For the rest of the journey, Pearl said no word to Jamal and he wondered why she had stopped talking to him. He was tempted to talk to her but he decided against it.
He thought it will be better not to talk to her so she can spend some time thinking about what he just said to her about being her mate.
They were at the valley of prophecy in no time. Pearl disappeared into the valley and the rest followed Maria into the only house available in the valley.
"Have your seats. Lilly, get them some tea" Maria said and Lilly left. "You must be tired now. Do you want to have some rest before we enter the valley of prophecy? Or you will rest after we enter into the valley of prophecy?"
"Let's go into the valley first, then we can rest and then go back home tomorrow," Stella said and everyone nodded.
"You should have some tea to ease your stress before we leave," Maria said and Lilly walked in with a tray containing cups of tea. She gave one to each of them, including her mother, and sat down. After they took their tea, they stood up, ready to leave.
Maria and Lilly led them to the valley of prophecy. The Valley had a cave in it. They were in the cave below the valley. There is a structure in the middle of the cave, made of stones. It had a space in the middle containing water. The water seems to be powered by a river close by. They could see the water coming through a hole close by. They could also hear the sound of the river moving. They could hear the sound of water falling and thought immediately, that the river is being powered by the waterfalls.
They wondered how big the river is and how many waterfalls are available here. "Move closer. And cover up the structure" Maria said to them and they gathered around the structure, covering it up. Maria begin to make some enchantment and the water began to swirl.
Soon, they could see some write-ups which none of them could understand except Maria and Stella. They stared at Maria, waiting for her to speak up.
Maria began to speak. "A visit to the demon realm and the vampire realm will bring an end to the strife between them. The vampire queen will be rescued, but the return of the vampire queen is the beginning of your journey and quest for the book. Find it and return peace to the chaotic world. More people will be after the throne and the book, but you will conquer them all, one after the other. Jabal will forfeit something precious for the course. Jamal is the gateway to a secret passage only his lineage can open. On the day the blood moon appears, the real location of the book will be shown" Maria ended her prophecies and the water became calm.
Maria gestured to them to move away from the structure and they did.
"Are we supposed to ask a question?" Jasmine whispered to Stella and she smiled.
"If you have any questions to ask" Stella replied and Jasmine shrugged.
She doesn't have any questions but she does not know if the rest has a question or two to ask. She stared at them, one after the other, waiting for one of them to ask a question but none did. She shrugged.
"I don't think there is a question yet" she whispered to Stella.
"Is there anything more to do?. Maria?" Stella asked.
"No, I was thinking there might be questions," Maria said, staring at the kids. She waited for their response and when there was none, she spoke up. "I think we can return now"
They returned to Maria's house to spend the night. Maria made them a nice meal. All through the night and until the following morning, none of them set their eyes on Pearl. Jamal was a bit worried but knowing that the valley is her home, he became reassured that she will be fine.
**
It was time for them to return. Jamal looked around for Pearl. He hoped to see her before he leaves since she won't be allowed to come to the village. They had their things ready and waited close by. Maria called Stella aside. And after a while, Stella returned.
"Jamal, will you like to stay back?" She asked.
"Can I stay back?" He asked, furrowing his brows and hoping Stella would say yes.
"Yes, you can. Pearl hope you could stay back until it is time to return to Alaska. She wants to know more about you. So, do you think you want to stay back?" Stella asked.
Jamal was skeptical about it. What if this is his task?. To choose whether to stay with Pearl or leave with them. What is he supposed to do?. Or maybe it is not his task, he can't say. He decided to ask Stella to be sure about it. "Is this my task?" He asked Stella, with a straight face and Stella laughed.
"No, it is not your task. You can stay back if you want and if you don't, you can come with us. It is just to get used to her and get to know her since she is your mate"
He furrowed his brows. If this is not his task, then what is his task, and when?. "When will I carry out my task?. I am really, curious to know"
"On the day we will return to Alaska, that is the day you will carry out your task. I can't tell you what your task will be. Just be ready and don't be anxious" Stella said and Jamal batted his lashes. He doesn't know why his task has to wait until the day they leave. He also doesn't know what his task will be too. He decided to follow Stella's advice and not be anxious. He decided to live in the moment and worry, less about the future.
"I will stay back," he said.
"Take care of yourself," Jasmine said, hugging him.
"Don't miss me so much" Jamal said. One after the other they hugged him. After their final goodbyes, they left without Jabal.
**
"Where is Jamal?" Rachel asked when they got home.
"He stayed back in the valley of prophecy and will be back when we are ready to leave" Stella replied and Rachel muttered an oh, with a smile on her face.
"You must be hungry, Gabrielle has made some delicious meal. You should go take your bath and come down to eat" Rachel said to them and they obeyed.
When they were all away from Rachel and Stella, they decided to have a little talk about Jamal. They all feared Stella allowing Jamal to stay back might have something to do with his task. And if his task will be carried out on the day they will return to Alaska, then it might have to do with his mate. They thought it was best to find a way of helping him out.
"Jasmine, you were able to understand our tasks in the waterfall. Do you think you can tell us what Jamal's task might be?" Ariana asked.
"I really, can't say now. I have been thinking about it too but I haven't come up with an idea yet" Jasmine answered.
"How about you think about it, then we meet up after dinner to talk about it" Ryan suggested.
"It will be difficult to do that. Rachel can hear and read us. It will be difficult to meet up and talk about it" Jasmine said.
"Then should we trust you to find a solution to it?" Jabal asked.
"It might be difficult for her to do that too. If Rachel can hear and read us. Then I think she is listening to us now and there is no way Jasmine can block her, knowing how powerful she is" Kelvin said and Jasmine nodded.
"Kelvin is right. I can't block Rachel. If I succeed in knowing what his task will look like, Rachel will most definitely, change it. And if she does, it might be too difficult for him to do it. And in the end, we won't be helping him. I think we should let Jamal make his decision himself. There is nothing we can do to help him. We can only hope he makes the right choice" Jasmine said.
Listening to Jasmine made them realize how fruitless their conversation is. There was no way they can help Jamal, so there is no point in having this conversation in the first place. They decided to put an end to their discussion and hope that whatever decision Jamal makes, it will come out right like theirs.
"Are you serious about not doing anything?" Ariana asked Jasmine in a whisper as they walked to their doors.
Jasmine nodded. "There is really, nothing we can do about it"
Andrea sighed. "I hope he makes the right choice"
"I hope so too" Jasmine replied
**
They sat down on the floor close to the fire. Rachel was seated on the couch beside Stella. It was time to have their conversation. Rachel gave room for questions first. Since they will have to return to Alaska tomorrow, she thought it was best to talk to them that night.
"So who is going first?" She asked and Kelvin raised his hand. "Ok, Kelvin. What's your question?"
"It's about the vision you saw" Kelvin replied.
"Do you really, want me to say it right in front of everyone?" Rachel asked and he nodded. He has nothing to hide from them. With the few days he had spent with them, he had come to like them and take them as his family. "Then I will begin," Rachel said. "Your life will remain in danger if you don't leave. Your death is close by and the throne will be taken away from you. You have to leave and no one must know where you are until you find those who are after your life and defeat them" Rachel said to him.
"You can't tell me who is after my life?"
"I am not allowed to. You will have to find that out yourself"
"And the death of a loved one you talked about?"
"Someone close to you will have to die for you to take back the throne. I can't tell you who but when it happens you will know" Rachel said. Kelvin feared he might have to sacrifice one of his parents. He hopes it won't be one of them.
"Is it going to be one of my parents?" He asked. He was worried and Rachel felt sorry for him.
"No, not them"
He breathed a sigh of relief. If it's not going to be any of them, then who will it be?. He batted his lashes. What if it is going to be his mate?. What if Jasmine will be the one to die?. He shrugged off the feeling. Jasmine can't die. She is stronger than he can imagine.
"Is it going to be..."
"I can't say anything more about it" Rachel replied. "Next question, please"
"The book. Maria said something about the blood moon. What does that mean?" Ryan asked.
"The blood moon shows up once in a hundred years. It will be seen this year after two full moons. That is in two months. Then, the location of the book will be revealed"
"So the book won't appear in any of the realms?" Andrea asked.
"No one knows where the book will appear. No one will know until the blood moon appears"
"She said something about me forfeiting something important. What will that be?" Jabal asked.
"I can't tell you that either. When the time comes you will have to make the sacrifice for the rest"
"Maria said we will be able to rescue the vampire queen, but she did not say how," Ryan said.
"You will have to find a way to"
"She said her rescue will bring about the search for the book. What does that mean?" Jasmine asked.
"The vampire queen will be rescued the day the blood moon appears"
"Do..." Ariana made to ask questions but Rachel stopped her.
"Enough of the questions. You should go to bed. You've got a lot of journeys ahead of you. Stella will answer every other questions you have, when you get to Alaska"
**
Jamal returned from the valley of prophecy with Pearl and Lilly. He will be leaving for Alaska today with the rest. They had left the valley of prophecy a day before so they can get to Rachel's place early.
On their way, there had been some silence. Pearl knew Jamal will have to return and she can't go with him. Her wolf is yet to surface and she might not be able to survive out there. She knew the only thing he could do was to reject her because she won't let him go except if she gets rejected.
Jamal was worried about her too. The few days he had spent with her were one of the best days of his life. Within those few days, he was able to learn a lot about her and he developed a likeness for her not because she is his mate but because she has a kind heart.
He wondered what his task will be and if it will have anything to do with her. What if he is asked to stay back? He thought. That will be a difficult thing for him to do. He can't stay back for Pearl and he can't leave her here alone.
What if he is asked to reject her? He thought. He can't reject her for anything. He can't let her go through some pain. He was confused about what to do if any of those options were to be given to him
What if none of that happens to be his task? He thought. What if his task is to kill her?. He shrugged off the feeling immediately. He was so sure his task won't be about killing his mate.
But what will his task be about?. He had two things to worry about. First is how he will say goodbye to Pearl. and second, how he will carry out his task correctly.
"Look!. That's Rachel's house over there" Lilly yelled, jolting Jamal out of his thought.
He stared over at the house and stood rooted to his spot. He wasn't sure if he wants to go in yet. He doesn't know what lies ahead of him. He doesn't know what choice he will have to make. But he knew he can't find all these out if he doesn't take a step. He sighed. Whether he likes it or not, he must fulfill his task and whatever it is, he should be ready to do it.