Sephira

Elswood

AN - Picture of little Sephira up there!

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10 years later

The morning sun shone brightly over Elswood village, making it a perfect day for the annual trial that would determine people's lives. Every year the village would gather all the sixteen-year-old women to test their abilities in combat and their mentality's strength. If you passed, the whole village would hold a celebration for the victors and honor would be brought to your family, for the child had managed to become a part of the new generation the Klay clan would receive, the most feared and respected siren clan; but were you to fail, not only would you bring shame and dishonor upon your family but you would be stripped of your wings and live as a human for the rest of your life, not having the pleasure of feeling the strong wind against your face while leaving every possible worry behind.

Not even three moons have passed since I turned sixteen. Of course, I had been trained for this day since long ago by my mentor Felicity Lang. She was part of the Klay clan and was considered one of the most skilled fighters, earning her respect from others.

"Sephira, I really hope you're almost ready. You do not want to be late for the opening ceremony. Heavens know that would be fatal," I heard Felicity say from downstairs. She was not only my instructor in battle, I saw Felicity as the sister I could never have and my only family.

"Coming," I screamed back. I grabbed my belt and buckled it before I got to the last step on the stairs. It was insensate, me taking the stairs while I could always fly down, but Felicity would invariably scold me whenever I flew in the house and today I felt so nervous that I couldn't find it in me to anger her. I believe that she would have plenty of time to scream at me after the trial.

"You look beautiful Sephira," she said proudly as she looked at me. 

I was wearing an old armor that had been stored in my mother's closet, though the passing years didn't seem to affect it. The light shade of silver still held the same brilliance it once had and the weight of the armor seemed to be nonexistent, making movement quite easy. The top was a fitting plate that stuck to the body like a second skin, it didn't look strong but I knew that this material would deflect any blows that would hit me. My legs were covered by a white plate skirt that reached my mid-thigh, the rest being covered by the same material as the fitting plate. I wore my hair free and left my face free of any makeup, letting my blue eyes stand out.

"Your mother would have been proud to see you come this far."

Tears of rage threatened to fall but I knew better than to show my weaknesses in front of others, even Felicity. "I truly wish so," I answered, barely above a whisper, before getting out of the house.

My mother? Proud of her daughter? She left me to fend for myself when I was no more than an infant. I was six years old and I could barely sleep without peeing my bed, yet she still expected me to just smile and nod as a good girl all along. Hell no, I knew better than that. I knew better than to believe that my dear mother would someday return and give me the explanation I had always hoped for. Indeed, I knew better than that.

I looked up at the sky and managed to smile lightly. The sight of the village was truly breathtaking and no matter how many times my gaze fell upon it, I could never grow to hate it. Our village was up in the mountains, between a valley where the flora grew abundantly. Grand wooden houses with intricate designs were constructed in this desolate area for the lone reason of hiding our existence from the vicious creatures known as mankind; sirens could fly freely here without fear of ever being discovered. This was my safe haven, my own personal paradise. I had never known anything apart from animals, plants and my kin, my sisters.

"Sephira, do hurry up," Felicity ordered as she closed the door and took flight, me being right behind her. Felicity was a tall, lean woman with a beautiful feminine frame. Her stunning orange eyes had specks of silver in them and they seem to contrast perfectly with her midnight black hair. She was a gorgeous woman among us, even if sirens were known for their beauty and presence.

The wind was hitting my face serenely and suddenly the idea that this could be my last flight passed through my head. I didn't wish to join the Klay clan but I couldn't let anybody know that. I abhorred fighting but among our sisters, it was the only way to prove your worth. The elders, the highest authority in our ranks, had instructed the village that at the young age of ten years we were to start holding our own weapons. Quite a barbaric idea if you ask me. We were, after all, in peaceful times and there were no signs showing that these days were coming to an end. 

"You nervous?" Felicity asked above the sound of her black flapping wings.

"How could I not be?" I questioned back. "Were I to lose, I'd be stripped of my wings, not to mention the only life I have known," I retorted back.

"Don't fret the trial so much, Sephira. Do remember you are the last descendant of the White family. Were the council to strip you from your wings, your lineage would cease to be on the Klay clan," she said confidently.

"Are you trying to say that even if I lose the trial I get to keep my wings?" I asked, hope filling my every word. I was confident in my skills yet if what Felicity implied were to be true, I could stand on the sidelines without harming anybody.

"No, not quite. But I'm sure that they would make use of you. Remember that white sirens are amongst the rarest of out kind, Sephira. Not to mention the strongest and fastest," she said in a serious tone, without a hint of humor with which I had grown used to.

"Well then, I shall be leaving you now." The arena had come in sight, the uproar of spectators causing my nerves to rise up. 

"I must go find my spot as your instructor somewhere in the crowd," she told me with her back to me but didn't leave as she said. Instead, she turned around and looked at me. "Sephira, you mustn't let your guard down in that arena. Everyone is an enemy in there and every slip up you do means an opening for someone, someone who isn't you. You know the rules inside there... Everything goes. If someone goes for the kill, don't hesitate to do so too. No matter what, I want you to go safely home tonight. Preferably with those white wings still there." She gave me a wide grin and left me to fend for myself.

She was right. I knew better than to show any opening to others; I couldn't show my nervousness or any other feeling in front of them, as a matter of fact. I descended to the ground where a big door was situated. A door where all the participants for today's trial should pass.

As I passed through it I came upon groups of young sirens. They had all made groups before my arrival and I could almost hear Felicity's reprimanding voice in my head. She would surely tell me how inconvenient it had been to arrive late for a group would have ensured me the opportunity of lasting longer. Oh well, this trial is meant to be about talent and stamina.

"Would all the contestants please step forward?" a booming voice said from outside over all the cheering. The roaring was deafening. The whole village was situated in those seats, only to see their offsprings fight each other. Nobody knew what this year's trial would consist of, every year they chose a different way to prove us.

"What a group of promising young ladies we have this year," the same voice said from above us. It was Alana Roke, leader of the Klay clan and only other siren with white wings from our village, apart from me. She was standing in front of the five elders, her booming voice resonating above all the others. She was only two years older than me, only eighteen, yet she managed to claim such an important title to herself in such little time. 

"Today we will have these ladies prove to us that they are worthy of the wings they bear. Today we begin with Elswood annual trial for our sixteen-year-old sirens!"

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