FOURTH BOOK OF THE CHRONICLES OF FANTASILIA SERIES
𝘈 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘰𝘶𝘭. 𝘈 𝘣𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘦. 𝘈 𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘴𝘵. 𝘈 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘪𝘤𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘮𝘢𝘬𝘦.
Xanthiene Vivenca, a fairy with a bounty for her soul, is caught between...
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2412, Iclis 12, Briss
Reeca crossed her arms, watching the birds dive into the sea for their daily sustenance. It's been two days since she got away from that hellhole of a prison in Rabante. The sheer coldness of her magic's absence still haunted her dreams. It was an experience she didn't want to feel again. Cyrdel's maximizer lay in metal shards in one of the spaces between her armor. What a waste.
Elred had her feet propped on the table with her hands clasped behind her head. Her long, pale blond hair swayed with the morning ocean breeze. Scarlet eyes stared at the waves lapping the line of sand with some sort of melancholy flickering in them.
They had spent the day before debating where they would go next. "We should merge with Xanthy and the others," Reeca had suggested. "We could tell them what we learned about the thrones' location."
Elred had raised an eyebrow. "Are you willing to tell Xanthy that you hijacked her magic?"
Reeca had averted her eyes and pursed her lips. She didn't bring that up again, not with shame and guilt gnawing in her stomach every time the thought crossed her mind. "What do you say we do from here?" she had asked the shard fairy.
Elred had grinned one of her knowing smiles and soon, Reeca was trudging through sand that ate her ankles every time she took a step. Zoriago wasn't in Reeca's top destination list for that exact reason.
Today, the sound of waves slapping the beach was faint in Reeca's ears considering Zoriago was miles away from the water. Moreover, the clatter of wooden plates and mugs clanking against the wooden tables were the main ensemble in this tavern. Reeca tapped her boots against the sandy soil. How in Umazure could the trees and shrubs populating Zoriago's forests grow here?
Reeca eyed the counter built from thin planks where a single water sprite stood behind, serving patrons with the same drink Reeca had on her table. Yet another water sprite sat on a stool at the east end of the counter, cursing as he drove a knife into a creature with closed shells. Reeca watched as the water sprite pried open the shell and plucked a fleshy organ inside before throwing it into a pile being formed inside a silver basin.
Reeca's stomach roiled.
It wasn't that she was disgusted. Far from it. Her nose wrinkled at the smell of sand and salt thick in the air. At least in Zoriago, which was considered the wealthiest city in Desara, the air didn't smell of rotting fish. Perhaps, that's the best thing Reeca could ask for considering Desara's present plight.
Reeca closed her fingers around the mug containing the drink made from fermented salvia water. The trees that provided such fruit towered over the tavern's patched leaves roof, with sweeping, orange and yellow blades swaying with the light, ocean breeze giving off thin, rustling sounds. She tilted the mug towards her, eyeing the clear, light fluid glinting against the morning sun.
Elred's mud-crusted soles were inches from the mug and Reeca rubbed her nose again. She wouldn't touch anything within a mile from them so she slid the mug a few inches away from her.
