The Fall Of Astraea

12. Magos

I was in pain all over, but I understood by this point that whining wouldn't help. Even Malik had started to show signs of fatigue. We barely spoke, trying to conserve our energy. We had been avoiding the towns and cities in Perania and kept in the forest so it could hide us from the sky's view in case Attor was flying around looking for us. Malik had found a corpse flower and we rubbed it all over our clothes in case Lykos used his sense of smell to find us. The pungent smell bothered me for the first two days, but after a week I had grown accustomed to it.

We didn't speak but it didn't stop Malik from cuddling me when we went to sleep, or hugging me when I stopped walking. We had barely eaten and my energy was replenished. I tried to forget Winter's death or the fact that Phillip had abandoned us because I didn't accept his feelings. Even if I didn't, he threw our many years of friendship in the garbage for a girl he had just met. It was after a week of walking that we found an apple tree in bloom. We ran to it and quickly climbed the tree. I grabbed an apple and bit into it. I closed my eyes as I savored the juices. It had been so long since I had even looked at food.

Malik and I ate apples to our fill and when I climbed higher I saw the magical barrier in a distance. No wonder the apple tree was here. "Where are we headed?" I asked him once I came back down to the level he was at.

Malik looked far away from me to where I had seen the barrier. " My home."

I looked at him questionably. I had always assumed his home was in Astraea. He was a stableboy. But after all these months I wasn't that surprised. He knew of magic, the lands, and how to fight. He was clearly taught in a school, a good school. " So it's not Astraea?" I still managed to ask.

"No. People like us have their own place to live in. The city is called Magos and it is hidden behind the barrier. Only the royal family lives in Astraea." He explained as he finally faced me. I gasped. That meant my father had magic too. I shook my head. I shouldn't be surprised. I had been seeing his spirit even though he was dead.

"What magic did my father have?" I asked.

"Fire like you and prophecy which he got older." I frowned. It was clear that Malik knew a side of my father that I didn't. "Magos is a beautiful place where we protect our own and coexist with all the creatures that live in the magical forest as well."

"So does everyone just have fire and water magic?"

"No, we have three types of magic users; shapeshifters, elementals, and psyches. You already know what shapeshifters can do, they can turn into one animal at will and use it to their advantage. There are four types of elementals; water, fire, air, and earth. Fire elementals are very few. Then psyches have vast abilities but the common ones are telekinesis, telepathy, and clairvoyance."

I watched as Malik explained his home with pride. It sounded amazing but I just had one question. "Why did you never take us there? It sounds well hidden and we wouldn't have brought Perania to its knees." I asked. "Laura and her family would still be safe."

"Magos is a guild for magic. Its guild master is strict and does not take rule-breaking lightly as it may harm the guild. If I went in there with you two, you would probably be taken to the prison and I would be severely questioned. The reason why we were walking around the forest before Perania was because I was waiting for permission to bring you in. But we were attacked and I lost sight of my comrades." Malik said as he climbed down with a frown.

"What about now?" I asked.

"We have nowhere to go without getting caught. I am tired of being so cautious without revealing my true intentions to you. You mean a lot to me you know." He said as he helped me down and brought me closer to him. I smiled.