Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 123779 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 619(@200wpm)___ 495(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 123779 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 619(@200wpm)___ 495(@250wpm)___ 413(@300wpm)
Soon, I’ll be by Alchera’s side, and nothing will ever separate us again for all eternity.
I glance down at the small vial of elixir in the palm of my hand before I tuck it into my pocket. I’ll need to drink it the moment I reach Earth. It will make me look more like a human teenager and less immortalis-like.
Also, it will change my eyes so I don’t freak out the humans.
My father holds an envelope out to me. “It’s the money they use where Alchera is. It should last you three weeks.”
Taking the envelope, I nod while shoving it into my other pocket. “Thank you.”
He lets out a heavy sigh. “Be careful. Never let your guard down.”
I nod again.
“Remember, she’ll have no memory of us until Janak and Aster reverse the spell. Even though you are bonded to her as her guardian, you are a stranger to Alchera. She’ll be very confused. So even though she’s twenty on Vaalbara, she thinks she’s a seventeen-year-old girl on Earth.”
“I know, Father.”
The last time I saw Alchera was the day Adeth attacked, and Janak and Aster had to cast a spell on Alchera so she’d forget her life here on Vaalbara.
I only got to hold her when I carried her away from danger and took her through the Virtutes Waterfall to leave her on Earth.
Before that day, I was training and didn’t get to see her.
My father takes a step closer to me, and putting his hand on my shoulder, he says, “We don’t know what Adeth has planned or where she is, so we have to be vigilant at all times.”
“I’ll be careful,” I mutter the words to appease him.
For a moment, emotion tightens Father’s features. “You look so much like your mother. She would’ve been proud of you.”
I have my mother’s dark brown hair, and before I became Alchera’s guardian, I had Mother’s light blue eyes. Due to the bond I’ve formed with Alchera, my eyes are now purple – as is every guardian’s when the initial bond is created. Only when we grow stronger does the color change again.
“I won’t disappoint you, Father. I’ll bring her back safely.”
We stare at each other for a brief second before I walk out of my house and into the cool afternoon air.
As I make my way toward the Virtutes Waterfall, I glance over the hills and planes of grass.
I see a rider steer his horse in the direction of the training grounds, where I know men are assembling tents at this very moment for the coming training season. It’s almost a full day’s ride to get to the camps.
During the hour-long trek toward my destination, my thoughts are filled with Alchera. I’ll have to find a way to make her comfortable with me before bringing her home.
I hear the rush of water, and as I reach the top of a hill, the Virtutes Waterfall comes into view. Like always, when I see the spectacular sight, I pause for a moment to take in its splendor.
The waterfall flows over the side of a cliff, the rocks and ground on either side of it a rich brown, which is in stark contrast to the blue-green pool below.
There are majestic trees with the deepest green leaves and trunks covered in soft moss where the pool feeds into a gentle stream. It meanders all the way to the village, supplying our people with fresh water.
The Virtutes Waterfall is the heart of Vaalbara – a planet clothed in its original splendor, just as when Earth took its first breath.
Moving closer, I look up to where I know Kalin and Raker, the guards of the entrance to Vaalbara, are watching me from a ledge behind the curtain.
Kalin, who’s not much older than me, is the first to appear, shouting so I’ll hear him above the roar of water, “Peace be. State your business, friend.”
“Peace be,” I call out, greeting him in the way that’s our custom. “I seek permission from Raker and yourself to shift to Earth.”
At the mention of his name, Raker appears next to Kalin on the ledge. “Peace be. Why do you seek to shift, Raighne?”
“I’ve been ordered by the head of the guards, the king, and our elder, Janak, to go to Earth to acquire something.”
I know better than to divulge the true reason. Who knows if there are ears hiding around us, listening in on our conversation on behalf of Adeth or Void.
There’s a moment where we can only hear the rushing of water before Raker nods. “May Awo keep you safe.”
Sucking in a deep breath of air, I step into the pool and wade my way closer to the curtain.
This is it.
I’m coming, Alchera.
Droplets of water hit my face and body, and when I’m standing in front of the curtain, I take another deep breath. I clear my thoughts of everything but Alchera before stepping beneath the spray.