RYLIE
Someone was in the room with me, I felt it before I opened my eyes.
And when I did, I realized I was right. It was almost evening, I guessed, and the shades from the trees gave shadows to the room, but I could see a clothed figure seated at the foot of the bed, so close to me. It was hard to get a clear view due to the shadows and its head-to-toe attire. Weird, but I did not feel the first woman's gentleness or the second woman's coldness from this person, they radiated an aura that put me on edge, making me want to fight.
I lunged for it; its back was to me; a sneak attack should be easy. But the figure moved at the last moment, and I crashed face-first to the floor. It wasn't a nice experience.
"You're awake, good." A haughty feminine voice said. "So you're the one everyone has been babbling about."
I scrambled up and lunged at her again, she nimbly sidestepped.
"I expected you to be faster on your feet, but that wouldn't explain how it was easy to capture you." She snickered loudly and it annoyed the hell out of me.
'I would be faster on my feet if there wasn't a huge chain attached to one of my legs' I wanted to scream angrily. I tried to attack her again, but quickly, she danced a strange dance, easily evading me, but still, she grabbed an arm and flung me backward onto the bed. I landed with a crash, the fluffiness of the bed my only savior. Its wooden legs and the chain bound to mine creaked wearily.
At the foot of the bed, she grabbed the chain, dragging me downwards by it, till I came face to face with her; wisps of dark hair surrounded a beautiful oval face underneath her head wrap.
"I'm going to unlock this so behave." Her voice was stern, but her violet eyes swarmed with laughter, and she did exactly that.
The shackle dropped, and my leg was finally free, but there was an angry red circle where it used to be, regardless of the soft padding. But before she could move back, I swung my leg, hoping to catch her across the face but she was unnaturally fast, as fast as those that chased our car through the trees. She did a backflip, escaping my foot and standing meters away.
A black eyebrow cocked in disapproval, "I told you to behave."
I met her look with angry eyes. "Why am I here?" I ground out, rising from the bed but not taking my eyes off her.
She did not exhibit the same caution as me. "Left that way, the food is going to attract pests and it will not be nice." She pointedly looked at the forgotten tray by the door, ignoring me and my question.
"Why am I here and who are you people?" I repeated, rage increasing the volume of my voice.
"You'll find out in time. I am Rayah, come with me and watch your steps." She turned, leaving the room and I had no choice but to follow. She seemed not to care that her back was to me, and I could attack her at any time, though previous encounters proved that would be futile.
I followed her outside, it was evening like I had guessed and the weather was cool, but the whole place still looked unreal to me. She led the way past several little tree houses and bridges until we got to a much bigger building that looked like a hall. It was seated between three large trees, their trunks bent around the building. I wondered who designed the buildings and how they were able to achieve this.
Strangely, we had encountered no one on our way here, the area was utterly empty.
"Our leader and a few select members of the council are prepared to meet you." Her voice was barely audible under the noise of the heavy door as she pushed it open, and then we went in.
The hall was spacious on the inside. There was a long table and though it could seat more, it only seated a group of six people. At their head was a fairly young man, he stood as soon as I reached the table. "Rylie, we're happy to have you here with us." He said with a big smile.
I stared intently at him, my head clouded, he looked no more than 30. He also dressed differently, while the other people were dressed in the green that I'd become accustomed to, he wore a crisp white shirt and black slacks.
"I wish I could say I was happy to be here." I retorted with a smile as well. There was a half smile lifting his lips as we all sat down. The cheeky bastard. The other people were four men and a woman, Rayah moved the side, obviously not a part of whatever was about to take place.
'Why am I here? Why was I abducted and chained down? and where the hell are my sisters." I started immediately we had our seats.
The young man spoke calmly, "I'm sorry about all of this, it was the only way we could think of."
"Well, your way is wrong! This is kidnapping, do you know what you've put my parents through?" I cut in sharply.
"My name is Orion and I'm the leader of this tribe." He continued, unfazed. "We put together this council to oversee the issue, try to listen? Geneva, please go ahead." He nodded to the only woman sitting.
"You are not listening to me! Where are my sisters!!" I had been the only one screaming and they had been nothing but unbothered the whole time. Who were these people?
"Your sisters are not here; they are back home and are both safe and sound."
"They didn't look fine when I last saw them!" I slammed my open palm against the table. I was fuming on the inside.
"They're fine Rylie, this I assure you." He still didn't look fazed by my outburst. "Geneva, do go ahead."
"Rylie is it, child?" The older woman looked at me. She was a slight woman, her beautiful features looking worn out over time, she was a flower that had gotten enough sunlight in her time. The slight tremble in her voice reminded me of Mom and I was obliged to listen.
I nodded and she did too, a wrinkled smile on her face, and continued speaking, resting her right hand on the table. "Stories have been told, and ancient history passed down from generation to generation."
I looked on in confusion, wondering where this was leading, but her voice was comforting, and her face looked animated, so I listened on.
"Tales of the god Aizaleh, detested by many, but feared by all and they feared him for good reason too." She had a melodic voice and it compelled me to listen. "Aizaleh is a powerful god, and he chose to leave the heavenly plane for the love of an earthly woman; he was worshipped by many for he brought the ways of the gods to men. He gave them knowledge and the nations loyal to him were prosperous. He was good to them, it was good times." She smiled fondly like she was a part of those times.
"The years passed and everyone enjoyed peace. Then the curse of his daughters came; Elena and Seraya were slaves to bloodshed and wickedness, they harnessed their powers to cause great destruction. It was perhaps a reminder as to why humans must be humans and gods be gods for such evil would never be presumed to come from such good. Aizaleh was blinded by his love for them, but their mother and his wife knew what it was she had to do."
Geneva's tale was gripping and I found myself at the edge of my seat, hungry to know what would happen next.
"So she plotted with the people and put her daughters to sleep forever." I was enraptured by her tale. "Locked away in a magical limbo with no bodies to return to. They were both stuck reliving the same one moment forever." It sounded sad, but they were evil, so I guess it was fine.
Geneva continued her tale, "Aizaleh was furious, and the people felt his wrath; cities were lost, and tribes were wiped out. Our tribe was one of those loyal to him." Her inhale was sorrowful. "We survived by a stroke of luck. The few of our ancestors that were left fled and took to living in trees; now we have become one with nature, safe and protected from harm." She beamed.
"Aizaleh has gone by many names as time passed." She looked straight at me. "He is 'Marcus Bane' and he's your father, child."
My eyes almost popped out of their sockets.
"Thank you, Geneva," Orion spoke immediately after she finished. "Our seer…"
"My father is a god?" I laughed; that bastard was many things, but I doubted being a god was one. "I'm sorry, y'all are wrong. My father is a cheat, and he has a lot of children, but that's all." I gestured with my hands willing them to understand. "You've got the wrong person and the wrong information."
"The seer has never been wrong before."
"So you're saying I was kidnapped and brought here because an aging old woman told you to?" I scoffed, these people were insane.
"Our seer is actually quite young and healthy. She's younger than you even." This was from Rayah, who had been otherwise quiet.
"What I am saying, Rylie, is that your father is a ten-thousand-year-old bastard, and he's very dangerous." Orion's voice was forceful, switching from the light note very quickly.
How was it even possible? They're wrong, I knew they were. They were just a bunch of people playing dress up and I would leave it at that. "Let's assume that all you said is true, and it happened. That was a long time ago, and he was a father, hurt by the loss of his children. What if he's changed already? And we are still just assuming my father is a very normal human being, not a god."
"You feel it, child, don't you?" I looked at the oldest man at the table. "The evil in him, the certainty that something is very wrong." He said eerily, I looked away.
"According to the prophecy, he will put us all in jeopardy again. He seeks to awaken the curse of his daughters, so we must do what we can to stop him." Another man spoke.
"This is also your fight." A third man spoke.
"I'm sorry but I don't see how it is," I replied. "And if you think you can bait him using me, then you have picked the wrong daughter, he will not batt an eyelash over this one."
"Think of your mother, think of your sisters, think of all the kids he has there, you know that whatever is going on will surely bring them harm." The last man spoke.
They all looked at me. Goosebumps broke out on my skin, I shook my head hard. I would not become infected with whatever the hell this was.
"Aizaleh is plotting something, and you are the key to stopping it. He has made some headway in the plan to get those curses back." Orion pointed to me.
"How do you even know my name? How were you able to bring me here? I know my father and what you did is hard to pull off."
"We had help on the inside," he smiled. "And we're more than just tree people, Rylie. Aizaleh may be a god but he's also been living as a man for a long, long time."
I was so confused, this new information was trying to stick, but I fought it; what would my reality be if I accepted all they had said?
"He has tried over the years, you see, to bring them back and he has sorely failed. But your arrival shows that there is much trouble ahead," Orion added.
"So my father is a god, that means I'm a sort of goddess myself." I laughed and I raised my hand to brush my loose curls behind one ear. "I promise you that I've been living the most ordinary life. I don't feel anything, and I am not 'the one,'" I hand quoted.
"Of course, Aizaleh put measures in place, and your mother is human, but you're far from ordinary Rylie. You will find out." Geneva said. It felt like her eyes saw into me.
Orion stood up. "I'm happy we could have this discussion, Rylie, think about it. We'll all see you in the morning. This meeting can be over now." His voice carried authority.
Everyone stood up, I did too. Rayah bowed her head and turned for the door, while I awkwardly waved and went after her.
I had nothing to think about and I needed to leave before morning.