"Rala". She heard a voice next to her ear. "Rala, wake up. We're alive. It's okay".
Rala blinked her eyes opened as stare at who spoke to her. It was Rava, holding her head in her thigh. She sat up straight. The sun was bright and shone in anger.
Someone was with them.
"You girls are okay, the water takes the living with it. If I wasn't here in time, I doubt you'd make it over to this other side. My name is Aaron and I am a shepherd".
"Well thank you so much Aaron, for saving our lives. I am Rala and this is my cousin Rava". Rala said and noticed they were in a hut. Noting her look, the shepherd smiled.
"You are in my humble home little miss Rala". Said Aaron as he glance at Rava also.
"I have been meaning to ask, how many days have we been here?" Asked Rava as she stare up at the shepherd.
"Two days". Aaron said simply.
"Two days!?" Rala said in surprised.
"Yeah two days. Well, I have warm some water for you both to wash yourself up while I make some breakfast".
Giving their thanks, Rala and Rava went to take their bath after he showed them where the bathroom is. He gave them some fabrics that serves them as towels as the removed their dirty soiled clothes.
Soon they were cleaned. The shepherd rose to his feet, reached onto a high shelf and brought out a pile of fabrics. "Your clothes". He said.
Rala and Rava mouth were opened in surprised, the clothes, their clothes they had worn, were clean and dry. It felt as good as new.
"But how?" Rala asked as they dressed up with their former clothes. The shepherd given them some privacy.
But the shepherd didn't replied instead he went to where some pile of walking sticks leaning against the wall in a corner of the hut. He stare at them for a while and pulled out two staffs with intricate engravings down the shaft and the figure of a bird, while the second one was in golden color intricate engravings round it but this one has the figure of a horse. He gave Rava the staff engraved with a bird and Rala the one with a horse. "Well this will serve you well".
"Thank you so much for your hospitality. But what do we do with this?"
"I know you both are going towards the Wolf of Fire kingdom but finding the hidden land isn't going to be easy. When it's time, it will serve you well". The shepherd answered. "You have long since entered another world, but the Hybrid king knows of this world, so be careful out there".
Then he pointed up towards the rolling foothills. "Follow the trail, on the main path, stay. At the pass between two peaks you'll find an inn. You should get there by supper then. Tell the man at the gate that I sent you".
They nodded in understanding.
"It is the only way to find the hidden kingdom of the Wolf of Fire. Be careful who you talk to on the way and make sure you don't arrive to the inn by dusk".
Not understanding what he meant by that, the girls nodded their thanks and left for the trail.
They turned to wave him a final good bye but was shock to their bones when they couldn't see him or his hut. He just vanished.
*************
They took the trail the strange man had pointed. For a long time, they walked.
Suddenly a man approached them from their left. Rala and Rava stopped as the unknown man walk towards them through the dark shadows of the tress. They were in a stances in case he try anything. This was a strange place after all.
"Hello", he called enthusiastically.
"Greetings" they replied in unsion. The man voice was friendly and welcoming.
"Where are you two beautiful ladies heading too?" He asked them.
"We're on our way to the land of the Wolf of Fire, to the hidden land". Rala said.
"To give To you what you can be able to destroy the Hybrid king, guessing from your faces, I am right".
"Who are you? How do you know about the Hybrid king? Are you a sorcerer?".
"I am not a sorcerer. But I have someone who can give you much powers to defeat the Hybrid king". He whispered lowly to them. "There are dangers up here. The person who sent me to you wants you both to know that ancient creatures lies in this path". The unknow guy told them. "Just follow me to him, there is another way".
"Another way?" Rava asked placing her walking against a tree beside her.
"Yes there is".
"But the book made mention of the Fire wolf kingdom". Rava persistent.
"Okay tell me how I knew of your journey towards the Fire Wolf kingdom? How I know about the Hybrid king? You see, the one who had sent me knows of this and do not want want you to trend the path where dangers lay. He has the powers to defeat the Hybrid king".
"Are you sure of What you just said". Rala asked looking at her sister who nodded her head
"100% sure". He answered.
"Okay", Rava said, reaching for her stick but the stick has it's own thought as it slide away from her hand and rolled downhill away from the trail.
Rala and Rava went quickly for it as it continuously rolling.
"Wait a minute, we will be back". Rava said. "My walking stick fell".
"Forget about it!" He called out. "We'll get you a new one!".
Rava and Rala didn't listen, Rava couldn't leave the staff there after what the shepherd had done for them. "No, I will grab it and we'll be right back".
But the staff continued to roll down and down and they followed it. Finally it stopped next to a tree that had fallen.
Rava leaned to the pick it up, a voice whispered to them.
"Don't go back".
Rala and Rava looked around them but couldn't see who spoke.
"Who is it? Who is there?" Rala asked first.
"Don't go with him", the voice pleaded once again.
"Who are you?" Rava asked loudly.
"Husssh, be quite and listen. He is not a friend of the shepherd----"
"The Shepherd? How did you know?"
"I said listen. He works for the Hybrid king".
They remembered the Shepherd's words. 'Be careful who you talk to on the way'.
They were jerked to earth when some silver arrows wheeze around them.