Xerxes smiled at himself in the mirror. Behind him he watched a servant approach, holding something bundled in purple velvet cloth. He turned and the servant bowed. Xerxes smiled slightly and stood a little taller, sticking out his chest slightly. Fassad, who watched from the corner, raised an eyebrow in amusement.
"From his majesty." The servant said as he bowed. He unrolled the cloth to reveal a bright gold metal plate. "He heard of your efforts to rescue his daughter, and he presents you this shielded breastplate from the Royal Family." Xerxes smiled over at Fassad, and greedily took the gold breastplate form the servant's hand. He immediately placed it over his turquoise tunic shirt and admired himself in the mirror.
"Also…" the servant's voice caused Xerxes to turn back around quickly, and thrown off slightly by the extra weight of the breastplate, Xerxes had to reach out and grab the bedposts for balance.
"Yes?" Xerxes replied, trying to sound dignified while regaining his balance.
"King Bahram also signed this paper." the servant thrust the paper in front of Xerxes. As excited as a child at his birthday Xerxes quickly unrolled the parchment and grinned widely.
He turned to Fassad, standing as straight as he could possibly be. "King Bahram has given me permission to marry his daughter when I return from my quest." he informed Fassad dramatically.
Fassad raised an eyebrow. "You remember that is what your quest is, correct? To find the princess?" his voice was stern yet hiding amusement at the ridiculousness of the prince who was supposed to find Amira. Fassad sincerely doubted this prince knew his left foot from his right foot.
Xerxes nodded importantly. "Of course I do." He looked about, calculating in his mind. "I believe that is everything!" he pronounced. Fassad hid a sigh of relief and escorted the prince downstairs, where his horse was already saddled and loaded with the necessary provisions.
Xerxes mounted quickly, adjusting his sword and the breastplate. He turned to Fassad, who was about to turn and leave. "I will return with the princess." he reassured Fassad. Fassad tried to smile as nicely as he could.
"I am sure you will." Xerxes nodded and kicked his horse slightly and rode out of the palace gates. Fassad shook his head, muttering to himself as he returned indoors.
"Hello Amira."
Amira whirled around startled, the voice sending chills up her spine. She was greeted by the sight of a tall, cloaked woman accompanied by a grey wolf. A silver pendant glittered upon the woman's sternum, the ruby eyes sinisterly gleaming.
Amira was too shocked to speak. The woman reached a pale hand up and pulled away the cloak, which disappeared in an instant. The wolf snarled quietly and the woman placed a calming hand on his head.
"Now Sayad, be kind to our guest." she purred. The wolf lowered his nose and looked at the floor. She looked back up at Amira, her ice blue eyes penetrating Amira's mind.
Perhaps you already know who I am. Amira gasped and the woman smiled. Actually, no, your father must not have told you. Amira backed away, as though the physical distance could prevent the woman from entering her mind.
The woman studied Amira's face for a few moments. "No, your father did not tell you, did he?"
"Tell me what?" Amira demanded, fighting to keep her voice steady. She was afraid, but she refused to let it show.
"Who I am, of course. Your father knew me very well. You could say we were…" the woman paused before smiling again, revealing a row of perfect teeth. "Lovers."
Amira just stared at the woman, no longer afraid but astonished. The woman was clearly ill in the head. No darling, it's true. We were lovers, your father and I. We even had a child. I believe you know him.
Amira stared at the wolf pendant around the woman's neck, struggling to remember why it was so familiar.
"Surely you have met Damis?"
Sahar opened her mouth to scream, but Damis quickly reached out and clamped his hand over her mouth. She turned to him, her eyes big as saucers and full of fear. Then after a moment her eyes narrowed and she looked about.
Damis reached quickly for the sword the old woman had given him. The sword glinted slightly in the dim light and Sahar stifled a gasp. The dragon peered at them and swung its great head around before swinging back. The draconian eyes narrowed and its breath came out hot and smelling of sulfur.
In one quick leap Damis threw himself to the side of the dragon, causing the chests to roll and several pieces of jewelry and riches to clang on the stone floor of the cave. The dragon whirled its head around and Damis raised the sword, his heart beating wildly in his chest. Sahar watched in horror as Damis faced the huge beast. She opened the chest that Damis had hid behind and began searching through it, looking for a sword or something in which to aid Damis. Gold coins, rich cloths and jewels were all she could find.
Damis ran to the other side of the dragon, hoping to bide time as the dragon positioned its large body in the relatively small cave. The dragon was long and sinewy, resembling a snake more than a lizard. Two pairs of legs extended from the body, the long talons digging into the stone. The head swung within inches of where Damis was standing, the copper eyes searching in the darkness. The scales of the dragon were thick and covered every inch of the beast's body. Almost frantically Damis searched for a weak spot, for a joining of the impenetrable scales.
Sahar continued to dig through the chest, pushing aside the treasures to try and reach the bottom of the chest. A quick glance at Damis sent fear through her heart and she searched faster, the treasures clanging noisily against each other. Her heart flutter as she grasped what she thought to be a sword handle. Eagerly she pulled it up, but it turned out to be an elaborately carve gold lamp. Her hand rubbed against the side as she lifted it to throw to the side.
A loud bang reverberated through the cave. The dragon turned its head and Damis scampered back to where Sahar was sitting besides the chest. A bright blue light filled the cave, causing the treasures to reflect violet hues. The light slowly diminished until a spot of violet light was all that remained. This light hovered over the lamp Sahar had tossed aside until it began to form into a human like silhouette.
"Who awakens me from my slumber?" a voice echoed through the hall. Sahar and Damis froze, staring at the blue human that had formed in front of them. The dark violet eyes focused on Sahar and Damis. Even the dragon seemed mesmerized by the appearance of the blue smoke.
The blue creature turned and glared at the dragon. "Be off with you!" he ordered. The dragon lowered its head and backed away, disappearing into the darkness beyond the glowing orb that encased Sahar and Damis.
"What are you?" Sahar asked, her curiosity getting the better of her. The man turned his head and glared at Sahar, who did not flinch. Damis stared hard at the creature, trying to remember what he his grandmother had told him.
"You are a djinn." Damis stated incredulously as the creature's mouth opened to reply. More of what his grandmother had told him came rushing back. "You are not a very old one either." Damis continued. The djiin stared at him in astonishment, and for a moment he dropped suddenly before he regained his levitation.
Slowly he lowered to the floor, feet forming just before he hit the bottom of the cave. "Yes, I am a djiin. And no, I am not very old. I am…" the djiin paused for a greater effect. "Laheeb, guardian of this cave." His skin was a pale milky blue and his eyes were a clear violet. His head was bald and he wore nothing above the waist. A strange look entered Laheeb's eye for a moment. "I have not been out of my lamp in a while." he said almost wistfully.
Sahar looked over at Damis momentarily and they exchanged glances. Sahar turned back to Laheeb. "Could you perhaps help us?" she asked, trying to sound confidant.
Laheeb looked at her for a moment. "If you wish for me to do so, then I can." he answered. Sahar looked over at Damis excitedly. Laheeb looked at Sahar, a kind expression on his face. "What can I do for you?" he asked.
"Wait," Damis spoke out. "How many wishes do we get?" Laheeb looked at Damis with a dawning respect.
"You each get three. And there are laws. I can not make anyone die, come back from the dead or fall in love." Laheeb quickly ran over the laws, hoping for the chance to grant his first wish. He was not a very old djiin at all. Though he meant it when he said he had not been out of the lamp in a while, he was referring to the fact that he had not been out of the lamp since he was born. He considered confiding the fact that this would be his first wish granting, but quickly decided against it.
"Well, we are searching for out friend, who was stolen. She's a princess you see."
Laheeb interrupted, unable to contain his excitement to find this missing princess. "So you wish to find the princess." he asked. Sahar nodded, a confused looked upon her face.
"Yes, I wish to find the princess. Her name is…"
"Well, we have the wish." Laheeb sang out happily, ignoring the rest of what Sahar had to say. "Hold hands, this is might be a little rocky." Obligingly, Damis reached for Sahar's arm and grabbed on to it. A bright light suddenly appeared, blinding Damis for a moment.
A strange rushing sound passed by Sahar's ears and her body felt like it was being pulled in two different directions. Another bright light appeared and suddenly Damis and Sahar found themselves thrown down onto the hot sand. Damis stood, looking about confused. Laheeb floated above them, a smug and proud look upon his face.
"We all here?" he asked, and then plowed on before waiting for an answer. "Well, according to my calculations," here Laheeb grinned at his own little flair. "the horse approaching us is the princess!"
Sahar and Damis looked at each other, trying to contain their excitement. Sahar smiled, but something gnawed at her insides. This was too easy. That couldn't really be the princess, could it?
The riding figure grew closer and Laheeb nudged Damis excitedly. The white horse grew closer and Sahar drew in a breath, hoping yet unable to believe that they had already found her.
Xerxes nearly fell of his horse when he saw the floating blue djinn in the air. His blonde hair fell in his eyes and he pulled at the reins, causing the horse to stop. Sahar looked over at Laheeb, who had beads of perspiration on his upper lip.
"I guess I, uh, made a mistake…" he stuttered. Damis just glared at him and Xerxes fell off his horse in a dead faint.
Sahar rushed forward to help Xerxes. "Not the stoutest of hearts are we." she murmured to herself and set about trying to wake the prince up.
So yeah, hope you liked this chapter. I think my djiin character is a little weak, but I don't know what else to do. its just seems awkward, does it seem like that to anyone else? if it does, let me know what you think would help.
And review, review, review!
My Reviewers: Anthoer record: 6 reviewers! Lets beat it again! so if you ahven't reviewed, review!
Lumiere's Lover: I am glad you like it. here is alittle more about who took her, still creepy? i hope so.
EvenSong: here is another update. they should be coming fairly regularly, I am on a roll.
cokefizz-and-chocolate: little secret? what little secret? ;-)
sophiawin: thank you for your review, it was very helpful. I have not really thought about time place, though i guess your right. really the only thing arabian are the belly dancers and the story pieces i have borrowed from arabian nights. I am glad you like it though and your critques are very helpful.
Akwyn: glad you like the twists, there are more to come.
Metaphorical: yes cliffs are always ncie to write, mean to read. sorry about that, hope this is better. :-P and about the HP I am still in denial. i can't believe it!