Kingdom of Arzialla by Marilyn Arias (story reading txt) 📕
Excerpt from the book:
She rolled the rug out of the way and revealed a star in a circle that was drawn out with white chalk on the floor...
“What’s that?”
“That…” she said as she went into Jenny’s dresser drawers and grabbed five different colored candles. “That is a pentacle.”
I swallowed and gave a little nod. She held out her hands and I had to scoot forward to take them. She told me to close my eyes and to relax. My eyelids draped my eyes but my heart wouldn’t calm down, no matter how much I tried. I was seriously feeling nauseous…
I opened my eyes a bit and found the circle beneath me lighting up and swirling with colors. My knees went weak and I could feel myself losing my balance.
“Caitlin!” I screamed before I fell in. My fall broke when Caitlin caught my hand. My body dangled and I forced my eyes not to look down.
Suddenly, the door slammed open and we heard “What’s going on?!”
Jenny just came in and immediately understood what was going on. She dove next to Caitlin and just when she went to reach for me, my hand slipped and I was falling deeper into the unknown.
“Anna!” I heard their voices scream into echoes. And then my world turned black…
“What’s that?”
“That…” she said as she went into Jenny’s dresser drawers and grabbed five different colored candles. “That is a pentacle.”
I swallowed and gave a little nod. She held out her hands and I had to scoot forward to take them. She told me to close my eyes and to relax. My eyelids draped my eyes but my heart wouldn’t calm down, no matter how much I tried. I was seriously feeling nauseous…
I opened my eyes a bit and found the circle beneath me lighting up and swirling with colors. My knees went weak and I could feel myself losing my balance.
“Caitlin!” I screamed before I fell in. My fall broke when Caitlin caught my hand. My body dangled and I forced my eyes not to look down.
Suddenly, the door slammed open and we heard “What’s going on?!”
Jenny just came in and immediately understood what was going on. She dove next to Caitlin and just when she went to reach for me, my hand slipped and I was falling deeper into the unknown.
“Anna!” I heard their voices scream into echoes. And then my world turned black…
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His long blond hair was so shiny and white, it’s hard to believe that it’s real hair.
My hands reached for the hair that hung in front of him and started brushing it with my fingers. They were so clean, so soft that it had absolutely no knots.
“What?” he chuckled.
“Oh, I-I’m sorry,” I quickly pulled away and sat up.
“About what?” he asked.
I shrugged in embarrassment.
All of a sudden, his ears perked up and he was alert. I was going to ask what’s wrong but then the door was being pounded by something at the other side. Someone was trying to come in.
“Uh-oh, they’re here for me,” he said as he carried me to the window. He opened it, letting in freezing air and placed me outside. I shivered out of my mind and clutched my arms together. “Here,” he said as he took his ear cuff and gave it to me. “Wear it, it’ll keep you warm.”
“No! It’s yours. I can’t…” I said.
“Please. It’s another birthday present. I’ve already lost my place in the military anyways,” he told me.
“But Callaghan…”
“Oh please. Remember me by Zelimir,” he said. “Now stay perfectly silent. They can hear practically anything.”
He quickly shut it and closed the curtains, but unknowingly left a crack. A big gust of cold wind blew through me so I took the cuff and placed it on my ear. It slid right on and I instantly felt a gentle fire travel from my ear to all across my body. All of a sudden, I wasn’t so cold anymore.
I peaked through the curtain and watched the men at the other side of the door take it down while Zelimir nonchalantly act like he’s reading a book on his leather couch. He and some other man spoke while the rest tore the place apart, looking for me.
I heard wings flapping in my ear so I thought it was a fly until I swatted it and it gave out a small yelp! I looked and found it to be a little fairy.
“Oh, do you have any manners?” the fairy asked with its squeaky voice. The fairy was two inches tall, and it glowed green.
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to,” I whispered.
“Well anyways, are you Anna?” she asked.
My eyes widened. “Yes.”
“A girl named Jenny has been looking for you.”
“What?” I said in shock. No way! Jenny’s here! I can’t believe it! But… I looked back at Zelimir and watched him have his hands tied behind his back and, with two men, get escorted out of the room. “Zelimir!”
“No!” the fairy said as she pulled on a piece of my hair. “You can’t. ‘You have any idea what they’ll do to you if they find you?”
I was terrified to know. “What?”
“They’d burn you at the stake,” she said.
I gasped. I know I love heat but… Not fire. “Is that what happened to the last human that came here?”
“Yep. Millions of years ago. That was the last time we had a human. Dumb thing was found by a soldier when he carelessly walked around the village of Fakliare,” the fairy explained. What? A million? But so long? Was the man a caveman? “But anyways, we have no time to lose. Jenny’s waiting for you.”
I looked back in Zelimir’s room and stared at it to remember before following the fairy.
She took me through dark places where it’d be hard to be spotted by villagers and soldiers before sneaking me into an ally. When we got there, we stopped.
“Why we stop? Is she here?” I said looking around.
“Yeow!” someone jumped behind me. I screamed at the top of my lungs but was interrupted when they put their hand on my mouth. “Shush, you dumb-butt! Chill out, it’s me.”
“Gosh, Jenny,” I said, taking a breath. “You know I hate that!”
“Where was it?”
“Sounded like it came from over here,” voices of men said. We hid behind a tree that was close to the ally walls and Jenny concealed me behind her with her black clothes and hair while we watched some soldiers come and check the ally. “Nothing here.”
“Maybe she ran somewhere else. Let’s go men!” another man said before they ran off.
The fairy checked the streets to see if it’s safe for us to come out and she gave us the thumbs up.
“Dumby,” I said hitting my cousin in the arm. “What took you so long?”
“What are you talking about? It only took ten minutes to track you down and then another twenty minutes to find this little thing,” she said pointing at the fairy.
“Hey!” she squeaked in offense.
“What you mean? I’ve been here for probably two hours!” I told her.
Jenny looked at me like I was crazy. “You sure you didn’t fall hard on your head?”
“Oh, shut up…”
“Have you seen her?” we heard a man in the distance say.
“We need to go,” Jenny said as she took out a piece of chalk and drew a pentacle on the ally walls.
“But… Zelimir…” I whispered.
“Hmm, somebody likes the big and powerful general, huh?” the fairy said.
“No…” I said in denial. I felt my face grow hot.
“Oh, shush. I’m teasing. I’d be worried about the man who saved my life too if I were you,” she said.
“Is it possible for someone like you to find him?”
“Well, yeah sure. Why?” she said. “What’s in it for me?”
“Ugh… I don’t know,” I told her.
“I’m kidding, kid! Geese, you take everything seriously,” she said. “But really, what you want?”
“Can you tell him ‘thank you’ for me, please?” I asked her.
“Yeah, sure. I don’t see why not,” she said.
“There,” Jenny said when she got the pentacle to shine like how Caitlin did. “Anna, you ready?”
“Yeah.”
“You coming back, right, kid?” the fairy asked.
“Uh… I don’t know about that,” I told her.
“Well, the name’s Kehlia. If you accidentally fall back in here, just hauler,” she said.
“Okay, thank you,” I told Kehlia.
“Hurry up or I’ll go without you!” Jenny started saying.
“Alright!” I told her.
Before I jumped into the circle, I turned around and gave Kehlia another thank you and my good-byes.
Going through the portal was easier than the first time going through it, probably because I have Jenny. We arrived back into Grandmama’s guest room within seconds. As soon as my feet touched earth, Caitlin tackled me with a hug saying how glad she was to see me finally arrive home and that she’ll never do that to me ever again.
“To me? You shouldn’t do it at all!” I told her. “I could’ve died!”
“I’m sorry! You’re right!” Caitlin cried.
“It’s ok, Caitlin!” I said, holding her shoulders.
She noticed my bandaged hand and asked, “Hey what happened there?”
“Hm? Oh yeah,” I said looking at it. “I forgot all about this.”
I started curling my fingers and losing it up to feel it hurt but… it didn’t. My head tilted to the side and I gave out a bewildered face as I unraveled the bandages. The bandage didn’t stick to the wound like it normally would with a dried out gash. In fact… there was no wound. My hand had a mild scar that stretched from above my thumb all the way across my palm to beneath my pinky finger. I was still bemused that it healed so quickly…
“Girls! Come down, now!” Grandmama started shouting, interrupting my train of thought.
“Grandmama has been telling us to get down there for ten minutes now and I’ve been trying everything to get her to wait,” Caitling told me.
So we went downstairs and into the dining room to find a giant “Happy Birthday” sign posted across the wall with a beautiful cake sitting on the table. There was a number nine candle that was lit brightly. The wax dripped down the nine and to the white frosting.The cake said “Happy Birthday Anna” in purple gel cursive writing.
“Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, dear Anna! Happy birthday to you!” everyone sang before they began to applaud and give out cheers.
“Make a wish, dear,” Grandmama told me.
I started thinking about Zelimir’s warm eyes and long blond hair and his piano skills. He was one mysterious man…
I wish to go back to Arzialla and see Zelimir again, I thought before I blew out the candle. Love at First Sight is Not Possible for Me- Zelimir
My hands reached for the hair that hung in front of him and started brushing it with my fingers. They were so clean, so soft that it had absolutely no knots.
“What?” he chuckled.
“Oh, I-I’m sorry,” I quickly pulled away and sat up.
“About what?” he asked.
I shrugged in embarrassment.
All of a sudden, his ears perked up and he was alert. I was going to ask what’s wrong but then the door was being pounded by something at the other side. Someone was trying to come in.
“Uh-oh, they’re here for me,” he said as he carried me to the window. He opened it, letting in freezing air and placed me outside. I shivered out of my mind and clutched my arms together. “Here,” he said as he took his ear cuff and gave it to me. “Wear it, it’ll keep you warm.”
“No! It’s yours. I can’t…” I said.
“Please. It’s another birthday present. I’ve already lost my place in the military anyways,” he told me.
“But Callaghan…”
“Oh please. Remember me by Zelimir,” he said. “Now stay perfectly silent. They can hear practically anything.”
He quickly shut it and closed the curtains, but unknowingly left a crack. A big gust of cold wind blew through me so I took the cuff and placed it on my ear. It slid right on and I instantly felt a gentle fire travel from my ear to all across my body. All of a sudden, I wasn’t so cold anymore.
I peaked through the curtain and watched the men at the other side of the door take it down while Zelimir nonchalantly act like he’s reading a book on his leather couch. He and some other man spoke while the rest tore the place apart, looking for me.
I heard wings flapping in my ear so I thought it was a fly until I swatted it and it gave out a small yelp! I looked and found it to be a little fairy.
“Oh, do you have any manners?” the fairy asked with its squeaky voice. The fairy was two inches tall, and it glowed green.
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to,” I whispered.
“Well anyways, are you Anna?” she asked.
My eyes widened. “Yes.”
“A girl named Jenny has been looking for you.”
“What?” I said in shock. No way! Jenny’s here! I can’t believe it! But… I looked back at Zelimir and watched him have his hands tied behind his back and, with two men, get escorted out of the room. “Zelimir!”
“No!” the fairy said as she pulled on a piece of my hair. “You can’t. ‘You have any idea what they’ll do to you if they find you?”
I was terrified to know. “What?”
“They’d burn you at the stake,” she said.
I gasped. I know I love heat but… Not fire. “Is that what happened to the last human that came here?”
“Yep. Millions of years ago. That was the last time we had a human. Dumb thing was found by a soldier when he carelessly walked around the village of Fakliare,” the fairy explained. What? A million? But so long? Was the man a caveman? “But anyways, we have no time to lose. Jenny’s waiting for you.”
I looked back in Zelimir’s room and stared at it to remember before following the fairy.
She took me through dark places where it’d be hard to be spotted by villagers and soldiers before sneaking me into an ally. When we got there, we stopped.
“Why we stop? Is she here?” I said looking around.
“Yeow!” someone jumped behind me. I screamed at the top of my lungs but was interrupted when they put their hand on my mouth. “Shush, you dumb-butt! Chill out, it’s me.”
“Gosh, Jenny,” I said, taking a breath. “You know I hate that!”
“Where was it?”
“Sounded like it came from over here,” voices of men said. We hid behind a tree that was close to the ally walls and Jenny concealed me behind her with her black clothes and hair while we watched some soldiers come and check the ally. “Nothing here.”
“Maybe she ran somewhere else. Let’s go men!” another man said before they ran off.
The fairy checked the streets to see if it’s safe for us to come out and she gave us the thumbs up.
“Dumby,” I said hitting my cousin in the arm. “What took you so long?”
“What are you talking about? It only took ten minutes to track you down and then another twenty minutes to find this little thing,” she said pointing at the fairy.
“Hey!” she squeaked in offense.
“What you mean? I’ve been here for probably two hours!” I told her.
Jenny looked at me like I was crazy. “You sure you didn’t fall hard on your head?”
“Oh, shut up…”
“Have you seen her?” we heard a man in the distance say.
“We need to go,” Jenny said as she took out a piece of chalk and drew a pentacle on the ally walls.
“But… Zelimir…” I whispered.
“Hmm, somebody likes the big and powerful general, huh?” the fairy said.
“No…” I said in denial. I felt my face grow hot.
“Oh, shush. I’m teasing. I’d be worried about the man who saved my life too if I were you,” she said.
“Is it possible for someone like you to find him?”
“Well, yeah sure. Why?” she said. “What’s in it for me?”
“Ugh… I don’t know,” I told her.
“I’m kidding, kid! Geese, you take everything seriously,” she said. “But really, what you want?”
“Can you tell him ‘thank you’ for me, please?” I asked her.
“Yeah, sure. I don’t see why not,” she said.
“There,” Jenny said when she got the pentacle to shine like how Caitlin did. “Anna, you ready?”
“Yeah.”
“You coming back, right, kid?” the fairy asked.
“Uh… I don’t know about that,” I told her.
“Well, the name’s Kehlia. If you accidentally fall back in here, just hauler,” she said.
“Okay, thank you,” I told Kehlia.
“Hurry up or I’ll go without you!” Jenny started saying.
“Alright!” I told her.
Before I jumped into the circle, I turned around and gave Kehlia another thank you and my good-byes.
Going through the portal was easier than the first time going through it, probably because I have Jenny. We arrived back into Grandmama’s guest room within seconds. As soon as my feet touched earth, Caitlin tackled me with a hug saying how glad she was to see me finally arrive home and that she’ll never do that to me ever again.
“To me? You shouldn’t do it at all!” I told her. “I could’ve died!”
“I’m sorry! You’re right!” Caitlin cried.
“It’s ok, Caitlin!” I said, holding her shoulders.
She noticed my bandaged hand and asked, “Hey what happened there?”
“Hm? Oh yeah,” I said looking at it. “I forgot all about this.”
I started curling my fingers and losing it up to feel it hurt but… it didn’t. My head tilted to the side and I gave out a bewildered face as I unraveled the bandages. The bandage didn’t stick to the wound like it normally would with a dried out gash. In fact… there was no wound. My hand had a mild scar that stretched from above my thumb all the way across my palm to beneath my pinky finger. I was still bemused that it healed so quickly…
“Girls! Come down, now!” Grandmama started shouting, interrupting my train of thought.
“Grandmama has been telling us to get down there for ten minutes now and I’ve been trying everything to get her to wait,” Caitling told me.
So we went downstairs and into the dining room to find a giant “Happy Birthday” sign posted across the wall with a beautiful cake sitting on the table. There was a number nine candle that was lit brightly. The wax dripped down the nine and to the white frosting.The cake said “Happy Birthday Anna” in purple gel cursive writing.
“Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday, dear Anna! Happy birthday to you!” everyone sang before they began to applaud and give out cheers.
“Make a wish, dear,” Grandmama told me.
I started thinking about Zelimir’s warm eyes and long blond hair and his piano skills. He was one mysterious man…
I wish to go back to Arzialla and see Zelimir again, I thought before I blew out the candle. Love at First Sight is Not Possible for Me- Zelimir
“WELL, MIND IF I GIVE you a last-minute gift?” I asked her after she gave out a forced smile. Is it normal for young humans like her to unexcitedly have their birthday? I thought they'd get thrilled enough to not be able to sleep the night before.
“No… you shouldn’t,” she said with a shy smile.
I love kids who are polite and generous. I couldn’t help but smile at her courteousness as I gathered up all my memory and mind. Her expression turned from uneager to awe. I suppose it’s not every day for a human to see an elf give a lifetime of knowledge. My thumb motioned to one side of my forehead and my ring finger to the other before taking a copy of my past into my palm. I raised my hand toward her to give her my gift but she leaned back in defense.
“What are you doing?” she said with caution.
“Trust me. It won’t hurt,” I told her as I reached over to her forehead and lightly touch it with my index finger. Her eyes began to glow brightly and, starting from where I touched her, her entire face started glowing designs of vines, leaves and flowers as it gracefully spread down her neck and wrapped around her arms, back, and chest like it’s growing all across her entire body. Under her white tights, the design glowed through the fine stitching and stretched down to her ankles and hid within her shoes. I didn’t find this natural to happen for neither an elf nor a human…
All of a sudden, she started to fall forward.
“Whoa, watch it,” I told her as I caught her. I placed her on my lap and help her up. After a minute, the beams on her eyes and body just disappeared. “Are you okay?”
She didn’t answer as she just stared at me with big, blue eyes. She didn’t stare as if something was wrong or as if she was hurt, but as if she was studying me. Was there something about me that made her in such admiration?
Her eyes traveled around my face before her hands reached for the hair that hung over my chest and started brushing it with her fingers. She seemed easily amused.
“What?” I chuckled.
“Oh, I-I’m sorry,” she said apologetically as she quickly pulled away and sat up.
“About what?” I asked. Oddly, I really wanted to know what she was thinking.
She shrugged in shame.
Abruptly, I heard faint footsteps.
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