Chapter 48

I watched her, waiting for her reaction, but for the first time, her smile faded, and she turned to watch the pond.

“We cannot. Even with all our strength, we would not be enough to stop it.”

She gazed out over the waters, and I heard her murmur,

“We have already failed this world once…”

I watched her sitting deep in thought. Who were these people? I opened my mouth to ask, and then closed it. I didn’t think she would give me an answer even if I did. I sighed. So it had all been in vain. But she knew how to defeat it. She knew what it was. Why wouldn’t she help? She turned to me, and I saw tears glistening on her cheeks.

“You can do it, Rina. You can bring hope to those who fight it.”

I winced. So that was it. Even the Dorians put their hope in me. What did she want me to do? She knew I wasn’t their Goddess. I didn’t even know what we were up against. She smiled, and I sighed. She was no different than the rest of the people. Hoping I would save them… I took a deep breath, wishing I could still make her change her mind.

“I am bringing hope. The people believe in me.”

I began to tell her what I had done, but she just shook her head.

“But you do not believe it yourself. How can you then hope the people will? How can you expect that their faith will be strong enough to resist its gaze when their Goddess falter?”

I stared at her. She was right… I didn’t… I was just pretending.

“I’m not her…”, I whispered, staring at the ground.

She took my hands.

“It does not matter. You can choose to become Her.”

She smiled and continued,

With gentle smile

and sword in my hand,

with love, care,

and an open heart.

With courage, fire,

and strength of arms,

I don’t regret

walking this path.

She stood up.

“Rest and think about it”

She turned to leave, and I watched in a haze as she walked back through the forest. I wasn’t their Goddess. How could I believe in something I knew wasn’t the truth? The forest began to shimmer, and I felt a sudden urge to lie down. Think about it… You have to believe… I fell into a restless dream. I tried to turn to ask Veena what she meant, but she wasn’t there. The world spun around me, and I fell…

I opened my eyes. It was daytime, and I was sitting in our camp, where I had heard the Veena’s voice the first time. I blinked. Had it all been a dream? I glanced around. Uruk was sitting next to me, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. I saw Selene groggily sitting up underneath the tree where she and Aki had fallen asleep, and Aki peered around, her hair askew.

“What happened?”, she murmured.

I glanced around, and only then did I notice a girl standing at the outskirts of the camp. She was young, no older than Aki, with a scarf wrapped around her head, but her white hair gave her away as a Dorian. I stared at her as she stepped forward and bowed.

“I am Chaya. Please welcome me to your company.”

The camp fell silent, and I stared at her and then back at my companions. No one spoke for a moment until Uruk broke the silence,

“Who are you?”

She bowed again.

“I have been allowed to accompany you on your path. Rest assured that I want you no harm.”

She hadn’t answered his question. Wouldn’t she even explain what had happened? Karim stood up.

“Why?”

She tried to smile.

“You have seen the darkness. I can… warn you if its presence finds you.”

She sighed and stared at the ground. She was so young. Why had they even sent her? It must have been on Veena’s orders. I shook my head. Had she even been real? But how else could the girl have come here?

“Joining us will put you in danger”, Karim said, interrupting my thoughts.

“I know”, she whispered.

Selene frowned.

“Then why have your people not sent someone more experienced than you?”

“I cannot tell you, but we do not wish harm upon you”, she whispered.

The camp fell silent. It didn’t look like she would give us any explanation. I sighed.

“Any help is better than none”, I said quietly.

Karim and Selene glanced at each other.

“We aren’t enemies”, Uruk concluded, and I saw Selene nodding.

I glanced at the girl. She was standing quietly, watching the ground. Aki watched her curiously for a moment before turning to us and asking,

“So what will we do now?”

They all looked at each other for a moment before Uruk suggested,

“We could return and reach Zarion in a few days”

“And see my family again!”, Aki cried happily.

Karim pulled a map from his bag, spreading it on the ground. I got up and we gathered around him.

“That is an option…”

Uruk leaned over and pointed at the map.

“Or we could go south through Shu and enter my land from the north and then take a ship to Zarion.”

“But that’s the long way around!”, Aki complained.

“It is, but if we can show the South that...”

Selene paused and glanced at Chaya.

“...that we are ready, we will gain more support”, she finished.

She hadn’t said what she wanted. But bringing Chaya to the South and showing the people that the Dorians were on our side would give people hope, and other kingdoms would join us. I sighed. At least she hadn’t said it aloud and made it clear how we planned to use our new companion.

Aki grinned.

“I’ve never been so far south.”

“One day we will travel even further, and you will see the golden towers of Eldoria and the blue sea stretching as far as the eye can see.”, Karim smiled.

They kept speaking, and I glanced at Chaya. She hadn’t said a word. Would she just follow us wherever we went? Was that her only mission? To protect us from this darkness?

Karim packed the map, and we shared food in silence. I glanced at Chaya. She sat by herself, staring at the ground. Even though we had accepted her, none of us dared to discuss anything important with her around. It reminded me of the time when I arrived in this world and everything looked so strange and unfamiliar.

I walked over and sat down next to her.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

She turned to me and smiled.

“You act just like Her.”

I shrugged.

“I just know that it’s no fun being a stranger somewhere, that’s it”

“It does not matter as long as you act the way she did”

“How do you know what she would do?”

“We still remember the time when she walked among us.”

I shook my head. It would be a long journey.