Chapter 30: Faith in The Unknown

Dara turned toward me as if she could read my thoughts. Her eyes softened a little as she held her hand out. Curious, I looked between her and my two companions, and silently asked them, "Should I trust her? Or should I be cautious of how she talks?" I had to know what they thought.

"I mean no harm to you, Elias, and Gabriel, but I sense your trepidation. I want to ensure your safety. I want you to understand that this world is different from yours." She whispered to us, her voice soft and gentle.

As her words lingered in my mind, I sighed letting it fester longer than intended. I couldn't believe how fast our lives had changed. At one point, we were enjoying ourselves, and now we are in a never-ending chaos.

*How should I react? My mind is not helping me at all. Is there something I can do to figure out our next steps?* *How could she say those things? We're only strangers to her. Does she have an idea of how to save us from him? What are our next steps going to be? Can we overcome this situation, or will they defeat us before we can try?* I wondered as my mind continued racing nonstop over everything that was happening right in front of our eyes.

Then an idea popped into my head, something that I must say. *I feel so weak, as though my strength is depleting right from me. I am not going to yell or scream at her because I don't want to cause any problems. I'll stay quiet until I have enough strength to talk. Although I don't fully trust her, she has done everything to keep us from harm's way.* I thought, as my eyes searched the dark room we were in.

After a brief moment, my voice was raised a little higher than I wanted. I looked deep into their eyes and then peered at Dara. The way she was standing sent shivers down my spine.

*Even though I'm scared, I have to do this. I need to ensure she's doing the right thing for us.* I pondered while straightening my back. I knew I had to figure out how to say the right thing to ensure we were safe. But would it all come crashing down in a second?

Then I breathed deeply, allowing the dense air to fill my lungs before speaking. I had to use all the strength I could muster, not willing to fail myself and the love I have for Gabriel and Elias.

"Dara, I hear what you're saying. Yet, this world is new for us, so it will take us a relatively long time to trust you." I replied quietly as my nerves returned to my body faster.

As my emotions began running higher, they squeezed my hands and leaned closer toward me.

Elias and Gabriel stood beside me, their presence a huge weight on my shoulders. *I can't believe they are still with me, even through all the chaos of traveling from one realm to another.*

"My dear, we should hear what she has to say," Gabriel revealed while squinting his eyes.

Curious about how Elias would respond, I looked at him. My mind reeled over the unrelenting chaos. Was it all a dream? Or is it real?

Shifting from one foot to the other, one thing popped into my brain. *Even though this stranger could hurt us, how will Elias respond to the question I'm about to ask?*

"Elias, do you believe Dara is trustworthy?" I asked, urging for an answer to the fear in my heart.

As the silence grew, I started becoming uneasy over the whole situation. **"I wish we could get out of this! Isn't there some way we could survive this?"** I blurted not realizing the implications it could have.

"It's okay. I trust her to keep us safe, and I assure you that Dara knows what she's doing." Elias spoke, his voice soft and clear.

While listening to him, a blush crept across my cheek. *Why was I acting like this in public? This is not right, I can't be weak-minded.* Not wanting to think over it anymore, I shook my head in denial.

The phrase he said clicked in my head. Could I believe her words and place our safety directly in her hands or mistrust her? I didn't want us to be in a situation that would cause us harm. But was it so bad? Or am I overthinking it?

*No, I'm not. My mates are right, Dara is trying to keep us safe.* I thought while nodding my head.

My mind was racing over the implication that I tried to figure out what to do.

***"Fog of smoke, appear to me. You are needed here. I have to get them out of here before the king and queen of this kingdom."*** Dara whispered, her hands moving around in circles.

Then, all of a sudden, a thick cloud of smoke came over the place. It swirled from her hands toward us at a rapid rate.

"What's that? Why is it sneaking toward us?" I asked despite having a hard time speaking over its thickness.

The more it clouded over us, it became harder to see where we were. It was like a fog of war, yet we were still in it. *Could this be the beginning of harder trials for us? Or are we going to die here? That can't be right, can it?* I wondered as my eyes widened, and I started falling to the ground.

"I need help! It's becoming hard for me to breathe!" I yelled before my eyes closed.

**Thud...** My body slammed onto the cold hardwood floor with a loud bang.

Then out of nowhere, I could overhear birds chirping in the distance. Was I dead, or did Dara succeed? I couldn't tell, not unless I could see where we ended up.

Before I knew it, my eyes slowly fluttered open. "Where am I? This place isn't familiar to me at all!"