WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.639 Aurora's Tears Chapter 5 The City of Vanira The 00:00:05.639 --> 00:00:08.800 ivory glass towers of Vanira did not disappoint. 00:00:09.160 --> 00:00:12.019 They glowed with the radiance of the sun reflecting 00:00:12.019 --> 00:00:15.980 off their flawless surfaces. Sheerith stood overlooking 00:00:15.980 --> 00:00:19.120 the great city from a slight distance. Hello, 00:00:19.199 --> 00:00:22.559 Vanira, Sheerith whispered. Her eyes moved down 00:00:22.559 --> 00:00:25.739 to the grand imperial gates of the city. Humans 00:00:25.739 --> 00:00:28.699 of all kinds and colors were gathered at the 00:00:28.699 --> 00:00:32.179 main gate. Flames from torches and fire dancers 00:00:32.179 --> 00:00:35.159 were lighting up the packed event. Different 00:00:35.159 --> 00:00:38.060 stands and tents were selling foods and spices 00:00:38.060 --> 00:00:41.399 from all over Luminara. Sheerith could hear the 00:00:41.399 --> 00:00:44.939 cheers and music even from her distance. Her 00:00:44.939 --> 00:00:47.679 mission was right before her. Get into the city, 00:00:47.840 --> 00:00:51.399 find evidence of the human bandits from Lior'vaen, 00:00:51.479 --> 00:00:56.810 and leave. This, in theory, would be easy. All 00:00:56.810 --> 00:00:59.130 the excitement from the event below would be 00:00:59.130 --> 00:01:01.850 the perfect smoke screen to enter unnoticed. 00:01:02.049 --> 00:01:06.310 The Festival of Firelight, she thought. All humans, 00:01:06.670 --> 00:01:10.950 lots of fire, and no Felora like her to be seen. 00:01:11.329 --> 00:01:13.849 Sheerith pulled the hood of her cloak up tighter 00:01:13.849 --> 00:01:17.170 to better conceal her feline features, though 00:01:17.170 --> 00:01:20.510 her glowing eyes would be tricky to hide. Sheerith 00:01:20.510 --> 00:01:23.629 started walking steadily forward toward the grand 00:01:23.629 --> 00:01:27.060 event. The closer she got, The more she noticed 00:01:27.060 --> 00:01:29.980 different warm smells, different arrangements 00:01:29.980 --> 00:01:33.599 of human tattoos, and venura guards pacing around. 00:01:34.140 --> 00:01:37.319 The guards would be the tricky part. A Felora 00:01:37.319 --> 00:01:39.980 woman will stand out like a bloodstain on white 00:01:39.980 --> 00:01:43.319 silk. She looked strange enough with a full cloak 00:01:43.319 --> 00:01:46.079 around every inch of her. Humans couldn't cover 00:01:46.079 --> 00:01:49.180 their glowing tattoos, so lots of skin was normal. 00:01:49.379 --> 00:01:54.040 But lots of fur? Well, hence the cloak. Sheerith 00:01:54.040 --> 00:01:57.120 took a deep breath. and walked forward into the 00:01:57.120 --> 00:02:00.620 crowd of the festival. Some fire dancers were 00:02:00.620 --> 00:02:03.319 what she first noticed. Their tattoos on their 00:02:03.319 --> 00:02:06.579 backs and arms glowed with the light of the aurora, 00:02:06.659 --> 00:02:09.680 and flames roared and danced from their bodies 00:02:09.680 --> 00:02:13.439 in the air to the crowd's delight. Felora were 00:02:13.439 --> 00:02:16.539 born with the aurora's power, heightening their 00:02:16.539 --> 00:02:20.840 senses and agility. Humans, however, bended the 00:02:20.840 --> 00:02:24.030 aurora to their will through tattoos. What was 00:02:24.030 --> 00:02:27.150 simple and beautiful to the Felora, humans seemed 00:02:27.150 --> 00:02:31.310 to make forceful and loud. Sheerith weaved stealthily 00:02:31.310 --> 00:02:34.090 through the packed festival, deliberately choosing 00:02:34.090 --> 00:02:37.210 paths that would avoid guards and keep her lost 00:02:37.210 --> 00:02:40.750 in the chaos. The crowd was getting dense, impossible 00:02:40.750 --> 00:02:43.949 not to rub shoulders with someone. Some performer 00:02:43.949 --> 00:02:46.830 was breathing fire straight ahead, and the crowd 00:02:46.830 --> 00:02:49.990 was making an impassable wall. Sheerith's pace 00:02:49.990 --> 00:02:53.539 had slowed to a stop. Under her cloak, She could 00:02:53.539 --> 00:02:56.139 feel her stripes glowing on her left shoulder 00:02:56.139 --> 00:03:00.199 and arm. A danger sense. She glanced to her left 00:03:00.199 --> 00:03:03.080 quickly. Three guards were approaching straight 00:03:03.080 --> 00:03:06.560 toward her. They didn't seem to notice her, but 00:03:06.560 --> 00:03:10.159 soon would. Sheerith glanced around. A tent to 00:03:10.159 --> 00:03:12.340 her right had a few crates and supplies stacked 00:03:12.340 --> 00:03:15.340 inside. She swiftly ducked behind them inside 00:03:15.340 --> 00:03:17.900 the tent and broke line of sight with the guards. 00:03:18.419 --> 00:03:21.639 Sheerith held her breath. The guards approached 00:03:21.639 --> 00:03:25.050 the supplies. took a single crate, and started 00:03:25.050 --> 00:03:27.629 walking the other way while chatting. Sheerith 00:03:27.629 --> 00:03:30.770 was about to take a sigh of relief when someone 00:03:30.770 --> 00:03:34.310 directly to her left beat her to it. Sheerith 00:03:34.310 --> 00:03:38.210 jumped back. She let out. A slim -cloaked figure 00:03:38.210 --> 00:03:40.789 was directly in front of her, clearly just as 00:03:40.789 --> 00:03:43.590 surprised to see her. They were both hiding in 00:03:43.590 --> 00:03:46.629 the supply tent and both obviously had no reason 00:03:46.629 --> 00:03:50.129 to be there. Sheerith froze. The figure froze. 00:03:50.710 --> 00:03:55.300 Sheerith went casual. Oh, uh, sorry, uh, this 00:03:55.300 --> 00:03:58.979 is where they keep the, uh, uh, flamed rum? She 00:03:58.979 --> 00:04:02.259 grinned under her hood. The figure relaxed and 00:04:02.259 --> 00:04:04.719 stepped into the light a bit. It was a young 00:04:04.719 --> 00:04:08.400 human woman, maybe nineteen, with striking red 00:04:08.400 --> 00:04:11.419 copper hair. The stranger laughed for a moment. 00:04:11.960 --> 00:04:16.259 Um, no idea. Never liked this stuff. Tastes like 00:04:16.259 --> 00:04:20.680 smoke. Sheerith blinked. Actually, same. The stuff 00:04:20.680 --> 00:04:23.759 sucks. The woman paused and raised an eyebrow. 00:04:24.480 --> 00:04:27.500 Looking for a place to hide too, huh? I feel 00:04:27.500 --> 00:04:31.680 you. Crowds aren't my thing. Sheerith turned to 00:04:31.680 --> 00:04:34.699 face the entrance, scanning for guards. Well, 00:04:34.740 --> 00:04:37.620 that makes two of us. Too many people and way 00:04:37.620 --> 00:04:41.740 too much fire for my taste. I know, right? Who 00:04:41.740 --> 00:04:44.139 said to themselves, let's get as many people 00:04:44.139 --> 00:04:46.319 together as possible and set fire to things? 00:04:47.120 --> 00:04:49.860 Didn't know Vanira would be so loud, am I right? 00:04:50.279 --> 00:04:54.240 The girl laughed. Sheerith sighed. Tell me about 00:04:54.240 --> 00:04:56.759 it. Oh, so you're not from here either, huh? 00:04:56.959 --> 00:04:59.819 Where are you coming from? Sheerith locked eyes 00:04:59.819 --> 00:05:03.420 with the blue -eyed girl. Hey, you two! A guard 00:05:03.420 --> 00:05:06.160 grabbed Sheerith by the wrist. Sheerith's heart 00:05:06.160 --> 00:05:09.000 stopped as she jerked her arm away. She accidentally 00:05:09.000 --> 00:05:11.360 smacked the woman in the face while doing so. 00:05:11.540 --> 00:05:14.160 The girl screamed in surprise and jumped back. 00:05:14.399 --> 00:05:17.740 A bolt of pure flame sparked off her hand to 00:05:17.740 --> 00:05:22.850 the ground. Fire. Fire in the supply tent. Sheerith's 00:05:22.850 --> 00:05:25.990 eyes grew wide. A supply crate had caught fire. 00:05:26.589 --> 00:05:30.449 Sheerith, the girl, and the guard all stared at 00:05:30.449 --> 00:05:33.649 the fire quickly spreading. Fire! The guard started 00:05:33.649 --> 00:05:36.310 to shout. Sheerith wrenched her wrist away and 00:05:36.310 --> 00:05:39.370 then a single swift strike to his face. The guard 00:05:39.370 --> 00:05:42.290 was out cold. The hooded woman scrambled to her 00:05:42.290 --> 00:05:45.850 feet. You just punched a guard! You just set 00:05:45.850 --> 00:05:49.939 us on fire! You punched me in the face! It wasn't 00:05:49.939 --> 00:05:53.439 my fault that the guard... Fire! Fire! Get in 00:05:53.439 --> 00:05:56.819 there! Sharith and the woman froze, looked to 00:05:56.819 --> 00:05:59.500 the guards coming their way, looked to each other, 00:05:59.620 --> 00:06:03.060 and bolted out the back of the tent. Haste didn't 00:06:03.060 --> 00:06:05.519 even begin to describe it. They were both running 00:06:05.519 --> 00:06:09.319 full speed in, well, any direction that wasn't 00:06:09.319 --> 00:06:11.819 the flaming tent. The crowd was in shock for 00:06:11.819 --> 00:06:15.620 a moment before the screams started. Water! Someone 00:06:15.620 --> 00:06:18.879 get this out! Hey, you two, stop! Sheerith and 00:06:18.879 --> 00:06:21.379 the stranger both charged toward the inner city 00:06:21.379 --> 00:06:24.800 gates. Sheerith dived over a stand selling trinkets, 00:06:24.800 --> 00:06:27.279 but her foot caught the edge of it. The stand 00:06:27.279 --> 00:06:30.259 and Sheerith crashed to the ground. The cloaked 00:06:30.259 --> 00:06:32.660 figure grabbed Sheerith's arm and pulled her up, 00:06:32.699 --> 00:06:35.579 and in a smooth dashing movement, they were both 00:06:35.579 --> 00:06:38.759 back up to full speed. The woman's hood had flown 00:06:38.759 --> 00:06:41.980 back while she was running, revealing long, flaming 00:06:41.980 --> 00:06:45.100 red hair and a face full of brightly glowing 00:06:45.100 --> 00:06:48.699 tattoos. Sheerith paused. Humans don't usually 00:06:48.699 --> 00:06:51.639 have tattoos on their face. She snapped out of 00:06:51.639 --> 00:06:54.560 her thought and ran. They entered the grand city, 00:06:54.740 --> 00:06:58.360 and a huge courtyard was open before them. Sheerith 00:06:58.360 --> 00:07:00.759 saw a small fountain and benches to the right. 00:07:00.899 --> 00:07:03.480 She grabbed the stranger by the cloak and pulled 00:07:03.480 --> 00:07:05.970 her to the fountain's edge. They both collapsed 00:07:05.970 --> 00:07:08.550 to the ground in the corner and hid. Five to 00:07:08.550 --> 00:07:11.089 eight guards charged past in the other direction. 00:07:11.730 --> 00:07:15.810 Sharith sat up and breathed heavily. Her eyes 00:07:15.810 --> 00:07:19.509 went wide. She felt her face. Her hood and mask 00:07:19.509 --> 00:07:22.550 had folded back during the escape. The woman, 00:07:22.629 --> 00:07:26.149 though, seemed unfazed by her feline face, while 00:07:26.149 --> 00:07:29.129 she also caught her breath. While she was breathing 00:07:29.129 --> 00:07:32.509 heavily, Sheerith looked up at the huge white 00:07:32.509 --> 00:07:35.779 glass towers surrounding them. They were imperial 00:07:35.779 --> 00:07:39.240 and powerful. The out -of -breath woman wheezed 00:07:39.240 --> 00:07:44.259 out. Welcome to Vanira. Sheerith let out a soft 00:07:44.259 --> 00:07:47.319 laugh. She looked over at her fellow partner 00:07:47.319 --> 00:07:50.579 in crime. Her cloak had loosened when Sheerith 00:07:50.579 --> 00:07:53.379 pulled her to the fountain. Under her cloak, 00:07:53.560 --> 00:07:57.259 to Sheerith's surprise, the woman's entire body 00:07:57.259 --> 00:08:01.509 was covered in glowing blue tattoos. Hundreds 00:08:01.509 --> 00:08:05.430 of individual aurora light marks over every inch 00:08:05.430 --> 00:08:10.209 of her. Sheerith was frozen, staring. Humans only 00:08:10.209 --> 00:08:13.970 could ever have one, maybe two tattoos. The woman 00:08:13.970 --> 00:08:17.629 put out her tattoo -covered hand. I'm Scarlet, 00:08:17.750 --> 00:08:22.189 she breathed. You? She paused but hesitantly 00:08:22.189 --> 00:08:26.810 took her hand. Sheerith. Scarlet chuckled. Knew 00:08:26.810 --> 00:08:29.829 you were Felora, she smiled. Sheerith paused. 00:08:30.600 --> 00:08:36.500 Yes, but... What... what are you? Scarlet looked 00:08:36.500 --> 00:08:38.879 down at her glowing designs under her cloak. 00:08:39.720 --> 00:08:44.820 I'm... apparently... the Lightbound. Sheerith 00:08:44.820 --> 00:08:49.840 paused and raised an eyebrow. Oh, cool, but... 00:08:49.840 --> 00:08:56.039 uh... uh... What's a Lightbound? This has been 00:08:56.039 --> 00:08:59.559 Aurora's Tears. If you like this kind of content, 00:08:59.820 --> 00:09:02.879 please follow for more. The story continues.