Page 100 of The Silent Mountain
My blood seems to rush through my veins in panic. Elio and Alana are all that I have, my two most important people. Without them, I am nothing!
Some of my warriors are circling the whole area in their search for them, and I myself have flown over the whole clan area to try to spot them, but unlike during my last search for Alana, this time I wasn’t so lucky.
“Your Highness,” Stefan runs towards me when I land again and shift back to my human form.
“Did you find them?”
“Unfortunately not,” he says. “But Erin might have found a clue.”
He hasn’t finished his sentence, but I already take off running towards Erin. My dragon leads me with his extraordinary sense of smell, and I find myself chasing up a mountain path that leads away from the clan. This must be where Elio and Alana were walking through.
“Erin!” I call out when I spot her, standing at a rock ledge.
Erin turns around, pulling her jacket tighter around her body, and waves for me to come closer. “This will interest you, Your Highness.”
“You believe they were here?”
“I am sure of it,” she says. “Look!“ She gestures towards the ground, where I spot a single black feather. It’s bigger than those of a normal bird, and there is an eerie feeling coming from it.
“A feather?” Stefan, who has caught up with us, eyes the object curiously.
“Definitely black magic,” Erin says.
“Could it be a coincidence?” Stefan asks.
“I doubt it,” Erin says. “There have been too many incidents to believe that this one is unconnected.”
“I agree,” I muse. I pick up the feather lying on the ground before Stefan can stop me, hissing at the pain. It glows like coals in a fire and burns into my skin.
This is it. It’s time to get to the bottom of this!
Favia! I need you.
I am here,she answers promptly.Let me take over.
I take a step back, allowing her to take over my body. It still feels weird to take a backseat like that. It’s different when I am with my dragon, as I am usually still there when he takes over, but with Favia, she actually pushes my whole consciousness aside and forces me to step back completely. If I didn’t trust her as much as I do, I would never let it happen.
Stefan, Erin, and the warriors stare at her. To them, it’s still so foreign to see Favia in her human form.
“This is so amazing,” Erin says quietly.
“No matter how often I see it, it’s always fascinating,” Stefan admits.
“I can hear you, you know,” Favia says dryly and winks at them. “And Favian can hear you too. Better watch out for that.”
Erin just looks amused, while Stefan seems to be slightly flustered.
Favia tightens her grip on the feather, not even wincing when the burning increases. “This is not from this world,” she says. “Not from this realm. It’s a dark creation, not a real bird.”
“You mean, it’s man-made with the help of a curse?” Erin asks.
“No, I mean it’s made by a deity, not cursed. The deity created it, and this creature follows his will and his will alone.” She pauses. “It must be a powerful deity to create life and control it.”
She lets the feather drop to the ground and retreats again. She can never stay outside for long.Do you know who it is?I ask her.
Not yet,she says with a frown.But I promise you, I will find out who’s messing with us.
He has Alana, hasn’t he?
