Page 8 of Blood Lord

"She's a tiny thing. I wonder why Nielmor can't find a better use for her."

"A singer? We have elves that can do just that."

But as the music swells around me, they all fall silent, and I give them a spin, loving the way my bodysuit hugs my figure. The stockings have small gems sewn into them, as does the bodysuit, and the fringe is like its own mini lights.

Beneath Nielmor's orbs, I am dazzling.

And as I complete a full circle, I know I have the audience entranced. They've never seen anything like me.

But it is nothing compared to when I start to sing, stunning the dark elves with a voice unlike anything on Liiandor.

5

Raziel

Standing at the mouth of the caverns, a rush of excitement goes through me. Staring at the portal, the only indication I'm given is the slight shimmer in the air.

I remember when we first wandered through it. It was completely accidental. We had felt the strong pull to a forest where magic seemed to flow more naturally, and when one of the vrakken ducked into a cave, she completely disappeared.

Hours later, she came back out telling us of connected tunnels that flowed easily with magic and that it would be the perfect place to escape from the dark elves since the portal was inside a cave that looked rather unassuming.

The humans with us couldn't feel the power emanating from the cave, and we wondered if the dark elves would even be able to if they tracked us to this forest. We later learned that the dark elves could, and would, find the portal, stumbling upon it accidentally like us, but we quickly solved that problem. It didn't take long for them to remember why we are so formidable, especially against one or two of them.

Either way, it provided us with a boost of magic, and a place to hide in plain sight.

None of us fully understand it. It's not like the portal goes to another world. It's more like it pushes us through a veil to an intensely magical place on Protheka, and it seems that only our bodies can absorb the power. Some wonder if it's the same power that Changed the First, gifted to us by Akeldama.

I haven't bothered to give it thought in thousands of years, but now, as I stand here, I am in awe of the beauty in simplicity once again. An underground system that only the most magical creatures can survive, buried just beneath the surface.

"One week," Brinda reminds me.

I nod, trying to hide my thrilling excitement, but there is no use. I can't bury it, so all I answer is, "One week."

And when I take that step forward, my foot hitting the rocky floor of a different cavern, I finally feel alive.

I know this cave. It's the last thing I saw of the surface, and as I approach the mouth of it, I see the forest.

I am above ground again.

To my relief, when I look up, the sky is dark. It is night, and the wide expanse above me is dotted with bright stars. I hit my knees, leaning back to soak it in.

For so long, everywhere I looked was rock. But here, the air is cool, a breeze brushing past me. It makes me realize how stale our air is, how our breezes aren't real, because this is exquisite—crisp and full of scents I don't know.

My wings unfurl of their own violation, and with one powerful push, I am off the ground. I let out a satisfied groan as I rise above the treetops, looking out across the small island surrounded by water.

It feels good to fly—to really fly, not make small circles in an underground cavern. And it's made better by the shimmering leaves and twitching vines beneath me. The sky and moon are above me like old friends, and I'm tempted to beat my wings, climbing as high as I can manage just to touch them.

"I'm back," I tell the sky, and the stars seem to twinkle in response.

But then I see something that strikes even more curiosity in me. Across the water, there are bright lights, and I can taste unknown scents on the air. I need to know more.

Some of the terrain comes filtering back to me as I fly low, skimming along the water. I love the salty sea air that sprays my face and slicks back my long hair.

But more of it is new. I don't know this city before me. The island had been barren before, but it seems to be thriving with dark elves and other creatures.

I am going to find out everything I can about it.

A genuine smile creeps onto my face as my wings strain to keep me in the air. It's been too long since I've used them properly, and now I am overexerting myself, but I can't be bothered to stop.

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