THREE

Centuries ago,

       "Gael! I'm definitely with child and you're the father of my child!" "No, I am not. Do you think I'm stupid? Rohanne, you've always been power- hungry. I know you would do anything to get power! I never touched you. You're not carrying my child!"

"How dare you accuse me of lying about something like this? Do you not trust me anymore?"

"Rohanne, what we had is over. I'm married now and I'm happy with her-"  

"Father?" a raven haired six years old boy said as he cautiously opened the door and stepped into his father's chamber. "Zeron, you shouldn't be here. Go back to your mum!" King Gael ordered. A look of jealousy appeared on Rohanne's face and just as the little boy tried to open the door, she used her magic to lock the door. A blast of purple fog appeared around her outstretched arms and she channeled it towards the king. It hit him right on the chest and he collapsed to the ground, coughing up blood. Zeron looked very scared at this point. Then Rohanne began to move towards him, the sinister grin on her face growing. "Don't do this, Rohanne! Leave him out of this! He's just a child! Please, don't kill him!" "And why should I listen to you? You wouldn't listen to me either" She stared at the beautiful boy before her, hatred for him rising within her like a smoking lava. This was the boy who would be the king's heir instead of her own child. "Please, don't hurt me. I won't come back again" the boy whimpered, cowering behind a pillar."Don't worry, I won't hurt you" Rohanne said, her hands glowing crimson. "From this day, you will be nothing but a vagabond, a monster. There will be nothing left in you but darkness-"

"No, please. Do not place a hex on him! He's just a boy!" Gael cried out, tears of agony filling his icy blue eyes."The darkness shall feed on you and all you shall feel is massive pain. Yes, I want you to feel pain beyond your wildest imaginations. Your days shall be shortened and you shall die by my son's sword. It is done" Rohanne said, her eyes turning black. Zeron sank to the ground, screaming in pain while the witch let out a cruel laughter. Suddenly, she choked."N-no! No!" She cried when she noticed the wrinkles appearing on her skin. She moved her hair and gasped when she saw that it had turned white. "The hex can't have rebounded! No!" She cried out in frustration before vanishing into thin air. Gael wept for his child, knowing of a truth that his child's years had been lengthened. Zeron was going to suffer for decades.

****

ALANNA       

I stare at the king, a sudden rush of sympathy washing over me. "I'm so sorry that happened to you" I say, fiddling with the hem of my dress. He nods with a blank look on his face as he stares at the clouds. "What's done is done. Besides, this isn't your fault" he replies. I sigh, running a hand through my hair. "So, how does it work? I am to be slaughtered in some sort of ritual to save you, right?" He turns to look at me, his gaze unwavering. "Why do you assume that you will be sacrificed?" He asks, his voice flat. "I-I- just thought-"

"Do not jump into conclusions, Alanna or you will really be sacrificed" he says in a chilly voice. I swallow hard and lower my gaze, nervously fiddling with my fingers.

"Please, just tell me what I have to do. I need to know" I say, avoiding his violet eyed gaze. He sighs. "Rohanne doesn't know that I've found you-" "Wait, the witch is still alive? I thought part of the hex rebounded"

"Of course it did. She now shares a life force with her son. They are both bound by an ancient rune. He lives, she lives...He dies, she dies"

I let out a gasp, shocked.

"You're not just my cure, Alanna. You're my other half" Zeron says to me.

"I don't understand. Like a soulmate?"

"It's much deeper than that. You see, when she cast the hex on me, half of my soul was gone and was replaced with darkness. When the healers found out that my soul would be attached to another soul, they knew that I had better chances of surviving it all" I nod in understanding, my head spinning a bit. My soul is connected to his soul. That's so weird.

"It means, I'm basically your cure" I say and he nods. "If the witch or her people find out that I've found you, they'll come after you. That's why you can't go back to the human world" Zeron tells me and I shiver."They will want to use you against me. I can't protect you if you leave. The darkness in me is growing. I can feel it. It's only a matter of time before I loose control. But, if you stay with me, you can help me not to succumb to it. The bonding ceremony will take place at the seventh blood moon. In three months, it will be done. But, I can't force you to do it. I'll let you think about it. When you make your decision, you know where to find me. Goodnight, Alanna" he says and rises to his feet, his black waist-length hair shimmering in the dark. Two figures approach us.One of them is Valdrin, the other is Taera. "Are you okay?" Valdrin asks the king.

"I'm fine. Get her to her chambers, Taera"

"As you wish, my king" Taera says, her head hanging low. I follow her back to my chamber, my mind reeling from all of the information I've just gotten."Have a good night's rest, my lady" She says before leaving my room. I sit down on the bed and let out a long sigh. I can't go back to the human world or I will get killed. Zeron has suffered enough. Perhaps, I can help him. He needs my help but is willing to let me make the decision. For his sake, I have to do it. But, then we'll be bonded for life. Do I really have to do this? If I don't do it, he'll go completely dark. He might come after me too. Do I really have the heart to not help him? I have to help him. He can't continue to suffer. With the lingering thoughts on my mind, I sink into slumber.

****

The next morning, I take my bath and get dressed in a long, emerald dress. Taera braids my hair into a French braid with four beautiful butterfly clips on my hair."Thank you" I say to her. She smiles."My pleasure, my lady"

She leaves shortly and I walk out of the room. Then, I begin to head towards the king's chamber. I need to tell him that I've made my decision. When I finally get to the king's chamber, two guards who are standing in front of the door stop me from entering the chamber. "I need to see him" I say. The taller one glares at me. "You are not allowed in here"

"I said, let me in" I insist, my frustration growing. The shorter one whispers something into the taller one's ear and his gaze softens. They both move aside and I walk in. A maid is standing by the king's bedside pouring water into a golden bowl. A woman who's dressed in royal apparel with a crown on her head is sitting on the king's bed. She's clearly not the woman I'd seen yesterday by his bedside. She turns to look at me, her gaze intense. "Who are you?" She asks.

"I-I'm Alanna" I say.

Zeron coughs, his breathing laboured. From the look of things, he seems to be very ill. "How did you get in here?" She asks, dabbing his forehead with a smooth towel. "I walked in" I reply. She narrows her eyes."Why are you even here?" She demands, her violet eyes glowing.

I flinch, feeling intimidated by her alpha female aura.

"Azalea......Stop..... You're scaring her" Zeron croaks, his eyes still closed. Azalea frowns at me with a look of displeasure on her face.

"Alanna, come closer" he rasps, his chest heaving. I move closer, hesitantly reaching out to hold his trembling hand. "I'm here" I whisper and he opens his eyes. "You look really beautiful" he whispers and I blush. I pick up the towel and place it on his head."You weren't this sick yesterday" I say. He swallows hard, shutting his eyes briefly.

"Yes. Sometimes, it's much worse"

"Okay, are you two going to tell me what's going on here?" Azalea says, looking offended.

Zeron gives her a small smile and sits up."You should be lying down" I say, frowning."No. I feel better already" he replies, gazing at me. I blink, confused. "Azalea, this is Alanna.... She's my other half" Azalea gasps, tears filling her eyes.

"Y-you finally found her"

The maid goes down on her knees before me. Azalea stands up and goes down on one knee in front of me. She presses a kiss to the back of my palm, then she slips on a golden ring onto my index finger. "I'm so sorry for-"

"No, it's okay" I say and she rises to her feet, giving me a hug. "I'm Azalea, Zeron's younger sister. I have a feeling we're going to be best friends, Alanna" Azalea says, grinning. I smile, staring at the golden ring around my finger.

"You came to tell me something. I'm listening" Zeron says, his gaze unwavering.

"I just wanted to tell you that I've agreed to carry out the bonding ceremony" I say.

He slowly gets out of bed.

"I'm glad you made the right decision. Thank you" he says to me. The next minute, he's embracing me, holding me close to himself. I close my eyes and let out a sigh, hoping that the decision I've just made is indeed the right one.