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Origin: Rooted Within CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
There he was, having traveled to the land of infinite mystery. Someone like him, with eyes that were not ordinary, knew why it was called the Land of Infinite Mystery. Where was that land located? In the eyes of men, it is an open garden, shrouded in beautiful flowers and narrow-leaved grasses that would reach to the heel. A land as colorful as rainbows, changing from beauty to beauty as time went on. That was all they could see.He looked at the little children running and playing in the sunlight and thought to himself, “If they could only see...”The children and their parents watched him as he walked into the middle of the extensive garden and took off his hood. They looked at him as if he came from another world, but that was indeed the case, but they did not know that.The moment he pulled his spear from behind his cloak, the children ran to their parents. They all wondered what kind of man he was and why he held the golden spear with such ferocity. Some took their children in th
Origin: Rooted Within CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
“I am still surprised to hear you have never tried an orange drink,” she said, and Castar chuckled.“Why would I have tasted them? We just grow them for windbreaks and shade,” he said, and she laughed at him for his odd choices.Myrid and Castar were both walking down a narrow path along a flat forest in Cartá. They were not just taking a walk. The previous night, Castar had told her he had lost something before he was attacked. He could not trace the path where Mafik dropped it, and since he did not know his way around Cartá, Myrid insisted on following him. At first he thought he could resist the urge to go back and seek for the pendant, but his attachment to it was beyond his control.After their last words, there was silence between them as they walked on. They were not the only ones silent, it was as if they were the only ones who had lives on the path they had just walked.The grasses stood stiff, the faint sound of the wind was all they could hear, and what gave them courage to
Origin: Rooted Within CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
His blow revealed who the invisible man was. Baraka, even when he was down, was a terrible enemy to Callagh. He knew who he was; he knew why he was here, and he knew he would not desist from his purpose.“If you know your enemy, you are only one step away from winning the fight,” Callagh said, and Baraka laughed as he got back to his feet.“When you know your enemy, you know the battle has begun! This is not victory,” Baraka told him.They spoke in Kraì.He stroked his pendant as he cast spells under his breath, keeping his eyes on the pendant. Callagh watched him from a distance, not daring to approach him. He did know Kranian magic, he knew it was warfare. He could only wonder what Baraka was plotting under his breath.Baraka’s tribal mark glowed, as did his eyes, as he continued to stroke the psychís. He stopped touching the pendant and Callagh wondered why. Callagh knew something bad was coming. He knew the spell was complete, but he had yet to feel the result.Baraka laughed as t
Origin: Rooted Within CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
The sun had set. It was the time of day, creeping in between noon and night. Myrid had brought Castar and Era home. Even as Ogrida pretended her thoughts were with her granddaughter about bringing strangers to the house, she wondered if her house was becoming a motel. She did not respond, but the thought never left her mind. Several times she wanted to talk to Myrid about it, but thought she should respect her reasons.She knew Myrid too well to know that she could only make responsible decisions, and if she trusted her, she would walk into an ocean if Myrid told her it was the right thing to do.Castar sat on the bed and Ogrida cleaned the blood off him. As she cleaned him, she kept wondering why people would not stop attacking such a humble boy. She thought for a few moments before she thought it was okay to ask him the same question.“Son,” she said to him as the pile of cloth sucked in warm water from the bowl that stood between Castar’s palms.“Why you? Why do not they stop chasi
Origin: Rooted Within CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
. . . . . . . . . . .C A R T À. . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .[O G R I D A’S H O U S E. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . He took a deep breath. His eyes reddened. What Era had just told him weighed on his shoulders? He felt them drop with depression. He was told that he was the key: the one who would decide whether the border remained closed or open. He thought about everything, not knowing when his simple life had become so complicated. To think how quickly things had changed.Era was still sitting next to him on the log they had sat on earlier. The moon had risen so high above their heads."Are you all right?" she asked, but Castar did not answer. He was silent, gazing into the distance. He was too absorbed in his thoughts to hear anything."Castar," she whispered.He heard her call, though it was not as loud as the first. He had nothing to say, wishing he could close his eyes, open them again, and begin life anew in a place where there w
Origin: Rooted Within CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
It was overwhelming. He felt the tension. Several thoughts flooded his head, and he did not know which one to give his attention to. . .He asked himself so many questions at the same time, and some of these questions had no answer. He felt like he was losing his mind. . .He drew his eyelids over his eyeballs only for what seemed like a second. And when he opened them again, darkness filled his eyes. The moon was no longer in his field of vision, nor did he feel the cool night breeze brushing his skin. He knew what it was; he knew where he was; he was just waiting for confirmation.“Malak!”Yes, that. That voice was what he had been waiting for. He thought about how quickly it came over him. He could have sworn he had not even fallen asleep before it crept up on him.“It’s almost time!” It said to him.“Time for what? I do not know what you are talking about,” Castar thought and heard it.“You will know when the time comes, and your blood will guide you,” it said. Castar thought abou
Origin: Rooted Within CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
The horse neighed when it saw Castar. He found this abnormal; he was not used to hearing that kind of sound from a horse's mouth when he tried to touch it. His hands ran through the horse's coat as he thought about the dream he had last night. He brought the horse out of the stall and packed up his things; a jar of water, the psychís and a loaf of bread.He thought of something; he thought of what the voice of darkness had said to him. He remembered he had made a deal with it. He did not know what he had to do, but he knew he had taken something on himself. What it was, he looked at it and could have figured it out without having to make that deal. He regretted it and wondered why he had made that decision.He was not sure if he was welcome to take a horse from Ogrida's stable, but he knew he had to. He could not make the journey he was about to make without a horse.He wanted to get away, away from everyone, realizing he was a danger to everyone around him. That was why he had woken
Origin: Rooted Within CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
It was indeed a lonely ride. Why should it not be? It was dawn, only half the time. He did not care about the loneliness; he wanted it all to end. He wanted to stay away, and the only place he found isolated enough was at the top of the hill, a place where no one would go easily. He believed that was the best place to be if he wanted to stay away from the rest of the world.His eyes wandered the moment he heard his name from the distance. He knew who it was that was calling him. He realized Era was after him. She had not seen him, but she heard his horse's feet as they crunched across the rocky ground near to her. She must have ridden faster than Castar to close the distance between them in no time. Era was not ready to give up yet. She rode on, and when she knew Castar would never answer her call, she took a different route. She knew the land well enough; it was near to her home. The route she followed crossed Castar's route at the point he had not reached. Era reached the point wh
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