A Diamond in the Darkness Pt. 03

A few hours passed before Saleasi walked back onto the bridge, her stride filled with purpose. Revis was looking at the scanner results trying to find a place for the ship to land. "They're on the northeastern side of the island, in a clearing about a mile and a half from the ocean." She said as she walked up beside him glancing at her sister in the captain's chair.

Revis jumped in surprise, due to his concentration on the scanner, but quickly composed himself. "How can you be so sure, milady?" He asked after clearing his throat, and standing at attention. Saleasi suppressed a giggle, and turned towards the scanner. "When I went limp earlier, my soul projected itself close to where Eli and Ilesha were. I saw exactly where they were." She left out that she saw what they were doing, feeling her cheeks get hot at the thought of it.

Aerin looked at a map of the continent for a moment. "The closest place to land is about three days away from where you said the clearing is." Her voice shook a little bit as she said it but began to punch in coordinates towards where she found the landing area. Eventually the ship began to maneuver into the necessary position to make its descent.

By the time they had landed, it was dark outside and the ship was surrounded by the dense foliage of the jungle. The boarding ramp descended, the end digging into the black dirt. Saleasi looked out the window of her room, the darkness broken by the light of the dual moons in the sky. Occasionally she could swear she saw the twinkling of hundreds of tiny silver lights amongst the trees. Eventually, she fell asleep despite the nagging in her mind, and the tugging of her soul.

Morning came quickly, the bluish hue from the white dwarf sun shining through the window and directly into her eyes. She roused from her sleep quickly, practically jumping from the bed and sprinting to the door to the ramp. "Lady Saleasi, before you do anything rash I recommend you put on your armor, and put up your hair." Revis's voice rang out over the intercom and a locker on the wall opened up, revealing her armor, sword, and a couple of ribbons.

Saleasi grumbled to herself, but did as he suggested. The underbrush was thick and it would be easy for her hair to get caught if left in a loose braid. She tied her long hair back tightly, taking care to make sure it was hanging above her waist. Then she donned her armor, the cloth quickly changing into a silvery metal with purple and gold inlay. She turned towards the door again, letting out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

Revis joined her as the door opened, clad in his own armor. The small hangar lights reflected off of the charcoal colored plates, as he walked up next to her. Slowly the door opened to the outside, creating a ramp for them to walk down. Warm, humid air rushed into the ship, the damp smell of rotting wood and foliage flooding their nostrils. The jungle that surrounded them, teemed with life. The songs of birds and insects filled the air, foliage rustled as ground creatures scattered away from the sudden arrivals.

A few hours passed as they made their trek in the direction of the clearing that Eli and Ilesha were supposed to be in. Revis was in front of Saleasi, his sword drawn, ready to protect her should he need to. The plants around them rustled and swayed as they moved through on their path. Some of the smaller animals looked at them curiously before disappearing deeper into the jungle. "Be on your guard, milady. Things are quiet because we're foreign to the area, but predators often take advantage of that." Revis said quietly over his shoulder as he carefully cut a swath for them to continue.

~~~

Avi and the other faeries were on high alert. A ship had landed north of their village and a pair of elves had exited. They watched the ship closely throughout the night, and started following the elves as they started moving south. "The elders insist that they're breaking some old treaty or another." One of her soldiers whispered to her having gone back to the village to make sure everyone was taking shelter.

Avi shook her head slightly. "They're here for Eli and Ilesha, they have to be. It's too much of a coincidence for them to be purposefully breaking any kind of treaty." She said as she began flittering up towards the canopy. "Keep an eye on them, make sure they don't end up in a predator's den. I'll go get Eli and Ilesha and have them start making their way in this direction." Her soldiers nodded and scattered throughout the nearby area.

She flew as fast as she could, wanting to tell her two new friends the good news. It took her several hours, swerving through tightly packed trees, and thick vines, before she reached the clearing they were in. When she got there the sun had already set, and a small fire was roaring with the two of them sitting at the edge of it eating, and studying something from a book. "Guys!" She shouted a flew quick circles around each of them before hovering between them. "I've got good news!"