Maya brought Hexa to her row house apartment and spread everything she had ln the table. All the papers and diffent documents on the Embercaller were all over her table.
Maya scrabled through her papers. All the information of the last Embercaller seemed to fit together like a puzzle, but there were still gaps she would have to fill. Why would the last Embercaller ignite a forest, what really was the 'incident' most records mentioned, and what happened to Hexa when she was near the heartless flame. She needed answers.
"Hexa, does any of this look familiar. Other than the candle, of course," Maya said, her voice remaining as professional as possible.
Hexa shook her head. "No, nothing," she replied.
"Then we're going to shake that knowledge out of you," Maya said.
Grabbing her bag and Hexa's hand, Maya got out of the living space, pulling Hexa with her, and headed straight to the nearby village. There was one person who knew more than the others–a wise man who seemed to be able to see the future, althrough it was never proven to be true.
When they arrived at the village, she went to the familiar purple, circular tent, moving the sunlight-blocking curtain out of the way as she walked in through the doorway. Hexa followed the best she could, following her into the tent.
Inside, sat an old man with a lot of mysterious jewellery on him. On the round table, lied a crystal ball, a deck of cards, and a lit lone candle as the only source of light in the small tent.
Maya sat down on the chair opposite of the older man's, and gestured Hexa to sit down next to her, which she did. "I need information. She's here for you to get more information out of," Maya said, holding an unchanging, neutral expression. She finally let go of Hexa's hand.
"I possess whispers, yours for the price of shimmering coin, revealeth all shouldst thou wish a query," the man answered.
The man wanted money. Nothing was ever free. That's how it works. Maya took a single gold coin out of her pocket and slammed it onto the table.
"The last Embercaller. I need information. Who are they and what it their motive?" Maya asked.
"The Embercaller, you say? I haven't heard that name since the incident," the man said, glancing down at the crystal ball infront of him.
"There was an attack related to the Embercaller. I need information on it. The girl next to me has also been connected to the Embercaller," Maya said.
The wise old man held his hands over the crystal ball. He stared at it for quite a while, before looking at Hexa. His face started to change into a slight disgusted expression.
"What did you see?" Maya asked.
"Your friend has been controlled by the Embercaller. They demand respect, and are trying to take over the islands one by one," the man said.
Outside the tent, which was relatively close to the castle, the children from the forest were preparing to attack. Hazel, Remy and Aatos were already ready to run into the castle. Ocean and Aurora were hidden behind a big bish with a smell of sulfur and rotten meat.
Aurora used a slingshot made of wood, slinging a rock at the bush near the door. It caught the two guards' attention.
"What was that?" One of the guards asked.
"I don't know," the other responded.
Both of them walked out of their spots and stuck their spears into the bush where the rock was thrown. It got their full attention, giving the others time to sneak into the castle.
The three went straight into the throne room. Aatos and Remy walked to the queen, Medea. Remy was the first to talk.
"We want answers," he said to Medea.
Before Medea could answer, Hazel was already behind her, holding a knife to her throat. For the first time, her eyes flashed with actual panic.
"Wrong answers lead to death," Hazel said, a slight manic glint in her eye.
"Why did you burn Althea?" Aatos said coldly.
"Who is Althea?" Medea asked.
"The woman who lived in the forest. Known as your enemy," Hazel said, pressing the knife harder against Medea's neck.
"Child, if I wanted the forest witch dead, she'd have vanished quietly. That fire wasn't mine. And if you had any sense, you would fear the one it does belong to," Medea said.
The children tried to search for hints of a lie on her face, but found none. It was genuine. Slowly, Hazel let her go, releasing the knife from her neck.
Leaving the castle, the three noticed something outside. Fire. Half the village was ignited in a huge, hot flame. The villagers were in panic. Some were throwing buckets of water, but it didn't seem to wear out at all. Screams, crying and the sound of the fire burning someone's loved one's body filled the air.
Ocean and Aurora had came out of their hiding, the guards had run off, and the fire seemed a bit too familiar. It for sure wasn't a normal kind.
All of the five watched the fire destroy the village. People were in despair and agony, and the innocent lives of villagers lost in the fire was just a payback to the Ashborn.