(picture- Lord Yui)
"Come on then, wake up." Something kicked her boot. She opened her eyes. Valin was looming over her, casting a dark shadow in front of the light flashing through the leaves behind him. It was already the next morning. She must have had the conversation with herself the entire night. She thought it was strange; last time barely a few seconds passed, yet this time seemed hours.
"What time is it?" she asked wearily.
"About an hour after sunrise and we'd..."
"...best be moving on," Isildilia finished.
" Because if we are late..."
"...then Their Majesties will give you a scolding." Valin always started the day by saying that. He tilted his head to the side and stared at her.
"Are you mocking me?"
"You, Valin? Never," she said sweetly.
"How much longer until we are there?" moaned Dakelo, sluggishly pulling on his boots. Valin scratched his face.
"It depends on distractions. Without any distractions at all, no more than two or three full moons at best." She noticed that the whole time Valin was talking, he and Dakelo were giving her a strange look. A few moments later, when they were riding again, Dakelo waited until Valin was far ahead when he pulled up next to her.
"Isildilia? What happened to your hair?" She felt a chill crawl down her spine. She reached up and pulled her hair forwards. Just like in her field, the ends were white, glistening in the light.
"How could this happen?" she asked herself.
"When you were asleep earlier, it just happened. One minute it was brown, the next it was white. Did something happen?" Isildilia was itching to tell him. She looked ahead and could see Valin peering slightly over his shoulder as he ran, clearly listening in.
"Not now," she whispered. Dakelo didn't ask why. Isildilia couldn't help but fiddle with her hair, feeling very conscious of the change.
Now the danger had passed, Froyza , had returned to his joyful self. Running ahead of the whole group, he'd often come back and urge them on. He even asked them to race at one point which, surprisingly, Valin accepted- although they didn't get too far ahead, keeping them in their sights.
"I wonder where we are now. I'm completely lost," Dakelo admitted. "The Okina forest seems endless."
"This isn't the Okina forest," Valin shouted back, "this is the Dinlik forest."
"When did we cross over?"
"Humans can't tell, but there is a scent border," barked Froyza. Dakelo merely shrugged. He wasn't willing to argue.
They soon found themselves riding alongside a river. The water was frothy white as it churned through the network of rocks. She looked into it, but she couldn't see the bottom. Thinking about it, she hadn't had a decent bath in weeks. The thought made her cringe. She looked back up and saw that Valin had stopped moving. He was standing at the water's edge staring into its depths.
"What is it Valin? Is something wrong?" There was an odd smile on his face.
"How long are you going to hide there, Your Lordship?" They both looked down, but didn't see anything.
"Who are you..." Before Isildilia even had time to finish her sentence, the entire body of water erupted. Pina and Loik reared in terror, almost unseating them. Once it had stilled she saw that the water still flowed as normal, but it was suspended off the floor, resting a couple of feet above the ground. They could see right through it, even the small fish and creatures that were swimming along the current. The horses reared again, startled by the sight . Valin quickly ran up and soothed the both of them.
"What on this earth..." exclaimed Dakelo. The water rippled with laughter as a voice filtered through hauntingly.
"Ah, Lord Valin. It's been years. Good to see you again." It was such a hypnotic and gentle voice. Suddenly the water hissed and rippled. "A human? Have you taken leave of your senses? You can't bring a human into our court. They will kill him on sight." Dakelo flinched at this, but then the voice returned to its soft state again. "And her Highness, the sovereign of our kind, it's a great pleasure to finally meet you."
"Lord Yui." Valin smiled in response.
"Where are you?" Isildilia demanded as politely as possible. In response, a pair of glowing green eyes appeared in the midst of the water. They hovered there for a moment before the rest of the body followed through. It took a while for Isildilia to recognise what she was.
At first she thought she was another limin, but her skin was a darker blue with a green shimmer, gills pulsating on her neck. She had a huge mass of green hair which floated around her angular face. She had elongated, pink-webbed fingers, but most distinguishable of all was that she had a tail, a tail of deep blue fanned with pink skin. She had pointed teeth which she showed with a devilish smile. There was also flexible, pink-membrane skin, which connected from her arms to her waist.
Around her neck, wrists and waist, were gold jewellery, all with the same symbol; a circle within a square, within a diamond. She also had some small gold chains around her waist as well. She carried in her left hand a golden trident, with the same symbol etched onto it. She well over twice the size of the average man.
Her overall appearance stunned Isildilia; it was such a dangerous beauty. Her tail fanned around her as she kept level with them. She gave them another smile, and a flash of her pointed teeth.
"What are you?" asked a mesmerised Dakelo. She did an agile flip in the water before responding.
"I am a colkmins," she shrilled. "Although we prefer the term colkmins, humans gave us the name mermaids." Then her face fell as she turned to address Valin again. "I received your message, such a worrying thing indeed. To think it's already this far. Even into my lake."
"Do you believe there could be a medium? The humans could never have got this far into the forests, or underwater for that matter."
"It could be possible. I've never thought of that before. That would make sense." Lord Yui swam in a few circles during the brief silence.
"Has anyone managed to find Lord Pareth?" Lord Yui asked. Valin shook his head.
"No, but I have alerted the entire forest; if they spot them they will let him know. I do hope we find him in time."
"I will also tell my clans to keep a keen eye."
"Thank you, I do appreciate it." Lord Yui did another flip over in the water.
"I'm sorry but I must keep moving. Things are not going well out to sea."
"What has happened?" Valin asked out of concern.
"The humans have killed a member of the Faqli School. The Faqil are livid and becoming hard to control; they are starting to destroy any human ship they find in their area." Valin cursed.
"Things aren't looking good here either."
"How so?"
"Humans are killing more and more guardians. The forests are becoming wild and untameable. By doing so they are digging all our graves."
"What will you do about it?"
"I don't know. That's why I've decided to take a brief detour to my mentor." Lord Yui's eyes widened.
"Really? You're going to see him?"
"That is why it is even more critical that we arrive as quickly as possible." He glanced over at Isildilia. Yui also turned to talk to her.
"I apologise for this very short appearance, Your Highness. But we will meet very soon." Lord Yui told her.
"Yes, I can't wait," she said politely.
"Tell his Lordship I wish him the best of his remaining years," Lord Yui told Valin. She gave another flash of her teeth before flipping over in the water and swimming off. She did so at such a speed that she was gone within seconds.
The water remained suspended for a few more seconds before crashing back down to its bed. The splash came back and washed over all of them. It was freezing cold. Isildilia looked over to the others and not even Froyza had got out of the way. The all looked like they'd been for a swim, but no one looked amused. Valin's hair had fallen in front of his face like a silver curtain. Dakelo looked beyond shock. In fact, he hadn't moved at all; even his expression was the same. Froyza defiantly wasn't happy. His fur was completely soaked through like a wet blanket. She knew what was coming next.
Froyza shook himself from head to toe, soaking them even further. Without warning, Valin burst into laughter, then Isildilia and even Dakelo joined in.
The laughed until they almost cried. It wasn't until she started to sneeze constantly that they stopped.
"I think we'd better get ourselves dried out," said Valin.
It didn't take long before they managed to start a small fire, but by that time they were shaking from the cold. Valin removed his overcoat and gave it to Isildilia to wear. He sat bare-chested near the fire, seemingly unbothered by the cold. She sat beside him and threw him a glance. Maybe this was her chance.
"Valin?" He murmured an acknowledgment.
"Who is this person you want to meet up with? This mentor of yours?" Valin looked up, the firelight dancing in eyes as he stared back.
"The best way to describe him, I guess, is that he was the pervious Lord of Earth."
"Is that why Lord Yui said for you to tell 'His Lordship'?" Valin nodded.
"He retired a few years ago, before I took over. He now lives in these woods somewhere. No one knows exactly where. I've been following the directions the trees have been giving me. Apparently we are close to where he is now."
"Did you... know him that well?"
"When I first became the Lord, I was very young. Thinking back on it, I was too young. So His Lordship agreed to be my mentor for a few years after he retired. I owe everything to him." He smiled.
"If you don't mind me asking... how old were you?"
"I was just eight years, in human years."
"Eight! You became a lord at eight!"
"Yes. But I was highly ridiculed by many of my kind." Isildilia wondered why he referred to their kind as his kind.
"Why?" He scratched his face briefly.
"Well, I'm the only one who has ever been diagnosed with an earth nature. It is most common for us to be born of a fire and wind nature from natural talent. But I didn't even possess fire nature. I couldn't produce a single flame, no matter how hard I tried. I was bullied a lot for it; you could say I was a bit of a runt." He rolled up one of his trouser legs, much to Isildilia's shock. On his left leg was a huge scar, like something with huge claws had ripped through him. It was a horrific mark, starting from that ankle and up onto his thigh.
"What did that?"
"Other young ones I used to know. It happened when I was four. I almost died from it." He rolled it back down. Isildilia knew this was the perfect time to grasp more information.
"Did you... have any friends?" Valin automatically saw where it was going.
"Maybe we should leave this till another time."
"No!" Isildilia demanded, standing up. Valin flinched back from the outburst.
"Pardon?"
"I've spent the last few weeks following you, doing your orders, and I don't even know anything about you. I don't know what you like, what you hate. Your family, your friends..."
"I don't see how this is relevant?" he murmured. "Is it necessary?"
"Yes. If you want me to trust you properly you must learn to be open about yourself. If a man won't even share the tiniest details about himself, how could he expect me to trust him?" He looked like he didn't want to speak out. She was getting more and more frustrated from the lack of cooperation. "Well then, how about this; I refuse to continue travelling with you until you comply!" Then she stomped off.
She waited until she was far out of sight before she sat down. Now her initial anger was released she felt guilt take over. Maybe she should go back and apologise. No, you had every right to be angry, she told herself. But that didn't convince her.
Not long after, a pair of feet could be heard approaching her and then sat beside her. She didn't look up or say anything.
"My hobbies include singing, painting, playing the flute and growing flowers. My favourite food is poultry cooked in hot ash. My fear is being encaged in small dark spaces... anything else?" She didn't respond, so he decided to continue speaking. She gripped the sleeves of his coat on her shoulders and pulled it tightly against herself.
"I never grew up with any friends, or a mate. My parents were slain by humans. I was raised in Rinthilika. The 'Lord's forest'..."
"Stop it," Isildilia whispered. He looked at her in confusion .
"But didn't you just say..."
"Not like that." Valin look more confused now. "You're just telling me because it was an order, not because you want to. I don't want you to open up to me like that."
"Well you can't complain. You haven't been telling me things either. Don't act like you haven't, your face is easy to read. Something has been eating you inside, like a secret you so desperately want to tell." Isildilia was feeling guiltier every moment. She knew a lot of things she wanted to tell him. Maybe she should tell him. At least he could help.
"Listen Valin, I've..." She never finished speaking, as Froyza and Dakelo came running back from their nightly wanders. They both seemed to be pleased about something, as well as exhausted.
"What is it?" Valin asked. There was a slight tone of annoyance in his voice, as he obviously wanted to hear what Isildilia had been going to say.
"We found him," Froyza panted.
Valin stood up rapidly. "Seriously?" Dakelo nodded. "Then let us reach him before nightfall."
They quickly extinguished the fire and continued on horseback. Valin led them all at a fast pace, even though the terrain was too rough for a gallop. Froyza was out in front, leading the way. Isildilia noticed that Valin's expression was much brighter now. They weren't riding for very long before Valin brought them all up to a sudden stop. So sudden, in fact, that Pina and Loik almost trampled him.
"We're here?" Isildilia asked. Valin nodded. He pointed ahead, above the canopy. Isildilia looked up. She could see that the trees were strewn with numerous small chimes and bells, which emitted different pitched notes when blown in the wind.
"What are those for?" Isildilia asked. Valin smiled.
"He always believed that trees should be given a singing voice, one to be heard out loud. So he put those up, so the trees can ring them, and therefore produce their own music to be heard by anyone." He grinned. "He always came up with some strange ideas."
"But isn't it the wind that is moving the chimes?" she asked.
He gave an odd smile. "Yes, most of the time it is, but he wouldn't want to hear that." Isildilia withdrew her gaze from what was in the trees, to what was between them.
There seemed to be a large house, grown out of the surrounding trees. There were about six trees involved in the structure. They grew into each other, entwined into a complex pattern. Windows glass was placed in the hollows of the trunks. At a gap at the bottom, where none grew, stood a large green door, etched with some strange lettering. It was big enough to house half a dozen people.
"How did he do that?" she exclaimed.
"He wasn't the Lord of Earth for nothing," Valin said proudly. "He can sing a song to make the trees grow how he wants. This is just one example." They marvelled at it for a while longer.
How much longer are you going to stare at me like that? came a voice. Isildilia tensed, but relaxed almost instantly when she saw Valin showed no fear.
"I apologise, Polk." He bowed. Before their eyes, a creature appeared from the ground. Its very body was made up of the leaf litter and blossoms, which constantly swirled about, even when the creature was standing still. She couldn't tell whether it was male or female.
"Is that...?" she whispered to Valin.
"No, that is Polk, the combined spirit of those six trees. He technically lives with him, or more like for him."
None of that whispering. His Lordship has been waiting for you.
"Hasn't he always," commented Valin, under his breath,
Quiet, hatchling, Polk demanded. Isildilia smiled. It was like a parent scolding a child. He turned and led them towards the house. When they reached the door, Polk dispersed. Both Loik and Pina galloped off again without orders. Isildilia looked at all the leaves on the floor and wondered whether she was standing on Polk now. Valin swung the door open without knocking. She was fascinated by the interior. Everything was grown out of the wood, every table and chair. The seats were lined with moss for comfort and a moss-woven rug was even situated in the door's entrance
"Are you here old man?" Valin shouted
Old man? Isildilia thought, that's a bit rude for someone to address their senior. There came a clatter from a back room.
"Who are you calling old? I've still got a few hundred years left." A figure shuffled into view. Isildilia wasn't sure whether it was a human or a tree. For although it had the shape of an aging man, huddled over a walking staff, his skin texture was like bark and his hair, and very long beard, was made of moss. Whenever he moved it sounded like a large oak creaking in the wind.
"A few hundred years?" sneered Valin. "Last time I checked you didn't even realise there was a family of dormice that had nested in your beard." The old lord grunted.
"Insolent hatchling! I was merely providing a relocated home for the winter."
"Then what about that bird nest in your hair now?" Valin pointed out. The lord suddenly reached up to see if something was there.
"You're pulling my roots," he huffed. Then they both smiled and embraced each other in a friendly manner.
"It's good to see you again, master," said Valin.
"And you also. I was waiting for you to drop by on your travels and see me." Then, once they let go of each other, he realised Isildilia was there. He hobbled over to where she stood, then shifted his weight to his staff and bowed down as low as he could get. Isildilia wasn't so keen on the formalities.
"I'm honoured to have you stay here tonight, Your Highness." Then he righted himself, his body creaking like a snapping branch.
"I am glad to finally meet the mentor of Valin." She curtsied back. The old lord looked confused and turned to face Valin who mutter something about a human tradition. "By what name do I call you, My Lord?" she asked. The lord slapped Valin around the back of his head.
"Stupid hatchling. You didn't introduce me first before you brought her here?" Valin rubbed his head.
"There wasn't time."
"Stupid, there is always time," he declared. His tone softened again when addressing her. "You may call me Amithae. Now then, I bet you all require some proper cooking."
"Now then, are you saying my cooking isn't proper?" snorted Valin. Isildilia had to agree with that. Valin usually overcooked the food so much that Isildilia insisted she'd take over with the cooking. But she didn't want to say anything.
"You must agree on me with this?" Amithae turned on her. She didn't want to answer the question and felt her cheeks redden with embarrassment. Valin could tell.
"Now you got her embarrassed. Well done." Isildilia felt her cheeks burning even further.
"Well then. Let's get some food together." He did a brief turn and waltzed into the back room, singing a merry tune in a different language. Isildilia smiled. He seemed such a sweet, but crazy, old man. The two of them had the strangest master-student relationship she had ever seen.
Later, she looked into the room to see if she could help and found he was wearing a pair of spectacles which enlarged his eyes, so that he looked much like a fly. Isildilia had to run out of the room to stop herself from laughing in front of him.
When she ran outside, Valin was standing there. Before she could open her mouth to speak he told her, "Come with me." He sounded quite serious. She quickly glanced behind her then followed. He didn't take her that far before sitting at the base of a young willow. She sat down opposite him.
"What is it?" she asked, wondering why he had to take her over here to talk.
"There is something I've wanted to try with you, ever since you did that magic with the flower a few days ago, which has me bothered. I never taught you how to do that. Since we were in a rather rushed state, we have time now to confront the issue." He rubbed his nose as he paused. "I cannot leave this unattended, in case something else happens on a whim which could see you killed. I want to try earth magic with you, and for you to continue practicing it every day until your control is refined." The suggestion startled her for a moment. But she knew it had to be done
"What do I do?" she said.
"Right, I will try to simplify. Unlike the other three, earth magic is split in two. The ground and the plants. Each requires a different method as well." Isildilia wasn't going to interrupt his explanation, so she nodded. "For plants, as you may have seen me do, is to sing to them, to ask them to do what you will."
"But I didn't sing to that flower," she pointed out. "It was just...a sort of humming."
"Well, it is possible, it's just not as likely to work. But with the earth and ground itself, you demand it moves to your will. It's not alive after all."
"Sing to plants, demand the earth," she summarised. Valin reached down and scrabbled in the dirt by his feet. She watched as he scraped a layer of earth off and pulled out a seed. He quickly inspected it and then held it out. She held out her hand and he dropped it into her palm.
"We shall start with this," he told her before she could ask.
"What do I do with it?" He rummaged around again and brought out a second seed.
"You are going to try this..." As a means of explanation he placed his seed back on the floor.
Then, starting as a hum, he started to sing softly under his breath. She tried to listen to the words, but it definitely wasn't the human language. The bottom of the seed split, and a hair-like root emerged. It plunged into the ground where it started to swell, forcing off the seed casing. The stem split in two and two again as it crept up and around Valin's hand. A tiny bud formed and with a resounding pop opened to reveal a tiny yellow flower. Valin stopped singing, and the plant stopped growing. He pulled his hand free, leaving it to stand on its own.
"Your turn," he told her. She looked at the flower he'd grown and the tiny seed in her hand.
She looked at him in disbelief. He wants me to do it, just like that? I don't know the first thing about doing this.
"You make it sound so easy," she muttered under her breath. She carefully placed it on the floor in front of her. "What do I say?" she asked.
"You can say what you want, as long as it works."
"Well what did you say?" she asked, hoping to get an idea. Valin recited it and she struggled to roll the words around her tongue. It took seven recitals until it sounded roughly correct.
He watched her, but she didn't continue. "What's wrong now?" he asked.
"I...I can't sing, and not in front of you." He rolled his eyes.
"Not this again. You will have to eventually. So stop feeling embarrassed."
"That's not so easy," she growled back. She leant over the tiny seed, thinking of the potential life lying inside. But every time she went to open her mouth, she kept thinking of Valin watching her and dreading the pain she'd been in last time. I can't do this, not after what happened last time. She clenched her fist, scraping the cool earth into the palm of her hands. Yes you can, a voice in her head spoke. A shiver ran from the back of her neck, to the tip of her spine. She leant over and started to hum the same tune in her throat, still not willing to sing out loud in front of Valin; she said the words so quietly it was barely audible. She hoped that it would be enough
Unlike Valin's demonstration, hers started to swell and not break. Valin shuffled uncomfortably as he watched. A tiny crack appeared down the side; the seed shuddered and went still. She stopped. She looked up at Valin.
"See, I told you I..." She stopped as she heard another crack. The both looked down at the shuddering seed . "Is that normal?" she asked. She didn't like that he didn't reply.
He went to reach down for it when it gave way. Unlike the slow, graceful growth of Valin's example, hers ruptured. Within a few split seconds it was already twice the size of Valin's and it wasn't stopping.
She shuddered as she started to feel a draining sensation, like someone was trying to force her to go to sleep. She had to place her hands on the ground to steady herself. Valin leant over and shook her shoulders.
"Force it to stop," he told her. "You didn't say when it should stop; it's going to keep growing until it has completely drained you!"
"How do I do that?" she stumbled, trying to keep focused.
"It's a force of will. Now do it!" She stared at the continually growing plant. Stop, she thought, that's quite enough. It seemed to work as it suddenly froze and the draining sensation ceased to pull on her. Once the sensation had passed she inspected her work. The tiny seed was almost the size of a small bush; the yellow flowers were twice the size of Valin's example and streaked with lines of sun-orange. She looked at Valin.
"Was that...good?" she asked. His tongue darted out quickly as he licked his upper lip in thought. She could see an answer forming in his head, as his eyes surveyed the plant and then her.
"It's a good start. I didn't even expect you to get any growth doing it properly. Your main problem is control. You allowed it to take as much as it pleased, and you had no control over its shape, therefore it looks messy." He compared the shape of the leaves between the two. "If you do that too often, dangerous things can happen." She shuddered when he said that.
"What kind of dangerous things?"
"There was a story from long ago, about a human who once tried to use the earth magic of our race; he never kept his control over an oak tree he was attempting his magic on."
"A human?"
"This was before the war broke out, when we allowed the humans to walk among us freely and learn." He shifted his stance to take the weight off his knee. "The tree he was practicing on saw the opportunity and grabbed onto the human, overpowering him and draining him down to a dim light."
"It killed him?" she exclaimed.
"Killing him would have been a relief. No, instead, using the human's energy, it entwined its trunk around him, sealing him inside and using him like its own power source. Thriving on its new source of energy apart from the sun, it still stands to this day in the sacred forest, although its specific location has been lost." She stared at her plant. Could that have happened to me, would it latch on and imprison me? Valin knew he'd just upset her from the story.
"That doesn't mean the same will happen to you of course. I and many others are here to see that you are well trained in control. It should be so much easier for you, and I daresay I doubt any plant around here would want to hurt you." He sounded unsure about the last part.
A faint aroma started to drift over from the tree. The smell of food made her senses tingle and her stomach growl. She saw Valin's nose twitch too at the smell, his eyes glazing over with hunger.
"I guess we'd better go back. Amithae may need help." He stood up, dusting the dirt off his hands. Isildilia followed suit, but as she did a sudden rush filled her head. She stepped back and leant against a nearby tree. Valin quickly grabbed her arm. "Steady now, wait for it to pass." She nodded to him once the earth stopped shifting below her feet.
"I'm ok now," she told him. She took a few deep breaths then stood up.
"The more you practice the better that will become, until it is no harder than drawing a sword.'
"An odd thing to compare it to," she noted. He smiled and started to walk back.
Their meal consisted of a mixture of fruits and nuts from the surrounding trees, but there was no meat on the table, apart from the carcass Froyza waschewing on. They ate outside on a large wooden table. When darkness approached, Amithae merely clapped his hands twice and the whole place lit up in hundreds of tiny lights. When she looked closer she saw that they were tiny insects; fireflies which produced a small light at their rear end.
Afterwards, Valin removed his wooden flute from his bag and he played a merry tune, while Amithae danced about in circle singing a cheerful song. It reminded Isildilia of some of the inns back in Aliera, when everyone would join in song. Thinking about it dampened her mood. Froyza even joined in with his howling, even if it wasn't quite in tune.
After that had finished, Amithae lit a small pipe and began to blow puffs of smoke in different shapes and sizes. Isildilia sat up at the table, tracing the grooves in the wood with her finger. Valin was on his back, lying on the grass, while Dakelo was playing with Froyza, wrestling a piece of knotted root from his jaw. For once, in a long time, life seemed perfect and calm.
"You know what, Valin? Feathers do not suit you," Amithae said between puffs, breaking the silence.
Valin propped himself up. "What was that?" There was an odd edge to his voice.
"I preferred your old look. I mean, look at the state of those," He pointed at Valin's ruffled wings. "Lord Pareth would murder you if he saw those." Valin plucked out a withering feather with ease.
"I'm losing them anyway," he murmured, letting it fall casually to the floor.
"Even so, you must take better care." Isildilia was sure that meant something else.
"If you don't mind me asking Amithae, why did you choose to live here? In the human's kingdom?" Isildilia asked. Amithae let out a few puffs of smoke before he answered, watching them disappear into the branches.
"Well, originally, this was my house before the latest war began and Hell be dammed that I'll stop living here now. Also Polk is too big to move anymore," he said as a final conclusion.
"I heard that!" said Polk.
"If the time ever comes, and I pray to all gods that it doesn't, I will defend my home with my life." He released an agitated puff into his pipe, blowing some of the smoking herbs out and into his beard. He quickly patted them down before it could catch hold. She decided it was best not to press for more questions, even though she was eager to know what Valin was like when he'd been young.
There was a brief moment then Amithae spoke again, this time to her, "If you wish to bathe, Your Highness, there is a hot spring nearby."
"Really?" Isildilia immediately perked up.
"Sure, follow that path of stone which slopes down, and you will easily find it." Isildilia loved the idea of a hot bath and ran to get ready.
Isildilia had never been in a hot spring before, but she liked it. An oval pool, situated at the base of a small , with shutter lanterns placed around to allow her to see. The water was deeper in the middle, which came up to her shoulders if she stood up. But, for the moment, she sat in the shallows. Not only did it feel good on her body, but the joints of her wings felt better as well, like oiling stiff armour. Amithae even provided her with bathing oils; she didn't know how or why he had them. There was something in the water which made it cloudy. She believed it to be clay as the ground's texture was smooth and slightly slippery.
There was a splash behind her. The first time that happened earlier she almost leapt out of the waters, but it was only a small branch that had fallen off a tree. This time however, there was the constant sound of moving water, so she turned around to look. She immediately spun back around, and covered herself up the best that she could.
"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING?" she yelled.
"I decided to join you," Valin said calmly.
"GET OUT!" Valin paused for a moment. It was bad enough for him to be walking in when she had no garments, but to not wear any himself... Isildilia was beyond shock.
"I don't understand, aren't we both members of the same species?"
"NOT THE SAME GENDER, VALIN!"
"Are humans embarrassed about this kind of thing? Do they not like being in the presence of each other like this?"
"NO...YES...I MEAN...." she stuttered. She wasn't going to win this fight with him either.
"Humans do have some very strange customs. No wonder we can never make peace work out." She could hear him approach.
"Didn't you hear me? I said OUT." She spun around to say this, but immediately turned back around, having seen more than she bargained for. Valin totally ignored this order. She pulled her legs up to her chest to hide what dignity she had left, glad that the water was murky. He leant in even closer.
"What are you doing?" she hissed, getting ready to defend herself.
"Like Amithae said, these need to be kept in prime condition." He gripped her wing tips and pulled them out straight.
"Stop it, that hurts." He ignored her. He sat down in the waters behind her, and started to preen her feathers with great care. But Isildilia still didn't relax as the silent minutes passed by, even though it was a wonderful feeling.
"Can you lift them higher?" he asked eventually. Isildilia shook her head. "Don't be shy about it."
"It's not that" -although it partially was- I can't move them."
"Not at all?"
"Not a twitch. I've tried before, but I can't do it." He looked concerned.
"That shouldn't be right." He gripped the joints and moved them around. "Can you feel that?" She nodded. "Then I don't see why you can't move them." The water rippled as Valin came around in front of her! That was too much. "Maybe if we tried..."
"OUT!" she screamed. She felt a sudden surge, like some invisible barrier, forcing its way out of her and striking Valin. It hit him in the chest and sent him crashing into the deep end of the spring. She didn't wait to see him resurface. She stood up and ran out of the spring, to grab a spare gown which was hanging on the tree. She also grabbed a towel which was next to it. There was the sound of more approaching feet coming down the stone steps.
"What's going on?" came Dakelo's voice. He only had a split second to grasp the situation, before he too was blown backwards and sent crashing down the hill. She didn't mean to do it so hard, but she was so angry that she had no control over it. Afterwards, she was surprised she hadn't collapsed like she normally would from exhaustion.
"Now let's all just calm down," said Amithae, as he hobbled down the steps. "Your Highness, would you please return to the guest room," he said calmly, "and I need a word with you two," he directed at Valin and Dakelo.
Back at her room, Isildilia sat down on the bed and wrapped the sheets around her, like a protective cocoon.
"You've only been here one night and already you're stirring up the forest," said Polk. He didn't appear before her, but his voice rang through the room. "If you don't dry off soon you'll catch a cold." Although she didn't want to agree, he was right. She used the towel to dry her hair and finally get herself changed. She could hear voices floating from outside, but she couldn't understand them. Polk knew that as well.
"Do you want to know what they are saying?" Isildilia hesitated.
"That would be improper of me."
"But you really want to." She guiltily nodded. All of a sudden the voices became amplified in the room.
"...you're acting foolish Valin. You can't get too close to her, especially in your condition."
"But I thought..."
"You weren't thinking at all, that's your problem. You must be extremely careful. Both of you are in a dangerous situation, physically and mentally. You must work with her, get her to remain in control as well as yourself; else it will destroy you both. She's been dormant for years so it's all building up, which can have terrifying results if you don't help her, as you no doubt have witnessed..."
"I don't want to hear any more," Isildilia said and the voices ebbed away. She sat on the bed, shaking. She knew there was definitely something Valin was not telling her. Something dangerous.
"Oh, that was an interesting conversation, don't you think?"
"Can you still hear them?" she asked.
"I can. They said no more about it." She took the moment to observe the room. There were two beds in the room, for Dakelo and herself. Both of them were grown from the floor as they were rooted fully down. She looked at the sheets and saw they were a delicate woven pattern of leaves in colours of amber and brown. Even the pillows were thick beds of spongy moss.
Later on she heard someone approach the door.
The door handle rattled but it didn't open.
"Your Highness? Can you open the door?" It was Valin. She sat in the furthest corner of the room, hidden under a cloak. She didn't respond, hoping he would go away if he thought she was asleep. But he didn't. "Usually when someone asks you something, you respond." This time she could sense he was standing directly in front of her. But she still didn't look.
"Usually when someone doesn't respond, it's a sign they want to be left alone," she tried to give a hint. He grasped the cloak and in one swift movement, lifted it off and swung it so it hung from the bed post. He was dressed back in his black clothing, but he wore it much more loosely.
"What do you want?" she asked, refusing to look at him. He sat down on her bed.
"I wanted to apologise for earlier. I didn't know humans were embarrassed by such things."
"Well now you have, so leave." He didn't do so. She looked across and saw the door was still latched shut. "How did you get in here?" He pointed at the open window. She couldn't be bothered to ask as to how he'd got there within a few seconds.
"What do you want?" she asked again more harshly.
"We didn't get to finish our conversation earlier."
"You want to finish it now?" she yawned.
"No better time, since training will intensify after this."
"Is that what Amithae told you to do as well?" He tensed.
"You were listening in," he said through clenched teeth.
"It's about time I received some deserved information." He gave her a strange glare.
"How much did you hear?"
"I heard enough. Now what is this secret you are keeping from me?" she demanded. He seemed to be relieved, knowing that she hadn't heard what he didn't want her to.
"I don't think now is the best time for that," he said, looking down.
"It's the perfect time." The wood on the bed suddenly splintered, as Valin's grip on it tightened.
"I'm going to repeat this one more time... Not now," he hissed. The air around him chilled, making the hair on her arms stand on end. She had to resist fleeing from the room. For a second, she was terrified of him. There came a loud booming moan and the room shook.
"What are you doing? That hurts!" Polk's voice resonated. Valin suddenly let go and looked down at what he just did. It was like he had just come to his senses. He shook his head rapidly.
"Please, excuse me," he whispered and ran out of the room, almost knocking over Dakelo who was waiting outside.
"What was that about?" he asked as he came in
"I just... pushed a few boundaries that's all." Dakelo sat down on the second bed.
"I'm so tired, and I'm aching all over." He rubbed his shoulders to release the pressure.
"Sorry about that," she said. "I didn't mean to."
"No, actually it was funny," he admitted, "it was such a queer sensation, not to mention bruising. How did you do that?"
"To be honest, I don't know."
"Do you know, to walk in on you at night with that blazing emotion, it looked like a demon's rage. What with the..." he pointed at his eyes and Isildilia knew what he meant.
"How bad was it?" He didn't respond, which made her understand clearly how bad. She rubbed her eyes and muttered a small curse under her breath.
"It was that bad?"
"Oh, there is...something else," he said .
"What's that?"
"Did you realise that has got worse?"
"What has?' He pointed at her hair. She ran over to the mirror. He was right. Whereas before the whitening was only two finger-widths in length from the bottom, it was now five times in length, slowly creeping higher.
"This is becoming very problematic," she declared.
"Why is that happening?" Dakelo asked. "You don't seem overly bothered by it." She knew she could trust him more than anyone. So she told him everything about her "other self". It felt much better telling him. At first he seemed horrified, but slowly came to terms with it.
"It makes sense, now you have explained it. So what is she like?"
"Who?"
"This 'other you'?" Isildilia snorted.
"She's rude, arrogant, she never gives me the answers I want..." She stopped. "I'd better not say any more; she will probably give me a lecture for saying that now," she said, tapping one finger to her temple.
"Disturbing," Dakelo remarked . "She's almost the opposite of you."
She changed topics. "Did Amithae give you a lecture like he did Valin?"
"Actually, no. He just told me that it's grand that I'm being protective, but I must assess the situation before jumping in all the time." Her eyes narrowed.
"That is true..."
"Don't worry, I didn't see anything." Isildilia threw a moss pillow at his head, which he managed to avoid easily.
"It would do you well, to never, ever, bring this up again." He grinned sheepishly.
"Get to sleep; I heard something about crossing the border tomorrow."
"What border?"
He shrugged back. They blew out the candles and settled into their beds. Soon Froyza's paws could be heard pacing up and down outside the door, clacking on the wood. He continued for a few minutes before finally settling down with a humph.
Who says this? If it's Valin, this needs to be a new paragraph
Do you mean a groove as in a rut, or a grove?
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