The Paragon Antaris - a secret World of magic #2
Chapter 16

I wasn't sure if I was going too fast or if Anak was putting more pressure on me. Whatever he saw or felt, it was the trigger that made me rush to go to my mate. Apparently, it couldn't wait any longer, so we had to dive into my dream. We didn't plan it until Innia had fully recovered her energy. I felt like she was already well enough that I didn't see anything wrong with leaving right away. Anak seemed to be walking faster and faster, as if he was running away from something. Jacob looked at Anak worriedly as we saw him and Innia talking in the garden. "What is wrong?" he asked worriedly, looking from Anak to me. Through our bond, Innia immediately sensed what it was about and looked at me confused.

"Immediately?" She asked.

Anak nodded, looking quite distressed. Father and Devas, who were following us, caught up with us, and both looked at me questioningly.

"What's all the fuss about?" Devas asked, looking from me to Anak.

Anak ran his hand through his blonde, shoulder-length hair and looked at Jacob as he said something quietly to him.

"You found your mate?" He asked Anak, and we all looked at him.

He nodded and seemed worried.

"Elaria?" I asked, confused.

"Elaria..." he repeated when he heard her name.

"I don't understand what this has to do with Elaria?" I asked confused and looked at Father, who was looking at Devas.

Devas looked at father, and the two spoke incomprehensibly. Then Devas turned to us and asked Innia.

"Can you go into the dream yet?" Innia nodded, she wasn't quite ready yet, but it was obviously time.

"Then you shouldn't waste any time. We will prepare everything and then call you," Father said as he walked with Devas to the mansion.

I looked at Anak, whose face seemed lost in thought and who was pacing back and forth.

"Anak?" I asked him, and he looked at me. "What is wrong?"

"It's the mate bond," Jacob answered for him.

"If he wants to fully merge, he must deny his immortality. But if he does, he may no longer be able to fulfill his duties in the prophecy and may no longer be able to call upon his father or protect us. We don't know what the prophecy is, that's why it's so important to him." Jacob explained.

I looked at Anak who was holding his chest and looking at me sadly.

“She thinks I reject her,” he said hurtfully.

Innia held her head and exhaled deeply.

“How about you idiot explain it to her and not panic so much?” she said and gave him a reproachful look.

I wanted to smile because my mate was right, but the realization that Eliana felt the same pain as Anak made me sad and angry. Just as I was about to reprimand him, Devas came with Evelyn, and she pulled him aside. Whatever she said to him seemed to affect him deeply, and he lowered his head in shame. When Evelyn was finished, she looked at me, but Anak held his chest again. "Elyon!" shouted Vaell as he came running with Miriel.

"Your sister, quickly!" he yelled. Innia and I immediately ran into the mansion, closely followed by the others. Father held Eliana in his arms, and healers stood around her. Her face was pale, and her lips were bluish.

"We can't help her," one of the healers shouted angrily.

Mother cried and screamed out of desperation, her red aura floating around her. Anak walked past all of us and took Eliana from Father's arms. He whispered something to her, and his aura glowed blue-pink around him as Eliana opened her eyes and gasped.

"Eliana!" Mother exclaimed with relief and looked at me confused.

"This is Eliana's soulmate," Devas said as he looked at him annoyed.

Mother looked confused from Anak to Eliana, who just looked at each other, and mother gave my father a questioning look.

"He is Eliana's soulmate," father repeated Devas' words, and mother looked at him with a raised eyebrow.

"She almost died!" Mother shouted and looked at Anak angrily. But when she saw the two of them, she calmed down again.

Evelyn sat with Eliana and Anak and talked while we all watched everything from a distance. Although I was angry at Anak's reaction at first, I understood why he did it. And as Evelyn said, he is young and has dedicated his whole life to being a protector. Anak's head was bowed, and he certainly felt responsible and bad because Eliana had suffered so much. When he left, Eliana's heart broke, and she lost her will to live. That's how strong the connection between soul mates is. But Eliana now held his hand and comforted him, understanding and loving as she is. He was her mate, she loved him, and couldn't be angry with him.

Father reassured mother, and we explained everything to her.

"That's like Bael and Ava," she said, laughing.

"Or Evelyn and you," said father and looked at Devas, who rolled his eyes.

"That's why I wanted to get Evelyn right away. I know exactly how Eliana feels now. And Lilly was able to explain things to the stupid Nephilim," Devas said, shaking his head.

"Everything went well again. Luckily nothing happened to her," Mother said as she looked at Eliana.

Innia pulled my hand slightly, and I looked at her. I knew what she was thinking and feeling, and she was right. We can help them have certainty and go into my dream to see the prophecy.

"How hard it is for them. All his life, he was taught to be a protector. Now he's afraid of failing when he's needed most," Jacob said as he looked at Anak. "But we are lucky. We can feel our soulmates. Not all beings are that lucky. I'm sure we'll figure everything out, and they'll be happy," he added, feeling sorry for his friend.

"We're going into my dream today," I announced as Innia and I looked at each other, smiling. "Are you sure you can do it?" my mother asked Innia, worriedly.

"I'm sure," Innia replied, smiling.

After dinner, Eliana and Anak sat with Nyllis, and the little girl seemed like the best way to make everything right again. Eliana laughed as Nyllis told them something, and Anak watched her, his face much more relaxed when he saw his mate laugh.

We decided to go into my dream this evening, and father really had everything prepared this time. As Innia's soulmate, I could go into the dream with her, but Devas and Vaell insisted on going with us for safety reasons, and that's why Jade was back in her permanent sleep ready to take us home.

Anak wanted to go, but the circumstances were certainly different now, and he didn't even try now. Not out of disrespect but out of fear of what he might see in the prophecy and what could follow from it. He loved Eliana like I did Innia and felt responsible for her bad state she was in because of him, so he stayed to help her feel better.Eliana thought that Anak rejected her and this broke her heart which caused her will to live to wane and she almost died.

We knew that there was no Abbadon in the dream,or hoped it and that's why Devas and Vaell were enough security for us.

As before, Innia insisted that we be alone when we left, and that we call Jade when we wanted to go home, so everyone stayed back in the dining room, and the four of us went into Father's study where Jade was already asleep. Noah was with his mate, and when we came in, he kissed her and left the room as he wished us luck.

We stood in a circle again, holding hands as Innia spoke words in an unknown language and brought us into my dream.

I expected a lot from my dream but didn't think that we would end up back in Antaris from Antaris. We were in the same room where we went into the dream. At first, I wasn't sure whether we were in the dream at all or still at home. But when we saw no Jade ... we knew that wasn't home and we were in my dream.

Devas was the first to understand it and dragged us to safety so that no one would see us because we didn't know whether the dream was in the future or the past and could change something about our property. But when he saw the pregnant Evelyn standing in the hallway, Vaell laughed quietly as we hid.

"So either that's the past or..." Devas gave him a look before he could finish his sentence, and I had to laugh myself.

He pointed his finger at the boy next to Evelyn, and we realized that it was Vaell as a little demon boy. Just like now, he was cheeky back then and he proudly watched himself get up to mischief. My father came to Evelyn with Devas and a boy in his arms, and when we heard them talking, I knew that I was the boy.

"Let Elior play. Vaell will take care of him," said Devas from the past.

We were given to a servant who led us by the hand to play. While the adults were talking, the two boys ran into the garden, and we followed them. Vaell was a lively child, and the young servant had a lot of work to do with him. She ran after him when he was lured away by something, and I, as a child, was sitting in the garden. A bright light appeared, and it surrounded the me from the past, and when it was gone, I saw my hair color starting to fade. The once black hair had ash blonde roots, and I realized that this was the beginning of everything.

Vaell turned to me and looked at me guiltily.

"It's not your fault," I said to him, aware of his thoughts without him telling me.

However, his gaze then looked past me and over my shoulder with an open mouth and a surprised face. When we followed his gaze and turned around, we were no longer in Antaris but surrounded by the bright light that we saw before. What is happening here?