The Avallon Chronicles (BOOK I)

29 | Caught on Act

"Wil! Don't touch that!" Cithara shouted. She dashed towards Wil without any reluctance, her heart pounding in fear.

Startled by what he heard, Wil froze, his gaze averting from the tempting crystal.

Cithara sighed out of relief as she witnessed herself save her new friend from certain harm. "That was close," she breathed.

"Why? What's the matter?" Wil asked out of curiosity.

"Touching that gem with your bare hands will cause your mind harm. No other type of creature had ever touched that because no one knows what might happen," replied Cithara.

"Wow!" Wil sighed out of relief. "Thanks for reminding me."

"I just want to help," Cithara responded. As her eyes wandered the area again, she spotted the thing she was searching for glowing from a distance.

"There it is!" she shouted out of excitement as she darted towards the part where she found a citrine gemstone. "I'm so thankful that I still have my magical glove in my pocket! Can I borrow your sling bag?"

"Oh, sure! Here!" Wil replied, handing his leather bag to the lady.

She was about to pick up the gem from its stalk when her attention was caught by the other gems lying around the area.

This might be useful, she thought, then picked up some of the different varieties of the gems.

"I noticed that you gathered different colors of those gems. How exactly do you choose them?" Wil asked as he watched Cithara gather them carefully in her pocket. "I mean; how do you know if that gem is for teleportation or shape-shifting?"

"Good question!" Cithara beamed. "I never thought I'll get to share my knowledge with other people!"

"I would like to know more about them!" Wil exclaimed with his eyes glistening.

"There are lots of gems that can be found here. Each of the amethyst gems has different powers, and they are used to craft dreams. Those dream gems help make sweet dreams and even nightmares, according to the shade of the color and its shapes," Cithara explained, pointing at the amethyst gems located at the upper part of the mountain staircase.

"Now, different types of gems have different powers. Like Sapphire here, which helps in being invisible!" Cithara added. "Garnets help make a firecracker, Aquamarines help in shapeshifting, Diamond helps in letting you fly, and many more."

"Wow!" Wil beamed. "Have you ever tested them all?"

"Most of them," Cithara replied calmly, "I usually use them in my experiments and inventions."

"You sound like a smart young lady," Wil spoke.

"Never thought of that. All I know is that I'm doing those things because I want to find my father. I want to be happy even though I had to sneak out of the castle most of the time," Cithara answered.

"You want to find something while I want to go back to my past self to seek happiness," Wil sighed.

"I hope my new life as a helper of the Elven Emperor will change my way of living for the better," said Cithara with her heart filled with longing.

"I hope so," Wil added.

"Now come on!" Cithara exclaimed, "At this time, most of the people in the castle and our town are on the festivity games held in the city. I am positive that we can go in and out of my room without getting caught."

"What do I do? You said it'll be dangerous for me to touch a gem?" Wil asked curiously.

"Well, you're not directly touching it," Cithara replied with her lips forming a smirk. "You just need to touch my hand opposite to the one I used to hold the gem of teleportation," she explained.

Wil touched her hands at the same time she touched the gem with her bare hands.

All of a sudden, whirling yellow smoke arose around them until it completely engulfed them with its magic. The moment it disappeared, they were standing in a different place.

They were greeted by a concrete room with different shades of violet, blue, and pink surrounding them. Glowing crystals were found hanging on the walls carved as different shapes and various things.

The place was a little bit messy with pieces of paper and wooden materials scattered on the ground. The scene evinced almost all the personalities of the one who owned the room, which was no other than Cithara.

At the moment they appeared, the power of the shapeshifting gem was on its end, leaving Cithara being her real self once more.

"The power wore off. Great!" Cithara whispered sarcastically.

"Now, what do you want to get here? I'll just... uh... look out here so that just in case someone's coming, I'll tell you," Wil asked. "I'll handle that bag to help you move easily there."

Cithara's eyes once again wandered around her room, whereas her companion took the yield of himself as the lookout.

From the table near the glass window was something dear to her. There came the small notebook that was given by her mother. Alfira said that it was from her father. Deep inside her heart, she knew that she had to protect it, for it was the only lead she had in finding her father.

She shoved it towards her sling bag, which was lying on her bed, and hurried up to find the other things she might need without wasting any more time.

A light tug on her dress pulled her attention from what she was doing. Peering down, a big smile curved her lips at the presence of a dear friend.

A cute and petite four-legged creature looked up at her with its innocent, dreamy eyes. It has thick skin with a hue of different shades of blue, and it has two little tusks that glow in the dark like a blue crystal. It had a soft trunk, and its small ears hung over its shoulders and almost met at the back of its head.

If there could be a creature in their kingdom who could see through the gem's illusion, that would be the Imaige – one of the immortal animals of their realm.

Cithara crouched down, and her sweet Sirius leaped around her; its purple eyes shimmered in excitement.

"Oh, Siri! Did you miss me?" Cithara lilted at the little imaige she kept as a pet when her mother died. She let out a soft giggle as she patted its head, to which it merrily approved. "Do you want to tell me something? You seem so worried."

Sirius ran a few steps ahead, and when it looked back, it blew its trunk precipitously, exhorting Cithara to heed. However, before she could even move, she was interrupted by strange noises coming from outside the wooden door.

"Who are you? And what are you doing here?" A familiar voice asked, coming from outside the door, probably talking to Wil.

"I'm just... I'm just taking a... taking a walk," Wil answered, and he knew it was not the greatest excuse.

"Take off your hood, stranger!" ordered one of the persons standing outside the room.

Wil slowly reached his rapier from its scabbard, which was tied up on his waist. He pulled it out hastily and pointed at the men.

"Get back or... or else!" he exclaimed with a sense of fear heard in his shaking voice.

"I know it's you, Your Highness," she heard another familiar voice speak.

She heard several knocks at the door that appeared to be coming from Wil. Before she could even hide, the illusion she used faded from her body. It left the people outside the room to know who she was.

"Cithara?"