Below the Peak (Sola)(104)
“Yes.”
Her eyes widened the moment they stepped foot outside the house. Rather than it being dark, the land was shrouded in blue mist, with an enormous orange moon hanging in the sky. Staring at the direction they were about to head, sparks of fire from burning pyres flared from the mist. Nara exhaled a nervous breath. Right there, she knew this was entirely different from rituals in Murisa. As though obeying the summon woven in the chilling beat, their feet moved toward it. As they drew closer it the sound grew louder, filling her whole body. She spotted other elves in shrouding blue mist. The magic in the mist wafted into her nose and settled in her knotting stomach. She stole a glance at Calemir when they stopped among large crowd standing around the tallest pyre. His jaw twitched, and his eyes were growing dark green, she could almost feel the energy buzzing in his bones. She peeled her eyes from him when the drumming ceased and focused them on the platform next to the pyre. A woman climbed the stairs and stood at the center. The female elf looked otherworldly with flowers laced in her silver hair down to the flowy mystical dress she wore. “Stay here.”
Nara glanced back at Calemir. “Where are you going?”
“Just stay” he ordered then disappeared into the crowd. Although a little irritated he just left her without explanation, Nara stayed put on the spot, returning her attention back to the unnamed woman at the front. It wasn’t long until she knew where he went, he appeared next to the woman.
This should be interesting, Nara mused as she watched the two elves. It wasn’t until it had become eerie silent when the woman started to sing. Her voice was pure as she sang in elvish. It should have been impossible for her to be heard by the large gathering but the mysterious mist acted as carrier her voice travelled through it as if she were singing in a cave. As the woman sang, the prince’s base humming voice serenaded hers. Several seconds later, the prince began to sing while the woman hummed. The men joined the prince in singing as the women copied the female elf in humming. Their voices blended into a sweet euphonious tune as it peaked then slowly fell to an end. Together Calemir and the woman held a torch and cast it on the dead boar laying on the pyre. The land opened as the fire, and smoke from the pyre rose in the air. Magic flowed in a cycle from the air, soil and the elves. Like a high tidal wave, magic released upon them. Nara repeatedly blinked, feeling dizzy. A pungent sweet scent of rain on dry soil mixed with the smell of blooming flowers sank into her nose, ears and mouth and into her blood. As she tried to get a sense of control, a heavy beat of drums started then followed by a transcendent voice. She lifted her head and at looked at the platform. The woman was all alone, Calemir nowhere to be seen. The woman swayed fluidly, her hands twisting enchantingly with the beat as her voice soared high, sending shivers down her spine. The rest of the elves joined her dancing.
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Chapter Fifty-two
Never have been a dancer and feeling queasy, body overwhelmed with the rousing magic, Nara took a step back from the crowd. She felt if she stayed any much longer she might pass out from the magic. She looked at the elves around her. How were they able to dance with the magic feeling like a hurricane? She turned around. She was going back home, well hoping to do so if she doesn’t get lost in the mist. She took four steps and halted. “You” she whispered shout. The elf glanced around then back to her. “Me?”
“Yes, you,” she said, wincing a little as she struggled to clear the fog in her mind. The silver haired elf drew a little closer to her and smiled slowly. “So, you still remember me.”
“You are alive” Nara gaped, a wave of relief and astonishment washing over her. The elf’s silver eyes glinted sharply against the blue mist. “Alive and well.”
He cocked his head to the side, the space between his brows bunching. “How is the boy?”
The question sobered her momentarily, her features turning grim. “He’s dead.”
The brightness in his eyes dimmed. He solemnly said. “I’m sorry.”
“Me too,” Nara muttered.
His eyes gazed at her briefly before moving back to hers. “You have company.”
Twisting, she looked back over her shoulder. There was no one behind her. Nara turned back to look at him. She frowned. He was gone. Her eyes darted around.
“Hello” his voice rumbled, sinking softly into her. Nara turned, tilting her head and met Calemir’s eyes.
“What is it?” Calemir asked, sensing her unrest and seeing it in her sparkling brown eyes. Although thoughts etched on her features, there were still traces of effects of magic on her. Her skin was glowing. She pursed her lips and shook her head lightly, murmuring. “It’s nothing.”
“It’s just a man I met before. I didn’t tell you but when the cursed spirit attacked, there was also a man. He had been the one who had urged me to leave with the boy. I left him fighting the bastards” she explained when Calemir kept watching her, his dark gaze unwavering. “I had thought he had died too, but then I just met him here.”
“A human?”
“No, he’s an elf.”
Calemir looked around. “Where is he?”
“I don’t know, he disappeared in the crowd,” Nara shrugged.
“You sang well” she added after the tension between became too much. Calemir made a puzzled face.
“You sang well” she repeated a little louder over the loud singing.