The Hunt for Aquatenite

Chapter - 26 Lucy

Zeth stepped forward to acknowledge us. "I didn't-" Geth appeared beside him as he jumped back.

"Jumpy, huh? Father has a surprise for you." Geth whispered something in his ear that I couldn't make out. Zeth's eyes shimmered as they disintegrated into pieces and flew away into thin air.

"Was that supposed to happen?" Tyrek asked, sounding way more pleasant than he should've considered Zeth threw his chain at him.

"Don't worry," Betwin told him. "The three of them have different ways to teleport. Geth uses the air to carry him but he's too heavy so to weigh lighter, he mixes himself with the dust particles. Zeth hasn't discovered his way till now."

"You mean the traitor Zeth?" Liza asked.

I didn't want to admit it, but it seemed like he didn't do it accidentally. The way he smirked when he captured Tyrek...

"Zeth is not a traitor," Tyrek explained. "He was helping us."

"To get you captured?" Olivia said.

"No, Albesterin. This was our plan. I came here to get you back when you left Aresten. Two havens, who had helped Rislerk escape when he was captured, helped me reach you. The two of them made a protective shield so that only Zeth's chain could pass through. We knew the King would reward him if he caught me. Zeth must be letting in on a secret right now. A secret that might help us."

Wow, that was a lot. I was processing all that when the door of the hall swung open. Two figures stepped into the room. They were in all black- a long-sleeved black shirt under a long cloak and wrinkled pants underneath. Some chains rested on the sides of their boots. The cloak's hood and a half-mask covered most of their face. One was a woman with long strawberry blonde hair tugged out of her hood and glinting grey eyes. The other was a man with jet black hair that swept over his forehead and emerald green eyes.

Many maces turned to them but Tyrek raised his hand to stop them. They lowered their weapons slowly. No one took their eyes off them. There was a long round of silence. After a while, I couldn't take the quietness so I asked what anyone would have in this situation.

"Who are you?"

The man started to step toward me but stopped when the woman placed her hand on his shoulder. He glanced at Tyrek, who was shaking his head slightly.

"Are you going to finish your emotional drama and answer her question or not?" Liza shouted.

It was difficult to tell through the mask, but I was pretty sure the woman smiled. Suddenly, an unbelievable thought made its way into my mind. The more I thought of it, the more real it seemed.

"Mom?...Dad?" I asked between gulps, hopefully, but doubtful. I could feel myself shaking, and waited for them to say yes. But they did something I wasn't expecting.

They glanced at each other. For a moment, I thought it was true until they chuckled slightly.

"They can't be your parents." Rislerk/Linent smiled at them. Did he know them? "They are from the air and earth groups. Your genetic parents were in fire and water groups."

"Lirila and Lesin." The woman said. "We knew them. We're sorry for acting strange. That's Bren." She pointed to the man while he waved his hand. "You can call me Ophelien." She held out her hand to me.

I waited for her to understand that my hands were tied. When she didn't, I raised an eyebrow. That made her realize what she was doing. As if on cue, Zeth entered, dangling his hands up in the air, and yelled, "Dad told me how to untie you!"

When he stopped in the middle of the hall, I saw how bright his face was. If a giant's cheeks could tint red, his would have. He looked like a child rewarded with a new toy.

I smiled the biggest grin ever. Finally, my hands would be free of the torture. Zeth returned one too, showing his yellow, gooey teeth. He moved to his father's throne and inspected it from every angle. Finally, he settled for its back and touched its corner. A scythe shot out of the armrest with such force that it flew across the room, cutting each rope with one slice. But when it came to me, not only did it cut the chain but tear part of my leg's skin. I fell to the ground, scraping the wound on the ground.

Everyone scrambled around me. I couldn't move. My vision turned hazy. I could hear sounds nearby but couldn't figure out anyone's voice. I tried to focus on my surroundings but the pain was intense. Another voice joined. One that was very familiar. An argument broke out. I started to zone out but a pair of arms wrapped around me and shook me.

Something touched my lips. Reluctantly, I started to feel better. My sight came into focus. I found myself drinking some kind of elixir. I started to sit up but a voice ordered me not to.

I leaned back. I could still feel the pain in my leg but it had softened to the maximum. I had a feeling it was going to leave a permanent scar.

"You alright?" Someone whispered in my ear. I turned around to find I was leaning on Oliver. I was so startled, that I did my best to make a fool of myself. Let's just say I was blushing hard.

"Yeah, fine," I mumbled. I scrambled forward to come face to face with Nexiana.

"Y-you're here?" I asked.

"I am so sorry. I didn't know what I was doing. I did all that without knowing. I didn't have control over myself. Sorrysorrysorrysorry..." She rambled on and on about things I didn't understand. I looked around to see the others confused too. Except for Bren and Ophelien. They were waiting for her to shut up.

"She was being controlled by the King," Bren cut her off. "She was the spy in the message. We broke the connection by making her drink a liquid."

Everyone in the hall had their gaze on Nexiana while her head was down in shame. Okay, she was the spy. That wasn't very hard to accept. Suddenly, a memory flashed before my eyes. Liza, Nexiana, and I were on the ship. She swished her hand in a swish and flick motion and we fell to the ground. I remembered how we had found Nexiana doing her spy job. Rislerk/Linent wasn't the spy.

"Hey, it's not your fault," I said, comforting her. "You were being controlled. Right, guys?"

Nexiana looked up to see us all nodding and smiling. She grinned gratefully at us.

"We should get moving before the other giants find out," Bren told us.

He was right. We didn't have much tim- nope, we had no time.

"Oh, no need. We already have found out." The King was on his throne with all the giants filing in.