Broken Chains (Book Two of The Black Alder Series) COMPLETED

The Realm

Kayla Pov

I woke up on the ground and sat up fast. I looked around, and it looked like I was in the middle of some Rocky Mountains. There are volcanoes all around me, pouring out rivers of lava. It's all leading to a castle. The sky is a ray of colors—brown, gold, orange, and red—all swirling around them together. There are multiple suns in the sky, and I can feel the energy they're giving this plane. It's hot. Hot. I know I should be afraid, but this place feels so familiar to me.

My sun necklace is glowing red, and I can feel the heat pouring from it.

I'm not in any pain; I feel at peace. Emotionally, physically, and mentally. What is this place? Why do I feel at one with the heat? I'm walking towards the rock castle. This place is so unbelievably beautiful. I look at my body. My skin is unblemished. I don't feel any scars on me. My eyesight is so clear, and my hair feels healthy.

"Katiana," I heard a deep voice say behind me.

I turned around and saw the lava moving towards me, coming from a volcano. The lava goes around me as I stand still in place. It forms a circle around me. The lava then retreats and forms a gorgeous man. This man was huge, tall, and muscular, with green eyes like mine and brown hair. Like mine, I can feel the power radiating from him pouring out of him into the land as if he were its source. I felt a pull on him. Not sexually or anything, but this pull is intimate, as if I've known him my whole life.

"Who are you?" I asked, surveying the strange man.

"You don't know me," he asks with a confused look. I shake my head.

"Then how did you manage to get here? You wouldn't have been able to get here unless you channeled your power," he said.

"Who are you?" I asked again, getting a little annoyed.

"I am Solem, the sworn protector of all magic of the sun," he simply said, as if that answered all my questions.

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"All will be explained in due time," he tells me. "Come," he says, holding out his hands. I was hesitant at first. I don't know this man. I take his hand, and he leads me to the rock castle with the lava around it. Some bodies looked like soldiers made out of the fire, carrying spears standing at the gate. The man bypasses them and continues inside the castle. The lavas of shadows dancing on the rocks look so beautiful.

Once we're inside, he takes me to what I assume is the main room. It's a big room. The floor is decorated with marble, with mists of galaxies and stars flowing around it. The ceiling is so high, but there is a ball of red, yellow, and orange energy flowing around in a circle. The man pulls out a chair from the table, and I sit down. He then sits across from me and stares at me, which makes me a little uncomfortable. I feel a blush coming up on me, and I twirl my finger.

"I'm sorry for staring at you, Princess. It's just been years since I've seen you, and you were only a baby. You have grown into a beautiful woman."

"Princess," I told him, and I let out a dry laugh. "I'm sorry, sir, but I'm not a princess, and my name is Kayla. You called me Katiana." Now it was his turn to laugh. "You don't know anything, do you?" he says. I just looked at him.

Let me show you, he says and waves his hands. Lava appears out of thin air, and the scene plays out in front of me.

"22 years ago, the war between all light and dark magic broke out. The dark wizards attempted to snuff out all light and transform our celestial realm into a land of pure darkness. If the light of all the suns ever goes out, all of the power here will cease to exist. You were born here among the c*****e. Your parents, King Henry and Queen Isabelle, led our side against the dark forces, and we beat them back. Your father is the only son of the sun god Laru. Your mother was the daughter of the phoenix spirit. Together, they beat the dark forces back and sent them out of this realm into a spiritual realm reserved as a prison and executed on sight. "

"The black magic, however, still exists to this day, attempting to escape. We had to trap it, as we weren't strong enough to destroy it. The power is dark and evil to its core. I have been keeping watch over the realm to make sure it does not enter here, as well as keeping the dark realm locked."

"When you were only a few months old, a young seer traveled to your father's kingdom, foretelling a prophecy about you and your family. When the king and queen heard this, they knew they had to let you go, as they knew you would one day return because of the prophecy. We all loved you very much. The king blessed a crystal and made it into a necklace to bring you peace in times of sorrow. It will work as long as you keep goodness in your heart." You were sent away with someone the King trusted. I had no idea where you were; it was as if you had vanished. We only learned later through the young seer that she placed a spell on your spirit to keep you protected and keep you human."

I grab my necklace and twirl it in my hand. So that's where I got it, I wondered to myself.

"So, where are my parents?" I asked, looking around. All I see are fire servants walking around. I turned to Solem, who had a sad look in his eyes.

"The day after you were sent away, your father came to me and told me about the prophecy and his plan. The prophecy foretold his death. It was too late when we found out it was caused by Lord Alverez. Lord Alverez was the leader of the dark rebellion. I didn't take it easy, and I wanted to stop him from going through with his plan. However, he used his power to put me to sleep and keep me invisible to everyone until his plan was complete.

Once his plan was complete, I awoke, and the whole realm of people was gone. I've searched for them for years, but I haven't found them. The king was the only one with that information," he said.

"What was his plan?" I asked. He paused for a moment, as if contemplating whether or not to tell me.

"He planned to allow himself and his wife to be killed," he told me, and I gasped.

"After I woke up from the sleeping spell, I learned from the lava soldiers that Lord Alverez had snuck into the palace and assassinated the king and queen." He then attempted to find you and me to kill us, since all the light from the sun's magic would fade if it happened, but the King had already sent you away and hid me. I found Lord Alverez when I woke up and was almost successful in wiping away his existence, but he got away. It's been 7 years since I've sensed him on this plane. Wherever he is, though, I'm sure he is planning something with the utmost evil intentions."

"I have been here ever since, keeping guard, awaiting the day that you will return, as the prophecy foretold, and reclaim the power of the sun. This is something I will help you do."

"You said the magic would end if both of us were wiped out. Why are you here? Who are you to the king? I asked suspiciously.

"Well, it wouldn't end if I died, but it would if you did. But I thought who I was would have been obvious by now." He waited for me to put the pieces together, but I was clueless and shook my head.

"I'm your brother."