I stood with the pin in my left hand and the grenade in my right. I had found the grenade in the outskirts of the city, on one of the soldiers I had killed. The rain beat down on my yellow coat, but still managed to find a way to my cold body. Fever was setting in and I was becoming week. As I looked around I saw the multitudes of guards, all with their guns pointed at me. Red beams of light pinpointed spots on my chest and face, marking the best place to kill me. My heart pounded in my chest. I could hardly stay vertical as I contemplated my plan. So far they had taken the bait. No, all I had to do was wait. Soon the supreme commander would walk out on the upper most balcony of his office and see me standing there with the singular most valuable thing in our universe. Alamanthea would be at peace once again, and all for one small price. I heard Jalen behind me. He struggled in the arms of his captors, who only just hit him hard in the gut. Jalen’s wet brown hair fell in his face as he slumped. He stirred and looked up at me. His silver eyes pleaded with me. To him this wasn’t revenge like it was for me. His family had been taken away far before mine had. He had learned to cope with his anger. I turned back to the tower. My arms were beginning to shake. I couldn’t keep them up for this long. It was starting to be too much for my week body.

“If you don’t get him out here,” I rasped, spluttering water as I spoke. “I’m going to lose all the strength I have and drop this big pineapple here, and then we will all go up.”

A few of the guards looked at each other. I could see the fear behind their eyes. None of them wanted to die, they were just following orders that were “obey or die.” The Dark King was now ruling Alamanthea with fear. It was his greatest weapon. I looked up at the sound of doors opening. A tall dark figure walked out of the tower doors. The King wore a full black suit. His bleach blond hair was sleeked back away from his face. He leaned over the hand rails and looked down at me. I got a good look at his face. It was soft. His skin was fair and that made his icy blue eyes stand out. He looked cold and daunting.

“Hello, Aria. So good of you to come,” he said. His voice was like silk, but carried a hint of mockery.

I narrowed my eyes and said, “I would have been here sooner it you hadn’t tried to kill me.”

“Oh, I’m sorry,” He said, descending a long staircase that branched off of the balcony. It spiraled down to my level and The King talked as he descended the stone stairs. “I merely wanted to escort you to me.”

“In a coffin,” spat Jalen. He glared at the King. “Better go back inside before you get all wet.”

The King laughed at Jalen. He now stood across from me and began to walk forward. He neared me and looked down at me. There wasn’t the smallest hint of hate in his expression. He smiled as he looked me over and I felt his gaze shift to the chain that hung around my neck. Even with my shirt covering most of the chain, you could still see the part looped on the back of my neck. The King followed the chain down to where he must have suspected the time peace was, and he was right. I shifted uncomfortably. The King lifted a hand to stroke the side of my face with his fingertips. I flinched but stopped when I once again felt the live grenade in my hand. “Now ,now,” he cooed. He also took the grenade from me and the pin. The King took the pin and slipped it back in the grenade whole. I lowered my hands back to my sides. “There we go,” said The King softly.

After a minute of The King inspecting me he said, lifting my chin with his fingers, so I would face him, “What would such a delicate thing be given such a large burden? Let me help carry the burden.”

He began to reach behind my neck and pull on the chain which held the time piece. I felt the pendant move and I closed my eyes as it screamed. Every inch it moved away from my skin it left a burning streak of flesh.

“Stop!” yelled Jalen. “Get your hands off her.”

The King stopped and the pendant fell back into its place. My skin stopped burning and the time piece became quiet again.

“Why so protective, hmm?” asked The King. He left me and walked over to Jalen. Rain water dripped off both of them. Jalen tried to stand up as much as possible but slumped back into his captors support.

“Why is she so important to you? She really is nothing special.”

Jalen lunged at The King, who didn’t even flinch, and had a fist thrown in to his jaw. I cringed as blood trickled from his mouth. “You know nothing about her,” said Jalen, spitting blood onto the cobblestone ground.

“Ah, I see. Are you in love with her?” asked The King. He was loving every minute of watching Jalen suffer.

Jalen looked up at me, not The King. His eyes were still pleading but were also filled with guilt. About what though? If he did love me, why would he feel guilty about it?

I tried not to think about The King’s last question. I had no time to think of stuff like that. Then it was thrust into my mind when Jalen spoke.

“Yes,” he said. “I really do.”

The King laughed a good hardy laugh. He arched his back and laughed into the sky. “Well, you can’t have her. She’s mine.”

I spun on my heals and stared at him. “Who said I’m yours?” I asked angrily.

“I did,” said The King as he grabbed a handful of Jalen’s hair and drew back his head. Jalen grimaced. He pulled out a knife from somewhere behind his back and held it up against Jalen’s neck. I let out a tiny gasp as I saw a ribbon of blood run down Jalen’s neck.

“I’m going to make you a proposal, Aria. Either you marry me and share the power of the time peace with your soon to be dearly beloved husband, or,” he paused. “Your friend dies a very painful and unpleasant death. I’d also hate to be the one to clean up after it too.” All the kindness had melted from his face and now it was smudged with hate. Pure evil swirled around him like thick dirty smoke.

I took in a deep breath. I knew that if I married The Dark King that he would take the power of the time piece and then kill me, keeping all the power for himself. But at the same time I knew that if I refused Jalen would die. My heart throbbed as I was presented with a question I never dreamed of. The King looked at me with a deep and malicious smile. Cruelty crept all around us, and Jalen looked at me with sad eyes. His eyes glistened and it looked like his irises were made of pure silver. A single tear drop ran down his cheek and collided into his low cut bangs.

“Aria, don’t marry this freak,” said Jalen. He twinged slightly.

I looked from Jalen to The King and then back. I looked Jalen squarely in the eyes and said, “I’ll do it.”

The King let out a breath of relief and slumped his shoulders. He reheated his knife and straightened his suit. The King’s bright and cheery appearance returned and the dark, cruel nature dissolved in to the rain that still fell from the black and grey clouds. The King turned to Jalen with a look of disgust and said, “Throw him in the mines.”

The two guards holding Jalen started to drag him off. Jalen began to call out to me and struggled against the guards.

“Aria! Don’t please.”

I started to run to him, but was stopped by The King. I clawed at his arm, which was wrapped around my waist tightly. “I’ll only do it if he is treated well. If he doesn’t get the same treatment as me, the deal is off,” I pleaded with The King.

He sighed and said, “As you wish.”

The King didn’t loosen his grip but allowed me to push him away from me. I ran to Jalen and shoved the guards away from him. Jalen rubbed his wrists and I wiped away the blood from his face with my coat sleeve. I started to inspect his neck but Jalen took my hand away from his neck and clutched it to his chest.

“Why?” he asked. He almost looked angry with me.

“I couldn’t let you die, not after what you have done for me. We will figure something out,” I said under my breath.

“Come on you two, we don’t have all day. After all, I have a wedding to plan,” The King chuckled to himself. He turned his back and Jalen and I both bored holes into the back of his head with our eyes.

The King led us, not through the way he had come onto the balcony, but through some large double doors that I had not noticed before. The entry war that we were led through was dark. Some sort of purple and black stone was what made up the huge castle that we now walked through. Sometimes I thought I saw some of the swirls in the stone move like smoke. Large statues of most likely past dark kings and queens were carved out of dark grey rock. One statue that caught my eye was the last woman we passed. She wore a simple dress and her hair was carved into tiny ringlets that were pulled back from her face. The one thing that made her stick out was her position. All the other statues were in proud outward positions, but hers was almost an image of shame. A small tier had been carved into her smooth cheek, and it looked as if it would just drop to the ground. I stopped to look a little longer. I soon became aware that The King stood next to me.

“This is my grandmother Elaina,” said The King.

“She is so different from all the others. She looks so ashamed,” I said, not really trying to talk to The King.

The King slipped my arm in his and led me away from the statue. We walked down the long hall of statues with the guards and Jalen right on our heels. We walked down winding stair cases and long tunnels. Once I saw a bright blue and purple butterfly. It floated around me and, just as it had come, was gone. We finally reached a tall door with a woman carved on it. She lay on a stone bed and wore a flowing gown. In the place where her heart would be was a key whole. The door was made out of black wood, but parts of the door sparkled and shimmered in what little light there was.

“I had this room made for whoever I would chose to be my bride. This will be your room until we are wed,” said The King. He looked over at Jalen and said, “Your room is that one.”

He motioned to a door right across from mine. It had a tall man and his horse carved on it. The King walked up to my door and pulled out a silver key. He slid it into the door and turned it to the left. The women on the door opened her eyes and looked out on the group of people. I had heard of the living doors but never seen one. They were supposed to be the best sort of protection.

“This is your occupant. You know what to do,” said The King.

The woman got up from the table and disappeared into the wood. I had a feeling I hadn’t seen the last of her. The King opened the door and led me in. The room was made out of the same wood as the door. The bed was an electric blue iron and the sheets and covers were all dark grey. The curtains were tied at the posts of the bed. A tall wardrobe stood on the opposite wall of the bed. The room had everything. A mirror, wash stand, chest of doors, and the wall facing out toward the city was made of pure glass. I could see out over the dark city, millions of lights twinkling out my window.

“Make yourself at home here. You may go anywhere within these walls except my study, unless I summon you. Do you understand?” said The King. I cough a hint of that evil lurking behind the gentleman charade he was playing.

I nodded in reply. He left with a bow and I was alone. I saw something out of the corner of my eye and turned to look. Nothing was there. I walked over to the wardrobe, opened the doors and saw a multitude of clothes. I saw something that looked comfortable and grabbed it. It was a purple silk top and a pair of black trousers made of velvet, also something I had heard about but never seen. It felt soft against my raw fingers. I removed my soaked clothes, put on a thick robe of some sort, and washed myself in the basin. I rinsed my hair and scrubbed all the blood off mu body. I went to wipe my face with a drying cloth and when I looked up, I stared into the face of the wood woman. I jumped back with a yelp and tripped over my own robe, stumbling to the floor.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you. It’s just, you are the first person I will be guarding,” she said.

I looked at her. She moved gracefully through the wood and it looked as if she were not made of wood at all. I got up and walked over to her.

“My name is Trafani. What is your name? I should know it after all,” she said. Trafani was so bright and cheery. The black wood did not suit her at all.

“I’m Area,” I said, still looking at her in amazement.

“Have you eaten, Area? Are you hungry?” she asked.

“Well, yes, I am,” unsure whether to trust the food.

Trafani smiled and said, “Dinner is in an hour. You will be expected to join his majesty for the evening meal so we must make you look presentable.”

She walked, more like glided, over to the wardrobe and it opened automatically. A dark green dress came forward on a long rod. I took it and held it up to myself. The dress was floor length with long sleeves. The skirt was gathered at the waist and the collar dissolved into a transparent material. The sleeves were the same way only they ran down into a half glove. Black sequin vines ran all over the dress and curled up to the collar. I put it on with some black slippers with ribbons that laced all the way up to my knees. The vines looked as if they curled around my neck and shoulders, all the way down to my fingers too. Trafani noted a crown of black vines on my dresser.

“His majesty, the dark king, had told me that you must wear it,” she said.

I put it on and looked at myself in the mirror. I looked different and not like myself. I took the crown off and put it back on my dresser. The crown buzzed and shot strait back to back to my head. I winced as one of the leaves on the vines pushed into my skull. I looked back in the mirror and said, “Well, I guess I’m stuck with it.”

I heard a knock at the door. Jalen walked in. He wore an all-black tunic with a dark grey belt. He had washed his face but the cut on his neck was still red and crusted with blood. He walked over to me and looked me up and down, taking in the dark green gown that glittered as I moved.

“You look beautiful,” he said, blushing slightly.

“Thanks, I don’t feel like myself though.”

Jalen pulled he into a hug, and I rested my head in the crook of his shoulder. He stroked the back of my head and smoothed out my hair. I clung to the back of his shirt, which was my attempt to hold onto my present life and not be lost to this dark world of the King.

The door opened and a guard entered the room. “The King summons you both to dinner.”

It was non-optional. Jalen let me out of the room where four other guards led us to the dining hall. As we walked, Jalen and I held each other’s hands as scared little children would, his thumb rubbing the top of my hand protectively. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw shadows move and skitter across the walls. I thought once or twice that I saw some more of the wooden people staring at us from behind portraits of frowning kings, queens, and other members of the royal family. The guards led us to a tall black door with a silver deer molded onto the door. The guard nodded and the deer turned to the opening side of the door and the kings clicked. The door swung inward, revealing a long dining room with four fireplaces and a large purple crystal formation that illuminated the room. White flames burned from the fireplaces, casting a ghostly glow and contrasting the purple light from the quartz.

“You look divine.” I jumped as the king brushed past me, whispering into my ear. I could still feel his cold breath on my skin as he led me away from Jalen and to a seat next to the head of the table. I sat in the high backed chair, resting against the plush black velvet. The King pushed in my chair, and he lightly brushed his fingers against my cheek. I flinched.

“Now, now, Area. Be a good girl, and I might let your family go.”

I let him continue to stroke my face and neck. I looked up at Jalen, only he didn’t look back. He was staring at the King, who’s eyes I knew were on me. Jalen’s eyes burned with anger, and he faintly shook as his facial muscles tightened. Jalen’s eyes flickered to me, and he melted. He unfenced, relaxed his muscles, and took a seat across from me.

“Well, I think it’s time we ate; don’t you?” said the King, walking to his chair at the head of the table.

The King snapped his fingers and three waters brought out plates of food and placed them in front of us. They lifted the lids and steam erupted from the platters, revealing a large slab of meat, and some other foods that I didn’t recognize. The smell of the food almost made me gag; since it had been so long since I had smelled properly prepared food, but this was different, almost over loaded with spices. The King motioned for us to eat, digging into his own food. I took one bite, two, three, and I stopped. The food was too rich for my stomach, which was used to the foods of my village. Jalen was much the same, only toying the food around his plate with a silver fork. The King sensed our feelings and stood from his chair.

“I think we’ve had enough.” He walked over to me and held out his hand for me to take. “I’d like to show you both something,” he said, shooting a look that could have run Jalen strait through and then some.

I took his hand and rose from my chair, letting the King lead me out onto a black marble balcony which looked out over the Dark Kingdom. Smoke fumed from houses, which looked more like mansions to me and Jalen. This made me miss my home even more, but it was gone now. All that was left was the charred grass and trees that we all lived around. Not even the slaughtered bodies of the villagers, who had not been taken to work in the mines, remained there.

The King put one hand to my back, keeping me in place and another on the banister of the balcony. He brought his mouth close to my ear again, and said, “What do you see, Area?”
I took in a deep breath. “I see what your evil hand has done to a desperate group of people. I see the evil you have wrought.”

The Kind turned to me. Jaw clenched, he gazed at me with burning eyes, yet I didn’t shy away in the slightest. I stood there, tall and confident. I just now realized how tall the King was, and the top of my head only reached to his chin. I continued to glare at the King, never blinking, never moving my eyes, but the stillness ended as quick as it came. The King snapped, grabbing my neck and slamming me against the banister. He lifted me over the banister, and I could see the gates of the castle below me. Jalen grabbed the back of the King, but he was shot back against the wall behind him from thick ropes of black magic.

“Don’t touch her!” yelled Jalen as he hit the stone wall.

The ropes constricted around Jalen’s neck and limbs, tightening around him with every surge of strength that Jalen used to try and free himself. The King turned to me, his hands constricting around my throat.

“What I have done is for the best. You and your tiny people in your villages can’t lead yourselves. You need a king to rule you,” he growled.

His lips were turned up into a snarl and he tightened his grip, almost cutting off my air supply. I wheezed out a pathetic “stop” as tears sprung from my eyes. The Kind jerked away from me, dropping me to the ground. He stormed past Jalen and back into the castle. As soon as Jalen was released, he was crouching next to me, checking to see if I was alright. I coughed and rubbed the sides of my neck. I could feel the skin bruising from the King’s grip.

“You okay?” asked Jalen, his voice strung with concern.

I nodded as he helped me up. “I don’t feel good. Can you take me back to my room?”

“Sure,” he said.

I could feel the fever burning inside my body; I was becoming an internal oven. Sweat streaked my brow and my stomach turned. Once I got back to my room, I retched into the water basin, which emptied itself magically. Every time a wave of vomit would erupt from my core, the mix of bile and what little food I had eaten would dissolve into the bowl. Jalen attempted to sooth me by brushing my hair away from my face and stroking my upper back. I was able to calm my stomach and began to head back out to the door, but Jalen stopped me.

“Aria, you need to rest.”

I tried to push him away, but I fell backward, heading straight for the ground. The world spun around me, my eyes rolling in the back of my head. Everything stopped when Jalen caught me before I hit the black wooden floor. His hands were under my arms, holding me up right. I again tried to push him off, but fell back again. Jalen put one of my arms around his neck, and held me up by holding my waist. It was like he was leading my limp body, but my mind was trapped inside, unable to react. The next thing I felt was Jalen laying me down in my bed. He rolled me over and stared at the back of my dress. I had to get out of it, and he knew that. But he hesitated. He ran over to the door and knocked on the dark wood. The face of Trafani appeared on the wood as it rippled into her form.

“She needs to get into some more comfortable clothes. Can you do that for me? She’s sick.”

Trafani must have nodded, because I felt her removing the crown, shoes, and the dress. I took in a deep breath, smelling all the perfumes and candles that burned in my room. I coughed. Trafani must have magically managed to change me, because I drunkenly sat in my bed, looking at the clothed I now wore. Jalen came back to me and made me lay back down, feeling my forehead and cheeks. Beads of sweat dotted my face and seeped through my shirt.

“I’ll be back in a few moments,” said Jalen, brushing back my hair.

I heard the door close, and darkness consumed me. I feel as deep into the bed covers as I could, running from all that was around me. My mind succumbed to the delirious state of that ever so blissful sleep, and I dreamed. I dreamed of a time when my biggest worry was if I would catch a deer or some rabbits for my family’s meal.


I shot out of my sleep, eyes wide open, blood pounding in my veins, and fists out and ready to fight. I looked around, searching for what had brought me out of my sleep. Jalen lay soundly on a couch across from my bed, his heavy breaths whispering in the shadows. I turned my head, and stared straight into the black face of Trafani. I began to scream, but she clamped a wooden hand over my mouth. Her eyes were pleading and merciful, yet I still struggled.

“Please, my lady. You must listen to me. I do not wish to harm you or your male elf,” she said, her voice barely a whisper.

I stopped. “What do you want?”

“I have come to tell you that your parents are very truly dead. I saw them be killed by the king,” she said.

I felt as if my stomach were going to turn again, and I braced myself against the bed.

“The king told them how he wanted you for your time piece, and that he only took them so that you would think that they were in the mines. He also said that the mines had been depleted and that there was no other derilium except for the small stone in your necklace. He killed them, Aria.”

Realization have me a good kick to the head and then some. “Why are you telling me this?” I asked, glaring at the wooden girl.

She blinked. “Why not?”

Trafani was so innocent, so naive, and I loved her for it. I jumped out of the bed, trying not to wake Jalen, and I looked around the room and looked for a weapon. I searched through my old clothes and found no knife. I left my room, Jalen, and Trafani. I ran across the hall into Jalen’s room. His room was much like mine, but darker. I ran to the wardrobe and flung open the doors. I rummaged through his clothes and found a knife. I made sure it was sharp, running my thumb against the sharp end of the blade. A small drop of blood ran down my thumb, and I licked away the blood. Concealing the knife, I slipped it under the back of my shirt and wrapped Winek’s belt around me to hold the knife against my back. I wanted to conceal the weapon in case I ran into any of the guards, so I didn’t look any more suspicious as I already did to them.

I ran out of the room but stopped when I realized that I had no idea where to go. There were no guards, and I had no idea where I was or where to even head. Just then, the time peace burned against my skin. I had forgotten it was even there. Clutching my chest, I tried to pull the pendant away from my chest, but it hurt even more when I tugged on it. I gasped out in pain and slumped against the wall, falling to the ground. I stopped pulling, and let the burning subside. Seconds later, the entire left side of my body began to tingle, as if it were asleep. I took that as a hint, and began to walk toward my left. I kept going until, I saw a light out of the corner of my eye. I found nowhere to hide, and I decided to face the guard. He was walking toward me fast, the light swayed in the dark corridors of the castle.

“What are you doing out of your room?” asked the guard in a stern voice.

My mouth went dry. “Um, I was on my way to see the king.” I waited to see his expression, “I thought that he would like to see me.”

The guard chuckled to himself. “This way.”

We walked slowly down the dark halls. The paintings on the walls seemed to follow us as we journeyed down the halls, staring at me as if I was a fresh piece of meat. I jerked my head at the sound of voices coming from behind me. I stopped.

“So she’s the one he wants.”

“She’s not very pretty.”

“And she’s so scrawny, almost too small.”

“His Majesty will eat her alive, just like he did the rest of us.”

The last comment made me shudder.

“Don’t listen to them. They are just mad old spirits of woman who tried to be the queen,” said the guard. He continued to walk.

I we kept walking, and after long, the voices in the shadows subsided. The guard stopped at a dead end, which seemed to not have any sign of a door. The guard lifted a hand, and put it on the face of a portrait. The entire wall morphed into a tall metal door with intricate welding. The handle was made of solid gold and resembled a lion’s head and mane.

“Go on then,” said the guard, beginning to leave.

I waited till he was gone, then I turned to handle. Air filled with spices and perfumes engulfed me, making me stager backward. I pulled open the door, just enough to get through. Then, I shut it behind me.

A four poster bed sat between two windows that faced out to the city. Gossamer curtains floated around the bed, creating the illusion of beauty. A few candles were lit around the bed, allowing me to see the king. He slept so soundly, and I waited to hear his heavy breathing. Sure enough, I heard the soft breaths of sleep come from behind the curtains. I padded over to the side of the bed and pulled back part of the curtain. The king slept with one arm wide open to his side, and the other across his torso. His face gazed up to the top of the canopy, staring into his dreams. I pulled the knife out from under my shirt as I walked past the curtains, letting the curtains brush against my ankles and calves. I took a deep breath, griped the knife, and stepped toward the king. My knees began to shake, and I braced myself against the side of the bed. I looked at his torso, searching for the perfect place to strike him. I could see the faintest outline of the kings ribs, and I knew the upper most one what where I needed to drive my knife. The blade would slice through the cartilage, then strait into his lung. He would die in a matter of minutes. But then again, I could just slit his throat. It would be fast, and he would have no time to scream. I gripped my knife one last time, and readied it at his neck. All it took was once slice, and he would be dead. I relaxed my tense muscles, and began to bring back the knife across his perfect skin. Something grabbed my wrist, and the King’s eyes shot open. His other hand covered my mouth, and the King awake. I tried to jump back, but his grip was too tight for me to break. He lunged out of the bed, slamming me against the back wall. My hear banged against the stone.

“Why did you come here?” the King asked. He leaned so that his mouth just grazed my ear.

“To kill you!”

I brought my knee up and hit him hard below the belt, and brought my foot down on the inside of his shin. He doubled over in pain, rolling on the ground. I took my chance, and drove my knife for his heart. As the blade pierced his skin, the room dissolved around me, swirling like smoke. I spun around with my knife at the ready, hearing the taunting laugh of the King behind me. His chuckles echoed around in the smoke.

“Come out and fight,” I said, gritting my teeth.

I saw a shadow. It laughed, and I lunged toward it. My knife slid between skin and hit bone. With triumph, I pulled back, but the shadow only swayed back and forth. I shoved what I had stabbed. It swayed back and forth like a pendulum, clearing the smoke around it. I coughed and covered my mouth, and my eyes adjusted to the smoky lighting. I saw the hanging body, swaying from a chain that was wrapped around its neck. I jumped back and hit another body. Closing my eyes, I composed myself. I opened my eyes and examined the bodies. There had to be fifty of them hanging from the ceiling, all with blank eyes and drooping mouths. I had to look away.

“What do you think of my work?” The King swept by me, his fingers grazing my arms as he passed.

I spun on my heels, looking for something to stab. Gripping the knife, I advanced toward the King’s shadow. I could see the snarl on his face, so twisted and evil. The knife felt slippery in my hands, and I realized that there was blood all over me. It must have come from the bodies I bumped into, yet I didn’t care anymore. I kept running toward the king, but then he was gone. I stopped, slid in the combination of moldy water and blood, falling strait on my back. My head banged against the floor, the sound echoing around the room. I could hear the King laughing in the background, mocking me as I tried to regain my footing. I stood fully erect, looked around, and saw the King smiling at me. His hands were out stretched toward me, beckoning me.

“I’m going to give one final chance, Aria. Either join me or die like the rest of your family,” he said, his lips twitching with a snarl.

In that instance, I saw him totally different from every other way he had appeared to me. He seemed feral, like a wild animal craving violence and waiting for the animal it was hunting to show weakness, yet making the death slow, painful, and torturous. Im the back of my mint I could hear the many rabbits that I had seen wolves kill. They were such quit creatures, but when death was staring them in their eyes, they screamed with all their might, even though there was nothing to save them. Though, once I found a rabbit caught in a trap, hung by its back leg. It was screaming and crying to me. The look in its eyes was pleading with me to help it, save it from the stew I knew it would become. I cut the rope, letting the rabbit run into the forest. I felt exactly like that rabbit, only I was being played with by a vicious and cruel wolf and there was no one to cut me free.

I woke up from my day dream, realizing that the King had moved from his stop in front of me. Suddenly, I felt the King’s hands wrap round the chain of the time peace. He yanked on the chain, pulling it from my flesh. I could hear the ripping noise of the amulet tearing out of my skin, and I felt the warm stream of blood trickle down my stomach, seeping through my shirt. The time peace was gone from my body in seconds, being torn from my neck and the place just above my stomach. I fell to the floor, crumpled in pain and clutching at my stomach. I cried out in pain, and I was vaguely aware that the room was dissolving back into the King’s bedroom. The King laughed at me, howling with joy and amusement. He knelt down next to me and spat in my face, “How strong do you feel now, Keeper of the time peace?”

He laughed with a wicked demeanor as the center of the time peace began to brighten. The large ruby lit up like a red star in the darkness, spreading its tendrils of light over the cackling King. In my mind I knew I had to get out, so I tried to rise to my feet. Somehow it worked, and I was able to make it to the door. Leaving my knife, the hysterical King, I ran for my life through the tall door. I kept running, slamming into walls, mirrors that showed the laughing King, but as I ran, the expression of the king changed from joy to dismay. His laugh became a cry of anguish as the time peace began to consume him. Light was colliding with darkness, and old magic was killing off the new arts. I tried not to look at the King as he withered into a frail old man in the mirror.

After a while of running, I saw Jalen, running toward me. I finally collapsed on the ground. Blood pooled all around me, soaking my hair, my clothes, and the carpet I lay on. I was fading into a sleep that I wasn’t sure I’d wake up from. Jalen knelt down next to me and lifted me into his arms. The castle around me began to shake, parts of the building falling apart. This palace was part of the King, and now that he was either dead or dying, all he had created was dying with him. This was how the time peace was created for. This is why I was born.

I was given the time peace only a few months ago, and I was sent with Jalen to destroy the King who had brought over technology from the mortal realm into this realm, the realm of magic. The two had clashed, and were both destroying each other, though the new, dark magic was prevailing with the help of the mines. The time peace was created out of our most preasous stars, five to be exact, and the in my heart, though it had just been town out, I knew that this is what was meant to happen. I was chosen out of all the people in my village, not just because the time peace chose me, but because I was tough, pretty, and was looked up to by multiple people in the village. Even though the people of my town had sent me with their best wishes, they all knew I would never return. They knew I would die, and here I was, that scared rabbit staring into the eyes of death.

I smiled slightly when I felt the still falling rain on my face. I did not know how long Jalen had been running, but we were out of the palace. We only had a mile before we were save, but I could feel the loss of blood taking its toll on my body. I felt week, weary. I relaxed my whole body and closed my eyes, giving in to that sweet sleep that played behind my eye lids.


I woke in nothing but pure sunlight. It danced across every inch of exposed skin, and warmth filled my whole body. Cool grass nestled me on the ground and providing a soft bed. I could hear the soft gurgle of water as the stream lapped at the rocks. At first, I thought I had died, then I opened my eyes and stared up at Jalen. His eyes sparkled like they used to in the old days when we were free. He was clean, and I felt clean. I tried to sit up, but I pushed me back down, and I relented when my abdomen stung when I moved. I raised my hand to the place where the time peace had been, and I felt nothing but a whole under my shirt.

“It’s nothing but a scar now,” said Jalen.

I looked up at him. “How long have I been asleep?”

“About two weeks. But your wound looks like it’s years old,” he said. “I bandaged it and cleaned it while you were asleep. It was pretty bad the first few days, but it closed up pretty quick.”

His face alive, but tired. I assumed he hadn’t had much sleep these past few days. “Thank you, for everything.”

A tear fell from his eyes, but he quickly wiped it away. I’d never seen him cry before, not even when we were children. He cupped my face and stroked my cheek with his thumb. I held onto his wrist, showing that I cared for him, that he was more than just my traveling companion.

I looked around at the forest we sat in. It was untainted by any darkness or dead plants. Everything was alive and blooming with vibrant hues of blue, green, pink, yellow, and every other color I could think of. I saw a dear run behind Jalen as we sat in the living grass, bounding off into the woods. I smiled.

“What?” asked Jalen, almost laughing as he said the word.

I took in a deep breath of living, fresh air and said, “Lest go home, back to the village.”

“You sure, we both have not family,” he said, giving me a skeptical eye.

I nodded. “Even if we are the only ones left in this realm, even if we have to start all over, I want to go back. We’ll still be in the forest, but back where the ground it good and there is plenty of animals to hunt.”

Jalen smiled. “Okay, we can go back.”



So, we returned to the vialed we had grown up in. There were all the buildings but only a few people remained. Together we built up the village, planting more crops than ever before and using every resource we had at our disposal. Within the next few decades, We were large, more prosperous, and stronger than ever. Jalen and I were the leaders of the village, but we vowed that we would never be dubbed a king or a queen. Those titles were far too daunting for us to handle. Even as our children grew, had their own children, and continued out blood line, they never assumed the title king of queen.

Over a thousand years later, when Jalen and I were old and still as in love as that day in the forest, We looked out over the land we had built up. All the people were so prosperous, that we no longer lived in mud huts or wooden cabins, we lived in stone houses, some mansions.

I looked over at Jalen, who sat next me on the steps of our house, and he clasped my hand in his. Our children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and two more generations mingle among the trees that we had planted in front of our house. I still had a scar, but I learned to use it a helpful reminder of the damage power can do to someone. Jalen stroked my face, something he always did when he was happy.

“You know, I still love you as much as the day we began traveling together,” he said.

“I love you too,” I said, leaning my head against his shoulder.

In that moment, everything was perfect. I could forget about the King from so long ago, and all the things Jalen and I had to go through. I finally felt free from all my burdens, and I savored every second of that light feeling, never letting go of my beloved’s hand. My heard flooded with over whelming love for Jalen, sending me even deeper into that state of never everlasting bliss.