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"I came to check on you," he continues. "I wanted to make sure you were feeling better after that fall."
"Besides a small bump on my head and a lifetime of this one embarrassing moment to randomly plague me, I'm feeling much better."
"Good." He laughs. "Are you up for a walk?"
"Only if you feed me," I instill teasing in my tone, but I'm serious. If I don't get something in my belly soon, I won't be pleasant company.
With a smirk, he pulls his arms from behind his back revealing a plate of freshly baked, jelly-filled pastries with powdered sugar on top. My mouth instantly waters.
"I thought you might say that." He extends the plate to me, and I quickly swipe a pastry and take an enormous bite.
"This is so good," I moan through chews.
"Let's go," he motions for me to follow. "You can eat on the way."
When Atlas asked me to go for a walk, I expected to take a light stroll around the castle, but after thirty minutes, and no more pastries to be had, we've left the palace, and weaved through the city streets, until we find ourselves standing in front of an ancient temple overlooking the frosty lake. Opposed to the Bavan temple we had come across in disarray, this one is in perfect condition, matching the kingdom's white stone, stained glass windows, and snow-covered rooftop aesthetic.
The moment Atlas tugs me inside the temple, I can sense Enver Sol strongly. It's weird now knowing my affinity was given to me by my father. The longer I think about it, the more I'm touched by the thought that the Celestial hero who protected the realm from Drogon and his minions wants me to get to know him. To see what he saw and feel what he felt when visiting certain places. His presence was faint in Bava, but here in Elowen, his aura is so palpable, I feel as if he's walking alongside me.
Atlas squeezes my hand as we trot through a wide hallway with arched ceilings. Every few feet, statues of kings, queens, scholars and mighty warriors line either side of the corridor. I don't recognize any of them, but that doesn't make any of them less significant.
Quietly, we follow the long passageway as it cuts to the right and my breath stills. At the end of the hallway, there is a statue I immediately recognize as Enver Sol. Atlas stops a few feet from the figure carved from white alabaster, but I keep walking until I'm face-to-face with him.
Even cut from stone, my father bears warm eyes and a kind smile. His hair rests just below his shoulders and if his height is accurately depicted, he's tall. Perhaps, an inch or so taller than Atlas. His left hand catches my gaze. On his little finger is a signet ring bearing the sun that matches the same one I saw in the Midorian pool a couple of years ago. It finally clicks in my head that we call it the Celestial Pool and must have been constructed in honor of him.
I totally disregard the rules of not touching any of the statues and place my hand against his, allowing my thumb to skim over his signet ring. In a flash, he's no longer made of stone. I can see his chocolate brown eyes twinkling, and his bright smile directed at me as he squeezes my hand in return. His dark hair flows as the sunbeams of his crown illuminates his brown skin. But in the blink of an eye, as fast as the vision came, it is gone. I withdraw my hand, placing it over his signet ring again and again and again, hoping to have one more encounter with him, but nothing happens. The sudden emptiness I feel sparks a panic deep within me and tears well in my eyes.
"Shaye?" Atlas slips his hand over my shoulder, drawing me from my unhinged thoughts. "Is everything alright?"
I whip around and his eyes widen. "I saw him. I saw Enver Sol."
"I see him, too," he says, and I shake my head in frustration.
"No, you don't understand," I huff. "I saw him. The moment I touched his ring, he flashed before me, and I saw exactly what he looks like. I could feel his hand in mine."
I can tell he's trying to determine whether he believes me or not. The bump on my head might have him questioning my sanity, but after a moment of reflection he bobs his head. "You saw him? As if you're seeing me right now?"
"Yes, that's what I'm trying to tell you."
"Did you see anything else?" he asks.
"No," I sigh, wishing there had been more to the vision. "But the way he looked at me, with so much love and admiration…"
"There's a looking glass in Orabelle where the Celestials are," Atlas explains once I trail off. "They can see what happens in this realm without having to be here."
"How do you know that?" I ask.
"It's common knowledge," he says gently, as if tiptoeing around the fact that my education was sparse and littered with falsehoods. "Just because Enver Sol closed the portals, doesn't mean he can't watch over us. Over you."
The possibility that he's been watching over me my entire life is slightly overwhelming. However, it explains the ability to sense him. He's been leading me, showing me where to go, and he's finally brought me home, to Elowen; to my mother.
A tear slips down my cheek and Atlas thumbs it away.
"Do you want to leave?" He dips his head to meet my line of sight. "I didn't realize bringing you here would make you cry. I thought you might want to see what he looked like. I'm so sor – "
"Don't," I slip my arms around his neck. "Don't apologize," I whisper and enjoy the gentle squeeze of his arms wrapped around my torso. "I'm glad you brought me here."
He doesn't let me go until I initiate the separation and as I wipe my face clean with the handkerchief he offers, he says, "If you're still up for it, there's something else I think you should see."
