"Lilandra. Concentrate."

My uncle looked at me through a mane of silver. The dim light cast its glow upon his tan-like skin. His black eyes searched mine.

"You're not concentrating."

My ebony brows knitted with frustration. I had worked the spell before, but then, of course, I had had help. My entire family was with me when we opened the door to the realm of Rhy'Din. Now, there was just me. I had to learn on my own if I ever had a chance of returning.

My family is of mixed blood, you see. My uncle, Jonathan, and my birth mother are twins. They claim Elven and human genetics. They were brought up by a foster family of humans south of here. Their foster brothers, Stephen and Gerard, are full-blooded humans. We all live together - one big happy family.

Well, not quite. My mother, through her harlot practices, left a string of fatherless children. My birth father, Gabriel Tesser, was a man of great wealth and power. He was a division commander in Eclipse when the guild was at it's old glory. He was also the guild commander of his own, The Sentimental Way. My father aligned himself with the powers of light and goodness. My mother, on the other hand, slipped into neutral territory. I was told he left her and was never seen again. My uncles claimed he went on a great quest and that he'd be back for me, someday. He never returned.

My older siblings, Catherine and Eric, are twins. They are well into their late teens. Their features are dark, Spaniard-looking, as we all share Gabriel as our father. I have two other siblings: a sister, Saoirse, and a brother, Khrystian. Saoirse is very fair and looks quite like my mother. She's 9 years old now. We're not exactly sure who her father is. Khrystian is the youngest and fairest of us all. He's 3, with bright blond hair and blue eyes. His father is Tyre, whom my mother lovingly called Amadeo. Tyre is a powerful shaman. I shall seek him out on my trip to the realms in the future. There is much I could learn from a powerful man like him.

The sixth child is one we don't speak of. The last time I saw my mother, she was here, in the Avah Mist Mountains of our realm, giving birth to that demon spawn. My uncle quickly got rid of it, and we've never heard of it again.

My uncles took us in one by one when my mother's sanity was called into question. I have early memories of her childishly cooing over me, making me pudding and such. I don't remember exactly what happened after that, or how I ended up to live with her dear brothers. But, they treated me well and schooled me in the magickal arts - something I'm sure my mother could never do.

My brown eyes grew wide with excitement as I held the portal in my hand. I outstretched my arms wide and set the doorway in front of me. It grew and grew in a matter of seconds, blazing a brilliant blue. I saw the look on my uncle's face and smiled - satisfaction, at long last!

"May the Goddess bless you and empower you on your journey, my little Lila."

Fourteen years in these godforsaken mountains and my dear uncle Jonathan still called me his little Lila. No matter. I beamed with pride and stepped through. I was healthy, ambitious, and eager to do good in the realms. I was a healer and an herb-witch. It was high time I went out on my own, but first, I needed to pay a visit to my dear mother - Viki Chylde.