Fate and Destiny (The Fated Series, #2)

Chapter 31 - Lance - The Beginning

"You all know the story of how Dawn came to Fernweh, yes?" Gretel asks. The Bhaltayr nod, but I listen. "Well, after having heard that his wife left him and their kingdom for the prevention of a prophecy, Kerrigan sent the Ginerva and a few handfuls of trusted Thralians in every direction to search for her. He didn't want to find her to bring her back, but so that she'd have some protection. That's what the Ginerva are blood sworn to do. They're an elite group of Thralians who are handpicked from the many highly trained factions of the Thralian army, trained for years in camps to be the best of the best, to defend the lives of the elemental rulers. Once chosen, the elementals then grant the chosen group powers so that they may further be of use in protection.

"You see, every Thralian is born with a seed of magic that never blooms until watered. The only way for it to bloom is for the elementals to awaken it. Every Thralian but that of the Ginerva lives their lives as any other mortal would since their powers are never awoken. The seed of magic will lay dormant throughout their death. Now just like Darius and...Clarice's Awakening, the Ginerva attain many other qualities along with their own power."

"They become immortal so that we're not changing the reign every fifty years or so," Aracely continues. "They gain far better agility, stamina, strength, heightened senses, telepathy...pretty much a Fae without the pointy ears and ability to induce charms. The Ginerva are the current most elite faction in the world, even though many people living in it do not know they exist."

"So how do you two tie into this?" Darius asks. Clearly, he doesn't know as much about his professor as he thought he did.

"It is not yet time for my story to be told," Aracely responds. He glares, but Gretel ignores it.

"I was one of the trusted Thralians tasked with scaling the central continent. I based myself here when the Ginerva found Dawn at an assassin keep. I figured it was better if no one knew that I knew she was here when I had originally found her years before, as we had no clue who to trust at the time. She gave her explanations to them, and before you ask, I know nothing more than all I will say tonight. I couldn't hold any connection to her for both my safety and hers.

"The Ginerva gave us the bare summary of what Dawn told them. The Lady One, the leader of the Ginerva, Rohana, gave me and Aillard specific instructions. I was to continue to make a living in the town, here, where I could keep an eye on Dawn's children. I would in no way reveal myself until the time absolutely called for it, and I would never go in search of them. The less we knew, the better. It's why Aillard never mentioned the Ginerva to any of you. Even if he did, he wouldn't know where to start looking. His instructions were more or less the same, though he was to watch the soon to be born Crown Prince of Vandaria. Now before you go thinking that we knew Darius would become the Pater Princeps, just know that several Thralians were dispatched to each kingdom, so when the day did come, we'd know exactly where the second elemental was, and how to reach him.

"We didn't know they'd be of royal blood either, but the best position to be in to find out was in a place where rumors ran like a rainstorm and we had easy access to anyone and everyone. It wasn't until we received word from Kerrigan that we knew Darius was to be given the necklace. Another detail the Lady One gave us years into our new aliases.

"Due to the prophecy, Dawn and Kerrigan would perform a ritual which would transfer their power into the necklaces. Once the necklaces were united or brought within a certain close distance of one another, the powers would be given to those who were gifted them. After Rohana and the Ginerva gave us their orders, they disappeared. Them and any other Thralian who wasn't placed in a kingdom's court. We know not where, and as told to, we haven't searched."

Thralian has been silent and deemed a lost kingdom for years, yet they've been anything but lost. They snuck into every kingdom in Ker and spied on every court for years, all in search of the one who would become their King. All to protect them and ensure that Xaxias wouldn't find them before then and claim the elements for his own.