Page 58 of Return of the Darkness (The Lost Kingdom Saga #3)

Larelle

B efore Larelle opened her eyes, she heard the rush of water brushing pebbles before soaking her bare feet.

At least she was near water. Her stomach had flipped when they passed through the mirror, but nothing else felt unusual about their journey; it was simply like walking through a door.

Larelle’s pulse spiked as she squeezed her hand yet found Zarya’s absent.

She breathed a sigh of relief at the sound of laughter and splashing nearby.

Turning her head, she found Alvan holding Zarya’s hands while she splashed in the water lapping at the stoney shore and giggled as the droplets scattered on Alvan’s trousers.

While the lord was doing an admirable job of occupying the princess, Larelle noted his tight jaw and roaming eyes.

She rose from where she sat to take in the faded surroundings.

The water, usually a vibrant blue, was dark, and the pebbles were a faded shade of brown.

Even the trees on the island in the centre had lost their vibrant greenery.

Larelle blinked, registering the layout of the icy water and yellow-tinted snow in the distance. They were at the Vellius Sea.

“This must be why there were two maps,” said Zarya.

Alvan dropped her hands as she crouched to gather pebbles and toss them across the lake.

The Vellius Sea. Larelle frowned. Perhaps she was right.

One map for the waking Novisia, and one for whatever this sleepy, silent land was.

On the other map, there were no monuments or place names—just a plain, simple Novisia.

Larelle rose, mourning the loss of water as she took uneven steps over the pebbles towards her daughter.

“Is this what it was like in your dream, Zarya?” Larelle asked, recalling how Zarya had described The Bay as colourless.

The princess nodded and picked up another handful of pebbles, the water lapping at her feet.

She stood ankle deep in the lake. Was Osiris here somewhere? Had he somehow pulled them all through?

“She saw this place,” Alvan murmured beside Larelle. “Like a vision?”

“Or maybe a hint that we needed to be here,” Larelle whispered.

“A hint from who?” Alvan asked. “Who actually gifts her with this ‘intuition’?”

“It was Osiris she met in the dream. Perhaps he ensured she saw this place,” Larelle murmured. Alvan was tense and cautious of the man supposedly trying to help them.

“Do you remember what Vivian said when we first visited the church? She told Zarya that dreams were a gift from the Goddess Nerida. Perhaps this is her way of helping us.” Larelle’s gaze shifted from her daughter to a figure slumped on the rocks in the distance.

“Olden,” Larelle breathed. “Olden!” she shouted, pushing past Alvan to where the old man sat atop a rock, his eyes closed.

How did he get here? He was on the boat with Lillian.

Larelle knelt before him, wincing at the pebbles digging into her shins.

“Olden,” she repeated, gripping his wrinkled hands.

He opened his eyes and blinked, awaking from sleep.

He looked around him with eyes that mirrored Riyas’s, except for the colour.

Olden frowned at the tainted appearance of the realm.

“Am I dead?” he croaked.

“No, no. Of course not! Otherwise, we would be too,” Larelle reassured him. “What happened before you opened your eyes?”

“Grandpa!” Zarya called. Larelle shot out her hand, signalling for Alvan to occupy the princess. Olden’s eyes lit up at his granddaughter.

“My legs were feeling wobbly on the boat, so I told Lillian I was going to wait on the sands.” He stifled a yawn.

“She was happy to stay on the boat and watch over me. I remember sitting down against a fallen tree, happily listening to the ocean.” Olden smiled at Larelle.

“You know what I’m like. The sound is just so soothing I must have fallen asleep, and when I opened my eyes, here I was.

” Larelle scanned his body, searching for any signs of injury, but he appeared normal—frail and tired, but normal. Larelle gave a sigh of relief.

“And Lillian was still on the boat?” she clarified. Olden nodded.

“And Jabir, he’d come to check on us while Vlad escorted Helena and Vigor to their ship.

” Larelle turned over the options in her mind.

As Olden was on land when they walked through the mirror, it must have brought him too.

When she reunited with the others, she would check if the same had happened to the likes of Soren or Vlad, Helena, and Vigor.

Were the guards that had accompanied them to the Unsanctioned Isle here too?

“Do you feel okay?” Larelle asked. Olden coughed into his hand.

“Same as I have been.” Olden’s words did not reassure Larelle, who knew he had been tired as of late, with his age catching up to him.

“Please, stay here while we figure out what’s going on.

I don’t want you exerting more energy than required,” Larelle said, though she knew what they would need to do.

Given none of the other rulers were present, Larelle assumed they had arrived in their own realms, which meant the Neutral City was the only logical meeting place.

Yet now, with Olden here, she was unsure how feasible it would be for them to journey to the city, even though they were near to Nerida’s gate.

“Larelle,” Olden whispered; his voice trembled as he pointed behind her.

It dawned on Larelle then that the giggling had stopped, and no pebbles skimmed the lake.

Only Alvan’s hurried half whispers reached her ears.

Larelle whirled. Zarya was still knee-deep in the lake, yet a short wall of water had formed behind, blocking Alvan’s attempts to pull her back to shore.

Larelle waved her hand, but nothing happened.

No water fell. Someone or something was maintaining the barrier.

Larelle moved, numb to the sharp stones digging at her feet as she focused on the scales rippling through the water.

Nausea rose in Larelle’s stomach as she sprinted across the pebbles.

“Zarya!” Larelle screamed, hoping to alert and scare the creature swimming intently towards the princess beneath the surface.

Zarya did not turn but simply tilted her head, watching the iridescent blue scales drift through the lake, its colour as vibrant as Larelle’s attire.

Is it not from here? Larelle recalled the creature Elisara had described in the Vellius Sea, the colour matching this one.

Somehow, it could drift between Novisia and wherever they were now, this alternate existence.

Larelle tried to climb the wall of water, but it grew to block her attempts.

It fell to waist height when she took a step back.

As the beast neared the shallows, Zarya took two steps towards the scales that were becoming clearer as the beast reached the shallows.

“Zarya, step out of the water,” Larelle said, feigning calm, though the tremor in her voice betrayed her fear. Larelle held her breath as the beast approached, its long neck gliding through the water while its ridged back breached the surface.

“It’s okay, mumma,” said Zarya. “I’m meant to be here.

” It took everything in Larelle not to scream as the water rose again when she tried to climb it.

Trust her. Trust that her gift is from Nerida.

This is meant to be; she is safe. Larelle held her breath as the beast finally emerged from the water.

As it lifted its head, water trickled down its scaled, scarred face—larger than Zarya’s entire body.

Most of the creature’s body was hidden beneath the water, meaning a few more steps would send Zarya falling into the lake’s depths.

Alvan shifted closer to his queen. A glimpse of the creature’s back and tail was visible beneath the water.

Larelle could see the tops of its shoulders as well as its neck and head, suggesting its feet met the ground.

The rest of the lake was far deeper, burying the rest of its body.

Alvan’s nails dug into Larelle’s hand as they helplessly watched Zarya.

Though terrifying, Larelle could not deny the beauty of the creature as it blinked with purple irises surrounded by glowing silver rings.

Endless shades of blue mosaic glistened on its scales.

Larelle frowned at the large chains binding its middle and cutting into the skin on its back.

If this creature was held captive, it was likely dangerous.

Larelle tried to reach for her powers again, but still, it ignored her.

“He’s sad, mumma.” Zarya’s voice wobbled as she extended her tiny hand and placed it on the creature's nose. When it huffed through its nostrils, Larelle was inclined to agree. The beast sounded miserable. Zarya turned to face her mother, her hand still on the creature. Larelle swallowed at the glow in Zarya’s midnight blue eyes.

Whatever power lived within her was awake.

“I’m supposed to help him,” she said. Larelle opened her mouth, unsure of what to say.

There was nothing they could do; the chains were far too thick for them to break without tools.

Zarya appeared to know this as a tear slid down her cheek.

She sniffed. With a warbled cry, the creature rolled over in the water, highlighting its magnificent turquoise wings, bound in chains.

The creature revealed its belly, showing Zarya the scars and darkened blood there, inflicted by the cutting metal.

Larelle found herself wishing to cry for the creature, too.

Elisara’s relaying of events had made the beast sound terrifying, but as Larelle watched it with Zarya, she wondered if it was simply looking for attention—a desperate plea for help.

“I don’t know how to help you,” Zarya sobbed, and the creature rolled back over, facing her again.

Placing both palms on its face, she leant her forehead on its scaly head and rested between its eyes.

Larelle could have sworn the creature cried as its purple irises glistened.

“But I know I will help you one day,” Zarya murmured.

Slowly, the creature gave a warbled cry and sunk into the water before the barrier between Larelle and her daughter fell.