INSIGNIAS: THE REGALIS
CHAPTER XXV: ARIA

The lagoon clearly reflected the round moon and countless stars in the dark firmament. It was 40 feet long and 20 feet wide. Two tall mountain-shape boulders stood as its only companions, the lagoon between them. A rock formation separated the lagoon from the ocean. It stood twice as tall as the trees. A beam of moonlight seemed to be absorbed by the water as it spotlights the whole lagoon. Countless freckles of lights twinkled as they flew. The sounds of insects filled the air. The leaves and branches of the trees softly fluttered when the cold wind passed.

When her eyes fell on the lagoon’s water, Aria simultaneously felt sad, relieved, lonely, excited, and angry. There were other emotions she couldn’t describe. They were bubbling inside of her, wanting to get out, wanting to express their feelings. She loudly gasped, confused at what was happening to her. Her heart was heavy. She felt a pang of pain in her chest. She panicked, making her heart beat faster.

“It’s ok,” she heard someone say. “Breathe.” She heard the voice before she noticed a hand on her shoulder. Her self-defense mechanism acted up and she instinctively took a step forward. She wobbled away from the supposed enemy. Her next move surprised her as if someone else was moving her body. Raising her right hand, spreading her fingers, waiting for her weapon to appear, but nothing happened.

Despite the turmoil inside of her, her vision was clear. She recognized Forrest and Neus as they try to calm her down. Homer’s hair was wet like he was thrown with a bucket of water while Forrest looked angry as she kept glancing behind Aria. All her senses were working properly. She could hear Lei and Tessa’s voices rising among whispers but she couldn’t understand what they were saying. She could feel the cold wind embracing her.

Yet there was chaos inside of her. She didn’t know if it was her body or heart. Where it is, Aria felt like she was suffocating even though she was able to breathe properly. Glancing to her right, she noticed Lei with her hands on her ears while Cora held Lei’s shoulders. Tessa, on the other hand, sat on the ground, her hands gripping the sands. Yuri patted her back. Navi stood awkwardly between the two groups. How did these happen?

Anger slowly rose from her chest to her throat when her mind remembered the others.

Five came and passed but Clyne, Skhy, Nate, and Hunter failed to appear in the cafeteria. Lei grew anxious so Tessa tried to go to their rooms. Unfortunately, a barrier separated the quarters of girls and boys. Aria, on the other hand, grew angry by the second. She guessed that the boys went and checked the island without telling anyone thinking that they will be back before anyone noticed. Well, they’re wrong.

“I don’t know where to look and who to ask,” Tessa exclaimed, clearly exasperated. The clock hit 6:30 in the evening. For the past few days the student-adventurers stayed in the manor, they only saw the kitchen crew and some who lived in the small houses. Today, everyone seemed to vanish.

“The knights will pick us,” Lei said, “Maybe they know.” Her voice faltered in the last sentence. When we see them, I’ll kick all of them! But, despite Aria’s annoyance, she couldn’t help but feel worried. She knew that the island is a powerful and magical place but she couldn’t shake the bad suspicion she felt when they reached it. She didn’t know if it was the knights, the people on the island, or the Noir itself.

“We’ll find out.” Aria crossed her arms on her chest. “Let’s wait for the knights.”

Thirty minutes felt like hours. When the knights arrived, Lei immediately stood and told them about the four’s disappearance. Some of the knights looked furious while the others seemed worried.

“Neus and I will look for them,” Anika comforted them. Neus grunted.

“The training’s starting well,” he mumbled.

“We will wait for their return in the Blue Lagoon.” Cora nodded at Anika after she said this. Anika and Neus took a step back and vanished. Aria frowned, confused. She thought that only Navi and Cora use Space elemental which they use to teleport.

“Let’s go,” Forrest said. The knights surrounded Lei, Tessa, and Aria. In a blink of an eye, the scene changed from the blinding interior of the manor to the darkness of the night in the middle of the forest. Aria blinked several times to chase the dizziness away. She couldn’t get used to teleport. It was quick but leaves her nauseous.

They followed the knights and after what felt like hours, the end of the rows of trees opened up to the ocean, revealing a clear lagoon.

“Hang on.” Forrest’s voice pulled Aria out of her daydream. Her anger slowly left her but the other emotions were still strong.

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Suddenly, the ragging emotions died down inside of her. She gasped loudly and after a few seconds, she exhaled. Her knees trembled but she remained standing. Someone helped her sit on the ground. Aria placed her hands on her face. Her heart was working hard to return to its normal rhythm.

“Wha- What was that?” She heard Lei’s voice on her left.

“The power of the Blue Lagoon,” Yuri replied. Aria removed her hands and looked up at the knights.

“Now what?” she mumbled. She didn’t know what to feel. Her emotions were uncontrollably boiling inside of her and the sudden stop felt like they were knocked out of her.

The knights looked at each other.

“You survived the first step of training,” Yuri announced with a smile. A part of Aria wanted to punch the smile out of his face but a part of her was relieved.

“That’s it?” Tessa said. “You didn’t tell us anything.”

“It’s the easiest part.” Navi looked at them with a bored expression. Easiest???

“The Blue Lagoon channels your strongest emotions,” Cora explained. “All of you were able to control them from bursting.”

Aria looked back to what happened earlier. She couldn’t remember controlling her emotions. She just stood there, confused and having all sorts of unexplainable feelings.

“But you have to do it again.”

“What?” Aria, Tessa, and Lei simultaneously responded to Forrest’s statement. How can we go through it again?

“Why?” Lei asked.

“What’s the point of this?” Aria added. When Cora stepped to the side, the other knights followed. The lagoon rippled as if a stone was thrown in the middle of it.

“The real challenge is staying in the lagoon.” Yuri emphasized the word ‘in.’ Aria feared that they might drown.

“What you felt earlier is only a fraction of what you’ll feel once you’re in the lagoon.” Oh joy. Another rollercoaster of emotions. She glanced at her friends who seemed to mirror her thoughts.

“You didn’t answer my question earlier,” Aria insisted. Forrest turned to her.

“Controlling one’s emotions is important, Aria.” Aria couldn’t believe it was the same person who fought with her like she was possessed by a crazy ghost or the same person who complained about revealing their elementals.

“Any change in emotions or feelings will be reflected by your elementals.” Forrest smiled at them for the first time. “I’m sure you know this.”

“But,” Navi interrupted, “when the time comes for you to choose between two important things, you cannot let your emotions sway you.” His form still showed that he was indifferent but his eyes showed a different emotion – anger.

To choose between two important things? Aria figured that he was talking about the choice of saving an important person or saving the realm. She hoped it won’t come to that.

“Besides, controlling one’s emotions helps in controlling one’s elemental,” Homer added. “If you can’t control it, you might end up doing something you will regret later.”

His statement opened a sad and scary memory. It had been so long since she thought about it. The dancing red and white in the forest. The charcoal remnants.

Aria clenched her fists.

“How long do we have?” Lei asked.

“Before the night ends,” Yuri responded. Aria stared at the water. There was an undeniable pull that is luring her to take a dip.

“Let’s go,” Aria told Lei and Tessa without looking at them. “We’ve experienced chaotic feelings before.” She slowly stood up.

“You’ll make sure the others are safe, right?” Tessa’s voice was strong and authoritative. The three removed their shoes and made their way toward the lagoon. As they get closer to the water, Aria’s emotions started boiling inside her again but slowly this time. There was fear, anticipation, anger, sadness and other complex emotions she couldn’t point out. It took all her willpower to stop at the edge of the lagoon. She noticed rocks on the bottom of it and the water wasn’t as deep as she expected. When her foot touched the water, she whimpered because something punched her chest. Or was it something inside her chest that want to get out? Both ideas scared her but she continued to lower her body into the water.

She didn’t know what was happening to her friends. She was too busy trying to contain the strongest emotions inside her – anger and self-hatred.

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