When Davina and Felix would pretend they were exploring a new world, she loved the way he created the pictures in her mind. Felix would start to create a world he only thought about during that moment. Then he and Davina would play around the Royal Grounds, pretending it was his imaginary world.
"Where are we?" A seven year old Davina asked as she carefully tread on the soft, dewy grass as if it would swallow her whole any minute. She was standing behind Felix who towered over her.
"We landed on a deserted island and we were captured by the pirates who live there," he said in a hushed tone.
"Now what?" She whispered.
Felix smiled. He loved how Davina could indulge in the worlds he'd create.
"We're secretly trying to escape and go back to our ship. Follow me and be quiet."
Felix stepped on a fallen branch and tripped.
"Felix," she hissed.
"They're coming. Leave me behind. Tell my wife I love her."
"Who?" Davina stared at Felix writhed on the grass as if he was stabbed and didn't just trip.
"Go! They're getting closer." Even if the only things Davina could see were the plants in the Royal Gardens, she looked around and expected there to be pirates coming for them.
"I'm not leaving you behind." She took the fallen branch in one hand and grabbed Felix with her free one.
"Dana-"
"Tell me which way to go. How bad are you hurt?"
"Go left." She turned. "It's not that bad. I can still go on. Right."
She turned.
"Good. I'm not going to let your wife cry. You'll see her again Felix."
"There's a cave over there! We can hide there."
"Where? I can't see it?"
"Over there," he pointed ahead of them. "By the rocks, there's a secret entrance. Can you see it?"
At first, she couldn't see anything but the walls around the Royal Grounds. But then the view in front of her changed as Felix continued to speak. The walls transformed into trees with long vines. Davina could hear the waves of the sea and the song of the birds. They were no longer in the Royal Grounds, but it looked like they truly were on an island. It all looked so real, but it only lasted for a moment.
However, the world she was in right now was real indeed. Even if she doesn't believe it, the fantasies of the past became the reality of the present.
Davina couldn't remember much when they went through bright white light that was the portal to Farren. She opened her eyes and saw a warm blue sky with white fluffy clouds. The wind that hit her was no longer stinging her face. They didn't feel like needles pricking her skin, but like a soft caress of a mother to her child.
Her body was splayed on the wooden deck of the ship. She moved to stand but there was something pulling her down. She looked at her side and saw Quinn was still holding on to her even if he was unconscious. She tried to push him away, but he held on to her tighter.
Davina gave up on the notion. Her brown eyes looked around the deck of the ship. There was Kira lying on the deck. She seemed unconscious as well. The last time she saw Arlo was he was at the captain's wheel. Because of Quinn, she couldn't go see if he was alright. She didn't bother herself about it, believing he's alright and can take care of himself.
Did we make it? She wondered.
There was nothing different to indicate they were in this magical realm. The sky still looks the same. Still the same sun and the same clouds. She had to admit she expected something different, although she wasn't certain what it was.
Quinn started to stir beside her.
Davina let out a sigh of relief when he was starting to let go. She hasn't had this much physical contact in months. It was like they were trying to make up for it, especially Kira.
When Quinn noticed who he was holding on to, he panicked. Their faces were in such a close proximity that Davina had the perfect view to see the fear in his grey eyes. He immediately let go and couldn't look at her face. Even if she was annoyed with it earlier, his bashful reaction to the situation amused her.
"Rise and shine sleepyhead."
"Sorry about that."
He looked behind him and saw Kira unconscious. He moved over to her, trying to forget his embarrassing moment.
"What happened?" He asked Davina.
Quinn went over to the captain's wheel to check on Arlo. He was unconscious as well.
"I don't know."
She stood up and stretched her arms and legs. She saw that they were heading straight towards the shores of unknown land. Davina was overwhelmed with the color of green that hit her when she laid eyes on the place they docked into. The forest was filled with trees that looked as tall as the Royal Palace...maybe even taller.
"Where are we?" She asked Quinn. Her mouth was hanging open from the sight. Even from a distance, the size of the trees were immaculate. "Are we in Farren?"
"I think so," Quinn replied, his expression mirroring hers.
He went back to Davina's side after he dusted off his cloak. She remembered that they were all soaked to the bone while entering that portal. Now, they were completely dry. How long were they out?
"What makes you so sure?"
She wanted to ask even though she was certain she hasn't seen trees that large anywhere else. Only a place with magic can grow those. But she was still in disbelief that they were able to enter a magical world such as Farren.
"Where else can we be?"
Davina crossed her arms at his reply. She went to the side of the ship, trying to get a better look at what she calls the Big Tree Forest. Felix snickered when he heard the name she made up. She rolled her eyes, knowing he could've made up a better one.
However, her eyes landed on something shining underneath the sea. The light blue water was crystal clear. Where she could easily watch the fish swimming along with them. But there was something different swimming with them.
"Is something wrong?" Quinn looked around the sea with her.
"I thought I saw something…" Something shimmered in the corner of her eye. She turned her head to the right, away from the island.
"What did you see?"
"I don't know."
She saw it again. The shining fish was headed straight towards them at full speed. Davina laid her hand on her sword and was ready to swing. The same time it jumped out of the water, she took her sword out of her person.
But it wasn't anything she was expecting.
"Dana wait!"
What jumped out of the water was a girl. She had wavy blue hair and white skin. Her upper part was human and bare, but instead of legs she had a fish tail that was the same color as her hair. She smiled and waved at Davina before she went back in the water. The scales from her tail continued to shine as she swam away.
The shock of seeing the creature made Davina fall on her back. "That was…"
"A mermaid!" Quinn leaned over the side of the ship, almost falling as he tried to watch the mermaid. The excitement on his face was the same as Felix's.
When the mermaid was out of his sight, Quinn went over to her side and offered his gloved hand to help her up. Even after everything, he still had his gloves intact. She accepted it and he pulled her up.
"Calm down," the smile still plastered on his face. "It's just a mermaid. They're harmless."
"Harmless?"
"Not everything is a threat."
"I don't know anything about this world to know, so everything unknown is a threat to me." She didn't mean to snap at him, but he talked to her as if it was supposed to be basic knowledge.
The ship abruptly docked on the shores of the Big Tree Forest. The two of them didn't notice they were that close until they almost fell from when the ship stopped. Because of this, Arlo was next to wake up. Then he was followed by Kira a few minutes later.
"Where are we?" Arlo asked.
"Are we already on the Island of Eryl?" Kira asked.
"No. No, this isn't it," Quinn replied. "From the images and how it's described in the book, it didn't look like this."
"Is it safe? Maybe we can look around?"
Davina couldn't see or hear any animals around. But that was probably because they lied deep within the forest.
"I'll have Rowan look around."
Arlo tapped the silver eagle on his necklace. The eagle transformed into a real and full-sized eagle and perched on the captain's wheel. Arlo said some instructions to the eagle and they watched as it flew and scouted the new land.
"Maybe I could join him," Kira suggested. She was starting to spread her hands away from her cloak until Arlo stopped her.
"No," Arlo said. "Rowan can handle it."
Davina looked over at Kira. Her movements seemed sluggish and clumsy. Perhaps she was still recovering from last night. They all looked drained from last night's event.
She glanced over at Quinn who was looking once again at the book. She remembered him clutching his right arm the other night. But now, it looked fine. So, she thought nothing of it and continued to look at the vast forest in front of them.
She caught sight of Rowan hovering above the forest. She wondered what he could see from over there. How small and insignificant the world looked from that height.
"Did you find anything?" Arlo asked.
"Wait." The salty air blew through his light brown hair as he continued to flip through the pages. She didn't know if it was just the wind or if his hand was slightly shaking. "I think there something h-"
An eagle's cry cut off Quinn. The four of them looked up and saw Rowan falling from the sky. One of his wings flailed while the other couldn't move.
"Rowan!" cried Arlo.
"Arlo wait!" Kira tried to say, but it was too late.
Before a second passed, Arlo bolted from the ship and flew towards the dark forest in hopes of catching Rowan. Knowing they couldn't stop him, Quinn and Kira followed suit. The two jumped off the ship—using their magic to give them a soft landing—and darted after him into the forest, leaving Davina alone on the deck wondering if she should follow them or stay.
She looked down and saw the long jump she had to do if she was going to follow them. The look of the forest and unknown creatures like the mermaid she'll face made her stomach churn and her legs shake. But there was no way she was going to be left behind by Inarians.
"Just because you have magic everything is easy for you," she muttered bitterly as she climbed down the rope going to the shore. "Oh look I'm an Inarian, watch me jump off a ship. Nothing major."
The uneasy feeling inside her intensified when her feet touched the ground. But she only shrugged it off as she ran into the forest.