XIII - Zera's Resolve

"Quickly! Hurry up!" Randivo yelled at those in front of him.

"We're almost there! Just a bit further!" He continued to yell at them as they continued down the tunnel.

Suddenly, the tunnel began to shake and a loud noise echoed through the tunnel.

"What was that noise!?" Zera asked but Randivo told her to hurry.

"We can worry about that later! Go!"

After a few minutes, the group came upon a waterfall.

As everyone caught their breaths, Randivo turned around and looked up at the mountain. Two figures would fly around the wrecked mountain, followed by a massive creature which fired light at them.

"Randivo, what do we do now?" Zera approached Randivo, placing her hand on his shoulder.

"What is that?" Randivo was distracted by a creature whose body dimmed but because it was so far up in the sky, he could not see it clearly..

"Brother, we don't have time!" Zera said, slapping her brother, returning his attention to her.

Randivo took deep breaths and calmed down.

"They want the Clara-Cordis to be extinguished and that won't be possible as long as I live. Now that our home is gone, they want me. Being around me is the least safest option."

"So you are going to leave us?"

Randivo stared at his sister and a memory popped up in his mind.

"No. You will leave me."

Randivo reached into his pocket and placed an insignia in Zera's hand. The Pinnacle, the insignia of the Clara-Cordis. The symbol of a mountain with two wings on the side.

"The Reyna-Blagdan is a clan that hides in the shadows. You will head south to the holy land of Xeko."

"Xeko? That place is a desert! How are we supposed to find-?"

"Zera. You won't find them. The Reyna-Blagdan will find you."

 Randivo turned to the other two.

"You will accompany my sister. With this insignia, The Reyna-Blagdan will make sure you two are welcomed."

Randivo handed them both an insignia.

"But… Master- I mean, Grandmaster, what will you do?"

"There is no need to call me that. From here on out, you are all relinquished of your duty. I cannot endanger all three of you."

Zera raised a brow and turned. The female that stood next to the male chuckled as she placed a hand over her stomach.

"Zera, get close to them. I've met the Reyna-Blagdan before and I am going to transport you to a place near them."

"Brother, you can come with us."

Randivo glared at Zera.

"I am ordering you to go."

Zera could not fight against her brother. Even if she was the oldest both in age and experience as a Mythic, her brother's words held more power than her own. As much as she wanted to, she could not abandon tradition.

She approached the two as they huddled next to each other.

"So how long has this been going on?" Zera asked curiously.

"Well, it's been over three years." The male said.

Zera smiled, happy for the two. She turned to her brother who was preparing the spell.

"Will we meet again, brother?"

Randivo looked at her. Seeing the worried look in her eyes, he honestly didn't know.

"Maybe. It may take weeks, months, or years before we meet again. However you must forget about me. Your safety is all that matters."

A magic circle appeared underneath the three.

"Till next time, Zera."

The last thing Zera saw was her brother smiling before darkness took over. Seconds later, the three were in the middle of a desert ruin.

"Where do we go now?" The male said.

Zera jumped onto the top of a broken pillar and scouted the area. On one side there were vast dunes and the other was a dark forest.

"There's a desert and a forest. It's hard to believe that these Reyna-Blagdan would live in the desert."

Zera dropped down from the pillar and approached the two.

"I believe we'll have a long day tomorrow. For now you two just get some sleep. I'll fire one of my flares into the sky. Hopefully it attracts the right people."

The two trusted Zera's decision. Zera ascended the pillar once more and prepared to fire a fireball into the air.

She fired one which traveled upwards and a few seconds later as it started to fall, it exploded.

She waited a few minutes, searching for signs of something. An intruder or animal would have sufficed but there was nothing. Even a flare back would've helped.

About half an hour later, she decided to fire another flare.

"Please work." She said, the tips of her fingers glowed at its brightest.

Then a voice interrupted her.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. You'll attract their attention."

A figure said, placing their blade on Zera's neck.

"W-who are you?" Zera asked. The figure stayed silent as the two slowly descended the pillar.

"We should be asking you that. Why are you intruding on our territory?"

'Our territory?'

Then it hit Zera's mind.

"Wait, I have something in my pocket. If you can just take a peek at it. We are friendly, I assure you."

The figure grunted in suspicion before looking at another figure which appeared from the shadows. They reached into Zera's pocket, pulling out the insignia.

"The Pinnacle? You know Grandmaster Shiron? Gerui Shiron?"

"Know him? I am his daughter and he is dead. My brother, Randivo, is the current and most likely the last Grandmaster."

The figures chuckled and Zera could recognize them as females.

"Randivo? The handsome little one?"

"It's been ages since I last saw him."

The figure let go of Zera and she turned around. They took their hoods off, long white hair tied in braids.

"So why don't you fill us in? There must be a reason why you three just appeared here in our meeting point." The woman who had pointy ears and dark skin asked.

"You are Dark Elves?" Zera asked, surprised.

"Yes. Is there a problem?"

Zera shook her head. She took some deep breaths before she started to explain everything.