Crowned 3 - meeting the villains.

 

CHAPTER 3

Elvira, covered in mud, Linch dung and blood, ran across the forest floor like a fly trying to escape a spiderweb. More than a dozen Linchs used more than a million of their legs to chase her, wreaking havoc on the forest floor.

The ground trembled beneath her feet. The trees shook, the berries fell, some Linchs sprouted wings and began buzzing behind her.

“This is an evolutionary crimeeeeeee!!!” Elvira cried as she propelled herself forward with no regard for safety or a sense of direction in tow. Panic surged within her being; her feet felt like molten sticks detached from her body but supportive nonetheless.

All she did was run towards the blue in the sky, hoping it would lead her to the edge.

And to her surprise, it did. Lead her. To the edge of a CLIFF.

Even if she were to jump, the ones with the wings would catch her. Still, she couldn’t die being Linch food—just because she had no magic to her fate did not mean that she would die such a horrible death! Being drained out of her blood, no less. No.

Elvira shivered as she sped forward. The edge of the cliff was in sight. And so was the rocky terrain, not too distant, of another cliff. It was Amoris’ land and she would be illegally crossing borders if she jumped.

“I will deal with jail if I live to tell the tale!” Elvira coaxed herself.

The creatures were catching up. Her hands and feet got clammy, nonetheless, she tightened her grip around the wood and paper. One jump and she could live to see another day. One jump and maybe she could see Zinna again. This couldn’t be how she would end. So, Elvira took a leap of faith – quite literally.

Though, just as she flung up in the air, her breath hitched as two shooting stars zoomed past her side – one blue and the other green. Were they people? Mages?

Elvira couldn’t spare a thought as she lunged at the rocky cliff and grabbed a hold of its edge before she could fall to her death. Small rocks fell from where her hand had grabbed the coarse stones. She heard the rocks knock against cold hard ground and shatter.

Elvira gulped.

She did not have the gall to look down.

Her left hand was already hurting. She couldn’t propel herself upwards without using both hands.

But she could only hold on for so long.

The flying Linchs should have gotten her by now…what happened?

Reluctantly, Elvira turned her head.

Elvira gasped as what her peripherals witnessed amazed her senses beyond belief.

The shooting stars hadn’t been an illusion of near death and extreme dehydration — no, they had been actual people! Two mages, sweeping and slashing the Linchs like they were big bags of hay tied together. In mere seconds, the army of Linchs following her had been wiped out. The duo stood in mauve remains as wind fluttered past their blue and green robes.

“Did you get them all?” one of them asked as he superficially dusted his blue clothes.

“Uh-hm, there should have been twenty but I only have nineteen samples.” The other replied as he looked up and turned to spot Elvira hanging off the Amoris cliff. “Ah, there’s our twentieth.” He stated.

“A little help…please?” Elvira called out.

“Why not?” the mage in blue grinned. He tipped himself off the edge of Linch Cliff and floated over the gap, upside down, like a feather. His dark hair caught the sun and shadowed his sapphire blue eyes, which stared directly in Elvira’s dull auburn gaze. There was no magic circle around him, neither did his full rosy limps seem to be chanting a spell.  With practiced elegance, he landed on the Amoris Cliff.

“Woahhh…” Elvira gasped, “Enhancer Type?”

“Induced, Class Double S!” he replied, thick dark brows raised and mouth in a grin.

“No way! That’s so cool! I have only ever met a S before! My father is Enhancer Type, Induced, Class S.”

“Wha!” the blue mage gasped, “Where does he induce it?”

“Strength, mostly,” Elvira grinned.

“Cannot say the same about you.” The other mage whispered right behind Elvira’s ear.

“ARAHHA!”

Caught off-guard, Elvira let go of the cliff and fell. She yelped, expecting to fall into the abyss and be impaled by dry, hard, rocks. But she was quite surprised when her feet touched a solid ground. Gasping, Elvira looked down as found herself standing on a brilliant green magic circle, pressed against its owner. She turned to glare at him.

“That was vile!” Elvira snapped.

“Look brother, she complimented us!” he laughed, blonde hair catching the sun in an iridescent halo.

“Ha-ha! You’re so funny,” the blue mage grinned, eyes brightened by the comedy of Elvira’s life and death.

Elvira sucked in a harsh breath, processing his jade eyes and amusing gaze piercing through her skull.

“If you’re done resting on me, may we get the Linch blood off you?” the green mage asked. He had a thin mouth and a triangular face with sharper features, in comparison of his brother’s more rounded features.

Elvira blinked and jolted out of his personal space. “What? Blood? Yes-yes, yes please!” she replied, partially flustered and partially grateful.

The mage nodded and with a snap of his fingers a green magic circle appeared over Elvira’s head. She was captivated by the purity in its colour and the clarity of the symbols revolving around the circle. It gently passed over her body, elevating her of all the mud, dirt, moss, Linch dung and blood. As the circle reached the bottom of her feet, it disappeared and a mauve vial appeared in the mage’s hand.

“Conjuror Type?”

“Spells, Class S. Kairo.”

“Kairo?” Elvira blinked as the magic circle levitated underneath her.

“That’s my name.”

“And I’m Kaeo!” the blue mage grinned as he helped Elvira off the magic circle and grimaced at the sight of her gashed hand. He looked up at Kairo and the green mage nodded.

“I’m Elvira!” she introduced with a smile on her face before jumping off the circle and landing on Amoris’ territory.

Kaeo smiled back while Kairo took a hold of Elvira’s left hand and placed a magic circle over it.

“Why were you banished?” Kairo asked as the open gashes on her hand began closing up.

“Huh? Banished?” Elvira turned to face him.

“You have the mark on your neck. You didn’t know?” Kaeo asked, pointing at his neck.

“Oh…I didn’t know they marked me…”

“It’s seal,” Kairo observed, eyes narrowed at the brown brandishing engulfing her slender neck, “Created by some Soirse. You know them?”

Instinctively, Elvira detached her hand from Kairo’s magic circle and placed it over her neck. She felt a pang in her chest which she exhaled momentarily. To think her family would go through such lengths to get rid of her…Elvira took a step back and curled in her shoulders. Her eyes evaded theirs and she chose to stare at the dry, barren ground. Had she been wrong about the forest—did they jump continents and Land in Kalmia?

“It’s okay, Kai can hide it for you and we can go eat something good!” Kaeo exclaimed as he took a step towards her and patted her back.

Elvira looked up to face him. He had a kind smile which birthed dimples beside his pouty lips.

They would abandon her once they get to know why she was banished. Elvira decided to get done with it, sooner rather than later.

She huffed, mouth easing into a smile as she explained, “heh…actually, I was shunned for not having an ability. I’m cursed, apparently…so, I don’t think you people should be hanging around with me…” she grinned sheepishly.

She took another step back; hand still placed over the seal. “Bu-t, thank you for helping me, I’ll be fine, so before something bad happens to you, please leave,” she said.

Kairo scoffed. Kaeo snorted. Then, together, they burst into a howling laughter.

“C-cursed? Being cursed for not having an ability! Have you heard of this before, brother?”

“Nu-uh, never ever.”

“Oddity? Yes, but calling it Cursed is insanity!”

“Have you never been out of your town?”

Elvira looked at them, eyes narrowed with strange confusion.

“Just because a group of people reject you doesn’t mean you’re cursed. It just means that you haven’t found your right ones,” Kaeo shrugged and held out a hand for her to take, “Do you want to be with us instead?”