WRITER'S POV
It's been a few days since the Frost Ball, and Evania and Theron were finally ready to leave.
"Do visit again, darling," Lydia, Theron's mother, said, hugging Evania.
She smiled.
"I will, Mother."
Evania had been avoiding Theron since the night of the Frost Ball.
That night.
The night that they almost kissed.
The night that she felt jealous.
The night that she questioned herself whether she liked him or not.
Theron had been trying to talk to her, but she always evaded him.
"Stay safe, child," King Alaric said. "Protect her well," he said, turning to Theron.
He nodded. "With my life."
~~~~~~
The carriage was quiet.
Evania stared outside the window, while Theron stared at her.
He wanted to hold her, tell her the truth, console her, kiss her. His emotions were all over the place.
She, on the other hand, was trying to sort out her feelings.
She would have allowed Theron to kiss her.
That night, her body had reacted to his touch. But as she remembered what those women at the ball said, she pulled away.
Do I like him? If not, why did I react the way I did? she thought.
She stared at the snowflakes falling as if asking for an answer.
"Princess... I..."
Thud!
The carriage came to a halt with a loud sound.
Theron pulled Evania into his arms before she could hit her head due to the crash.
"Alfred? What's going on?"
Theron asked the coachman.
"I... Can't quite explain it Sire. The carriage feels like it bumped into something but nothing is there!"
The carriage rattled, tipping over and falling to the other side.
Evania unconsciously gripped Theron's clothes as he held her in an embrace. He caressed her head slowly.
A howl echoed outside the carriage.
Werewolves? But we weren't in their territory, Theron thought.
Then his eyes widened in realization.
They're here for Evania.
He gripped her tighter.
His eyes scanned outside for any unusual movements. He perked his ears too. Nothing.
"Let's go, Princess," he said, holding her hand and opening the carriage door.
It had fallen on one door, so the other door was now above.
He stepped out gently and pulled Evania out too.
"Careful," he said, making sure she didn't hurt herself.
"Are you alright?" he asked.
She nodded. "What happened?"
She looked around. The coachman was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's the coachman?" she asked.
Theron furrowed his brows.
Strange, why isn't he here?
"Alfred?!" He called.
Could the werewolves have taken him? And why is it so quiet? he said to himself.
All of a sudden, they were surrounded by fog, blocking their vision.
"Evania?" Theron called, stretching out his hand to grab hers. But he couldn't feel her hand.
His blood ran cold.
"Evania! Evania!!!"
"Ahhhh!"
Her scream pierced through the place, and Theron sprinted towards the sound of her voice.
But the direction kept changing.
Almost as if he was being pranked.
After the last attempt to get her, the fog cleared, and Evania was nowhere to be seen.
"No... no, no! Shit!"
Theron raked a hand through his hair, fear evident in his voice.
He sprinted and searched the forest, but she wasn't anywhere to be seen.
"Shit, shit! Where could they have taken her?"
"Caden!! Caden, come here!"
Theron called.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
A tall figure appeared. He had a hat on and was dressed in purple attire.
He had spectacles on. He was a wizard.
"They've taken Evania. Quickly, find her!!"
"As you wish, Sire."
Caden used his index finger to draw an imaginary circle in the air.
The circle came into view, glowing a bright yellow before it took the shape of a mirror.
"Show us what can't be seen."
The mirror shone a white light, then showed a tall tower building covered in vines and thorns.
Then it showed the inside, where Evania was chained to a chair and was unconscious.
Theron saw red.
He was so angry that his aura shattered the mirror.
"Calm down, Your Majesty. We can find her. I know where this old palace is located," Caden said calmly.
"How could this happen?"
"Ever since I wrote to you about the confirmation of the vessel of the Golden Pegasus, I've been picking up weird signals from the witches and wizards."
They've been suspecting it too, since that was why Count Elsywth killed her grandmother."
"He was looking for the vessel back then too."
"So now," he continued, taking a seat on a pavement, "the werewolves, witches, wizards, and the remaining beings, apart from the vampires, have come together to have the power of the Golden Pegasus."
Theron scoffed.
Then laughed a low, evil laugh.
"They have no idea who they are dealing with. Since they want it to be this way, I wouldn't mind getting my hands soaked in blood."
His voice was dark and dangerous.
Even Caden felt chills.
"Take me to the tower."
******
Evania opened her eyes, and her surroundings were foreign.
She tried to move, but she noticed she was tied to a chair with heavy chains.
Panic set in as memories of what happened earlier flooded her mind.
She was dragged away from Theron and was teleported to this place.
And then was knocked out with a napkin.
She felt scared and confused.
She tried again to shake free from the chains, but it was no use.
They were too strong and tight.
"Help! Is someone out there!? Please help me!"
She cried out.
A few seconds later, the door opened, and four figures emerged.
"Hello, Princess. We apologize for the inconvenience we caused you, but there wasn't any other way to do this," a lady with blue hair and purple eyes said.
Her voice was sweet, and her eyes were like that of an underwater breather. She was a mermaid.
"W-what... what do you want with me?" Evania asked in a shaky voice.
"We want the power that is residing inside you," a man in black growled, his golden eyes glowing under his hood.
"Power? You've been mistaken. I'm just a human," Evania said.
"Not just any human, my dear. A special one," the witch and wizard spoke in sync, answering her.
Evania was even more confused.
"You are the vessel of the Golden Pegasus, an ancient power that surfaces in royal bloodlines.
It chooses which race to present itself through, and this time, it chose a human bloodline.
"It chose you."
The mermaid said, inching closer to Evania, and held her chin.
"And now," she continued, "we must TAKE IT."
Evania's pulse quickened.
"But... I don't have any powers.
I've been ordinary all my life!"
"Oh, really?" the werewolf asked. "Then how do you explain this?!"
The witch and wizard raised their hands, and a shimmering mirror materialized before them.
Its surface shimmered with a bright light, and an image began to appear.
As the image sharpened, her breath caught in her throat.
"Impossible..." she whispered.