Zan was in his thirties when he entered the land of magic for the first time. Among his peers, he was known as a famous explorer of new and uncharted lands. He had sailed both seas on either side of the continent and saw many sights that no one except those with him would believe. So it was no surprise that when Zan heard rumors about the land of magic, he decided that he must explore it for himself.Entering the land of magic had been a challenge all its own, and he had nearly lost his life trying to cross the ice barrier. The oppressive force of the ice cloud pushed him to the ground, suffocating him with its force. Zan tried to back up from his horrible mistake, but his body would not cooperate.Just when he had given up hope, a small animal resembling a white, three-tailed fox nuzzled up beside him to investigate. Its presence created a small shield from the pressure around the man's head, and Zan greedily gasped for air.With the fox's permission, the man scooped up the creature

The mysterious creature was still smiling at him when he opened his eyes. She seemed little more than a beautiful statue until she blinked."Who are you?" Zan asked as he rubbed his head. Perhaps he was actually dead and all of this was a hallucination.As if reading his thoughts, the creature before him chuckled. "Forgive me. I am Hanna the Fate. And I have saved you with this." She held up a glowing vial of blinding liquid. "It is yours now. It has great healing properties. But use it on external wounds only. Taking it internally can have...unintended consequences."Zan's eyes went wide. "I just drank that! What kind of consequences?!" The man held his neck, wondering if he should try to vomit. Most likely it was too late."Ah yes, the consequences," the Fate said cheerfully. "For one, you are now a Guardian, and for another..." Hanna pointed to the river nearby. Zan rushed over to look in the water. His eyes, which were normally the color of pitch, now shone silver."You have turne

Zoltan tried to form his thoughts. He had happily buried all those memories, but the time had come to dig them up."I wanted to protect you," the king repeated to his wife. "I knew the explorer would never stay. He would leave you as soon as he got bored. It is what explorers do. They are constantly on the move. I tried to stall the wedding so he would show his true colors, but I could not stall it long enough.""You were the reason for all the problems with the wedding?" Zan shook his head. That is why nothing was ever ready on time.The king turned an angry glare of the man. "You would have left her, admit it! I still maintain that human love is not reliable. It is the real fairy tale here." Zoltan turned pleading eyes on the queen. "If Zan had left you after you were married, he would have ruined you.""So you decided that I should never have the chance to make that choice for myself?" Lanassa asked, realizing quickly what had occurred. She leaned away from her husband, disgusted.

The small village was exactly where the young scout had said, and the ragged group filed into the town in the darkness of the night. The sleepy village had not quite settled down, and as news of the coup spread, lights in every window were lit while the occupants spilled into the streets.The mayor came out to greet Devrim and bowed. "Your Majesty," he said. "I am most distressed by the news that we have received from your scout." Realizing who was in their presence, the townspeople bowed as well. They waited to see if what they had just heard was accurate. Did they have a new ruler?Devrim confirmed their suspicions. "It is true. We are on the run from my son. I understand if you do not want to take us in. But if you will house and feed us, we will leave you at first light. We do not want to bring trouble on your town," the grey-eyed man spoke graciously.The mayor only seemed half-listening, which Devrim at first thought was rude. The man's round eyes were searching the crowd when h

Stallions, geldings, mares, colts, foals: horses of every shape and color were penned in neat rows leading back from the water's edge. The steeds were well kept, and the man with Mairwen seemed vaguely familiar.Mairwen spotted her father and waved him over happily. "Father, do you remember Damasippos? He is one of the royal equerries."Devrim squinted for a moment at the man as his mind tried to place him. While he could name most of the regular soldiers at the palace, the names of other staff members often escaped him. "I believe we have met," the Emperor answer noncommittally.Damasippos bowed his waist. "Your Majesty, it is an honor see you.""What are you doing out here?" Devrim asked. He had intended to direct the question at Mairwen, but as Damasippos was still bent in half, he did not realize this.As he straightened, the equerry answered, "Many weeks back, the princess requested a new gelding. I came a few days ago to the breeding ground to observe and make a few selections."