Ravynna Springs was a tiny, marshy crop of land spattered with the occasional straw hut or log cabin, which Charles assumed were for the wealthier residents-not that it was that nice.
Ruby wrinkled her nose at the strong stench emanating from the, well, everything. His pampered princess sister was not used to anything that wasn’t designed for the blue collared set. He couldn’t help it that they were born with a silver spoon in their mouth. That was just the way life worked.
“So,” Darla asked, looking around at the bustling village with wide eyes. “Where do we find the Centaur Chief?”
Charles shrugged. “I have no idea. We don’t learn much about leaders of other types of monsters.”
Just then, two kids walked over. The girl was rather tall with Asian features-pale skin, dark almond eyes, and long, straight black hair. The boy next to her was short, with a reddish blonde cloud of curls and wide eyes that were some sort of mix between orange and gold. He offered a friendly smile.
“We couldn’t help but overhear you’re looking for the Centaur Chief,” the girl said, raising a slender eyebrow. “Well, he happens to be away for a meditation night on the bluffs. He’ll be back in the morning
“Oh,” Cecily replied, looking bummed. “Do you know if there is an inn we can stay the night in? It’s extremely urgent.”
The girl glanced at the boy. “What do you say, Alfred? Why don’t we let them stay the night in our hut? We have a few extra cots.”
The boy-Alfred-shrugged. “Why not?”
The girl turned to them once more. “By the way, my name is Wren. I don’t look it right now, but I’m a kitsune-fox girl, basically. And this is Alfred-he’s a sphinx.”
“And we’re-”Charles began
Wren held up a finger. “Dragons, yeah-I guessed. Only dragons could have that high-and-mighty look on their face.”
She smirked and skipped away. “Follow me to our lovely abode!”
The gang exchanged weary glances and followed the gleefully skipping girl until she arrived at a small, run-down hut crafted from brown, withering straw, pebbles, and mud. It was anything but luxurious. Charles had never slept in a room that wasn’t designed for a prince.
“So how long have you two been living together?” Darla asked, looking the most comfortable out of all of them in their dire surroundings. “Are you two married or something?”
Alfred burst out laughing, his shoulders shaking. “Me? Married to this piece of work? I’d rather eat my own face. Nah, we’ve been living together after our parents died a while ago in an accident.”
“Firemonger accident,” Wren bristled. “But don’t give me any of your little pity because I don’t want it.”
Hugo, who had been silent, lost in his own mind, stared deeply at Wren. “So do you often invite strangers to live with you?”
Wren snickered. “Always trying to find out ulterior motives, aren’t you? Well, don’t worry-I’ve been told I don’t have a filter.”
Alfred flashed a toothy grin. “That sounds about right. Well, I’ll go get out some mats for you to rest on. Y’all look exhausted-do you want me to fetch some water from the hole?”
“We’re fine, thanks,” Ruby replied. “It means a lot that you guys are kind enough to let us stay with you.”
“No problem,” Alfred said, staring at Ruby with wide eyes as she stretched out on the dirt floor.
Charles sighed. Alfred was clearly infatuated with his twin sister, as most guys were. No matter how disgusted it made him, everyone seemed to find Ruby’s raven ringlets and brilliant bluish-green eyes to be completely irresistible.
“Hey,” Darla chirped, plopping down on the hard, rocky ground next to him. “So, let’s hope we can see the Centaur Chief tomorrow.”
“Yeah,” Charles nodded. “We need answers right now. I didn’t think the situation was that bad, but when I saw Pharix City lying in ruins…”
The picture of the beautiful city, formerly sparkling in rainbow glass, crushed to the ground in sizzling black rubble made his stomach turn.
“I’m really scared,” Darla whispered, a light blush creeping onto her milky white skin, so delicate and supple even in the darkness of the hut.
“Don’t be. You’re an amazing fighter, Darla. When the White Maidens came, you were the one who stopped them with your necklace,” Charles reminded her. “And you’re the one with the best time in the Immersion. Darla, you’re incredible, don’t you see?”
Darla rolled her emerald green eyes. “And the Shadow Master isn’t? You saw what it’s capable of. This won’t be easy. I don’t even know if it’ll be possible. Hugo…he thinks the Shadow Master is planning on destroying earth.”
Charles stared. “What? Why would it want to do that? It’s not even from Earth!”
Darla shrugged. “We don’t know.”
After that, the two stood in silence, staring at each other without moving. Sometimes, it was best not to talk. They didn’t need words to describe what they were feeling, what emotions were running through them-fear, anxiety, panic, and, most of all, a cold, numb shock. No one could believe what had happened.
After Alfred brought back the cots, everyone headed straight to sleep. It had been a long night and they needed to be refreshed in the morning. However, Charles couldn’t sleep. He kept replaying the last few weeks in his head. How could his life have been so ordinary, so mundane earlier? Now that Darla had arrived in Pharix, it was as if the word had brightened, as if even the dullest of grays became neon. She was crazy, insane, psychotic…that Charles was sure of. She wasn’t sane, nothing close to it at least.
But there was one thing he was sure of, more than anything in the whole entire world…
Lying there asleep, curled into the mat, creamy blonde hair knotted at her neck, she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.