Elizah was looking up into the depths of the forest canopy as the slow drops of water touched her face from the gaps. It was raining heavily outside, but under the canopy it was just a mild drizzle that made Elizah forget the tears of her agony.

She wanted to meet Liran all her life, but had she expected this? Never.

She always thought he’d be a caring father to her, so maybe he would come to actually see her, this was her biggest dream . But instead he was here for diplomacy making an argument on something she and Jayden had made up their mind about a long time ago.

But was he right to say that Elizah wasn’t a true healer if she didn’t value the life of those lost to the curse? As that thought reached her she immediately swore under her breath. 

She knew that wasn’t the case. That was absolutely the worst thing she could think of. 

What other choice do we have? Save the ones who die to the curse but lose so many more because of the limit on power. How is that in any way justified?

It reminded her of the argument she had with Levi a while back. Levi had had the same opinion as Liran but soon they seemed to abandon the argument.

She made a fist and struck hard at the grass where the grass immediately grew rapidly to the size of lake reeds. She gave the grass a confused glance before she laughed slightly.

In her fury, she’d unknowingly released her energy into the plant and it grew with the energy. 

Sometimes, even fury can create something beautiful. Elizah thought back and she lay back on the ground. 

She remembered the fond memories of when she first trained in healing. At the time, growing even a small flower took everything out of her. She’d gotten far beyond after that. She never knew the laws of how magic worked. She brought them to mind and furrowed her brow. Something didn’t add up.

Magic doesn’t come from thin air, but rather is the transfer of energy from one being to another or to the world around.

We depend on darkness and light. They exist together. Their dependance is simply organised chaos. 

We live and thrive on these two quantities. The balance and imbalance.

The balance is always uneven in a magic user, but that of a normal person is always balanced. 

Light is greater in the hearts and souls of these ones who have power, but darkness eats away at them. To keep them in balance, the power must always be used. In a way, it could be a curse, but we call it a boon. 

Thus those who have no control on magic become the cursed ones who die in strange ways.

Elizah remembered Jade’s words like it was just the day before when she’d given them the lecture about this. On that day, both Jayden and Elizah were far from interested in philosophy, but now she found herself going back to these teachings. 

But something didn’t seem to add up. When Elizah felt Liran’s presence, it wasn’t a balance nor an abundance of light. It was pure darkness with barely a sliver of light.

That didn’t add up. If that was his state, his mind would have been eaten away and he’d be as good as dead. It was like seeing a dead man walking. 

So is that why he was acting strangely?

Elizah was deep in this thought when she heard the clopping of a horse behind her. She immediately got up, startled and worried that it was Liran or Noxaura.

“It’s me. Your sopping wet warrior,” there was a tired voice and Elizah only laughed to see Jayden coming out from the dense forest, dripping wet from head to toe.

“It’s raining that badly?” Elizah said and was still grinning while Jayden was grumbling.

“It started a while back. I assumed you’d come back after the rain began. Since you didn’t I came to check on you,” Jayden said and his eyes were gleaming with both fear and fury from their earlier conversation with Liran.

“It’s always so beautiful here when it rains,” Jayden said and he saw the beautiful lagoon beside the two of them.

“I’m surprised that the rain doesn’t bother you,” Elizah said as Jayden stood with his arms stretched in the drizzle that fell on him.

“It makes my skin prickle and energy seems to fill my veins like fire running through them. It’s almost like it’s a part of me,” Jayden said with a smile.

“You know, there are some warriors who can control water. It’s no surprise you feel this way,” Elizah said with a thoughtful smile.

Jayden fell flat on the grass and Elizah touched her fingers to his.

“So,” Jayden tried to start the conversation but was worried his attempt might end up blowing up in his face.

“What?” Elizah asked. Her earlier glint of fury was gone and replaced by a gentle calm.

“You’re not angry?” Jayden asked with a note of surprise in his voice. Elizah shook her head and sighed.

“It’s washed away with the rain. Besides I know our choice was right,” Elizah said and her face was soft and she felt a slight heat rise to her face. There was a slight bit of fury, but there was no way to ever mask that.

“I know how bad you feel. And I know how hard his words hit you,” Jayden said and held her hand, “But there seems to be something else clouding your judgement.”

Elizah shook her head but Jayden pressed on.

“What are you not telling me?” Jayden asked gently and held her stare which Elizah broke suddenly.

“You have enough on your mind now. I don’t want to add more worry,” Elizah said and she bit her lip. While Liran’s words were a shock to her, it did remind her of the one thing Levi always warned her about.

“Do you think Liran was right then?” Jayden asked her and though she shook her head, he knew she was doubting it.

“Levi once told me the same thing Liran is but just not as harshly. I worry that they may be right,” Elizah sighed.

“Honestly I’m not sure either whether we made the right choice then. But nor am I ready to figure it out now. You know what? I need to clear my head,” Jayden said and stood up suddenly, “I know the best thing to do for it as well.”

He walked over to his horse and picked up two swords from the side and tossed one over to Elizah.

“Duel me. It’s been a while,” Jayden said and Elizah eyed the sword on the ground and only laughed. 

“Get ready to lose,” she said as she lifted the blade and her worries began to melt away.

A few duels later, the duo were laying on the grass, laughing. 

Elizah had won a vast majority of the duels,but Jayden didn’t back down either.

“So you’re a bit happier now?” Jayden asked with a grin.

“Yeah, but I know if we get back there’s going to be some or the other work to finish as usual,” Elizah said with a sigh.

“Maybe you should go back and talk to Liran peacefully. Just about where he has been all this time,” Jayden said and Elizah nodded.

“Maybe it would be best if I brought him to my old cottage; it would be more private than the palace chambers,” Elizah said as she stood up.

“I will handle the girls then. Don’t worry too much. Maybe we just had a bad first impression,” Jayden said as he climbed on his horse and Elizah climbed on as well.

Although she smiled, she knew she had a lot more to ask Liran than just where he had been and he had a lot of explaining to do.