Chapter 3

Elyza's story continues.

Chapter 3.

On the third night that Elyza was with the Turtles she was awoken by Malak’s booming voice, upon opening her eyes she saw everything within the clearing saw soaring 20 feet in the air. Cidion flew to her.

“What are you feeling Elyza?” He asked calmly.

“Sadness, fear” Was all she could say, it was more of a paralysing sadness mixed with fear.

“Why?” He was so calm.

“They were hurting her and I couldn’t stop them.” tears started falling down her face at the memory.

“Everyone hurts Elyza and no one can stop that. You can’t save everyone. No one can.” He seemed to understand.

“I know but she was right there.”

“You may have great power Elyza but every day you will see all kinds of hurt around you. Look in my eyes. I have lived for 300 years and seen more hurt and pain than you can imagine. Our kind are all but extinct by the hands of humans and yet I am willing to let you be with us and help you. You cannot let fear and sadness rule your life. You must face these fears if you are ever to master your own power.” Elyza could see the pain he spoke of in his eyes as he said she would.

“Look around.” He said turning to the clearing. She looked past him and saw that everything was back on the ground and by the looks of it no one was hurt.

“I know now what is keeping you from mastering this power of yours. We start your training tomorrow.”

“You’ve been waiting for me to lose control? I could have injured someone.” Elyza felt anger flood her mind.

“We are more resilient than you know. We can handle your power.” He turned and flew back to his sleeping place. Elyza looked at Malak as he walked over to her.

“Is he insane?” She said bewildered by the Turtles response.

“He has seen many things in his lifetime. Not a lot frightens him. He has seen Magic pushed to its limit and survived to see many more days. If anyone can help you it is him. Pay attention to what he has to say. He helped you control it here, tonight. Now get some sleep tomorrow will be a long day.” Feeling a bit reassured she rolled over and tried to go back to sleep.

The next day she started her training as Cidion had said they would.

“Malak told me he taught you to find the source of your power. I want you to do that now for me.” Elyza closed her eyes and once again found the beautiful flowers of light. Only something was not right.

“It’s different.” She gasped.

“Tell me how it differs this time.” He encouraged her.

“The light it is not staying in the form of the flowers. It’s shooting out all over the place.” She was afraid, it did not look or feel right.

“Open your eyes.” Cidion commanded. She opened her eyes and looked at Cidion who had a serious look in his eyes.

“It is as I suspected. Your power is more than your body can handle. If we do not teach you to master this power it will consume you.”

“Consume me?” That did not sound good.

“Yes. We will start small. Malak do you have the feather?” She had almost forgotten he was there. Malak placed a feather on a rock in front of her.

“Using the air around it lift this feather off the rock.” It sounded easy enough however, Elyza had never purposely used her power before.

“I don’t know how to.” She told him shyly. He smiled at her.

“Think of the white flower, soft and delicate. Keep that in your mind but look at the air around the feather and see what it needs to do to lift the feather. Give it a go.” She was determine to do it. She did just as he said but the feather didn’t move, not even an inch.

“Remember the flower. The flower is the power. Without it nothing will happen. Try again.” She kept trying for hours, until Cidion told her to take a break. Her mind was exhausted.

“Perhaps she needs to feel it.” It was Malak who gave this suggestion.

“Of course she does emotion is the centre of all magic. But at the moment her emotions are all over the place so we need to strengthen her mind and help her to gain control of her emotions so they do not rule her.” He had really thought this through.

After lunch they did exactly that. Cidion took her down to the stream with another Turtle.

“Elyza this is Amity, she will be helping you to sort out the emotional side of your powers.” He nodded to Amity and went back to the other Turtles.

“Tell me about yourself.” Elyza wasn’t too sure about this, it seemed weird that she should tell all her secrets to some Turtle shrink. But for the sake of cooperation and not having some magical power consume her she gave it a go. She told her about her life back home and her father, she told her about how she came to be in Wifaria, the Queens men chasing her and meeting The Guild. She finished with how she met Malak.

“That is quite a lot to be faced with in just a few months. What bothers you the most about everything that has happened?” Elyza was silent for quite some time.

“Perhaps you would like to think about it and tell me tomorrow?”

“I know the answer to your question I just don’t want to say it. Saying it makes it real.” She said all this whilst looking at the ground.

“Saying the words doesn’t change what is. You know that.” Amity put an arm on Elyzas shoulder. Elyza looked into Amitys eyes.

“My father lied to me my entire life. He let me believe my mother was killed in a car accident. He knew what I was and he hid it from me. How could he do that if he loved me?”

“Perhaps he should have told you. However, I believe he withheld this from you because he was protecting you. I as a mother know that that is the only reason I would withhold such an important thing from my children.” There was only kindness and understanding in Amity’s eyes. Elyza looked down at her feet once again.

 “Does that make it okay? Does that mean I should just let it go?” She asked the turtle.

“That I cannot answer. You must answer that for yourself. Just know that your father knew what kind of person the queen is and he fled everything he knew here in Wifaria to keep you safe out of the queens reach. Parents sacrifice much for their children him more than most. I am telling you this not so you blame yourself or anyone for what has happened this far but so you might forgive him and see the love he has and always will have for you. Nothing compares to the love of a parent.” Amity then left her to her thoughts.

A while later Malak came appeared at her side. She looked up at him with such sadness in her eyes.

“You miss your Mother.” Malak stated.

“How do you miss someone you never met or knew anything about.” She replied on the brink of tears.

“Your father told you everything you needed to know about her.” He smiled kindly down at her.

“He lied about everything how can I possibly trust anything he has told me about her?”

“He may have changed the setting however, from what you have told me, the basis of everything he has told you is spot on.” She looked up at Malak realising he was right.

“I never thought of it that way. He told me they met at a pub and that she had put him in his place. From that moment on he had known that he would marry her.”

“If I remember correctly that is true. They met at a tavern, he was as drunk as they come and she had layed him out right there in front of all the patrons. When he got to his feet, he apologised profusely and she had walked him home. They were inseparable from that night on.” Malak told the story with laughter in his voice.

“How is you know so much about my parents?” she asked him.

“We trolls record everything that happens in Wifaria. Your parents were vital to the magic community.” He replied.

“That’s not it though is it? It’s more personal than that for you.”

“Your mother was my dearest friend. When she fell, I think a part of all of us fell with her. She was the most gentle and kind hearted woman I ever did meet.” There was a twinkle of sadness in his eyes as he remembered his friend.

“Why wouldn’t you tell me this?” She felt disappointed.

“I have interfered with your story enough I didn’t want to take you from the path you are supposed to be on. We trolls keep ourselves separate, we are but observers and record keepers.” He replied dutifully.

“That is no way to live Malak. You need to be a part of something and to do that you need to be there not watching from a distance.”

“I will take your advice into consideration. Perhaps you will listen to mine. You are holding onto so much. Let go, look around and see your present. It is after all far more interesting than your past.”

“I will take it into consideration.” She replied with a sly smile.

That night she had the most peculiar dream. She was standing in a field of flowers and in front of her was a man facing away from her. He had dark hair that moved as the wind blew through it, he was wearing a light shirt enabling her see that he had strong muscles beneath it. She walked towards the man reaching out her hand to touch his shoulder but as she reached him she awoke with a start. Shaking her head she rolled over and went back to sleep.

Three days later, she made her first sign of progress. She sat as usual with the feather in front of her. She had been at it for hours and was feeling quite fatigued when she gave a pointed huff towards the feather. It lifted off the rock and floated gently in front of her eyes.  She looked past the feather at Cideon who had a small smile on his small face.

“All I had to do was blow on it?” she asked the turtle.

“There is more to it than that but yes that is the general idea behind it.” He replied.

“Why wouldn’t you tell me that?” she asked frustration evident in her voice.

“The concentration you have been practicing has prepared your mind to control the wind once it starts. Your natural instinct did the rest when you were ready.”

They slowly increased the size weight of the objects over the following weeks. She found it easy to lift, move and control the items. Soon she was lifting the turtles in the air two and three at a time and sending them on a kind of roller coaster ride. Each night as she closed her eyes she dreamt of the mysterious man in the field. She decided to ask Malak about it so she asked him to accompany her on a walk by the river.

“You dream of the same man in the same place?” he asked her curiously.

“Yes but I always wake up before I can see his face.” She explained.

“hmmm it could just be a dream or…” he trailed off.

“or what?” she prompted him.

“well it would be strange but it could be a dream walker.”

“Great now I have a man walking around in my dreams.” She responded.

“There has not been a dream walker in many years. It is believed that the queen killed them all as she was worried that they would use their gift against her. From what you have told me though I don’t think this man means you any harm.” He explained.

“So what I just let this man keep coming into my dreams?”

“There is nothing we can do until we know who this man is. When you next dream of this man don’t force anything, let it play out like any other dream and perhaps we can find out who he is and what he wants.” With that they headed back to the turtles.