♛
Drinad ~ dree-nad
Nasmavwer ~ nas-mav-wair
♛

IT took several tries for Karyn to stop reaching back in for her powers after locking them. Yet she still struggled with the emptiness. A struggle so visible, that Marcela had to ask about it during one of their training sessions.

"Karyn, you've joined the network already, and that's great, but I can't help but feel you can't reach me because you don't have a settled mind."

Karyn sighed. The Emeraldine had perfectly summarized her situation.

"Is that where you lock your powers?"

Marcela followed Karyn's gesture to the emerald-studded bracelet on her wrist. When her eyes came back to Karyn, she replied with an affirming nod.

"How do you cope with it? Since I've locked my magic, I've had to keep reopening it because I can't help the emptiness."

"I know the feeling. A feeling so hollow, it eats you up and leaves you feeling like... nothing."

"Did you feel like that for all your years on earth?" Karyn asked, unable to comprehend living with such a feeling for such a long time.

"On Earth it was different. As I've said before, magic moves to and fro within Wlerden. As we are now, we are always giving and receiving magic from the land when we don't have our powers locked. It's how the Prides thrive. But on Earth, the land is dry and perceives nothing which is why we need this jewelry. Because magic is fluid in motion, it always seeks something to move into. Should we be on Earth without these jewels, we are at risk of losing our magic. One can say it stores and keeps our magic with us."

"If it stores your magic, does that mean someone can take it from there?" Karyn asked.

"A wielder can pass magic on to their child, and that requires a process. It can be temporary but once permanent, the wielder goes through a rite of passage to be part of the Court of Pelandiars. While the child goes through a ripening process to prepare for the gem. That said, one can also lose their magic if someone takes the gem without their will, but that is dangerous. Once the wielder is not willingly giving the magic, it's as if their heart is being ripped out. No one has survived it. It happened to the Pearli, and they found him in a devastating condition. And what's worse, the person couldn't join the Court, so we have no way of knowing who took it and what had happened. That's also why your father is not in the Court because he didn't go through the process after giving you the gem," Marcela explained.

"But you shouldn't worry about that. With us by your side, there's no way we will let someone take it from you. Right now, all we have to do is get you to Urden before we go ahead for you to reclaim your rightful throne." Marcela's face lit up with a radiant smile, exuding an infectious sense of joy. But, Karyn found it difficult to mirror her counterpart's enthusiasm, as a bitter and troubling thought consumed her mind.

Marcela's smile faltered. "What's wrong?"

"It's just... I wonder if they'll let me rule over them," she whispered, looking at her hands. Marcela smiled at her and put her hand out to raise Karyn's chin.

"I don't know how it was at Emerfield, but I recall you being a young, vibrant child. You were always concerned with the workings of the kingdom, and you wanted to assume your role as soon as possible!"

Karyn's eyes rounded. "I did?"

"Yes, of course. Even Gema was quite jealous of you."

"She was?"

"Not because you were the princess, but because you were so keen on being a Wielder, being a queen, and taking charge of your responsibilities at such a young age, while all she wanted to do was to be away from the White Castle. She was such a rebel back then," Marcela laughed, prompting Karyn to do so.

"But my point is, memories or not, you would make a good queen and the people know this already. No amount of Red Guards will ever change that. And you Karyn must believe that."

♛ ♛ ♛

TWO days turned to four as Gema eagerly anticipated the outcome of Jamie and Zack's investigation. However, they soon got their hopes dashed when they discovered that the man they encountered only dealt with addictive drugs. It had no connection with the Pearl gem and its wielder.

To get to Dhandria from Yhulja, they had to pass through Vunmarc. With Portal Houses closed, they had no choice but to move by road, which prompted Jamie to get a map of Yhulja and its cities.

Thetln was a small town in the south of Yhulja, but it was three cities away from Drinad, a border city between Yhulja and Vunmarc. Thetln lacked train facilities, which meant they had to rely on a bus to reach a neighboring city and then continue their journey by train.

They had used the time they spent as a time to train, but Marcela preferred the term- vacation and Karyn begun seeing it as one. They were in a small glasshouse away from anything and everything on a street that wasn't inhabited by many, so they didn't have pestering or nosy neighbors to deal with. She and Marcela had worked fervently on their link and, although it was one sentence, Karyn had spoken to Marcela.

Gema and Salome were also making progress. Though the young girl whined day and night, she wanted to get in shape. The relationship between Jamie and Zack seemed to have improved as they had more conversations.

Now, on the eve of their departure, they gathered in the living room. Gema, ever the optimist, sought to uplift the mood and bring some cheer into their midst. Earlier that day, Jamie had returned with a newspaper, its headline proclaiming "Nineri Blooms White."

The Nineri Forest had emanated a musty smell of decay, a result of the ongoing magic drain. Years ago, when the forest died, a blanket of dread smothered the residents of Wlerden, for it revealed the grim reality - their once thriving town was on the brink of demise.

Now it was as if nothing had happened. There were pictures of it in the newspaper and if Karyn hadn't been there for herself and even battled a beast there with Zack, she wouldn't have believed it was the same place. Its once ebony trees and desiccated leaves, now transformed into a dazzling maze of blinding white.

But it was precarious, at least for them.

Now, more than ever, Jamie knew it wouldn't take long for Red Guards to connect this to the recent killing of one of their own and they would be hot on their trail. He expected them to tighten security, especially in the border cities. He proposed they act fast and Gema willingly agreed... just only after they had this night of rest and fun.

For Karyn, it wasn't all gloom, for she had read a section of the article,

The recent development has generated varied reactions, inciting optimism among some and surprise among others. Speculation about the potential return of the enigmatic figure to The White Castle and the subsequent assumption of her rightful position on the throne has been circulating for some time. While the identity of this figure remains unconfirmed, many believe it to be the Princess of Wlerden, commonly thought to be Lin Silverein, who has been absent for a decade.

An intriguing aspect of this surge in magical activity is how it will be perceived and managed by The Red Guard, whose purported objective is to counteract such magic while allegedly harnessing it for their own purposes. Thus far, neither The Red Guard nor The Rulers have issued a statement. Consequently, there is much speculation about the implications of this development for Wlerden, The Prides, and the populace, who have long suffered without their fundamental essence—magic. This occurrence is further compounded by the disappearance of portals in Cathurva due to a domino of destruction.

Now seated together, Jamie and Marcela positioned themselves beside each other. Across from them, Karyn sat between Zack and Salome, with Gema next to Salome, all in a makeshift circle. Having indulged in a filling meal of meat and vegetables prepared by Salome and Marcela, they engaged in a game of Two Truths and A Lie. A glass bottle sat in the center of the table to serve as a tool for regulating the game.

The first spin landed on Gema and Marcela.

"Okay," Gema started. "I burned myself while learning how to use my powers. I made my mum forget I was her daughter and I've yelled back at Grandma."

Marcela's brows furrowed in concentration.

"The last one's a lie," Marcela surmised, and Gema's smile turned sour.

"How did you know?" the Rubian whined.

Marcela chuckled. "You may be a rebel, but you always lost your guts whenever it got to Grandma. We all did."

"You made your mum forget about you? How?" Karyn asked along prompting a sigh from Gema.

"Part of my powers is my ability to burn memories."

"That's cool!" Salome exclaimed. Then, as if she had a different thought, she voiced, "And not cool at the same time."

"I was still learning the ropes, and I kinda went overboard with her."

"Did she ever get it back?" Karyn asked.

"No." Gema rubbed her hands on her jeans. "It's the reason I don't have siblings. She remembered marrying him, but couldn't remember getting pregnant or giving birth. She thought my dad had cheated on her with another woman and I was the result because I look so much like him. We tried to explain it to her, but she never believed us, so she left. I... never saw her again."

Salome reached out to place a comforting hand on Gema's shoulder. "I'm so sorry you had to go through that."

"For a long while I uh blamed myself, but I came to terms with it."

Gema, with her vibrant and joyful nature, was the last person Karyn would have expected to have experienced such a distressing situation. The very thought of it was unfathomable to Karyn. The idea of having to confess to your mother that you are her daughter, only to have her reject the truth because of you, filled Karyn with a deep sense of sorrow and empathy. Karyn couldn't help but imagine the overwhelming guilt and anguish that would consume her if she were in Gema's shoes.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to start this on a sour note," Gema sniffed and wore her smile back on. "It's in the past now. Marcela, it's your turn."

Marcela spun, and when the bottle stopped spinning, the mouth pointed at Karyn.

Marcela took a deep breath. "I have deep feelings for Jamie." Jamie's head turned sharply to look at her, but she kept going. "I have ten siblings and I have broken all the bones in my body."

"Gema, I know you know the answer! That's why I didn't ask you," Marcela shushed her counterpart. Just as Gema parted her lips, she shut them.

"I'm gonna go with you have broken all your bones because you seem like a careful person."

"Wrong!" Marcela laughed, earning a pout from Karyn. "Why would you think I have ten siblings? Ten!"

"You have a caring attitude. I thought that would have come from having a lot of siblings to take care of."

"Even if I had ten siblings, I wouldn't have had them around me much 'cause the firstborns stay at The White Castle. The others grow up in their hometown."

"So you never saw your siblings?" she asked Jamie and Marcela.

"Only when we got older were we allowed more freedom to visit them."

"Wow. All your bones?" Zack asked.

"Perks of being a Warrior. I was kinda a klutz back then."

"And now she's the best there is," Gema hailed.

"Oh, stop," Marcela replied modestly.

"But wait!" Salome exclaimed. "Your first truth has to be a declaration of your love to Jamie, right? Jamie, what can you say about that?" the young girl probed.

While Jamie stared at Marcela, the latter shot him a quiet smile. One Karyn had noticed Marcela reserved only for him.

"Seems like they both have a lot to talk about," Karyn chimed.

"But that's got to be when we're done. Now stop giving lovey eyes and let's continue," Gema announced.

Salome was at the receiving end of the next spin

"I have a silver necklace. I had food poisoning that lasted for weeks. And I lost my memories because I got hit and run by a car," she said, trying to hold in her chuckle at the face the young girl made while thinking.

Salome had her brows come so close and her lips contorted in the pout she formed. The young girl's hands disappeared into her afro to scratch a spot on her head.

"You have a silver necklace. That's the lie."

"Nope! A car did not hit me."

"Food poisoning?" Marcela asked.

"Yep. I was outta school for a long while."

"Was it like the Gem's illness?" Gema asked. "The one—"

"Oh, I know it. Jamie mentioned it. But no, it wasn't. That was the only time I remember I got sick. I never got sick before or after that."

"Okay, moving on," Salome said and spun the bottle. "Jamie!" the young girl rubbed her palms together in glee. "I have a twin whose name starts with S. I hate chocolate and I absolutely hate it when people use it to describe my skin color. I'm a descendant of a Wielder."

"Hmm," Marcela mused.

"That's tough," Gema added.

"She can't be a descendant. She's from Grieon and you said," Karyn said to Marcela. "Wielders have to marry from their regions, right?"

"And Grieon isn't part of the five regions."

"So Jamie, what's your answer?" Salome asked, reeling the conversation back to her three statements.

"You hate chocolate," he said, his voice filled with uncertainty.

"Wrong!" the young girl said, bouncing with excitement.

"Wait, I know you have a twin, so what's the lie?" Gema asked.

"That's the lie. I have a twin, but his name is Manorve. That's something I noticed people do on Earth, give names that start with the same letter to two children because they're twins."

"Some people also do it here," Jamie said.

"You're a descendant of a Wielder?" Zack asked.

"Yup! My family tree starts from the first ever Golder who gave birth to three girls. The third and last child is my great-grandmother, but she married someone from Grieon and gave birth to seven children."

"Seven!" Jamie exclaimed, his eyes wide in shock.

"And then the fifth child is my grandfather, who then gave birth to five children. My mum is the third and I am her first child. Well, Manorve and I are her first children, but I came out first, so you know," Salome completed her statement, the corners of her lips turning upward in a smug smile, and she raised one shoulder in a gesture of self-satisfaction.

"You are a lot in your family," Gema started. "What does that feel like?"

"I left when I was six, but from what I remember, there was never any silence, and I knew a lot about babies. At the age of four, I was already changing diapers and making baby food. At five, I became a Nasmavwer."

"What's that?" Karyn asked at the same time Gema exclaimed, "Really!"

Marcela was the one who explained. "It's Wlerden's equivalent to being a godmother."

It was Karyn's turn to exclaim. "At five years old?!"

"We were a lot, and we loved to give such terms to each other instead of non-family members. It was my..." Salome paused, thinking before she let out a laugh. "I can't even remember who the mother was to me."

Karyn let out a small smile as Salome continued and soon started giving the background of those she could remember. As Salome spoke, Karyn couldn't help but notice the love that emanated from her, visible in the way her eyes sparkled and her words that flowed with tenderness. She knew she wouldn't ever understand what it meant to have a family that large, but even here in their group, she'd grown to know them and it made her circle a bit larger.

But beneath the love, Karyn sensed a yearning that echoed in Salome's voice. The more Salome shared, the more Karyn could see the glistening of unshed tears in her eyes. The emotions danced across Salome's face, transforming her smile into something fragile, almost watery.

Even the young girl had to stop and Karyn could sense if Salome went on, she would have talked herself to tears.

"I'm not worried," Salome whispered, her voice filled with determination. "It's been eight years, but I'll see them soon. I hope they'll still be well." Karyn's heart swelled with admiration for Salome's resilience.

It was Karyn who held Salome's hand. If Karyn found herself in Salome's shoes, separated from such a large, loving family at a tender age, she imagined she would sprint towards them when given the chance to see them again. Yet, here was Salome, willing to take a detour just to accommodate Karyn.

She recalled Marcela's words, A lot of people loved you when you were here.

A lot of those people were probably living similar stories to Salome, all because of SiatJans. SiatJans, who appeared because of her. She knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that she would stop at nothing to rid Wlerden of them, even if it meant paying the ultimate price.

♛

ITNC: An unexpected news forces the group to reassess their movement. Meanwhile, Quain gets called in for questioning.

♛

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~
The Sparkling Authoress,
Mis. A
❤️