The sword and The crown

Chapter 9

The sounds of crushing leaves echoed around the forest, the occasional bird flying above the two girls. A distressed look crossed Lorelei's face, finally alerting Alexia that something was wrong.

" ok. What's wrong? Ever since this morning you've been acting strange. At Least, stranger than usual that is"
Lorelei ignored Alexia's comment, instead continuing to walk as if she didn't just say something.

The elf huffed, jogging to catch up with the blonde and staying silent.
' something is off with her..... Did something happen last night?'
Alexia thought, looking up at the sky. She didn't really care for the girl, but she always had this motherly instinct to check on everyone. It got annoying sometimes.
¨ don't talk like that knowing I can hear you¨ Lorelei grumbled, crossing her arms.
Alexia stopped in confusion, knowing she didn't talk.
¨ Lorelei, I didn't say anything.¨
¨ of course you did. I just heard you say, and I quote, 'something is off with her..... Did something happen last night?'¨ The blonde stopped walking, facing the surprised girl.
Alexia shook her head, trying to figure out if she really wanted to test this.
¨ Lori, those were my thoughts. I didn't say that.¨
Lorelei stood stunned, looking at the ginger.
¨ you're just messing with me. Stop it, now.¨ Lorelai didn't like the joke, especially because of what she learned last night.
' Can you hear me?'
The blonde stared in shock at Alexia, realizing her mouth didn't move at all.
¨ I will take your shock as a yes.¨ The elf sat down, pulling out her journal and pencil.
¨ What are you doing?¨
''I'm going to figure out what exactly your ¨magic¨ is.' Once again, Alexia didn't truly speak. She focused on the words, sending them to Lorelai so she wouldn't have to talk. She never really enjoyed talking, she much preferred to let others do the talking for her.
¨ just speak. I don't like hearing your words in my head. It makes me feel- off.¨ She shivered, thinking back to the murky feeling she got whenever she heard Alexias thoughts.
¨ fine. I shall stick to talking.¨ Alexias pencil drew quickly, the sounds quickly filling the quiet forest.
Sitting down, Lorelai looked over at the page. A detailed drawing of herself filled a side of the page, the final touches being a few scars she didn't even realize the elf noticed.
¨ how are you drawing that fast?¨
¨ The pencil is enchanted to automatically put whatever I'm thinking of onto paper. Of course, I needed to be good at drawing anyways in order for it to look good. It helps speed up most of my research.¨ Alexia explained, not looking up from the notes she was now putting onto paper.
They sat quietly for a few minutes, just basking in each other's company. Alexia suddenly stopped, looking up at lorelai.
¨Ok, I got the base done. We can keep walking. If you notice anything else different, tell me.¨ Lorelai nodded, sitting up and helping Alexia stand.
They walked in a some-what comfortable silence, letting their swirling thoughts collect themselves before they continued talking.

¨ It really is lovely, huh?¨ The blonde gestured towards the forest that surrounded them in the dark. Night had fallen, glow bugs coming out and the forest now coming to life. Animals would scurry past as they walked, hiding in the darkness or occasionally walking up to the duo before running off.
¨ It is.¨
¨ It must be wonderful, living in a world of magic and scenery like this. If only I had been able to see this under better circumstances.¨ Lorelai's words were laced with sadness, feeling guilty that she got to see this while her sister may be suffering right now. The ginger just nodded, continuing to look around at the sight of the forest. She had no words to say, since Lorelai didn't seem to be one for pity.
¨ Tell me about yourself.¨ Alexia had decided that from anything she could have said, she thought changing the subject would help. Humans liked to talk about themselves, right?
Luckily, Lorelai seemed to be grateful for the distraction.
¨ Well, I was born and raised in the vault. I like to draw, listen to music, swim, and bake. I wasnt the best shot in the vault, but I could shoot a gun pretty well. I used to make my own music until my system fried. I watched a lot of horror movies, since life in the vault was so boring I just wanted something to scare me¨ Loralei chuckled at the end, feeling silly. Now that she knew what true fear was, she felt ridiculous for wanting to feel that adrenaline.
¨ I'm rambling. What about you?¨ Alexia thought for a moment, trying to think back to what she did besides stuff for research and money.

¨ I was raised in a family of noble elves. We were the right hands to Queen Ava, the Queen of Avaians. I was supposed to be in the special guard unit to protect her daughter and wife, but I ran away. I wanted to continue my research of magic. So I pick up a few odd jobs to pay for everything, and that's basically it. I have found that I have a affinity for plants and gardening, but I've never stayed in one place long enough to see what I've grown.¨ She shrugged, not seeming to care that she just practically told a summary of her life to a basic stranger.

There was something about Lorelei that made Alexia want to tell her everything. The elf couldn't tell if it was her aura, or if she just hadn't been able to talk to someone in a long time. Either way, it felt almost... nice.... To tell someone a snippet of her life.
She smiled without realizing it, thinking about the last time she talked to someone for this long.

" that's cool! There used to be a garden in the vault. I would take the little kids into it and we would help grow all the crops." Loralei was happy to talk about her life in the vault. She had many happy memories there, and thinking about them gave her hope to find her sister.

On and on the two talked, not realizing how much Time had passed and how far they had walked. Eventually, Alexia took notice of the fact it was now night once more.
Looking around, she realized she recognized a mark on a rock.
It was her water symbol, something she used to remind herself that she was close to the exit of the forest.

" we are almost to the bazaar!" She exclaimed, ready to rest in a inn.
Lorelai smiled, speeding up in order to reach the end of the forest sooner.
Alexia, having gotten closer to Lorelai from talking, started listing down some things in the bazaar.

Suddenly, though, the happy atmosphere ended as they came to the edge of the forest.
Looking over the cliff, fire raged through the desert. Soldiers ran around, ransacking buildings in the bazaar and setting aflame to everything.
Standing in the middle of all the carnage, a single person.

The only unique thing about them was that they were covered in shadows. The same shadows of the thing that attacked the vault.

( HOLY MOLY IM SO SORRY IVE BEEN GONE THIS LONG!!!
I've lost so much motivation to write, so I jsut kinda forgot about this book!! I know this sucks, but I had to post something!
I hope y'all enjoy this bad chapter- I promise the next one will be better.)