Book 2 of the Eternal series

Chapter 17

Ray and Roman looked at each other as they took their hands off the girl’s statues.

“Well, at least we were able to get a message to them, but how are they going to get home?” asked Ray, and Roman looked at his cousin nervously.

“I’m not sure, but maybe we can look through the archives in the library. Hopefully, they can shed some light on our current situation,” he said, and Ray nodded.

Before they could move a muscle, the room began to glow with a bright, white light, and Roman and Ray shielded their eyes from the bright light. Then the light faded, and they saw a single, white fairy in the middle of the room. She looked at them sadly, and Roman and Ray looked at each other and then back at the fairy.

“Forgive me, your highness, but I have come to you with some horrible news,” she said with tears.

Roman looked at her with care.

“What is it?” he asked, and Ray nodded.

“Without the four guardians protecting our world, the forest queen has fallen ill, and she is dying. She grows weaker every day without the four of you,” she said.

Roman and Ray looked at her with concern.

“We are trying to get the girls back as soon as we can. Those two demons have destroyed the statues, and that was the only way out,” Ray said sadly, and the fairy looked up at him, giving him a sad smile.

“Actually, there is another,” she said, and they looked at her, surprised.

“There is? How can they come back without the statues?” asked Roman.

The fairy looked at him cleverly.

“I can get a message to the Guardian of Fire, but it is going to come with a price,” she said, and Ray crossed his arms and scoffed.

“Fairies. It’s always something,” he said, and she looked at them both.

“I guess it all matters on how much you wish to have your mates back in your arms,” she said, and Roman scowled as he looked at Ray, and he sighed.

What choice do we have?” he asked, and Ray shrugged his shoulders.

Suspiciously, Roman sighed, and then he looked back at the little, white fairy.

“What is the price?” he asked, and the fairy delightfully twirled in a circle.

“Just a sliver of your love for the Guardian of Fire and Guardian of Water,” said the fairy, and Roam, and Ray looked at each other.

“Don’t worry. You will not feel a thing, and you will not be affected,” she said, and then she fluttered closer to them.

Roman and Ray shrugged their shoulders, and then Roman looked at the fairy as he nodded. Gently, the fairy touched each of them on their foreheads, and then she fluttered back to the center of the room.

Two tiny balls of light came from each of them, and then the ball of light disappeared in the fairy’s hand. She smiled as she looked up at them and bowed her head.

“Thank you. Now, keep a weather eye on the forest,” the little white fairy said, and then she disappeared.

Uneasily, Roman and Ray looked at each other, and Ray swallowed hard.

“Do you feel any different or feel different about Ashta?” he asked, and Roman looked at him thoughtfully as he shook his head.

“But you can never trust fairies,” said Roman matter-of-factly.

Ray nodded his head in agreement.

“That is one fact that we cannot ignore,” said Ray, and Roman snickered as he nodded.

“Okay, let’s go to Riah’s old home by the Forbidden forest and go see your sister, Lucian, Andrew, Phabious, and Mertel. They are out there already patrolling the forest,” said Roman, and Ray nodded, but then he paused for a moment.

Oddly, Roman looked at him, and he could tell that he was unsure about something.

“What is it?” he asked, and Ray looked up at him, concerned.

“We should try and get a message to Ashta and Riah again, just in case the fairy doesn’t do as she said she was going to do,” suggested Ray, and Roman thought for a moment.

Ray was right. Fairies could not be trusted on their word. No, they couldn’t lie, but they could stretch the truth as wide as possible, and they were very good at evading the truth.

Heavily, he sighed as he looked at Ray.

“I can agree with you on that, but we are going to have to wait until the morning. Contacting others in different realms makes us weaker, and we just have to wait until we rest and recharge,” he explained, and Ray only nodded.

“Come on, let’s go,” said Roman, and they both walked out of the sanctuary room.

Ashta closed her eyes, and she steadied her breathing as she let her mind wander. She remembered the day that she and Lashanna met, and she spent a couple of days with her at the coffee shop. Vaguely, she remembered her and Yinlin swinging on the wooden backyard swing, talking and laughing, and a tear rolled down her cheek. Suddenly, she felt a sense of peace wash over her, and a tiny surge of energy rushed through her body.

A new memory of her and Lashanna bravely fending off a group of villagers, they walked into the Forbidden Forest. Surprisingly, she didn’t see any guards at the forest entrance in her memory, and she realized that the guards were a part of the simulation world. Ashta’s eyes flew open, and she saw someone standing in the four-way. They were staring at her.

At that moment, she realized that it was Riah, and she happily huffed a sob. Quickly, she got up from the bench and ran to her friend. Happily, Riah smiled when she saw Ashta, and she began running toward her. Blissfully, the two girls embraced each other as tears streamed down their faces.

“Oh, thank the gods, I found you,” said Riah as she pulled back, and Ashta nodded and smiled through her tears.

“How did we end up back in this place?” Ashta asked, and Riah looked at her.

“I don’t know, but on my way here, Ray spoke to me again. He said not to do what he did and that we have to figure another way out,” she said, and Ashta thought for a moment.

She thought about what Roman had said and the memories of going into the forest with Lashanna. The Forbidden Forest had to be the way out. She looked at Riah hopefully and smiled at her.

“I think I know why the forest is guarded,” she said as she looked toward the guards that stood in front of the forest.

Curiously, Riah looked towards the forest, and then she looked back at Ashta.

“So, you think the forest is the other way out of this place?” asked Riah, and Ashta nodded.

“How do you suppose we get past the guards?” she asked with worry in her voice, and Ashta thought for a moment.

“I’m not sure, but let’s see how close we can get to the guards before they say anything,” she suggested, and Riah only nodded.

What could it hurt? If they got too close and the guards decided to shoot them, they would wake back up in this place and have to try again until they could get into the forest.

Ashta and Riah looked at each other, and then they walked down the street towards the Forbidden Forest. Slowly, they made their way toward the two men, and the two girls looked at each other as they walked closer to them. The armored guards didn’t move or make a sound as they neared them, and Ashta looked at Riah cautiously.

Riah swallowed hard as she nodded, and suddenly, Ashta heard a voice in the back of her mind.

“Go! Now!” the voice yelled, and without hesitation.

Ashta grabbed Riah’s hand, and they made a run for the safety of the forest. The two guards turned toward them at that moment, but the girls didn’t turn around. They continued to run deeper into the woods, and when they felt that they were far enough away from the guards catching up to them, they stopped and caught their breath.

“We did it. We got away from them,” breathed Riah, and Ashta looked at her as she nodded.

Suddenly, they heard something crashing through the forest, and Ashta and Riah looked at each other with wide eyes.

The next day, Roman and Ray walked down into the sanctuary room.

“I can’t wait to have Riah in my arms again,” said Ray happily, and Roman nodded.

“I haven’t slept right since I have been home,” breathed Roman, and Ray sighed as he nodded.

Then, Ray looked up at Roman and smiled as he tilted his head to the side.

“Well, I guess the only thing to do now is bring our girls home,” he said with a dashing smile, and Roman chuckled as he nodded.

“Sounds like a great plan,” he said, and Ray smiled as they both stood in front of Ashta’s and Riah’s statues.

They closed their eyes and placed their hands on the cool stone. Strangely, nothing happened. They couldn’t connect with the two girls, and they looked at each other. They both tried again, but still, nothing happened.

“What’s going on?” Ray asked, and Roman looked at him with wide eyes.

“I can’t get a connection with Ash,” he said frantically, and Ray’s eyebrows shot down in anger as he looked at his cousin.

“The fairy!” he exclaimed, and Roman nodded.

Ray looked at Roman, and then a look of confusion came across his face.

“Why would the faeries interfere like this if their mother is dying and needs us to live?” he asked, and suddenly, thick vines shot up from the ground beneath their feet.

The thick vines swirled around their legs, around their mid-sections, holding their arms to their sides, and then the room filled with a yellowish glow.

“So, do you think that the forest queen would sabotage her own life?” asked a tiny angry voice, and then the little white fairy appeared before them.

Angrily, Roman looked at her, and he huffed an irritated sigh.

“Then why can’t we contact them?” he asked as he struggled against the vines, and to his surprise, the more he worked, the more the vines would tighten their grip around him.

“I did what I said I was going to do. You can’t help them now. They are deep in the Forbidden forest, and it is up to them to find their way home,” she said, and Roman and Ray looked at each other.

Annoyed, Roman looked at the fairy, and she looked at him with stern eyes.

“Why didn’t you just come and tell us that instead of tying us up with your vines like this?” he asked, and the fairy continued to stare at him.

“Because you blamed me. You think that I have taken something from you, but you are wrong. Your love for the fire and water guardians is the only thing keeping mother alive,” she explained, and Roman and Ray relaxed as they looked at her.

“Well, you can let us go now. We didn’t know. You fairies can be very evasive,” said Roman, and Ray nodded in agreement.

The fairy looked at them for a moment, and then she cleverly smiled.

“We fair-folk do not tell lies, and we do not speak of the reasons we do things,” she said, and then the vines loosened their grip.

Slowly, the vines retracted away from their bodies and then slithered back down. Roman and Ray sighed as they flexed their arms and legs, and then they looked back up at the fairy. They bowed their heads, and the fairy nodded at them.

“Now, you know, and now, you should be keeping an eye out for them to come through the forest,” she said, and then she disappeared.

Shocked, Roman and Ray looked at each other, and Ray smiled. Roman looked at him in question, and Ray grinned happily.

“They are headed back home and back to us,” he cheered as his eyes lit up.

Roman sighed in relief.

“They just have to make it through the Forbidden Forest. Let’s go out to the patrol house and go help the team out there. We can cover more ground that way,” he suggested, and Ray nodded enthusiastically.

“Good idea.”

Swiftly, they both ran out of the sanctuary room, and then they ran out of the castle without saying a word to Gale, Liam, and Chantelle.

“So, where do you think they are?” asked Andrew, and Keshmire looked at him as she shrugged her shoulders.

Seemingly, Andrew, Keshmire, Lucian, Phabious, and Mertel were not affected by the spell that Bestol and Mertheis had cast over the kingdom. The two demons did not know about Riah’s old house in the woods, and the five of them stayed out there. They were assigned to perimeter duty now that Riah was one of the Elemental Guardians.

“I am not entirely sure. My brother and cousin were vague on the details. They just said to keep an eye out for them,” she said, and Andrew nodded.

Andrew, Keshmire, Lucian, Phabious, and Mertel had split into two groups after Roman and Ray had told them about Ashta and Riah returning through the forest. Andrew and Keshmire went one way, and Phabious and Lucian had gone the other, while Mertel stayed back at the house just in case. Either they showed up there, or Roman and Ray had come back out there.

“I hope they come home soon,” said Andrew, and Keshmire nodded.

At that moment, Keshmire saw two men jogging toward them, and she saw that it was her cousin and brother headed their way. Happily, Keshmire smiled at them. She was so glad that they were back home.

That was the only family she had now, and she didn’t feel right when they were gone.

“Hey,” she said with a grin.

“Hey, any sign of them yet?” asked Roman as he and Ray approached them, and Keshmire and Andrew shook their heads.

“Okay, just keep looking. We got word that they have made it into the forest from the Simulation Realm,” said Roman.

Andrew nodded.

“Well, then they should be back home in no time,” said Andrew, and Roman and Ray shook their heads.

“They still have to pass the tree trolls that protect the forest and pass through the Swamp of Hopelessness,” said Ray.

Keshmire looked at her brother oddly.

“Swamp of Hopelessness? Never heard of it,” she said.

“It’s part of the forest’s defense mechanism. Apart designed to keep intruders out. Only the true of heart and confidence can pass through,” explained Roman, and Keshmire sighed.

“I am sure they will make it through just fine,” said Andrew, and they all gave him a hopeful look.

“I hope so,” said Keshmire, and Ray nodded.

“Us, too,” he sighed, and they all looked out into the forest.

“What is that?” asked Riah, and Ashta’s eyes widened as she remembered the tree troll that had come after her and Lashanna.

“It’s the tree troll, come on,” she said as she grabbed Riah’s hand.

Quickly, they ran through the forest just as the tree troll came caching through the trees across from them. At that moment, Ashta stopped, and Riah stopped short with her. She looked at Ashta like she was crazy, and Ashta looked at her.

“What are you doing?” she asked, and Ashta looked at the oncoming beast.

“Just trust me and get down,” said Ashta, as she looked back at her.

Immediately, Riah crouched down in a pile of fallen trees next to them, and Ashta looked back at the creature. Ashta made eye contact with the tree troll as it charged at her, and she bravely stood her ground. Horrified, Riah watched as the beast approached Ashta, and it back-handed her into a nearby tree. She wanted to scream at her, but she knew that she couldn’t take on the massive creature herself, so she just watched, hoping that Ashta was okay.

The tree troll stood over Ashta and looked at her as it breathed heavily. Slowly, Ashta pushed herself to her feet, and she groaned. Angrily, the creature roared at her, and she looked up at it with a disapproving look. She took a deep breath, and she screamed as loudly as she could back at the beast.

Suddenly, the tree troll straightened, and then it threw its hands at Ashta as it mumbled incoherently.

“Well, I wouldn’t have had to yell at you if you hadn’t tried to kill me, and you yelled at me first,” she scolded heatedly, and Riah reared her head back in confusion.

The creature mumbled again, snorted at Ashta, and then walked away.

“Well, don’t you have a way with big, crazy-looking animals,” said Riah as she walked up to Ashta, and she laughed.

“We have met once before, and we have an understanding,” she said, and Riah snickered.

“Understanding, huh? If that is what you want to call it,” she said.

“What?” laughed Ashta, and Riah made a face at her.

“Well, if you are done playing with the woodland creatures, I would like to go home,” said Riah, and Ashta nodded.

“Come on, we shouldn’t be that far away now,” said Ashta, and Riah smiled.

The two girls walked arm in arm through the forest and away from the tree troll. Riah hoped that he was the only one that they would encounter.