Roka laughed once and turned her around, pushing her towards her door. “I said no such thing. Get some sleep, Alex. I’ll see you in a few hours.”
Eight
“Crash course in Meyarin wilderness survival,” Kyia said early the next morning.
The sun had barely begun to crest over the Golden Cliffs when the female Meyarin had dragged Alex out of bed and helped her into a fur-lined outfit that would, hopefully, keep her alive in the wintry forest. Then, still half asleep, Alex had been shoved onto the Valispath, only managing to remain upright because she’d spent the entire journey propped against Zain, who had, for the most part, been highly entertained by her humanness.
“Any running water you can find in the Silverwood is pure and safe to drink,” Kyia said, and Alex forced herself to pay attention, knowing it was important if she wanted to survive the varrungard and make it back to the academy the following night. “It might be the thick of winter, but the streams run straight from the mountains, so they shouldn’t be frozen over.”
“Water, safe,” Alex recited between yawns.
Zain chuckled and Kyia’s green eyes sparkled.
“That’s right, Alex,” the female Meyarin said. “Now, onto food.”
She reached into her cloak and pulled out a handful of what looked to be uniquely shaped nuts and coloured fruits. Having not had any breakfast, Alex’s stomach grumbled at the sight of the Meyarin food and she reached forward, but Kyia snapped her fingers closed around them.
“They look appetising, don’t they?” When Alex nodded, Kyia continued, “They probably taste as good as they look, but if you eat them, they’ll also be the last thing you ever consume.”
Alex jerked back. “What?”
“The Silverwood is home to many dangers, Alex, not the least of which is a hungry stomach,” Zain told her. “There’s a reason why the endurance stage of the varrungard trial takes place out here.”
Wishing she had taken a doggy bag from dinner, Alex lamented, “So you’re saying I have to go hungry for the next two days?”
Kyia shook her head. “If we had more time, I’d be able to teach you the difference between safe and poisonous berries, if nothing else. But we don’t have long enough for you to learn anything with the confidence needed to take appropriate risks. However, all Zeltora initiates know the basics of woodland survival before they embark on the varrungard, so I don’t believe it’s fair for you to go in blindly unprepared, especially considering you haven’t grown up in these forests.”
The Meyarin dropped her lethal handful to the ground and glanced around the snow-covered clearing where they’d landed, her eyes searching for something. When she found what she was after, Kyia motioned for Alex to follow her over to a large tree. Like the rest of the surrounding forest, the tree had shimmering charcoal leaves and a shining silver trunk, with roots spread across the snowy ground.
“You’ll find that laendra grows in abundance in these parts of the forest,” Kyia said, pointing to a batch of flowers nestled between the upraised roots of the tree. “As you experienced yesterday, it’s primarily used for healing purposes. But it can also be substituted for nourishment over short periods of time.” She plucked one flower up by the stem and handed it to Alex. “Eat. It will quench your hunger and strengthen you for the day.”
Alex looked at the flower in her hands. As silver as the drink version she’d downed the day before, the flower itself glowed from within, almost pulsating with life. It was so beautiful that she almost felt sad that Kyia had ripped it up, but she could see that the Meyarin spoke true about its abundance. Now that Alex knew what to look for, she spotted the laendra growing at the bases of trees all around them.
Not sure how to go about eating a flower that was almost the size of her hand, she looked to Kyia for guidance.
“Peel the petals from the bulb and eat them one by one, crunch into the body like a piece of fruit, then chew on the stem.” Kyia shrugged. “That’s how I eat it, anyway.”
Alex followed her instructions, overwhelmed once more by the caramel-vanilla taste that danced on her tongue. After just a few petals, she was warmed from the inside out, feeling revitalised and ready to take on whatever the varrungard might throw at her.
“If you happen to become wounded for any reason,” Zain said, “cut open the bulb and spread the juice directly onto your injury. The healing will occur faster that way.”
Alex bit into the bulb just as he made his statement, seeing for herself just how juicy the body of the flower was. Silver liquid trickled down her fingers and onto the snow, leaving a glowing trail at her feet.
“I seriously love your food,” Alex said, now chewing the stem. “Everything tastes so good.”
“We have had thousands of years of agricultural experience,” Zain said dryly. “You’d hope that’s enough time to get a few things right.”
Before Alex could respond, Roka blurred into the clearing.
“Sorry I’m late,” he said by way of greeting. “I must have slept in.”
He sent Alex an amused grin, fully aware that she hadn’t been afforded such a luxury.
“You’re lucky I just ate a magical flower and feel like I could stay awake for the next three hundred years,” she told him. “Otherwise I think I’d kick you right now.”
He chuckled lightly and turned to Kyia and Zain. “Is she ready?”
“Probably not,” Zain muttered under his breath, and Alex couldn’t help but agree.
Kyia sent Zain a warning look. “She’ll be fine.”
“Of course she will be,” Roka returned confidently. He looked at Alex. “You understand what you have to do?”
“Find my way back to Meya,” Alex recited. When they looked at her as if expecting more, she raised her eyebrows. “That’s all, right? Or have I missed something?”
Roka shook his head. “No, you’re perfectly correct. You just make it sound so… simple. But I suppose the first part is that simple. It’s only when you reach the end of the journey that you’ll face some of the more challenging complications, when your energy is at its weakest after lasting through the endurance phase. But until then, you’re right: simple.” His smile was too innocent for Alex’s liking, and she pursed her lips in response as he finished, “You don’t have any questions?”
Alex scoffed. “Of course I do. Like, ‘Do I really have to do this?’ And, ‘Can’t I just jump back on the Valispath with you?’ Or how about, ‘Can I at least have my ComTCD back so I can GPS the quickest route out of this forest?’”
Her final question earned her confused stares so she sighed heavily and turned to Zain. “If D.C. or Bear call, make sure you remind them that I’m okay and not to worry.”
“I will, little human,” he said, patting his pocket where he’d placed her ComTCD after taking it from her, claiming it would be considered ‘cheating’. “But I did warn them you wouldn’t be in contact until you see them tomorrow evening.”
“Just in case,” Alex said, and he nodded in agreement.
“You won’t see us, but we’ll check your progress at frequent intervals over the next two days to make sure you’re safe,” Roka said. He placed a steady hand on her shoulder and bent down to look her in the eyes. “To make it through the varrungard in the allocated time, you have to think like a Meyarin, Alex. Open your senses, listen to what is around you. Move like one of us. If you do all that, you will easily reach Meya by sundown tomorrow.”
“And if I don’t?”
“Then we’ll simply collect you on the Valispath and bring you home,” Zain said, reaching over to tussle her hair in that big brother-like way of his. “And you’ll have enjoyed a nice, quiet holiday in the woods.”
“In other words, I’ll have failed,” Alex deduced.
“The varrungard is nothing more than an aptitude test for you,” Kyia reminded. “It’s not an attempt for you to join the Zeltora. Your mission is to try to allow your Meyarin characteristics to flow through you. And who knows? Perha
ps you will even enjoy yourself.”
“Have I mentioned I don’t like camping?” Alex mumbled under her breath, before she inhaled deeply and tried to muster some enthusiasm. “Right. Someone point me in the right direction.”
Kyia swivelled Alex until she was facing what could have been north, south, east or west, for all she knew. Having never been a Girl Scout, she had no idea how to find her bearings. And even if she could, she was in a whole new world, so it would likely have done her little good, regardless.
In other words, she was so screwed.
“Any last advice?” she asked, trying to delay their leaving.
Zain smirked at her. “Don’t let your toes fall off.”
Instead of being concerned by his comment, Alex grinned and lifted one of her fur-lined, knee-high boots. “Have you seen these babies? It’s like I’m wearing hot water bottles on my feet.”
It was true. The clothes Kyia had forced the drowsy Alex into were fully insulating her from the cold. Her pants were made of a windproof, leathery material that was impossibly supple, and her thick, wrap-around tunic dropped to mid-thigh, keeping her nice and toasty. Her outfit was white and laced with thinly threaded Myrox, which—according to Kyia—was why Alex felt so comfortable despite the winter chill. It also meant Alex blended in effortlessly with the snow-and-silver woodland.
“I’m pretty sure my toes will be okay,” Alex continued to Zain. “It’s the rest of me that’s up for debate.”
“Then we’d better get you started,” the burly Meyarin said, clapping her on the shoulder so hard that her knees buckled. “Travel swift, little human. You’ll be back with us before you know it.”
He stepped away and Kyia followed suit, sending Alex an encouraging smile. Roka, however, moved closer.
“If you lose your way, follow the path of the sun,” he said. “It will lead you directly to Meya. The endurance stage of your varrungard trial will end the moment you reach the Golden Cliffs.” He leaned in and whispered, “You’re not technically allowed a weapon, but since A’enara isn’t here in physical form right now, we won’t consider it cheating. But don’t forget your blade, should trouble find you.”
Alex’s eyes were wide when he pulled back. “Exactly what kind of trouble might ‘find me’, Roka?”
“You would be extremely unlucky,” he said, answering but also not answering. “I’m sure it won’t be a concern, I merely wanted to… remind you. Now go, Alex. And remember: think like a Meyarin.”
“Think like a Meyarin,” Alex muttered grumpily to herself later that afternoon, her tone deeper in imitation of the prince. “Think like a Meyarin, Alex.” She relaxed her voice to its natural pitch, “Well, sure, Roka. Because I know how to do that so well.”
On the whole, her varrungard experience wasn’t going wonderfully. She was tired, thirsty, and despite her Myrox-lined clothes, beginning to feel the sting of the cold as the sun began its retreat beyond the horizon. She likely would have had blisters all over her feet too, if not for the healing properties of the laendra that she snacked on whenever she came across the glowing flower. But while it pumped her body with renewed heat and invigorated her energy levels, the sweet plant did little to actually fill her stomach.
“This sucks,” she whined, panting heavily as she waded her way through a blanket of particularly deep snow. She’d mostly been able to travel through the forest unhindered, but wherever she was right now was laden with the thick powder, making it nearly impossible for her to get anywhere fast.
In fact, speed was becoming a very real problem for Alex. No matter how hard she tried, for some reason she just wasn’t able to tap into her Meyarin abilities. She’d done it before—back when she’d been with Aven and Jordan just before Kaldoras. With her life threatened, she’d somehow managed to run through the forest with super speed before escaping through a Shadow Essence portal.
Looking down at her bare fingers, Alex mentally cursed Zain for confiscating her Shadow Ring. Had she still been wearing it, she would have been sorely tempted to instantly transport herself back to Meya, aptitude test be damned.
It took another hour before Alex stumbled across her first source of water for the day, and considering she’d been hiking for hours, she was about ready to throw herself bodily into the slowly trickling stream if it meant soothing her parched throat. She’d been tempted to suck the snow as she trailed, but with the dying sun, she hadn’t wanted to risk lowering her core temperature further. Not that the icy water was going to be much warmer.
Drinking until she was satisfied, Alex sat back on her heels, glancing up at the silvery-charcoaled canopy above her. Very little light was filtering through the trees now and she knew the sun had almost completely set.
The human part of Alex told her that the wisest thing she could do was find shelter and bunker down for the night. Unfortunately, even if she was struggling to utilise her Meyarin blood, she could still hear Roka’s ‘think like a Meyarin’ encouragement in her mind. A Meyarin, Alex knew, wouldn’t stop for the night. A Meyarin had super senses and super speed and would likely already have made it back to Meya by now. But in the event that they were still out in the forest, there was no way they would pause their varrungard trek to take a rest. They would keep going, all night if they had to. So that was what Alex would do.
As much as she dreaded being out in the cold, darkening forest, Alex was determined to pass her trial. Part of that was because she felt like she owed it to Roka, Zain and Kyia, who all believed in her; part of that was because of the snotty council members, who didn’t believe in her; and part of that was because she, more than anyone, knew what was at stake. She had to get a handle on her Meyarin instincts if she wanted even the smallest chance of surviving another encounter with Aven. And if this varrungard test could help unlock her newfound senses in any way, then she needed to give it her all.
Inhaling deeply, Alex pushed up from the stream to her feet and closed her eyes.
“Listen, Alex,” she whispered to herself. “Just listen.”
With her eyes firmly closed, she concentrated on her breathing, on the sound of air moving through her lungs and out her nose. She could hear her heartbeat in her ears, so she focused on that as well. Ba-dum, ba-dum, ba-dum. Then she expanded her hearing outwards. She heard the trickle of the water flowing along the stream at her feet. She listened to the crunch of the snow when she shuffled her feet and the whistle of the wind as it blew through the trees. Far in the distance she heard the sound of birds bedding down for the night, creatures rustling in the underbrush, scavenging for their evening meals. She heard the soft paw prints of a larger animal wading a path across the snow, along with the pitter-patter of smaller paws trailing close behind it; cubs with their mother, perhaps.
Keeping a tight hold on the sounds, Alex focused on her other senses. She felt the cold breeze kiss her face, she smelled a faint scent of earth buried deep beneath the snow at her feet and she tasted the freshness on her tongue from the mountain-crisp water, as well as the faint aftertaste of laendra.
Finally, she opened her eyes.
Alex stood motionless as she took in the sights around her, as if seeing the world for the first time. Everything was brighter; everything was clearer. When the heavens opened up and flurries began to trickle down on her, Alex watched them in slow motion, seeing the intricate details of each individual snowflake. She held her hand out, watching as the ice melted on her skin, experiencing everything with microscopic clarity.
Fully in control now, Alex pulled her senses inward. She felt her blood pumping in her veins, her muscles tense and ready for action. She was overwhelmingly aware of the power in her body and the strength at her disposal.
Shifting forward slightly, Alex felt every tendon and ligament yield with supple expectation. And when she used her heels to push off from the ground, she wasn’t surprised when she moved straight into a sprint where her feet barely touched the snow as she tore through the forest, blurring through the trees at an impo
ssible speed.
It was exhilarating; intoxicating, even. Alex hadn’t been able to enjoy the experience when she’d been running from Aven, but now, even with the wind slashing at her face and bringing tears to her eyes, Alex couldn’t help but feel truly free for the first time in what felt like forever.
Maybe this varrungard thing isn’t so bad after all, she thought, closing her eyes and knowing that her other attuned senses would keep her from ploughing headfirst into a tree. Because I sure could get used to this.
Alex ran all night, following a trail of moonlight through the forest and continuing on well into the next morning. She stopped only when she had to—if she came across new streams to drink from or when she felt the faint stirrings of hunger. She wasn’t sure if it was the Meyarin blood in her veins or the repeated ingestion of laendra, but her energy never failed her, nor did her new abilities. Granted, each time she ceased running, she had to take a considerable amount of time to centre herself and ‘listen’ before she was able to take off again, but on the whole, she was extremely proud of her progress. In fact, she had travelled so far that the leaves of the trees had just begun transforming from glimmering charcoal to glistening honey, showing that she had now reached the forest forming the boundary around Meya. At the speed she was moving, it wouldn’t be long at all until she reached the Golden Cliffs and came to the end of her varrungard. It was perhaps even possible that she would be back in time for lunch.
Oh, how she hoped Gaiel and Riza would be at the palace to see her triumphant return. She’d sure show them what it meant to be ‘durable for a mortal’.
Increasing her speed in anticipation of her arrival, it was just as she broke through a tight copse of trees bordering a large clearing that she was brought to a sudden, staggering halt. And that was because an agonised roar bellowed out from somewhere close by, causing her to bend at the waist while slapping her hands protectively over her ears.
The sound was unlike anything she’d ever heard before. To her Meyarin-sensitive hearing, it felt like needles were being shoved into her ear canals. Through watering eyes, she looked up just in time to witness the source of the sound fall from the sky above the golden trees and come to a skidding, sliding stop at the edge of the clearing.