Logan Swift: Rebirth of a Rose

CHALLENGING FATET he cold, crystal-like rain was pouring. The last of the golden chariots had left one of the many disheartened, frozen and lonely gardens of Nizanah. The five moons vibrated and rumbled across the dark sky as countless burning stars painted themselves across its quaking surface. A sea of golden armour shone across the quivering garden as the moons radiated a mystical glow, soaking the faces of the palace guards stubbornly. Their white capes flickered wildly as their stiff necks thanked their polished helmets for protecting them against the blistering hail. Amberlik’h shivered, her dark, curly hair sticking harshly to her young face. She brushed her hand against her silky, white dress and then grazed it across the wet, violet bushes beside her. Her hazel eyes watched King Ikraelk’h, her stubborn father, wave his hands at her from his golden chariot as he left Amberlik’h to her unclear fate. The time of her final test had arrived. ‘The creature, my lady, the creature shall be arriving soon. We must prepare! You are the only princess on our world who is worthy enough to inherit the kingdom! You must become our queen!’ Amberlik’h stared at the palace guard who had informed her of the nightmare that had been cunningly awaiting her since the day she was born, stalking her silently for nineteen summers. She shook her head, hurtling cold rain across the grass. She watched it rippled from green to violet and back again, the magical world showcasing its strange excellence. Tears made their way down Amberlik’h’s frozen cheek as she cleared her throat. ‘No,’ she spoke, glaring into the golden eyes of the palace guard. ‘My lady?’ ‘No, we shall not prepare. I must go, alone.’ She whipped herself around, her wooden sandals scraping the golden path beneath her cold feet. Ignoring the calls coming from the palace guards, she darted across the golden path as it started to curl wildly, taking her around Karlorc’h Palace. She glanced at its grand structure as she swept by. The palace touched the tip of the dark clouds of Imrik’h, the spellbound world. It was made of silver stones that had glistening golden symbols painted delicately across them. The tips of the palace had eight poles made of gold that curled, twirled and vibrated with the rumbling sky. Its wild structure had been manifested by the constantly altering land of royalty Amberlik’h called her home – Nizanah. As she progressed around the palace, she could see Karmrik’h Forest beating its numerous trees in the cold distance. Staring at the dark trees of the enchanted forest, she was reminded of the stories she had grown up listening to. The stories that spoke of the dark creatures, demons and beasts nesting in forests beyond the woodland surrounding Nizanah. She shook her head as she realised that she had to enter the terrifying forests to succeed in her secretive mission. As she picked up her pace, Amberlik’h heard a frightening crunching sound echo around her. She stopped as the ground surrounding her had started to crumble away. Nizanah was trying to prevent her from escaping. She watched in frustration as the flickering grass around her had erupted into flames. The cold hail poured frantically across it, trying but failing to extinguish the blistering flames. The cracks in the earth bubbled, melted and crumbled. She felt both her hearts race as several streams of icy water gushed out of the cracks and merged together strategically. Panicking, Amberlik’h charged. Her thighs struggled to manoeuvre inside the rising flooded area. She felt as though heavy anchors had been wrapped around her feet as she kicked them forwards with great force. Before she could heave for another step, however, the water erupted like a tsunami. The water produced various limbs out of its surface that whipped and charged into the air as it created a circular wall around her. It grew at an incredible rate and only stopped until it had become five times her size. She was trapped. She couldn’t escape. The water drained below her slowly, revealing her trembling ankles and soaked feet. Angrily, she screamed. Swearing at the top of her lungs, Amberlik’h punched the spherical wall around her. As she continued to punch the wall of aqua in desperation, she watched the whirling wall absorb the puddles of water she had been creating with each jab. Showing its dominance and claim over the frustrated elven princess, the wall of water created further limbs that flicked her menacingly, causing her to tumble backwards. As she gasped and tripped over, the circular wall caught her fall, tossed her back onto her feet and repeated the process once more. ‘Enough!’ she yelled. ‘Do you hear me? Enough!’ Nizanah ignored her order and continued to keep her imprisoned inside its watery cocoon. Over the whirling water, Amberlik’h heard the palace guards surround her and the wall. Her plan had been foiled. ‘Fine, you complete and utter bastard! Just fine! Do not listen to me!’ She knelt and pressed her hands against the cracked path. She focused on her breathing and listened to the pounding of her hearts. She inhaled carefully, breathing in tune with her two hearts, mimicking each pump with her breath. She held her breath for only a second and exhaled through her mouth quickly, holding it securely four times as she did so. With a clear mind, she thought of the place she needed to go. She felt her eyes burn and her head spin. She watched the ground beneath her palms flare suddenly. She heard and felt the ground beneath the surface crunch dangerously. Her hands heated as golden matter poured out of her palms and into the ground. The matter was stringy; wrapping, sewing and binding itself together through the disorientated cracks. The multiplying matter expanded and thickened, shaking the ground vigorously. Over a sudden chorus of hissing and screeching, Amberlik’h gasped as she felt her matter fuse together beneath the quaking ground. As Amberlik’h looked up, she noticed how the wall had started to descend. It was clear to her that Nizanah had discovered what she was doing as the whirling limbs tried to grab hold of her. Amberlik’h felt one wrap itself around her ankles, restraining her as the ground beneath her feet had almost been destroyed. Through the dismantled ground, she could see a golden, wispy portal flaring in the earth twenty feet below the open surface. ‘Let me go!’ she yelled, grabbing hold of the slithering limb as it swung her around in the air, dangling her menacingly above the portal. She whisked her left hand around herself, causing a golden flame to flare out of her palm. The flame entwined itself around the watery limb dangerously like a sneaky serpent. As Amberlik’h snapped her fingers, the flame cunningly sunk into its prey, evaporating it entirely. In an instant, Amberlik’h was released. She fell through the torn ground and hurtled towards the flaring portal as Nizanah dissolved the wall. As her hungry portal absorbed her body, she heard the guards let out an uproar as they launched themselves towards her. However, it was too late. Amberlik’h had vanished. Tumbling inside the golden portal, Amberlik’h watched as her matter danced around her. The golden matter wrapped itself around her body like a coil and squeezed her tightly, protecting her from what was going to happen next. As she continued to fall, she braced herself as she saw a marble floor forming far beneath her. ‘Amberlik’h? What are you doing here? You should not be here!’ Amberlik’h groaned. Her portal had opened inside the ceiling of her sister’s spherical chamber, inside Valkorah Palace, causing her to land on the floor with a loud thud. She looked up at the ceiling and stared at her rumbling portal. Groaning once more, she swirled her hand choreographically, causing it to close in a series of golden flames. ‘Nice to see you too, Erinah,’ breathed Amberlik’h, picking herself up from the puddle she had created, staring at her twin sister eagerly. Erinah, who was completely identical to Amberlik’h in looks, brushed her dark, curly hair and picked up the wooden hairbrush that she had dropped from seeing Amberlik’h appear in her bedroom. She was wearing a silver gown with several splashes of water scattered across it from Amberlik’h’s drenched dress and sloppy entrance. ‘You should be preparing! The creature will be coming to test you tomorrow!’ ‘Oh, come on, there is plenty of time before that happens! Now, I need to borrow a few clothes.’ Amberlik’h turned to the nearest wardrobe and flicked it open, leaving a slippery trail behind her. ‘Why are you even wet? It was Nizanah was it not? Nizanah was stopping you from leaving.’ ‘I am taking this,’ rushed Amberlik’h, grabbing hold of a large, brown rucksack which was enchanted to fit an entire chamber inside of it. ‘Where are you going?’ panicked Erinah suddenly, rushing towards her oval chamber door in a desperate attempt to barricade it. ‘I am going to find this stupid creature before it finds me,’ rushed Amberlik’h, hurtling various dresses and leather jerkins inside the endless rucksack. ‘Father wants me to defend Nizanah against its attack. This all sounds utterly ridiculous if you ask me. Nizanah does not need defending! ‘Besides, I will not participate in father’s ridiculous games. Not anymore. I have passed every test he has made me do, every single test! From journeying through the Thir’ikhs Mountains to retrieving the Akhterian Ring, to slaughtering those blasted creatures inside Indek’hian Forest –’ ‘Anzukidels.’ ‘Yes, those lion-headed eagles! They were dark as the night and had five wings that were twice the size of me! Twice the size! And their talons could slaughter every palace guard in Nizanah! Enough is enough, Erinah. No more.’ ‘Do you think I do not understand your frustration? I know it is difficult, but this is not a game! You must complete the Kratak’h! You must prove to everyone that you are the rightful queen! We are the Elves of Rivelark’h. We are not cowards!’ ‘I am not a coward, dear sister! Did you ever think that I did not desire any of this?’ fussed Amberlik’h, waving her hands in annoyance as she rummaged through another closet, taking out several pairs of brown, leather boots. ‘Do you honestly think I want to rule this kingdom? I was never meant to be the next in line for the throne! I have never wanted to wear the crown! Not ever have I once desired it!’ ‘You cannot keep blaming Fenre’al.’ Amberlik’h stopped suddenly, holding the brown boots, jerkin and trousers in her arms. She felt her eyes fill with her tears as she shook her head. ‘I do not blame him,’ she mumbled, trailing towards a dark, wooden screen as she dropped her clothes carelessly behind it. ‘I blame myself.’ ‘How can you blame yourself? Fenre’al was reckless.’ ‘Yes,’ whispered Amberlik’h, choosing to undress behind the screen purposely in order to hide the tears that trickled down her cheek. ‘My reckless brother who I told to run away during his Kratak’h. My reckless brother who listened to me and set out to find the creature alone. My reckless brother who died by its hand.’ ‘Fenre’al was always going to run away to find the creature instead of defending Nizanah against it,’ spoke Erinah, approaching the other side of the screen. ‘It does not mean that you must follow in his footsteps.’ ‘Yes, it does,’ breathed Amberlik’h, changing into the outfit she had picked out for herself. ‘This is the final test. This creature that is coming here killed Fenre’al. I am not going to just sit here and talk battle strategies so that the creature can flee with its body still intact. I know neither Nizanah nor father will allow me to do what needs to be done. They only care about tradition. They are too afraid to start a war against the creature. I am not. Fenre’al broke tradition, so he paid the price. That is my fault.’ ‘Revenge will not bring him back.’ Amberlik’h remained silent as she tied her brown boots, shaking her head as she stepped out of the screen. ‘How do I look?’ she spoke, plastering a smile across her sad face. ‘Princess Erinah!’ Amberlik’h and Erinah turned to face the chamber door. Somebody was approaching the chamber. The footsteps belonging to the guard who had called out for Erinah were echoing from the long corridor outside the chamber. ‘The guards are coming!’ rushed Amberlik’h, shuffling towards the open castle window, witnessing a sea of golden armoured elves approaching the castle. ‘I cannot let you leave, Amberlik’h,’ panicked Erinah, taking a large step towards her. ‘I cannot.’ ‘I need to find this creature.’ ‘You will die! I have lost my brother. I cannot lose my sister too!’ Amberlik’h stared at the door suddenly as the footsteps had ended abruptly. ‘Princess Erinah!’ voiced the guard, knocking on the chamber door aggressively. ‘Open the door!’ ‘Please …’ whispered Amberlik’h, wiping away the tears that poured from her sister’s hazel eyes. ‘I will return, I promise.’ ‘Princess Erinah! Open up, please!’ Erinah, staring into Amberlik’h’s hazel eyes, nodded slowly. ‘You used your Zenashair,’ spoke Erinah, stepping away from Amberlik’h. ‘That is how you got in here, right?’ ‘Yes,’ nodded Amberlik’h, rubbing her palms together. ‘The highest source of magic.’ ‘I know, you are getting better at developing it. I do not know how you do it though, with two hearts. I cannot even do it with one. I wish I had your talents.’ ‘I am sure you will develop Zenashair soon. After all, we are the same.’ ‘We are definitely not the same,’ scoffed Erinah, smiling suddenly as she grabbed hold of the circular door handles that shook from the guard’s ferocious knocking. ‘Tell me when.’ Amberlik’h closed her eyes and focused on her breathing. She listened to her hearts beating, trying to calm them. She mimicked what she had done before to create a portal to her desired destination. Take me to the creature who murdered Fenre’al. With her palms flaring, she whisked her hands around her body. Golden matter spat and flared around her, sticking together harshly as it moulded itself into a large bubble that stealthily concealed her. Cocooned inside her golden matter, she crouched and pressed her palms against the marble floor. The bubble stuck to her skin and clothes, slithered around her body and sunk into the ground. The ground was ripped apart. Golden matter boiled in its place and moulded itself into the shape of an oval, screeching as it did so. The golden, wispy portal was forming. She looked up at Erinah and smiled. ‘You will see me again, I promise,’ she projected, the screeching of her portal drowning out the chorus of shouts that were coming from the guards. ‘I know! I trust you!’ Amberlik’h, smiling at her sister, gave her a nod to step away from the door. Acting swiftly, Erinah tossed herself forwards, causing the door to instantly spring open. ‘The princess is escaping! Do not let her leave!’ ‘Princess, you must not do this!’ ‘Grab her! Grab her quickly!’ Amberlik’h, ignoring the orders of the guards that had launched themselves into Erinah’s chamber, grabbed her rucksack tightly and fell through the ground. Her portal absorbed her entirely as she vanished from sight. She was gone. —CHAPTER TWO—