Staring at the ocean with an unfathomable look, Zyda heard a strange buzzing sound nearby the forest situated opposite the Sagani Ocean. Curiosity spread through Zyda, and she found herself following the sound. Upon reaching the spot, strange chanting voices in unknown languages together with a flexing light brought Zyda to a halt.
"Zyda! Zyda! welcome," whispered the sharp voices, making her shudder with fear.
An enchanting opening stood before her. Her comically widened from shock at the moment because never had she believed in magic. This time with a spirit of adventure, she entered through the open portal. Once in, the portal closed the entrance behind her quietly. It looked as though the portal had been waiting for her all along.
The portal led Zyda to the red-painted manor with many large paintings of strange things that were perfectly carved on the walls in wooden materials. Surprisingly the villa was tidy instead of dusty. Zyda ventured quietly, and she could hear the echo of her clopping boots on the linoleum floor. Reaching a random corridor, the sound of her boots was hushed by a red Persian carpet that covered one of the entry hallways. A closed heavy metallic red double door was at the end of the hallway.
The door hauled itself open like it expected her arrival. Zyda stopped in front of the entryway and stared at the endless rows of tall shelves filled with books arranged in haphazard rows. It was... a library. Her first step into the room brightened the dimly lit room. The bright light emanated from old-fashioned green sparkly chandeliers that hung at the ceiling.
The tall shelves arranged themselves in an apple pie order forming a perfect straight aisle. She felt like a queen advancing towards her throne when she moved down the broad hall. Shock rather than fear painted her face.
The atmosphere in the room was warm and quiet, for a fireplace with a brick hearth lay along one wall. She automatically removed her cloak. The scent of books wafted into her flaring nostril, soothing her haywire mind. The cozy and silent atmosphere provided a sense of sanctuary to her.
She had just cleared the main study area and passed through the tall, elegant book stacks when something dark and macabre passed over her head. It produced a flapping sound of a bird's wing that seemed to be huge. The threatening shadow subsided in a blink. Zyda's body shuddered in fear; she rubbed her palms with despair crawling into her.
"Hello! " she loudly called out with a shaky voice. She immediately halted and warily scanned the room.
"Is anybody there!"
The room remained quiet. A flapping sound of a wing answered her. A bird the shape of an eagle, with a small horn on its forehead and an enormous baby elephant size, slowly landed in front of her. The colossal bird had large, round golden eyes that were sharp and clear. Fortunately, the room was too vast to accommodate the creature's size.
Zyda was so astonished by the bird's largeness that she couldn't help but be drawn to its magnificently glowing golden eyes. She froze as she could not break her gaze away from the bird. Images of different people she had never seen flashed into the bird's eyes and chanted in strange languages.
"Welcome to Elementalist manor! " spoke the eagle in a heavy robotic voice.
"Hope on, master! " the eagle said, lowering itself for Zyda to climb its back.
At first, Zyda was speechless, but she climbed on silently. Unbeknownst to her, a dangerous adventure to the magical dimension had just begun.
The eagle flew past the library ceiling and through the open window to the open, clear sky. They soared higher across the sky, almost closer to the full moon that Zyda felt she could touch by stretching her arm. Like she had escaped hell, she felt relief as fresh air gushed into her nose. Once again, she felt alive and reborn.
Zyda got a chance to see how large the Elementalist manor was from the sky. It was a larger cinder block that was beautifully built. It was the only building with a large golden gate as a shield. Besides, it was stark that had nothing but black sand; it looked lonely and dark. Strangely enough, the land had a large black cloud hovering above.
The bird finally flapped its wings and jerked forward, causing Zyda to tighten her hands around its long feathers at the back. They were landing; below Zyda was another stark, but strangely enough, the land appeared to open up, revealing a humongous underground chamber. Panning more energy, the bird entered the opening with its might at a supersonic speed. Zyda felt wind gushing into her ears with only a buzzing sound to hear.
"More portals?" she loudly thought, trying to ignore the dizziness in her head.
Beneath the earth chambers stood a large Grey castle with big black metallic gates fencing it. The dull color showed loneliness from the outside. Beyond its gates was a thick and scary forest that seemed to conceal a lot. The clanging of swords and swooshing sounds triggered her spirit of curiosity. She jumped off the creature which had patiently waited for her to finish scanning the vicinities. Zyda had not encountered any human apart from the mysterious creature but hearing the clanging sounds, she was sure of the existence of humans in the area.
"Voy is my name. If you need me, just telepath," the bird said in its monotonous heavy voice, and it flew with an energetic speed that swirled the air around Zyda. She was not spared a chance to ask anything.
Zyda had no idea about what to do with the telepath stuff. So she started towards the castle. As usual, the door was hauled open without being touched. Zyda was still not used to this, but she could not control the situation. The interior was grey, and she wondered why someone would choose such a dull color on earth. Her thoughts roamed back and forth in an unknown world with strange buildings, portals, and underground chambers.
Zyda suddenly heard a name called, which caught her attention.
"Rayene over here!" yelled a boy with short black hair and attractive features.
"Come on! more energy," said the boy called Rayene in a dissatisfied tone. They were in the middle of training using their magic skills.
Zyda's wild premonition was interrupted by a familiar voice. The first thing that came into her mind was her brother.
"Rolam," she loudly mumbled.
Hearing the unfamiliar voice, Zyda advanced toward a room with a wood-grained door where the voice came from. Zyda slowly tried to push it, but she was stopped by an old man with white hair and a walking stick before she could enter.
"What do you think you're doing little missy!" asked the old man blocking her with his walking stick.