“’Twas not my lips you kissed but my soul...”
~Judy Garland
“Kaira?”
Kairalina was looking out of the window distractedly before she was snatched away from her thoughts by the shy, male voice. She spun around to see the bespectacled young man. “Oh, hi, Erik,” she greeted him with a sad smile.
Erik looked about nervously as he always did when she was in sight. He hesitated but decided to stay for a while with her before going back to KACUSA’s headquarters. He had a meeting with Damien and was on his way off when he saw the girl in the sun lounge. He stood beside her quietly.
“Very busy lately, huh?” asked Kairalina. He was often seen entering and exiting the
He nodded.
“Do you… have any news on Raviex?”
His heart sank, though he knew clearly that the question was coming. He spoke reluctantly, “Kaira, I’m sorry… but…” He let his voice trail off. It thoroughly broke his heart to see her attempting to prevent her tears from falling and putting on a brave smile.
“I… I understand. I mean, obviously, if Raviex has returned, the whole world is bound to know first, right?” she chuckled. Erik’s gaze drooped to the ground guiltily. “I’m sorry, I don’t know why the tears won’t stop coming,” she added, forcing a small laugh as she brushed away her tears with her fingers.
“Kaira… please—”
“No, no, I’m okay, really. I’m just not used to Raviex’s absence. It’s been twenty-five long days…” Her voice broke off as she wept into her hands. “I’m losing myself, Erik!”
She placed her head on his chest and cried. Erik closed his eyes regretfully. If only you can see her right now, Raviex. How could you leave her crying like this?
When the weight on him lifted, he opened his eyes, in the midst of finding the right words to comfort her. He was surprised to see his glasses in her small hands. He received a true shock, however, as the girl wrung her arms around him and somehow managed to get past his guard and pulled him towards her.
The next instant, he found her lips pressing hard on his. His heart was thumping like mad at her sudden approach. It was his first kiss from a girl and he definitely dared not dream that it would come from the belle of
But this is not the way I want it to be…
He resisted and shrugged off her arms, stepping away from her. “Y… You’re not yourself, Kairalina. I think it is best I leave now. I’ll come back when you’re feeling better.”
Kairalina looked away, embarrassed. “I…I’m sorry, I don’t know what I am doing anymore… Erik, please, must you leave now?” She didn’t want to be left alone.
“I just don’t want to be Raviex’s substitution, Kaira,” he sighed and exited the room.
The room was silent again while Kairalina stared at the glasses Erik had forgotten to claim from her. She touched her lips meaningfully, remembering the kiss between them.
Why did I do it?
II
“I don’t get it. Why are we detouring to
“This is the third and LAST time I’m explaining to you, Kaneshiro,” snapped Sonia in annoyance. “When you were so busy dating Aiko, that Himean, the rest of us received a vision from Letaikno. Raviex has decided to visit the city because he wants to find out what the vision meant. It has got to be really important if Letaikno actually showed it to us.”
“So that’s why we’re heading west and not northwest for Sage Village as we planned to,” muttered Kyoden as he nodded. “You could’ve just said so!” he added.
“Well, excuse me! I’ve told you this twice before; if you even care to remember,” the nineteen-year-old girl shot back indignantly.
“No, I don’t remember,” said the Haikenese innocently.
“Why I ought to—” Sonia tried to grab at his neck but he dodged.
Raviex and Christine laughed at their act. It was almost ten in the morning. Raviex and his company had camped out through the night after their victory in the now non-existent
“We’ll be arriving at
“Lunch hour…” Kyoden drooled over the thought. An idea hit him. “Hey, let’s try out the Skyglide. We’ve never really gotten the chance to have a full run with it after Keith gave them to us. Maybe we can reach there by sundown and enjoy a good supper,” he said enthusiastically.
“It’ll be dangerous to use it for a long period. We might exhaust our Sacred Energy if we’re not careful,” Sonia rebutted the idea.
“Then let’s just be careful,” shrugged Kyoden lightly.
“Sounds fine to me,” said Christine.
“It’s better if we could arrive at
Sonia slapped her forehead, unable to believe she was overruled. How could they not see the logic? How could they not see the danger?
Minutes later, however, she could not deny the gleefulness of the ability to glide in the sky, thus, the name Skyglide. It was freedom’s touch, feeling the wind blowing between strands of her hair. They were gliding in the air about an extra eighty metres above the trees of the forest below.
“This is so extreme!” yelled Kyoden through the roaring of the air. “Do you guys think we could do tricks up here on this baby?”
Without any given answer, he spun a 360° loop twice, laughing giddily after the stunt. Christine applauded at his demonstration and joined in the fun. She mimicked the actions of a professional ice-skater skating on ice, dashing and spinning around. Sonia, Lorenne and Raviex clapped their hands and laughed along.
Raviex hovered towards her. “Care for a waltz in this magnificent ballroom?” he grinned, holding out a hand.
Christine giggled and took his hand. As they waltzed about, Raviex hummed a ballroom tune he once heard during an official function held in the Grand Ballroom of the Palace back in
“You’re not only gifted in martial arts, you’re also gifted in dancing,” teased Raviex.
“Why, thank you, Your Highness. You are as good a dancer as you were during our first dance, too,” she commented jokingly before wandering off herself from his side.
The Prince was stumped and called after her for an explanation but she purposely turned a deaf ear as if to tease him back. Lorenne chuckled softly as she watched them.
Sonia narrowed her eyes suspiciously when she saw Kyoden bent over, sniggering. She looked over his shoulder and instantly smacked him on his head for his deed.
“That is utmost indecorous, Kaneshiro!” she scolded him.
“Hey, that hurt, you boorish lady!” he whined. “I was just having fun with one of the Visual-C’s utilities!”
Sonia looked accusingly at him. “Uh-huh, by taking pictures of Raviex and Christine secretively with it, I see.”
“Oh, come on! I’ll give you a share of the money I get when I blackmail Raviex,” negotiated Kyoden.
“You’re not supposed to misuse Keith’s invention, idiot. Besides, don’t you know it’s the death sentence if you blackmail the Prince?” she snapped.
“You’re no fun at all, Sonia,” scowled the Haikenese. “Alright, alright, I’ll delete the pictures if and only IF you explain to me what status-inducing skills are.”
She frowned and grunted at his bargain. “Okay, I’ll tell you after taking lunch but first, I want to see you delete the pictures right in front of my own eyes.” Kyoden obediently erased the pictures from the Visual-C’s memory. “Good, tell the rest to gather. We’re much ahead of schedule due to the Skyglides. We’ll find a good spot to have our lunch.”
The five landed beneath the trees. They felt wobbly for a second or two when their feet touched ground for they spent too much time in the air. With Christine’s hunting skill, it did not take her long to bring her prize back to the group for a small lunch; she caught five wild adult rabbits.
With Sonia assisting her, she slew the rabbits and skinned them carefully (the skins could be sold for money for their journey). Lorenne, being too soft-hearted in nature, could not bear to watch the animals die, so she walked off from the scene. Raviex had no experience in skinning animals, thus, he could only watch and learn from the two girls. It was an awkward experience, however, because he had to comfort Kyoden as he watched since he was crying so badly for the “poor things” (Sonia rolled her eyes at him).
Lorenne was in charge of roasting the raw meat. The guys had helped set up a fire place for her with prepared wood and stones. She extended her hand and concentrated; a perfect fire for roasting burnt the woods quickly. The pieces of meat were placed above the fire with sticks. Soon, lunch was ready and after a prayer of gratefulness to the Light, they tucked in. Every one of them was contented though the meal wasn’t luxurious. It was a result of their teamwork.
As promised, Sonia taught Kyoden on status-inducing skills when she was done with lunch. “Compared to real sorcery, like what Lorenne practices, status-inducing skills are a much simpler form of magic, though it requires the equal amount of focus. Any Lundea can perform it easily, given the right teachings and amount of meditation.
Master said that each Lundea gives out different status-inducing skills. In my case, I can stun my opponent or weaken his physical defence and my status-inducing skills come in the form of lightning. That’s primarily due to the fact that I was blessed by Xeloah,” she explained without looking at him. Lightning is the trademark element of the god of Justice, Xeloah.
Kyoden nodded as he listened and absorbed Sonia’s explanation. “I was blessed by Zephod at my birth. So, what would my status-inducing skills be like?”
She turned to face him, an eyebrow raised sceptically. “I’m surprised at the fact that you’re interested in learning something from me,” she stated. “And here I thought you loathed my leadership.”
He frowned before retorting. “Well, yeah, I admit I loathe your leadership but I don’t think it can harm a guy to learn a few tricks from a lady like you.”
Amused, Sonia chuckled, her whole face lit up by her loud laughter. Kyoden felt rather tongue-tied at the sight and hearing of her bright laughter. It was different from Lorenne’s, which was for sure; and it had an almost… picturesque quality to it.
Are you mad, Kyoden? This is SONIA we’re talking about…!
“Well, since I’ve already told you most of what I know, I guess I can teach you to master your own skills. As yours would be fire-based, your skills would be useful in helping allies and can’t be used to affect enemies like mine. You see, fire—if used properly—can raise one’s accuracy. I suppose that’s why you’re an archer, am I right?”
Amazed at her knowledge, Kyoden exclaimed, “Wow! I never thought of that! I just knew I have a great ability of hitting targets…I didn’t know it had something to do with my being a Lundea…”
Sonia just smiled before sipping from her water tumbler to quench her thirst. From the corner of her eye, she saw Lorenne sitting beneath a tree, holding her knees tightly as she watched the sky, her eyes filled with sadness.
Perhaps I shall ask her another time…
Meanwhile, Raviex and Christine had sauntered off privately, away from the others’ range of hearing. Raviex told her he had something secretive he wanted to talk to her about and he thought it was best if the others remained in the dark for the moment.
“I think the others can’t hear us now. So what is it that you want to talk about?” asked Christine curiously.
Raviex had second thoughts on what he was about to say but decided he had to know. “I… I’ve been thinking to ask you for a very long time now, Ryn. I want to ask about Estelle’s existence in you,” he said cautiously.
Christine looked away from him. “So… so you know,” she uttered, unsure what to say to him. It was something that even Keith had no knowledge about.
“Ryn, you can tell me about it. Please?” he prodded. Christine, however, avoided his question and walked deeper into the forest, before sitting by a clear and smooth-flowing stream. Raviex hastened after her and took a seat beside her.
She let out a beaten sigh at his persistence. “Raviex, there are some things better left unknown.”
“Not this matter, I’m certain,” he replied determinedly. “Every time Estelle sees me… through you, I mean, she calls me ‘Levon’. Every time I look into her eyes, they reflect so much… love. I have to know why.”
She turned to look at him. Raviex blinked a few times, staggered by her sudden alteration. Her eyes were different now. They glowed a different shade of hazel from the one Christine had.
“Levon, my dear Levon,” she whispered, looking at him with a beautiful smile on her face. “Every bit of him, every trace of him, is just like you…” she said dreamily. Raviex realised it was Estelle who was with him now, and the way she spoke to him assured that it was indeed her. It was the same gentle, caring tone of voice she had used when she woke him up in his slumber a night ago.
“Estelle… I… I’m not Levon. He’s my... my father and he returned to Amaea two years ago…” he replied, but it didn’t stop her from reaching out her hand and caressing his cheek gently. She placed her forefinger on his lips as she continued to smile airily, as if recalling sweet memories.
Raviex blushed madly, because although it was Estelle who was doing it, he could only see Christine’s smiling face. “Estelle, won’t you set Ryn free?” he asked, a little out of breath.
Her sweetness did not fade. “I will, Lexondré, don’t worry. I would never harm Christine. Her mind is sleeping in peace right now.”
Confusion toppled on him even more. “How do you… How do you know the Royal Secret?”
Estelle chuckled, “Lexondré, I gave you your name.”
“But…” he felt weak and helpless. He could not grasp a thing. There was a evocative look on her then as she unfolded the story unknown to anyone besides King Levon and her.
“Cedric Levon Katelion is my first and only love. On his 23rd birthday, he was granted the permission from the King to celebrate his birthday with the people on the Blessed Land. A grand jubilee was to be held at
I had never met the Prince myself. I travelled all the way from
Raviex could only watch as Estelle’s smile grew, her heart filling up with delightful reminiscence. She stopped briefly, before continuing on with her story as Raviex was still listening attentively, feeding his curiosity.
“It was obvious that he had escaped out into the city on his own and he had to return to his hotel suite before the celebration started. He told me he would like to meet me again and we arranged the time and place for us to meet. His schedule stated that he was going to spend two weeks in
Those two weeks were the happiest days of my life. It was amusing to see Levon sneaking out of his suite and disguising himself so that no one could recognise him. The relationship between us shifted from friendship to romance before we could stop ourselves. My heart was completely stolen by him.
He had given happiness to me. Levon promised he would make me his queen after he was crowned king. I waited for him. You can’t imagine how heartbroken I was when I heard the news of the Royal Wedding of King Levon and Lady Seraphina two months after his coronation but I never ceased waiting for him… even till my death three years later.”
He didn’t know why, but Raviex felt his mouth dry as he continued to listen to her. Estelle chuckled forlornly as she turned to him. Was this why his father never felt truly happy within the walls of the castle?
“You must think I’m silly but I never regretted loving him because I knew he loved me too. You, my dear, are living proof. Levon had asked me once if we were blessed with a son, what was the name I would give to him. My reply to him was, ‘Lexondré.’ When you responded to that name, I knew he had never forgotten me.
But believe me, Lexondré; your father was loyal to his matrimony with your mother. He was a faithful believer in the Light. Although it was a planned marriage by King Lionel the Second, Levon treated the Queen rightfully. Thus, he could not search for me because it would be wrong.”
A deep sense of admiration welled in within Raviex for his father. He could not picture it if he was in his father’s shoes. It would pain him to death if he had to be separated permanently from the girl he loved. Yet, his faith saved him and gave him strength to rule the Kingdom. He wondered if his mother ever knew about this.
“I’m sorry my father could not keep his promise, Estelle,” apologised Raviex sincerely. It was too late and he didn’t know if his apology was going to be of any help.
“Sweet, sweet Lexondré, I cannot live this world because my soul is tied down. I am still waiting for him, so very patiently. I only desire to see Levon before I leave…” Raviex found himself in a dilemma. How was he going to fulfil her request when his father was long gone?
With Christine’s fingers, Estelle daintily closed Raviex’s eyes. “Shh… I know it in my heart, Raviex… your father is with you,” she whispered softly into his ear.
Father…?
Raviex’s nerves calmed down as his mind was spirited away into his own dream. Was it a dream? He wished it wasn’t, when he saw his father’s soul in his younger days, looking at him with a smile on his youthful face.
She was right when she said I resembled you, wasn’t she, Father…?
“Estelle.”
Her emotions overwhelmed her as she realised that the person who she was sitting next to was the one she had waited all her life. Tears flooded her eyes. She bit on a knuckle on her right hand while the pearl-like teardrops fell on her cheeks. “Levon, you finally came…” she breathed.
With his son’s hands, Levon held Estelle’s tightly. “I’m sorry I made you wait so long…” he began. “I’m sorry for all the pain and suffering I’ve caused you… but I had no choice, Estelle.”
Estelle smiled through her tears and her crying. “I know, Levon. It must’ve been hard for you too. It was… it was worth the wait, just to see you now. I just want you to know that… until this day… my love for you has never faded. I love you, Levon. My love is only you and forever will be you.”
Levon gently brushed the tears away from her cheeks with his thumbs and cupped her face with his hands. He drew closer to her, the tip of his nose almost touching hers. She felt his warm breath on her lips as he spoke, in barely a whisper, “I love you too, Estelle…”
He gradually closed his eyes as he kissed her deeply. Estelle too, closed her eyes when she felt his lips upon hers. Her heart was contented to know that it was truly her prince as she felt his radiant aura, and the scent which reminded her so much of the royalty he was. Levon was happy as well for he had waited for two decades to hold her once again.
Now… everything for us is complete….
Raviex felt his mind being pulled out of his dream sharply as his father’s spirit abruptly left him and so did Christine, feeling the soul tied to her release and disappear. They both opened their eyes and upon discovering what they were doing - quickly pulled away from each other.
“Hey, hey, hey…getting romantic without us, now are you?” came Kyoden’s teasing voice from behind the bushes. He made kissing faces before starting to taunt them with a Haikenese love song. Sonia’s infuriated growl came next, as she dragged Kyoden back to the campsite. Lorenne, who still sat under the same tree, was undisturbed by what was going on and resumed looking at the sky.
Raviex blushed furiously, his usually pale cheeks all red from embarrassment. He had no idea what happened and how it happened - but he had a strong feeling his father was behind this. Christine was also in the same predicament, but as she got up from the grassy floor, she had to admit to herself…
Having a spirit that was Raviex’s father’s lover was not so bad after all…
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