Sleeping sideways, Amira wakes to the two pairs of eyes boring adoration toward her newly awaken look. Facing her is Kian. His mouth curves into a smile when her eyes widen, startled by their close proximity.
"Whose morning won't be in glee when your beauty is what they see," greets Kian with a smile barely leaving his face.
Amira's face heats up. She rises from her sleep bed and glares at the man who's still flashing his perfectly beautiful smile. Amira's expression closes up. How did we come to that position? She asks herself.
Kian sits on his butt and stretches his arms. "So, are you ready to hunt some gem in my place?"
For a moment their eyes lock, reckoning what's in each other's head. Amira stands on her feet and wipes off the dry leaves that cling to her dress. "If it's worth it, then, I am. "
Pleased by her answer, Kian wakes the kids and announces the next rout
Amira brushes her eyes open when from afar, metal clangs ding in her ears. The smell of rust and blood linger in her nostrils; she can't help but wonder where she is at. Out of curiosity, she reaches for the bars and scans her eyes around the dim hallway. In hopes of escaping, she joggles it but fails. "Hey, is anybody here?" she wails but her voice just echoes back."Why am I in this cage? Let me go! I don't belong here!" In the absence of response, she roams her eyes around the corners of the cell and notices the kids sleeping on the cold hard ground. She bustles her way to them and wakes them all at once. "Hey, wake up! Wake up!" she gulps but none of them opens their eyes. She listens for the heartbeat from each of their chest and when she confirms they are still alive, panic de-escalates. She rests her back on the cemented wall and thinks about what has happened, what awaits them in that cell, and if she'll ever find what s
Just as what princess Czarina orders, Amira and her companions who wake up upon being watered are dragged outside the palace. "Let go of my arms! I can walk!" Liza brawls but the guards play deaf until they are thrown at the gate of the palace. "Go on, go on! Submit your loyalty to those heartless and fake royalties!" Liza mocks and spit in disgust. "You think we like stepping in here? Huh! I'd rather live in the streets forever than stay a minute in this rotten place!" she says and grabs her friends' arms to leave. "Wait!" Amira whines. Her world gradually wheels as she scans the facade of the palace. Her head tilts and her eyes narrow. The place looks quite familiar. Right. "I had seen this place before," she asserts. "This was the one I'd seen in my dream!" Gladness and hesitation mix in her eyes. "I-I am in the right place!" Liza stifles a laugh. "No way, Amira!
The wind passes through the gaps between them, blowing the loose hair on Amira's face. She looks at Kian intently in an attempt to read what's in his mind. She needs to know what he knows. She needs to know if he is an enemy or a foe yet she can't get through his mind. He isn't dragon after all.Back in their lesson when they were little, they've been taught that humans are cunning. They despise dragons the way the ancestral dragons despise them. Yes, dragons are more stronger and more powerful than humans but why in the end, they've been defeated and thwarted by a mortal. She has to find the heart of magic and bring it back to its right place to keep the peacefulness of both realm but she has to be careful whom to trust. She has to be careful with her actions."If I am not a human, what am I then?"Silence."A witch? A vampire, a nymph or...a dragon perhaps? Who would frustratedly growl in the middle of t
"Your Highness, they are already increasing in number! We're afraid we can no longer incarcerate them and if reported incident rises even more, we might not be able to control the situation," reports General Doque to the King. Fear overtakes his almost sullen square face. His unshaven long and dark hair connects with the mustache tracing his jawlines. The King leans his back on his chair and massages the baby beards on his chin. "What do you propose to do then?" he asks in a gravely calm tone. "It's about time that we inform the public about this so they'll be vigilant and prepared to protect themselves." "Can't you think of anything better than that?" grunts the slim, middle-aged man sitting opposite the general. He is called Pyro and he is the right-hand man of the King. The King struts from his seat and goes hither thither around his private archive–the place where he convenes with his loyal and trusted apprentices. "This will o
Standing still inside the garter throne hall, Amira waits patiently 'til the ones she's waiting for arrive. The ceiling of which is covered with chandeliers whereas the front smells gold. The servants guarding her in the room arch their upper body down as the huge door behind them slides open. Thumps of feet echo inside the spacious hall as the King and the Queen of the monarchy march toward the throne. Tailing behind them are Pyro, the right-hand man, and their youngest son, prince Kian. "You may leave us here," the Queen orders, leaving five of them behind. As the huge door closes, giving them privacy, the king speaks. "My son informed me that a fine lady such as you is looking for a particular gem in our palace. Can you describe the one that belongs to you and why do you think you'll find it here?" "There maybe hundreds or thousands of jewels that vary in physical properties and va
The night breeze plays around Hasham who stands with his hands leaning on the balustrade of the balcony. His mind's lost in deep thoughts, deep as the steep slope down their kingdom. He fails to sense the presence from behind him or better yet he chooses to not mind the disturbance. Alianah, in her loose long velvety night dress, pads toward Hasham and embraces him from behind. "Aren't you sleepy yet, My Vir? We have an important gathering early tomorrow, you should rest. Or if you don't want to..."She traces Hasham's broad shoulder, tempting him before leaning closer to whisper in his ear, her lips slightly brushing against it. "We can do something meaningful tonight." "Suit yourself and exclude me from it." He gives a cold shoulder and distances himself from her. Persistent, she shadows him and whispers while subtly tempting the side of his neck. "It'll be awesome. Don't you like it?" He snatches her finger, his wide palm almost twisting on it makin
The sound of metal clanging to aluminum echoes in the corners of the wide and lighted laboratory. A man stands six feet tall on his pickle-green coat, his face is covered with the clear shield he has on.Unpacking a syringe out of the box, he goes to the white room where a woman is seen lying unconsciously on the bed.He inditches the syringe to her vein, extracting some blood samples before going back to his area. He places and spreads a dot of blood and water onto a small transparent slide glass and observes it under the view of the microscope. His head tilts as he switches to a higher magnification, sighting rare blood cells that pique his interest.The unconscious Amira now jolts her eyes open but gets blinded immediately by the bright light that registers in her cornea.As her eyes finally adjusted to the light, the motioned metal door to the laboratory opens and sticks out the
Series of heavy and fast moving thuds in the corridor distracts both of their attention. Kian peeks from the room and sees the general hurrying through his way, carrying the special ammunition designed to get rid of unnatural enemies.Kian sneaks out and grabs the general's hand while Amira struts to listen attentively by the door."What's going on?" he asks."Intruders have crossed the portal. We know not their kind yet but they've killed our men and burned down a town in Lavandel!""How many of them?""Five. We have to search for them, Prince. They should not roam around our world!" Fear and determination mixes in the general's eyes and the prince can see it all too well. He let go of his arm and grunts an approving nod.As the general rushes down to follow his men, Amira walks to Kian's side, meeting the horror in his eyes."The power of the gem can no longer keep the portals sealed. That means the heart of magic is alr