The bedroom chamber of Prince Jaho in The Coral Bastian Palace was fairly small compared to the other Prince and Princesses in Arla. And much stranger. The room had no windows. Instead, cream colored tapestries hung on each of the four walls. The scent of burnt sage filled the room. An elaborate painting of a Desert black fox eating a teal snake in the oasis desert province Itra covered the entire ceiling. And right in the middle, a rather large round bed stood.

After Prince Jaho woke from his nightmare, he leaned over and picked up a black bell off the floor. He swung it in the air a dozen times before placing it back on the ground.

Less than a minute later, a soft knock on the door came.

“Enter!” Jaho shouted.

The door slowly creaked open until a male servant named Leo wearing a foot-length long gown revealed himself.

“Your Highness.” Leo said softly. “How can I help you?”

Leo was extremely tall, much taller than the prince, had seven tattoos, and was one of twelve male servants in the Coral Bastion. Female servants were no longer allowed in the palace. A Desert tale to tell later.

“Is my father in?” Jaho asked. The young prince was still lying in bed and eyes still closed.

“Yes.” Leo answered. “In fact, the king seeks you.”

Jaho opened up one eye.

“Does he?” He mumbled.

“On my way here, he asked me to inform you of his request to see you.”

Jaho raised up on his elbows and turned to face Leo. His eyes widened when he finally laid his eyes upon the gentleman.

“What happened to your hair?” He asked in a shocking tone. “You’re bald.”

“Your father requested I shave my head.” He revealed. “He said my hair was a distraction.”

“You looked nice with your hair,” Jaho said with a smile. “you still do.”

Leo returned a warm smile. “Thank you, My Prince.”

Jaho’s smile suddenly fell.

“My father is a mad man, isn’t he?”

Leo raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t answer.”

Jaho then climbed out of the bed, revealing he was wearing nothing underneath, and marched towards his wardrobe.

His body was lean and slender, and came with a face that could rival the goddess Desire herself for the most beautiful being in Arla. Chiseled cheekbones, lips pink as flamingos, and warm, soft eyes.

Leo turned his entire body and gaze away from Jaho, and diverted his attention to the ceiling.

Jaho chuckled.

“You’ve seen me naked more times than my mum, Leo.” He laughed as he walked towards his wardrobe. “Tell my father if he wishes to see me, come see me.”

“Of course, My Prince.” Leo responded softly, then made his way towards the door.

As he reached for the knob, Jaho shouted,

“I’m not done.”

Leo swiftly turned around. “My apologies, My Prince.”

Jaho grabbed a white robe from the wardrobe to cover himself with it. Once he was done, he turned his attention back to Leo.

“Have I received a letter?” He asked. “From Mesyla?”

Leo shook his head. “I’m afraid not.”

Jaho rubbed the back of his hand on his forehead. “Any hummingbird sightings over the palace?”

Leo shook his head again.

Jaho angrily slapped his hand against the wardrobe.

Leo slightly flinched but made no move to leave.

After a long minute, Jaho finally said,

“You’re dismissed.”

Leo quickly departed the room.

***

Shortly after Leo departed, Prince Jaho quietly left his room and made his way towards his personal bath. Unlike the other Arlan palaces, baths and bedrooms were kept separate. The bedrooms were on the third floor, while the baths were on the second floor.

The walls of the hallway that led to the bath were adorned with cream oval framed oil paintings. Every painting was of an animal native to the Desert. Foxes and spiders. Scarlet birds and black snakes.

He had just reached the door of his bath when he came across a shadow, not his own, pacing back and forth next to the door.

He instinctively slammed his hand against the wall, and the shadow immediately stopped pacing.

“SPEAK!” He ordered the shadow.

“Your father seeks you.” It whispered. “He’s angry.”

Jaho folded his arms across his chest and stared down the shadow shifter. While most ordinary Arlans were afraid of them, Jaho wasn’t. After all, he was one of three who possessed a weapon that could kill one. But he also happens to enjoy the shadows that worked in the palace.

“Tell my father, if he wants to see me….come and see me.”

“Okay.” It whispered.

The shifter then raised her left hand to wave goodbye, revealing a glowing crescent sigil with the Hunuan phrase /\¥\ inscribed inside that not many could understand. A sigil belonging to the old Hunuan language, a language that only certain people were now allowed to speak. A language native to dark Desert province Aridisa.

Before the forced unification of the Desert, each Desert province only spoke the language of the Gods that ruled them: Hunuan, Yuitran, Nir, and Sfinis. After the forced unification, the first self proclaimed King of Kings outlawed the languages of Hunuan, Yuitran, and Nir. However, he did make an exception for Shadowshifters—beings created by the dark God Hunu—his warriors and guardians who primarily speak the Hunuan language.

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The Hunuan phrase on the shadow’s hand looked familiar to Jaho.

“Is it you, Dia?” He asked the shadow.

“Yes.” It whispered. The king’s mistress.

Jaho rolled his eyes and threw up his left hand. “You’re dismissed.”

***

The prince’s bath was more elaborate than one could imagine. When one entered, they were immediately met by the smell of burnt sage and vibrant colors. Three of the four walls were adorned with a big mural. On the right wall, the slaughter of the venomous Snow Spider by Queen Sewî, the Great was painted in vibrant colors. On the back wall, the mural was of several black foxes and scarlet birds native to the Desert. On the left wall, the mural depicted the slaying of the red sand snake by King Jaho I, the victorious king in the War of Kings. And hanging from the ceiling were four gold shimmering chandeliers.

Jaho entered and slowly closed the door behind him, trying his best to not make much noise. Next to it, a gold mirror hung above a beige sink.

He carefully removed his robe and hung it on a metal loop on the wall before making his way to the big clawfoot tub, a tub where the prince and Mesyla spent many secret evenings together.

Jaho turned on the faucet and watched the tub slowly fill with fairly cool water. As he did, he thought about the last time he saw Mesyla. It was a week after the coronation dinner. He sent Mesyla a letter to meet him in their spot in the Mountains.

Mesyla initially hesitated. But like many times before, she couldn’t resist. When Jaho saw her approach, he saw that she was without her crown and wearing a teal long gown. He immediately stood from the tree he was leaning against and clasped his hands behind his back.

“Are you still mad?” He asked her. They hadn’t talked since her coronation.

Mesyla slowly licked her bottom lip then shook her head.

“Why would I be mad?” She asked. Her eyes were puffy as if she had just been crying.

Jaho slowly smiled then began making his way towards her.

Mesyla immediately raised her left hand. “Stay where you are.”

Jaho tilted his head. “You are still mad.”

Mesyla started to laugh.

“What’s funny?” He asked through gritted teeth.

“Darling, of course I’m mad.” She said, voice low. “I’ll be mad until I die unfortunately.”

“Mesyla, the wedding—”

“But for a reason you may never come to truly understand.” She interrupted and added.

Before he could ask what she was talking about, she transformed into a scarlet bird, her mother’s favorite bird, and flew away. Only thing she left behind was her dress.

They hadn’t talked since.

***

Jaho had been sitting in the bath for almost thirty minutes, eyes closed, when the door suddenly swung open.

“You know…” The king said. “I’m kind of tired of chasing after my own son.”

At the sound of his father’s voice, Jaho slowly lowered himself under the water.

But unfortunately, the king was not in a good mood. Not today. He stomped over to the tub, grabbed his son by the neck with the strength of 1,000 men, and pulled him up.

“Disobey me again…..” He said. “you won’t like what you see.”

The king kept his hand around Jaho’s neck a couple of seconds longer before removing.

Jaho threw daggers at his father as he watched him take a seat on the lone chair sitting in the corner

“Where were you last night?” The king asked angrily. “With Mesyla?”

Jaho took a long moment to answer, to decide whether to lie or speak in truth. He knew his father wouldn’t like his answer, but he went with the truth anyway.

“No.” He answered slowly. “In Siré, actually.”

King Jaho clenched his jaw.

“Are you out of your mind?”

“Father…”

“Answer me. Yes or no.” He interrupted. “Are you out of your mind? Without alerting me? Siré is a cursed graveyard, you know that.”

The prince rolled his eyes.

“I have to find answers, father. My nightmares……”

“Your nightmares.” The king sighed. “How will Siré cure your nightmares? Your nightmares are not a curse ....they are only dreams burdened.”

The prince frowned.

“What? Burdened by what? Humor me.”

The room briefly went silent.

“Burdened by what?” The prince asked again.

The king turned his head away from his son. He wasn’t sure if he was ready for his son to learn the truth.

“Burdened by what?” The prince asked again, louder this time.

“By fate.” The king finally answered.

Jaho’s mind immediately went to the only person who could see fate.

“Are you saying Rosar is playing tricks on me?”

Foolish child. The king thought to himself.

“Tell me.” Jaho pleaded loudly. “Tell me the truth.”

The king took a deep breath.

“Unfortunately my child, Rosar is not directly responsible for the troubles that plague us in this world.” He explained. “Fate will come for you too like it did for me.”

Jaho closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

“When the snow spiders come, that’s when you should be worried.” The king added under his breath.

Jaho quickly turned his back head towards his father. His heart began to race and anger suddenly surged through his body.

“I never said anything about snow spiders.” Jaho said. “Unbelievable.”

Jaho quickly rose to a standing position in the tub.

“I’m so stupid.”

The king raised his eyebrows.

“You’ve never taken my nightmares seriously….never.” He shouted angrily. “because you know exactly what they are and what they represent don’t you?”

The king lowered his gaze.

“You must learn on your own just like I did….or you would have spent your entire young life angry and fighting what must come to pass and can’t be changed.”

Jaho slowly shook his head then carefully stepped out of the tub. He had a disgusted look on his face as he went to grab his robe that was still hanging on the metal loop.

He hastily put it on before turning back to his father.

“You want to really know why I went to Siré, Father?”

The king motioned for him to go on.

“The snow spiders came to me.” He confessed. “Spiders you knew would come…and those spiders only mean one thing in this wicked world we live in.”

King Jaho’s face momentarily fell.

It was too soon. He wasn’t ready. The king thought to himself.

“I'll find a way to undo what someone in this family has done.” He said angrily, interrupting his father’s thoughts. “I’ll do what you could not do.”

The king suddenly broke into a laughing fit.

“My child, this curse has been with us for generations.” He laughed. “You’ll need the Spider Goddess Nirea herself to break this curse.”

“There has to be a way.” Jaho responded coldly. “There has to be another way.”

“My son, you don’t even know what this curse is.”

Jaho inched closer to his father who was still sitting. “Tell me then….Tell me what it is. How bad is it? What is my fate?”

The king cocked his head to the side and stared into his eyes, the eyes of his mother. A part of him wanted to tell him the truth. But another part also knew he wasn’t equipped to deal with the suffering that came with being a Desert king. To lie or speak of the truth, he debated internally. He went with a bit of the truth.

“Your nightmares are omens of a curse inflicted upon us for the blood we’ve shed….a curse you’ll inherit. That’s all I can tell you.”

“Are you serious?”

“I’m afraid so.” The king chuckled. “But you should be thanking me actually.”

Jaho frowned.

“For what?”

“Everything I’ve done for you, this wedding, rushing it, it has been to save your precious Mesyla.” He revealed. “Mesyla won’t experience a tragedy like your mother did.”

Prince Jaho stumbled back.

“What are you talking about? What does Mesyla have to do with this discussion?”

The king began to smirk. “In time you’ll know. In time, you’ll learn that your nightmares are your past, present, and fate colliding to destroy not one but multiple lives.”

The king stood from the chair and closed the already small gap between him and his home.

“Until then, how about you get ready for the war meeting?”

“War mee—ting?” Prince Jaho stuttered.

The king winked and exited the room.