An Airan's Quest

Chapter 16: An Unexpected Visit

Tarah's POV

The late afternoon sunlight filtered through the enormous entrance of the cavern that I'm in but gradually diminished into total darkness into the deeper parts of the cave. I glimpsed at my surroundings taking in the stalactites hanging from the ceiling, constantly dripping water into the ground, bats flying overhead emitting strange, shrieking sounds as they made their way out of the cave, the rough stone walls of the cave illuminated by the wavering azure light of the flare, the mess of dirty bandages and the tonic lying on the floor which Evanity had given me before she and Fallon left.

It has already been hours since both of them had left for Enara and as every moment passed uneventfully in this cold sanctuary of mine, several fleeting emotions seeped through my mind like hopelessness, fear, and despair over Evanity and Fallon's safety in traveling to my kingdom which replaced the positive emotions that I've felt earlier in the morning. Images of fresh blood splattered on a grassy ground and the face of Evanity contorted in agony kept flashing through my mind every now and then and which made me want to weep in misery since I couldn't help them in any way. But then I swallowed back any fear and panic that I had felt at that moment and forced myself to stay strong and hope for the best.

But then I guess that I wasn't able to prepare myself for the worst.

A few more minutes passed in deadly silence when unexpectedly a shadow appeared at the mouth of the cave blocking the path of light that I've been comfortable to have as my company these past few hours. Goosebumps started prickling on my skin making my blood turn cold as my fears and doubts began resurfacing back into my mind once again. I retreated cautiously and pressed my back against the cold stone walls feeling my heart speed up slightly at the sight of the dark silhouette standing at the entrance of the cave.

He advanced slowly and leisurely and when he was within a few feet from me I could make out his tall stature fully clothed in black robes which blended well in the dark environment while his face was still concealed beneath his hood.

Even though I already knew what he was, I couldn't resist but ask hoarsely, "Who are you?"

He lifted his hood to reveal a pale face framed with dark brown hair and with sunken eyes which stared vacantly back at me making me feel as if his gaze was really penetrating right through me. Instead of answering my question, his ruby red eyes began travelling all over the place as though looking for something in particular, his thick eyebrows furrowing slightly a few minutes later when he still didn't find what he was looking for.

At that moment in time, I knew that I should have done something to get rid of him even in my frail condition. But there was something in the aura that he was emanating which overpowered my willpower to defend myself and so instead I just gaped at his every movement while still rooted at the same spot that I had been sitting a few moments earlier. He laid his eyes on me again and all at once, I felt terror and alarm gripping at my heart again but I tried hard to not let it show on my face. "What do you want from me?" I hoped then that my voice didn't betray the fear that I felt at that time.

"It's not you who I want," he answered in a deep baritone voice. "It's your friend."

I felt my stomach dropped at his words as I tried to process this piece of information in my head. I glanced frantically around me then saw the flare and took a deep breath and hurled a flame towards his direction but he extinguished it by making a spark out of nowhere.

"Don't even think about it!" The Cabrian snarled at me. He unsheathed his sword and placed the flat edge of the blade against my neck forcing me to tilt my face towards him. "Your life is on the line here, Tarah. Tell me, where is she heading to?" His other hand began caressing my face lightly and as much as I wanted to push it away I knew that I couldn't since the slightest move that I would make could be the cause of my very own death.

"I will never betray, Vann!" I spat out at him in anguish.

"Well, you better think twice about that." He lifted his sword and was about to slash me with it when suddenly the Cabrian's gaze shifted to the map lying on the ground which Evanity had forgotten to take with her on her journey.

I cussed at myself and reached out my hand to hide it away from his sight but it was already too late. He's already seen it. A flicker of realization dawned on his face and he grinned triumphantly at me, his lips curled up into a leer. "She's heading to the kingdom of Enara, isn't she?"

I forced myself to look at him directly ignoring his bloodshot eyes boring down at me. "No." And I desperately hope with all my might that he couldn't see through my lie.

There was a brief moment of tense silence as the Cabrian's gaze pierced mine and I knew that he was regarding me carefully through his ruby red eyes and I wondered idly whether he has the power to read minds.

"You're such a bad liar, do you know that?" He shouted at me and pressed the blade harder against my neck and I winced in agony and sucked air through my clenched teeth.

Preparing myself for my imminent death, I waited for him to sink it even deeper against my skin but to my utmost surprise and relief, he withdrew it and slid it back to his scabbard. He gave me an evil smirk and as his footsteps receded into the mouth of the cave, I could almost hear him laughing raucously at his wicked tactics to get what he wanted. My head was immediately filled with a lot of questions as to what had just happened but as hard as I tried to find an answer or a solution to one of them, still I could not come up with any. I slumped my shoulders in exhaustion and defeat, certain about only one thing: Evanity and Fallon are in danger and there is nothing that I could do to help them.

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Author's Notes:

Guys, I'm really, really sorry for the late chapter upload. I know that I promised you that I will try to upload it last month but I didn't have the time and liberty to do that. And since this chapter is really short, the next one would be a whole lot longer. XD

So comment all of your thoughts about this chapter and don't forget to vote and follow me too! :D

- Erin