STAGE EIGHT: FAMILIAR SKY
Kirin quietly stood on the airship's upper deck, enjoying the cold midnight breeze while his eyes fixed up at the starry sky. "Look, a shooting star!" He was startled, suddenly finding Freyja beside him.
"Freyja, you scared me." He sighed, playfully hitting her head. Freyja giggled. "That's an achievement! This is the first time I caught Kirin off-guard!" She laughed. "The stars are very pretty, aren't they?" She said, gazing up at the night sky. Kirin nodded. "Now I'm also like you, I guess. You get easily excited over a clear night sky."
"But I was right, wasn't I? The night sky is the most comforting thing in the world." Freyja proudly said, a grin on her face. Unknowingly, she began reaching her hand up, as if grasping the brightest star. "The night sky always reminded me that in this very, very large universe, there has to be a place I can call home. There has to be."
Slowly, she reached for his hand, intertwining her fingers with his. "It's like telling me 'you're not alone.' Far apart, maybe, but not alone. We're all connected. That's wonderful, isn't it?"
Kirin nodded, squeezing her hand tighter. "Celestia, is somewhere out there. Kinju Alfiore too." Kirin said. "And Keon, for sure!" She added. "I wonder how Van, Skar, and Aya are doing? I hope they're alright." She sighed.
"I remember when I was exiled in that other world, and I suddenly found myself in this world without a clue. I was so scared, but you saved me, Kirin." She recalled.
"Yeah, you stalked me non-stop." He laughed, remembering the past. "I was thinking of a way to lose you, to be honest, you were just so persistent." Kirin teased. "But aren't you glad I didn't give up?" She grinned, expecting a flustered Kirin. But instead, he gazed at her golden eyes, his emerald orbs sparkling under the moonlight. It's as hypnotizing as ever. "Yeah. I'm glad."
Freyja leaned her head on his shoulder, grabbing his arm tight. "Don't ever leave me, Kirin." She whispered. Kirin pulled his arm away, and locked her in a tight embrace. "I won't. Even if you do."
"I won't!" She cried. "Promise me, Kirin. No matter what, you'll come back to me. No matter what happens, or how long it's been!" Freyja tightly holding onto him. "Kirin, even If we grow very old, or die, or even if I live a very long life… In the next life, and the next, next life. You'll always find me, okay?"
Kirin took a deep breath, and smiled. Squeezing her back. "You will never get rid of me. Never."
Then, a bright shooting star caught their eyes. It was so bright, leaving a trail in the sky. Freyja closed her eyes, and so did Kirin, saying a quiet prayer in their minds.
~ o 0 o ~
"Kirin! Freyja!" Alaric barged into their cabin, pale and frantic. "Hawsdark…. Look outside!"
Kirin and Freyja jumped out of their bed and rushed outside with the runemaster. What they saw rendered them speechless. Even the other passengers ran outside to take a look at the extraordinary sight.
Though far, they could see a thick, black, translucent dome over the Hawsdark. They saw the same barrier many years before, around the Aethelmaer manor. But seeing it over the entire landmass is beyond their imagination. The ship's crew prompted the passengers to get back into their cabins, while they turn the ship around for a detour.
"What in the name of hell is that!?" Freyja didn't expect to have to go through that.
"Yes, it's exactly the same as the barrier they tried to summon back then." Kirin answered. "Looks like it's going to be more difficult than we expected."
"It's definitely a barrier that mimics the one in Celestia." Afra suddenly went out of the medallion, in his crimson-haired human form. "Lenfiare, I don't know who's helping the Aethelmaers this time, but it's impossible for them to not have connection to Celestia. There's no way humans can pull this off by themselves."
"Either way, we'll have to disembark and force our way in. Is that alright?" Alaric looked at Freyja, and she nodded.
~ o 0 o ~
The airship landed on Lersha, the border country to Hawsdark. From its shores, they could see the black dome covering the entire continent. Freyja intensely gazed upon it, trying to remember anything useful from her past. Just as Afra said, it resembled the protective barrier around Celestia and its capital. Celestia's barrier was the reason why it became impenetrable in the first place. But after she took the other half of the Celestial core, it started to weaken. Freyja clenched her fists, remembering her father's confession— it was because he had Reyrah seal half of the core inside her, so she can rule without question.
"So, how are we going to go through that, any ideas?" Alaric's voice snapped her out of daze.
"Alaric and I can swim to Hawsdark but I don't think we'll help much with that. The barrier goes all the way to the sea." Kirin said, shaking his head.
"No worries. I can get all three of us on Avice." She said proudly. Freyja stood up and summoned Avice, in his beast form. Alaric and Kirin stepped back, giving way.
A thick white smoke escaped from Freyja's medallion, coiling in a serpentine form around her. A pair of gigantic aura wings emerged from its back, four limbs, and the head of a reptile, as it slowly took the form of a beast covered in thick white fur.
Alaric and Kirin have both seen Avice in his beast form, but the one before them is almost triple in size than usual. "Let's go." Freyja called, climbing up the flying beast's back. Alaric and Kirin followed. Freyja anxiously looked around.
"Are we expecting someone else?" Alaric asked, looking around.
"Lenfiare!" A familiar voice caught their eye. Alyon came running towards them, in a hurry. "I'm sorry, I was a bit late." He apologized, catching his breath. "I sent a message to him, that we're going to Hawsdark. We need all the help we can." She explained to the two. "Come Alyon, hop on." The phreinian hurriedly joined them.
Freyja ordered Avice to fly full-speed, straight to Hawsdark. To go through the barrier, they need as much concentrated force as they can. Alaric was tasked to freeze a part of the barrier, while Alyon and Kirin join forces to break the frozen point as much as they can. Freyja will deliver the main blow with Astrid's blade and Avice' momentum.
In less than 10 minutes, they finally entered Hawsdark airspace.
"Go, Alaric!" Freyja prompted. The runemaster conjured his most powerful freezing spell, instantly freezing the target spot solid. Then, Kirin and Alyon concentrated their auras into blazing aura spears, which they pierced the frozen spot with. The spot cracked, a few chunks fell off the sea. Now it's Freyja's turn. While maintaining Avice' speed, she summoned Astrid in his rune-blade form. Gripping it tight, she pierced through the target spot, instantly shattering a portion of the barrier upon contact.
Avice continued to fly through the hole in the barrier, finally bringing them inside Hawsdark.
But the victory was short-lived. What greeted them was a depressing scene. It was unlike the Hawsdark they knew. There were no people, the trees and plants are all withered, the once clear blue rivers are now opaque in dark-greenish color. The houses were destroyed, as if a great calamity had wiped out the place. Even Kirin, who was already expecting a glum atmosphere, was taken aback. This is definitely not the Hawsdark he knew.
"Kirin, we'll head straight to the underground temple, okay?" Freyja assured him, noticing his shock. Kirin nodded. Avice followed his master's instructions, as Freyja concentrated to sense the final guardian. After about three hours of flying, they finally reached the city, now completely deserted, that was closest to the gates of the Aethelmaer mansion. But before they could proceed, Freyja stopped them. "Wait, I sense something over here. It's not that strong, and it may not be Amos. But, I wanted to see the underground temple that Alfiore was talking about." She said, pointing to the direction of the shore. "If we go by sea from here, we can look for it." She said.
"I agree with Lenfiare." Alyon said. "That mansion is certainly hiding something powerful. I don't advice barging in without knowing anything more than we do." Kirin and Alaric looked at each other and nodded. Kirin glanced back at the Aethelmaer mansion's gates, before running towards his companions who are headed to the shore.
~ o 0 o ~