The Books of the Shadows IV - Silver Moon

21

-We need to talk.

-WE are listening, sister.

-We need to make a plan about this, Moon said and threw the crystal wrapped in a silk bag on the ground in front of them.

They looked at it, not daring to touch it, then they looked at her trying to make sense.

-I thought you gave it to the Sun House to study it, Silver said to her in a low voice.

-I will not, brother.

-Why not?? Moon! Tiger lost his temper, knowing that could put his sister in danger. I told you to...

-Do not yell at her, brother! Shade just took her part, posting himself near her, in between them, as if protecting her from Tiger.

Here it comes, wherever there was a challenge, Shade was on for it.

-It is mine and I will not let it fall into the wrong hands! No one from any other Houses will touch it, do you understand this? it is mine!

-Guys, this is not the time to be divided... Alane had a point there too, and he was trying to keep them all together instead of falling apart.

-Then what do you want from us? Silver looked tired trying to just hold back all these feelings he had. She knew he would get angry at her, but he had to listen to her reason. She knew she was right.

-Please, hear me first. If I can make this open a portal, we do not know for how long will it be open. WE do not know if the portal would just swallow me in.

-Exactly, we know nothing and this does not make it safe for you to be so close to it. That is why I asked you to leave it in the Sun House for study! We do not know when you could also be disappearing just like mother and father! Then what? How can we keep you safe from here while you are there? Assuming that you get there, and not some place else!!!

-I could not. brother! Hear me! There are things we have to consider that we did not think about...

-Like what, Moon?

-We do not really know yet how this is working, how big the portal will be or how long will it open... What if someone makes it and goes into Zicon and takes the crystal with them? WE lose it... I do not want to lose it! Because if we do lose it... Look, what I want to say is that WE lose our only chance to get our parents back...

-She has a point there... Shade spoke in front of them all.

-I want to be the one to study it. Please help me with this? You need to know that if I am studying it with Kaion, if anything happens, I need one of you with me all the time, just in case, I can open it. He could try to steal it from me and go back home by himself and again, we don't get to see our parents again...

-True...

There was silence while they all looked at the little stone and they were all thinking about a solution that would allow Moon to be safe and also to experiment on it, in order to learn how to open the portal all by herself. Assuming that the portals could ever be controlled...

-We need someone to be with Moon all the time, Alane rubbed his beard thinking about the options.

-And without drawing too much attention too... Moon is always on her own, some guard would make it look suspicious now, if they would show up all of a sudden, out of nowhere.

-I'll stay with her. I am her twin and we were always together. Besides, I am working in defense, weaponry is in the Academy, I would only be a room far away or so... Would that be acceptable, little sister? Shade was a show off and they all smiled looking at Moon who was already showing him her tongue.

-You are only older one minute...

-Good thinking Shade.

-So it is decided! I need new weapons, and there is something we need to work on the armor. Moon, I need you to handle me your armor too.

Shade was shining.

When it came to anything related to war and weapons, he was shining.

So it was decided. Moon took Shade to the Academy right after lunch. She loved that tall, stone building, full of wonder rooms, where everyone was learning new things, some were doing their own experiments, some were building the weapons. There were rooms full of treasures there, it was one of Moon's favorite places.

Shade kept close, just as they talked about, he needed to work on his armor anyway, do some improvements, he said. It was not uncommon that Shade would have such preoccupations, so no one would ask any questions. They were even working in the same room, as Shade gave the orders for the royal blood's armorers to be brought into the Academy, and there were shadows moving around the stations. Moon's, Tiger's, Shade's armorers were all brought into the room and Shade started examinating them with Moon.

-Wrong! he said looking at her armor, making Moon look at him in confusion.

-There is nothing wrong with my armor!

Shade looked at her armor nodding from the left to the right and back.

-Wrong... he repeated.

Moon looked at her armor but did not see what he was looking at. Well, she was looking in the same direction, but she could not see anything wrong. So what was he talking about? He knew what she was thinking so he hurried to explain, pointing towards a spot right under the armpit.

-Here, Moon. There is a weakness.

-What??? Moon tried, she really tried to look but she could find no fault in her armor.

-I was hit two months ago right in this spot here, you see it? And the scales just opened up and made a hole. This is a weakness and we need to cover it.

-How did it open?

-Like this, he touched her temple with his pointer and run the images through the mind link, and allowed her to see what has happened to him on the battlefield. She saw the running images like a movie in her head, and as if she was in Shade's body. She felt the hit of a blade and the armor splitting, that was definitely a fault there.

-Yes, we did not see that. We need to put up a protector there.

-Yes, that is my intention. I will do it on all.

Shade and Moon spent the next days together, most of the time.

-Ummm... wait, that was Xande there with you?

-Yeah. why?

-You took our brother on the battlefield??? Fighting those barbarians??

Shade looked at her, not understanding what was it that she really wanted to ask him.

-You saw him there, did you not?

-Shade!!! He is 13! A child! You do not take a child on the battlefield!!

-He is soon to be a man, Moon. We are not little anymore. Xande is a really good fighter, you know? Stop making them less than they are!

-Shade...

-We are Royal Blood, Moon! WE have been prepared for times like this! WE fight and age matters NOT! That is why WE are the Royals and not others!

-Shade!

-Don't! You have taken your first life when? At 12!!! And you are asking of your brothers to be children? Well, we are not. And to your surprise, Xande is the best of us all... he took the wraith power from mother! So you do not belittle him! He will protect you better than you would be able to protect him!