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  “I have to say, I am impressed.” Caleb's voice drifted from the woods. Fiera did not reply as the two emerged from the underbrush, carrying a deer between them.

  “Like I said: you should have stayed and made the fire,” she told him, picking black hair from her sweaty face.

  “I’m sure the girls can make the fire,” he replied. His gaze slipped from the woman next to him to the pile of sticks and the exasperated Terra a few yards off. Adria shrugged in reply to his questioning stare.

  Mista was delighted to learn that they now had food but gagged when she saw the dead, bloody deer. “You can help us skin it,” Caleb teased.

  “No!” shrieked Mista. Then seeing that Caleb was only joking, she hit him hard in the chest.

  “What was that for?” heaskedrubbinghis chest andsticking out his lower lip as if pouting. Mista turned to run and Caleb chased her, leaving Fiera with the knives and the deer. She skinned only the portions they would consume. The vultures would relish in devouring the rest. While Terra prepared the meat, Caleb taught Cam and her sisters how to properly start a fire. Mista hung onto his arm the whole time, giggling and asking unnecessary questions.

  When Fiera returned from washing her hands of deer blood, Caleb and her sisters had started a blazing fire with the meat sizzling over it. The aroma filled her nostrils and made her mouth water. It seemed like forever since they last had meat, for the Gnosi Realm did not favor meat as much as they did their greens, grains, and fruits. Caleb handed Fiera a large piece of the venison. She picked off parts and consumed them bit by bit.

  “This is so tasty,” said Mista leaning against Caleb. “You’re a good cook.”

  "I didn't even cook. Nor am I very skilled at it. I can bake, though," replied Caleb with a grin. He looked across the fire at Fiera.

  “Baking? I enjoy baking, but Mother normally tells me to leave that to our hired staff,” Terra told him. Over the course of the meal, Caleb and Terra discussed the best methods for cake baking.

  “Come on, let’s go wash these dishes,” Fiera said sharply to Mista when all had completed their portion of the doe.

  “Ugh, why me?” Mista wined.

  “Because I said so.” There were only a few dishes, and Fiera could have managed them, but nevertheless Cam went with her and Mista. The sky was darkening by the time they headed into the woods towards a stream Fiera passed while tracking their supper.

  “I favor Caleb far more than the lords we met in the Royals’ palace, “Mista remarked as she idly swirled water in a bowl. “Your youth is showing,” Fiera replied.

  “What is that supposed to mean? Are you jealous?” taunted Mista who jumped up and began to skip around her sister dramatically.

  “I really hope Mother makes you stay home,” she yelled after Mista who was prancing away.

  After she was out of earshot Cam said, "What is it you have against Caleb anyway?"

  Her oldest sister remained silent for a lengthy moment. Grimly, she washed the dishes in the stream water with the aid of a leaf. When she had finished, she sat on the shore and gazed into the water. "He makes me doubt the only important decision I've ever made in my life," she said quietly.

  Cam understood immediately. “Why hadn’t I realized this before?” The only important decision Fiera had ever really made was that to join Cinis Lumen. And now that she had met a man from there, she doubted that she would ever truly fit in. He was so diverse from her, besides the fact that both were proficient hunters. But the decision had been made, and there was no turning back. "They are not all like that, Fiera" Cam said aloud, pulling her knees to her chest. "Lia, for instance, has hardly anything in common with him. I do not believe it is prudent to decide on a community's characteristics by using one person as its representation."

  Cam knew these words to be true. At least, she hoped they were. Apollyon, for example, though crooked in his ways did not lead an entirely crooked realm. Saffira was not crooked, and she hoped that neither was Riah.

  The Medulla Realm gate was made of twisted vines and was

  festooned with flowers. By the time Cam and her companions arrived, the flowers were withering away. The gate led to the main village where the majority of the community dwelled except for the farmers. A long, winding road through the main village was flanked on either side by tree houses built high in the oak and maple trees. Some of these homes had bridges crossing the road. Some were round, others square. All of them possessed a unique appearance but were all distinctively inviting, no matter how much or little they were decorated.

  Cam had ventured into the village a few times with her parents and it had always been much fun. The villagers were normally kind and hospitable. They often had simple parties and festivals in gatherings both small and plentiful. At most of these events, glowing lanterns swung from the branches above and music was played by those fortunate enough to possess the talent.

  "They are preparing for the Farmer's Festival," Adria announced merrily as they entered through the main village. Cam grew excited that she had not missed the annual festival in which the farmers of the Medulla Realm brought in all their crops to divide among the people before the frost infested their fields. Children, with their dogs, darted through the streets chasing one another. Cam smiled at those who turned to view their entrance. Those who recognized them waved.

  Beyond the village, was located a large creek, and across it, in the very center of the forest, was their home. Cam knew that beyond their home were more forests and eventually the farms although she had hardly ever laid eyes on them before.

  Although part of Cam now disliked the Medulla Realm for its strict standards, she realized how much her heart yearned for home. Though not family by blood, Cam was eager to see those who raised her, especially her grandfather. As soon as the travelers were close to the castle, Cam leaped off of her horse and rushed towards the house.

  Grandfather stood in the doorway, his arms wide apart, with a smile pasted to his lips. Cam flew into his open arms and buried her face into his sweet-smelling robe. A deep laugh resonated from him. “It’s good to see you too, Cam.” Cam smiled up at him, her arms still wound tightly around his stomach. “Your sisters do not seem as enthusiastic,” he added, winking. Terra, Mista, and Adria had come up behind Cam, and they too flung themselves around Grandfather.

  “FieraandCaleb went to stablethehorses,” Terraexplained, closing the front door. The girls shed their outer cloaks and hung them upon the hooks fastened to the wall.

  “You might want to change before you go and see your parents,” suggested Grandfather, examining Cam’s choice of clothing. She was still clad in tight apparel meant for traveling rather than a dress. She rushed up to her room, her sisters at her heels.

  “Is that running feet and voices I hear?” Kazbek’s voice drifted from an adjoining room. As soon as Cam had changed, she trotted down the hall where he and Silva sat in their private, sunlit sitting room.

  “It is good to have you back Camaria,” Kazbek said, returning her embrace.

  “Howwas your journey?” Silva inquired. Shesatin her plush seat while her slender fingers traced the edge of a rose. The vase had always been in Silva’s sitting room and overflowed with blood-red roses.

  “Quite…remarkable,” Cam replied, deciding to spare them the details for the time being. She was grateful at that moment that Mista was not present, for she was sure to mention the robbers and the revolt. “I’ll want to hear all about it later,” Silva said, drawing Cam close to her side. “We didn’t think you would return so soon.”

  “We were just in the Gnosi Realm, and I’ve completed training there. We decided to return home before I advance to the other realms.”

  Silva grunted. “At least you’ve gotten that realm out of the way.” Cam tensed at these words. As of now, she did not wish to hear any criticism regarding Gnosi, not after recently befriending Saffira. She knew that as soon as she mentioned Apollyon and his alleged planned revolt, that the Gnosi Realm would be tinted
darker in the eyes of Silva and Kazbek.

  “Mother, Father,” Cam said, her tone sobering. “There’s something we need to tell you, but we’ll wait until dinner time.”

  “Goodidea,” saidKazbek, clearlynotinterestedin whatCam had to say at the moment.

  “You can tell us whatever it is at dinner, and then we’ll go out to the village for the Farmer’s Festival.” The idea of going to the festival usually excited Cam, but this time she couldn’t help feeling guilty. Silva and Kazbek needed to know what kind of danger they were in as soon as possible. Part of Cam desired to spare them the account in order to prevent ruining their anticipation of the festival. However, Cam knew she could not hide. She had to remain ahead of Apollyon.

  As Cam trudged down the hall toward her room, she remembered Amelia and decided that she wished to speak to her, assuming she had returned home. What astonishment it would bring Amelia to hear such news as Cam had. She headed down the stairs to the kitchen where the cooks and kitchen maids were busying themselves with dinner preparations.

  “What can we do for you, Miss?” one of the maids inquired.

  “I’m just looking for Amelia. Is she here?”

  “She is no longer employed here, Cam," came Fiera's voice from behind her. With curious eyes, Cam turned to her sister who held herself erect in the hall still dressed in Gnosi Realm apparel. Fiera read Cam's puzzlement. "She did something disgraceful, apparently, because our parents threw her out. Perhaps quite literally. They refuse to tell me why," she added with a shrug.

  Cam was instantly perplexed. What had Amelia done to deserve losing her position? Cam thought that perhaps she would inquire at a later time. “Why isn’t Caleb with you?” she asked Fiera.

  “Why do you think?” she retorted sarcastically, rolling her eyes. She indicated the upstairs sitting room by nodding her head. “He’s bonding with our parents.” Fiera headed down the hall to let herself out a small back door. “I’m going for a long walk. I’ll beback before dinner.” She shut the door with a bang, and Cam was left to herself. She had never felt so alone in her own home before. She was already missing the traveling experience and was anxious to tell Silva and Kazbek about Apollyon’s plans. For a moment, Cam almost left the castle to tell Owen. But then she remembered his sudden departure and unknown point of return.

  One of the maids asked Cam for a favor. After receiving a wooden box, Cam was instructed to descend to the lower floor of the castle and fill it with apples. Cam smiled, thinking of such a treat. She left the kitchen and walked into the empty hall, box in hand. The only way to the lowest floor was through a small door between where the two staircases leading upstairs parted. She almost choked on dust and cobwebs when she flung the door open. Hardly anyone ventured into the lower level, at least no one in her family. Cam picked her way carefully down the stone stairs. She had to light a candle sitting on a table at the bottom of the stairs in order to see in the darkened cellars. There were several passages and rooms in the lowest part of the castle. Once, she and her sisters had explored it but had to leave when Mista began crying because she was frightened. They hadn’t gotten far and the apples were located farther than they had ever gone.

  Although the box was spacious enough to hold plenty of fruit, Cam only selected enough for each member of the family to consume at dinner. The round fruit was cold against her palms. It rolled sideways on the surface of the box’s bottom. When Cam held the candle above her head to find her way back to the stairs, she noticed something different; something she had never seen before. A door. It was brown and nothing too fancy looking, just a slab of wood in the wall. It struck her as strange because the other cellars had no means of concealment.

  Forgetting her errand, she reached for the flimsy doorknob and found much to her disappointment that it was locked. She frowned but then gazed in awe at her hand which had suddenly taken on a warm, sensational feeling. Fear, she decided. She was making herself jittery. Cam tore her hand from the round knob. Hesitantly, she placed her hand back on its surface but could no longer feel its warmth. Maybe she had imagined it. She shook her head as if to rid her brain of the thought and resumed her task.

  Fourteen

  Cam found Grandfather in the garden, strolling around the ample,

  magical tree at its center. When she stepped into his view, a smile lighted his face. He offered his arm saying, “Walk with me.” “I was hoping I would find you so that you could explain something to me,” Cam confided.

  “And what would that be?”

  “Tell me the history of the Shadow Bearers.”

  Grandfather glanced at her with slight surprise flickering in his eyes. “Is this to further your study of magic?”

  Cam shookher head. “No.Well,yes, somewhat. I have heard rumors that they dwell in the Gnosi Realm or did so years ago.”

  “Those rumors are correct. Perhaps not the embellished stories that come with them, but some of their race did indeed live in the mountains. What do you know of the Shadow Bearers?”

  “I know it is told they exist in three forms: earth, water, and as flawless looking humans. I have read that those of earth and water are called as such because they dwell in those regions. The Shadow Bearers who appear as humans have magical capabilities to ignite flames where they walk or become invisible.” Cam paused to glanceup at her grandfather. “I knowthey arenoton thegoodside.”

  Grandfather ceased his steps, turning to look his granddaughter in the eye. “What is the good side?”

  “Well, our side of course,” Cam replied with knitted brows.

  Grandfather shook his head and continued walking at a slow gait. “That is just the thing. Everyone believes themselves to be the good side. But the truth it, we are the between, Camaria. Good and evil lie on either side of us, and before the end, we must make a choice of which side to join.”

  “What a queer remark,” she thought.

  Grandfather diverted the subject back to Camaria’s original question. “The Prince of the Infernal Cities created the Infernal Magic the Shadow Bearers have inherited by deceiving humans into corruption. When humans made misdeeds for the first time, his magic was born and is thus used by his legions to this day. It is magic only used for evil. Whereas the Mineral Magic we use is capable of both good and evil deeds.” As these words echoed into the still air, they approached a bench and sank onto the moss covered stone.

  “The Shadow Bearers are descendants from mortal women and evil spirits called Shedim. When this unclean union between mortals and spirits occurred, the spirits called Shedim were thrown into prisons of perpetual darkness. But this happened again, and the Shadow Bearers were born once more and have, ever since, been infesting lands and crawling into people’s souls to convert them to their master’s side.”

  Cam was chilled to the bone by her Grandfather’s words. “Are they more than a legend?”

  “They are real, Camaria,” Grandfather said with a point blank stare in her direction. His eyes roved to the tree, and he took her hand in his and patted her knuckles. “Ihave seen them myself,” he murmured. “You may remember I fought in the war against the Shadow Bearers in our nation when I was younger.” No smile crossed his lips at the recollection. The war had been an ugly and brutal period, one which Cam was glad she had not lived through.

  Cam clad herself in the average Medulla Realm apparel for the

  evening meal, assuming that it would suffice to dress as the villagers for the festival. Caleb dined with the family while attempting to spark conversation with Fiera who ignored him, much to the disapproval of Silva.

  “Mother, I’ve been dying to tell you about our travels!” exclaimed Mista after Grandfather had insisted on saying a blessing. “We were attacked by robbers, and then Cam went to this party in Gnosi, and the leader revolted and has decided on overtaking the nation so we had to leave in the middle of the night so he wouldn’t kill us, and then Fiera shot and skinned this deer. It was the most disgusting thing, but then Caleb made it into this delicio
us meal and” prattled Mista. As much as Cam wished to cut the words from her sister’s mouth and explain, she sealed her lips. She lifted her eyes to see Grandfather’s questioning stare and awaited Silva’s reaction.

  “Robbers! A revolt? What does she mean?” Silva’s expression darted to Cam, concern and bewilderment evident in her eyes.

  “The robbers were nothing. Caleb took care of that,” Cam added quickly, deciding that the story wasn’t worth relating, not when there were more serious, unsolved problems at hand. “As for the revolt, that’s what I’ve wanted to tell you and Father about.” By this point, Cam had captured everyone’s keen interest; especially Grandfather’s who no longer slumped inhis seat. “Caleb discovered through accidentally overhearing a private meeting that Apollyon has plans to overtake Mirabelle and undoubtedly make it his own.”

  “I suspect very strongly that such a plan is being made and put into action,” Caleb cut in and then proceeded to explain the conversations and actions he had witnessed in regards to what Cam had related.

  “It isn’t a prank,” Terra added firmly. “I can tell there’s somethingwrongwiththewayApollyonrules.He’s fullofgreedand rash desire,” Terra acted as though she would continue but immediately closed her mouth after receiving a disapproving glare from her mother. Why this silent exchange occurred, Cam did not know.

  “The Gnosi citizens are all like that,” replied Kazbek though hesitantly.

  “Which doesn’t surprise me that he is making a move. I’m surprised that the Gnosi Realm hasn’t before now,” Silva stated, leaning forward.

  “If it has taken them this long, it could mean a perilous attack, one they’ve been planning for a long time,” Terra remarked. Cam was asked many questions concerning the revolt. She answered whatever she could, given the small amount of information she was provided with.