Bonding Ties Between Reality and Non-reality

Chapter 15: The Wheels of Motion Move

"Ahem. Switch, please." Jenna coughed politely with a grin, Prince Isaac standing next to her on the dance floor.

Mia laughed. "As you like, sister Jenna."

"Thanks for the dance, Tia. For someone who doesn't really attend a lot of dances, you're a really good dancer," Garet praised enthusiastically, as he detached his hand from hers and took Jenna's own.

"You're welcome, Garet. You're not a bad dancer yourself," she appraised.

"You mean, rather clumsy," Jenna piped in teasingly. "You wouldn't know how many times my toes have been the victims of his weight especially during the early times, I tell you!"

"Hey, that's uncalled for!" he replied reproachfully. "I'm not that bad now, am I, Isaac?"

The prince smiled. "Better than the average dancer, don't worry," said he, taking Mia's slim hand in his with another engaging smile. Immediately after their first dance together, there had been a certain amount of eye contact lacking between them due to shyness. He was amused to find that he would always be the one to make the first move again (though, of course, if it went vice versa he wouldn't be a man now, would he?).

A new song started then, and both redheads drifted away from them gradually as they danced together in accordance to the slow rhythm. As Isaac led her in the dance, Mia was amused to see her rather authoritative stepmother in Garet's arms, whom she always did have a tendency to egg on.

"It's really cute to see the two of them together," Mia remarked openly, directing her gaze at Isaac's golden jacket.

"Hmm? Garet and Jenna?"

She nodded. "I think they make a cute couple, don't they, Your Highness?" she asked, looking directly at him with a grin.

He cocked his head to one side in thought. "Well . . . yes, I suppose," he agreed slowly, then his mouth slowly quirked upward. "Though 'cute' is not exactly my preference of a suitable adjective."

"Naturally, 'cute' is a word more frequent in girls' dictionaries after all, Your Highness," she answered readily, as he spun her around.

"Isaac."

"What?"

"I would prefer it very much if you could . . . call me by my name and not by my title," Isaac explained hesitatingly.

Mia's heat skipped a beat. Mercury, there it goes again! Calm down, Mia, calm down . . .

Yeah, please do. We don't need a drum in here, Mia, Serac joked in her mind.

Shut up, Serac! Don't you ruin these kind of moments! . . . Oops. Sorry, Spritz apologised.

She decided to ignore them. "Um . . ." she paused. How could she just call royalty so casually? But seeing his eager, encouraging look on her, she melted and finally gave in. ". . . I-saac," she pronounced slowly, the word unfamiliar in her mouth.

Prince Isaac almost beamed. "Right."

Venus, why am I so happy over something trivial like this? I'm grinning like an idiot.

But deep inside, he knew the answer was right there all along. This was one big, major step he had taken, compared to the other hundreds of women in that same room. He had just spontaneously demanded that she call him by his name, and he did not know what factor exactly drove him to such impulsive actions.

"Er . . . are you sure you want me to . . . uh, drop the 'Prince', too?" Mia asked curiously. Only close relatives and friends of the prince could actually call him by his name, and she certainly did not belong in either category.

He thought for a second, and then nodded. "By all means, if you wish."

Mia decided to stop forming her own hypothesis about things and to just go along with the flow. "Then call me by my name too, Isaac," said she with a playful grin, emphasising his name on purpose.

"Which one?" he countered, matching her grin.

She did not reply him instantly. It was as if she had hardly heard him. To his intense surprise, the aqua-haired woman's face suddenly changed to a look of surprise mixed with disbelief and . . . what was it? Hope? Then he realised that she was not looking at him. She was looking past him, her eyes wide-eyed and mouth slightly open.

"Are you all right, uh . . ." (he had difficulty with her name now; the proper one would be Lady Lushielle, of course, but hadn't she just asked him to call her by her name? And yet she had not specified any name, since it was either Sarah or Tia, or maybe even she had other names, though it was pretty unlikely.)

He was even more astonished when she suddenly pulled away from his hold, her eyes still focused on behind him. "Excuse me for a moment. I must . . ." she left her sentence unfinished as she moved hastily as fast as she could out from the crowd of dancers who were still dancing to the music.

"Hey, wait! Where—where are you going?" Isaac asked, but he wondered whether she could hear him in this distance. Dodging dancers that came along his way, he strained his eyes to focus on the beautiful young woman struggling to escape from the dancing crowd. He could not fathom an inch of her actions. What was it that distracted her attention so much that she would actually leave him, in the middle of a dance?

He wanted to know.

Prince Isaac followed her out from the dance floor, and out through one of the side doors of the ballroom.

----o----

"What in the world—"

"What's happened now, Sheba?" Ivan inquired with surprise, looking at the blond girl. Both of them were on the balcony of the ballroom, scrutinising the whole crowd from above and generally getting the whole view of the ballroom.

"Look! The lady with Isaac—what's her name now—just ditched him and went off!" Sheba exclaimed, pointing a finger at a section of the dance floor.

Ivan's eyes went wide. "What? Really?" He directed his gaze at where she pointed, and whistled. "Wow! She really is going off, and he's going after her! I really do wonder what happened between them."

"Yeah, me too," she agreed. "The prince must have struck a really bad note with her to have her chucking him away in the middle of a dance!"

"Looking pretty desperate too, I should say," Ivan added. "I always thought Isaac had a way with women."

His companion laughed. "Doesn't he? She seemed pretty fine with him earlier on. Maybe she just needs to go to the washroom."

"But anyone should know exiting the room through the side door that leads to the castle grounds doesn't get you there," he pointed reasonably.

"True. I was just offering a suggestion nonetheless," Sheba answered, shrugging her shoulders.

Ivan fingered his chin thoughtfully with a grin. "I'm really itching to know what's up between them."

"Don't start suggesting you want to follow them and eavesdrop, because it's physically impossible at the rate we're so far away from them now," she reminded with a teasing smile. "Besides, it's strictly unethical."

He responded with a smirk. "It was an idea, nonetheless."

----o----

Karst suddenly clutched her sister's arm. "Sister, here's our chance!"

"Excuse me," Menardi politely said to a man whom she was conversing with. Walking away, she let herself be led by Karst towards Merlina and Saturos. "What is it, Karst?"

"Just look, Menardi!" Her mother pointed excitedly.

Looking in the direction pointed, Menardi saw 'Lady Lushielle' exiting one of the side doors of the ballroom, hastily followed by the prince.

"Well, aren't we ready to set off as well?" Saturos asked sardonically, smirking.

"Hurry!" Merlina prompted. "I'll give you an excuse, Menardi."

"All right, mother." Nodding briefly, Menardi followed in pursuit of the two disappearing figures together with Karst and Saturos without a second hesitation.

Pushing against the crowd, Menardi thought hard. "We'll have to improvise a little bit by putting her into illusion too to get rid of her, but I think I should be able to handle it," said she, "It's all up to you to deliver the blow, Karst!"

"I can't wait to put my technique to use again after so long," Saturos said, smirking confidently.

"It better work," Karst cut in sharply.

"Hmph. You will regret doubting my abilities."

----o----

She could hardly believe her eyes. She was sure that her mind was playing tricks on her, but on the other hand, she was just as positive that what she just saw was real. So she was going to make sure.

She wanted to. She needed to.

The image of two young men, both of the same shade as her hair, their faces smiling warmly at her, flashed across her mind.

How long was it since she had last seen both of them? It was probably just a few years since she went her own separate way with her late father, but it felt like a decade to her. She couldn't even begin to count how many times she had longed with all her heart and soul to meet them once more again, especially in her times of misery.

A feeling she could scarcely explain wrung her heart to almost desperation.

She couldn't be mistaken.

She wanted to be right, that it was Alex (or Picard, for that matter) and not just some other guy with blue hair. Height wise the unknown blue-haired man differed from both cousins whom she once knew, but of course, there was a gap of a few years after all. That was easy.

But it was the gait, the manner how he carried himself with that unique self-assurance that made her sure. Sure that she could finally meet her two dear cousins whom she had missed so greatly in the unlikeliest places she could ever think of. That man was so strikingly familiar . . .

And even so sure that she turned all ears and eyes deaf and blind to the poor prince. A part of her senses reprimanded her that she had just practically abandoned THE prince in the most outrageous way and time possible, but she cast it off. This was far more important to her.

All the same, she wondered whether he was following her. Vaguely, she thought he did. Oh well, now was no time to stop for explanations. Regretfully, that would have to wait until she had settled her business.

"Alex! Picard!" Mia hollered as loud as she could. Not that it could create any commotion with the current amount of sounds and noises in the air.

Please, just turn back and look at me . . .

Alas, the young man continued his brisk walk, exiting the side door into the castle grounds.

Mia wrestled with the mass crowd, holding the skirt part of her lovely dress with a hand as she feverishly tried to make haste in her glass shoes.

And by the time she did the same, he was nowhere to be seen.

Where? Where did he go?

Mia looked around frantically, but all was in vain. Not giving up so soon, however, she wandered around determinedly in search for him. Thinking that he perhaps entered the gardens, she unhesitatingly stepped into the captivating paradise also. This time, its beauty and splendour hardly touched her.

The garden was like a little forest on its own, quaint and mysterious. She ambled around intently, but after a few minutes of walking and searching, leg fatigue overtook her and she finally stopped for rest on a wooden bench under a huge cherry tree. She definitely had to get used to walking in high-heeled shoes, she thought. Sighing sadly, her hope and eagerness diminished like a candlelight fire blown out. And she was just so close . . . !

Maybe you can still look around the ballroom, Mia, Fizz encouraged her, speaking softly in her mind. He'll probably make a return there some time or other.

Yeah, let's not give up hope yet! Spritz echoed.

She smiled. No matter how naughty her Djinn were sometimes, they always tried to make her happy and cheerful whenever she was down. Thanks, you guys. You're right; let's go back to the ballroom.

And give your explanation to the poor prince who's probably hunting the whole place down for you by now, you mean.

Mia flushed at Serac's comment, guilt washing over her. She really must have left him so bewildered and puzzled, the poor man. She imagined if this sort of 'ditching' ever happened around someone like THE Prince Isaac, it was probably and possibly the other way round, and not the woman leaving the man instead.

Yup, right again. Maybe that's why you're special, you know? Serac joked again.

She rolled her eyes before getting up and smoothing down her dress. "All right, let's go! Now, which is the way out again?" she wondered aloud.

Left, I think, Spritz suggested.

But Fizz immediately objected to the suggestion by proposing the opposite way. Trust me, Mia. I'm the better one at directions.

All right, you say so, Mia reminded the little Mercury djinni in her mind, feeling somewhat quite cheerful. If I somehow still can't get out of this mini-forest with your directions, you're to blame.

Fizz, Spritz suddenly broke in quietly, can you feel . . .?

"Feel what?" Mia spoke aloud.

Nothing, was the immediate, usual cheerful reply.

"Alright," she replied back, and started off, stepping gingerly in her high-heels.

And a few minutes later . . .

"Fizz!" Aren't we back where we started? Look! Everything looks the same!

. . . Oops. I'm so sorry! Fizz sounded very crestfallen.

Mia sighed. Never mind. We'll just go in the other direction then.

. . . And ended up in the same place again.

"How odd that I still end up here, don't you think?"

Hmm . . . Fizz wondered thoughtfully. Maybe it's just a coincidence. Let's try again.

And again.

"This is getting a bit tiresome . . . just how big is this garden anyway?"

Don't you think . . . Spritz started, but left her sentence unfinished.

And again.

"This is really trying my patience . . ."

Spritz, I think I know what you mean. Serac suddenly spoke with a feeling in it that Mia could not comprehend.

And again.

"Ahh, I'm lost!" Mia cried out in exasperation.

"I do change my directions, but I keep seeing this" –she pointed to a unmistakably odd-shaped cherry blossoms tree—"this stupid tree! We seem to be walking in circles over and over again! You'd think that even going straight all the way would, at least, end us up somewhere!"

How ironic. But I believe there's a deeper explanation for this . . . said Serac in her mind.

Her eyebrow furrowed. What do you mean, Serac? You three have been acting so mysterious and strange yourselves ever since we tried to leave this mini-forest. Are you hiding anything from me?

Mia, Fizz's squeaky voice rang in her mind with such gravity that surprised the young woman, I think we're quite justified by saying that we've been wandering about in an illusion.

". . . What?" Mia could hardly believe her ears. What kind of rigmarole was that? An illusion?

I know it sounds all rubbish and all, but ever since we started out, there was this vague . . . enchantment around us that we felt.

Of course, we couldn't say for sure, Spritz chipped in, but after wandering around for ages, this has got to be an illusion we're in now. Otherwise it's just absurd that we can get lost in a garden, right?

This has to be the work of an Adept, and quite a capable one, too, Serac added gravely. To have thrown us into an illusion without us Djinn noticing it . . . but then again, we weren't paying much attention, and we didn't expect something like this to happen. Major slip. I'm sorry, Mia.

Mia was having a hard time swallowing all the new information, especially the last bit. "An Adept . . ." she muttered. Can it be . . . my stepfamily?

Who else can it be?

But she hardly paid attention. She had clamped a hand to her mouth in horror as realisation hit her. Her mind swamped with the same image, refusing to disappear. Recollections of the prince going after her, looking for her . . .

It echoed in her mind like a thunderous roar over and over again:

Alone and unknowing . . .

----o----

He couldn't believe it. Absolutely disbelieved it.

He, Prince Isaac, royal prince of Vale and heir to the castle and kingdom, was lost in his own home.

It really was ridiculous. Absurdly ridiculous. He had probably walked for a good five minutes and possibly more, yet he kept seeing the stables in the distant east! How would Flint laugh once he got heard of it! If he were not the victim, Isaac would have had a good laugh himself.

He really was dreaming. There was no other possible solution! How many times had he explored the whole castle grounds on his own, to the point that he could draw the whole map on paper perfectly in an instant?

Indeed, Isaac was aggravated beyond words.

The world was probably turning upside down tonight. Otherwise it was his instinct mechanism malfunctioning. Or maybe this ball party got him a little messed up, he thought. Maybe he was too occupied thinking while walking that he made a wrong turn, again and again (though, of course, that already breached the feasible line).

If that was the answer, then he would have . . . who else? Sarah Lushielle (he thought unblushingly) to blame. There was something about her that just created this . . . feeling in him. It gnawed at him. As much as he was not a romancer, he was forced to admit that there was a concealed feeling not unlike romance in the air between the two of them. At first, he was not too certain about the whole thing. Perhaps even, he was unwilling to confess that fact.

But now, he knew. Maybe it was still an infatuation he had with this aqua-haired young woman, but at any rate, he knew that he liked her tremendously.

And he wanted to know her more.

He could not be positive whether she felt the same about him, but he would have liked to think so, based on the hints in her manner and speech. He had followed her out after her enigmatic act, but lost sight of her after fidgeting with the crowd and bypassing nondescript ladies. He wondered where she could have gone . . .

Memories of both of them together in the pavilion, not more than an hour ago, flashed in his mind.

He decided to try the garden. Venus willing, he would actually reach the gardens.

Goodness, he'd never thought he would ever say such a thing. The world must be turning topsy-turvy.

----o----

"Oh no . . ." Mia breathed, aghast. "The prince!"

Yeah, we need to get out of here, fast, before this illusionist does something terrible to us. Once we're in his or her illusion, there's nothing they can't do to us, surreal as it is in reality. It's a wonder nothing has happened yet.

"How do I get out—"

A soft laughter, definitely female, suddenly broke the silence.

That proves it. It really is your stepfamily! Serac puffed indignantly.

Morbid thoughts of Prince Isaac filled her anxious, frantic mind. She was scared, worried and angry with herself, for both letting herself fall into the trap and being scared of trapped in an illusion. Pull yourself together, Mia! she commanded, inhaling deeply.

It's okay, Mia, Spritz comforted. I'll bet my cookies that this illusionist has no idea you're Mia, and has three wonderful Djinn with you to back you up. Your stepfamily probably thinks you're still cooked up in that smelly, lousy room back in the inn.

I should say that she, whoever she is, isn't that spectacular in illusion casting herself. This level of illusion cast on us shouldn't be a tough nut to crack, Serac reassured with in his confident, squeaky tones.

So tell me what do I have to do. I need to hurry!

We'll go for the safest and most guaranteed choice. Close your eyes, Fizz instructed.

Try to concentrate inside your mind, Mia. Try to feel some sort of energy rising in you.

Doing as she was told to do, Mia fervently tried to feel the energy, but she sensed nothing different. She despaired more than ever.

Keep calm, Mia. Steady. Try to think of water. Water around you, curing you. Healing you, Serac spoke softly, entrancingly

"Healing me . . ." she echoed softly.

Taking a deep breath, she forced herself to relax and did exactly what the little djinni said; imagined the sight of water. Until she was told of her ability as a Water Adept, she never understood why she always had this tranquil feeling inside her whenever she came into close contact with water. It always felt good letting water rushing through her palms . . .

She imagined smooth flowing water washing over her like a pleasant waterfall, pure and lovely, cleansing her.

Her tense body muscles relaxed as she delved into her spiritual body, letting her mind drift away slowly.

Cleansing her . . .

She felt a welcoming power surging in her, enveloping her mentally. Channelling deeper, she embraced the energy and let it overwhelm her. Her mouth opened intuitively as she murmured, "Restore."

Tiny blue sprinkles of water suddenly materialised, encircling her in a soft, pale glow. For a moment Mia felt her soul entirely at peace as she felt the comforting energy protecting her from any harm. Opening her eyes, she marvelled at the sight of the pretty sparkles surrounding her.

You did it, Mia! What you're doing now is restoring yourself from any delusions and mental effects upon you.

Her hope dashed up high. Please, please, Mercury, let it work . . .

She thought she heard a distant-sounding surprised cry.

All at once, the scenery around her seemed to move, twisting and warping in an alarming way. The trees were bending in odd dimensions as they churned, flowers and ground all behaving the same way. Feeling a trifle anxious, Mia involuntarily took a step back . . .

And collided her back against something solid.

Blinking her eyes, Mia wheeled around in surprise. A tree! She couldn't remember seeing a tree behind her last in the illusion. Which would mean that . . .

We did it! Fizz whooped with joy.

Looking around, she discovered that her surroundings were still and normal. No more twisting and churning crazily. A waft of wind blew gently, and everything seemed peaceful. She intuitively felt that the atmosphere was different than when she was trapped in the illusion.

Mia let a sigh of relief and happiness escape from her lips. "We did it!" she exclaimed triumphantly. It was the first time she had used her Adept powers, but she certainly could get used to the advantages it offered. For a moment, her success in breaking free from the despicable illusion took over her anxiety for the prince.

She suddenly heard a rustle a few metres away. As quick as a flash she trained her eyes to the source of the sound. As the moonlight shone down dimly, it illuminated a shadowy figure darting away back in the direction of the ballroom. It took all the will that she had not to pursue that person just to unearth his or her identity for sure.

Reasoning logically, she knew she had better and more important things to deal with for now. The first and foremost on her list was to find the prince, whose whereabouts she had yet to uncover. She feverishly prayed that he was still safe and sound, somewhere with someone trustable.

Right. It shouldn't be a problem to get out of this mini-forest now, said Serac, chuckling.

Mia had hardly moved three steps when a deep, male voice suddenly arrested her.

"We?"

That word alone almost gave her a heart attack. That deep, quiet voice registered somewhere vaguely in her occupied mind. She turned around again, only to face an expressionless but nevertheless slightly intrigued Felix.

"M—Mister Segrave!" she exclaimed, surprised. This man was just as silent in his speech as in his steps, she thought half-amusedly. She could have sworn she never heard him coming at all. "I didn't hear you coming . . ."

"I apologise," said he shortly, bowing slightly. "What did you mean by 'we did it', Lady Lushielle?"

Her cheeks grew red as she hesitated. His calm and composed countenance linked with his minimum choice of words always created uneasiness in her flow of words.

"I—uh . . ." How on Mercury was she to explain to him that she had three abnormal-looking alive creatures in her, and was trapped in an illusion just a minute ago by a power-hungry stepsister?

Impatience suddenly overtook any other feelings she felt at that moment. There was no time for her to stay and chat idly! But of course, Felix Segrave would know nothing of the danger that beheld Prince Isaac. Could she enlist his help, she wondered? That was certainly an idea.

"Do you know where is Prince Isaac?" she asked abruptly.

Felix quirked an eyebrow at the sudden change of topic. "I think I saw His Highness over there moments ago," he gestured to his left, "near the stables."

Mia flushed under his scrutiny. "Look," she suddenly said, "I—I can't tell you why, but I really must find His Highness as quickly as possible. It—it's really important. For him. In fact," she added with a second thought, "even as we talk now he might be in danger." Her voice shook slightly with emotion. Enlisting his help could prove to be a wise action, she thought. It was time someone else knew about the whole story other than Garet and Jenna. They were not here; she needed someone else's help. She couldn't do this alone.

His expression did not falter, but his pulse quickened inside. He would have concluded that she was merely another of those delusional ladies who wanted to impress herself so much on the prince, if not for the warning of danger over Isaac's head that Ivan spoke about with real life anxiety. Besides, he hardly categorised Sarah Lushielle in such low levels.

". . . And why is that?" he asked curiously, choosing his words carefully.

"We really don't have time to do this, you know," Mia rushed in her words, panicking again. "Let's just find the prince first, then we can have storytelling time. Please, believe me," she begged. "I—"

She was about to say more to convince Felix when she suddenly stopped short. Oh, what did it matter whether he believed her or not? At any rate, convincing him to believe such a fairytale would probably take twice the time she would take to find the prince in this giant castle.

"Oh, forget it," she exclaimed flustered, "I don't have time to convince you to believe an almost-fairytale!" She left off there as she hurried off in the direction he pointed earlier, half-wishing that she was not wearing clothes unfitting for running. Especially the shoes.

Mia had hardly ventured forth more than ten steps when his voice arrested her again.

"There's a shortcut to the stables."

Wheeling around in surprise, she looked at Felix questioningly.

"Follow me," was all he said as he took off in a brisk walk in the opposite direction.

She gratefully followed him as fast as her skirts would allow her.

----o----

"There, there. Good boy, Welmar. Can't wait to go for a gallop at the hills again, can you?"

A dark brown horse grunted, nuzzling against Alex's neck. Alex chuckled, stroking its mane gently.

"I'll be going off now. I promised Piers I wouldn't be long here. Got some things to do, old boy."

Welmar whinnied in protest as Alex stepped out of the horse stables and shut the door carefully.

The stables were some distant away from the ballroom. Humming a country tune while leisurely walking back, Alex let his thoughts wander. His mind ran over the recent new recruits applying for acceptance into the Valean army. Those eager, young, inexperienced faces—

His pleasant thoughts were cut short when his eyes suddenly sighted a very curious thing, metres where he stood to the west. He rubbed his eyes just to make sure that his eyes were not playing tricks on him.

"What is—"

Prince Isaac, a completely sane and intelligent person, was walking around in circles.

Time by time he stopped and looked around, but again and again he continued walking in circles. For the life of him, Alex could not fathom his reasoning.

Suddenly, Prince Isaac stopped in his movement. He seemed to look around in a dazed-like condition, bewildered and confused. He even stepped back as if there was something dangerous in front of him, then turned around and moved back again. But Alex saw nothing spectacular in the least. Everything was perfectly normal by all standards. Trees and shrubs around him were not suddenly becoming alive, he thought sarcastically.

What on Angara was His Highness doing? His personality and current actions certainly did not mix. At all.

If things just can't get any weirder now, Alex mused. Now he's coughing and agonisingly holding his throat as if he's suddenly dehydrated!

"Your Highness!" Alex hollered loudly.

He was pleased to see that the golden-haired prince in question turned his head in his direction, but Alex was immediately alarmed when his presence was not acknowledged. There was no response. It was as if his call was heard, but Isaac could not see him even though his gaze was focused accurately on Alex's figure.

He called out again. This time, it totally fell on deaf ears.

Something fishy is going on, he decided. With due respect, the prince of Vale would never act and look like that. Even though he wasn't near enough to exactly tell Isaac's facial expression, that bewildered air of his explained a good deal. That dazed, blur look plastered on his face was more than what Alex could accept as part and parcel of Isaac's characteristics. He was going to get to the bottom of this, now.

Alex was walking forward in quick strides when he heard a low whistle ahead of him. He abruptly halted, seeing yet another extraordinary and unexplainable scene.

From the bushes nearby Isaac emerged a young woman with flaming red hair, as she calmly pressed an object into Isaac's left hand.

Wanting to satisfy his curiosity as to what exactly was that object, Alex hurried over as quickly and quiet as possible. His instincts nagged at him, conveying to him that something bad was up, and that the prince was a victim of the whole plot, whatever it was.

He was but a few metres away from the prince when Isaac lifted his hand that held the object to his mouth. Alex realised that the object in question was a glass, and (he reasoned) probably filled with some liquid.

Something yelled in him to stop Isaac from downing the unknown liquid. He called out in a stentorian voice.

After all, given such a suspicious setting and scene, who wouldn't be sceptical?

----o----

Isaac took a step back suddenly. To his astonishment, everything around him seemed to slowly shrivel up and wither away. Leaves fell and crumpled up, becoming a dull brown colour, dry and crispy. Trees were mercilessly stripped until only branches were left, even worst than autumn, and flowers wilted. He watched in amazement.

Hearing a sound behind him, Isaac spun around, only to find that the ground was slowly but surely cracking. Looking at the ground, he was even more so astounded and baffled when he realised that he was standing on barren, desert-like ground. It was as if everything was sucked dry of water.

Everything . . . including him.

He suddenly felt his throat very dry. Touching his throat gingerly, he wondered how on Angara how it ever happened. He had never felt so dehydrated in his entire life before. His voice was becoming hoarse. Was he 'drying up' too? But nonsense!

"Your Highness!"

A male voice lifted him out of his reverie. It sounded vaguely familiar, but immediately the voice faded away like dust. Turning his head to look in the direction where the voice came, Prince Isaac was just as stupefied when he saw no one. Did he dream that voice?

His attention was focused back on his parched throat. He found it extremely difficult to even swallow. It grew increasingly painful as he tried. Running a dry tongue over his lips, he found that his lips were also dry and cracked.

Venus, the torture. This had to be some kind of nightmare, he thought. First he couldn't find his way around his home, and now here he was, dehydrated in a matter of mere seconds as if he had never drank in his entire life! The whole thing was starting to frighten him. He longed for companionship.

Nevertheless, his need for water overrode his question as to how and why all this was happening to him. Oh, how he longed for water at that moment! Any water—even ordinary water would more than suffice! If only he had just a cup of water . . .

And he did.

Prince Isaac was stunned with disbelief and shock when he found his left hand grasping a glass of water. Or so he thought.

At that very moment, his natural living instincts blinded all other questions that rose at the back of his mind. His hand automatically reached up to his mouth.

He thought he heard a voice again, clearer this time, but dismissed it.

He gratefully downed the transparent liquid without much thought.

It registered faintly in his mind that it tasted bitter . . .

Author's Note: All right, Chapter 15's done and completed! I apologise if there is not much storyline progress in this chapter as it mainly focuses on one or two events only, but I saw that there were a lot of things to write about from several characters' point of view. I really do hope that it was interesting at least, and yes, I'm trying to limit the amount I write per chapter so that it mightn't appear too long, and subsequently, too tedious.

I'm not too sure myself as to how the story will turn out, so I hope readers will still stay tuned to the future chapters to come! Updates will be less frequent, and I'm sorry for that again. Any updates can be found in my profile. As usual, comments, suggestions, corrections and advice are greatly appreciated!