What Lurks Behind The Trees

Silver-white

"Woah!" Rowan blinked frantically trying to see from his eyes that were drying up because of the wind.

"Don't look down, don't look down, don't look down!" Finn said to himself, as he held onto Felton so tight his fists were turning white.

"This is amazing!" Aden said, his mouth open wide like an amazed child.

Gregor smiled widely as the wind flew between his brown locks, twisting them in all directions. He hadn't felt this alive in so long, he hadn't felt so free, so light in so long. He held on tightly to the feathers on the giant birds, afraid that the wind might knock him off. Two of the birds carried four of them on their backs and the last one carried only three. The large men from Aigronyth rode the birds in the direction of the great white castle. From the height, Gregor could clearly see how big the lake was and how long it would've taken them to reach the castle by foot. He looked behind him and his breath hitched, he could see the Stygian forest, he could see the trees waving back at him, he could see how far it stretched across the land, but he couldn't see the other side, it seemed endless.

Gregor gasped when the bird made a sudden turn, and burst out into a gleeful laugh. He could hear Vince from another bird screaming in excitement and someone else, most likely Gil, screaming in fear.

"Hey, if you fall, please let go of me, I don't want to fall with you," Felton told Finn, but Finn only shrieked back when the bird squawking loudly. "The bird is telling you to be quiet and enjoy the ride!" Felton laughed.

"Is this castle made of ice?" Rowan asked.

"Mostly ice." the guard from Aigronyth replied and Rowan's eyes sparkled comically.

"It's getting very cold, I can't hold on, my fingers are numb!" Alan panicked.

"We're almost there, falling from this height means certain death, possibly before you reach the ground." the guard deadpanned, Alan's face twisted in fear, his fingers curled securely around the bird's white feathers and Gregor chuckled.

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"Sir Dyron, where are we going?" Darren asked, walking along the grassy fields of Osledel.

"We're going to Cruin,"

"Huh? Why? They'll inform the king straight away!"

"Don't worry, Cedric is my old friend, he will help us, besides I can't go back to Wilagorn and I need to find my family. You can go your own way if you want Darren, you've already helped me alot."

"No Sir, I'll stay with you,"

"Tell me Darren, how do you know about the Blackwoods?" Dyron asked as he sat down on a rock.

"My father was one of the guards incharge of the Blackwoods, your sister and the rest,"

Dyron gasped "You mean Edison-"

"-Truman, Edison Truman, yes." Darren finished.

"You're Darren Truman, how did I not ask!" Dyron said.

"My father used to tell me everything about the Blackwoods, how brave and strong you all were, especially your sister. My father told me your family was in danger, at the time I was very young so I didn't really understand what he meant," Darren's eyes shifted to the ground "...but on that day, my father was killed...by the guards for protecting the Blackwoods. As he was dying he told me to run far, to escape and hide, but I promised myself I would avenge his death, I promised that I would follow his steps and help the Blackwoods, so I trained to become a king's guard, and here I am,"

"Darren, I'm sorry, I didn't know that your father was also killed, that's terrible,"

"So Sir Dyron, don't ever tell me to leave, this is all my life is about, this is the reason I'm still alive and didn't give up years ago, I still have to keep the promise and help you. When I found out about you and your son I was relieved that I still had a direction in my life, there are few like me in the castle, the rest who knew of that day are too scared to help you,"

"Thank you... Darren,"

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When they landed outside the castle, their teeth were clattering, and their arms were wrapped shakily around their bodies, trying to fight the cold, but of course it was useless.

Their eyes widened simultaneously when they saw the castle up close, it was truly made from ice, but carved so beautifully you would wonder how it was possible. Two women and two men stood on either side of the large gates, their skin dark and rich, their white eyes focused, their bodies wrapped in white armour and equipped with the sharpest weapons, they too were so tall and towering. Gregor figured it was their race's feature. What were they anyway?

The three guards that bought them to the castle lead the way, and the guards opened the gates and the inside was even nicer. It seemed like this day would be full of surprises. The eight men walked like dwarfs in the halls of the castle, everything and everyone was so big that it was quite embarrassing. Finn clinged awkwardly to Felton's back, until one of the large guards volunteered to carry him.

When they reached the throne room, Gregor adjusted his eye patch, afraid that his eye might cause him so problems, and when he looked up he smiled in astonishment. The hall was so big, the ceilings were so high with chandeliers hanging down beautifully, the floors were like glass, the throne itself was large, a block of ice carved into the most stunning designs. Gregor quickly shut his surprised mouth when his eyes landed on the person sitting on the throne. A woman, a diamond crown sat on her snowy white hair which contrasted against her beautiful brown skin, her pearl embellished gown settled elegantly around her like a waterfall. She was beautiful, breathtaking even, but her eyebrows were furrowed in a frown and her white eyes were glaring. She was angry. Gregor gulped.

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Hey guys, what do you think of the queen of Aigronyth? What do you think of Aigronyth so far? Do you think she'll be nice and let them stay? 

If you enjoyed this chapter, vote and leave as many comments as you like!