Moirai

Flowerage was stunning.

The Dryads’ dwellings were quaint wooden cottages that had a very natural feel and, at times, looked as though they had grown straight out of the ground. Nothing looked out of place in the forest as vines and other climbing plants were allowed free range over every building, making it seem like they were made of the greenery. Stalls stood in lieu of shops, lining the streets.

It wasn’t so much a capitol than a city-sized village. The olive-skinned Dryads were everywhere, and at first I thought it would be a struggle to fight our way through the crowds. However, as soon as the Dryads saw Kasanda, they parted to allow us to go through.

Kasanda obviously held some status, though I was wary to ask what it was as she hadn’t already addressed the matter. So I kept silent as we passed Dryad after Dryad nodding their heads in respect to Kasanda, while curious looks were directed at the rest of us. Some of those looks, I noticed, were slightly angry, and I realised that Centurion was not the only one who agreed with not allowing humans into the forest.

However, all that was forgotten many hours later, after being shown the three separate little cottages where we would stay. Mayran and I had found a large clearing and, true to what he had said earlier, we were working hard on improving my rather pitiful sword skills.

Needless to say, it was not going well.

“Come on, Alnya, focus!” Mayran’s voice had steadily increased in exasperation over the last half an hour. Yet again I felt the sword hit my arm where I had failed to block it. I groaned in frustration.

“You are too fast! How can I possibly be faster than you?” I demanded, resisting the urge to childishly throw my own sword to the ground.

“By not thinking so much.” He snapped.

“What? That makes no sense.” I stated.

“Yes it does. When I move to attack you, I can see that there is a moment where you think how to counter. Instead, you should just let your instincts do the work. You know how to block, so stop trying to work it out and just do it. Trust me, you’ll find yourself moving with barely a thought.”

I still didn’t understand him. He was failing to remember that I had no instincts to go on when it came to combat. I hadn’t even done martial arts. Of course, being a fantasy fan, I had pretend sword fights with friends using sticks, when I was little, and at Comic-con with foam weapons, but this was the real deal. Not to mention the fact that Centurion had been training for years.

After another hour, I simply couldn’t do it anymore. Too tired to stand, I dropped the sword and plonked unceremoniously onto the forest floor, pulling my knees up and resting my chin on them.

Mayran offered me his water container, which I gratefully accepted. The water tasted different here; no water treatment, obviously, so it was likely to be contaminated by a number of things. A small part of me absently thought that if I survived long enough, I would introduce some modern ‘outer world’ technologies to Renenta.

That train of thought led me to wonder what was going on out there. After a few weeks here, which would be a few minutes there, I wondered if my mum had noticed I had gone yet. Probably not, as she was preparing dinner when I had opened the book. Still, the thought of her calling me downstairs and getting worried upon hearing no response concerned me.

I felt Mayran’s hand on my shoulder, and I got the feeling that he had an idea of where my thoughts were.

“It’ll work out, Alnya.” He said softly. “You only have to win the majority of the three tasks, and, like Kasanda, I’m confident that you will.”

Little did he know; that was not helping.

I didn’t sleep overly well that night, and when I did sleep, it was to hear Indina’s bodiless voice laughing tauntingly at me, causing me to wake after only a short respite.

By the time the sun had begun shining through the canopy, I had long since given up hopes of a proper night’s sleep. I got out of bed and dressed, sighing in the knowledge that another most likely fruitless day of training lay ahead of me.

It seemed like everything we’d done up until now had just gone down the drain. I would not be able to beat Centurion. Sure, if luck was in my favour I might best him with the mind puzzles as he didn’t strike me as particularly bright, but I would certainly lose the sword fight and…well, no matter how many times everyone told me how strong my aura was, I still didn’t know if I could bring myself to use it against another person offensively.

A knock on the door interrupted my musings. It was Loni.

“Come on.” She beckoned.

“Where?”

“We’ll go for a walk. I know Mayran will be coming for you soon and, from the look on your face last night, you’re not in the mood for training. Hurry!” she hissed.

I hesitated only for a brief moment before following her outside.

“Now, I know you very well, Alnya, and I know that all these negative thoughts are whizzing around your head.” She began once we were out of earshot of the houses. “You can’t do that. You’ve got to start trusting yourself more. Think of it the same way you think of school exams. You do best when you are confidant.”

“Yeah, but this isn’t some school test.” I protested. “It will determine whether we make it to Druge or not.”

Loni scoffed. “Do you really believe that idiot Centurion will actually be able to stop us from leaving? Sure, if you lose he’ll certainly try, but I’m sure Kasanda can get us out of Flowerage. Besides, it seems like the Praesul are on your side, and Kasanda said they’re the ultimate authority.”

She didn’t sound completely sure. “You seem to know surprisingly little about Renenta even though you’re actually from here.”

“Yeah, but I never really paid attention to history, either in the outer-world or here. And don’t forget,” she reminded me. “I lived in your world for years, only coming back for brief stays once every few months.”

“Oh!” I realised. “So when you told me the orphanage was going on a trip you were actually coming here!”

“That’s right.”

“But…hang on…if a few minutes there are weeks here, and you were away for days…then wouldn’t that mean you were here for years? How were you not aging?” I asked.

She started, clearly not expecting the question. “Um…not even Kasanda really understands why that is. I suppose it could be something to do with the fact that the book is your story, but I don’t think we should delve too deeply into it all.” She rather quickly changed the subject after that.

We didn’t talk much on the way back, both lost in our thoughts. Mine returned to the day after next. I tried to do as Loni had advised. It was true that I usually did well in exams, and that was because I studied hard. So, I realised, that was what I must do.

Mayran was waiting for us outside our three cottages, arms folded, but an amused smile playing at the edges of his mouth.

“Where have you been?” he asked.

“Just a walk.” I replied, before Loni could elaborate; I was ready. “Time to start?” I indicated the swords lying beside him.

He raised an eyebrow at my eagerness, but merely nodded. Loni squeezed my shoulders reassuringly, before heading into her cottage.

I attacked that day’s training with a vigour that Mayran was clearly impressed with.

“That’s it, Alnya. You’re getting it now. Just relax, remember what I was saying yesterday about instinct.” He kept up a running commentary to our battle. Easy for him, I thought somewhat bitterly, he had already mastered the ‘instincts’ part.

However, I felt much better than yesterday, and the lesson was more light-hearted and relaxed. After having to dodge a particularly well-aimed stab by Mayran, resulting in both of us missing our marks and falling in a heap to the ground, we burst into laughter and couldn’t stop for several minutes.

Then I realised exactly how we had fallen, and felt my face heat slightly. I extricated myself out from under him and turned away with the pretence of examining my sword for dents, trying to hide my face.

Mayran, too, had gone silent. I looked around and saw that there was a strange twinkle in his eyes. He looked more alive than I had ever seen him; no darkness in his eyes, no stern, serious expression. As if on cue, a branch shifted allowing a ray of light to fall onto him, illuminating his dark hair and emphasising the colour of his blue eyes…

I stopped that train of thought right there, shocked. Where had that come from?

Breathing slightly heavier, I got to my feet and tried, unsuccessfully I was sure, to return to normal; it was clear that my concentration had broken. To my surprise, Mayran’s had as well, and it wasn’t long before he suggested that we had done enough for the morning.

Our hands brushed as he took the sword from me and once again I felt a stab of shock as my pulse quickened. I hadn’t felt anything like it before. As we parted ways and I headed back to the city, I couldn’t help but allow my thoughts to wander.

It seemed as though I had a crush on Mayran.

It wasn’t as though the idea was foreign to me, but I was one of those rare girls whose love life was limited mainly to celebrities and fictional characters. Sure, there were guys who’d asked me out and I had even been on a date or two, but never anything that could be called a relationship. I just had always thought that the boys in my school weren’t for me and resigned myself to wait.

But it was unmistakable; Mayran, even though I had only known him for a few weeks, had captured my attentions in a way that no other man had done. The thought was a bit daunting as I considered the implications…but I also felt a thrill of wonder and affection whenever I pictured us together. Somehow, the thought made me feel a bit more certain about surviving.

I almost ran into Kasanda, who was walking towards my cottage in the opposite direction to me.

“Ah, Alnya, here you are. I was just coming to get you. The Praesul are ready to meet.” She announced, turning so we were walking back the way she had come. There was a tiny smirk on her face and I got the distinct impression that she somehow knew where my thoughts had been.

“Oh, wow. Ok.” I stumbled over the words, having not expected to meet the Praesul so soon. I looked down at myself; covered in dust from the training. “Can…can I change first?” I asked, indicating my clothes.

She looked sideways at me. “There isn’t time, but surely you can fix your clothing up with your aura?”

I had not thought of that. Stopping, I thought about how my shirt and trousers – clothes I had borrowed from Loni prior to leaving Nerome – had looked this morning, before the battle.

This time, more than the last, I could feel my aura inside me. It was the same warm feeling as when it was used, but I was now consciously aware of its constant existance. The feeling was, as much as I hated to admit it, comforting. It felt…right.

Within a few seconds, my clothes were dust-free. Kasanda smiled her approval.

“You are getting better. You have accepted your aura, then? Sooner than I expected, too.”

“It’s a lot thanks to Mayran.” I said. “He helped me realise how I could use my aura for good. Except…when I fight Centurion…” I trailed off, but she understood.

“That is also a good cause, never forget that.” Her words were stern, but kind. “And I am sure you are smart enough to avoid injuring him badly. You just have to remember that you are stronger than your aura. You can control it.”