The airship hurriedly took off as soon as Freyja, Kirin and Alaric got off.
As the three of them explored the forests, Kirin sensed the tension in Freyja. She was definitely quieter than usual. He smirked, and walked behind her to hit the back of her knee. She comically fell down.
"What's with that!?" Freyja shouted.
"Nothing, you just look too tense." He said, ruffling her hair. "Stay like that and you'll lose your focus."
"Hey, look over there!" Alaric spotted something shining so brightly, about a few kilometers ahead of them. Immediately agreeing to go after it, the three of them dashed towards the mysterious orb of light. But, even before they could see what it is, they found themselves completely surrounded by groups of hundreds natives clad in animal skin and fur, with their faces painted thickly you can't tell them apart.
Kirin, Alaric and Freyja stood back to back, on guard. Even Astrid from inside the medallion readied himself for battle.
"I think we just trespassed into their territory." Kirin whispered. The tribesmen slowly walked towards them, their sharp spears pointed at them. But what is more surprising is that their spears are all aura-covered, and these people are most likely doing it without being conscious of aura manipulation techniques. A natural-gift. This explains their fierceness and power.
They are not welcome, that's obvious. Even so, Freyja can't just turn her back. Kirin can slaughter them all singlehandedly, but she didn't want unnecessary bloodshed. Before the fighting could begin, she stepped forward, trying to settle things diplomatically.
"Listen!" Freyja said in an audible voice, "We are not here to intrude! We are just looking for something, that's all!" She tried to explain, but as expected, was ignored. The natives charged at them all at once! Now, they have no other choice but to defend themselves and fight it out. Kirin summoned his aura blade fending a couple attacks at once. Alaric too, conjured a rune spear and fought. Freyja unsheathed her short sword out and ran a few meters away from them. She managed to knock one of them down. But, she couldn't find the strength to kill him. Her hands trembled, hesitating. The image of a bloody Ruis from the World Combat Championship haunted her all of a sudden.
While deliberating whether to stab the guy dead or not, a couple of arrows flew straight at her! Kirin and Alaric's hands were full, they couldn't get to her in time. Just as when they thought Freyja will be skewered, an aura-barrier appeared in front of her, deflecting the arrows. It was Astrid.
"Lenfiare, are you alright?" He asked from inside the medallion. "Yes, thank you Astrid." She sighed.
Surprisingly, upon seeing Freyja's white aura barrier, the tribesmen halted their attacks. They drew back, much to Kirin and Alaric's surprise. Then, they heard a loud roar from behind the wall of the tribesmen. They all got on their knees as a skinny old man, with long white hair and braided white beard slowly walked towards Freyja.
"We beg your forgiveness, daughter of the gods. Forgive our rudeness." The old man himself, kneeled before Freyja. He could speak their language, only with a distinctly strange accent. The natives began worshiping Freyja all of a sudden, calling her the 'daughter of the gods!'
"WAIT!" She shouted, "Can someone please tell me what's happening here?" She looked at her just as confused companions.
"I saw you in a vision last night. It was you, a girl of white skin, hair black as the night, eyes of earthen brown and white wings. It is you!" The old man introduced himself as the tribe's high priest and elder of the natives.
Freyja, Kirin and Alaric had no choice but to accept his goodwill. In fact it was a very good opportunity for them to freely explore the islands without getting in trouble with the locals. Not for long, they found themselves in their village, houses made of wood and straw. Inside the elder's cottage, they were warmly welcomed by the elder and his servants. They served them local wine and food. Kirin handed them a bag of gold as payment, which they refused to accept.
"Daughter of the gods, I saw you falling from the sky under a red moon with white wings on your back. And then the spirits whispered that you will come to our lands to destroy the demon in the cave. " The elder explained politely. Freyja felt goose bumps all over her skin, hearing the elder's vision. She did fall from the airship last night and she also saw the illusion of the red moon. However, she wasn't really sure about the 'wings' part. Kirin wanted to talk about the demon in the cave, but it was customary in their culture to refrain from talking about bad things upon a guest's arrival. Instead, the elder called for a banquet serving newly slaughtered boars and birds. They called for the tribe's best dancers and ladies to 'entertain' Kirin and Alaric. The drums rolled loudly, the people dancing around a huge bonfire. The tribeswomen were daring and beautiful, and this worried Freyja so much since they're showing a lot of skin to her friends. As usual, all were captivated by Kirin's cold charm and Alaric's princely appearance that they started swarming around them like bees around full-bloom flowers.
"Uh, hello! I am supposed to be the 'daughter of the gods?' Why am I the one left out!?" She ended up talking to herself on one corner, while watching her two friends under the limelight. The annoyed girl stomped her way back to their hut, still mumbling curses under her breath. "Man... those two muuuust be enjoying themselves so much! They even forgot I exist!" Looking out at the window, she was surprised to see Ryli outside the room. Her eyes were apologetic, and her face red. Freyja quickly ran outside, to approach the little girl.
"So, you did follow us." She said with her arms crossed. Ryli couldn't look at her in the eye, which was quite obvious why. Ryli braced herself, expecting that Freyja will hit her. However, she sat beside her and sighed. Freyja took her jacket off threw it to the shivering girl.
"You know..." Freyja broke the awkward silence. "I hate you." She hit her head with her fist. "Ryli, do you like Alaric? I mean, you really like Alaric?" Freyja asked with a serious face.
"... Do you even have to ask?" the girl sarcastically replied.
Freyja chuckled. She does hate her, but she can't completely hate her, because in a way, she can see herself in Ryli. "Hahaha! I see, then, let me tell you this. Alaric, Kirin and I are friends. So, you don't have to feel bad, we aren't your rivals. In fact, I can help you with Alaric."
"-but..."
"No buts. I'll help you whether you like it or not. You see, he may not look like it but Alaric is really a shy boy." Freyja winked. "To chase after the person you like. It takes quite the courage too. So, let's just say that I admire you for that. Your methods are questionable but. I'll let it slide for now." She continued. "So, is that a deal? Truce?" Looking at Freyja, Ryli felt a pang in her chest. Ryli's hands trembled, she can't even open her mouth. It's too late. She has already dissolved the pills into the festival drinks.
A few glasses of festival wine behind Ryli caught Freyja's eye. Without a clue, she took two glasses and handed one to Ryli.
"Okay! A toast to our truce!" Freyja exclaimed before taking a sip from the glass. Ryli watched, her heart pounding. And as she expected, in just a few seconds, Freyja suddenly fell unconscious. Ryli succeeded. She can now get rid of her. The first thing she did was to call her comrade, and make him do the dirty work. Ryli used a spell to lift the girl up and take her into the forest, where her partner in crime waited.
"Good work!" The assassin jumped out of hiding and quickly took Freyja away.
"Are you really going to kill her?" Ryli asked, as they took the sleeping Freyja deeper into the mountains.
"I'll take her head and show it to Lord Aneurin!" He grinned, imagining the huge sum of gold he'll soon get. They went deeper and deeper into the forest, until they found themselves lost. It did annoy the assassin, but it was a good chance to finally get rid of his target. Kirin and Alaric can no longer rescue her in such a place.
They laid the sleeping Freyja down the ground. The assassin pulled his dagger out of his belt right away and pointed its tip at Freyja's neck. Ryli was sweating buckets as she watched quietly.
"Don't hold a grudge against me, you look nice and sweet but I have to kill you." The man swung his blade hard to decapitate the girl in a single blow. However, Freyja suddenly opened her eyes, spit out the liquid that she sipped and rolled on her side, avoiding her death instantly.
"The medicine is too obvious. The chemical smells. You should have been more careful next time." She smirked. She may not have her sword with her, but Astrid is always there to equip her with a much powerful one. "Astrid!" One call, and Astrid came out of the medallion, in his human form. Astrid didn't even have to become a blade. As is, he attacked the assassin who still tried to run, but miserably failed. Astrid was about to slice his head off when all of a sudden, a hypnotic song reached their ears.
"Sweet dragon...
My little dragon..."
The voice of a woman, singing a song in a strange language. The faint voice was so enchanting that they all subconsciously stopped to listen. Freyja too, was caught in the dreamy illusion that the song created. It is the same song she heard in her dream. It is a song about a 'little dragon.' The hypnotic voice started to control their bodies, slowly leading them even deeper into the forests. Freyja was about to follow, when Astrid's loud cry shook her back to reality. "Lenfiare!" He shouted, taking the girl in his arms, running away. "What's that, Astrid?" She snapped out of it.
Astrid, and later on Freyja, felt a sinister presence from where the voice was trying to lead them to. Unfortunately for Ryli and the assassin, they couldn't escape the voice's illusion.
The ground started shaking violently The ground cracked and gigantic tentacles emerged from underneath. The assassin cried, as the tentacles wrapped around his feet, dragging him deeper into the forests! He tried to resist, but the tentacles were too strong for him. Ryli's spells were useless as well. Not for long, she and Freyja, were also caught by the monstrous tentacles. Freyja's body could no longer sustain Astrid's form. He's beginning to disappear and in such a crucial moment too. Freyja pushed her body to its limits, forcefully sustaining Astrid's form for a few more minutes. Astrid transformed to the white aura blade, allowing Freyja to cut the tentacles off her in time.
Freyja managed to save Ryli too, but not the assassin. By the time she had the white aura blade, the assassin has already disappeared from their sight. She grabbed Ryli and ran back to the village. Halfway their escape, Freyjafell on her knees. Astrid disappeared. She can't even stand up anymore, she lost so much aura. Ryli immediately conjured a gigantic floating leaf. She hopped onto it and reached her hand out to Freyja. "Hurry!" Freyja took her hand and together, they fled back to the village.
Freyja and Ryli barely escaped death. They returned to the village, pale, tired and weak. While they're hoping to get help, much to their surprise, they found every single villager lying on the ground, deeply asleep. Freyja checked their pulses. They are alive, but asleep. Ryli tried shaking them, pouring water over them, but they won't wake up. "Hey Ryli, don't tell me this is because of the wine?"
Ryli looked away, teary eyed. "Anyway, we have to find Kirin and Alaric. I'm sure they noticed the drug too."
Freyja and Ryli ran to the village elder's hut and found their companions there, safe and sound.
As soon as Kirin caught sight of Ryli, he immediately knew who's behind it all. "You, what the hell are you trying to do?" Kirin glared at Ryli, his patience at its limit. He was about to cut the little girl into two when Freyja interfered. "Wait, let's talk this over! We have a bigger problem here."
While inside the village elder's hut, Freyja explained everything that happened in the forest. Even though Ryli originally planned to kill her, she changed her mind and saved her in the end. If it wasn't for Ryli, she could have suffered the same fate as the mercenary in the forest. With her thorough convincing, they pardoned the child. Kirin was still suspicious. Nevertheless, he gave into Freyja's decision. "Should anything happen again, I will kill you, instantly." He warned the little girl before moving on with the bigger problem. "Now what exactly is this curse thing?"
"When I was a child..." The elder began his tale, "My father and I heard a mysterious song in the forests. That song is cursed. One who hears it will be dragged and eaten alive by the demons in the cave. I saw it myself, my father was taken by the demon and he never returned. I was fortunate to have survived. But since then, never again did we go into that part of the forest. We tried to warn the foreigners, but those who refused to listen ended up with the same fate. They all died."
"That's terrible." Alaric murmured while Kirin stayed silent.
"We are safe here. As long as we don't step into their territory, the song would never reach us." The elder continued, "But lately, we found it very hard to gather food for our growing numbers because we couldn't go further into the forests. We thought that this will be the end, until the message that the gods sent me last night. They sent their daughter to vanquish the demon."
Kirin furrowed his brows in disbelief. "Girl... you mean her, right?"
The old man nodded. "A girl from the sky, on her back was a pair of white wings."
"I don't know anything about having wings or saving this land but, I heard the song myself. It's a song about a little dragon. It's a lullaby." Freyja joined in.
The elder slammed the table hard in surprise. "You-you understand the song!?"
She nodded. "Somehow, I don't know. But when we were hypnotized, Astrid and I sensed the presence of a sinister aura. It's the same feeling with the monster guarding Astrid's prison so I thought..." Freyja, Alaric and Kirin had the same thing in mind. There is a big possibility that the one responsible for this 'curse' is a Celestial Guardian.
After meeting with the elder, Freyja went outside to spend some alone time with Ryli. "You are not going to kill me, are you?" She joked while sitting beside her. "Why the long face? It makes it harder for me to hate you if you're like that." She continued.
Freyja smiled sweetly at the girl. Ryli's tears started falling out of her squinty eyes. She felt the guilt overflowing inside her. "Why- why are you so kind to me?" Ryli sobbed
"I'm not really being kind. I'm just saying what I want. Besides, you saved me back there so let's call it even."
Ryli cried even harder. But Freyja wiped her tears away. Finally, Ryli's feelings were conveyed to Freyja. She told her that back in their village, she was her father's least favorite child. No one really cared about her, except for Alaric. Alaric was the first person to show her kindness. He was the first one who sweetly smiled at her. Because of that, she grew to love him so much that she even followed him outside the village. She told Ryli how similar they are because she too, felt the same with Kirin. "Kirin may look like he's angry and cold 24/7, but you know, he's actually the kindest person I know." She said, with a sweet smile and red cheeks.
"So you are in love with Kirin?" The little girl asked straightforwardly. Freyja turned beet red while immediately denying Ryli's assumptions. "No! Kirin is more of a brother to me, it's not really like that!"
Finally, they laughed together. Freyja and Ryli spent hours talking about several things, from food to dreams— something Ryli's own sisters never did with her. Soon, Freyja fell asleep.
"Freyja, I will capture that dragon for you." Ryli quietly snuck out of the room. Then, she left a small note before summoning her giant floating leaf again.
~ o 0 o ~