Transcendance

12

When Alaric woke up, I noticed his skin was getting darker and his eyes were slightly a red-orange instead of red.

"We're by Hearthsfall, the home of the Singers." Leira stated.

"The Singers?" He looked groggy. Jackson threw some pants and a t-shirt at him. I know we look extremely out of place for the Realm. Which is not good.

"Yes, they led prayers and rites to appease the forest spirits. They also give out prophecies." Leira spoke. "But it's time that we all go to sleep."

On that much, I could agree on.

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The next morning, Leira pawned off her rings to get us clothes that would match the others. We also bought incense and had the rabbit pelt cleaned in order to offer it to the Singers. The temple was tall and made of wood. I'm surprised the place hasn't caught on fire. We walk towards the entrance, climbing up steps. I see that the top floor is only a huge room with a fireplace in the center. There are three fae women there, singing something in a strange language I don't recognize.

"Welcome, heroes of another realm." One says, looking right at us.

Leira kneels and we follow.

"Thank you." She says. "We've come seeking wisdom."

"There is darkness and death hovering over our realm. Princess Tsikiri and Prince Aricame have both returned to their home realm, and the story is doomed to repeat itself." One of them says.

"What do you mean?" I was going to lose Brendan again. And maybe die in the process myself. I mean, we'd reincarnate together but even then we wouldn't be Erika and Brendan again. We'd be someone else.

"I think you should know, Princess." The Singer spoke. "My sisters and I will speak with each of you individually. I need Princess Tsikiri first, then Prince Tsijiari and you in the teal gown last." She points to Leira.

I follow her to an empty room with an altar in the front.

"If the story repeats itself, that means....I lose him again. We all die. And the realm collapses." I took a deep breath. I didn't want that to happen. I already carried the burden of feeling guilty for what happened with the vampires. I didn't want the Fae Realm to collapse.

"Prophecy is not set in stone, dear." The Singer spoke. 'It is able to change."

"But how can I save everyone from suffering the same fate again?" I asked her. The Singer sighed.

"That is up to you, Erika. You will have to figure out where Aricame went wrong to save him from himself." The Singer spoke. Well, that's certainly not helping.

I leave the room as she goes to speak to Tsijiari/Jackson.

"What did she tell you?" Leira asked.

"She told me I had to find out what went wrong with Aricame the first time." I sighed. "I don't know what I'm supposed to do with that."

"Well, I wish I could help with that." Leira sighed. "I feel like I've been a burden this whole time."

"Don't say that, Leira." I tell her. "You've saved our skin a few times. Especially with your battle magic."

"You think so?" She perked up considerably after I told her that. I nodded at her. Jackson returns and Leira goes to the Singer.

"What did they tell you?" I ask him.

"That I have to fix my past mistake. But I've made a few mistakes in both of my lives." Jackson chuckled. "She said that I'll know."

"They're being ominously cryptic right now." I smiled at him. I see Heather walk out and Alaric/Brendan replace her. There was so much I wish I could tell him. But he barely remembers me or any of us, if at all.

"What did they tell you?" Jackson asked.

"That we would face many mountains before we were finally at a valley." Heather spoke. Kyra walks out and so does Brett.

"What did they say to you?" Heather asked them.

"Nothing particularly helpful, just some vague fortunes." Brett spoke.

"What he said." Kyra responded, crossing her arms.

"Well, I guess we have a lot of thinking to do." I smiled.

"You ain't lying." Kyra sighed. "I'm ready to get back on the trip, being here gives me anxiety."

Finally, Alaric/Brendan and Leira leave the rooms.

"What did they tell you?" We all manage to ask.

"I don't think I feel comfortable sharing." Alaric/Brendan sighed.

"That's fair. We should get going. It's never a good idea to stay in the same area when you're being chased." Brett spoke. We left incense and the deer pelt for the Singers as we left for the next stop, which was a decent sized island with a ferry that took us back to Illinata. None of us were particularly thrilled about returning Leira to her shitty parents but we were thinking of her safety.

As we left the small town of Hearthsfall, I noticed the dying brush was getting closer and closer to the town.

"More of the forest is dying. That can't be good." Leira spoke. "Funny, how the Singers didn't mention anything about it."

"And I didn't think to ask, lovely." Kyra sighed. "Since I'm not part of this prophecy the rest of you are part of."

"I doubt we'd get a clear answer. The Singers were cryptic for the most part." Alaric/Brendan sighed.

I noticed that there were dying trees and dead brush all along the path. I wondered what could fix them.

The story is doomed to repeat itself. The words of the Singers haunted me. I have no idea how I'm supposed to fix anything and the Singers just made me feel even worse if that was possible. I could only hope that I would figure it out by the time I was facing off against Leandrus and his cronies.

At this point, you might not even have time. I was thinking to myself. I can only hope I figure that out soon enough.