The Hidden Pathway
We hurried back to my home to gather a few things before entering the Labyrinth.
Giselle came with us, unfortunately. I didn't want her anywhere near me, but we needed her, and that annoyed me even more.
When we reached my shack and got prepared, Doya opened the portal with a single sweep of his hand.
The air split open in a swirl of blue light, and we stepped through, Bali included. I wasn't leaving my horse behind for anything.
We landed in a wide field under a bright, warm sun. The sky looked too peaceful for everything happening inside me.
"Where do we go from here?" I asked.
"Let's go to my temple," Doya said softly. "We can get help there."
"No. I don't need help. I can handle Jephas myself, I just need direction."
Giselle flinched at the sound of his name.
I shot her a glare before pulling Jephas' wristwatch from my bag.
"We can use this for the locator spell. Since he's here in the Labyrinth, it should work."
"Dana," Doya said gently, "you don't want to go after him alone. If he's with Balshak—"
"Good thing I didn't ask for your permission."
I walked away.
Maybe it was rude.
Maybe I didn't care.
The anger inside me was louder than everything else.
Doya and Giselle followed behind me in heavy silence. I walked without knowing where I was going, letting rage pull me forward. Finally, Doya spoke again.
"Dana… please think about this. I don't want you making a mistake."
I stopped and looked straight at him.
"I can take care of myself."
I took Bali from him and climbed onto her back. She galloped forward, carrying my anger with her.
But then… my parents' faces flickered in my mind.
The moment I lost them.
The scream.
The fire.
The emptiness.
I wasn't healing. I wasn't even close.
And I knew one thing:
I wasn't going to heal until Jephas was dead.
After riding for some minutes, I found a small stream. I was thirsty and my thoughts were burning, so I got down and drank. My horse also drank.
The cold water really helped, until a rustle in the bushes came from behind me.
I froze.
My hand found the hilt of my sword as my heart thudded painfully.
"God… why did I leave without Doya?" I whispered to myself.
Then a huge brown bear stepped out of the bushes.
"Oh fuck me," I muttered under my breath.
The bear growled, low and heavy, and stepped closer.
Before it reached me, an arrow struck its back.
I jumped at the sound. Someone was here. Watching.
The bear roared in pain, still coming toward me. A second arrow hit it, deeper this time. The bear collapsed with a thud that shook the ground.
A guy who appeared to be in his mid-twenties stepped out of the trees, smiling as though this was perfectly normal.
"Oh! You found my bear."
He walked to the dying creature and knelt beside it. When its breath grew shallow, he whispered something, quiet, almost gentle, before ending its suffering with a single stroke of his knife.
I looked away, disgust twisting in my stomach.
"You lost out here?" he asked.
I didn't answer. I didn't want to talk to a stranger, especially one who killed bears like it was nothing.
I just got on Bali and rode off.
---
Night fell slowly and the forest darkened. I rode for hours and still had no idea where I was going.
My chest tightened with regret.
I missed Doya.
I wished I had listened.
I stopped to set up camp. My hands shook slightly as I dug through my bag for Jephas' watch.
I didn't even know how to do a locator spell.
So I thought of Doya, I hoped for him, like calling for him just a little.
And then he appeared with Giselle by his side.
He ran straight to me.
"Oh my God, Dana… I was so worried."
My shoulders dropped with relief.
"I know I messed up," I said quietly. "I'm sorry."
"We were at the temple when you called me," he said. "They want to see you. Come with me."
He reached out his hand.
"No. I don't want anything to do with being Koliasis."
My voice cracked.
"I don't want destiny. I just want revenge."
"Dana… you're our only hope," Doya said, calm and patient as always.
"I want to find Jephas."
I pulled out the watch.
"Do the locator spell. Please."
"Dana, your mind is clouded by—"
"Just do it." My voice broke. "Please."
He fell quiet, hurt flashing across his face.
"Fine. We'll do it in the morning."
Giselle didn't say a word. She stayed a small distance away, watching us. I hated how quiet she was, but I hated even more that she was here at all.
---
Morning came with a cold breeze.
Doya set up the locator spell. The wristwatch glowed faintly as his magic flowed through it, revealing the path Jephas had taken. I felt it pulse in my palm like a heartbeat, faster the closer we followed.
We walked for hours that felt unending until the path stopped suddenly… right at a sheer cliff.
A jagged dead-end.
Silent.
Felt untouched for centuries.
But the watch still pulsed.
"He's here," Doya whispered with his face looking puzzled.
A strange heaviness filled the air. The place felt wrong, like the cliff itself was watching us.
"Legends spoke of this place, a hidden fortress, invisible to the untrained eye and sealed by ancient magic," He commented further.
No wonder Balshak was never found. He wasn't hiding in plain sight… he was hiding behind something only magic could reveal. Strong magic.
Doya stepped closer, studying the cliff.
"I remember a spell from the old stories."
He closed his eyes.
Then whispered:
"Helka galia halium sekaras."
Nothing happened.
I stepped forward and repeated it. My lips moved, tracing the words, channeling my magic along with it.
"Helka galia halium sekaras."
Suddenly, the air rippled like water.
Slowly, a shimmering doorway appeared, floating in front of the cliff.
Jephas was on the other side.
I knew it.
The watch throbbed violently in my hand.
Finally.
I found him.