The whole tunnel was lit by thousands if not millions of tiny blue bioluminescent toadstools on the roof. It was brilliant. April's fear of the dark suddenly vanished and she had to stop herself from squealing in delight.
"We just follow this tunnel until we reach Xander," Kuri announced to the Aprils among them. "It should take about six or seven minutes."
April tightened her grip on Safatore's hand. She had had a feeling Xander was situated underground, but six or seven minutes?
Could that mean it was inside the mountain? Or it was the mountain? Talk about incognito.
"Modern technology ain't got nothin' on magic."
She felt as Safatore's hold evolved from a simple hand holding to a tender arm rest over the shoulder. The blonde man held her snuggly under his arm as if he were her sweetheart, a small wistful smile playing on his face. Of course, April couldn't see this because she had her eyes set forward, anticipating what this Xander would be like. After all, she had never lived in an underground elven civilization before.
Why Safatore's face suddenly turned crimson was way outside her thinking zone.
The girl was oblivious.
The steps sharply inclined all of a sudden. Then they turned slightly to the left and flowed onto a flat floor. At the end was a white light.
"The exit! Okay, here we go."
She started to tense and breathe out sharply.
Safatore looked down at her and softly whispered:
"Hey, are you okay?"
She shook her head.
"I'm nervous."
"What for? You'll finally be with your kind after all this time." Eon's voice was full of excitement and a certain amount of longing.
"You guys have been outside this place for a while, huh?"
"Two whole weeks!" Semacoar chirped and groaned in exasperation. "Oh, how I missed my bed so."
April silently chuckled but then tensed again when she stepped through the opening and into the bright light…
Safatore chuckled.
"Why are your eyes closed?"
The girl shrugged and opened her greens, letting the light seep into them… but then realized she was staring at the harsh sun. Jumping slightly, she stopped in her tracks and darted her eyes around.
Were those…
"Trees...?"
And…
"Grass! They're trees and grass, and they're… outside?"
She realized she was standing on a patch of brown autumn grass overlooking a small field of weeping willow trees. They were so brown, so beautiful, so normal… just like how autumn plants were supposed to be…
She suddenly burst into her former self and bolted forward, leaving Safatore and the others stunned. She ran around on the grass as if being chased by something, her hair and tails following her. She chortled wildly and suddenly, covering her mouth and gasping in delight, stopped in her tracks.
"Oh, that's a tree…"
She dropped like a rock to the ground.
"And you're grass. Yes, you are."
She wriggled enthusiastically, lying on her back and making grass angels.
"Grass... Grass... Can you feel that grass? Oh, yeah."
When the others reached her, Kuri asked:
"Uh, is she okay?"
Semacoar chuckled before April sprung to her feet with a clump of grass in her hands. She excitedly said:
"See this? I'm touching grass!"
Saka's face contorted with reproach.
"This idiot has lost her mind! She's gone completely crazy."
But the girl instantly shot away from the group and ran toward the nearest willow.
Throwing her arms around its trunk, she hugged it and began laughing like a total crazy person, shouting:
"It's a tree!"
The others suddenly looked discomforted by April's sudden change in demeanor. Little did they know this was the typical April showing her true colors.
"Hi, I'm April and I love trees! I'm a vegetarian, but don't worry, I won't eat you!""
She began planting kisses on the bark.
The elves paled because of this act.
Saka's eye twitched.
"Someone hand me a boulder. I'll take all the evidence with me. What is she…"
April began crying, planting soft kisses on the bark while sobbing, "Oh, my normal tree."
Whitehead's eyes rolled to the back of his head, and he fell back.
April let go of the tree, wiping her tears, and looked to the further distance before she screamed at the top of her voice, mouth wide open and jerked everyone's – including Saka's – attention to her again.
"What's wrong?" Safatore took a cautious step to her.
"Is that a castle?!"
And before they could react, she stormed off in supernatural speed, reaching the other end of the willow field in no more than two seconds.
The others were gawping for a second, when they suddenly gasped.
"Oh, no. Coa!"
* * * *
April was caught in her berserk sprint when she caught a better view of the castle. She suddenly stopped and halted in her tracks, blood rushing away from her face as she stumbled to a stop.
"What the fudge…"
In front of her, serving as the entrance was a stone arch, polished and decorated with random shape engravings. This arch had a transparent gate that resembled two pairs of insect – or rather, fairy wings. This gate was connected to two pearly pillars. The transparent wings were tattered and feathery while the pillars had what looked like beastly claw marks carved into them.
"Holy molybdenum…"
Her eyes travelled to behind the pearly pillars where a wide stone and pearly bridge shot into the far distance amounting to a three quarters of a kilometer or so. It ended when a small hill stood in its way. Under and at the sides of the bridge, a body of silvery waters glistened under the bright sun.
This bridge was in no better condition than the gate. Its stones were disassembled and broken while some were piled unceremoniously along the sides, sometimes the middle, and even underneath it.
Now, on top of that small hill was the castle. From what was in front of her, it was not what she saw in her visions or from the willow field. A gray, morbid and ominous therefore foreboding building carved out of the small hill stood, still and dejected.
April felt her stomach muscles clench when she saw the massive cracks running all over the massive stone walls. It was battered. Here and there a watch tower was roofless. Some were broken and damaged beyond repair or recognition. Silvery waters rushed out of these open cracks from the walls down to the motte and into the silvery ocean surrounding the hill.
At the top of the tallest tower, in the center of this "castle" was… a furious beam of dark green light shooting up into the sky. Where it ended, a coat of black clouds swirled with absolute melancholy, casting a dark shadow upon the whole thing…
"Wow."
April groped her vest as she felt a sudden squeeze to her heart. Her ear tips became hot, and her lips became in desperate need of moistening. Her legs numbed and her breathing was deep and laborious. But she ignored the feeling and focused on the beat up castle.
"What… What atrocious sight is this?!"
Safatore and the others slowly came to surround her. They wore flat lines on their lips.
Safatore stepped up to the girl.
"It's the Castle of Ancients. Isn't she a beauty?"
April turned to look at him, appalled.
"No. It's definitely not."
"What did you expect?" Saka crowed. "Some bright castle with cascading waterfalls, rainbows, and roses, with pixies flying everywhere?"
His voice was stone cold and angry, possessing a lot of grim and death-associated aura.
April turned her head to him and exclaimed:
"Yes!"
But the young man just rolled his eyes, suddenly grabbing his top.
"What is that?!" April cried, groping her hair. "It looks like a nightmare!"
"I am actually offended." Semacoar crossed his arms, his nose raised. "That nightmare is home, thank you very much."
So that was why she could only see a dark shadow from up above…
It was the cloak… but it was hiding misery and lethargy.
She winced again and gasped sharply, holding tight onto her onesie top.
"Is she okay?" Kakuro mumbled.
Everyone turned to the small girl.
"Are you doing okay? Why are you clutching onto your chest like that?" Safatore asked.
April panted.
"Oh, this? Oh, yeah. Funny story. Totally random but… I missed my supplements for a while now… so… I guess I'm going to shut down."
And she had said that when her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell back. With swift reflexes, Saka caught her in his arms. But everyone watched as he too collapsed on the ground with her held protectively against his chest.
Everyone blinked, stunned.
Akka bent down and hovered her fingers next to Saka's nose. She frowned before coating them both in a blue light from her scepter. A moment later she wore a sheepish grin.
"They're asleep."
Everyone exchanged bemused glances.
Kuri took a deep sniff.
"Is she always this eccentric?"
"We wouldn't know." Semacoar scoffed.