An exquisitely beautiful woman with flowing, snow-white hair strolled gracefully through a field of beautiful flowers. Their enchanting fragrance enveloped her senses, causing a gentle smile to grace her lips.
She gracefully stooped to pluck a flower, still smiling softly to herself as she brought it to her nose. "Nature remains as stunning as the last time I visited," she whispered to herself, tucking a strand of her long white hair behind her ear.
Her eyes wandered, absorbing the surrounding natural beauty until it landed on an unexpected sight. There, under the shade of a tree, lay a man, peacefully asleep. "A human male," she softly mused as curiosity drew her closer to inspect him.
As she drew closer, her heart raced in a way it hadn't in her centuries of existence. The sight of this man was truly captivating, he was breathtaking . His peaceful sleep under the tree only added to his remarkable beauty.
"I never knew your kind could be so mesmerizing," she murmured to herself, lowering herself into a squat right before him. To her surprise, the human male remained undisturbed, lost in his sleep.
Driven by her curiosity, she extended her hands to trace the contours of his face. Her fingertips gently brushed against his warm skin, and she observed, "He is so warm, exceptionally warm." Her hand moved lower, almost grazing his lips, and the uncertainty crept in. Could he truly be human? The energy she sensed from him was anything but ordinary, unlike that of an average human.
Just as her fingertips neared his lips, a warm, masculine hand wrapped around her wrist, stopping her exploration.
"Uhn," escaped her lips as the man's eyes gently fluttered open, locking onto hers. His gaze cold yet blazed with intensity, his touch radiating heat as they maintained unbroken eye contact.
Silence took over as they locked eyes, her heart started beating very fast again. She couldn't help but contemplate - was this, perhaps, love at first sight?
"What are you?" he finally asked, his demeanor frosty after a silence and eye contact that felt like it lasted an eternity. The woman blinked repeatedly, snapping herself out of her thoughts.
"W...w...w..what?" she stammered trying to understand his words. He responded with a deep breath, rising to his feet, while the white-haired woman remained in a bent position, trying to comprehend the bizarre scenario.
She finally stood up, keeping eye contact with him and not threatened by his intimidating figure. With long black hair flowing down his shoulders, impeccable facial features, and a physique that seemed straight out of a god catalog, he was a visual spectacle.
Was he a god? The woman couldn't look away; he was practically perfection on two legs.
"I asked, what are you?" he repeated, his tone even colder.
She scoffed, casually tucking her hair behind her ear and crossing her arms. "And who do you think you are? That's not how you greet someone you've just met, human. Did your mother forget to teach you some basic manners?"
"Did your dear mother forget to teach you some manners, or were you raised in a barn? Staring at people like a lunatic while they sleep is hardly a refined skill," he retorted, his tone icy. A shocked look appeared on her face as she blinked rapidly as if struggling to process his words.
"A lunatic? This is an open space human, Who in their right mind chooses a tree to sleep under? Are you playing homeless for sympathy? Are you perhaps poor and don't have a cabin to call your own?" Her eyes scanned his appearance as she muttered "You certainly don't look poor.'"
"I used to find peace here, a respite from the mundane. Now, thanks to you I am never coming here. Who knows what lunatic I am going to find lurking next time I come for some shut-eye?"
"How dare a lonely, uncultured human like you speak to me in such a manner? Do you even possess a clue about who you are speaking to right now?, or are you just permanently stuck in your boorish ignorance?"
"Why should I care who you are?" he asked, a cold edge in his voice as his eyes scanned her frame. Tilting his head, he added, "As if dealing with that crazy woman isn't headache enough; now I have to contend with another lunatic."
"You insolent fo..."
"Aunt Sylara," a distant voice interrupted behind the white-haired woman. She spun around to see another white-haired woman walking towards her from a distance. A smile lit up her face upon recognizing the newcomer.
"Saraphina," she said with a genuine smile as the woman closed the distance, and they shared a warm hug.
"My queen, what brings you to the land of the humans?" Princess Saraphina, a tall, pale, and striking Vedan lady with long white hair, dressed in warrior attire, and the heir to the throne of the Ashen Vedan, also known as the Warrior Vedan, asked with a friendly grin. Sylara smiled back and inquired, "How did you know I am here? That's a bit unusual."
"A queen of your stature and power would grace the land of humans, and I wouldn't sense your presence? That's hardly possible," she said with a confident smile.
"Sapphire spilled the secret, didn't she?" Sylara asked, causing Saraphina to nervously chuckle as she attempted to change the conversation.
"Why are you here, engaging in a conversation with yourself?" Saraphina redirected.
"I'm not alone. I was just discussing with this..." Sylara turned to point at the man she had been addressing earlier, only to find him mysteriously absent. "Where did he go?" she asked, visibly puzzled.
"Who are you talking about?" Saraphina asked.
"The infuriating human I was arguing with. Didn't you see me talking to someone?" Sylara pressed, while Saraphina shook her head in response.
"I didn't see anyone, Aunt Sylara," Saraphina affirmed.
Sylara, confused, muttered, "Surely, I'm not imagining things."
"Is anything the matter, Your Majesty?" Saraphina asked, and Sylara shook her head with a smile.
"It's nothing you should worry about, Saraphina. Now, tell me, where is my sister Sapphire?"
"She's resting in my kingdom. My father prepared a special place for you, Your Majesty, and someone is waiting for you. Shall we leave?"
"Yes, we shall," Sylara replied, glancing back one more time, hoping to spot the mysterious man she had been arguing with. However, he was nowhere in sight. "What could it be?" she pondered, taking a deep breath before following Saraphina.
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"Is this the person you claim is waiting for me, Saraphina? I was hoping it was someone actually worth my time," Sylara questioned as she entered the room. Yashira, the queen of the Azure Vedans, also known as the Water Vedans, sat gracefully while her maids attended to her needs. Yashira was a mesmerizing sight with her long, white flowing hair that complemented her beautiful dark skin covered in radiant golden scales.
Sylara took a seat as maids rushed towards her, ready to attend to her needs and pour her a cup of wine.
"Insolent brat," Yashira remarked, "is that how you address your big sister whom you haven't seen in years?"
"Oh, please. I'm certain you aren't exactly thrilled to see me here, Yashira. Let's not pretend," Sylara retorted, gulping down a bottle of wine.
"That is very true," Yashira conceded, "and as much as I can't wait for you to leave, we have important matters to discuss, sister, especially regarding the recent deplorable actions of the humans towards my home."
Yashira, the water Vedan queen(queen of azure clan) was the first Vedan created by the gods, her purpose was to bring water to Earth. Following her, Empyrean Queen Sylara (queen of heaven Vedans/empyrean Vedans) was also created to safeguard the human lands from powerful enemies, and to guard the gate. Lastly, Eamon, (king of the warrior Vedans also known as Ashen and Saraphina's father) was created to protect humans in wars against demon or any supernatural beings.
These three—Yashira, Sylara, and Eamon— were raised as siblings by the powerful goddess Amelia, a goddess they consider to be their mother, ensuring they fulfill the roles they were created for. They are the original Vedans, directly crafted by the gods and collectively known as the original Vedans.
Despite Yashira's belief that she should be the ultimate ruler of all Vedans due to her being the very first vedan created, her sister Sylara's was more power then her and that led her to take the role of the ultimate Empyrean Queen and the ruler of all Vedans. While Yashira and Sylara often appear as rivals, deep down, they love each other deeply and commitment to each other, willing to go to great lengths to protect one another despite their ongoing disagreements.
"What have the humans been doing?" Sylara queried, sinking deeper into her chair as a maid assisted with a massage.
"Only the most repulsive things; they murder their own kind and discard the bodies into the Etherflow river. The Etherflow is home to me and my clan; I don't need to endure the disgusting scent of human blood and the restless spirits lingering along the shore. And now they hunt moon-kiss fishes, selling their scales for a fortune."
"Moon kiss?" Sylara questioned, sitting up straight. "Do they comprehend the consequences that will befall them if they fish moon-kiss fishes?"
"I warned them about it, sister," Yashira stated. "We had twenty moon-kiss fishes, and now we're down to just two. If they kill the remaining two, then what exactly am I going to use to appease the river to continue letting water flow through their lands?"
"Those foolish humans," Sylara uttered through gritted teeth. "Consumed by their own greed, they have no idea of the misfortune that will befall their lands if they continue hunting moon-kiss fishes." Sylara turned toward Yashira and added, "You should have done better in protecting those fishes. You know what Mother will do if water stops flowing through the Earth; it is the very purpose you were created for, Yashira."
"What am I supposed to do if I am not allowed to kill them? The humans know we Vedans are not allowed to kill them, and they use that to their advantage every single time," Yashira retorted.
"But there isn't a rule that says we are not allowed to punish them," Sylara remarked, while Yashira smiled sinisterly to herself.
"Which is why I am discussing this with you, sister. As much as it pains me to take orders from you, I still need you to approve of administering punishment to those humans," Yashira explained.
"Any human that goes against the rules of the river should be punished, Yashira. Send out one more warning to them, and if they disobey, punish them this time," Sylara instructed.
"Why go through punishment when you can just kill them to teach the others a lesson?" Sapphire remarked as she appeared out of nowhere and walked towards a chair, taking a seat.
Yashira rolled her eyes the moment she saw Sapphire and quipped to Sylara, "You brought the cursed Vedan here too?"
"Speak to my sister appropriately, Yashira. She is one of us and my sister, whether you like it or not," Sylara responded, while Yashira rolled her eyes.
"As usual, you do not look so pleased to see me, big sister," Sapphire said with a sinister smile, gulping down the wine a maid offered to her.
"Oh, ignore Yashira, Sapphire. She's a grumpy old lady who isn't happy to see anyone," Sylara teased, while Yashira scoffed.
"Let me remind you, Sylara, that you were created a year after me. Certainly, you don't consider yourself young after addressing me as old, do you?" Yashira questioned, while Sylara rolled her eyes, choosing to focus on Sapphire.
"What is it you suggest, sister?" Sylara inquired.
"Death, sister. Why do we, higher beings endowed with immense power by the gods themselves, have to watch over such weak and spineless creatures? We should be ruling over them, making them dread walking the very path we tread."
"That is dark, Sapphire. A guardian must not think like that," Sylara stated as she leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes while the maid continued with the massage.
"Dark? You think this is dark compared to the heart of man? I have seen those creatures torture and kill each other. I have witnessed a mother feast on her own child in starvation. I have seen them kill their own kind for fortunes and riches, betray, kill, and sin. Those creatures are not worth being guarded; they deserve to be slaughtered, every single one of them," Sapphire declared.
"We are guardians, Sapphire. It is our purpose, and it doesn't matter what they are. We are to protect them with our very lives, even if it is the last thing we do," Sylara asserted.
"They do not deserve our protection!" Sapphire shouted, her expression filled with anger. "The very thought of those creatures infuriates me. They are evil and deserve to die, every single one of them."
Sylara raised her hand, and the maid immediately ceased the massage. Slowly opening her eyes, she sat up straight, maintaining eye contact with Sapphire. Her expression turned cold but intimidating as she spoke, "You dare raise your voice at me, Sapphire?"
Sapphire's expression immediately softened as fear took over. She lowered her gaze and said, "Forgive me, sister. I lost control there."
Sapphire's expression immediately softened as fear took over. She lowered her gaze and said, "Forgive me, sister. I lost control there."
"That will be all for now. You may leave, Sapphire," she said. "But before you do, remember one thing, Sapphire. We are guardians, and it doesn't matter how evil the mundane is. We have our roles to carry out as their protector. The very day you end the life of one is the day you see just how cruel I can be."
Sapphire stood on her feet, bowed slightly to Sylara, and said, "My apologies, sister," before immediately leaving the room.
Sylara exhaled deeply before turning to Yashira and saying, "Punish anyone who dares to break the rules surrounding the river. But before you do, give them a warning. If they disobey, then make examples."
"As you wish, sister," Yashira acknowledged.