled.

"And you can't keep going on like this!" Jamie yelled back, but he didn't stop there as he rose to his feet. "Look what it's doing to you, what it's doing to us. Heck, you almost killed Marcela!"

The weight of Jamie's statement hung in the air, causing a sudden and profound silence to settle upon them.

No. She didn't. She couldn't have. They had kept saying she shouldn't worry about Marcela and that the Emeraldine was a warrior. But how much had they worried and how much damage had she actually done? What exactly had she done to wound the fighter so severely?

"What... no you...you can't blame me for that? I... I wasn't—"

"You weren't yourself. Exactly! Should we try to find your memories while this thing keeps controlling you? Look what else it's made you do. The red guard—"

"Jamie! That's enough!" Zack boomed, stepping in front of Karyn as if shielding her from Jamie's harsh but truthful words.

"I..." she stuttered. She could feel everything at once. Anger at all of them for not seeing the importance of her memories. Thrumming power, which she locked in her necklace. And the tears, stinging behind her eyes. Before any could drop, she rushed out of the room.

♛

ITNC: The group replot their movement in accordance with the new information they have. Elsewhere, two detectives make a shocking discovery.

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~
The Sparkling Authoress,
Mis. A
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