Warsong | Celeste Academy Series Book #4

Chapter Thirty-Two ⚜ Delaney

Valeriana 'woke' in her wrecked room. Compared to before, it was in a much better state. The effect must've come from her recently receiving the Blessing of the Mountains. The portrait she had hung up before portrayed an image of two overlapping circles that were the sun and the moon nestled in a soft blue background blurred with whites and purples.

She examined it for a second before exiting the room, directly entering her core which was where the gates that little Valeriana had shown her before. Her kid version was sitting on top of a stump, humming the opening theme to Kingdom Knights as she fiddled with a familiar flower.

"Little Val," she greeted.

The kid looked up calmly to see her entering. "You're back," she said before her eyes flickered to the spot near her shoulder. Her attention naturally gravitated to where the kid was looking.

"Boo!"

Valeriana jumped, startled, as her father grabbed her by the head, scaring her out of her wits. She harshly punched his arm, forcing him back groaning as she kicked him once more on the shin. Her heart thumped wildly, but the adrenalin slowly subsided as she coerced herself to calm down.

"Oohoohhh, Valery, how can you?"

"How can you?" she threw back at him. "Don't scare me for the gods' sake!"

Garvyn composed himself as he approached her with a chuckle, embracing her shoulders and pulling her close. She inhaled the scent of him and instantly calmed. The comfort he brought was much welcomed, especially with the onslaught of stress that came at her with no heed. The real world, for now, was blocked. This was her safe place.

"Dad, I missed you. You made me so worried."

"Looks like the demon encounter with the illusion thing was a blessing in the disguise," he told her with a smile. "I'm sorry if I worried you, honey. It's better than letting you be trapped by that demon."

"You can't talk about me like I'm not here," said another voice.

They both turned. Valeriana saw a dark haired lad with a pair of pitch black eyes standing a few feet away from them, looking bored and weary. He had dark skin and a broad nose with thick lips, donned in white overalls accentuated by blue trimmings. Valeriana panicked for a moment when she felt her father's strong hands hold her down, squeezing her shoulder.

"It's alright. He can't make a move against you."

"What are you doing here?" she asked the demon. She turned to Garvyn, her eyes frantic and her face creased with incredulity. "Dad, what is he doing here?"

"You trapped him and subdued his energy with a little bit of my help. He's been here ever since."

Garvyn motioned for the shackles that bound his ankles. The chains ended abruptly which made her panic.

"He—"

"Calm, Valery. It's really like that. You just can't see the rest of the chain, but he's tightly bound. If he dares do anything funny, he'll disintegrate and become purified entirely."

"And I do not appreciate it." His deep voice reverberated as he leaned against a tree.

"Who are you?"

"Delaney." He nodded at her once. "Superior demon of illusion and dreams."

"More like nightmares."

He tilted his head much like a shrug. "That too."

"You fooled me with that thing."

"There will be no one to fool if they don't let themselves be fooled. The fault is entirely yours."