17-year-old Avera Ibori is a girl who has always longed for a life of adventure, but when her father mysteriously vanishes, she gets more of it than she can stand. Thrown into a hidden world of magic, intrigue, corruption, and kings, Avera must choo...
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The sky had calmed, the warriors collapsed, and the guardsman that remained had ceased to fight after the sudden silence which had crossed their transmitters. Justice and Kypher had made their way up to the top of the tower where Zahaynei stood giving orders, and they threw him down. So, now there were no orders to be had and there was no more reason for them to fight.
Kelvin could see on the faces of the remaining guardsmen that their will to fight had ended. The battle was lost and they knew that it was. Even so, she wondered how things had gone for the others on the inside of those castle walls. Still, as she looked, even the air had seemed to become brighter as the sunlight had begun to break through the city's eternal haze of darkness.
He was walking with Blackridge when Avera spotted them and came running over.
'Avera...'
"Kelvin!" she called out, her heart filled with excitement as she wrapped her arms around the young man's neck.
"Avera," Kelvin laughed with a smile, not totally sure of what to do with her.
"I knew you would come around," she told him, pressing her face into the side of his neck.
He wrapped his arms around her with a thoughtful sigh. "Ah... yes. Well, it took me long enough, but I understand now why you left. So, maybe we could get to know each other again?" he asked hopefully.
She nodded. "I'd like that," she assured him with a grin.
"Good!" Kelvin replied with laughing relief, but his heart was still torn with guilt and grief. "There is one thing you should know before you hear it from someone else," he said, holding her in front of him as he looked into her eyes with earnestness. "Avera, I..."
His words were interrupted by the ecstatic proclamation of the masses who shouted, hailing the king of the nation, and he turned and looked behind him to the doors of the palace from whence the king emerged victorious.
There Benjamin lifted his sword in triumph as he proclaimed, "Our King reigns victorious, and he has overcome the darkness and the rulers of this land to give us light and freedom forevermore!"
When Benjamin had finished speaking, he ran to him, requesting of Avera pause for a moment and leaving her with a gentle pat of her shoulder.
"My lord," he said, throwing himself at Benjamin's feet.
"Hello," the king replied with puzzlement. "I'm sorry, do I know you?"
Kelvin closed his eyes tight and they began to water with remorse. "Kelvin Dehnhardt, sir," he said, looking upon the benevolent ruler. "Please, forgive me, but... I was the one who shot you."
Kelvin closed his eyes again, terrified and ashamed, but Benjamin placed a hand of comfort on his shoulder, and Kelvin felt the kindness of his peace in his touch.
