"Wake up, Iael, wake up, you are scaring me." I heard a shrill, worried voice calling and shaking me. "What is it?" I asked, opening my eyes slowly .
"You beast,"she hit me hard on the chest.
"Ouch!! Serena , your fist is too strong for a woman, " I said and smiled at her. Damn she looks really mad this time. "Why did you not come to the palace last night? Do know how worried everyone was," she shouted, looking at me as if she wanted to shoot daggers through me. Seeing the amusement dancing in my eyes, she got fired up and started hitting me again .
"Ah ,.... Ah, stop hitting me , I'm already in pain. Don't make it worse . "What ,did something happen to you ? Are you hurt any where she started checking me for injuries . Goodness, this woman was she not the one beating me up some moment ago, I thought amusingly.
"Yeah__ yeah, stop fussing over me, I... just... something did happen ok , and I thought I was in the palace. I did not even know that I spent the night out.
"Why, what is wrong with him? Was he attacked? Kevin asked, coming out of from low shrubs at the edge of the valley. He is a sword man whose silence speaks louder than words . His blade that never stays from his sight, he claims it is instinct, but I know he simply does not trust the world enough to relax.
And there is Serina, the most talkative witch I've literally ever encountered in my life. She can really be a pain in the ass, sometimes. But then, she's got a good heart, and I'm not going to be partial about that. She wears her smile like a weapon with daggers hidden in places I have been unable to figure out for years. She's always behind us, but somehow, when trouble arises, she will be the one in front .
"No one can hurt me, dude, I'm a prince after all," I smirked playfully to reduce their worries.
"Will you stop the cockiness and tell me what the hell happened here?" She smacked me on the head again . This woman, does she plan on killing me here today ? I glared at her in annoyance . "Respect his highness, serafina," Kevin reminded her .
" We are not in the palace. Let me vent my anger on him here, Kevin," she retorted .
I look at the heavy leavy umbrella shaped shadow the trees of the forest have formed, staring through them to see the peaking sun to determine how late it is today.
The brilliance of that ray of sun made me close my eyes instantly , groaning from the stinging pain .
Serena grabbed my head abruptly. "What is wrong with your eyes?"Open up and let me see," she coerced my rubbing my cheeks gently. " Errrh ,Kevin, I think Iael's eyes is the darkest red in the kingdom, isn't it?" Yeah, it is," he responded.
"Then come look at this it is lighter than a half demon's eyes now."
"How is that possible?" Kevin muttered and crouched down beside me
"Tell us what happened to you Ieal. Kevin said with a serious expression on his face.
Serena helped me lean against a rock, worry lines marred on her forehead.
I rolled up my sleeves, letting the faint silver-like golden glowing serpent tail mark out in the open. "Look," I said, voice low. "This mark.... it appeared on my arm last night."
Serena leaned in , squinting, her fingers twitching, like she wanted to touch it . But did not .
Maybe afraid it will burn her or something which is a bit surprising, because she had never been cautions, she normally jumps into situations before considering the consequences.
Serena rubbed her face and inhaled and exhaled loudly, deeply through her nose.
"For the love of .... goodness ... what is that ? Are you glowing right now, or is my vision broken?
"I don't think so," Kevin chimed in .
"Yeah, it is not broken , It's just.., this is me now. The veil touched me . I don't even know what this is yet. My mind thoughts are messed up.
'Then your eyes too, is because of the veil that lead to its change in color I propose?
"Yeah , and it was light magic that marked me . You know i'm a demon a being that belongs to darkness. This terrifies me," I said, raking my hand through my hair roughly
Her eyes narrowed, calculating. "I thought the the veil was a myth."
"I would not have been caught up in this situation if it was." I answered her, "Yeah, that is true too," she commented thoughtfully.
"You this mischievous prince, what the hell were you doing there in th first place?" She huffed with an exasperated sigh.
"Is it not obvious already, his curious self won't let him walk away from anything even if it reeks of death" Kevin gave me an accusing look, knowing I went looking for trouble on my own accord.
"Seriously, will you two stop bashing me already?" I rolled my eyes at them.
"You have made a pact with a power more older and stronger than any of us here, and "you want to shut up about it? " Just ... fantastic, she claps dramatically. "Our charming and troublesome prince has suddenly become more complicated, so perfect."
She steeped closer , tilting her head , studying the silver-like gold serpent mark now carved like a tattoo on my arm like a jeweler examining a gemstone. "It is... beautiful in a horrifying kind of way. Her hot breath fanning across my arms , her lips raised at the corners in amusement, "And dangerous at the same time."
"You are going to get us killed one day," she added and perched on the rock I am leaning on
"I am really sorry for the trouble this time, like... it felt like it was calling on to me, which is a bit hard to ignore. " I didn't think it would be this."
She shrugged playfully but serious at the same time. "I don't know whether to be impressed or terrified that you were able to draw on that dangerous power. Just promise me one thing: you won't let your father see this, and your eyes let me take care of it. She covered my eyes and started whispering spells. "This will do .Now it looks a bit darker.
And ,you, don't you dare glow in your sleep: I don't want to trip over an immortal disaster in the middle of the night.
I laughed despite myself, feeling a strange sense of warmth. Even with the veil marking me and with the uncertainty of danger that lies ahead of us,serina has a way of grounding me. Sometimes, her sarcasm makes the impossible feel... almost normal.
I stood up on my feet when I felt rested enough. "We are going to my villa. we can't go to the palace with me looking disheveled like this," I said.
The forest path was narrow, twisted with roots and rocks, and its dense atmosphere that felt like it was resisting my departure. Every step felt heavier than the other. I know they can feel it too, but they never talked of teleporting us from here thinking my body couldn't take the pressure.
Serena paused amid the journey, her blonde hair rising slightly by the cause of the wind. She is checking the surroundings for any disturbance. " The magic around us is getting too strong," she whispered in a low tone ." It throbs stronger the further we walk out this forest." she turns and looks at me seriously. "There is a high chance that this is following you."
I gulped hard, "teleport us from here, I can't do it since my abilities keep flickering on and off,"
"But you can barely walk now . How can you manage that? Kevin said." I hate the way the magic keeps clawing under my skin, so let's get out of here fast." I said in response
"OK, if you could endure it then," she casted her hand around us, and then, whoosh,it was as if we were never there before.