Destiny Island

Chapter 40

"Why isn't it working?!
It has worked for me, why can't Royce save her?
It's all my fault!
If I hadn't gotten myself stabbed they would have taken care of her wounds much quicker, and she would be the one healed, not me.

She seemed to be so happy to see me up and about, I wish I get the same chance with her.
It's amazing how strong and kind she is, so much so that she was more focused on helping me, then she was on her own well-being.

Why is Jade telling me all this now?
I can catch up on what happened later, I need to know that Amber is okay.
A person as amazing as Amber should never suffer any pain.
Doesn't Jade even care?
She keeps babbling as if she wasn't worried at all about her best friend.

What's that shift in the air?
It feels like the weather might change soon but that's not it, it's more magical than that.
Oh, where did they come from?
That's good news, isn't it?
One of them has to know how we can heal Amber.

Avo Jana says she'll help, that's good.
I am sure that any of those magical beings can help out, but she seems to be the kindest one of them all.
Amber will be okay.
Amber will be just fine!
Why was I even worried?

Of course, she will be fine. She is a fighter.
For crying out loud, she has fire coursing through her veins.
What more proof do I need that there is strength in her? Strength of not only body but spirit as well.
I wish I could have that kind of mental strength, it sure would come in handy.

Watching Avo Jana's healing process underway is agonizing.
What if she can't help her?
What if I lose her?
I mean humans aren't made in the same way magical beings are, we break so easily." Ignacio thought.

Suddenly, he could see a bright blue light coming from Avo Jana's hands, and he couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief at finally seeing that it was working.
He knew something similar happened when Royce was healing him because Jade told him about that as well.

Although he thought Jade was nice enough, at that moment, while Amber was fighting for her life, he though her callous.
How could she chat away so much when they weren't even sure if everything would be okay?

Slowly, Amber started stirring clearly feeling much better and some magical beings cleared out from the mountain top, so he could clearly see Amber, he could notice the spark going back into her eyes.
Before he could admire her for much longer, she spoke up with agitation and Ignacio could barely hide an affectionate smile that threatened to escape him.

Even though both Amber and Royce were speaking, Ignacio couldn't tear his gaze away from Amber as if his eyes were drawn to her of their own accord.
A rainbow of emotions was engaged in a raging battle in his mind and in his heart.
He couldn't decide if the predominant one was relief that she was safe, or admiration that she was already back to her old self although just moments before she was wounded and weak.
It was, however, a part of her strength, charm, to be able to adapt fairly quickly and say what needed to be said.

During the whole healing process Ignacio looked calm and stoic, but all the while he was devoured by the pain and worry gnawing at him. Now that everything was okay he needed time to process that, to shift his emotions.

Slowly, like a sunflower opening up to the sun, Ignacio started opening up to Amber and suddenly he was like a blind man seeing the light for the first time, happy and astonished.
The realization hit him so hard that it took his breath away, the realization that Amber was not just a friend to him, she was so much more than that.
She was someone he needed by his side, someone he needed to protect at any cost no matter how cliche or unnecessary it all was.

Although he could see that Lejanida and later on Telet were talking, he didn't hear any of the explanations.
He was in his own bubble, in a happy blur that Amber was okay and that he could actually feel all those emotions that he thought were forever lost to him.
It was overwhelming to realize that he was just another human being, and not the raging monster as he often saw himself to be.

The whole time they were talking, Ignacio was focused on Amber and the fire once again burning in her eyes instead of the revelations.
He could guess from the slight shift in her eyes what was being said, and he admired the minute changes that occurred in her facial expressions every time her mood shifted.
Never in his whole life had he paid such close attention to anyone, but he couldn't stop, he was mesmerized by all that was Amber.
From the slight frown on her face when she didn't understand something to the dawn of realization that would feed the fire in her eyes, he loved all of those small parts of who she was.

It was fascinating for him to follow all of her reactions and emotions as they quickly followed each other, he was entranced by her, something he hadn't thought would ever be possible for him.
However, he did manage to snap himself back to reality just in time to hear Amber ask more practical questions, something they all needed to know.

Having in mind their current situation, he wasn't sure how he managed to lose himself so completely in the puzzle that was Amber when their lives were one huge uncertainty, a mess.
It would have been wiser for him to follow the discussion closely because it was, after all, their future that was being discussed, it wasn't the time to go off daydreaming like a teenage girl in love.

"What now?" Amber asked with the same haughtiness that she sometimes displayed.
It was as if she wasn't talking with magical being from their fairy tales, the most admirable beings to everyone back home, but annoying humans.
Ignacio thought she was talking as if they were irritating clerks at the post office or some other similar institution, who told her that she needed one more document after having come there two or three times in a row without successfully finishing what she had to do.

Although he could understand her frustration at having none of the answers, he still thought she should try to calm herself down because offending the beings that were more powerful than they were, didn't seem like a good idea to him.
That was when it dawned on him that their roles had reversed.
He remembered her telling him the same thing when they were dealing with Ci Nada, but now she seemed to have forgotten her own advice.

Ignacio thought that the reason for that was her being wounded, but he was wrong.
The reason Amber felt that way was actually because she was terrified of how close she was to losing Ignacio.

Often times fear made people furious and Amber was no exception.
However, Telet and the others weren't offended, they understood human nature much better than the humans knew.
They themselves were sometimes irritated by the vagueness of the prophecies or the cryptic premonitions of the island's seers.
Unlike the humans, they had learned to turn that into something positive, into a driving force that fueled the power of their magic.

"Now we sharpen your powers. We impart our knowledge to you so that you are better equipped to face the future." Telet said.
"To prepare us for what exactly?" Amber asked once again.
"For everything and anything you might encounter on your journey," Telet answered.

Ignacio approached Amber and put a soothing hand on her shoulder as if pulling her back.
It had an immediate effect on her.
His closeness seemed to calm her down.
Her shoulders relaxed and the look of irritation was substituted by the one of relief.
She seemed to have been in a very dark place and his guiding hand pulled her out so now she was back to her old self, a bit confused by her outbursts.

"So how does that work?" Jade asked.
"We will all help you out, depending on your skills. Every one of us is here to help." Telet said.
"Well, that's okay then," Jade said.

It was obvious that she was uncertain about the whole thing, but rationally thinking, they didn't have a lot of options.
They knew they couldn't go back to who they were and if they wanted to become more than they ever thought they could be, they would have to train.
So they all accepted the idea of training with some dose of caution but also fully aware of its necessity.