It was another morning in Aeloria, a lively village with the usual sounds, of hammers striking anvils, merchants arranging goods, children playing while people go about their morning activities. Ellara was restless but alert, she dressed quickly and went outside. She wanted to know the kind of confusion that drew people's attention so much at the village square.
It was a stranger who has attracted the attention of almost the whole village. Kael was wearing travelling clothes that looked worned out because of over usage. He wore a big dark shirt, his statue was that of someone who stands tall and fat. He had blue eyes with which he looked round at the villagers who were gathered. The eyes burned with some heat that made people uncomfortable. When he was asked why he has come to Aeloria, he said he is seeking to know about the Whispering Woods, the answer brought fear at once to everyone and there was silence.
"There is a secret they are holding," Kael said loud for all to hear, his voice unshaking and forceful. "Something that must be discovered before it is too late."
The villagers looked at each other with fear. The issue of the forest is not a matter that sould be taken lightly. No one who goes into that forest ever returned.
Ellara did not understand why she became so closed to the stranger. When she talked about the danger in the forest, Kael seemed to recognize something in her. "You feel their hand pulling you," he said quietly, knowing quickly how she felt.
Before she could respond, a cry of "Fire!" disrupted the gathering. There was smoke rising from the edge of the village, this made everyone to be afraid. At the centre of the crisis, Kael quickly went to Ellara, urging her to meet him at the woods that night.
As the night was falling, Ellara struggled with her decision about what Kael told her. The strange things that has happened during the day; the unknown visitor, the fire that came burning without knowing the cause of it, the continuous sounds from the forest, forced her to take action. She loaded a small hand pack with her most precious items: a map, a compass, a peculiar stone, and the knife her father normally use for self defense.
She was able to meet Kael at the edge of the forest, due to the moonlight. Her anxiety and the sense that cannot be explained of what lies ahead of her, pushed her to go forward.
"I need to know why the forest have been calling on me," she declared.
Kael simply nodded. "Then we will find the answer together."
They started to enter the Talking Forest. The air became cold and heavy. Shadows moved unsteadily among the long aged trees, and the path seemed to be extending with each step. The sounds that were low before, are now all around them like music that is continually being played.
The forest had accepted them for its services.
Scene 1: An Uneasy Alliance
Eve could not stop patrolling her living room. Opposite her, Cassian sat with the calmness of someone who had been through a lot, his piercing green eyes following her every direction she turn. Sarah, sitting without shaking as if hugging herself for protection, crossed her arms tightly on the couch.
"So, let me understand well," Eve said, finally stopping. "Are you not some kind of guardian of this artifact? And you're saying people, or things, are coming after me because I am in custody of it?"
"Yes," Cassian replied, his tone sharp and short. "The artifact is more than a relic. It's a beacon. As long as it is in your possession, you are a target."
Eve closed her eyes lightly. "Why didn't you just take it from me when we were in the woods?"
Cassian hesitated. "It does not work the way you think. The artifact chooses who to keep it. It's tied to you now, and no one else can hold to use its power, or destroy it."
Sarah let out a nervous laugh. "Wield its power? Destroy it? This is madness. We are not in some fantasy novel!"
Eve overlooked her, paying attention on Cassian. "What kind of power are we talking about? And why did my father have it?"
Cassian pressed forward, putting his elbows on his knees. "That is what I am trying to understand why. But one thing is clear: whoever killed your father wanted the artifact, and they're still looking for it."
The effects of his words settled over the room like a heavy cloud that makes it impossible to view . Eve looked at the artifact on the table, its low brightness pulsing rhythmically, as if it were alive.
Scene 2: Shadows on the Move
Later that evening, Cassian pressed on staying with Eve, much that Sarah was not happy.
"I don't trust him," Sarah muttered as she helped Eve clean up dinner.
"You think I do?" Eve replied in a low voice. "But he knows more about the artifact than I do, and if he's telling the truth, I need his help."
Before Sarah could respond, the lights blinked, and the cold set in.
"Cassian!" Eve called out, with fear covering her voice.
Cassian appeared instantly, his hand on the hilt of a knife blade tied to his side. "They are here," he said sternly.
"Who's here?" Sarah asked, backing into the kitchen counter.
As if in answer, the shadows in the room started to shift and show some unpleasant feelings, forming human- like shapes with lightening red eyes.
"Stay behind me," Cassian gave an order, bringing out his blade.
Eve took hold of Sarah's hand, pulling her back as Cassian charged at the nearest shadow. His blade shoned with an unnatural light, slicing through the creatures as they made some sound and melted into black mist.
One of the shadows moved to attack Eve, its claws scratch her arm before Cassian ran his blade through it.
"We need to get out of here," he said, with an urgent voice .
Scene 3: A Hidden Sanctuary
Cassian led them to an abandoned church on the outskirts of town, its glass windows were cracked and stained but still intact. The air inside, was damp with the odour of dust and old wood.
"This place is secured," Cassian told them as he lit many candles. "They can't reach us here."
Eve sat on one of the benches, holding gently her injured arm. "What were those things?"
"Shades," Cassian said. "Pieces of dark Forces. They are attracted to the artifact's power, and to you."
Sarah walked from one end of the church to the other, with her face pale. "So what is the plan, or are we just going to stay here forever?"
"The plan," Cassian said, "is to find out why the artifact chose you and how to sever its link before something worse locates you."
Eve looked at him sharply. "Something worse?"
Cassian didn't answer, but the sterned look in his eyes said enough.
Scene 4: The Keeper's Memory
Eve walked all around the church, as she was unable to sleep while her thoughts rotated in her brain. She found Cassian sitting near the altar, with his blade resting across his lap.
"Do you ever sleep?" she asked, sitting beside him.
"I do sleep but not when I'm on a mission," he replied.
Eve hesitated, then asked, "Have you done this before? Protect someone with the artifact?"
Cassian tightened his jaw. "Yes once, a long time ago."
"What happened to them?"
"They did not make it."
The effects of his words hit Eve like a blow. She studied his face, looking for some hint of the possibility of surviving the mission beneath his hardened facial look. "Why do you do this? Protect the artifact, I mean."
He didn't answer directly. When he finally spoke, his voice was low. "He said, because I had failed once. And I can not fail again."
Eve did not argue further, but something in his speech made her realize that Cassian's connection to the artifact was more personal than he had spoken out.
Scene 5: The Mark's Revelation
The next morning, Eve woke up to notice that Cassian was examining her arm where the shade had scratched her.
"What do you think you are doing?" she asked, pulling her arm away.
"Look," he said, pointing to the faint, shining mark left behind on the arm.
Eve's breath seized. The mark looks like the symbols on the artifact, and it pulsed faintly in harmony with its brightness.
"What does it mean?" she asked.
"It means the artifact has chosen you completely," Cassian said grimly. "You are not just its keeper now, you are connected to it. Its power is part of you."
Sarah, who had just entered the room, caught cold. "Part of her? What does that even mean?"
"Cassian said, It means,""that if we do not find out how to control it, the artifact's enemies won't just stop at getting Eve, they'll use her to access its power."
Eve looked carefully at the mark, her mind racing. She had wanted explanation, but now she was more terrified than ever.
"Then we had better work it out," she said, her voice was steady despite the fear gripping her chest. "Because I'm not allowing this thing destroy my life, or anyone else's life."