Xadia's Secrets

Summary:

Struggling to pick up the pieces of his heart after Rayla leaves him, Callum starts to unravel secrets of Xadia’s past with the help from a new source

As Rayla is on her own journey across Xadia, she meets and creates an unlikely bond with someone she never would have met

Hearts and relationships left behind, they start their own journeys, hoping to solve questions and erase their demons. But that’s never easy. Not when you can’t let go of your past

Plot:

“This forest never ends…” Terry complained as he kicked a pebble down the way as he walked.

“Don’t worry, we’re closer than ever to exiting this forest. I can feel it.” Rayla smiled, reaching a hand to take out a leaf off his dark brown locks. “So, what do the Wandering Plains look like?”

“Oh!” Terry’s emerald eyes glistened as a smile crept up to his face, “They’re the greenest plains in all of Xadia! Miles and miles of green! Even during fall and winter. Also, some flowers bloom there that don’t bloom anywhere else! My parents and I try to visit it at least once a season because the flora is never the same too!”

Rayla chuckled. She had come to learn that the enthusiasm that Terry had in his voice when he talked about his home and his culture was one of the few things that could make Terry pick up his pace when they were walking for a good while.

Of course, she made sure to take breaks constantly, he was just a kid after all, but the drive of coming back home always seemed to cheer him on. It made Rayla happy too. She had never really come in contact with the Earthblood culture, knowing that she rarely left her Village, so it was nice talking to someone that had traveled far and wide and was just as eager to share those experiences.

As Terry and Rayla talked, they didn’t even start to notice how the thick treetops above them started getting more and more sparse until the sunlight of the afternoon sun was shining right above them as it hadn't on days.

That’s when Rayla knew: she had successfully exited the forest.

Summary:

Struggling to pick up the pieces of his heart after Rayla leaves him, Callum starts to unravel secrets of Xadia’s past with the help from a new source

As Rayla is on her own journey across Xadia, she meets and creates an unlikely bond with someone she never would have met

Hearts and relationships left behind, they start their own journeys, hoping to solve questions and erase their demons. But that’s never easy. Not when you can’t let go of your past

Plot:

Despite their growing friendship, Lorelei and Callum didn’t talk during the way down the forest. Callum was too focused on not falling off Dolly and Lorelei walked in silence. Her friend was also very quiet.

It was around noon that his mind finally drifted off somewhere artistic. He looked at the spirit walking just a few meters ahead of him. Callum wanted to draw Fidella in his sketchbook. This was the first spirit of Xadia he met! He was so curious about them! Did Xadia have spirits for every arcanum? What were the differences and similarities between them?

“So, a spirit of the earth arcanum?” He asked, his curiosity getting the better of him, “They must be pretty rare”

“Not really.” Lorelei said, looking back at Callum, “I would say that besides spirits of the ocean arcanum, earth spirits are the most common.”

“Have you both known each other for... what was the number of years you said before?”

“Almost fifteen years.” Lorelei replied, adjusting the lead on Fidella’s bridle.

“So that means you were thirteen when you bonded with her?”

“Yes, but I was aware of her existence since I was eleven.” Lorelei smiled, picking a flower that was about to fly from one of the branches on Fidella’s head, “We both have a lot in common. That made it easier for us to bond.” She let the flower fly with the wind.

“I see.”

They continued down the path.

Finally, the forest ended and Callum saw again the bay where he, Rayla, Ezran, Bait, and Zym once were. Staring at the immensity of water before him again.

“Everything alright, Callum?” Lorelei asked, just a few feet ahead of him on the path down the mountain.

“Yes, don’t worry.” He smiled weakly at her.

She just nodded and continued ahead.

Summary:

Struggling to pick up the pieces of his heart after Rayla leaves him, Callum starts to unravel secrets of Xadia's past with the help from a new source

As Rayla is on her own journey across Xadia, she meets and creates an unlikely bond with someone she never would have met

Hearts and relationships left behind, they start their own journeys, hoping to solve questions and erase their demons. But that's never easy. Not when you can't let go of your past

Plot:

“Rayla? Rayla!”

The Moonshadow elf bolted upright, reaching instinctively to grab her blades that were strapped on her back, the sharpened end just a few centimeters from whoever was calling her in her sleep.

“Wow! stop! It’s me, Rayla!”

Rayla’s eyes were still a little blurry, but the contrast of the sun shining behind them made it hard for Rayla’s foggy brain to identify whoever it was.

The brown skin and petite size gave her a clue.

“Ezran?” she said, rubbing both of her eyes, still with a blade in her hands. Finally, she could see clearly.

“Who’s Ezran? It’s Terry!”

Oh, right, Rayla cursed to herself, finally being able to see Terry’s features.

“Sorry, sorry. I’m still a little tired.” She said, the blade going inside its case.

“I can tell,” Terry said, stepping away from the entrance of the cavern, allowing Rayla to bask in the morning sunlight coming from outside.

“How long have you been up?” She asked, turning to the young elf.

“A few minutes. I was outside, seeing if there were any signs of a new summer storm, but the sky is clear. I was going to wait for you to wake up, but I realized we don’t have time to waste.”

She couldn’t help but let her eyes widen at his statement.

“I guess you’re right.”

“Here,” He handed her bag, “I packed your stuff while I waited for you to wake up.”

Summary:

Struggling to pick up the pieces of his heart after Rayla leaves him, Callum starts to unravel secrets of Xadia's past with the help from a new source

As Rayla is on her own journey across Xadia, she meets and creates an unlikely bond with someone she never would have met

Hearts and relationships left behind, they start their own journeys, hoping to solve questions and erase their demons. But that's never easy. Not when you can't let go of your past

Plot:

Callum’s heart rate didn’t slow down during the afternoon. They all had dinner a bit earlier and then go straight to bed. He was supposed to rest for the journey ahead of him, but it didn’t happen. The storm of thoughts inside his head wasn’t stopping.

He paced back and forth in his room, looking at the map of Xadia Lujanne had given him. Lorelei passed by earlier and indicated what was going to be their journey. The carbon lines on the paper made things way too real for him. And that wasn’t good for his anxiety.

In the end, he only got a maximum of five hours of sleep and he was sure that wasn’t enough for the first day on the road.

So he stayed the rest of the night up, looking at the map, at the moon, at the stars.

Time was messy in his head, but some time before they were supposed to be waking up, someone knocked on the door of his room.

Callum’s head was still running on less than 8 hours of sleep, but he eventually noticed the knocking after they tried three times.

“Come in.” the prince said, stifling a yawn. Slowly, the door opened, revealing Ezran with something under his arm. Some kind of package.

Summary:

Struggling to pick up the pieces of his heart after Rayla leaves him, Callum starts to unravel secrets of Xadia's past with the help from a new source

As Rayla is on her own journey across Xadia, she meets and creates an unlikely bond with someone she never would have met

Hearts and relationships left behind, they start their own journeys, hoping to solve questions and erase their demons. But that's never easy. Not when you can't let go of your past

Plot:

Rain wasn’t something atypical in the Moonshadow forest. She remembers clearly many of her trips to the Adoraburr field being delayed or canceled because suddenly it started pouring.

But what was rare for her were summer storms.

So you can say she was surprised when it started pouring heavily and cracks of thunder were heard in the sky as the sun was setting.

“We have to find somewhere safe so we can wait for the storm to pass!” she screamed to Terry, the Earthblood kid she was temporarily sitting for. Well, she wouldn’t call it a sitting. She had done babysitting before in exchange for some money. That usually involved getting those energetic kids away from sharp objects and avoiding nasty accidents.

Terry was so quiet that Rayla would need to constantly check her surroundings, looking for the kid, hoping he didn’t get lost half a mile before, and didn’t call for help. But he was always there. Sometimes, she would see him get distracted by some of the flora of the forest, but he always managed to stay right behind her as they got through the forest.

She could count on her fingers the number of sentences he had spoken ever since yesterday right after he had told her his name.

Summary:

Struggling to pick up the pieces of his heart after Rayla leaves him, Callum starts to unravel secrets of Xadia's past with the help from a new source

As Rayla is on her own journey across Xadia, she meets and creates an unlikely bond with someone she never would have met

Hearts and relationships left behind, they start their own journeys, hoping to solve questions and erase their demons. But that's never easy. Not when you can't let go of your past

Plot:

“Callum, you’re smiling,” Lorelei says, not breaking her meditation pose, her eyes closed.

“Whaaaat? No, I’m not…” He tries but he can’t lie to her, “Ugh, how are you able to tell? Your eyes are closed!”

Lorelei smiles before her lips turn back to a straight line.

“I have my own secrets of teaching, you know.”

“One day I’ll need to tell me all about those.”

“Perhaps, now can you focus? No smiling unless it’s from inner peace.”

“You can tell the difference?”

“Maybe.” Callum wasn’t able to tell if that was supposed to be a joke or if she was serious. He decided not to test fate.

He closed his eyes again, but as he tried to concentrate, his concentration broke, which Lorelei noticed as soon as it happened. She let out an exasperated sigh, still maintaining her posture.

“Callum, if you need to let out some energy, we can go back to the sword fighting and try meditation later.”

“No need. It’s just,” Callum looked around, an almost concerned look on his face, “I have this feeling like something is supposed to be happening, but isn’t.”

“You mean like a sixth sense?”

Summary:

Struggling to pick up the pieces of his heart after Rayla leaves him, Callum starts to unravel secrets of Xadia's past with the help from a new source

As Rayla is on her own journey across Xadia, she meets and creates an unlikely bond with someone she never would have met

Hearts and relationships left behind, they start their own journeys, hoping to solve questions and erase their demons. But that's never easy. Not when you can't let go of your past

Plot:

Of course that in the morning after Rayla’s best day in the weeks she’s left Katolis, something would go wrong. That’s the unfair way of life.

To be honest, things had been going pretty well for her until the afternoon.

No hiding from wild animals in the Moonshadow forest, no falling into hidden holes in the unstable ground of Xadia. She even found a minute to put her thoughts in place! That hadn’t happened in many weeks. The hot weather was enough to make her sweat under her cloak, so she stuffed it in her bag, walking around in the forest as she used to 2 months ago.

Things were smooth until, well, she forgot the first lesson that Runaan taught her.

Always watch your step

Summary:

Struggling to pick up the pieces of his heart after Rayla leaves him, Callum starts to unravel secrets of Xadia's past with the help from a new source

As Rayla is on her own journey across Xadia, she meets and creates an unlikely bond with someone she never would have met

Hearts and relationships left behind, they start their own journeys, hoping to solve questions and erase their demons. But that's never easy. Not when you can't let go of your past

Plot:

“Nice work today, Prince Callum” Lorelei says, her voice laced with amazement.

“Thank you, Lorelei.” Callum scratches the back of his neck and can’t help but flush at the compliment from his teacher.

He had to admit, it was only his third day of training and he was getting the hang of things. Maybe what she had said about Soren’s teaching not being the best teacher made some sense. Lorelei was nothing like Soren when it came to teaching him to sword fight.

Even though he and the Royal Guard were on good terms now, he had to admit that if he were ever to chose who teach him, he would pick Lorelei.

While Soren made sure to defeat Callum as quickly as possible so he could go back to his other duties, Lorelei was willing to stay way more time than planned to make sure Callum understood the lessons. Soren was harsh with his movements, while Lorelei’s were almost subtle. If she was planning something in the middle of a battle, you wouldn’t know until it actually hit them in the face.

It was clear by the number of times she didn’t give on him ever since beginning their lessons that Lorelei had in the past taught magic and self-defense to others. The way she knew exactly how to fix an error he made like she had seen it dozens of times before him.

Of course, he didn’t ask her if she used to be a teacher before she crossed the border. Despite their growing friendship and bond, Lorelei was still hesitant to talk about her past before she came into the human side. The only thing she knew was that she had an older brother and that her wife had passed away years ago. Not much at all.