Her Dawning Empire: The Prophecy

Chapter 5

"So, first floor has bedrooms to the right. To the left, is Negus's quarters, so we don't go there. On the second floor, is the washing chambers to the left for the females and right for the male's washing chambers. During most of the day, we all tend to stay on the ground floor, however. Here, we have the office quarters, the library and the training grounds. Let me show you." She explained and I listened intently, trying to keep up. She was a really fast talker.

She skipped ahead walking to the far side, her hand gripping mine as she took me along. I moved faster to keep up. At long last, she halted to a stop in front of a door.

"This is the library. It has all kinds of novels, scriptures and scrolls." She explained, opening the large door that let out a loud groan in response. The smell of must and paper hit my nose and I gasped at the extraordinary size of the wooden shelves as they towered over us. Ayla pulled me out of my thoughts, pointing towards Arun, who was sat on an armchair in a small sitting area, his face deeply wedged between a book as he read.

"That's Arun. I know you've met him. He's really sweet, but can be really shy at times. He's always got his head in a book, so don't mind it if he's not much of a talker, okay?" She said, turning to walk out and I followed, processing her words.

He didn't seem like 'not much of a talker to me'. Rather, he seemed to be very friendly to me since I arrived here. We walked to the door and I held a baited breath when I caught sight of Maya entering the library. Just as I had predicted, she gave me a cold glare as she passed, her red hair tied in a loose plait. I gave a tentative smile in return to show I wasn't a threat, but that seemed to increase the intensity of her glare, her hand idly twirling a pocket knife.

I sighed in relief when she passed behind a bookshelf out of sight, her boots stomping loudly against the floor. Ayla seemed to notice this, glancing at me from the corner of her eyes.

"That's Maya. She's a little.... abrasive? She's Negus's daughter and has been trained in combat since the day she could hold a dagger. She fights for what she believes in and doesn't want anyone compromising that at all." She explained and, by the pointed look in her eyes, I knew she was talking about me. I sighed heavily. So, this Maya girl had it in for me and I didn't even do anything. Well, from what I know.

Ayla rested a hand on my arm, seemingly noticing my sudden downcast mood.

"Hey, don't worry about it, Hanna. She'll warm up to you." She comforted, but that only made my confusion grow. The way Ayla had said that was as though she assumed I would stay here for a while. Only, I didn't think I could. I had a home to get to and a life to get back to. Debra, Richard, Sierra, Marie, Sue, Pam- that was my life and I had just forgotten, in the midst of all the chaos.

I turned to Ayla, who was too engrossed in humming, her eyebrows knitted in concentration as she walked across the hallway.

"Ayla, what is it you guys do here? You, Maya, Negus and the rest- are you family? What is this place?" I questioned heatedly, to which Ayla raised a hand up.

"Woah, calm down, Hanna. I can't answer all of them at the same time." She joked and I laughed quietly, the questions still pressing on the back of my mind.

She glanced at me from the corner of her eyes, a smirk on her face.

"Well, to answer one of your questions. Yes, we are family. But, not blood-related. We've been here for years and have become a family in that time. We're all here for a purpose. The same purpose, actually." She explained, her hands gesturing gently as she spoke. I nodded, following behind her, but I was growing restless. It was as though every answer I got, from anybody here, just left more questions than I had at the beginning. No one here- not Negus, Emut or Ayla- had answered any question directly. It was as though they were evading something. And, it very much had something to do with me.