In Search of Auria (27 page)

We set out from our small battlefield to the
fortified city of Ambros. I didn't want to return there, but the
steep Pegnion Mountains to our right would not be an option. The
city would still be flocked with soldiers, but once past it, the
rest would be easy.

Nearing the city gates, I still hadn’t
thought what to say if they stopped us. I was hoping they would
just let us pass, seeing I was a "balorian soldier" coming from the
capital.

"Halt there," cried one of the five guards
at the gate, "Who goes in transport?"

"Sir Vallias of Horne," I replied. I felt
relieved to see they were not the same soldiers from when I escaped
the city.

"Sir Vallias? I'll inform the captain."

"No!" I abruptly yelled to him. The other
guards stared at me bewildered.

"Don't call your captain just yet." I
motioned him to get closer and whispered, "I would like you to wait
some time before you alert any of your superiors. You see, our lord
has some 'company'."

The guard veered to the door of the carriage
and saw Auria’s feminine eyes peeking from the glass window.

"Oh!" the guard vividly expressed, "I
guess we can wait some time for our lord to do his business.
Very well, come on through."

"Thank you. I'll personally inform your
captain when, you know, he's ready," I winked. The guard stepped
aside and granted us passage. Once inside, I didn't stop anywhere.
I cautiously drove through the busy street, when I saw Francis and
his wagon. He was at a shop not only unloading lumber, but
vegetables and other goods as well. He wore a good coat and a
decent pair of boots. I guess the three gold coins I gave him went
a long way. As he finished, he looked up and saw me on the
carriage. He stayed still, stunned to see me. I simply smiled at
him and bowed my head. With that, he nodded and laughed out
loud.

“We’re both doing well, my friend,” he
yelled, “We’re both well, haha!”

It was good knowing he was doing fine. I
continued down the street as his laugh faded among the voices of
the townspeople.

When I reached the gate on the other side of
the city, I told the guards Vallias wanted a stroll by the lake.
Without any fuzz, they let us out. We continued out and distanced
ourselves from the city walls. It all seemed too easy. I was
expecting something to happen, like the archers suddenly shooting
arrows, or the sound of a horn alerting the guards. But all was
fine and quiet, like if we deserved it that way. And that's the way
it was for the coming days.

Each night we stopped to rest, and depending
where we were, I would tell Auria and Beam a story of what had
happened to me there. Passing by Lake Glissia, I told them about my
fight with the Banshee and the help I received from the Feng Huang.
They smiled when I told them how high and fast the Feng Huang could
fly. Going around the mountain range, the military camp was no
longer there. Instead, carpenters, stonemasons and laborers had
taken their place. They had built a temporary wooden bridge and had
started building a stone one. The wooden one was shaky, but sturdy
enough to pass. I had to explain to them why a new bridge was being
built, and about the small "gnome trip" inside the mountains.

After the bridge, I mentioned my encounter
with the Gargoyle and the reward given to me by Louis and George.
We passed by the ruined village of Flama, but to my surprise, it
was not that ruined anymore. In fact, it began to flourish. The
military presence had toned down and the villagers had begun to
repair their properties. It was starting to prosper, but even if
the whole village became a thriving township, I doubt Yang would
ever like to step foot here again.

Twirling on the curvy roads of the nearby
woods, I stopped to visit Richard and his gang. They were all happy
to see me, and amazed by the glowing lines on my forehead. But, the
amazement of my puny lines was nothing when I revealed the fairies.
The kids kept their distance at first, but Beam's charm and Auria's
loving nature won them over. We talked and laughed together, until
the usual group hug on our departure.

Crossing the Riverways, I remembered the
Devita. Looking at her grave, there were dozens of orchid buds
growing around it. I walked over to pay my respects once more, and
to show Auria the one responsible for my return. She knelt over her
grave and waved her hand over the buds. Her warmth made them bloom.
Blue, yellow and white where the orchids. They resembled the shape
of small fairies, like the Devita.

And then, the next stop was Vieris. The
village remained the same except for one small thing; it was
completely flooded with soldiers. I noticed them patrolling around
the boundaries. They had to be the ones that had encamped at the
Pegnion Mountains. If all of them were headed to the front lines,
Miaflore would need every soldier they had available.

I decided to ditch the armor and carriage,
and circle around the boundary of the village on foot. Beam and
Auria suggested flying again, but I refused. With so many eyes
below, someone would see us. I just didn't want to risk it. We
circled around the north, avoiding any obvious paths and roads. And
after a couple more days, we reached the Crude River. We crossed it
the fairy way.

"Finally!" Beam blurted and flew across.
Auria grabbed my hand and pulled me up. We hovered over the rapid
waters. I was amazed seeing my feet dangling below.
It was exhilarating, flying over the water with the
complete security of not falling in. Once on the other side, Beam
suggested we continue up to the Heights and reunite with the
daystars, but I didn't want to yet. I asked him to fly around and
find Bri. He spread his wings and took off without hesitation. Now,
Auria and I were finally left alone. We entered the dimness of the
Forest of Agony and walked our way to her tree. As we walked
together, she hugged my arm and laid her head on my shoulder. I
gave her my affectionate smile.

"Erik, you endured all those horrible
things, one after the next. How could you continue? What made
you keep going?"

I leaned my head on hers and said, "Well, I
could give you a simple explanation and say that it was you that
kept me going. That it was the beauty in your starry eyes, and the
flicker it ignites in my heart; maybe the way your silky wings
brush through the air; or even the warmness and shape of your body.
Oh, and we can’t forget the memories we share together."

Auria started to blush and her body lines
changed to a gentle red.

"But, one of the things that really kept me
going was this; this moment we are having now in the present."

I turned and held her by the shoulders,
close to me, "You see, Auria, I thought of our past, but I focused
on the future; a future with you. This has been my wish from the
very beginning, to be with you. I love you."

I closed in to give her my ever loving kiss,
but she pushed me away and floated in the sky with her glittering
wings. I gazed at her in a confused state.

"If you want me," she said, "then you have
to follow the daystar custom."

"And what is that?" I asked bewildered.

"You have to catch me first."

"Catch you? I already did! I travelled all
over another country to 'catch you'."

"Yes, but that time it was not
official."

I threw my arms up. I just couldn’t believe
this tricky fairy.

"So, what now? You expect me to use my mind
and fly over for you? I don't have wings!"

"Well then, use your legs," she showed me
her tongue and darted away.

I hadn't foreseen this. I thought my stories
of endurance and bravery, and my silky talk had enamored her. But,
I guess I could do this one thing. At least I didn't need to defeat
a beast to get to her. Losing her from my sight, I ran into the
gloominess of the forest. I could only hear her chuckles and
giggles.

"Oh, so that's what this is, a game of hide
and seek," I said aloud, "Very well. But I warn you, I was good at
this when I was young."

I ran and followed her voice. A giggle here,
a laughter there; we were going at it like children. And after
enough play, I recognized a gigantic trunk further ahead.
It was her tree. There she revealed herself, gracefully landing on
the stone beside the roots. She smiled at me and opened her
arms.

"Oh, so you 
do
 want me to
catch you," I remarked.

"Tsk, just come here."

I walked to her, knowing my life would
change forever the moment I’d embraced her. But, as my mind and
spirit engrossed themselves with the notion of a bright future,
something had to happen to mess it up. That something tackled me
from the side and smashed me onto the giant root. It was
Radian.

"Man, you have the worst timing Ever!" I
barked out.

"Auria, are you fine?" he asked as he pushed
me against the tree and looked at the peculiar glow of my forehead.
"Where did this monster take you?"

"He did not take me," Auria argued, "He
brought me back. Let him go!"

As he lessened his grip, I grabbed his arms
and forced myself free. He stepped back confused and hesitant. He
couldn’t believe her. All this time he had thought I was the
culprit behind her abduction.

"Auria, I do not understand. If this land
dweller did not take you, who did?"

"What is important is that she is here now,"
a voiced said from above. It was Glorio. Two fairies carried him
down by the arms and shoulders, accompanied by almost thirty
daystars. They all glided down, lighting the forest with their
wings.

"Oh, grandfather," Auria went and hugged him
immediately he touched soil.

"Auria, what happened?" he asked.

Auria explained to them how she and
Beam had been kidnapped by the balorians and the sorcerer. She told
how they were mistreated and separated. It became an emotional
moment when she recounted how I had come for her and died, and how
I returned from the "beyond" to finally free her. At first the
fairies looked at me with a strange sense of awe and wonder. But,
when Auria finished, they did so with admiration and
acceptance.

“But if he freed both of you, where is
Beam?” asked Glorio.

“I am here!”

Beam came flying by the trees and landed
beside Auria. He hugged both Glorio and Radian and exchanged caring
words. He then came to me, “I found Bri. He is here.”

Through the crowd of radiant fairies came
walking a pale Bri. He didn’t make eye contact with the others and
remained withdrawned. When he finally saw Auria, he ran and hugged
her. He then faced me and bowed his head, “Thank you for bringing
them back.”

“No, Bri,” I shook my head, “I thank
you
for the help you gave me. If it wasn't for you, I
wouldn't have known where to search in the first place. So, to show
you my gratitude, I have a present for you."

I produced the blue potion vial from my bag
and gave it to him.

"What is it?" he ogled it.

"It is a magic potion we obtained. It is
said it will provide the drinker with complete wellness and
healing. I thought it might help you with your wings. But, if you
think it is too strange of a thing, you don't need to dri--."

He didn't even let me finish my sentence. He
pulled the cap off the vial and drank it all. I expected him
to heal instantly, but something else occurred. Like Vallias, he
knelt and started moaning in pain. He hugged his stomach and put
his head close to the chest. Radian went at me, thinking I had
given him poison. But in that, Bri was suddenly
engulfed within a blue sphere of plashing light. It
started to shine so luminously, it rivaled the shine of the
daystars. In the end, the sphere dissipated with a whoosh of air.
Bri stayed still and silent.

"Bri, y-you fine?" I shyly asked.

He lifted his head and the color of his skin
started to come back. In a matter of seconds, he was tan like the
rest! We saw he had some light stripes of blue down the sides
of his neck. I assumed they were a side effect of the potion. After
his color had returned, a lump began to form under the back of
his shirt. He took it off and out emerged his wings, all four of
them! Long, strong, colorful and bright. His eyes got watery,
simply realizing that they were there. He then looked at me with
tears finally running down his cheeks. He was trying to find the
words to express his gratitude, but he was speechless.

"Bri, what are you waiting for?" I urged
him. "Fly!"

With a smile on his face, he bent his knees
and jumped to the skies. Rolling and laughing, he did not come down
again. The rest of the daystars, astonished by what they had just
seen, joined him in cheer and celebration. The only ones that
stayed down with me were Auria, Glorio and Radian. The latter walk
up to me and placed his hand on my shoulder.

"You went all alone to save those who are
not your responsibility," he told me. "You met your end, but that
did not stop you. You kept going. Your determination and courage
have moved me. I am sorry I placed hate and doubt in you. From now
on, you will have my eternal respect."

Glorio led Auria to me and put our hands
together.

“For all that you have done; healing Bri and
returning Beam and Auria to us, I say thank you,” He stated. “Wings
or no wings, you are one of us."

He stepped back and I turned to Auria. I
looked at our hands holding together and whispered, "Hey, I caught
you."

"Yes, you did."

I put my hand under her chin and kissed her.
It was bliss; she was finally mine, and I was finally hers. We were
one. Radian lifted Glorio and left us in our moment.

We did not speak, we only hugged and
caressed. I was going to tell her how muched I loved her, until we
heard a voice from within the forest.

“Sir, I see something over there!” the voice
yelled. “It’s light, maybe a fire.”