by Livia Lance
Lana stood, holding her staff tightly in her hand and approached the tree. She suddenly felt something within her, some secret thing pushing to break free. She knew what it was. This was the time.
The elves and Clay watched her approach the Great Tree and lay a hand upon it. She stood tall and proud as only a princess can and looked up at the canopy above her. She opened her mouth and uttered a word, The Word. It was a word that meant life. It was a word that meant salvation. It was a word that meant power. No one would later recall what she’d said but they knew it was the single most important word that could ever be spoken.
Suddenly, Lana was bathed in a silver light, staff and all. She rose several paces in the air, shining like a second sun, casting an eerie light upon the dim garden. Her back was arched and her arms were flung wide but she kept hold of the staff. It felt as if something were burning her up from the inside but there was no pain. She knew the heat of it but she didn’t burn. She could feel this light in every nerve, every vessel in her body and it was good. It was pure.
She heard a voice in her mind, the woman from the woods, a voice that sounded like the chiming of bells.
“Child… it’s time. All hope is lost but you bring new hope for our people… Do you accept this charge? Will you be the savior of the elves, as I was? Answer wisely, for this famine and sickness is only the beginning. You may heal the elves and you may heal the land but the protection of the forest will be no more… You must prepare the elves to fight again, you must lead them into battle. Do you accept?”
Lana floated in the air, burning and reveling in the sensation. It was so distracting she almost couldn’t answer, but she did.
I accept.
* * *
Clay watched as Lana gently lowered to the ground. He was in shock. The scene he had just witnessed was so powerful he felt weakened by it, the magic in the air so thick he could taste it. Lana stood silently, looking at the Great Tree, or what remained of it. It was still as silent as it had been. She reached a hand out to the tree then stopped, seeming to have a better idea and instead she lifted up the staff in her hands.
Clay heard gasps behind him as the elves recognized it for what it was. No longer was the staff simply a straight, wooden rod. It had grown vines around its length, heavier on one end than the other with a clear, crystal orb that shone with a pale, silver light.
It was Ollyth, the legendary staff of the high priestess.
Lana touched the trunk with the staff. The room went silent and it seemed as if the elves were afraid to even breathe. There was a distant sound of bells ringing as the silver light from the staff began to wrap around the trunk in a complicated pattern, weaving around and around, climbing up the tree until Clay could no longer see it.
After a long moment, Lana retreated from the tree and Clay moved behind her, pulling her into his arms as they watched the Great Tree awaken together. He could hear it again and rather than a sense of peace, it now exuded a sense of extraordinary power and vitality.
The elves in the room, still kneeling, bowed their heads to the ground, crying out in joy. Some of them shouted, “The High Priestess!” and others took up the call. It seemed like every elf in the palace had come running when the Great Tree had died and witnessed this miracle. Word would spread quickly.
Clay looked down at Lana and she gazed back at him, fear in her eyes but also determination. He knew that the road she was traveling now wouldn’t be easy but he would follow her anywhere.
“High Priestess,” he said, bowing to her. He took her hand and, together, they faced their elven brethren stretched out on the ground in front of her, too in awe to meet her gaze. If the High Priestess had returned to the elves, they knew that a time of great strife was upon them. There would be no turning back from this.
End of Book One of the Eva Chronicles
Afterword
I hope you enjoyed the book! If you have the time, please feel free to write a review on Amazon. It’s so helpful for new authors like myself.
If you really loved this book, you can find the second installment at the following link:
Click Here to Pre-Order The High Priestess
Book Two of the Eva Chronicles
About the Author
Livia Lance has had a love of writing all her life. She won several writing awards in her teen years and went on to work as a freelance writer for various media outlets. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, the freelance market became bloated with new writers, so she threw caution to the wind and do what she always wanted to do: become a creative writer.
Livia is a mother of two living in the North Georgia mountains. She has had a lifelong love of reading and her favorite genres are fantasy, science fiction, romance, young adult and horror. She’s also an avid video game player - World of Warcraft, Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest and more. When Livia isn’t reading or playing video games, she loves to watch any new fantasy or horror television shows and movies.
Her favorite book of all time is Swan Song by Robert McCammon, and her favorite book series is The Wheel of Time by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson, which she has read countless times since she was a teenager.
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