Chapter 3: Caius’s thoughts

As Elise returned to her palace, she watched as the door gently closed behind her father, her heart pounding with determination. She hurried to her desk, placing the book on it and quickly flipping through the pages until she found the one she had marked. There, in front of her, was an intricate drawing of a spiritual circle. The handwriting was elegant and flawless, with no erasures. Elise read through the instructions, absorbing every detail.

With a sense of urgency, she gathered white candles and a piece of chalk. She meticulously drew the circle on the floor, ensuring each symbol was correctly drawn and placed. She then positioned the candles around the circle, their soft glow casting long shadows across the room.

Elise bit her finger, making it bleed. The drops of blood fell onto the floor where the circle was drawn. She shut her eyes and began to chant, her voice steady and resolute.

"By the grace of Elaris, the Goddess who's divine and bright, I summon thee, spirit of light. From realms unseen, I call you with purity and heart so pure!"

A soft little light that was shaped like a star seen above began to emanate from the circle as Elise’s words filled the room. The symbols and lines of the spiritual circle now began to pulse with a warm and golden light, casting dancing shadows on the walls. Elise coughed as if she couldn’t breathe very well, the air grew thick with energy, and gentle breeze stirred within the enclosed space. She kept her eyes closed, focusing on the chant, her voice unwavering.

“Bearer of light, hear my plea and come to me. From the other realms, I set you free!”

The light within the circle intensified, becoming almost blinding. Elise felt a warmth wash over her, a comforting presence surrounding her. As she slowly opened her eyes, there, in front of her is a small radiant pixie.

Her wings were transparent yet beautiful, a gold dust covering its wings. The pixie smiled at Elise.

“I am Feya, a spirit of light, I have received your call.” The pixie bowed to the young princess.

“I am Princess Elise of Eisenburg, and I am honored by your presence.” A smile spread across her face making the pixie smile warmly at the young princess.

“We had been watching you for a while now, and Elaris is quite impressed by your skills…” Feya chuckled as she fluttered circles at Elise. “But you are too weak to summon another one soon, because it will cost you your life, your highness.”

Elise nodded, “Father had already mentioned that to me before…”

“The path to mastery is not an easy one, Princess. From your age you are too weak now that you had put your energy into summoning me.” Feya’s golden dust scattered in the air.

“I’m the only one who can see you…am I right.” Elise wondered as Feya nodded. “Yes, your highness, you are the only one who can see me.”

As the night deepened the candlelight faded into a soft glow, Elise lay on her bed exhausted. Feya layed beside Elise’s pillow. Deep into her sleep, she felt a warm presence wash over her. “Elise…” she heard a familiar soft voice which felt like light was calling her. As Elise slowly opened her eyes, she saw lights swarming around the bedroom night. Her eyes shimmered as the gold light appeared before her eyes. “Isn’t it beautiful your majesty? It was a gift from the spirit realm, a gift from the Goddess of Light, Elaris.” Feya smiled warmly at Elise.

The gold light made its way out of the balcony, Elise chased after it wondering where it went. The gold light suddenly shoot its way to the night sky and showed a glimmer of light raining down on Elise, “It’s beautiful…” as Elise admired the light she sees from above, Caius Desmond happened to see her smiling from the balcony, Caius stood in the shadows, his eyes drawn to the radiant figure of Elise who was bathed in the golden light that rained down from the sky. The glow of the golden light framed her as if she was a beautiful painting from a temple, his heart ached with a familiar longing, he thought to himself that she was too far to reach. Caius couldn’t help but admire the beautiful sight that he sees, “How beautiful she looks…” he whispered under his breath as his thoughts ran deeper.

He remembered the first time he saw her laugh, before they travelled back time, her laughter was brighter than any spell he could conjure, and her kindness had struck him like an enchantment. How could no one ever saw how much she’s worth? He gazed at Elise again with tears running down his face, “No sight has ever captivated me as much as this moment, moments that I see her felt so unreachable, as she stands beneath the heavens, unaware of how she outshines even the stars and the moon itself. Her beauty is not just of this world, but something eternal which captivated my heart, even if I had to die millions of times I would prepare myself just for her to be happy.”

He clenched his hand feeling the weight of years unspoken, “How can someone like me, a magician, trained in the arcane and bound to knowledge, be so utterly unraveled by the mere presence of this princess? Her spirit itself and her kindness shines brighter than any spell I could ever cast, stirs something deep within me that not even time can diminish. I love you my dear princess, and I will do anything, anything at all to protect you.” He smiled as he admired her graceful smile as she danced with the light.

He whispered a teleportation spell and disappeared into thin air. As the golden light had faded from the sky Elise lingered on the balcony a little longer, her heart fluttering as she sees the lights of the kingdom shined through the forest. The night breeze cooled her cheeks, and she sighed softly. She finally turned from the balcony and went inside, she climbed onto her bed, the weight of the day pulling her eyelids down. Not long after, she fell asleep soundly having a warmth in her heart.

As the morning arrived, the sunlight filtering through the curtains, warming Elise’s face as she got up from her bed. The memory from last night was still fresh in her minds, her thoughts turned to her mother’s garden. She decided to visit the palace garden, it was a garden that her mother especially took care of before she was born.

As she went out with a blanket to cover her body, she made her way through the halls and walked out. The servants bowed to her as she passed, as she stepped outside, the soft chirping of birds and the air felt so calming. She walked all the way to the palace without wanting any of the servants to notice her, she quietly entered a little hole from the garden and entered it. She saw beautiful blue flowers but never really knew what it was called, she sat on the fountain and wondered to herself would life had been more different if her mother was still alive. She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened it, her father, Lucas appeared out of nowhere with his guard, Marcus looking a little worried.

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