Chapter 15
CHAPTER 15
VALERIA
W hen I woke up, I didn’t know where I was. My last memory was of Kai kicking Lucien out of the portal before I passed out. It was dark outside and I was captivated by the purple sky. When I looked around, there were beautiful carvings on the walls that told the stories of many lives. Sparkling deposits stuck out from the floor and ceiling. An ethereal glow spread throughout the chamber.
I called out to Kai but there was no response, I removed the white plush sheet that lay over me and put my feet on the floor. The floor emitted sparkles throughout the hallway I chose to walk down. There was no ceiling and when I caught sight of the two moons I realized I was in Eldaria. But where the hell were Kai, Eli, and Anna? How could they leave completely alone in a strange new world? I called their names and my voice reverberated in the passageway.
When I entered the hallway I saw Kai, Eli, and Anna were restrained with a glittery rope, pinned to a wall. I walked over to them and asked, “What the hell happened?”
Kai screamed, “Val, behind you!”
I turned around and grabbed the glittering rope flying towards me. A group of tall, skinny girls with translucent skin were behind me. Their eyes came in different shades of blue, purple, and silver. Their hair moved like liquid silver and glowed every time they did something. The outfits they wore changed colors based on what they were doing. They had tattoos all over their bodies that showed the constellations and events happening in the universe. The marks were unique to each girl and revealed their role and where they came from.
I had no idea why I understood their appearance so well. They were looking at me questioningly. I turned to Kai and asked, “Why the fuck they are calling me Kyrethia?”
“I don’t hear anyone talking, they are all just ogling you.”
I focussed and realized Kai was right. They were not talking at all. I was listening to them in my mind. I tried to respond and told them my name. They all gasped. One of the fate keepers stepped forward and telepathically, “If you are not Kyrethia then why do you look like her? And how can you talk to us using our mode of communication?”
I looked back at Kai, “Didn’t you tell them about Mom?
Kai clenched his jaw, “They didn’t give us a chance to tell them anything. You were unconscious when we got here. We were all trying to wake you up when they restrained us and took you away.”
I looked at the fate keepers and used the sign language mom taught us. First, I made it clear that we were not here to harm them. Then I told them about my mom and they understood why I could talk to them via a mind link. They told me my mom’s name was Kyrethia. I told them Mom’s whole story on Earth and our purpose in visiting Eldaria.
Elli asked, ”Why the hell are you all staring at each other?”
I sighed and turned around, “We are talking.”
Anna whined, “Please tell them to release us Valeria I badly need to go to the loo.”
I nodded and then again turned to fate keepers, “Could you please release my family? We have no intention of harming anyone here in the mountains.”
One of the fate keepers raised her hand in the air and pushed something toward herself in the air and all glittery ropes flew to her, including mine. Anna walked over to me, “Valeria, the loo?”
They led the way when I asked them where the restroom was. The fate keepers asked, “Are your babies Earth wolves, Eldarian wolves, or fate keepers?”
I looked over at Kai and then at them. I facepalmed, damn I completely forgot to test whether I was pregnant or not. Kai sensed something was wrong so he asked. “What are they saying to you?”
I raised my hand to stop Kai from intervening in the conversation and I continued talking to them through ourlink, “What do you mean babies?”
The fate keepers continued to inform me that I was pregnant with three babies, two boys, and one girl.
“How can you tell so soon?”
Kai had enough so he turned my face towards him, “What the fuck are you talking about?”
I took a deep breath, “I am pregnant with two boys and a girl.”
Kai didn’t speak for a few moments and then shook his head, “How can you be pregnant?”
“I think it’s the same process all over the universe.”
Eli giggled and Kai looked at him with bulging veins on his temples, “Would you stop making noise?”
Eli squared his shoulders, “I am just excited to become an uncle.”
Anna walked in and asked, “Who has become uncle?”
Eli excitedly told Anna, “Valeria is pregnant.”
Anna smiled just before Kai screamed, “Are you all out of your minds or am I the only one who remembers that we came here to fight?”
“What is wrong with you? Aren’t you happy?”
Kai snarled, “Now I have to send you back to Earth. If you had told me earlier I would have never brought you here.”
I was hurt and shocked, “You think I hid this from you?”
Kai opened his mouth and shut it before closing his eyes and cursing, “Fuck, I am sorry I guess I am not in the right state of mind.”
I pushed him away, “How could you even think that I would endanger our baby?”
Kai moved forward to grab me but I pushed him away again. “I don’t know what I was thinking. I know I was out of line, but try to understand that you'll go back to Earth and I'll be here in Eldaria. Different worlds, far away from each other, I would never know if we would meet again or not. I'm uncertain whether I'll even be able to see my babies or you."
I was about to respond when I heard Anna talking to Eli, “I think we should leave them alone.”
One of the fate keepers had said that I can’t cross the portal now because the energy wouldn’t be good for the babies. Kai shook his head, “Then where should I go to keep you and the babies safe,” he looked at the fate keepers, “I don’t want my babies to become one of Zamorra’s targets before they are even born.”
I nodded at him, looked at them, and asked the same question. They informed me that, because of my fatekeeper lineage, I could stay until the babies were born. When I told him, he sighed in relief. The Ffate keepers asked if we had plans to attack Zamorra.
I realized we had never discussed it, so I turned to Kai. He planned to visit all the kingdoms and request their assistance in reclaiming the canine kingdom.
"Did Kyrethia tell you how to break the curse,” the fate keepers asked.
I shook my head before they asked us to meet at the top of the mountain tomorrow morning.
“How will I distinguish between day and night here when the sky is purple all the time?”
“We will explain how to break the curse when the sun rises tomorrow, the tenth of the month..”
The moonlight flowed through the curtains into our room and gave it a soft glow. Kai and I looked at each other. I didn't know what to say. I was still getting used to the fact that I was expecting three babies.
"I wish could stay with you until the babies come."
I smiled and reached out to take his hand, "Come here, we need to be close tonight."
Kai took me in his arms, “What if something happens to you while I am gone?”
I cupped his face.,“I promise I’ll be fine. Your kingdom needs you. Besides, you are doing this for our kids.”
Kai sighed, “What if I can’t focus because I miss you so much?”
I kissed him, “You are not going to do this, Kai. We have come a long way. I need you to be strong.”
Kai kissed me back, “I just wish I could be in two places at once.”
I put my hand over my belly. “I am going to wait for you to come back safely, and these will bridge the distance. When you're tired or lonely, just think of them. Our babies are rooting for you, just like I am."
Kai kissed me on the forehead, "You and our triplets will always be in my heart. I promise I'll get back to all of you."
I smiled, "And we'll be here, ready to welcome you with open arms and all our love. Kai, stay safe. We need you, and so does your kingdom and family."
Kai put his forehead against mine, "Val, I love you." More than words could ever say. I already love our kids. All of you are my everything."
I whispered, "Kai, we all love you. Now and forever."
"Forever and always."
I sighed and put my head on his chest, "Tell me about your trip. What do you think the other kingdoms have to offer?"
Kai began to run his fingers through my hair, "That's not clear yet. Every kingdom is unique. But I need to get stronger and find allies. Anna, Elli, and I can't fight Zamorra by ourselves."
I nuzzled his neck and was comforted by his scent. "I'm sure you'll do well. Kai, you have the heart of a true leader. Everyone else will see that and join you.”
Kai sighed, "I hope you’re right. Even if it’s dangerous, even if it’s hard, I’ll never give up. Not when everything I love is right here waiting for me.”
I kissed his neck, "I'll think of you every night as I look at the moon. Our bond is strong and doesn't depend on where we are.”
Kai kissed my head, “I think you should sleep now.”
“And what about you?”
Kai hugged me, “I don’t know if I can sleep tonight.”
Then we both grew silent and I dozed off in his arms. I was chasing after my kids in a dream and it was not a peaceful dream at all. Kai woke me up, “Val, wake up the sun is about to come up in the sky.”
I thought it was a dream but when he nudged me I sat up immediately and I was breathing heavily. Kai asked, “What happened?”
I wiped my face with my hand and shook my head. “It was just a bad dream, nothing important. How do you know that the sun is about to come up?”
Kai pointed at the sky, “Look at the color of the sky.”
I tried to find a difference between last night’s sky and now but failed. When I didn’t respond, Kai sensed it and escorted me to the bathroom to freshen up. When we left our chamber, Eli and Anna were already waiting for us. We rushed to the hall and one of the fate keepers led us to the top of the mountain.
When we reached the top the fate keepers were waiting for us and told me telepathically that Kai had to get back three sacred artifacts that were hidden in three different kingdoms and guarded by strong beings. I told Kai and the rest. Kai asked me for the details and then one of the keepers told me that the first artifact was the Tear of the Moon, which was hidden in the Lake of Shadows. A lion with three heads watches over the lake, which is in the middle of the Feline Kingdom. Only people with good intentions can get it back.
Another keeper started telling me about the second artifact, the Feather of the Phoenix, which could be found in the Tree of the Avian Kingdom. When someone faces death and returns alive, the Phoenix of Rebirth strongly guards it. Only that person can claim it.
The third keeper began to tell me about the third artifact, the Heart of the Ancients, which could be found in the witches' region the Forest of Time. The guardian of eternity guards it, and only someone who knows what time is all about can hope to get it.
Kai nodded, "Tear of the Moon, Feather of the Phoenix, Heart of the Ancients, I get it. How are we going to fight these powerful beings?"
The fate keepers told me that it was their job to persuade the king of the kingdom to let them face the powerful beings and that people with the skills mentioned could easily get the artifacts. You all have to return the artifacts to the right kingdoms once the curse is broken. It is our blessing to each kingdom.
Kai asked, “What are we gonna do with artifacts to break the curse?”
The fate keepers explained that when the sun was at the top of your head to place the tear of the moon in the soil of the canine’s royal house, draw a circle around it, and place the feather of the phoenix on the eastern side and the heart of ancient at the western edge. You must perform this within the canine's royal house soil to break the curse.
Eli looked at Kai, “We have to do all this before the tenth of the next month?”
“But do we have three people who have those skills like good intentions, facing death, and thinking time is all about hope,” Anna asked.
When the fate keepers told me about each artifact I was selecting one person from all three so I responded before Kai made anything more complicated because of his everything-needs-to-be-perfect mindset.
“Yeah, I think we have all three. Anna has good intentions, Kai has faced death and come back alive, and Eli believes time is all about hope.”
Anna asked, “Should we go now?”
The fate keepers handed me an amulet to help them in their journey as each kingdom in Eldaria is at a distance of months. Kai held the amulet and asked if he could visit the Dragon’s kingdom. The fate keepers told him that it would be up to him, but the dragon’s kingdom was a distance of thousands of years.
The fate keepers also asked them to leave the highlands before the sunset and start their journey. We returned to our chambers. Kai and Eli started to look into the amulet. They asked if they told me anything about it. I shrugged my shoulders because they didn’t tell me anything about it.
Anna asked, “If we don’t know anything about it how will this help us in our journey?”
I held it in my hands and closed my eyes to focus. I had visions. It was my first time so I lost my balance, but Kai prevented me from falling.
Kai asked, “What the fuck was that?”
I opened my eyes and handed it back to him, “It is a token for your entry into every kingdom to let them know you have been sent by the fate keepers.”
Eli sighed and slumped his shoulders, “I thought this would help us to make our journey more speedily.”
“What does that mean,” Anna asked.
Kai looked at Eli, “You didn’t tell her?”
Anna got frustrated, “What are you talking about? I don’t like to be kept in the dark.”
Eli held her in his arms, “You are not being kept in the dark, baby. I just forgot to tell you because of the last few day's events.”
Anna grunted, “What?”
Eli took a deep breath, “If we start our journey in wolf form we can reach the closest kingdom from the highlands in around three weeks.”
Anna gasped. “Then how are we going to get all three artifacts and attack Zamorra before the tenth of the next month?”
Kai tapped on her shoulder, “We’ll see, but first we have to hurry up because the sun is about to set.”
Eli took Anna out of the chamber and left me alone with Kai. He wrapped his arms around me, “I think it's time for us to bid farewell.”
Tears rolled down my cheeks, “I tried my best to stay strong, but Kai, I don’t know how I am going to stay here alone for months without you.”
“We’ll stay connected through our bond. How could you forget,?” Kai reminded me.
I sighed, “I don’t know. What if I call you and you don’t respond for some random reason?”
Kai crushed his lips onto mine and I cupped his face. Kai slipped his tongue into my mouth and swirled it around. I moaned and didn’t hesitate to let his hands explore my body before he left.