TRUE STRENGTH.

CHAPTER 66: TRUE STRENGTH.

ALEENA'S POV.

The Forsaken faced me. Having their masks on made them look terrifying. You couldn't tell how they looked underneath the mask.

One thing I Iearned was that I wasn't impervious to magic, being a hybrid. That was made perfectly clear. So I knew I stood no chance against them if they attacked.

"What is it you know, Lady Aleena? You need to tell me. You might just save an entire generation with that knowledge," Malcum said.

"I told you, I don't know what it is they're planning," I said frustratedly.

"But you do know if they can go through the barrier, don't you?" he asked further. I sighed softly, looking down.

"Listen, I meant it when I said I mean you no harm. But you need to be honest with us. Lives could be at stake here," Malcum appealed.

I had the answer he needed, but I just couldn't bring myself to reveal the truth.

"I'm sorry, I can't tell you. I truly wish I could," I said, feeling sad.

"It's okay. I get it. I would do the same if I were you. Loyal to a fault, just like your mother."

"What did you say?" I asked, furrowing my brow.

"Your mother. She was always so loyal to a fault to a cause or someone, as long as she had conviction about that thing, or person," Malcum responded.

"Yo- You knew my mother?" I asked, shakily.

"Your unbending resolve and bravery are traits you got from her," he replied.

"How do you know my mother?" I asked looking Malcum dead in the eye. Malcum sighed, looking at me.

"Take a walk with me," he requested and began walking away. His men made way for him to pass through. I followed him, and for that moment, the tension that had been brewing de-escalated.

"Where are we going?" I asked Malcum as I walked beside him.

"You'll see," he replied.

We walked for a little bit through Havenville. It afforded me the opportunity to see even more beautiful aspects of the safe haven. I saw the peaceful mannerism of the folks there. It was the opposite of what I saw both in Talvor and Rivendell.

The people waved at us while some even bowed when they saw Malcum. I generously smiled as he responded to their salutations.

We finally reached a house that was situated close to the foot of the hill. He nodded at his people and they stayed put.

"Come on," he said to me, then climbed the front porch of the wooden house. I was a bit hesitant, but I gently climbed onto the porch.

With every step, the wooden floor creaked. The house seemed to not have been inhabited for a while, due to how deteriorated it looked.

Malcum pushed the door open, and the metallic hinges creaked very loudly. He stepped in first before I did. I walked in slowly as my eyes darted around.

There were items in the house, but they were old and dusty. It was obvious no one had been there for a while.

"This used to be your mother's place," Malcum said looking around with a smile. I looked at him furrowing my brow.

"I'm sure you're wondering how possible it is. Well, Lyla was like a little sister to me," he said walked over to the fireplace place, and picked up a frame. He wiped off the dust with his hand and stretched it toward me.

I looked skeptically at it before I reached out and received it. Looking at it, I didn't realize when I had my other hand across my mouth, trying to hold myself back from crying out loud. My eyes welled up with tears as I saw that it was a portrait of my mother indeed.

"Lyla was filled with so much life and energy, and beautiful obviously," he said chuckling.

"That's her," I said in agreement, chuckling as tears ran down my eyes.

"How did she end up with my father, and leaving this place?" I inquired, wiping my eyes.

"She left due to the strongest force in the world; love," he answered.

"Love, huh?" I chuckled.

"We rescued your father, Corvus Vanderholt, from a pack of Rogues, werewolves from Hound City. He fought bravely after he lost his men, but his best wasn't good enough as they outnumbered him. Your mother and I were out that fateful evening when we saw what was about to happen, and we swooped in, and saved him."

I listened carefully to him as he narrated some history I knew not of.

"According to her, the moment they met, she knew she had met her mate. They fell in love with each other. Unfortunately, your father had to leave. He had responsibilities back in Talvor. So, your mother chose to leave her life here and go build a new one with the one she loved," he explained.

"And she ended up perishing, along with everyone else," I said, staring blankly at her portrait.

"When I got word of what happened, I was broken. It took me a while before I recovered. All I wanted after that was to avenge her, but they wouldn't let me. I now know why," he said.

I turned and looked at Malcum at that point.

"Do you believe in destiny?" Malcum asked, but I kept quiet.

"All that happened, right from me finding your mother as an orphaned little girl, to raising her here, to meeting your dad, to birthing you, and her untimely demise along with the rest of your family is what has led us all to this point," he said.

"So, was my family just some expendable part of some grand scheme of a greater power?" I asked, getting angry.

"No, Aleena. We are all just pieces that fit together to create a whole. Your family is a part of it, and they played their roles well. They may be lost to us, but in reality, they aren't," Malcum explained, but I scoffed, pacing to the left as I leaned against the wall.

"I'm sure you already know that there's a war coming, and you are the key to winning it."

"What if you're all wrong? What if I become evil, just as the prophecy says?" I asked, finally expressing my fears.

"And what if you become the reason we are ushered into that reign of peace that most seek?" Malcum asked. I didn't know what to say in response.

"All we can do is choose to do what we can, and hope for the best. That's the adventure of life. That's what gives meaning to living, that uncertainty that causes us to live every day by faith," Malcum said as he walked toward me.

"I have faith in you, Aleena. But the question is, do you have faith in yourself?"

I looked away, not having the required answer. I finally saw that true strength wasn't in power as a hybrid. But true strength was from within, of which I lacked.