the books of hidden worlds

chapter nineteen: Rowan

   "Mom!" I shouted, but a woman appeared before me, her face obscured. Her hands wrapped around my neck, squeezing the air from my lungs. She shoved me off a cliff, and then everything went black.

When I awoke, it was already morning. I stood up, opened the door, and saw Elias eating breakfast with Salem, Lucan, Alden, and the others.

"Where’s Evander?" I asked.

"Evander? He’s escorting the prince to the palace," Salem replied.

"Just the two of them?" I asked, my voice uneasy.

"Yes, just the two," Salem confirmed. "But they should be on their way back by now."

At the palace, Kaelion turned to Evander and said, "So, I guess this is goodbye, Aeli. My prince."

Evander smiled. "Thank you for the escort." And before he could respond, Kaelion pulled him into a tight embrace.

“That’s the third time now,” Evander chuckled.

Kaelion laughed softly. "Sorry, I’ll miss you."

Evander mounted his horse and gave a final wave. "I’ll miss you too... until we meet again."

Kaelion smiled warmly as Evander rode off into the distance.

"Aeli," a voice called. It was his sister, Seraphina.

"I'm coming, Hina." The prince turned and walked back into the palace.
                        ~~~~~~~~~~~~
Deep in the forest, the Green Witch walked, her hands brushing the plants, causing them to wither beneath her touch. She wasn’t always this way. Once upon a time, before she became the feared Green Witch, she was known simply as Ursula.

Ursula lived with her mother and her younger sister, Esmeralda. Ursula was only fifteen years old at the time, and Esmeralda was thirteen. They were happy, just the three of them, until the day that smoke filled the air and stones rained down upon their home.

"Mother!" Ursula cried, shaking her mother, who lay motionless on the ground. "You need to wake up! We have to go!"

"Leave me," her mother whispered, opening a portal with her last breath. "Go... now."

"Ursula, we have to go!" Esmeralda tugged at her arm, tears streaming down her face.

With no other choice, the two sisters ran through the portal and found themselves in a place they’d never seen before: Elyndor.

"Where are we?" Esmeralda asked, her voice trembling.

"I don’t know... but we need to keep moving before it gets dark," Ursula replied, glancing around warily.

As they walked, they heard voices in the distance. "Excuse me, ma'am, where are we?" Ursula asked an old woman.

"You’re strangers here, aren’t you? This is Elyndor," the woman replied kindly.

"Thank you," Ursula said hastily, turning to her sister. "Come on, Ursula, we need to leave."

But just as they were about to walk away, a strange green light caught their attention. They followed it, only to find themselves standing before a large academy.

The doors opened as they approached, and a man greeted them with a warm smile. "Welcome to Elyndor. I’m Professor Alaric Veldor, though you can just call me Professor Alaric. It’s quite a mouthful otherwise, isn’t it?"

"Have you eaten?" Alaric asked, his eyes soft with concern. "And what are your names?"

"I’m Ursula, and this is my sister, Esmeralda," Ursula answered.

"So, how did you find this place?"

Esmeralda answered, "We followed a strange green light."

"Ah, the light chose you," Alaric said thoughtfully. "It’s a sign that you are meant to study here."

"Study?" Esmeralda asked, puzzled.

"Yes, this academy will teach you the ways of magic and combat. But first, let's get you both something to eat. You must be tired from your journey."

After they had eaten, Professor Alaric escorted the sisters to their room. "Think of this place as your home now," he said warmly.

"Thank you, Professor Alaric," Ursula said with a grateful smile.

The next morning, the sisters began their lessons in magic, combat, and other studies. As time passed, they grew stronger and more skilled.

By the time Ursula turned eighteen and Esmeralda sixteen, they had mastered much of what they had been taught. "I think you’re ready," Alaric said one day, pride in his voice.

"Thank you for everything you’ve done for us," Ursula said earnestly.

"It was my pleasure," Alaric replied, smiling fondly as Esmeralda hugged him tightly.

The sisters left Elyndor and traveled back to the place where the portal had first taken them. "Do you remember this place, Esme?" Ursula asked.

"Of course I do. This is where everything changed for us... where we met Professor Alaric," Esmeralda said, her voice full of nostalgia.

Ursula spoke a few words in Italian, and with a flick of her hand, a house materialized before them.

"Is that... our house?" Esmeralda asked, her eyes wide with wonder.

"Yes, our home," Ursula confirmed, smiling as they both walked inside.

Back to the present.

"We’re not going home yet," I said firmly to Elias. We were in our room with Rowan and Kian.

"I know you all want to go back, but…" Elias stood up, walking over to the old book that had transported us here.

"I last saw this book glowing, its pages turning as if beckoning us. But I think it’s telling us it’s not time to go home yet," Elias said, his voice heavy with disappointment as he closed the book and set it aside.

"Let’s get some rest," I suggested, and Alden and Kian nodded in agreement. Soon, the Harrison siblings settled down for the night, the question of when they would return home still hanging in the air.