Disclaimers: I do not own The Chronicles of Narnia, The Shannara Series, and "The Shannara Chronicles". They belong to C.S. Lewis, Terry Brooks, MTV, and Spike. All other canon material belongs to their respected owners. All original material belongs to me, the authoress of this fanfiction story.
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Welcome to the first part in my fanfiction mini-trilogy, Alindor, the Druid. :)
Similar with Parker Dooley, as well as my other OCs, I'm bringing back another OC from my past works, who entered in my First Age series when it was still in draft format. Canon characters will appear as well throughout this trilogy.
This chapter took several rewrites and a writer's block before it reached the final revision/final draft. Thanks go to Adeleidhis for helping me get out of this horrible writer's block I was in. It is much appreciated. :)
So, without further ado, I present The Second Druid.
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Ever since the First World's destruction, many worlds have come into formation in the Universe. Some worlds are hidden. Others are visible, while some worlds are in-between worlds, as well as worlds between worlds, and worlds within worlds.
There are many beings and creatures who would dare enter the many portals that coexist in the worlds, but few know where these portals are and when they might come up at a certain time. There are those who form their own portals, gateways to other realms, by means of a device, a key, and any other object that triggers a portal.
There are some who would gladly use these portals for competition. For now, it is the elves who do this, traveling between worlds in search of a better home. These elves have no idea what lies beyond the portals. Just that they are willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of a portal jump.
.oOo.
An elven woman raced through the woods at night. This elven woman, with her raven-black hair, bright green eyes, pale skin, pointy ears, and dressed in a long-sleeved tan tunic, black pants, and black boots, continued on her path, running down a grassy green hill, in hopes of beating the other nineteen elven competitors, also competing in the race.
It was known as the Portal Race, stated clearly because of what lay at the other end of the wooded area, twelve doors with key racks standing next to them, each door leading to a new destination, a new portal. This elven woman didn't care what befell her. She just wanted to make it to her desired portal realm.
The elven woman darted past an elven man with a muscular build and another elven man with a thin build. There were a few other elven women competing, one of them her twin sister Solima, who had emerald green eyes instead of bright green ones, who was trying to catch up. The elven woman laughed as she charged forward, heading towards her destination. She didn't want to be last to reach one of the twelve key racks.
"You got to keep up!" the elven woman said, laughing joyously at her sister, as they continued their flight through the woods.
"Ulmayá," Solima said, huffing and puffing, not stopping until they parted ways.
Only this time, Ulmayá arrived at an empty area, with a hedge wall on either side, a wooden door with a stone arch framed around it stood at the end of the green grassy aisle, with a rack filled with keys of all shapes, sizes, and colors standing to the left of the door.
Ulmayá checked the door's keyhole, noticing it was narrow and tall. She returned her gaze to the key rack. There, hanging on a small silver hanger, two keys down and close to the right-hand side of the rack, hung a bronze key with a tall, thin frame. She picked it up and tried it on the door.
The key slid in fine. She turned it, heard a click, and opened the door's metal, circular handle, revealing a blue swirling portal with a grey mist as part of the blue whirlpool. Ulmayá took one last look at her surroundings, before stepping over the threshold and entering the portal.
The door closed as she disappeared through the portal, swinging ominously before closing altogether, disappearing from the area. The bronze key dropped onto the green grassy ground, before retiring back to the key rack, waiting for another victim for another year.
~o~
Ulmayá opened her eyes. She made it to the other side of the portal, entering a realm where the sky was purplish-blue and the ground shifted into the colors brown, purple, blue, green, and yellow. It was night here, and yet there was a light on Ulmayá, allowing her to see where she was heading.
All around her were portals. Some were light portals, meant for those in the Light Side, while other portals were dark portals, belonging to evil lands and evil beings. The Dark Side. Then there were some portals that didn't have a light or dark but were on the Grey Side. Grey, the in-between worlds or worlds allied with neutrality. Why hasn't anyone pointed this out to her before?
What also made all the portals unique was their different sizes, shapes, and colors the rims had. Some had blue frames, while others gold. There were even a few grey portals which had grey frames wrapped around them in different shades.
Well, that was odd!
"Welcome Ulmayá," a golden-brown Lion entered the area, stunning Ulmayá until her feet grew cold. "No need to fear me. I am Aslan, the Great Lion of Narnia. You have arrived at a most precarious time."
"Why? What's happening?" Ulmayá asked, cautious.
"A lot of things," Aslan said, speaking directly to her. "Your sister is with Merlin. He came to this portal realm not long ago, asking to take part in the aftermath of the elves winning the competition in Ellesméra: to come to this realm, seeking a new home. Twelve elves are allowed to win the competition year after year, yes? Young ones? It's not any different than the race to the Ellcrys in the Four Lands. Only slightly different.
"You seek a new home. That I can grant you and your sister, but you and your sister will need to be parted for a while. You will not be reunited again for many years," Aslan told Ulmayá, having great confidence in her.
"Why are you taking an interest in me? My sister, Solima, is good at everything. Everything, simply because she's the eldest," Ulmayá said, sorrowful.
Aslan shook his head. "No, my dear Ulmayá. You misunderstand."
"What do I misunderstand?" Ulmayá asked, cautious.
"Well, for starters, you and your sister weren't born from the same families. You are lookalikes, bonded through sisterhood when your real parents gave you up," Aslan smiled at her. "Now come. I want to show you something." He gestured Ulmayá over to a basin, allowing her to look at it.
Ulmayá couldn't believe this! She and Solima were lookalikes? She, Ulmayá, was adopted? Who was her real family? She shook off these thoughts as she approached the stone basin, willing to look at the watery glass mirror and see what Aslan wanted her to show her.
Her reflection changed to show a house cat, outside and loving nature. A male cat with a thin, muscular frame and long golden fur. He looked so beautiful. The way he moved, the way he presented himself. Who was he?
"Who is he? This cat. What's his name?" Ulmayá asked, wanting to know more.
"His name is Alindor." Aslan smiled. "And he is your mate."
Ulmayá stared at Aslan in shock. Her mate? It was one more puzzle she did not understand. She looked at the basin in wonder, watching Alindor move across the dirt road, followed by a stone bridge. Whoever Alindor was, she couldn't wait to meet him.
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Thanks for reading. :)
References:
Aslan comes from C.S. Lewis' book series, The Chronicles of Narnia. Merlin comes from Arthurian Legend. Ellesméra is an elven kingdom found in Christopher Paolini's book series, the Inheritance Cycle. The Ellcrys and the Four Lands comes from Terry Brooks' book, The Elfstones of Shannara, and in MTV and Spike's television show, "The Shannara Chronicles".
