Last chapter of this book already?! Well, hope you find it a good one. I kind of toiled with it more than any other chapter, and now it's the probably the longest chapter of mine yet, but I guess you could consider it as a grand finale, though this is anything but the end... ;)
As AlliyahtheAuthor and I once debated:
Enjoy the chapter (adore never really worked for me anyway o:)!
You mean 'love' this chapter ;D
Good idea! Love the chapter, and as princess of Avalon, that's an order! XD kidding. I hope you do though. We're going to let you read now XD
Olivia's P.O.V.
After all the commotion, we all gathered around. While Christina checked to see if the Legend of the Knightly Ones book was still in good condition, Destiny picked up the new one that came out of nowhere. She flipped through the pages for everyone to see.
"Mystery Mania..." read out a puzzled Cleopatra.
"You can say that again," teased Mia.
"Hey! It's all about our adventures! Just like the first!" Andrew puffed out his chest proudly. "We're famous now! Right?"
"I don't think so if this is the only copy of it," pointed out Mike.
"But why are there some empty spaces between paragraphs?" wondered Genna, pointing at some blank gaps in the middle of certain texts.
I noticed Destiny's mouth open as if she had something to say about that, but she shut it immediately. I don't know why I didn't have that same reaction of shock.
Then again, I partially knew the the answer. I'd be stupefied right now too if I weren't accustomed to seeing magic in action growing up in the Weirwoods. But this? This is unlike anything I've ever seen!
"We should go to our secret chamber before anyone spots and questions us," suggested Savannah, probably worried that the rest of her 'entourage' would come looking for her. "Best to keep the secrecy..."
None of us argued to that. We headed back to our secret hideaway.
Justin's P.O.V.
I was shaking after the tremendous force that pushed me back just minutes ago.
Michael patted me on the back while we went up some stairs. "You'll get used to this. It happens a lot, though I'm personally not that fond of surprises either..."
I'm supposed to get used to magic like that?! I wanted to protest out loud. Nobody mentioned that being a knight included regular magical occurrences like that!
We finally arrived at the secret headquarters and I was impressed with the results since they had little to work with.
No one would ever expect us in here. The walls are so old and thick, and the secret entrance is difficult to spot. I would have never known this place even existed if they haven't shown it to me. Wonder who found it? This place is very impressive indeed...
Ambassador Fiona was the first to speak once I stepped into the room. "Welcome to the Knights of the Silver Rose's official hideout!"
"This place might not be what you expected from our tales, but it's all we've got, and it's like home!" declared Olivia proudly.
"We hope you enjoy it here," added Genevieve, but something was different about her.
"Whoa." My eyes bulged. "Where'd you get those silver-blue wings Genevieve?"
Princess Evelyn answered for her. "Weren't you listening to our tale earlier? And weren't you paying attention to when she transformed right behind you before we entered? Found the Sword in the Stone. Transformation. Both appear and disappear every so often."
I blushed, kind of embarrassed I wasn't paying attention since I was a bit out of sorts. "Oh yeah. Well, this is amazing! It's like I've always dreamed!"
"If we can later on, maybe we'll expand to that village we're making!" hoped Melissa.
"About the village," I started. "Can't we just invade one of the magical creatures' homes in the Wyrd or the Wild and use that as our expanded base?"
"Out of the question!" cried Ambassador Fiona in outrage. "Some creatures may be a nuisance, but we have no right to conquer! It's against the Warriors' Code to conquer for personal gain only with no other cause."
"Hold on," Destiny halted. "Justin may be onto something."
"We're not gonna attack some helpless creatures, are we?!" Lady Savannah cried despairingly.
"No! We'd never do that! I'd never forgive myself…" She looked down and shook her head guiltily before facing us once more. "Maybe we can come to an agreement with them."
"Well, they could ask for anything in return!" exclaimed Princess Cleopatra, being rational. "What if we can't fulfill their request?"
"If we can't, I guess it's back to the original plan," Destiny admitted with a shrug.
"At least building a whole village isn't our top choice!" expressed Christina, somewhat relieved. "I was worried how we'd even do that..."
"So it's official then?" Andrew asked, trying to clarify for everyone. "Find a village of magical creatures and bargain with them? It doesn't seem that liable."
"Well, do you have any other options?" Destiny asked back.
He stayed quiet. In the meantime, Destiny passed the new book called Mystery Mania to Christina.
Her eyes widened. "Hey Justin! You're in the story now!"
"I am?!" I skimmed over some pages in the middle end of the book to find my name mentioned not only once, but multiple times just like everyone else. "What an honor!"
I can't believe it! Maybe I will be accepted as a knight after all... It was difficult to contain my excitement. It will be hard to keep up, but worth it.
Princess Cassandra skipped over to the last page. "It doesn't seem complete. It's must be a work in progress..."
"Let's find out where the writing ends," decided Lady Savannah.
We huddled together as we carefully turned the pages as if it were story time. We were all shocked to see where the writing was just most recent. How did we know? Letters appeared right in front of us!
"Whoa..." awed Ambassador Fiona. "But who's writing this? I want to know the group of authors, and teach me to do that!"
After learning what little information about the author of the Five Tasks of Knightly, which turned into the Legend of the Knightly Ones, I had no clue who to suspect. I noticed that the format alternated between everyone's point of views, and I soon came to realize it was currently showing my point of view! I slammed the book immediately. Everyone stared at me.
"Heh, heh..." I chuckled nervously. "Sorry. That's just creeping me out."
Michael seemed extremely jumpy as well. "Yeah… Can we forget about that for now?"
"Fine. Before we do anything else, you've got to go get some armor stable boy," Princess Cleopatra recommended rudely. "Style is top priority."
Though Princess Cleopatra was kind of snobbish, I didn't talk back, just to be polite… and maybe because it's protocol. Destiny privately whispered to Michael for a second, then he headed towards me.
He put on his helmet, and then turned to face me. "Can you act Justin?"
What kind of question is that?
"Yes?"
"Good. Follow my lead." He winked knowingly at Destiny.
We then headed to the Armory. Before heading inside, Michael ensured his visor covered his face.
"Good day, sir!" he greeted. "My squire requires some armor."
"At once!" the armorer replied.
It was pretty impressive how Michael handled himself back there.
Maybe he's going to teach me to act as well as fight...
My armor is made with silver plates with a brown trim. Now I felt like I was a real knight. He engraved a silver rose onto my chestplate, so it would match Michael's and everyone else's. They didn't need to tell me that it was their Knights of the Silver Rose's logo. It was kind of obvious since it suited the name so perfectly. It definitely gave them a sense of unification, and now I was gonna become one of them. Once my armor was complete, I put it on immediately. I couldn't let any time go to waste if I wanted to train quickly before my first mission.
Michael sighed in relief once we exited the Armory with my new gear. "Phew. I was surprised that armorer didn't recognize my armor he made just recently. Our made-up story was pretty lame."
He laughed, and I joined in, remembering how they said they pretended it was for a play.
After settling down, I asked intently, "So what's first?"
He scratched his head. "Maybe I should start by introducing myself. I'm Michael Legend."
I held out my hand for a shake. "Justin the Stableboy. Nice to meet you."
"Another person with no last name?" He eyed me suspiciously.
I chuckled. "Guess that's pretty common here in Avalon. It never really mattered back in the olden days and still today. We were all just 'Sir blah blah blah' or 'Blah blah blah the blacksmith."
He nodded. "That's interesting."
We both laughed together once more.
"Heh heh, this is awkward..." I could have sworn I heard Michael mumble in between chuckles.
Finally, we had been half-heartedly laughing for what seemed an eternity. I was starting to wonder if this guy knew what he was doing…
"I think you too are gonna break the record for laughing the longest time," giggled Olivia as she cut in, jumping over the wooden fence bordering the fighting ring with ease. "How about you observe how Mike and I fight against each other?"
I nodded. Olivia was speedy and strong with her incredible Obsidian sword, but so was Michael. He seemed to play more defense though. He swung his sword, but Olivia dodged out of the way.
"Give up yet?" she taunted.
"Never!" he cried heroically.
With her natural speed, she ran circles around him.
Poor Michael! This is not going to end well for him...
Finally, he stopped chasing after Olivia. "I yield!"
By this time, he was gasping for air.
"Amazing!" I commented in awe. "How did you guys learn so quickly in so little time?"
"Been forced to learn to defend myself growing up in the Weirwoods," Olivia explained. "Eventually, I became more of an attacker rather than a defender, since that never got me anywhere. I guess you could say I fight best on offense."
"Well, Destiny dueled me once, and powned me big time," confessed Michael. "But I think I'd fight better with a shield in one hand so I can focus my sword-hand for attacking while taking damage. Too bad those things are too bulky to bring along..."
"Wait. So that's how your acting lesson with her went?! But she's the last person I'd expect to start a fight!" spluttered Olivia. "I thought I could read Destiny like an open book the minute I met her in the Weirwoods!"
"Well, we were acting different possible catastrophes that could happen in the meeting," Michael explained, rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly. "Now that I think of it, I'm surprised the situation we acted out actually happened..."
"Can I try and fight you now Olivia?" I challenged antsily.
She positioned herself in a fighting stance for an answer. I gripped my newly made silver sword. The handle was all copper with a brown leather grip. It felt familiarly comfortable, the leathery texture reminding me of when I lifted saddles onto horses. With my new blade in my hands, I leaped into action.
Here goes nothing…
Genevieve's P.O.V.
Andy was unusually silent. I realized it was because he was gaping at the sight of my wings. I shook my head in disapproval. Even though he's seen this occur often in the past few days, he would be in just stop and stare every single time.
"Close that mouth of yours Andy," I instructed. "You should know by now that doing that is exceedingly rude."
"Ooh! Now we have some free time!" Cassandra grabbed my hand and dragged me out to an open field.
"Perfect timing for what?" wondered Andy following us.
"Cassandra? What are you doing?" I struggled to loosen from her grip. "Why did drag me all the way out here?"
"To teach you to fly silly!" giggled Cassandra, letting go of me.
"Aw! I want to fly!" whined Andy.
"Don't worry Andy, your sis can carry you," Cassandra compromised. "From what I've observed her wings are very powerful, almost like mine. Now. Let's start with the basics. Fluttering, controlling your turns, and landing."
As she listed the moves out, she demonstrated. It didn't seem too hard. I held Andy by the waist, and followed Cassandra's lead. Andy didn't feel so heavy with the strength of my wings. My turns were a bit too sharp, and my landings weren't exactly soft. Even though I crashed quite a bit, my unharmed little brother always wanted to go back up in the air. He lengthened his arms out wide to embrace the free feeling when I soared successfully.
Cassandra decided to change things up since I wasn't exactly improving as quickly as she hoped. "Hmm. I think you're more of a fast flyer Genna. It'll make your turns wider and maybe your landings quicker. Race ya!"
With that, she sped away.
"Hey!" I lifted up immediately, carrying Andy, and soon caught up with her.
"WEEEE!" shouted Andy, obviously enjoying the need for speed.
"Not bad for a beginner..." Cassandra approved. "Lean a bit more for your turns!"
She circled around the tallest turret of the Avalonian castle. I paused and ended up hovering, envying her incredible control over her wings.
"Come on Genna!" encouraged my younger brother. "You can do it!"
"But I'm gonna crash! I'm still not good at this!" I reasoned, feeling like a failure to my mother who was a seraph.
"Well, best to learn now than during a battle," he compared.
Good point.
I took a deep breath, and carefully followed Cassandra's route as she perched on the top of the tower. I did it!
"Looks like you're ready to go to the next level," winked Cassandra. "Diving."
"D-d-d-diving?" I didn't feel so sure about this.
"You let the altitude bring you down, then at the last second, you change your diving position into a standing one, then land." She demonstrated and landed perfectly on the grass.
Andy did his best to motivate me. "You've got this!"
I sighed. I couldn't let my brother down. He was the only family I had left. But I might lose him if I attempted at this… I still went for the dive before second guessing myself. I ended up unable to stop all the pressure, and my wings covered me and Andy in a perfect protective, feathery orb.
Andrew leaped out of my arms and bounced around. "What a dive! The impact was even greater than when you were crashing! Let's do it again!"
"Hmm. Looks like you're gonna have to practice on the landing in general Genna. Otherwise, those are the basics for ya," Cassandra concluded. "Maybe we can twirl in the clouds someday just for fun. But until then, learning to land is your top priority. See you around!"
With that, Cassandra flew into the clouds, yelling, "Woohoo!"
Christina, Mia, Evelyn, Cleopatra, and Fiona came to my aid. I stared longingly at Cassandra.
Now, I had a goal in mind. Someday, I'm gonna be able to be just as great as Cassandra and soar with her through the skies.
Justin's P.O.V.
Olivia taught me the basics of attacking while Michael watched from the sidelines, giving me tips on how to defend myself against her blows. I didn't really do well at first, and ended up having to block even more than Michael did. But eventually, I turned those blocks into attacks, and I think I got the hang of it!
"You're a fast learner Justin!" commented Olivia admiringly.
I took the compliment with a smile. "Thanks! I just can't believe I'm actually doing this!"
As we took a break, I noticed Destiny walk by with some gear for our upcoming travels.
"Hey, Destiny!" I yelled in order to get her attention.
She walked towards us with the equipment. "How's training going?"
"Great! I think I'll be able to defend and attack without anyone's help now," I answered confidently.
"Oh really now? In one day?" she humored. "Very impressive."
"Yeah! Bet I could beat you!" I gloated carelessly.
She smirked. "Hmm... You think that's so?"
She dropped her supplies on the dirt ground. Michael and Olivia gasped.
Uh oh... She took that to heart! What have I gotten myself into? I can't believe I didn't take Michael's past experiences to heart!
She put her helmet on, and drew her sword out. I don't know how, but she did an aerial flip with her sword and landed on her feet closer to me, ready for the challenge. Michael and Olivia were amazing at sword fighting, but I had never imagined Destiny as a sword master!
How is this even possible?!
Our duel was short-lived. She spun my sword around my wrist until I could no longer grip it, otherwise I would twist it. I lost my sword as it spun from my hand to blade down in the ground.
I put my hands up in the air as to surrender. "I guess it's not so…"
"When are you gonna teach me that move?!" cried Michael from a distance.
He and Olivia backed away from us while we were fighting.
"You'll learn the envelopment move in due time," she winked, before turning to me. "Remember Justin. You're not alone here. We're all here to fight together as a team and support one another, not bring individual members down. Another thing you should know: I can't stand boastfulness. It's pointless. There's always room for improvement and that's why we're all here. Even I'm still learning."
She's still learning?! She seems like an expert! No wonder why she's co-leading with Christina in this secret organization. Wonder how she does it...
"Well, um, thanks for your, uh, wisdom," I stuttered, still shocked with my previous loss.
This is not the Destiny I remember...
"No problem." She smiled sweetly, removing her helmet. "Would you three care to help me out with all these please? It's hard on the back carrying so much."
This was the Destiny I've known since we've first met.
It's odd how she changes personalities so quickly... I wonder how she does it. And why...
Michael started whispering into my ear. "You sure acted like Fenton Crackshell there Justin. Even after I warned you! Pick your fights carefully..."
I took his advice to heart, but one thing he mentioned left me puzzled. "Who's Fenton Crackshell?"
Michael slapped his head. "Oh... Nevermind."
We all headed back with an equal amount of equipment necessary in order to survive in the woods.
"Okay then! Explorers, follow me!" declared Christina, naturally leading the way.
"Good luck!" farewelled the others who were staying.
As we headed towards the woods, I started to doubt whether I was worthy in doing this task or even being a new addition to this group. I just wished we knew what we were getting ourselves into...
And, end scene! ;D XD
Hope you liked this book. I know it's pretty short and there isn't much action, but things will get more interesting in the next book… ;)
I'm off to create the next book cover. Farewell until then! :)