Chapter 5

   Ayla knew she shouldn’t waste the gift she received. If she didn’t eat the broth, it would probably be thrown away, and it would be such a waste. Besides, she was sure King Rhobart would make her pay for the dragon-root even if she didn’t eat the broth. ‘I hope the King chokes on his food and dies!’ Ayla thought.

    Left with no choice, Ayla ate while she told Milton about her books and her small garden. She told him how her mother and grandmother started teaching her about plants and herbs. Ayla’s mother, Queen Lavia, died when Ayla was nine years old, a month after the war began, while her grandmother died the following year, leaving her alone with her father and brother.

    When Ayla finished eating, she felt stronger. She wiggled her fingers, and joy filled her heart when she saw that the trembling had stopped. With each passing minute, Ayla felt better.

    Milton handed her a cup of tea. “Now drink this. It will help heal your body faster.”

    Ayla took the cup, smelled the tea, drank, and closed her eyes. “Embelia and white eclipta. Embelia for healing and white eclipta to help me sleep better.”

    Milton studied her for a moment. “You do have knowledge about healing plants, don’t you?”

    Ayla shrugged and drank some more tea. “Some. My mother used to say that the royal garden bloomed with all kinds of flowers and plants on the day I was born. Even to this day, I don’t know if she was joking or telling the truth. Besides, I only know the healing plants used by the Water Mages.”

    Milton laughed. “There is no such thing as healing plants used only by the Water Mages. Fire Mages, Water Mages, or Dark Mages, we all use the same plants for healing.”

    “But Drax told me that Water Mages use different plants than the Fire Mages.”

    “I have no idea who this Drax is, but he doesn’t sound like he knows much about magical healing and alchemy.”

    “Well, you see, Drax is a Water Mage novice. He is, was, my only friend.”

    Milton shook with laughter. “I think your friend Drax failed his Herbology Class.” When the Fire Mage finally stopped laughing, he asked, “Do you know why all mages use the same plants?” When Ayla shook her head, Milton continued, “Because plant healing isn’t a gift from Adanoss or Inoss and most certainly not a gift from Beliar. It was the last gift of Aylarra to Inoss.”

    Ayla narrowed her eyes. “Aylarra is the name of our planet. And it was Inoss that created it.”

    Milton pointed at her amulet. “I thought you knew since you are wearing an aquamarine. It is the stone of the goddess Aylarra.”

    “I never heard of the goddess Aylarra,” Ayla said.

    “That’s because we don’t talk about her too often. When the Void created the gods from his emptiness, he created four, not three. First was Inoss, the Fire, then Beliar, the Darkness, followed by Adanoss, the Equilibrium. Aylarra, the Peace, was the last of the gods and the only female. Inoss loved his brothers very much, but Aylarra was his favorite. Even the cold Void and Adanoss loved the gentle Aylarra with all their souls. Beliar didn’t care for his sister and was jealous of her. One day, filled with rage and hatred, Beliar killed the goddess. When Inoss found Aylarra dead, he wept, and the first planets and stars were born from his tears. And because he loved her so much, Inoss made our world from her body. In the beginning, the planet was bare, but when the Fire God stepped on it, it was filled with flowers. Do you know why?”

    Ayla was so captivated by the story that she almost missed Milton’s question. “No,” she answered.

    “Because Inoss used to call his sister Ayla, which means flower in the language of the gods.”

    “So, my name means flower,” Ayla said. 

    Milton nodded. “From her last gift to Inoss, mages and herbalists make all sorts of potions and remedies. There are women who worship Aylarra, even if she is no more. After all, Inoss created the woman from the image of Aylarra. The women that worship the goddess usually have an amulet with an aquamarine.”

    “In Myrthana, we mostly worship Adanoss. This amulet belonged to my mother. And before that, it had belonged to her mother, my grandmother, and so on for many generations. But I never heard them talk about Aylarra. Thank you for telling me about her, even if her ending is tragic.”

    Milton gave her a sad smile, “You know, there is a bit of the goddess in each man and woman on this planet.”

     “How so?”

   “Because Inoss created the first humans from the soil.” Milton looked out the window. “It is growing late, and I should let you rest.”

    “Thank you for talking with me and taking care of me,” Ayla said when Milton stood.

    “Just doing my duty. And if you ever need to talk to someone, I would be happy to listen to you.”

    Before he left, Milton added a few logs to the fireplace, helped Ayla settle for the night, and retreated to his tower.

    That night, Ayla dreamed of flowers and snow. When she woke up, she tried to remember something about her dream, but no matter how hard she tried, Ayla could not remember. In the end, she let it fade away.

    Ayla got up from the bed, and Kerra, in her battle form, tracked all her movements. Ayla went to look in the mirror that was in the room. She frowned when she saw how she looked. She had lost weight, and her undergarment hung loose on her body. Her black hair had lost all its shine, her blue eyes appeared haunted, and the dark circles under her eyes made her look more tired than she felt.