Chapter 3: One Last Glance

In the middle of the mist in the old forest, Sira ran as fast as she could in her human form carrying the treasure with care in her hands. 

The princess somewhat understood what was going on that she just glanced her bluish-purple eyes at the surroundings without a noise. 

"Just a little more our princess and you will be safe!" Sira whispered as she smiled at the wondering baby in her arms.

When she felt coldness everywhere, she knew that their bloodsucking enemies were near. She looked around and tried to hide but she was stunned when the baby she was carrying transformed into a white pup.

Of course, she almost forgot! She was the princess which meant she could transform as early as a baby compared to ordinary pups. 

When the treasure jumped at a quick speed, she followed after. She also changed into a white she-wolf. They ran like a whirlwind towards the portal. 

They had to arrive at the entrance before the vamps would catch them or before the portal would close. The portal was the only pathway to the human world. 

Finally, when they were in front of the twin trees, Sira carried the pup and glanced at her world one last time.

"It will take a while before we'll come back, Princess Ariya. When you are ready, I will help you take your revenge!" she said as the princess was slowly turning to human.

Before they left, Sira looked up at the moon and talked to their goddess in riddles:

"To you mighty one who forsake the pure royal blood

May you cast aside the repugnance 

that flows through your veins 

and protect the only light 

that could bring off the white wolves' hearts' desire"

As she prayed for the moon goddess, a pair of sharp green eyes that was ready to attack was watching her from the dark. 

"Goddess Diana, I call upon your name 

to safeguard the only one remain

I sacrifice some of my powers for her safety

Please hear my last plea!" 

As she recited her last words, she carried the baby and jumped into the portal. 

The sharp eyes that were watching them a while ago enkindled the twin trees with her bare hands.

"Forgive me but this is for your own safety. You must leave this world. Stay with the humans where you really belong!" she mumbled as she left. 

When Damien and his army found the portal, it was already in the dust. He roared as he lifted his head and showed his fangs that were getting longer and longer as he stretched his mouth.

His cold white fingers turned into dark vampire claws that were sharper than lion's and much longer than normal vamps'.

His army followed and soon after, the quiet misty old forest was engulfed by vampires' roars. 

.

Meanwhile, in the human world...

It was in the middle of the night when Halley suddenly woke up. She was beside her sleeping husband in their bedroom in a huge mansion.

When she squinted her eyes to the twinkling light shining outside of their bay and bow glass window, she woke her husband up right away.

"Something's sparkling in front of the gate, Jon!" she said as she violently shook him.

The still drowsy man narrowed his eyes on his wife and hoarsely said, "Wait, let me check!" 

He got up wobbling as he went outside. He was shocked when all of their five security guards were sleeping soundly. 

When he saw a bulging yellow silk cloth, he went closer and was completely surprised at the snow-white skin baby with long candy corn hair and bluish-purple eyes.

He was stunned by the extraordinary beauty the baby possessed. And when he carried her up, he almost dropped her to the ground. The bluish-purple eyes he had just seen a while ago turned into pure black and her hair turned to blonde.

"It can't be!" Jon exclaimed with his eyes opened. 

He felt like she had just transformed. The connection between him and Princess Ariya was strong. 

When he scanned the baby, he realized that the ordinary silk was made of pure gold. He also saw a crystal pendant carved with a wolf shape and a small tiara. 

At the back of the pendant, there was a name carved in gothic font.

"Princess Ariya?" he whispered. 

Upon hearing her name, she moved and giggled. She smiled at her new family.

Jon who was still stunned with everything had thought of hiding the tiara and the pendant from everyone. 

"Whatever the reason, I won't tell anyone including my wife what I saw tonight!" he firmly said.

He had no idea that this thought had been instructed to him by Sira, the siren in the kingdom. She was watching them under a tree not far away from the main gate of the villa. 

Sira was ordered to bring the princess to either a lower class or middle-class family. But with her knowledge about the vampires' characters, she knew the last thing they were going to seek for were the noble clans. 

When she saw Jon going out of the door a while ago, she felt a strong connection immediately. She knew exactly that Princess Ariya would be safe in this blue blood family, the counterpart of the royal blood in their world.

As she saw the princess being brought inside, she left at once. When she found a stream, she stared at her reflection on the water. 

Perfect blue almond eyes, fiery red wavy hair, sharply pointed nose, persimmon plump lips, and a delicate face as small as a palm. She stared deeply at her beautiful features till the reflection on the clear water changed. From the beauty of a nymph to the beauty of a simple mother, Sira transformed herself into an ordinary person.

Aside from that she collected mud from the wet soil and molded it into a small baby.

"Rise! From now on, you are the princess!

Obey my command, rise! Replace her!

Be the treasure, be the light!"

As she finished orating pompously, she blew the molded clay and in just a few seconds, it turned into a real baby who had almost the same lòok and feature as Princess Ariya.

She smiled with her creation and now the only thing left to be made was their shelter. She glanced at the surroundings and felt satisfied. But there was just one problem, building shelters and shields were not her superpowers. 

She called the high priest in her thoughts and told him about her plan. The high priest seemed to agree on coz when she opened her eyes, a not-so-big nipa house emerged in front of her. 

Sira smiled as she looked at the baby in her arms.

"I am your mother. My name is Sara. You are my daughter. Your name is Ira. Your father is dead. He died of illness. You were born in the province far away from here!" 

She indoctrinated the baby's made-up identity in her mind. From that moment on, Ira would serve as the avatar to keep Princess Ariya safe.