At first Aluna did not understand what was happening. Just a moment before, she had been in the training room and suddenly she found herself in a dark passage, as if carried along by the waves of a stormy ocean. Seconds later, she was violently ejected from the black hole and found herself on solid land. She got up, cursing under her breath, and looked around. Grass stretched for leagues before her, and behind were the moat and the outer wall of the castle. This was the first time she had left the palace. She admired the view for a moment, then decided to sit down and wait for the prince.
After a while, she began to worry. The light breeze made her shiver, and she rubbed her arms to warm up. Just as she was trying to convince herself that she had not been forgotten, a whinny behind her made her jump. She turned and saw a horse approaching, with the prince on saddle. He joined her quickly and stopped to help her up. Once she was settled behind him, he took off at a gallop.
“I was getting worried when I didn’t see you,” Aluna pointed out.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t get a chance to tell you I was going to change.”
“It’s fine,” she said, noticing the new tunic he was wearing.
“Do you want to experience something really special?” he suddenly asked.
“What is it?”
The prince drew the horse to a sudden stop.
“As you know, I began training in combat and the art of masex at an early age. Magic isn’t my strong suit but I have managed to partially master one masex.”
“The levitation masex,” she said, remembering one of their earlier conversations.
“Indeed,” he confirmed, and inserted the masex into a slot on his belt.
The stone glowed. He touched it, concentrating hard. The horse became agitated and Willan stroked his neck to calm him down. He looked towards Aluna. “This could get bumpy, I suggest you hold on to me.”
Aluna tightened her hold on the prince who, she noticed, smelled of vanilla.
I’ve never noted that scent on him. . . I wonder what’s the occasion.
She discarded the thought when Willan asked if she was safely in place. She nodded and he took off at a gallop.
Aluna closed her eyes, enjoying the wind on her face. It was soon getting stronger, so she clung tighter to Willan and it was not long before she saw them lifting away from the field. The animal’s hoofs were really off the ground! They kept rising higher and when she realized what was happening all she could do was shout: “By the magic seal! We’re flying!”
“We are,” the prince said, delighted by her reaction.
“But . . . how is this possible?” She leaned forward to look down again. “You must have managed to control the. . .”
A sharp movement of the horse interrupted her.
“Hold on tight!” the prince told her, tightening his grip on the reins.
She obeyed and focused on the view in front of them.
“I learned to use the levitation masex to make Arrow fly,” Willan explained. “But it wasn’t easy, I had to spend months reassuring him.”
“Arrow? That’s your horse’s name?”
“Oh! I’ve never told you his name? Well, yes, this is Arrow, my loyal friend.”
“So you managed to make him levitate, just like you would with a simple object?”
“Yes, but it’s not as simple as that. It’s already difficult to levitate a horse, just because of how much it weighs. I’m sure you know how complicated magic gets when you’re dealing with something heavier than a wooden sword. It requires lots of energy and lots of focus. Plus, Arrow has learned to trust me over the years. Any other horse would have run off in all directions or thrown us off his back. It’s not natural for them not to feel solid ground under their feet. So I would never try this with another horse.”
“I see.”
“All right, I’ve got to speed up if we want to get back before nightfall!”
The conversation ended there.
After a journey that flew by quickly, Aluna saw trees rising on the horizon: the entrance to the Sacred Forest.
The prince called out in a faltering voice, “We’ve nearly reached the Sacred Forest but I’m running out of energy. I’m going to have to land.”
“Okay.”
The prince rode on until they passed the first row of trees, then began his descent. Soon, they plunged down into the dense foliage. Birds fluttered up from their nests as they passed and Willan had to swerve twice to avoid particularly long branches. Eventually, they made it through the trees and reached a furrow in the middle of the forest. After a few attempts, Willan managed to land the horse relatively smoothly. Then he took off at a gallop again and they forged ahead into the depths of the forest.
“Was that all right? The landing wasn’t too rough?” he asked.
“Uh, no . . . it was fine!”
“Good! I didn’t want to jostle you. What we’ve just experienced is unique but it requires lots of energy. I only use it on special occasions.”
Aluna blushed, embarrassed. Was she special to him?
Trying to change the subject, she asked, “You said this is called the Sacred Forest, why is that?”
“Actually, there are two reasons. First, because it runs along the Sacred River and second, because it’s said to be the graveyard for the spirits of our ancestors. That’s why the forest has a guardian chimera.”
“A guardian chimera?”
“Yes. One of them is the three-tailed dragon I’m supposed to find. Its mission is to protect the forest and the river.”
Chimeras were the sole survivors of the ancient magical era in Iriah, a time over a thousand years ago when magic was law. They existed for several reasons. On the one hand, Guardian chimeras were pledged to protect specific places; masex had no control over them and they only showed themselves when the sites they guarded were threatened. On the other hand, Royal chimeras were bound to protect an entire kingdom and were, therefore, particularly powerful. To call on them, kings and queens had to use a specific masex enclosed in a magical seal and go through a long and grueling process. They also had their own free will, distinct from that of their summoners. Finally, ordinary chimeras, less dangerous and powerful, could be called using certain masex and only answered to the will of their invokers.
Aluna recalled vaguely having read something about this topic the week before, but she had not paid much attention to it.
They continued until, from a distance, they saw a bright light illuminating the woods. Aluna felt like their ride had lasted for hours. Finally, Willan slowed down and indicated a curtain of branches.
“Here we are! The river is just ahead, we’re almost there.”
The horse jumped over the roots of an old tree and entered a clearing where they finally came to a stop. The place was huge. High plants surrounded them in a nearly perfect circle, birds sang in the branches above and a vast expanse of water stretched before them. This had to be the famous river.
Aluna watched Willan dismount and then did the same, with his help.
“Is this where you found me?” she asked.
Her friend nodded and led her to a tree where he tied up his horse. Then he turned to the river.
“It’s forbidden for anything to disturb the tranquility of this river. It’s a very ancient Crystallian law. Father always told me that whoever broke the law would have to suffer the consequences in order to avoid a war. But both of us fell in it and we’re still here. . .”
“It must be a fable,” she said, walking towards the water.
“Yes, it must be,” he repeated, but he could not shake off the uneasy feeling overwhelming him.
Was it really a fable? He had always followed his instincts but this time he knew he had gone too far. He suspected there was some kind of magical force guarding the river and feared the Queen of Crystallia’s reaction. What would he do if she came to their kingdom demanding redress? His father would be disappointed in him yet again. He had not stopped letting him down since his mother’s death and he could have done without yet another mistake.
“Pardon my question, Your Highness,” Aluna ventured, looking out across the water. “But this river is so enormous, I can’t even see the end of it! I thought it would be smaller. I mean, a river dividing two kingdoms? I would have thought it impossible, but here we are. . .”
“You’re absolutely right. This river isn’t really a river. It’s more like an inland sea. It’s also the only body of water that touches both the Ocean of Light and the White Sea. Plus, the Alendril—that separates us from Firania—and the White River—which divides Crystallia and Firania—both feed into it. The name ‘Sacred River’ dates back centuries; it’s never been called anything else. Apparently, back in the era of magic, the Ancients traveled around so easily that this seemed small to them. So they thought calling it a river was more appropriate. Of course, that could just be a fable.”
Aluna remained silent, looking perplexed. Willan noticed and smiled. “Let’s just say it’s a very very very big river!”
She burst out laughing. “Yes, I’m sure you’re right! And anyway, that’s not really important.”
“As you say,” the prince said, still smiling.
Aluna began to look around again, wondering why Xerox had brought her to this place. Finally, remembering how her wounds had disappeared, she concluded that he had probably been trying to revive her after she had lost consciousness. He must have thought the river would heal her and evidently, he had been right. Had his last test left her in such critical condition that the old druid had been forced to take this enormous risk?
Willan was watching her curiously. He was thinking about what would happen once she left, once her family came to bring her home. She was his first real friend and he realized that he could not imagine life without her. How would he feel when she went away? Would he be able to let her go? And, even if he could convince her to stay, what would his father do when he found out about her? Besides, would she actually want to remain at the palace? He mulled it over for a moment and finally decided he should stop thinking about it. It was not good for him. . .
“I’m sorry, Your Highness,” Aluna said, sitting down in the grass. “I really don’t remember a thing.”
“Don’t worry,” he replied, joining her. “I remember—every detail.”
He remembered every detail. . . Aluna felt herself blush. Again.
“Why would you save me if you knew about the law?” she asked, purposely ignoring his last remark. “I mean, you’re the prince; your actions affect the entire kingdom. Even if our breaking the law ends up with no consequences, it was very risky, wasn’t it?”
“I don’t know. I just had to do it, that’s all. I couldn’t just ignore a call for help.”
“So I was calling for help even though I was unconscious?” she teased him.
“Yes, you were!” he grinned. “You were loud, too!”
Aluna laughed until her stomach hurt. Then she noticed the prince was staring at her and quickly regained her composure. On a more serious note, she added, “You know, Your Highness, I am so grateful for what you did, but. . .”
“Do you think we could call each other by our first names?” Willan interrupted her.
“You . . . you’re the prince! I. . . I don’t think that would be appropriate.”
“But I’m your friend, too,” he insisted. “Plus, I’m the one who suggested it.”
She looked away, avoiding his look and his suggestion.
“I think you risked a lot for nothing, Your Highness. My life is not worth much. I haven’t done anything, and. . .” And I’m not even supposed to exist, she thought.
The prince suddenly stood and held out his hand to help her up. They were now facing each other.
“Never say your life isn’t valuable!” he told her with an upsetting look. “And please stop calling me ‘Your Highness’—in fact, consider it an order!”
“Pardon me, Your. . . I mean, Willan,” she uttered, smiling shyly.
Willan wanted to say something, but he was suddenly overwhelmed by her innocence and simplicity. Her face was so close; he could not resist the urge to kiss her. He had known more beautiful women, but never one so pure, so genuine. He drew closer to her and, when she did not back away, he lowered his face towards hers. Just as their lips were about to touch, the ground suddenly trembled beneath them, pulling them apart.
A second tremor followed, and both of them were thrown roughly to the ground.
“What’s happening?” Aluna asked frantically.
“I have no idea! This is the first time something like this has. . .”
With a deafening roar that drowned out the prince’s voice, an imposing figure materialized on the shore. When it drew nearer, they could make out an enormous dragon with red blazing eyes, red and yellow streaked skin and three tails. Striding forward, the creature struck the ground with its tails, setting off another tremor. It sounded like a thunderous roar, frightening the birds around who took off immediately.
Willan was the first to come to his senses. He ran towards Aluna, shouting, “That’s the dragon I was searching for. We don’t have any weapons—we have to get away, fast!”
Aluna, coming out of her shocked stupor, nodded.
The friends rushed to where the horse was tied. However, before they were even halfway there, the dragon was upon them, violently swiping and flinging Aluna to a tree. Willan rushed to try to save her, getting between her and the chimera, but it swatted him aside and headed straight for Aluna.
Willan rose with difficulty, looking over at his friend. The dragon was approaching her slowly. He wondered why the beast had appeared today, when he had been searching in vain for months. A sudden doubt seized him. Could it be that the dragon felt threatened by Aluna? He pushed this absurd thought from his mind. They would just have to flee as fast as possible if they hoped to survive. The enemy was too powerful. He stood up hurriedly and ran to his horse that had been whinnying frantically, unable to escape.
Aluna was picking herself up painfully from the ground when she felt the dragon’s hot breath behind her. She turned, trembling, to find herself face-to-face with the most terrifying creature she had ever seen. Petrified, she looked vainly for Willan. The monster roared, frightening her even more. She tried to flee, but there was no way to escape. He imprisoned her in claws, beat the ground with his tails and raised a paw to strike her. Knowing that she had no chance, Aluna shielded her face and gave a deafening cry that rang out across the clearing.