Chapter 24 - Stunning Picture

Two little red birds played with each other and their chirping momentarily distracted Emelinia. She watched them disappear into a tree before turning her attention back to her engagement ring. She loved everything about it. It's simplistic design was her favorite thing about it. She was never the type to like flashy jewelry. The silver band with a braid like pattern and red diamond was more than enough for her.

Sharaina got out of the house yawning as she combed her hair with her fingers. She took notice of Emelinia admiring her ring and she grinned at her. Sharaina sat in front of her with her legs folded and she rested her head in both her hands. Emelinia caught her smiling at her and she felt shy.

"It looks more beautiful on your hand Emelinia. You have pretty fingers." Sharaina sweetly said to Emelinia and she blushed with a grin.

"Thank you. It is indeed a beautiful piece." Emelinia took her eyes off the ring.

"It belonged to my mother." Akirexer added as she joined the girls.

Akirexer sat away from them on one of the chairs on the porch. Sharaina saw Light on his lawn and she gestured at him to go over there. Light felt a little hesitant but when he remembered that Nami already left for work, he immediately walked over to Sharaina's home. Akirexer and Emelinia greeted him and he was offered a grass chair on the porch. When no one was looking, he winked at Sharaina and she giggled quietly.

"She kept the ring so well." Emelinia said to Akirexer.

Akirexer nodded her head. "Oh yes she did. I actually witnessed her giving the ring to Naian."

Akirexer sat back smiling as she stared into space. It was clear to everyone that she was reminiscing about her happy times with her mother. She had that kind of day dreaming smile that would make anyone not to attempt to disturb a person's thoughts. Light and the girls patiently waited for Akirexer to come back to reality.

"I want to show you a picture of my parents, Emelinia." Akirexer gladly cut her own thoughts.

She peeped into the kitchen and saw Alainara drawing on the table with her crayons and papers scattered all over half the table.

"Alainara, bring the picture of grandma and grandpa in my room." she said and Alainara abandoned her drawing.

Akirexer turned to face Emelinia once more. "My mother is a wild and crazy woman. She absolutely loves the life of adventure." her eyes were twinkling blissfully as she recalled everything.

"She sounds like a daring woman." Emelinia contented.

Akirexer smiled at her response. "Yes she is and she is also a huge drunkard. I fear Sharaina took up after her." she giggled.

Sharaina looked at Akirexer with the 'seriously?' look. "This is not about me." she blankly commented and everyone cracked up laughing softly.

"If you don't control your drinking, you may end up like your grandma." Akirexer warned her in between her giggles.

Emelinia stopped laughing and shot a concerned look at Akirexer. "What happened to her?" she asked.

"Oh she fell down the stairs one night when she was intoxicated and landed on my father. They have both been hibernating since. Things here haven't really been the same without them around." she answered with a sigh.

"I'm sorry about that." Light sympathized and Emelinia nodded her head.

Alainara came outside with a picture frame in her hand. She gave it to Akirexer and went back into the house. Akirexer looked at the picture lovingly before passing it over to Light. His eyebrows jerked when his eyes gazed at the picture and he looked back at Akirexer who smiled at him. The stunned look on Light's face made Emelinia curious. She looked at him give it one last look and pass it on to Sharaina. She didn't look at the picture but instead passed it on to Emelinia immediately.

The moment Emelinia saw the star birthmarks on Akirexer's old parents, she was astonished. She looked up at Akirexer and she nodded her head with a warm smile. Emelinia then understood why the family accepted her easily. They were not prejudice and judgemental because they actually lived with seers before.

"Now you know why your ring has fit you perfectly." Akirexer remarked.

Emelinia slowly nodded her head. "She saw that I would."

'No wonder Naian was surprised that it fit. Does this mean that I was destined to be his wife after all?' Emelinia contemplated to herself.

"She told him that he would meet his wife on a day when he least expects it and that all he will see in her eyes is fear." Akirexer thoughtfully said.

Emelinia had a flashback of when she met Naian. She remembered vividly how anxious she was when he looked at her surprised. Emelinia did not realize that her mouth was agape as she stared at Akirexer.

'Did Naian know from the beginning that I am to be his wife?' Emelinia wondered to herself.

"You might not believe me dear but even I faced problems growing up because of the class of my mother. People said that I'd give birth to female seers so no one wanted to marry me. Well that was until I met Sharumez. He said that if we had seer daughters, he would treasure them." this time, Akirexer blushed a little.

"That was beautiful. It is people like you who make me believe that true love exists." Emelinia said, Light and Sharaina looked at each other.

"It certainly exists dear. Perhaps you will love my son sooner than you think. I know that you are afraid because everything is happening so fast. You should know that even he is nervous about this marriage. He is hiding his feelings from everyone but I know him well enough to know that he is afraid. He may be even more scared than you are."

Akirexer noticed that her words made Emelinia feel out of place. "Don't worry Emelinia, he will take care of you." she assured her.

When Akirexer was done talking, Light politely explained that he had to leave. Sharaina got up in order to escort him out. The two slowly walked away hand in hand and this was much to the surprise of Akirexer. Emelinia wasn't surprised at all. She assumed that the two were in a relationship the night Sharaina went to go and see him.

"So you are spending the day in Lano at your uncle's?" Sharaina pouted as she asked Light.

Light gave her hand a little squeeze. "Yes and I won't be back until night." he softly told her. Looking into her eyes, he said. "I'll miss you." he kissed her forehead.

Sharaina squirmed and smiled shyly. "I'll miss you too. Take care of yourself."

"I will." Light waved at her and got into the portal he opened.

****

King Raglan sat on his golden throne with Prince Meelzib sitting on his left and Queen Lavila on his right. Below them were the current six commanders. They stood opposite each other as they waited for their newest member to join them. The previous commander decided to retire after over a thousand years of service.

Standing opposite Sevilon was Luven. Ouman stood beside Sevilon and opposite him was Anray. She was an orange haired giant woman with the body of a bodybuilder. She towered over all the commanders. The brutish look on her face was further increased by her eye patch. Her cheeks were covered in freckles and her dragon mark was visible on her neck. Her curly orange hair was let loose on her shoulders. She was in charge of North America.

Standing next to her was Stix. He was a silver haired tall and slim man. His straight hair was long up to his waist. As usual, he had a smug look on his face. He was in charge of Europe. Standing opposite him was Fed. He was a tall and well built man with brown hair that was neatly cut. He was in charge of Antarctica.

The doors opened to a slender woman. She wore the black military uniform of the commanders. Her navy blue hair was tied in a bun. She marched in between the commanders and bowed down to King Raglan on one knee with her head down.

The Council of Elders, who were completely comprised of male seers, sat behind the commanders. They quietly observed everything. The chief seer, Mohak, stood behind the bowing woman. In his hands was a closed scroll. His maroon robe touched the floor as he opened the scroll.

"Your majesty, may I proceed with the Swearing ceremony?" he asked with a bow.

"Yes, you may." King Raglan replied.

"Do you, Philanda, solemnly swear to be loyal to the throne of Dark Star?" Mohak asked her.

"I do." Philanda answered with her right hand on her chest.

"Do you, Philanda, solemnly swear to serve Dark Star with loyalty and integrity?"

"I do."

"Do you, Philanda, solemly swear to dedicate your life to the Dark Star army?"

"I do."

Mohak closed the scroll and backed away with his head bowed. King Raglan arose from his throne and majestically walked down the five stairs to Philanda. He proceeded to place his hand on her head and unleashed his gamarax on her. Philanda felt as though electricity was running through her veins but she contained herself. In seconds, King Raglan released his hold on her and raised his hands to the Council of Elders.

"I hereby deem Philanda Auvecnam, the commander of Australia." He helped Philanda up by her shoulders.

"Welcome to the Enchanted Seven." he delightfully said to her with a smile.

****

Light appeared in the town of Lano. It was a town enclosed in a 300m tall brick wall. This was due to severe kremis attacks in the past. Lano was a prestigious town that mostly comprised of wealthy families. The minority of the town's population were middle class who were servants of the upper class people. They lived in a secluded area comprised of flats. The lower class were unable to live there due to the high standards of living.

Light walked to his old mansion which was now occupied by his uncle Veruno. When he got there, he found him already waiting for him outside. Light waved at him as a guard opened the gate for him.

Veruno had a big smile on his face as he spread his arms apart. He was a bachelor fourth class darkas god who made a living by managing Velan's boutique in Lano. He and Light had an excellent relationship ever since Light was born. Their bond was so close that people mistook Veruno for Light's father.

Light gave Veruno a bear hug and they laughed softly with each other. Veruno patted Light's back as they walked into the mansion. A maid served them both some juice and excused herself.

"I am so happy that you have come to visit me, Light. It's been 8 months." Veruno said after drinking half of his glass.

"I'm sorry about not coming sooner uncle. I have been held up with my work and academics." Light took a swig of his glass.

Veruno looked charmingly at Light. "So tell me, what's new with you?" he asked.

"Nothing much to say the least." Light quickly answered.

Veruno let out a guffaw, "That's not what your mother told me." he teased.

Light didn't dare to look at him because he knew where the conversation was heading. "What did she tell you?" he plainly asked as he played with his glass.

"She said that she was happy that you listened to her and cut off the neighbor girl." Veruno held his chin. "I can't seem to remember her name though."

Light leaned back on the couch. "Her name is Sharaina." he said with a distant look on his face.

"Light, why do I get the feeling that you haven't cut her out of your life." Veruno voiced out his suspicions.

Light was silent.

"Oh my goodness you haven't cut her off!" Veruno said, alarmed. "Light, what are you thinking?"

"I couldn't do it." Light answered. This time his eyes were on Veruno. "You wouldn't understand." he shrugged him off.

Veruno leaned away from his couch. "This girl, what is so special about her that you are willing to go against your parents for her?"

"I love her." Light simply answered but Veruno felt the emotion in his voice. "Do you think that mother will one day accept my decision to be with Sharaina?" he asked with a sigh.

Veruno shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. "My sister is very stubborn and hot headed so I wouldn't get my hopes up if I were you. Be prepared to feel her wrath. I hope that girl is worth it Light or you may end up regretting."

Light smiled faintly at Veruno. "I understand what you mean completely but you must understand that this is something I'm willing to fight for." he confidently replied.

Veruno flashed a cocky smile at Light. "As long as this is what you want, know that your uncle Veruno is with you."

Light felt happy hearing his uncle say that. "Please, don't mention this to anyone until I tell mother and father of my decision. It's better they hear it from me. I'm just waiting for the right time."

Veruno tilted his glass at Light. "Consider it done." he declared and Light laughed softly with him.

****

Akirexer was feeling a little light headed after all the wedding planning she did that afternoon. The thought of her going to the market and later scouting for mushrooms made her feel like she was going to pass out. When she heard Sharaina and Emelinia chatting in Emelinia's room, she grinned.

'Why punish myself when there are two girls more than capable of running this errand for me?' She thought to herself.

"Sharaina and Emelinia, could you please come down here?" she called out to them.

"Yes, mama?" Sharaina asked her as soon as they were downstairs.

Akirexer handed a piece of paper and money to Sharaina. "I need you two to go to the market to get me those spices and sunflower oil." she said and Sharaina nodded her head while Emelinia peeked at the paper. "I also need you to go in the woods and pick red mushrooms." Akirexer concluded.

"Alright," Sharaina said and Emelinia followed her out of the house.

Oblivious to them, were Jemi and Boo floating up in the air in a purple bubble made entirely out of gamarax. Boo further hid their presence by covering it with clouds. They had been watching their house since morning. They watched Emelinia doing chores outside the house earlier but decided against kidnapping her then. They also felt that barging into the house would have attracted the attention of military troops assigned to protect the village. None of them was willing to risk getting arrested so they patiently waited for the right time.

They were delighted to see Emelinia walk out of the yard. It was only a matter of time for them to complete their mission. All they had to do was to follow her and grab her at the perfect moment. Jemi narrowed his eyes at Sharaina. He saw that she was a not of age warrior and concluded that she wasn't going to get in their way.

Sharaina and Emelinia soon arrived at the market. They bought the required spices and oil from a street vendor and made their way out of the market. Boo and Jemi followed them stealthily up in the sky. They looked at the girls laugh and talk.

The moment they turned to the woods, Jemi and Boo grinned deviously. What better place to kidnap Emelinia than the woods?

No witnesses. No military troops.

Sharaina and Emelinia looked for red mushrooms but all they saw were blue, yellow and white ones. Not a single red mushroom was in sight so they were forced to go deeper into the woods. When they were about to give up, Emelinia spotted a bunch of them ahead and ran to them. Sharaina caught up with her and together they loaded the basket with the tiny mushrooms.

Sharaina suddenly felt a strange presence and she stood up. Emelinia was taken aback by this and she looked up at Sharaina. She took notice that Sharaina was scowling at something. She instinctively turned to see and her heart dropped when her eyes fell on Jemi. He clapped his hands slowly and sarcastically while he smiled cannily at Emelinia.

"Did you really think that you could get away from me, sweetheart?