Freyja woke up, finding a note on the table. Everyone was awake now, no one knew about the sleeping drug in the festival wine except for Freyja's party and the elder. Freyja looked around, but Ryli was nowhere to be found. The moment she read the note, Freyja ran to Kirin in a panic. "Kirin! Kirin!" She called.
As soon as Kirin and Alaric read Ryli's message, they instantly knew where the little girl ran off to. Freyja can tell that Ryli was trying to make up for what she did. Ryli is an adept runemaster. However, the enemy this time is more than what she can handle. Freyja clenched her fists in frustration. She knows that the 'demon' might actually be a Celestial Guardian. If so, then the only one who can stop it is her white aura. Freyja ran back to her room and packed her things in a hurry. Kirin however, grabbed her hand tight.
"No!" Kirin won't let go. He can understand Freyja's feelings, but her rash actions will only make things worse. "Don't be hasty Freyja. We have to plan this carefully."
Alaric clenched his fists, feeling his own share of guilt. He couldn't control Ryli's jealousy, he couldn't save Freyja and now, he doesn't want to endanger Freyja again because of something that he started. Feeling that Ryli is his responsibility, Alaric volunteered to look for the little girl in Freyja's place. "I'll go and look for her."
"Then let's go together!" Freyja insisted, afraid that Alaric might also be harmed. "Astrid can help us, I'm sure of—" But Alaric covered her mouth with his hand, silencing her. Then, he smiled while holding both of her shoulders. "Please Freyja, let me do this." He begged for her trust, while gazing at her with his deep blue eyes. His determination reached her. She had no other choice but to believe in him.
"Alright," She finally agreed. "But make sure you return by sunset. Promise me!"
Alaric nodded. "I promise."
After Alaric left, Freyja couldn't settle down. She's having a very bad feeling about Alaric and Ryli, but all she could do was wait for their return. The concubines of the chieftain swarmed around Kirin who apathetically sat on one corner without speaking a single word.
"Lord Kirin, I want to ask a question, if you don't mind." The favorite concubine of the chieftain poured wine for Kirin. "What is your relationship with the daughter of the gods?" She asked while trying her best to charm the young man. "I am her guardian." Kirin bluntly replied before walking towards Freyja, who is sitting on the porch, watching the sun slowly set.
"Alaric isn't back yet." Kirin whispered and Freyja shook her head. "Alaric will definitely come back. He promised me."
Alaric explored the deepest parts of the forests all by himself. Finally, after hours of searching, he found Ryli, lying wounded on the ground. "Ryli! There you are!" He ran to her aid. "What happened?"
"A... Alaric..." Ryli weakly opened her eyes. "R-run...."
"What? We have to go back now, hurry." Alaric carried the little girl on his back. They were about to escape, when they heard an eerie song.
"Little Dragon...."
The faint voice of a woman reached his ears, penetrating through his subconscious. Alaric dropped the little girl, slouched, and slowly dragged his body to where the song was coming from.
"No good! Run Alaric! Snap out of it!" Ryli tried her best to save Alaric, but she's injured. Alaric was already under the hypnosis and nothing could wake him up. "Alaric you have to wake up! Hurry!" She tried to stop him, but he's too strong. He ended up dragging her too.
"My sweet dragon..."
Alaric blacked out just seconds after he heard the song. But in his mind, he suddenly found himself in a garden surrounded with white and pale blue flowers and unusually tall trees. And then, he saw a little girl, around four to five years old, with long jet black hair and dark brown eyes. The girl was laughing, dancing, running around merrily. The girl looked so familiar, he tried to follow her. However, just as when he's about to touch her shoulder, that girl is suddenly engulfed in flaming white aura. And on her back, is a pair of white wings.
"Its..." Alaric murmured under his breath. His personal memories of the present Freyja allowed him to recognize the girl. "Freyja! That voice is looking for Freyja!" Miraculously, Alaric snapped out of the illusion. But, when he finally came to, he found himself inside a pitch black cave with his limbs immobilized by strong and slimy tentacles. "What on earth!?" He struggled but the monster's grip was too strong.
"Alaric, you're finally awake!" Ryli was there too. They were both captured by the monster and were dragged somewhere inside a cave. Alaric closed his eyes and focused his aura to his hands, a spear made of ice appeared from thin air. Alaric used his rune-spear to cut off the tentacles binding them. They freed themselves from the tentacles, but they are still trapped inside. Ryli conjured an orb of light to illuminate the place. As soon as they saw the inside of the cave, Ryli screamed in horror.
"AYIAGHHHHHH!!!" Ryli hid behind Alaric, seeing dead bodies and human bones scattered around.
"They were trapped here..." Alaric uttered, examining the corpses. "That voice was looking for Freyja and its dragging everyone inside. It won't stop unless it finds her, but, we just can't surrender Freyja to a monster." Alaric's thoughts were interrupted by the sudden shaking of the ground. Just as when they thought they're free from the tentacle-monster, more tentacles emerged from under the ground, binding them once again. Alaric sliced the tentacles off again and grabbed Ryli's hand. They ran, as fast as they could. The monster ran after them, but Alaric's spells bought them time to lose it for a while. Alaric and Ryli ran, almost all around the cave, but they found no exit. The monster started to catch up and with rotten luck, Alaric and Ryli were cornered into a dead end.
"Alaric!" Ryli cried.
"This is..." Alaric saw strange letters carved onto the cave's walls. They're quite similar to the ones in Astrid's cave. Knowing that he can't match up with the monster's seemingly immortal body, he gathered his remaining aura in this one last attack. . "I guess we are still lucky to be cornered here." Alaric smirked. He summoned the strongest fireball he could release. He fired it against the wall, causing a strong quake inside the cave.
Alaric's fireball was definitely not strong enough to break the entire wall. The monster's tentacles still caught them, bound them and dragged them back into the darkness.
The illuminating orb that Ryli conjured started to fade, little by little, until there was none left.
The sun has set. And no sign of Alaric or Ryli. Freyja was now seriously worried. Before she could leave however, she heard a strangely familiar voice, singing.
"Angel of death? Or an angel of salvation?"
The whole village was alarmed, for the very first time, the feared voice of the demon reached the village! The song grew louder and louder, more and more powerful! The people ran around in hysteria but one by one, they started falling into the song's illusions. Freyja witnessed how every single villager collapsed one by one. She ran to Kirin, praying he'd be unaffected. However, she was wrong. Freyja found Kirin lying unconscious on the floor.
"Kirin! Wake up!" She shook him hard, she slapped his face, she called his name over and over but he won't open his eyes.
Freyja is the only one unaffected, and the only one awake in the entire village.
Freyja took off her medallion and tied it around Kirin's neck. "Astrid, come out!" She summoned the celestial dragon, who appeared before her in his human form. "Astrid, I order you to stay with Kirin here. Protect him at all costs." She ordered.
"B-but Lenfiare, are you planning to do an assault by yourself!?" Astrid's default emotionless face was warped with worry. "Please reconsider!"
Freyja ignored Astrid's warning. "I still have the white aura inside me. I'll have to rely on that." She grabbed her short sword. Astrid could not disobey her. He just nodded and worriedly watched the girl run into the dark forest all by herself.
"Sleeping Dragon,
My little dragon,
My beloved dragon
I'm always watching you
What would you be?
The mysterious song grew louder as she ran deeper into the forests. "Father, please watch over me." Her entire body trembling in fear and anxiety. She called her father, to give her courage. She imagined Alaric and Kirin. Not for long, the mysterious voice led her into a closed cave.
"Where is the entrance?" She felt the cold stone with her hands, but found no single opening. Freyja was certain that the voice came from inside. She pulled her short sword out and tried to break the entrance, but it was futile. Freyja continued to search, and finally, she came across a small crack. A small suspicious crack with a burnt smell.
"This is..." studying the crack carefully, she recognized the pattern. It's the same as the marks left by Alaric's runes. "Alaric is inside!" She pulled out her sword and concentrated a bit of her aura on its tip. Then, in one strong swing, she pierced the aura-reinforced sword right through the crack. Freyja continued to slash the crack, widening it little by little. Then, with one last strike, she successfully opened a small hole just enough for her to fit.
Freyja squeezed her way into the hole, until she finally got inside the pitch-black cave. Freyja lit the one and only torch she had with her, and went to search for Alaric and Ryli immediately.
"Alaric! Ryli! Can you hear me!?" She shouted as loud as she can, walking further and further. The mysterious song stopped, but her heart raced each time she felt strange ghastly presences around her.
"Ast..." She shook her head, remembering that Astrid is not with her right now. She's now starting to regret going in by herself. "No! I have to find Alaric and Ryli! I have to save Kirin!" She slapped her face hard. Then, with each and every drop of courage left in her, Freyja went deeper and deeper into the darkness.
~ o 0 o ~