Towards the Light

Chapter 12

  You bounced through the woods with Mako on your shoulder. The griffin stayed with you all the time. You felt full of energy this morning. The sense of accomplishment didn't leave you as you recalled your successful fight with the griffins.

This morning after breakfast you trained with your magic as usual. You got an idea of turning your wind into some shape. You remembered the feeling of wielding Atem's sword. You tried to replicate it with the wind. Usually your blasts were visible. You didn't know how exactly this worked, but you could see the shape of the blast. You didn't know if the others saw it too though. So after lots of failed attempts you finally succeeded. Only for a while, but you created a sword with wind that could cut through the woods.

Today's gotten windy, though you guessed it was more because of the fact you were near a canyon that caused the improvement of weather. Nonetheless, traveling like this was more enjoyable. You wondered what Khaidu Lake looked like. You were excited for fresh water.

At night you dreamed about a man in turban again. This time you stood before the white doors, yet everything around you, ceiling, floors and walls were shrouded in darkness. Only a white, flowery ornamented doors were visible. You saw and felt details when you slid your hand along its structure. The doors opened a little with a loud creak. For a moment the light blinded you. You looked towards the black man. He stood emotionless beside you. You tried to push the doors more, but no matter how hard you tried they didn't budge. As if something from the other side stopped you.

"Watch out!"

"Huh?" you slipped lost in thoughts and would fall into hole in the ground. With a squeak you sunk your nails into Atem's arms and let him maneuver you through the slippery mud. You heard Mako's screech as he flew into the air. Yellow feathers flew around you as you tried to regain balance. You two froze clutching to each other in the mud. You made your way cautiously to dry ground. A sudden thought flashed through your mind. Why was there mud if rain hadn't fallen for a whole month?

"Are you okay?" Atem asked. He kept you in an embrace and held onto Gurram's reins at the same time.

"O-oh! Yes!" realizing you still held onto the half-dragon for your dear life, your heart beat faster. It's not like you weren't this close to him, but today the thought of being so close made you nervous. You let go and took a a few slippy steps back. You massaged your red cheeks and turned away. Gods, what was happening to you? You heard Atem coughing.

"It seems we found the way into Khaidu Lake."

"It's under the ground?" you blinked and pushed hanging green lianas aside. You peeked inside. You felt shiver run down your spine. "Are you sure?"

"Yes," he nodded. "There are three entrances to the Lake. One here, second one on the other side of the canyon. We're going to use the third one that would lead us to the path to Lord Pegasus' mansion at the foot of Mt. Tap Turpu."

"And this is the only way in, right?" you asked. He blinked and focused his gaze on you. You nervously fiddled with your hair and refused to meet his eyes. Now the perspective of going to the Lake wasn't so promising.

"Are you afraid...?" he asked.

"N-no! It's just...," you didn't know what to say. He was right. You didn't want to go back to the dark place that reminds you of the cave. You didn't know why, but a thought of going inside sent chills through your body.