Chapter 6 The Necklace

She had been staying in that place for weeks, but she still didn't know how to interact with her own kind. She had gotten used to visiting the waterfall whenever she felt sad. The sound of the water cascading down from above brought her peace. She was about to wade into the water when Nexus suddenly arrived. "Aurora, King Yfraim is calling for you," he said, interrupting her plans. On the first night she talked to Yfraim, she wouldn't have known he was the Alpha Male of their generation if Leora, one of her closest friends in the mountain, hadn't told her. He lived in Iceland but visited the mountain just to see her in person. She learned he was 500 years old, but looked like he was in his early thirties. People like them stopped aging at their strongest point. She was trying to accept her new world, though she felt sad. That night, she pushed aside her worries and had fun with her new acquaintances. The next day, she woke up early and decided to take a bath in the falls. As she walked, she admired the surroundings. She would never get tired of looking at the paradise-like place. She smiled when she saw the falls, and before she knew it, she had arrived. "Good morning, Fiel and Dad," she said, as she always did, without fail. It was her way of coping with their absence. She felt happy when she felt the cold water on her feet. "The water feels great on my skin, Fiel... It's very refreshing. I wish you were here," she said softly, as if her doctor was right in front of her. She stretched before wading into the water. When she was already in the deep part, she heard something fall into the water. The impact was so strong that she knew it was a big object that had fallen from above. Her heart beat faster when she saw the object approaching her direction. "Damn!" she exclaimed, closing her eyes out of fear. She waited for a few seconds, but to her surprise, nothing touched her, so she opened her eyes. She was shocked to find herself on top of a tree. She glanced at the water and saw the giant serpent-human hybrid! The black tail sparkled, but the human half was incredibly beautiful! Despite her fear, she couldn't help but be amazed. Who was she? Was she Medusa? She panicked again when the creature looked in her direction, and she was sure it had seen her because it was moving towards the tree she was on. She closed her eyes and focused on her room in the place. When she was sure she was inside, she opened her eyes. She successfully teleported, a trait of vampires. She had witnessed many supernatural things in the world since she arrived, and she was one of them. She was exhausted, so after changing clothes, she rested. She planned to talk to Leora and ask for her help. Her friend, who was from a line of wolves and Earth Demons, was skilled in teleportation, even across dimensions. "What a blessing in disguise!" Leora exclaimed when she told her what happened that morning. They were currently at the Pavilion with other wolves. "If that hadn't happened, you wouldn't have discovered your ability. I'm glad you made it! Your concentration is top-notch, friend, to the highest level!" Leora gestured with her hand, laughing loudly, drawing attention from others. "Out of curiosity, huh? Who is she? Who's that nymph out there? Why is she like that? What happened to her?" she bombarded her friend with questions out of curiosity. "She was cursed by her rival," Leora said. "You know, a love triangle. Swimming in that falls is forbidden, and we forgot to tell you. Everyone here avoids that falls, even with our superpowers. Our kind is one of the strongest, but we have weaknesses. Many wolves have testified that the serpent in the falls is real, and you're one of the witnesses. As far as I know, the serpent has been in the falls for thousands of years. She was once an ordinary human, incredibly beautiful. A witch cursed her because she couldn't accept that the woman loved the man the witch loved.” She still couldn't understand, so she asked her friend again. "Why there, by that waterfall? Can't it be somewhere else?" Her friend looked at her, took a bite of steak, and then spoke. "She's guarding a dagger. A powerful dagger. Many have tried to take it, but failed. The dagger is said to be inside a cave, and that cave is located at the heart of the waterfall." She suddenly stopped talking, lost in thought. "I'm not really sure if the location of the cave is correct, since everyone who tried to take the dagger never came back. Maybe it's a feeding ground for snakes, and of course, there must be spells surrounding the area." She nodded. "What's the dagger for, and why do people have to risk their lives?" "The dagger is powerful - according to legend, that is. They call it the Dagger of Life. I don't know why it's called that, since it's a deadly weapon against people like us with super abilities." "Why does Medusa have to be the one guarding it?" Her friend furrowed her brow. "Medusa?" "The guard. She's so beautiful to be called a serpent." She couldn't forget the woman's face, especially her four eyes. She felt like there was sadness in her eyes. "According to the story, the man she loved and the man who created the dagger were the same. He just disappeared after everything happened." What a tragic love story! She wouldn't be able to handle it if the same thing happened to her. She sighed, and Leora held her hand. "Don't let the same fate happen to you and the one you love," Leora said with a smile. That made her think. She was determined now. She looked straight into her friend's eyes. "I'm ready to face my fate, Leora. I accept who I am and what my fate is. I'll be able to protect my loved ones better when I'm strong. I'm ready to be trained by you," she said with determination. She saw a spark of joy in Leora's eyes. "I'm glad to hear that from you." She knew her friend was happy that she had fully accepted herself. Aurora started training with Leora and the other warriors. They helped her with even the smallest things. Every day was important to her, so she did her part as a student, not wanting everything to go to waste - the hard work, the trust of her fellow wolves, and the lives sacrificed by her parents just to save her. She didn't want anyone to get hurt again because of her. It was time for her to fight! Her fist clenched slightly as she thought about what her parents went through. That night, she was at the waterfall to rest when she heard a voice - a voice with a sigh. Even though she knew there was a threat to her life if she stayed at the waterfall, she still went there every night. She didn't understand why some force was pulling her to the place where she took refuge when she was confused. She closed her eyes and listened to the voice again. "If I've waited for thousands of years, I can still wait for centuries just to see you. I'm still holding on to your promise - your promise to come back to me." She looked around, but she didn't see anyone except herself. If she wasn't mistaken, it was a woman's voice she heard. The voice was soft, so if she were an ordinary person, she wouldn't have heard it. She waited patiently, but she didn't hear the voice again. She started to feel impatient. She stood up from the rock and was about to leave when she heard crying. Shit! I'm losing my mind! She didn't mean to curse, but she was startled. She rubbed her arms to calm down her goosebumps. She unintentionally looked at the water where she saw the snake woman. Why didn't I think of that sooner? She wasn't wrong when she saw the waterfall's guardian again. She moved slowly and hid behind a tree when she saw the snake woman heading towards the shallow part of the water. She observed the woman's entire body and was once again amazed by her shining tail and beauty. The woman faced her direction, and she was surprised to see tears flowing down her cheeks. Have we met before? she exclaimed, realizing that the woman's face was familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. Her heart beat erratically as she saw the necklace the woman was wearing - it was almost identical to the one she wore since she was a child, the only difference being that her necklace had a pendant, while the woman's didn't. The woman emerged from the water and was immediately surrounded by tiny lights that seemed like fireflies - thousands of fireflies. The lights swirled around her and began to envelop her entire body. After a snap of seconds, the lights disappeared, and all she saw was a woman - a very beautiful woman with two pairs of legs and feet! She pinched herself to make sure everything she saw was real. "I know you're there because I can feel your presence. Don't be afraid, I didn't mean to scare you the other day. I just wanted to talk to you. It's been days since I first saw you, and I just didn't have the chance because I was worried you might be afraid of me - and that's exactly what happened the other day. Please give me a chance to talk to you..." She wanted to run, but she couldn't. She felt the sadness in the woman's voice, so her desire to talk to her prevailed, and she slowly approached the woman. "Thank you for giving me a chance," the woman said, smiling, and she felt relieved. They went to a big rock and sat down. "Why do you know me?" she asked immediately. She had a lot of questions and didn't want to waste the opportunity. "It's impossible that we've met before because I'm just a few years old, and you've been trapped here for hundreds of years... but your face is familiar," she said, confused. "Open the circular pendant on your necklace." She immediately obeyed the woman's instruction. The woman didn't need to explain where she saw it - but why? "The two necklaces are a pair - Ezral has the other one, so I was surprised to see it on you." The woman took off her necklace and gave it to her. "Ezral made the necklace, Aurora. He gave one to me before I was cursed by Morgana, and after that, we never saw each other again. I hid here because the Dagger of Life is here, and I wanted to make sure it wouldn't fall into the wrong hands - but now that you're here, I know you're the one who deserves to own the weapon because the necklace was entrusted to you." She didn't understand - she thought the necklace belonged to her parents, but it seemed that wasn't the case. "Why do I have the necklace?" "Fate, Aurora. There's a reason why you have the necklace." The woman's answer only confused her more. "You can't enter the barrier yet. You'll just get hurt like the others who tried. You need to combine the two pendants on the necklaces to break the barrier. Ezral has the crystal pendant, and you need to find him, Aurora. The cave where the dagger is located is at the heart of the waterfall. This place and the dimension where the cave is hidden are connected. There's a creature guarding the cave, so be careful," the woman explained and warned her. She knew it wouldn't be easy, but she wanted to help the woman. "Where can I find Ezral?" The woman bowed her head and spoke sadly. "I don't know, Aurora." The woman held her hand and looked straight into her eyes, making her feel nervous with her serious gaze. "Your parents are alive." She was shocked and couldn't respond immediately. She thought her real parents were dead, but the woman's words gave her hope that she might see them again. She was about to ask where she could find them, but the woman was surrounded by tiny lights again, and she slowly disappeared. The woman's face looked more serene than before. "I hope we meet again, Aurora. Thank you for this chance, and I wish you success," she said with a smile and disappeared completely from her sight.