Excerpt From Book 2: The Path to Destiny

BETHESDA , Central District, The Inner Ring, 2420AA,. "Havillah!" "Havillah!" Killion shouted once again unable to restrain himself from banging his fists on the heavily gilded doors. The barrier was down, he had noticed it that night and even though that worried him, he was more concerned about Havillah's welfare and the fact that she seemed to be continuously avoiding him. Grandma Kezzia's words were still ringing in his mind. He had been charged not to go back home without Havillah and any protests his mother had made to defend him had been met with a glare and a cold shoulder. An event that rarely occurred between his two guardians even though they bickered all the time. Things were that serious, but who could blame them? On one side was his mother and her friendship with Selene. A friendship that had withstood the test of time despite the two women being largely different in form and disposition. It was a great friendship, one that had started in their youth. Despite the not so subtle differences in their characters, the affection was there and it ran deep. Cemented by a hope that their two families would finally be joined through a marriage of their only children. On the other side was grandma Kezzia and she herself was a force to be reckoned with. A strong woman who despite being old was not frail. She delighted herself in the awkward and desired to be different if only to challenge the status quo which in this case was the unwritten law that Killion and Calla should end up together. The presence of Havillah had challenged the status quo much to her delight and the fact that Killion did not take the two mothers seriously, that as well seemed to fuel her dreams of making things worse especially where his mother and Calla were concerned. It did not matter to them that  Havillah had insisted on looking at him as a friend and now, because of all these, the drama and women's shenanigans. Because of his mother's attitude towards her and because of Calla reactions and her jealousy, everything had played out into a big mess. One that he had no idea how to fix now. "Havillah! Please, hear me out!" he called out once again even after she had ignored his first 'hundred' attempts. The woman was stubborn, but then again, that was the price he had to pay for what he had taken her through. Hadn't she been gracious enough to save him and risk everything for him? Yet, how he had paid back? How had he paid her back for saving his life and restoring health back to him? Killion was so deeply strung up and lost in his thoughts that he did not hear the subtle changes in the wind or the soft patter of feet until they were directly behind him and speaking. "Who are you and what do you have to do with Havillah?" a strong feminine voice suddenly spoke and he turned around startled. The sight that awaited him though was even more startling. For before him now stood a woman. One whose appearance was quite strange and rather far removed from this world. She was the age of his own mother. She should have been, but with those wise grey eyes and the severe look on her face it gave him the impression of someone older. Her skin tone was dark caramel. Her hair a dark but instead of making her older, it gave her an appearance of a youthfulness that seemed timeless. However, that was not what surprised Killion. Her long, shimmering golden embroidered robes did that. For like Havillah, the woman had a long silken robe that was a deep purple. A colour that contrasting sharply with the wavy silver tresses that cascaded down her head to the back of her robes before quitting at the very back of her knees. Her face was angular and the more he dwelled on it and gazed into the silver irises that matched her hair, the more he saw the similarities that she bore towards Havillah. Who was she? He questioned himself. Her mother? Her sister? Killion shook his head. She had to be her mother. "I am her friend. She saved my life." He finally decided to say to break the silence and the staring contest that had been happening between the two of them even as they studied each other albeit unwittingly. "So it was you?" another voice spoke out from the shadows even as an incredibly yellow head came out into view. As she drew closer, he noticed that her robes were the same. Only that hers were green, the colour of the startling emerald that was the colour of her eyes. "Cjaira!" Killion looked up in confusion as yet another face appeared from the shadows. This time however, it was a woman. She was a tall with red hair, the same as the colour of her robes. Robes that looked familiar, but not the fair skin or the stunning blue eyes on the rather long face. "You are the reason Havillah was cast away?" the blonde girl whose name he assumed was Cjaira proceeded to interrogated him. Sizing him up even as she circled him and pointed a small accusing finger that she used to prod his chest. It surprised Killion how much strength she had in her small finger for he felt it even with the armour he was always wearing. "Cjaira... We do not want to wound him. If it is really so and Havillah risked her life and everything that she had to save him, do you think that she would approve of us wanting to harm him?" The red head reasoned even as a thoughtful look crossed the older woman's face. The blonde girl referred to as Cjaira shrugged her shoulders even as she turn towards the older woman as if looking at her for guidance  "You say that Havillah was here? " The woman asked and Killion frowned at her use of the past tense. " She IS." He insisted. "but now, she is not answering my calls... Not that this is the first time..." he trailed off again not sure if it was safe for him to disclose the details of that long wait or the shame that was eating him.  If he was to be honest though, Killion would say that he was feeling like he really deserved that treatment. The silence from Havillah's reclusiveness and even the looks that he was now getting for he was somehow responsible for it all. "Move.." The woman, the leader of the group muttered and Killion stepped aside to allow her access to the doors. The woman swept past him, her frown not easing. Was she always like this? He wondered even as he watched her trace the coat of arms that was ingrained on a gilded panel beside the door. With her touch, the seal gleamed a dazzling white before opening up like Gabriel had said it had. As the woman stepped into the darkened hallway, a series of lights burst forth from the ceiling illuminating the path that was revealed before her. "She is not here." the woman stated as she turned around to face him. "What do you mean? Where else could she be?" As expected, the woman did not answer him. Instead, she posed yet another question as she resumed interrogating him. "When did you last see her? When did you last see my daughter? " she demanded of him, her eyes now gleaming in the light of the barrier that had just been activated. "This morning..." Killion stuttered, terrified at what this strange woman could do to him. *** Tamaar's eyes shifted from the barrier to the young man that was standing before her. He was dressed in a strange outfit. An armour of some sort but despite this, he looked sincere. Scared even at the prospect of facing hers or was it Cjaira's wrath? Her eyes widened at the young girl who was still throwing daggers at the man and she almost pitied him. Her eyes went back to the barrier and at the metal skeletons that its light had afforded her sight. She nodded with satisfaction. The presence of the Hedge was present and the position of the skeletons around the barrier was enough proof of her safety. From the swarm that is, but where other dangers were involved, she could only hope. Hope that wherever her daughter was, wherever Havillah had gone to, she was safe and would remain so. "Come in girl's. " She finally said the two, motioning for the girls to walk in. Who were they? Havillah's sisters? Killion could not tell as the only one who bore a resemblance to her was the older woman who was now obviously ignoring him. "You should go back home. You can come back and check on her tomorrow." she finally spoke to him even as she turned her back on him and sealed the doors the moment the two girls walked in. Killion wanted to protest. To shout after her, but it happened so fast that it caught him in surprise and once again, he found himself staring at the door. Exasperated even as he wondered out loud on what course of action he was going to take next. Slowly he retreated from the house and the inner ring and trekked all the way to the Hub still thinking. Where was Havillah and what did this mean to him? Was the priesthood now coming back? His mind went back to Havillah and Calla and the tiff that was still between them. He was to blame for it and he knew it. He had known of Calla's jealous nature and still,he had been reckless in exposing his feelings towards Havillah. Nonetheless, he should have stayed by her side. Maybe then, she would still be here or had Calla... His gut twisted as he refused to complete the thought. Worried at what the woman may have done to her. "Calla!" His thoughts exploded with images of all the possible things that the woman might have done to her in her vengeance.  "Calla!" he called out again, this time his feet taking him to the medical section of the Bethesda's Central Hub. "What?" a voice hissed back as his comm came alive with the voice of none other than that spiteful woman. "Where is Havillah? Where did you take her?" he snapped back. "I have no idea what you are talking about." The woman answered, a bored inflection in the tone of her voice. She then let out a tired sigh followed by yawn. "You can't be talking about Havillah now are you?" "Yes... You have no idea what you are playing with Calla!" "I am not playing at anything." She hissed back and at that, Killion paused for a moment. "Her family is here." he finally said and was greeted with silence even as Calla ruminated on this statement. " I don't know what this means for us, but if you know where she is. This is the time to speak Barrageway. For we do not want to start a war with those people." "I already told you-" an irritated Calla reiterated even as the man came to stand in front of her. She was still in the medical wing. In the ward resting in an armchair beside her mother who was still recuperating. "-I told you, I don't know where she is. I have been here all day. If you don't believe me you can just ask... Ask all of them!" she said pointing out in the direction of the the tech team that was stationed to monitor all activities that happened in and around Bethesda. "I intend to..." Killion stopped to give her a pointed glare "... I just hope that you have not stooped so low as to abduct her and to lie to me straight in my face." With that, he swiveled around and left the room leaving an exasperated Calla sighing in his wake. *** "So, what do we do now?" a despondent Cjaira asked the woman that was her friend's mother. "For now, we wait and we rest... Hopefully Havillah will have come back by then." the Elder told her. Like Tamaar had guessed, Havillah had been there, but was no longer present in the premises. It was strange and with every passing minute she felt her doubt growing. Where was Havillah? Where could she have gone at this time of the day and why? Would she even come back? '... If she doesn't come back by tomorrow, we will have to go out and look for her." "I am sure that she can't have gone that far, right? She was banished, so that means that she was stripped off of her Virtue right?" Moriella reasoned, but the Elder was quick to cut her off. If only to just correct her inaccurate statements. "On the contrary Moriella, I think that something happened here. For her to be able to activate the seal and by extension the Hedge is quite impossible to do without one's Virtue. Anyway, Come on in girls. Let's get settled. Maybe later we can seat down and think on our next plan of action."