VIVIEN woke up to dim sunlight and the feeling of being boxed in. It didn’t inspire any fear in her though, and when she opened her eyes and saw that the rest of the group was huddled around her, she understood. She was sitting with her back against the bricked wall, where she’d fallen asleep the night before. She remembered them reentering the village while she filled Kaiden’s grave, but they must have returned when she never came back inside the wall.
Tara was curled into a pink colored ball between her and Theo, who was sharing his cloak with the pink haired older sister of his, if unwillingly. On her other side was Marjien, her head resting on Vivien’s shoulder, one arm gently gripping Vivien’s. Jucel was leaning against Marjien with Chloe snuggled into her best friend's side, and Drake had sprawled across both the Vivien, Theo and Tara because no other space presented itself.
It took only a few minutes to rouse everyone and start gathering their things. They spoke l
AUTUMN began as the leaves turned into a hue of red, orange and yellow. The sun was higher and yet the air was cooler.As the group moved from one town to another, they had discovered many things about the Black Shaol.It was capable of sucking the life out of any creatures, including the men and women. The Black Shaol traveled further. And as it made its way to the west of Diana Province, it came across a group of strong presence.In its form of a snake, the Black Shaol hid on a branch of tree and gazed upon a group of seven Demetri.~O~O~O~IT had been four weeks since they had started the hunt of the Black Shaol and they haven't found it yet. After Vivien's breakdown, she went back to her old self, trying to cope up with Theo and Drake's brute strength during their combat trainings together as they traveled.Chloe and Jucel were pairing up in a swordfight. Tara just sat at one side and seemed to doze off most of the time. Marjien would watch th
FEAR. That was the first feeling Marjien ever had felt after so long. She hid behind a huge tree, clenching her fists to prevent it from shaking any further. Her eyes were wide and dilated as she stared at the ground."Marjien," Vivien called out to her from the other trunk. The said brown-haired lady turned her head while shaking uncontrollably. Vivien jad the eyes of a warrior. She held up her metallic bow, designed in a magnificent arc that could be the crescent moon. She was holding it tightly in its grip, a handle that was long enough for her second weapon. "Don't be scared and fight."Marjien took a deep breath and nodded. She had to fight. In the name of her princess, Drêy Zillah.Meanwhile, Jucel maneuvered towards the back of the Black Shaol while Chloe went to the front. As soon as Chloe was in sight, the three heads went in for a dive. The heads went straight into the ground, creating another blast. There were rocks flying around and into the trees where
DEMETRI from the nearby town situated between Diana Province and Galenus City was able to hear the roar of the Black Shaol and the sound of the battle and so, came to see what had happened. But as they arrived, there were already no one except for the dead Black Shaol and a missing head. The battle had already ended.Not far from where they were, a man and his companions in black robes stood. The man leaned his hand against the tree, frowning as he looked at the dead monster."I thought that beast will hold out against the Blood Star, knowing that the Blood Star couldn't kill it with our hidden weapon," his companion said in a voice of a woman."Turns out we miscalculated the power of the Five Leaf Clovers," another man mocked."And we didn't expect that the woman our brother came to like was a pawn of the Blood Star," the woman added."Silence," he hissed. He fisted against the tree and its trunk began to blacken with poison. He couldn't believe
PRINCESS Zillah stayed at the residence shared by Lucian and his friends as she healed the seven overly exhausted Krysts. Lucian and the others assisted her, providing an extra space in the living room for the Clovers to heal and rest.Lucian observed the princess as she moved about. Her butterflies were enough assistants to her as it flew around her and brought her the things she needed but she didn't mind Lucian and his friends to help. She would smile at them and thank them before working once again.Zillah was both graceful and unsympathetic as she pulled the broken bone of one of her Clover's foot into place. A smooth hand that became the hand of a classic healer, Lucian was amazed.One thing that confused him was her ability over the water element. He knew that the water element was common as well as the fire, earth, and wind. However, to have a royalty wield one of the common elements caught his attention."Chloe's exhausted her inner core," Zillah tol
LUCIAN and the others arrived at lunch. By that time, Jucel had already prepared a meal for all of them."Where's Chloe?" Lucian asked as he went to help her in the kitchen."She's down the pit," Jucel answered with a smile and her usual Saranian accent which was still thicker even after months of adjusting into the language of Demetrius. She handed him the plates and other utensils. "Lady Vivien gave her a hard beating. Firing a continuous five quivers of arrows was probably tiresome."Lucian chuckled, shaking his head at the same time. "She's been good in training Chloe, at the very least. I don't understand why she wouldn't stay until we meet each other.""Well, you can't expect a Clover to be in the same place as the simple Krysts like us," Barbie ranted. She pulled a chair and sat heavily. "Ugh! I couldn't believe Master Froilan was joking about going easy on us," she groaned.Jucel perked up at the name. "Master Froilan?" she asked. She could reme
"ERIKA Lornn?" Barbie asked with a raised eyebrow as she glanced at Kieran.Marjien just nodded her head. "Daughter of Hunter Lornn, one of the Knights of Shaula." She positioned behind Jucel and waited for the latter to untie her hair. "She came to Vestia, hoping to be trained under Drake's tutelage.""How old was Master Hunn when his daughter was born?" Chloe muttered as she tried to comprehend the news.All eyes, except Marjien's who was silently cutting Jucel's hair, went to Kieran. He was silent the whole time and he seemingly knew the person they were talking about."She was not Master Hunter's legitimate daughter," Kieran answered calmly. "She was a Lornn baby caught in the fire between the main branch and the third branch of the Lornn Tribe. In honor of her deceased mother and father who hailed from the third branch, Master Hunn adopted Erika as his daughter."Chloe stared at Kieran. Branches of each tribes caught in a civil war, huh. How much w
THE night fell and the moon was once again hanging in the twilight sky, full and white. It held a soothing calmness in it with the stars brightly lit up.After dinner, the group - except Jared who went with Marjien - went to play board games while Jucel decided to tag along with them."I'll be outside," Chloe announced as she started to walk away from the dining room.Lucian stared at her back. "Try not to overexert yourself, Chlo'," he called out.Chloe paused and turned to him with a smile. "I'm not planning to, Lulu-chi." Then she disappeared into the kitchen.They heard the back door open and then closed. "Is something bothering your sister, Lu?" Clive asked. They were all looking at the way Chloe had gone into.Lucian stayed silent for a moment before he spoke in a low voice. "Sometimes I wonder why I couldn't read her mind."Jucel blinked at him. "You couldn't read mine," she pointed out in a blank tone of voice.The blonde looke
THE hill was soon filled with laughter. Chloe and Ciaran were still sitting at the edge of the hill, facing the mountainous horizon and the hanging yellow moon."They aren't that strict with you, are they?" Ciaran chuckled, talking about the Seven Geniuses."Well, they are. But they can't hold me down," Chloe answered with a proud smile and a head held high.Ciaran laughed softly. "You're going to be a headache for whoever's babysitting you."Chloe huffed and looked away. "I don't need babysitting." She heard Ciaran chuckle and she looked at him. Maybe it was time to ask about something that was bothering her. "If I may ask, Særi...""Please," Ciaran cut her off quickly, "call me by my name."The young woman blushed but she shook off the feeling. "Ciaran, then." He nodded in satisfaction and smiled. "If I may ask, do you happen to know the Fray Battle in Galenus Arena?"He nodded almost immediately. "Yes. I have been notified by Drake and th