The Oracle of Avalbane

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Kate

 

     As soon as we landed, I knew we were in trouble. Immediately Elys pushed us behind her and started speaking the enchanted language. I couldn’t understand it, but I hoped it was working because the place was beyond weird. The most awful feeling was coming over me, a cold sickening numbness. I tried to concentrate like I had when I felt Elys’ sadness before, but it was impossible to ignore the tendrils of thorny vines that were creeping closer to our feet

          “Le suilon, Aiya Eytherisar. Mellon en Mellonamin, Edro.” Elys was saying these words over and over; her eyes focused intently, her short sword drawn, as she turned in a circle keeping us behind her. I could feel Zach pushing against me, and I knew he was getting ready to interfere.

          “Shhh,” I hissed. “She knows the right words to use to save us; just focus all your energy on supporting her.”

I’m not sure how I knew to do that, but it seemed to help, especially once Zach joined me. The darkness seemed to be thinning and it was getting warmer. Elys closed her hand closed around the amulet and we clung to her and jumped. This time we fell hard when we landed. I guess the adrenaline made us all push off together.

No matter, the relief was intense as we opened our eyes to bright sunlight. Laughing, we lay back on the soft grass. We were in a meadow and when I sat up and looked around, I was delighted by the scene. “What a difference a jump makes,” I said, knowing I sounded idiotic, but so relieved, I didn’t care.

“What were you saying back there anyway?” Zach asked.

“The words mean, ‘I greet you. Hail Eytherisar, Friend of my Friends; open to us.’ It made the forest pause just long enough to let us get away.” She sounded relieved at our quick escape, and I decided maybe she wasn’t so confident after all. It made me feel worse and better at the same time.

“What would have happened?” Zach just had to know. I didn’t particularly want to hear the hairy details.

“The trees would have engulfed us.”

“As in eaten?”

“More or less; we would have become part of them.”

There was silence for a moment as we both imagined becoming a bulge in one of those huge trunks, a human protuberance. Yuck.

“Where are we now?” I asked quickly, ready to change the subject.

“We’re close to Silma Taurea, the castle of Faelnir and Elanor, the King and Queen of the Elves. The name means ‘Never Winter Woods’. It’s beautiful, one of the most beautiful places in all of Avalbane.” There was longing in her voice.

“Can we go see it?” Zach asked.

“Not now, maybe later,” Elys said shortly and I wondered at her hurry. Why was it so important to rush? I mean I could see not wanting to hang around the forest of doom, but now that we were out of there… Still, to keep the peace I didn’t say anything.

             Sighing, Elys got to her feet and we formed our human circle. Not a bad term. We jumped again, three times. Each time, we had the presence of mind to just focus our thoughts on Elys rather than our feet. The third time we landed easily in another forest; this one, though, was filled with light. The trees were huge and the canopy was like a thick green lacy umbrella. Sunlight still filtered through and the beams of light felt friendly and warm.

          “This is more like it,” Zach commented. “Hey, how come we never bump into anything? Like, even at home, you just floated through the wall.”