Ava

PROLOGUE

There are no ticks, knocks or even warnings as the front door just flew open. Warm breezes from the nearby hot springs swept through the open door. The hinge creaked, and the sound made Ava stop concentrating. She must have forgotten to lock the door again; she sighed as she couldn’t count the number of times the door was opened just because she always missed to do one thing, one simple thing: locking the door. However, she didn't stand up to close it. Instead, she fidgeted deep into her seat. The five-year-old girl pouted, distracted, but still forced herself to focus. She heard from her Uncle Ares one time that her father was able to make the fiery red fire by just a snap of his fingers when he was as young as she is now. And ever since that time, she’d always try to focus and practice in secret so that she can make the fiery red fire as well. Just like her father. 

Her father, the Caspian, is a very powerful dragon. He can do a lot of things. And Ava wants to be just like him. She was supposed to undergo a special training camp in the Kingdom of Mortana but her mother suddenly decided to bring her here, with the Ravens. It's not that she didn't like to see the Ravens, it's just that she wanted to join the special training camp more. Ava groaned out her frustration again after suddenly thinking about the training camp. It was a pity she missed it, her Uncle Ares and Uncle Uri would be personally conducting it.

"Mom, please, can't I go with you next time?" Ava pleaded .

"No, dear. This is much more important." Amethyst answered and got down on her knees so she can look at her daughter in the face. "You must come with me."

"But-"

"Ava, darling, finding the fountain of life is now your life's mission, okay?" Amethyst said and smiled. "No matter what happens, you should find it."

The little girl then sighed defeatedly and nodded, which made her mother smile.

"Promise?" Amethyst said putting up her pinky finger.

Accepting her mother's pinky with her pinky, Ava nodded firmly with a small smile. "Promise."

Ava then bit her lips as she tried her best. But then again, the wind yanked at her wavy brown hair and continued to flick the draperies back and forth with the tiny bells on it, creating a noise which made it impossible for her to concentrate. Sighing out loud, she finally stood up to go and close the door before something broke and her mother would talk to her about it endlessly.

“I knew you were here.” Oma Ida said as soon as she saw the little girl inside the room, walking towards the door. “Why are you in such a bad mood?”

“I can’t make it, Oma.” She replied sadly.

“Can’t make what?” The old woman asked, all knowing what she actually means. 

“The fiery red fire. Is it because I’m not a full dragon? Because I'm a Zmeu?” She answered and looked at the old woman who just gave her a comforting smile.

“Come here, Ava.” Oma Ida said as she pulled her over, sitting down and making her sit beside her. Then she made sure the little girl was listening to her intently before she spoke once more. “Some things take time, my dear.”

“But father made it when he was also five years old.” Ava reasoned. "Uncle Ares said so."

“Why do you want to make it so bad?” She asked once more which made Ava think.

Why does she want to make it so bad?

"Because father was able to do it. And I'm his daughter. I should be able to do it too." Ava answered.

“Are you your father, Ava?”

“No.”

“That’s right. You’re not Caspian. And you will never be.” Oma Ida started and gave her a bright smile. “Because you are Ava.”

Oma Ida spoke softly with a smile and the little girl nodded.

"You don't need to be exactly like him nor anyone else. You are very special in your own way." The old woman said with a smile.

"I'm special?“ Ava asked, delighted.

"Of course, you are. And each one of us is special in our own unique ways."

The little girl eventually smiled in understanding, her white and red eyes shining brightly.

“And always remember, what you are and where you came from doesn’t really matter. It doesn't matter what kind of creature you are. It doesn't matter if you are the most powerful or not. What matters most is what’s in here.”

Then Oma Ida pointed at her chest where her heart is.

“You can be a dragon when you’re with the dragons. And you can be a human when you’re with the humans. You can also be a Zmeu with other Zmeus. We are all creatures created by the heavens.” She added. “No creature is higher than the others.”

“So can I be a Raven too?” Ava asked, her face now looked cheerful.

“Of course, if you want too. It's what in your heart and soul.” Oma Ida responded and with a chuckle. “Now, let’s go before your mother finds you here. She’s been looking for you.”

Holding tight at Oma Ida’s hand, both were happily walking towards the camp.

“Where have you been, Ava?” Amethyst asked worriedly as soon as she saw her child.

“In the secret shack, mom. Sorry for making you worry.” The little girl answered honestly.

Amethyst just shook her head and sighed in relief. She knew her daughter was too smart and mature for her age but most of the time, she still can’t help herself but worry when she’s nowhere to be seen.

“Just please let me know where you’re going next time, okay?” She blurted out instead and the kid nodded.

They were about to go to the campfire when uninvited guests unexpectedly arrived. There were a bunch of them flocking around the camp. Soldiers with fully armed armors.

“Humans.” One of the ravens uttered which made Amethyst a bit confused.

Humans have never been able to track the Raven’s camps; even other magical creatures have a hard time tracking them.

And this armor, I’ve never seen a human kingdom with this kind of armor before. Amethyst thought.

“A letter from the majesty.” One of them announced, before walking towards Amethyst, handing over the letter.

Upon reading, her eyes widened in shock, angered by its content, she immediately jumped in front of her daughter with her arms outstretched. In between the spaces at the back, Ava saw a young man with the darkest eyes she's ever seen,  his face as pale as paper, stoic as he rode on a black stallion. Beneath his hooded cloak, he was just watching over with no expression in his face.

“STAY BACK!!!! She’s just a child and has done nothing wrong! I will not allow it!” Amethyst shouted. "He's NO KING TO ME nor to anyone!!!"

The soldiers just laughed, ignoring her warning and started moving forward towards them. This caused the Ravens to transform and made a formation in front of Amethyst, protecting her and her daughter.

“We don’t want to annihilate your bloodline too, Ravens.” The soldier who made the announcement threatened. “Move away, we just want the child.”

“Ravens take no threats from evil humans.” Oma Ida answered with authority.

“Then you gave us no choice.” The soldier replied before waving at the others. “KILL THEM ALL!”

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! A continuous loud noise suddenly echoed through the night. Oma Ida immediately flew in to carry Ava while Amethyst was also taken by another Raven. Flapping their wings, they flew up above the ground. The ravens fought back mightily and easily defeated their human counters. However, these soldiers suddenly brought out a different kind of weapon which they carried with them. They started shooting the ravens with powder balls which immediately explodes once it touches the magical creatures, killing them. By then, more human soldiers came out from the dark making them truly outnumbered.

“Oma, it’s an ambush!” Amethyst shouted. “It’s an ambush!”

“Flee!!!!” Oma Ida commanded when she saw that Amethyst was right.

And they did, as fast as they could, but many of them dropped dead as soon as those powder balls reached them.

“Don’t look.” Oma Ida said as she flew but it was too late because Ava saw everything. Tears silently flowed down to her rosy cheeks as she saw the Ravens started dropping one by one, dying. They were her friends, her family.

“Lookout!” One of the ravens warned but it was too late. The raven holding Amethyst exploded causing both of them to fall.

“Mama!!!” Ava shrieked as the bloodied body of her mother fell to the ground. “Oma Ida, my mama!!!”

Amethyst brown wavy hair sprawled over her face as she crumpled to the ground. Ava gasped in horror as she covered her mouth, hoping that her mother would move. But she remained motionless.

“Don’t look, dear child.” Oma Ida said as she shifted, trying to block Ava’s view.

But the little girl’s far too stubborn to listen. She squirmed and twisted forcefully, trying to get out of Oma Ida’s grasped. And she succeeded. In a blink of an eye, she was already falling down.

“NO!!” Oma Ida puffed with terror as she ducked down to catch the falling child.

Opening her eyes, Ava thought she was going to die too but then she landed safely in the old woman’s arms.

“Thank you, Oma.” She said before immediately searching for her mother through the chaos. “Mama!”

Ava ran towards her mother as the old woman followed, trying to stop her. The human soldiers noticed them and so they run and made their way to surround them.

“Mama!” Ava called out once more as she finally reached Amethyst who was now trying to get up. She was relieved to see her mother is alive, but she doesn't look so well.

“Stay back!” Oma Ida warned as the soldiers flock over.

“Get the child!” One of them announced but then there was a shimmering dome that flowed over and moved around them like a shield to protect them.

“Nobody touches my child!” Amethyst yelled as she slowly got up, her whole body shaking as she did.

She was now chanting a spell continuously, making it impossible for the soldiers to touch them. Good thing she paid attention when Priya tried to teach her about chants and spells. Then she turned to Ava and Oma Ida.

“You both need to go, Oma Ida. This spell will only last for a couple of minutes.”

Then Amethyst proceeded on putting a necklace on Ava, a necklace with a petrified wood as its pendant.

“Make sure to take good care of this, alright? This will help you in times of need. I love you, dear Ava.” She said in a hurry and kissed her daughter goodbye. After patting her head, she then hid the pendant beneath Ava’s dress. Then with a tight embrace, she pushed her towards Oma Ida with a nod. “Please Oma, you both should go now.”

“I will not leave you, mama!” Ava countered, her eyes soaked with unending tears.  

“You will. Listen to Oma Ida, Ava. Do it for me.” Amethyst said before she made another chant which moved the enclosure towards Ava and Oma Ida.

Amethyst then faced the soldiers as she chanted making the ground shake, stumbling the soldiers.

"Terrae motus consurge consurge!! Terrae motus consurge consurge!!!” She chanted continuously.

“She’s become a witch!” One of the soldiers cried.

The ground then opened and swallowed most of the soldiers surrounding them. Oma Ida on the other hand flew as swiftly as she could gripping Ava tightly in her arms.

***

20 years later… 

Somewhere hidden deep down and below grounds of a corner in the continent, in a secret place only known by some, a strong and wild scream was unbridled into the night. Then rose a man from the chamber which served as his home for the past 20 years. Brittle cracking sounds was heard from when he moved his neck, energized from his hibernation.

“Welcome back, Master.” One of his most loyal and faithful servant uttered and bowed before him.

He nodded in response and stood up slowly as his joints continued to cr*ck. “Ah, such a pleasure to be back.”

The servant immediately helped him wear a piece of robe made from the finest linen there is. Then the man immediately made his way out of the chamber, into the open ground. He looked up gazing at the night sky, the full moon shining brightly. After a while, he then turned his attention back to the servant beside him.

“And my puppet?” He asked which right away made his servant nervous.

“M-master.” The servant began to stutter, not able to meet his master’s eye. “He escaped.”

“Escaped?” The man asked with a raised brow. Then he suddenly burst out laughing.

His servant had goose bumps all around his body right away upon hearing his evil laughter. He knows him too well. He knows his laughter means that a severe disaster will happen soon, especially now that his master is awake.

“He never learned his lesson I see. Such a pity.” The man said after his laughter died. “But no one escapes from me. No one. Even if it’s him.”

Then he smiled wickedly, plans have already started forming in his mind. Finally, he can do whatever it is that he wanted without worrying about his puppet. He already gave him another 20 years to find out who he really is. But since he escaped, knowing that he’ll wake up around this time, it just meant that he failed once more. The witch then said that if he failed twice to recover his memories, then surely, he will never be able to get them back.

The man turned to his servant and his eyes became murderous. “Tell them to find him.”

“Yes, master.” The servant replied quickly.

“When you find him, kill him.” The man commanded before giving out another grin.

“B-but, Master. He’s still the-“ His servant tried to contradict.

“Kill him or I’ll kill you instead?” He growled loudly after pulling his servant’s collar and lifting him up to the air.

“Please don’t, Master. I’ll tell them…to kill him.” He replied nervously, cold sweat covered his whole body.

The man tossed him to the ground with a loud thud and the servant tried his best not to make a sound even if it hurts. He knew some bones in his body broke but he tried his best and acted normally, swallowing his pain.

“I wouldn’t allow anyone to compromise my plans.” He declared. “Since he couldn’t even recover his memory, what good would he be for me? And once he’s gone, then I’ll truly be the most powerful being here in the entire continent and in all the realms.”

Yes, that’s right. He thought. Even if the witch already assured him that he will no longer be able to recover his memories after failing twice, he couldn’t take the risk to let him live. So he must kill him right away. Death is his ultimate destiny anyway.

***