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Finding Home
Aurora opened her eyes wide. After sitting up and trying to move around the evening before, she had collapsed on the beach in a heap. Now, the rays of the morning sun woke her, and she willed herself to rise. Every part of her ached from trying to swim and then being deprived of oxygen as she was tossed about unconscious in the waves. When the Empress finally managed to sit up, she took stock of her situation.
She was alone on the beach with the ice barrier towering behind her. It was cold, but beneath the Guardian's cloak, Aurora was protected from the chill. Devrim! She had no idea where Devrim was. The last time that she had seen him was when they were washed out of the boat by the merfolk's tidal wave. What could have happened to him? Had he drown? Was he freezing somewhere? She needed to find him.
Struggling against her body, Aurora rose to her feet. 'This is how a toddler learning to walk must feel,' she thought as she took an awkward step. It was like he
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Empress of the World The Ice Barrier
Aurora spent the rest of the day and into the night tending to Devrim. She wrapped him and herself in the Guardian's cloak, which magically stretched, and the pair were protected from the freezing temperatures as the stars passed overhead. By morning Devrim had recovered enough for them to continue their journey. Although both their bodies were scraped and bruised, they were optimistic. It was a new day and at least they could face the challenges together. "I found a path up the barrier, I think," Aurora told Devrim after they had eaten more dried food from their supplies. Their food stuffs were getting low, and so it was even more necessary that they get across the barrier as soon as possible. "That's encouraging," Devrim said with a smile. "How far away is it?" "Not far. If you are ready, we can go." Devrim stood and reached out his hand for Aurora. His dazzling smile made her heart skip a beat. "Then let us go, my lady," he said playfully.
Empress of the World Interrogation
Zan had been questioning the prisoner for hours. Gandr sat tied to a wooden chair with his feet off the ground. Thanks to some persuasion from one of the prison guards, the gnome had a gash over his left eye that allowed blood to trickle down his face. Now only Zan, Gandr and a couple of members of the Council were in the room. Cafer was noticeably absent. "Tell us who sent you to murder the Empress," Zan said coldly. "I told you it was the King of the Gnomes," Gandr reminded him. "Who from the palace alerted you to the Empress's whereabouts?" Zan continued his questions. "No one. I got lucky," Gandr shrugged. He had no interest in cooperating. "I appreciate your loyalty, but we will find out who the traitor is and your suffering will have been in vain." Zan said sympathetically. "You may as well tell us now." Gandr spat on the floor. His eyes stared daggers at the Chief. Zan sighed. He hated this, but the safety of the Empress and the
Empress of the World Into the Land of Magic
Aurora and Devrim explored the lush land around the base of the ice barrier. Some of the strange plants from the other side of the barrier were here, but there were also new and even stranger plants and animals. Thankfully, none of the animals seemed dangerous. Aurora watched with interest as a small rabbit with horns protruding from its head ate berries as large as a human fist. The berries were purple looked delicious. "I am going to try one," Aurora said. Devrim shook his head. "We do not know if they are safe to eat." "We do not know if anything here is safe to eat. I am hungry, and the jackalope (she hoped that she had named the rabbit creature correctly) seems to think it is safe." Before Devrim could say anything more, Aurora ripped a berry from the bush and took a bite. Dark purple juice dripped down her chin and arms. "How does it taste?" Devrim asked, trying not to be disgusted by her purple appearance. Under different circumstances, the jui
Empress of the World Retreat to the River
The gnomes were on top of the humans in a flash. Aurora was thrown to the ground. A gnome grabbed at her feet and the bottom half of her skirt tore in his hands. Losing her shoes, the Empress kicked wildly at the gnome's nose and eyes. Devrim only had a moment longer than Aurora and had his sword half-drawn when he was engaged. He kicked away the first gnome that came toward him giving him just enough time to pull his sword from its sheath. Devrim's foot throbbed. 'These creatures feel like stone!' He had little time to think as he slashed at the next two gnomes, drawing blood from each of them. The next, realizing the folly of his friends, held his own sword and swung to cut off the man's head. Thankfully, Devrim was a skilled swordsman. He dodged the deadly blow and placed a large gash in the arm of the gnome as he fell forward. The gnome held his limp arm and screamed in pain. Devrim looked frantically to see what had happened to Aurora. Other than her initial outcry, she
Empress of the World Define the Relationship
"That was incredible!" Aurora spun in an excited circle as she walked, showing herself every bit of sixteen years old. Now that the fear and adrenaline had worn off, she could fully appreciate the magical events of the day. Devrim and Brinn walked on either side or her, amused and confused respectively. "We met a water nymph! Three of them, actually. Are they made of water or do they just look like water?" "A combination of the two," Brinn responded calmly. There was really nothing specially about them, but Aurora made her wonder if there was. "And then the ground opened up like the world would split in two… why do gnomes dig if they can move the earth around like that?" Aurora asked. "Their magic can only move the earth temporarily; the holes they make will go back to their natural state when the magic is complete." Brinn was beginning to enjoy being the expert. Others never deferred to her knowledge, and Aurora's enthusiasm made her feel important. She unco
Empress of the World The Tables Have Turned
"How did you find us again? I mean it has been a long time and a long way since Aurora saw you with the stag." Devrim asked the question that had been itching in the back of his mind. "Oh I have been following you for weeks," Brinn admitted easily. "I spotted you back before that gnome attacked you." Devrim's eyes opened wide and he tried to speak several times. He had not seen the elf a single time. He had only heard Aurora's recount of their meeting. "In the human world, we call that a stalker," Aurora said. She had slowed down and allowed the others to catch up to her. Brinn's words confirmed her suspicion that they had been followed. The elf nodded, "Oh I was definitely stalking you. I am an excellent tracker, and it was extra easy since you were leaving marks for those two soldiers to catch up. Pity they never did." The humans could not tell if she was being sincere. "Do you have any idea what happened to them?" There was a slight air of
Empress of the World Entering the Elven City
The sun slipped behind the ice barrier, but the light was still bright in the land of magic. Whether this was due to some magical occurrence or the ice reflecting the sun in some strange angle, the humans could not say. All they knew is that when they came upon the elf city, the day was not yet over. At first when the city came into view, they had not known what they were looking at. The ground rose steeply into a tall hill and the trees became vibrant colors of purple, blue and pink that the humans had never seen. Then a beautiful white stone seemed to sprout from the ground. It towered high into the air, scraping at the clouds. Many more towers joined the first, and the city took shape. The tall, thin structures looked like exaggerated mushrooms as elves poked their heads out of windows from various floors to see the newcomers. Perhaps the most impressive feature was a large palace. Alvar mentioned that the elves had a king and queen, but Aurora had not given much
Empress of the World The Feast
Devrim squirmed beneath the servants' touches. They pawed at his clothes and clipped his hair, even daring to shave the tiny bit of stubble from his face that he had spent months trying to grow. Outside of his duties as Emperor consort, at home he was generally left alone to his own devices. His personal servants knew he liked his space, and only assisted him when they were requested. In the wild, he had gone slightly feral. No one was around (except Aurora) to see what he looked like, and he had enjoyed the freedom. The amount of attention and preening that was now occurring was a shock to his system. The treatment was akin to torture. Finally, the work was done. "Would you care to take a look, sir?" one servant asked. Devrim reluctantly walked to the looking glass. He had on a long emerald green robe over a white shirt. His waistcoat was the same stunning green and sat above brown pants and dark knee high boots. The cloth was fine and Devrim wondered if all guests go
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