The Oracle

An incredible miracle has happened. When the Wheepingthorne's Village is engulfed in flames of destruction and heaps of dead bodies has been piled up one after another, that it almost felt endless; a surge of immense mana and an explosion of blinding light swallow up the land. It reaches across to the other side of the mountain, and perhaps to the other part of the world. However, the explosion of magic doesn't feel threatening or painful at all; instead, it delivers heart-wrenching warmth and bliss that everyone freezes in their place and let their self bathed with its glory. Not even those who were battling to death were spared of its splendor.

The people in the capital, especially those that have visited the kingdom, have also witnessed the miracle. And they were left flabbergasted. Even the High Priestess Lucia, who was resting inside her quarters, has seen the marvelous phenomenon and had felt Selene's natural energy flows freely embedding to the earth. And for the first time in a decade, she hears the Goddess's voice once again. Though her message resonates across the land, it would be impossible for the people to fail to notice it.

Powers that reaches the realms of infinitesimal possibility

Guarded by the command of the stars with devoted loyalty

Bonded to the vast dominion of the Gods

And connected to the Holy Tree, Eemosolia

The child blessed by gods shall bring forth the rise of a new age

Heed my words, for when the day silver turns to gold

And the dark sky is colored brightly by the pillars of light

Her powers will finally awaken that shall mark the dawn of a tangled future

For either, it will bring an age of prosperity or an era of sorrow for Albion

High Priestess Lucia went out of the balcony and witnessed when the blinding light slowly dissipates, and she watches as the barren land of the Island of Felora has once again been revived. The land that is scarce of magic is replenishing, and every Priestess in the temple stares in awe as the trees grow taller that it almost reaches the sky and myriad of flowers sprout abundantly. The dried lake has been filled with its usual sparkling crystal water, and she can suddenly feel Blossom's presence beneath it.

She grabs her cloak and veil before opening the trod that will take her to Selene's location. She needs to get her before anyone does. Now that the other part of the oracle was revealed, she's worried about what the Queen will do. Things have become even more complicated because delegates from the other kingdoms must have also witnessed what happened.

"High Priestess, where are you going?" Priestess Mauricia calls out from the entrance of the doorway.

"I need to take care of something." Lucia declares. She looks at her gravely. "Close all the trod, even the one that's located in the palace. Do not let anyone come inside the temple. If the Queen seeks an audience, tell her that I'm praying, and I do not wish to be disturbed. I will seek her once I'm ready."

"But High Priestess—!"

Lucia ignores Priestess Mauricia's protests and proceeds inside. Once she steps out of the doorway, a magnificent sight Lucia thought she would never be able to see for the rest of her remaining life welcomes her. The snow in the mountain has slowly thawed as the bright sun appears in the clear sky. Just like what happened in the Temple, the trees and flowers are in full bloom, and the wind carries a sweet and refreshing scent that heals her lungs.

And just a few paces away from her, Selene's unconscious body is lying on the ground while Khalil, the one she told her about last time, is on his knees crying while trying to wake Selene. High Priestess Lucia walks towards Khalil and gently caresses his head. He looks up to her with his face splash with tears.

"Don't worry. Selene is just sleeping."

"She's not dead? She gave me a lot of her magic to save me; that's why I thought—" Khalil couldn't finish what he's saying because he's already bawling his eyes out.

"She may not look like it, but Selene is incredibly strong. She won't die that easily."

She has become incredibly strong that her presence has become even more potent than the last time they saw each other, only a few hours ago. Even she cannot fathom the potential of her powers. Lucia is not sure about what happened, but something must have triggered the cause of her overflowing mana. And the bracelet given to her by her guardian is also missing from her wrist.

"Let's bring her to someplace safe."

With a single wave of her fingers, Selene's unconscious body floats from the ground, enveloping her in a cocoon of bluish light that protects her from outside. She did the same with Khalil, who suddenly lose consciousness because of exhaustion. Lucia still needs to do something before going back to the temple. She opens another trod that will take them to where her guardian is.

High Priestess Lucia found Kaden in Wheepingthorne's Village, along with the intruders from the Empire of Ebon. Just like the others, he's still relatively in a daze as he examines the sudden changes in his surroundings. Though the battle has stopped, it was only for a moment because even the injured enemies recovered because of Selene's healing magic. Although, those who had died remains dead as they are. Her heart is heavy as Lucia bows her head with her hand, clasped to her heart, and offers her prayer. She prays for their soul to return to the hands of their Goddess.

Kaden must have felt her presence because his attention instantly turns towards her direction. His eyes grew wide when he sees Khalil and Selene with her. Though, his attention remains fixated on Selene as he stares at her with worry.

"How come you're here? And what happened to them?"

"I came to take them back to my home. Come see them after you're done cleaning up this mess." Lucia ordered evenly.

Kaden's mouth twitches in annoyance. Her voice sounds like she clearly has no intention of taking no for an answer, but he shakes his head vehemently. "No, just leave them here. Thank you for taking care of them, but I will take it from here."

Lucia makes a displeasing sound. "It seems like you still haven't realized the gravity of the situation. It will be dangerous to leave Selene in a place like this. Although I have closed all the trod that will lead the Queen and her knights to the deepest part of this mountain, it may take days, but she will still send her army to check on what happened here. If she finds out about Selene, she will surely take her away. As you already know, she is the child of the prophecy."

Kaden gritted his teeth. The look on his face just says it all. He must have also heard the voice of the goddess.

An unfamiliar face but a recognizable presence slowly walks towards them. Lucia knows who he is, even without him introducing himself.

"What is she talking about? Who is she?" an incredulous voice pipe in on their conversation. He looks at Kaden dubiously. "Is she telling the truth?"

Lucia slightly bows her head. "Greetings, Imperial Prince Nicolai Ernest Goldstein. I am the High Priestess of the Temple of Arete. My name is Lucia."

Upon her introduction, everyone's head snaps in her direction, their face stiff frozen with suspicions. Even Kaden's mouth hangs open in disbelief. Of course, they wouldn't easily believe her. There's no way the High Priestess will just carelessly leave the temple.

Lucia sighs. "Your subordinate, Zeno, can vouch for my identity. He had visited the temple just earlier with Selene."

Her gaze sweeps around the destroyed village while taking note of the remaining people who survived. "Just like what I said earlier, take care of this mess before the Queen or even your imperial brother caught wind of this."

Prince Nicolai stiffens, and his face darkens with worry. There's no telling what will happen if an uninvited guest will be discovered here, even if he is a Prince of an Empire. She can already feel an incoming headache just by thinking about it. From the entire Queens list, she has served for centuries; Queen Katia is the most sensitive and prickly out of them. By closing the various trod without prior notice, it already puts her in a bad spot, but despite that, Lucia will still remain true to her original plan. She will not let Selene be used as a pawn for their political games. This time around, she will save her.

Lucia's gaze returns Kaden before continuing. "Come to the Fairling Waterfalls when you're ready, and take them with you."

Kaden's head cocks in confusion with her statement. "I'm talking about the band of misfits who came with you." Lucia enunciated seriously.

Lucia hears a growl of protest from the other side and purposely ignores Prince Nicolai's glare.

"From there, I will open the trod for you."

After saying the things that she needed to say, a doorway appears out of thin air, and Lucia went inside along with Selene and Khalil leaving a troubled Kaden behind.