"Then, get yourself ready, the training will begun soonest"
The next day came, however the forest was looking so different from other days
It wasn't the normal wind blowing through the forest neither were the bird chirping and singing-it was just too strange. It looked as if something new had risen, something ancient was just moving underground and messing with the soil and soul of every living thing.
Isolde felt it within her for long before she could actually see it in the physical.
The morning had started with the training because Isolde said she was ready to assume this new position. Kael was the one training her since he was the warriors' leader. The location was the famous training ground for all the warriors-the eastern clearing. Karl started with defensive drills before introducing Isolde to a round of gruelling balance work which left her in bruises and weak.
"You haven't put in all into this training, you're still treating your left with care and that can get you into disappointment in a real fight. Kael spoke, giving her time to recharge a bit.
Says who? Isolde asked Kael.
"I'm trying my very best," she screamed, sweat dripping all over her body.
"I'm not a warrior like you." Isolde spoke out
"Then what do you think you are?" Kael asked in a mischievous manner.
She paused and looked downwards.
"I don't know yet, I need time." Isolde replied.
Kael looked at her straight into her eyes and said. "Then figure it out early to avoid perplexity later in future."
Karl later went to attend to the park duties and left her to relax and recharge. She wandered farther east, following her instincts drawn by that annoyance under her skin. Since Isolde woke up, that pulse in her veins didn't feel like fear or adrenaline. It felt like... music without sound- awkward right???
As she proceeded into the heart of the forest the more the world toke a pause to watch her carefully.
She couldn't even her footsteps, it was as if she was tiptoeing.
Could it be that the forset was waiting for her arrival?
Could it be the forest sensed her presence?
Suddenly, Isolde found the "grove" that everyone spoke about.
Is this a mistake or is it destiny, she asked herself.
The road was filled with trees so old and tall that the branches went into the clouds. The Sunlight however still found it way to pierce through the darkness with its rays. At the end of the road stood a gigantic rock-like pedestal surrounded with tropical white morning glow.
On the pedestal lay a "Radiating Relic".
A clear, water-shaped piece, carved into a moon ore, set on a ring of muscle wood. It shined faintly, like the heartbeat of human being.
Isolde moved closer to have a good sight of it.
The energy around moved and drew her close to it pulling her toward it with invisible threads.
She reached out to touch the radiating relic,
The exact moment that her fingers came in contact the relic, the world exploded.
She moved backwards not because of pain but shock as she wasn't expecting it.
A feeling of hot and cold, colours and sounds burst forth. It was as if the forest was holding its breath for ages but upon Isolde arrival, the forest came to life.
She dropped to her knees, breathing faster.
And then the voice came.
Not loud. Not harsh.
It was like velvet moonlight across a calm lake.
"You are not lost, chosen one. You are only getting prepared."
Isolde's jerked and spoke out with fear in her voice. "Who—who's there?"
Silence filled the air.
Then, out of nowhere, a voice spoke out:
"Daughter of the forgotten one. Flame of the mark. You are watched."
The air around her pulsed, and images flooded her mind—wolves running under starry skies, ancient battles fought under eclipses, silver eyes watching from between the veils of the world.
"I don't understand all of this," she spoke gently.
"You will, in due time." The voice replied her.
"Who are you?" Isolde asked out of curiosity.
There was a pause!
Then; almost impossibly, the voice replied
"I am Selene. The sacred one. The light that binds the pack. The Moon Goddess."
Isolde fell forward, partially paralyzed due to the introduction she got.
The voice was not just any sound. It was "truth". It spread forth within every corner of her soul like dawn.
"Why me?" she asked. "I'm no one. Just an omega-"
"You were never 'just' anything." Selene told her.
The relic beneath her hand pulsed once more, and immediately, she saw herself.
Not as she was—but as she could become as time went by.
Clad in silver. Eyes alight with power. Leading wolves not with brute force, but with fire and wisdom. A bridge between the seen and unseen.
The Veilwalker; Selene called Isolde.
The name echoed through her bones, all over her body.
"You bear the mark for a reason; everyone is aware, The stones know. The forest knows. And now, it's time you know what the future has in store for you."
Isolde's hands trembled. "What am I supposed to do now?"
"Protect the balance. Watch the shadows. And trust no prophecy written by men." Selene told her.
She blinked. "What? Isn't that supposed to be Kael's job?"
Selene laughed gently and with a stern face told her
"The truth is older than parchment. Deeper than blood. Follow it and never look sideways."
The vision faded immediately, like fog under morning sun.
Then, she was alone and trying to get hold of herself.
Except that!
The forest still kept her within their sights.
(Later that day)
Brinna found her hours later, still kneeling in the grove, hand resting on the now-dormant relic. Slightly tired.
"Isolde?" she asked gently. "Are you okay?"
Isolde blinked and regained consciousness. Her voice came out rough. "I heard her."
"Heard who?" Brinna asked?
"Selene!!!"
Brinna's eyes widened. You don't mean it, "The Moon Goddess?"
Isolde nodded affirmative. "She spoke to me. She knew my name. My mark. She called me the Veilwalker."
Brinna took a shaky breath and knelt beside her and said. "Isolde… that relic? The exact one you saw,That's one of the "Three Lost Gifts". It's not supposed to be touched only seen and heard of. The Elders think it curses the unworthy."
Isolde showed Brinna her hand. The mark on her shoulder was glowing faintly again.
"It didn't curse me," she whispered. "It awakened me."
(By The Road To The Temple)
They returned to the temple by nightfall, however Kael intercepted them in the forest.
He took one look at Isolde and said, "You found it right?."
She replied him positively.
Kael didn't ask what she'd heard. Instead, he walked beside her in silence, like he knew some questions were not needed to be asked at that particular time.
(Inside the Temple)
That night, in a private audience with Elder Varian, Isolde told her everything not holding anything.
The grove. The relic. The voice. The name. And all of it.
When she finished, Elder Varian leaned back in her chair, eyes unreadable and disappointed.
"The Moon Goddess." Isolde added.
"The Veilwalker is what she called me." Isolde also mentioned.
Elder Varian spoke slowly. "That means the prophecy is not correct."
"What do you mean?"
"The writings of old have it that the Veilwalker will arise in an unexpected and unpredictable manner. However it was assumed to be a male who would be the best warrior of the time-it must be of a royal blood."
Isolde folded her arms and said looking elsewhere. "Well, sorry to disappoint."
Elder Varian's took a pause and said. "Oh, I'm not disappointed. I am just immersely terrified. Because it is looking like everything we thought we understood about the moon balance is wrong."
Isolde held her lips and said. "Good. Maybe it's time to do some erasing and rewriting now"
(The Park-Grounds)
Some people were opposed to the idea and it caused contentions.
By the next day, all nook and cranny of the the park heard of her vision...
Some called her "chosen."
Others said she was "cursed."
And one voice—Alpha Theron's—spoke loudly enough for all.
"She claims the Goddess speaks to her? Where is the evidence that the Selene spoke to her? Does she think we are all children that she would bamboozle with cooked up stories?. In fact let her prove it before us. Let the relic speak again right now. In front of us all."
Kael stepped forward and said. "That's not how the divine works." Let's be guided!!!
Alpha Theron sneered. "Or maybe it never happened. Maybe this girl wants power she has always wished for."
Isolde without hesitation stepped into the circle of Elders courageously.
She raised her arm and showed the mark, still glowing with silver fire.
And then she spoke with a firm voice saying;
"Do you all think I want power. I want the truth. I want to unravel this mystery, this inconsistencies and whether you believe me or not, i don't care. Isolde spoke with rage in her eyes. She also said before them, "And yeah, I actually did hear her speak."
After saying that, she stormed out of park grounds with anger.
(The Grove Pathway)
That same night, she returned to the grove alone this time.
The relic no longer glowed. But as she knelt beside it, her mark blinked softly in time with the wind.
She closed her eyes and said
"Selene,The Moon Goddess" she whispered. " Speak for I'm listening."
Only the trees answered.
But the quiet comfort of their presence was enough.
For now...