The Fireborn Chronicles: The Lost Maiden

Chapter 4: A Maiden of Purpose

Silva regained consciousness from her strange memory, and she saw that the stranger before her was pacing in circles.

 "Remember him?" The man asked, and Silva nodded.

"But he...died," Silva added. "Was he your friend or somebody that you knew?" 

The man nodded and extinguished the campfire with his boots. "Yes, he was my close friend," He said. "What was he doing that night?"

Silva recalled most of what happened during the memory, but she could only recount fragments of it. Nonetheless, it was still amazing how she could remember something from when she was just a baby. Silva remembered not just the event, but the feelings and thoughts of Markus's friend. She could feel his pain, sadness, and acceptance of death. 

It was all so frightening.

"Yes, he saved your life," the man acclaimed. "The other man with the sword was going to kill you. He placed you in the boat right before he died and saved you from meeting the same fate."

What this man was telling Silva disturbed her, as it was partially true. She was found in a rowboat off the shoreline of Rolnik. More and more, this fragmented memory was connecting to the rest of Silva's life. However, there were things she did not yet understand. Why was that man trying to save her? What was so important about her well-being to cause the death of another?

"What does all of this have to do with my mother?" Silva asked as she was trying to see how all of these fragments linked with each other. "How do you know her?"

The man flipped the picture over, and Silva saw two initials on the back. The initials displayed the names Alfred Fernwood and Markus Siegfried on the paper. "My name is Markus Siegfried," He introduced himself, "And the red-haired man was Alfred. We were friends with your mother, who was an elf maiden with golden hair."

She was my mother, the one with the golden hair.

She saw flashes of her dream again, of her mother sitting down by the cherry blossom tree. Then the flashes of red and black swirled around her head, and dozens of wicked thoughts had clouded her mind. She couldn't get rid of these thoughts, even after thinking of so many happy memories. She clenched onto her ears and gritted her teeth. 

Stop it, stop it, stop it, Silva thought.

Eventually, the thoughts had ended, and Silva opened her eyes. Markus was humming a tune on the log he was sitting on. "Oh, you've regained your senses," He said. "So, do you trust me or not?" 

Silva finally said yes, as she knew that the elf maiden with golden hair was without a doubt her mother, and she desperately wanted to know more about her. This man, she assumed, would tell her everything she wanted to know.

"Alright then," Markus began, "But you must not be angry with what I will share with you. I can tell you now that this is the absolute truth." Silva just nodded again, and with that, he started his tale.

He told her first about how her mother, Andriel, was an elf maiden of Ilasloyka, also known as the land of the wood elves. Andriel was kidnapped by a man named Lord Blazen and his army during her visit to Alagonia on horseback. All her companions had died, and she was the only one who lived. 

Blazen had taken her into his palace, and he made her become betrothed to him. She was to conceive a son of fire, or as the kingdom of Morkazaan called it, a Fireborn. Blazen had genes of no other, genes made from volcanic magma from where he was born, and this was a project that the lord of evil Morkazaan had been working on since the beginning of his age.

Blazen could not breed with humans, as his genes were too strong and they could kill a human if he interacted intimately with them. He needed a strong-willed race to breed with, and elves were his first choice because they were able to withstand Fireborn traits. They lived much longer than humans did and were more intelligent and agile. He and Andriel conceived a daughter, Silva, and Blazen was infuriated because she was an elven girl and not a Fireborn son.