Standing completely still, James turned his head every which way, searching for anything that wasn’t a black void. For miles, there was nothing he could see except a black emptiness with shades of violet running through it. It was like a shadowy veil over his eyes, so dark he couldn’t even see his own hands.

“Alaris?” he yelled with a trembling voice, hoping for a response from a comforting voice. But no matter who’s name he called, whether it’d been Alaris’, Aviar’s, Braya’s, or Princess Rosepost’s, he was met with chilling whispers in his ears.

“Come to me.” the whispering voices said.

He flinched and turned to the direction of the voices but couldn’t see anything.

Slowly, his limbs began shaking more and more and his heart raced faster and faster. He felt like a child lost in an unfamiliar location. He wanted to move, but for all he knew, one step could send him plummeting to his death.

A touch on his shoulder from behind made his gasp. He then whipped his whole body around immediately and blinked rapidly at the sight of a woman standing before him, wearing nothing but her skin and brown hair. He couldn’t see her face since she wasn’t facing him. She was the one thing he could see clearly.

“Braya?” he said, initially thinking it was her due to her feminine body. But the woman’s skin was too pale to be Braya. Although he’d never seen Braya in an undressed state, he was certain parts of her body weren’t rotting. That’s not Braya.

Slowly, the woman turned her head around, but to James’ horror, her body moved not once. Sounds of her bones popping and cracking made James’ eyes widen as he took a step back. His breathing quickened, as he was now staring into the empty, black eyes of his mother. “Mom?” he said, shivering uncontrollably.

“Come to me.” James’ mother repeatedly whispered.

A huge, black, scaly, dragon-like face with glaring, big, sharp, pink eyes appeared behind her. Whatever creature was behind her was larger than the tallest trees and more horrifying than death itself. What is that?

If evil had a face, then whatever James was looking at would be it, he thought. He was so horrifyingly mesmerized by the creature that he forgot his mom was still chanting the same words over and over again.

The sound of a crackling fire behind him made him turn around slowly. He then slapped his hands against his mouth, his eyes bulging.

Before him stood Alaris, which normally would have been a sight more than pleasant. But instead of being happy to see his brother, he was overrun with shock and horror. Every part of Alaris’ body was engulfed in flames. Bloody tears poured out of his dull, white eyes and into his eerily smiling mouth. Two horns like a mountain goat’s were slowly growing from the top of his head.

As Alaris began to laugh, James woke up with a scream and quickly sat up. Panting, he looked all around him. He was in what looked like a tent, sitting on a table-like bed surrounded by stools and other beds. The ability to see again brought little comfort to James as he was still disturbed by everything he saw, or dreamt.

Never once had he been so cold when waking up. He felt like his skin was coated in a thick layer of ice, melting in the sunlight.

His heart jumped at the sound of a female voice. “How are you feeling?” she asked.

Instead of his decaying mother, it was a female dwarf dressed in a brown cloak with black leaves painted on it.

“Where’s everyone else?” James asked as he got off the bed, covering his stomach with his hand due to the nearly unbearable pain he felt.

“Slow down,” the female dwarf demanded. “You’ll reopen your wound.”

“Just tell me where they are. Please.” requested James. Though he wanted to see everyone else, he was desperate to see Alaris in his normal state. Seeing his brother literally burning alive disturbed him deeply. It was something he never wanted to see or think about ever again.

“They’re at the castle,” the dwarf answered. “Are you sure you can get there on your own?”

“I’ll be fine.”

James struggled to walk back to the castle, the nearly unbearable pain from the wound pulsing with each step. Eventually, he made it there. Once inside, he walked through the red doors and into the throne room where he saw King Bakdrel speaking to everyone else. To his relief, Alaris wasn’t on fire, nor did he have horns growing from his head.

“James?” Alaris said, his and everyone else’s faces showing shock. “Shouldn’t you be resting?”

“Are you okay?” James asked him, still shaken up by his dream.

“I think I should be asking you that.” Alaris then reached out his arm to help James stand. “How are you feeling?”

James grabbed Alaris’ arm and rested some of his weight on it. “I’m alright.”

“I’m glad you’re okay.” Aviar stated.

“As I was saying,” Bakdrel interrupted, “It would take awhile to gather enough builders to send to Rosepost with you, so you all will have to go by yourselves. I told the general to prepare horses for you outside the kingdom.”

“I can’t thank you enough for your help.” Princess Rosepost said.

“You don’t have to thank me,” King Bakdrel began walking back to his throne. “I hope everything goes well.”

After Bakdrel finished talking, James and the others walked outside of the throne room, and outside of the castle.

As Braya and Aviar continued walking, Alaris stopped James before they could walk across the bridge.

“James,” he began. “Why exactly were you so eager to go off to fight with the dwarves?”

“I don’t think you’ll believe me.” James sighed.

“I’ve been walking for days with a wizard and saw a lizard-looking man in the desert,” Alaris stated. “I’ll believe anything at this point.”

James was still hesitant to tell him though. The last thing he wanted to do was drag Alaris into the situation with Aldor and Evisior. But he also knew Alaris wouldn’t stop worrying about him if he didn’t. Therefore, with a sigh, he began to tell Alaris everything that happened, from when King Rosepost sent him to save the Princess to he and Aviar’s recent speculation of Aldor’s plans for world dominance.

“I don’t know what I was expecting, but it certainly wasn’t that.” Alaris said, wide eyed with a slight smile.

“I know it’s a lot.”

“How far away is Indora?”

“I’m not sure,” James answered. “But I think we should focus on getting back to the kingdom before worrying about anything regarding Aldor and Evisior.”

Alaris nodded and he and James continued walking.

After catching up with Braya and Aviar at the exit of Daroeth Keeth, they each mounted a horse and rode off into the direction of Rosepost Kingdom.

If one were to pass by what was left of Rosepost Kingdom from afar, one would’ve thought it a historical sight of Lyrid’s past, a graveyard of memories both good and bad. But once closer to it, what was an obvious painful and recent nightmare for the residents would have been clear as day. The repulsive stench of the rotting corpses of the Frostland Army, the Rosepost Army, some of the Dwarven Army, and some of Rosepost’s residents made itself a home in the air. The overwhelming amount of bodies were like the finishing touches on an art piece crafted by hate and greed.

James and the others had to dismount their horses as it would’ve been difficult for the horses to walk on the remains of both buildings and humans.

He and Alaris both buried their noses in their elbows as the putrid smell grew stronger the deeper into the kingdom they went.

“How long do you think it’ll take for everything to be rebuilt?” Aviar questioned.

“Definitely not a few days.” Princess Rosepost sighed.

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Everything in the kingdom was unrecognizable to James. All the houses, shops, and workplaces were destroyed beyond recognition. He didn’t even know if they passed his farm or not.

“Excuse me,” a feminine voice said from behind, making James’ heart jump a little. “Aren’t you the Princess?”

He and the others turned around and saw a woman standing there, her skin covered in dust and hair filled with debris. In shock, he removed his elbow from his nose, as did Alaris.

“I- uh,” The Princess seemed just as confused as James and everyone else was, both their eyebrows raised.

It wasn’t possible for anyone to survive something as horrible and unexpected as that, James thought. The sight of the woman standing there filled him with a sense that she had somehow defied the laws of life, eluding death. But that didn’t matter. The fact that life still existed in Rosepost after what happened made his heart warm.

“Yes.” Princess Rosepost eventually answered.

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Alaris began, “how did you survive?”

“Most of us hid when the attack happened, others were just fortunate enough to have survived.” the woman answered.

Us. That meant there were others who somehow lived.

“Why did you leave us?” she asked, looking back at Princess Rosepost.

“I beg your pardon?” said Princess Rosepost.

“You left your kingdom when it needed you the most. We all thought you died in the attack.” the woman stated.

Before the Princess could answer, the woman continued speaking, crossing her arms. “I don’t know why we thought of you differently. You’re a Rosepost after all. Just the same as your father.”

The woman then stormed away, leaving the Princess visibly upset and James and the others shocked.

“I was hoping my reign would be different from my father’s,” Princess Rosepost began, “but given that they already seem to hate me, I think that might just be a fantasy.”

“Tell them you were the one who requested the help of the dwarves,” Alaris suggested. “That might make them like you a little more.”

“They’d be upset that I didn’t travel to Daroeth Keeth by myself.” she sighed.

“I’m sure they’ll change their minds once the kingdom is rebuilt.” Aviar stated.

“You aren’t like your father,” James added. “You and I haven’t known each other for long, but you've been nothing but kind since we first met, unlike the King.”

“It takes time for people to get adjusted to a new ruler,” Alaris stated. “When they realize you’re nothing like your father, they’ll begin to like you.”

“Thank you, but those are your opinions,” She then began walking away. “Their opinions outweigh yours, I’m sure. Thank you all for your help.”

Alaris grabbed James’ arm before he could follow after the Princess.

“She probably needs a moment by herself,” he said. “I think the realization that she is the queen now is too much for her to handle at the moment.”

Despite not knowing each other for long and barely speaking to each other, James began to worry about her. Being heir to the throne was already stressful enough for her, James assumed, but for it to be passed to her in such an unexpected and horrible way must have only piled on more stress. But unfortunately, there were more important things that needed attention.

“Aviar,” James began. “Would it be too soon to search for Aldor?”

“I don’t think so,” Aviar answered. “The sooner we begin, the better.”

Alaris slowly began shaking his head in disagreement. “No,” he said. “You’re hurt, James. The last thing you need to do right now is travel to Indora. You need to rest.”

“I’ll be alright, Alaris.” James stated. Alaris’ tendency to worry about him was nothing new to James. Ever since they were children, Alaris had worried himself sick over James’ safety. Due to how cautious he was and how adventurous James was, it was justified. But since reconnecting after the death of Alaris’ mother, James noticed an increase in his brother’s worrying. He wanted to ask about it, but Alaris was never one to talk about his personal feelings, at least never to James.

“Did you say you’re going to Indora?” Braya asked.

James had almost forgotten Braya was there since they had barely spoken to each other after he woke up.

“Yes.” Aviar answered.

“Why would you want to go there? That place is dangerous.” she questioned, her eyebrows lowered slightly.

Aviar turned to James and said, “You never told her about Aldor and Evisior?”

“Was I supposed to?” The thought of informing Braya about everything that was going on never crossed James’ mind. He wouldn’t have told Alaris had he not asked him twice why he went to fight with the dwarves. It wasn’t a secret he was keeping from them. It just didn’t concern them, in his head.

Aviar then explained everything to Braya in the same order James explained it to Alaris: from the beginning, to where they now stood.

“That’s… A lot.” Braya stated, blinking rapidly. She looked just as confused as Alaris did when he told him.

“I’d understand if you would want to stay here from now on.” James said.

For a moment it seemed like Braya was going to agree with James. But after she briefly glanced at Aviar’s belt, she said, “There isn’t really much for me here. I might as well stay with you three.”

“I’m sure the Princess would need your help with something here,” Alaris randomly blurted. “I think you should stay.”

“I’m fine.” Braya sternly stated as she and Alaris stared at each other, both their eyes narrowed.

Wonder what that’s about, James thought. Not once had he ever seen Alaris and Braya speak to each other. Therefore, seeing them seemingly upset with each other was confusing. Did something happen while he was away?

“Speaking of the Princess,” Aviar began. “Someone should probably tell her that we’re leaving.”

“I’ll do it.” Alaris said. He then walked in the direction Princess Rosepost went.

“I’ll be waiting for you all by the horses.” Aviar stated before leaving as well.

Then James turned to Braya. Her sun kissed skin and curly hair was just as beautiful as it was when he first saw her.

“I’m glad you’re alright,” she said with a smile. “Are you cold?”

“Well, yes,” James answered, a little confused by the randomness of her question. He assumed she was referring to the weather since it was still winter. “Are you?” he asked.

“Not really.”

Braya then sighed and said, “Can I ask you something about your brother?”

“Okay,” James said slowly.

“How protective is he of you?”

“That’s an unusual question.” James stated, his eyebrows slightly raised.

“It’s just something I was curious about. I noticed he always seems worried about you,” Braya explained. “I’m sorry if it’s a personal question.”

“You’re fine,” said James. “I wouldn’t say he’s protective. I think attached describes him better. He wasn’t always like that though. As we got older, it became clear to me that he cared about me a lot, which, I assume, is why he worries so much.”

“Is Alaris still close with his family?” questioned Braya.

Yes, James was going to say. But he remembered the brief conversation he and Alaris had at the Lion Claw Tavern. His view of what his brother’s and Merlis’ relationship was nothing but a false reality, a thick wall built to hide what was truly happening within.

“Alaris never told me the full extent, but he recently told me his father wasn’t a good person when his mom and I weren’t around. I do know for certain that he and his mother were close, though. At least, up until her passing.” James answered, briefly turning to look at Alaris as he spoke to Princess Rosepost.

“What exactly happened to his mom?”

“Where are all these questions coming from?”

James thought Braya’s random interest in Alaris was slightly strange since they seemed upset with each other earlier.

“Did something happen while I was away with Aviar?” James guessed.

“What makes you think that?” Braya asked, looking around. “We should go back to the horses. Aviar is probably waiting for us.” She then quickly left, leaving James confused.

Without a doubt, James could tell there was something Braya was keeping from him. But whether or not she would tell or wanted to tell him was something time would reveal. And if she was keeping it from him, it was probably for a good reason. Her business is her own.

What any of it had to do with Alaris still left him quite curious though.

Once back at the horses, James, Braya, and Aviar were preparing to mount their own when Alaris walked up.

“Is she alright?” James asked him, referring to Princess Rosepost.

“I don’t think so,” Alaris answered, beginning to mount his horse. “She didn’t really want to talk about anything. But I told her we were leaving.”

“Does she know where we’re going?” Aviar queried.

“Yes,” Alaris replied as he adjusted the horse's reins. “If she was listening, that is.”

“Do you know where we’re going?” said Braya. “In which direction, I mean.”

“Yes,” Aviar replied. “It’s north of here. I must inform you all that this is no short journey and is nothing but dangerous. We’ll have to pass through Arglor to get to Indora. It will take days, perhaps even a week, to reach it. And it might take more days to get through Arglor. The chances of us crossing paths with Aldor are higher than before, which is both a good and bad thing. They are, if not more, just as dangerous as this journey.” Aviar then focused his attention on Braya and Alaris. “James and I are more entangled in this mess than you two. If either of you wish to stay here, please make that decision now.”

“It’s not like we have homes to return to or places to work.” Alaris stated.

“And I think it would be wrong of us to abandon you both knowing how dangerous those sorcerers are.” Braya added.

“Then we should leave now,” Aviar then mounted his horse, as did the others. “There’s no telling how far Aldor is into his horrible plan or where he is.”

A strange feeling of unpleasant relief swept over James. He was more than ready to put an end to Aldor and Evisior’s plan and everything related to it, but would it be worth it at the expense of the lives of the people close to him? Part of him wanted Alaris with him, but the other part of him wanted his brother to stay at the kingdom where his life wouldn’t be at risk. He felt the same about Braya, but he worried for Alaris’ safety more than hers because, despite caring for them both, he cared more about Alaris. Memories of the awful dream he had made his feelings much worse. What if it meant something? What if his dream was a warning or some sort of glimpse into the future? What if-

I wonder if this is how Alaris thinks about me, James thought, noticing how far his overthinking went. The last time he worried this much for Alaris was when his mother died. But it didn’t matter. He and Braya made their decisions and there was nothing he could do to change them.

“Everything alright?” Braya asked him.

James took a deep breath and nodded.

Then, off they went, headed north to hopefully put a stop Aldor and save Lyrid before it was too late.