Lauren jerked her head around and came face to face with a young man who was about twenty-five years old. His short brown hair and beard reminded her of Ben, but a lot younger.
"Uh… I… uh…" She stuttered. "My name's Lauren." she finally choked out.
"You're not from here are you?" he asked.
"No, how did you know?" she asked.
The man smirked and pointed at her costume. "Your choice of clothes really gives you away."
Knowing that she was not going to find out anything like this, Lauren changed her attitude. "So, who are you and where am I?" she asked, going into 'interrogation mode'.
He smirked. "So you are not a total stutterer after all. My name is Amias and you are on the island of Alvista in the country of Eddeathra."
Figuring that he might know something about it, she took a risk and pulled out the Starstone from her pocket. It seemed to shimmer and glow brighter here than at home. Amias' face faltered and he grew nervous. "Not here," he whispered. "They might see."
"They? Who's they?" Lauren asked. "Are they those riders that were just passing by?"
Amias nodded. "Put that back in your pocket quickly!" He pulled her arm and dragged her into a cave on the side of the waterfall.
The inside of the cave was dark and damp. The only sound that Lauren could hear was the sloshing of their feet in the puddles of water on the floor. "Where are we going?" she asked, bumping into him, due to the fact that it was almost pitch black and his dark attire didn't help matters.
In a hushed tone, Amias answered her. "I have a small boat hidden in the back of this cave and it's next to a small hole that leads out to the Crystal Sea."
"Where do you live?" she asked, equally as quiet.
"Wakemark."
"Another island?"
Amias nodded. "Here it is." The small cave widened to reveal a few torches lighting a small lake of water. A small boat floated on the edge of the water and Amias pulled it to the rocky ground of the cave.
Amias gestured to the boat, wanting Lauren to get in. She slowly climbed inside, noticing that the boat seemed worn as if it had been used to transport soldiers in a war.
After she was seated on the bench, Amias gave the boat a shove and jumped in. He grabbed the ores that were lying at the bottom and began to row. Lauren could feel the cold water droplets splashing against her face as the faint figure of Amias rowed them seemingly deeper into the cave, where the torch's light could not follow.
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Beams of light slowly began to pierce the darkness. Lauren squinted her eyes to see where it was coming from and she realized that they were reaching the end of the cave.
Amias had been silent the whole time. He's the quiet one she thought.
Vines hung down over the entrance, or rather, the exit of the cave. When they pushed past them, they ended up on a beach, overlooking the Crystal Sea.
As soon as Lauren laid eyes on the sea, she understood why it was called the Crystal sea. The sand at the bottom looked like crystals and the sea reflected and amplified its beauty.
Lauren stepped out of the boat and bent down and ran her fingers through the sand. Amias, who was pulling the boat across the sand to the sea, looked over, watching her. He smiled and dropped the boat and walked over to me. "Beautiful, is it not?" he asked and she nodded, smiling back at him.
Amias bent down and dug his fingers into the sand and formed a small hole. When he brought his hand out, he was holding what looked like shards of stained glass; every piece was a different color. "Prismatic crystals," he said, handing them to her and she took them. "If you dig deep enough, you will find them. This is the only place in the country where you can find them. Keep them in this," he handed her a small, leather drawstring pouch. She dumped the crystals into the pouch and removed the Starstone from her pocket and deposited it in the midst of the crystals, and pulled the strings to close it.
Lauren looked up to see Amias finish dragging the boat into the sea. He looked back to see if she was ready. Lauren put the pouch into her left pocket and ran up to him.
As they rowed across the sea, Lauren decided to find out a little bit more about him. After all, she still was not sure whether he was good or bad. "So mister, uh, Amias, what do you do for a living?"
Amias looked at her and smirked. "I'm a storekeeper and a weaponsmith. I own the shop and I sell different weapons. And if you are wondering about where my allegiances lie, well, I'll explain once we get to my home, but I'm a 'good guy'." Lauren nodded, still not sure whether or not she should tell him about her mission to save Ben.
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Lauren didn't know what to expect when she entered Amias' home, but to her surprise, it seemed pretty natural. The walls were made of spruce wood and he had paintings lined along the wall. Some were of landscapes, some were of animals, but one was of a man who looked a lot like Amias, but about twenty years older.
"Who is this?" she asked, pointing to the painting. Amias' face seemed to fall, but only for a split second before it returned to its usual straight face.
Lauren crossed her arms and Amias walked over and stood next to her and they stood side by side, looking upon the painting. He sucked in a deep breath and sighed. "That is my father," he said and she looked over at him.
"What happened to him?" she asked, sensing the situation.
Amias drew in a shaky breath. "He was murdered," he said quietly.
"By who?"
"Icas Thronton," he said bitterly. "It's probably best if I tell you the whole story."
Amias pulled up two chairs and they each sat down in one. "Eddeathra was a peaceful place. The people loved their king and queen dearly. When I was only ten years old, the Nites came. They killed the king and queen, sent the Knights of Evermore into hiding…"
"Who's that?" Lauren interrupted.
"They protect the king and queen. Anyway, their leader was Icas Thornton. He declared himself King and now resides in Cardell Castle, which is the capital of Eddeathra."
"What does that have to do with your father?"
"My father was the first to resist Icas's reign of terror… and the first to die that day," he added quietly. "Anyone who resisted his authority was to be instantly killed. The people remembered my father and formed secret spy rings and secret meetings but everyone is too scared to do anything outright. But, there is a prophecy that tells of one who can defeat him: the Moonstar.
From the ashes, a fire shall be woken
A light from the shadows shall spring
Renewed shall be the blade that was broken
The crownless shall be king
The other part of the prophecy says that the Moonstar will possess the fabled Starstone: and you have it. That's why I didn't want those riders to see it or you."
"Okay wait a minute, you are saying that those riders were Nites, and you think that I am the so-called Moonstar?"
"Two things are wrong with what you said. One, we think that you are the Moonstar, and two, we know you are the Moonstar." Amias said.
"But someone else could have the Starstone and could claim to be the Moonstar."
Amias shook his head. "No, because it will only glow if it is in your possession. Here watch," Amias pulled the pouch out of her pocket and pulled out the Starstone and it wasn't glowing. "See?" he said and handed it back to Lauren.
She took it and it started to shimmer and glow again. Lauren looked at him. "So what do I have to do?"
Amias smiled. "I knew you'd cave in eventually," he said with a twinkle in his eye. "Now, we go to my store. The map is there."