Chapter 16 – VELIDIA
1244 Words
THE guards arched their heads down to acknowledge Winzi. At the same time, Eleand was apprehensive when he entered the temple. Winzi just tilted her head to the guards, and she guided him inside.
The vast hall startled Eleand as they strolled. Six large blue chandeliers were hanging on the ceiling, the intricate details on the wall were painted in gold.
At the center of the hall, there was a colossal statue of a woman made of ice. The sculpture held a lance. Maybe this was the representation of Fariyah.
“That is the ice statue of Viera, the Goddess of Winter,” Winzi said upon reading his thoughts. She even rolled her eyes and spoke again, “She is Fariyah’s ancestor.”
“Nice,” he was amazed to know. It seemed like the source of the mythology from his world had a basis.
They were both stunned when a female faerie emerged from nowhere. She wore a white hooded swirling gown. Her delicate, serious face came to view when she removed the hood. A silver crown rested on her head, her skin was fair, and her hair was ash gray. Eleand could not miss her glowing ocean blue eyes that captivated him the most.
“Welcome to Velidia,” said the blue-eyed faerie. Her voice was soothing.
“Fariyah…” Winzi murmured.
The High Priestess. Eleand remained calm. He struggled with how to exchange pleasantries in this world. Besides, the priestess looked antagonistic despite her alluring face. Her facial expression was icy cold, perfectly complementing the temperature around.
Fariyah studied him, and he looked away casually.
“This is the first time I met a mortal in my temple after a thousand years.” Fariyah moved around him and asked, “What is your name?”
“Eleand,” he said, barely audible, “How did you know I’m not one of your kind?”
“The illusion won’t work on me. I’m well-versed in different kinds of magic,” she said with pride. She took her attention to Winzi, “You can leave us. I’ll take care of him.”
Winzi tilted her head, “All right, I’m going.” The corner of her mouth twitched into a smile before she disappeared.
Eleand held himself not to call Winzi. He could not go back to the Golden Palace unless he could wield any magic. This way, he could not be a burden to them. He reiterated his goals again, and he was determined.
Fariyah exhaled sharply and looked at him again from head to toe. His gut feeling told him that the priestess was planning something wicked.
“I will let you rest for now. You can tour around the temple to familiarize this place. Tomorrow, we will immediately start your training, and we will not waste a single time.”
“All right,” he followed her order. He was a stranger in this place, better for him to focus on his magic training.
Eleand roamed around. He would stay here for who knew how long. He silently prayed he could make it out here alive.
He was about to go out of the temple when a smiling female faerie greeted him. She was dark-skinned with short gray hair; a snowflake mark was visible on the left part of her forehead. Her eyes were ocean blue.
“Welcome back!” Her smile was ear to ear, and she embraced him without warning
“Hey! What are you doing?” He awkwardly flinched from her arms.
“Oh, sorry.” She burst into laughter, and she held his cheeks.
What the hell was wrong with this one? A deranged faerie?
“Oh, sorry. Don’t mind me. I’ve mistaken you for someone I know. I’m Enkille, by the way. I will look after you during your stay here.” She grabbed his arms and looked up at him, “I’ll tour you around.”
He did not protest when the faerie used the Vanire. They emerged outside the temple. She started explaining every corner around them. Eleand just quietly listened.
They were on the rear part of the temple; faerie warriors were training using ice magic. They were the Dimrae—the Winter Army. They didn’t have wings, but their magic was strong. Based on his observations, these faeries could cast their magic attributes without getting exhausted despite doing the same thing repeatedly—carving gigantic weapons and thick ice shields.
In the distance, Eleand saw two female faeries playing down the waterfall. They sculpted swords and birds that levitate a few meters from the ground, using their ice magic from their palms.
“Will I be able to do that?” he asked without hiding his astonishment.
“It depends on your ability. We will see what kind of magic you can wield. It can be any of the four elements or shapeshifting. Since you’re a mortal, you’ll do it by the book.”
He laughed awkwardly. “I’m not interested in shapeshifting.”
Eleand almost winced at the thought of him shapeshifting into an animal. The idea was horrible. What if something went wrong and he could not shift back? Besides, using the magic of the four elements sounded cool. He would appear like a superhero.
“For a mortal like you, of course, you could never do shapeshifting.” She laughed heartily. He could handle her teasing. For some reason, he felt at ease with her.
They walked until they reached the library of the temple. It was located on the left part, and the structure was separated from the main building.
“This is where you will do your research when your training starts. But don’t worry, I’m here. I can help you find the right materials,” she winked.
“Great, how can I repay you?”
“Good thing you asked because everything has a price. You will know when the time comes.”
“Whatever,” he shrugged.
“Let me accompany you to your room.”
He held at her shoulders, thinking they would vanish. Enkille looked at his hands on her shoulders.
“Why?” he wondered, “Aren’t we going to disappear?”
“From now on, you will do everything on foot. You can’t depend on the Vanire alone, especially that you can’t do such transportation magic.” Enkille reminded him.
“I can learn that.”
Enkille shook her head. “I prayed, and I hope you’ll learn it fast.”
They slowly walked back to the temple. Eleand noticed that almost every faerie in Velidia had a distinct characteristic of ash gray hair.
He did not complain when they climbed the high staircase going to his room. He got used to the architecture of this world, massive stairs. Maybe because they seldom used it.
“Get enough rest. Because when Fariyah teaches you, I assure you that everything will be like hell.” Enkille said when they finally reached his room.
“It’s fine. I am a fast learner. Thank you for accommodating me here.”
“Just call my name if you need anything.”
He smiled. “Yes, I will.”
Then Enkille was gone. He surveyed his room. It was almost the same in the Golden Palace. However, the area was smaller. But the winter theme of the interior was the same.
He took a long deep sigh.
There was no chance of turning back now.
- Writer
