The Reign of the Outlander

Chapter 14: Training Them

After seeing Altalune at a place where she left off, she walks towards her. She followed her gaze towards the gate of the Mahika Academy where students trained themselves. Her presence doesn't bother her, but she can see through her eyes what she's been up to.

"Are you worried that much that you can't enter that premises, Altalune?" Altalune directly face her and stared at her concerning the question her mother asked.

"Yes, Amaris. It's not just something I dream about, but it's what I wanted. I can feel it in my heart that I belong to that place," she replied with confidence, and Amaris smiled at her.

"Come here, my daughter," Amaris spread her arms and hug her with seriousness. "Do you know that you can even train without having to learn their magic?"

Altalune's raised her eyes and ask the smiling Amaris. "How? Do you have a way? I mean, I want to know. I will do everything to learn from it, Amaris. Tell me, please."

"Of course, I will tell you, but in one condition," she said while looking at the excited eyes of the fifteen-year-old girl she raised.

"What is your condition, Amaris? I'm delighted to know," she couldn't control her eagerness to what Amaris has to share.

"All right, I'll tell you, but... Lune! Come on out," she called Lune's name. She has been seeing and felt his presence nearby, so he ordered him to come out.

'I'm sorry, it was not my intention to overhear your conversation. I was just curious, Amaris. I wanted to train with Altalune, too. May I?" Amaris doesn't have an option, but to agree to Lune's request. She can see through his eyes that he has pure intentions. And that is to help Altalune fulfill her wish.

"Okay. I'll let you come over, but I have only one request from both of you. Are you ready to hear it?"

"Yes," both answered right away, and Amaris shared her secret with them.

"Close your eyes first. Do not open until I say so. You understand?" she instructed them to wait for her signal before opening their eyes.

"Yes," both replied in chorus and patiently waited for Amaris' signal.

"Now, I want you to start counting from one to ten. After reaching the number ten, you can open your eyes. Ready?"

"Ready!"

"The counting starts now!"

"One," Amaris releases silver dust from her hands and poured it into their heads.

"Two," slowly the sprinkled silver dust formed a sparkling ray of lights.

"Three," without opening their eyes, the ray of light surrounds them.

"Four," Amaris raised her hands again, and an invisible thunder and lightning swallowed Altalune and Lune.

"Five," in a blink of an eye, Amaris brought them to the land down under.

"Six," she doesn't want to let them open yet. She'd like to let them feel the air entering their body.

"Seven," it's almost time to open their eyes. Altalune felt something wet splashing into her skin.

"Eight," Lune wanted to have a peek, but Amaris saw him. "It's not yet time, Lune. Do not cheat."

"I'm sorry. Nine," he apologized as soon as he heard Amaris scolded him.

"Ten."

Altalune and Lune instantly opened their eyes, and what they saw next, surprised their very own eyes. The water splashing her skin earlier came from a giant waterfall. The air surrounding was different from that of Mahika. It's even fresh when they smell it, and soothes her skin.

"What is this place, Amaris? I never saw this kind of place in my entire life," Lune is still in awe of what he was seeing. It was like a mirror of waterfalls facing in front of them, silently greeting him with a splash.

"You haven't told me about this, mother. Where is this place?" Altalune couldn't believe it either. It was like a magical place she has never seen before even in her dream.

"This is the condition and request that I am asking from both of you. Now, before telling you what and where this is place is, I would like to ask you one more time, are you interested in training with me?"

She was patiently waiting for their response before she can spill the truth behind the giant waterfall's location.

"Yes. I am interested," Lune answered without hesitation.

"Me, too. I am interested in learning and be trained, mother," Altalune, like a hungry child waiting for food from its mother.

"Well, then, I'd like to welcome you to my seclusion. Welcome to High Waterfall. It's the parallel universe down under. There are only three people who knew this place, including myself. You're the fourth and fifth. And I want you to keep this place a secret. No one has to find out. Do you understand?"

Altalune and Lune were still confused. After hearing the world parallel universe, what comes to their mind was the same place Hiwaga, but on a different dimension. It took them five minutes before absorbing everything they heard.

"Yes, I'll promise to guard with my life this secret place, Amaris," Lune swears by raising his right hand in front of her. Altalune doesn't know what he was implying by raising his left hand, but she followed.

"I'll surely do. I'll make sure I won't spill the beans about this sacred place, Amaris. I promise!" Amaris giggled upon watching Altalune's gestures and actions in front of her.

After hearing their commitments, she immediately snap his finger and poured out a pea sized amount of blood from the tip of their pointed finger and signed them on a piece of paper she was holding in front of them.

"Wow, that's amazing, mother. How did you do that?" Altalune's amazement won't subside, and Amaris just smile.

"Now, that you have pledged to keep this place a secret, I want you close your eyes again and count ten to one before I told you to open your eyes. Without making a follow-up question and uncertainty, both closed their eyes.

Amaris repeated the same drill she made earlier to the kids, but this time, their counting is reversed.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes!"

"Now count!"

"Ten," Amaris releases silver dust from her hands and poured it into their heads.

"Nine," slowly the sprinkled silver dust formed a sparkling ray of lights.

"Eight," without opening their eyes, the ray of light surrounds them.

"Seven," Amaris raised her hands again, and an invisible thunder and lightning swallowed Altalune and Lune.

"Six," in a blink of an eye, Amaris brought them to the land down under.

"Five," she doesn't want to let them open yet. She'd like to let them feel the air entering their body.

"Four," it's almost time to open their eyes. Altalune felt something wet splashing into her skin.

"Three."

"Two."

"One."

Altalune and Lune were shocked seeing them back to their original place, standing few meters away from the gate of Mahika Academy.

"Why?"

Both asked in chorus. Amaris chuckled and disappeared instantly in front of them. Altalune's eyes were disappointed while Lune shook his head trying to dig into the reason why they returned.

"I think, we'd wait for her next instruction, Lune. Haven't you notice that she's smiling at us?"

"Or maybe, she returned to the waterfall?"

"Sssh. Lower your voice. We have signed a contract remember? What if anyone hear you from the Mahika academy?" Lune reminded her, and Altalune nodded and apologized for what she did.

AMARIS returned to Hiwaga Waterfall. She left without telling Lune and her daughter where she went. What she wanted to do in Hiwaga is to create some obstacles and prepare both of them from training themselves. She wants both their stamina to be ready first, before going to the next level. She'll create five levels of training, starting from the easiest down to the hardest part of exercise.

Not only that, but she'll create the same hurdle the same with Lune. It's her way of watching Altalune encourage her to work harder. Amaris will also let them battle face to face on the average part of their training. And without any further bustle, she began raising her arms, spreading magic silver dust towards the giant waterfall.

The water instantly created a barrier, a water bridge, a water spike, and a tower from which both Altalune and Lune must climb and dive from the top of it down to the bottom of the waterfall. The dry land she was standing will serve as a battleground, which later on, she'll prepare for the kids. She knew that this is the only way she can at least fulfill Altalune's dream of becoming the best of the best from Mahika academy. While swaying and raising, and sprinkling her magic silver dust on the giant waterfall, she recalled what she said on her mind.

"One day, he'll beg for help, and I will turn down his offer."

Those words reminded her to continue what she planned to do to help her daughter become stronger.