6

Riding for days, I finally got to the kingdom at the centre of the continent. Shajarat Tanbat. Among the various kingdoms and empires in the desert region, this was the most beautiful one as it had lush vegetation within and around its territory. Farming was possible here so there was lots of food and that in turn brought trade to the city. The kingdom was on par with the coastal city of Ma' malih where the ports were located. 

I had come across a group of merchants during my travels and managed to purchase a blanket and some rope that I used as a makeshift saddle and reigns for my horse. 

The gates were massive and heavily guarded as well. A huge stream which I could not see its starting or ending point ran through the kingdom and was artificially split by a central canal that broke off in different directions. Still in awe, I guided Crystal to the large gate that gave access to the city. 

One of the guards approached me and the look in his eyes already repulsed me. 

"You have to pay the toll of one silver to enter." He tried hiding a sly smile that crept up on his face. With a tired sigh, I took out a coin from my pouch and tossed it to him before riding in without looking back. I don't have time for useless distractions. I needed information and there was no better place to find it than a library. Luckily, the biggest library currently known in the continent was within Shajarat Tanbat. 

Riding through, I admired the sights and welcomed the wholesome smells that wafted around me. I had not eaten anything since waking up a few days ago and strangely, I didn't feel hungry. It was almost as if my body no longer needed food to function. With the little rest I had gotten along the way, even the injury from the arrows I had been shot with had all vanished. 

The smell of pastries from a nearby bakery hit me with full force and I felt my mouth watering.

"I might as well eat something now that I have the chance." 

Finding a nearby stable, I paid for a saddle and left crystal to the stable hand before going back to first locate the bakery. After getting a large order of baked goods that made the baker give me a worried glance, I wandered through the kingdom until I found the location of the library. It was the second largest building after the palace that stood at the centre of the kingdom. 

The large structure with the dome-shaped roof stood proudly and I could see children and adults of all ages coming and going from the place. 

"It really is just as big as I thought." I stared in awe for a bit while nibbling a biscuit before making my way inside. 

The first thing I did was check the current date and finding the answer almost froze me over like the statues I had created. 

"Ten years." I slumped against a bookshelf in a far corner of the library where I had used the dial to check how long I had been frozen. 

"I've been asleep for ten years. My people are nothing more than a memory of who not to anger now." My hands were on either side of my head and I took deep breaths to calm myself down so I could think properly. This was not the time for self-pity. I needed to focus. 

"Are you alright child?" I turned to see an elderly man with a bald head and full grey beard staring at me through half-closed eyes. 

"Yes, I'm fine." I was already on my feet and dusting off my clothes. 

"Are you sure you don't need any help?" His voice was gentle and pressing at the same time. Deciding to make my search easier, I smiled at him...

"Actually I do." I said. "I'm looking for information on beings known as Djinn and I don't know where I can begin my search in this huge place." I gestured at the entire place. 

"Indeed you wouldn't know where to start." He chuckled. "Even I had to spend more than fifteen years before I could cover the books within this library." 

He began walking away and I took that as a sign to follow him. For an old man, he kept a brisk pace and was quite energetic. 

"You seek information on the Djinn but are you sure you're ready for it? You might be getting more information than you're ready for my dear." He stopped and turned his head to look at me in a way that almost made my blood run cold. 

"Ahh, I see the reason why you want to know. I apologize if I seemed threatening but do put that away so you don't reveal yourself." 

I looked down at what he was pointing at and realized that my hands were already blue and letting out cold steam. The area around my feet was also covered in a thin layer of ice as well. 

"You're not scared of me?" I asked in disbelief. Just a few days of being awake had driven me to harbour a high level of distrust for people in general, no matter how nice they appeared to be to me. 

"Why would I be scared of a child? I may look old but you're still a long way from posing a threat to me." He laughed. I stared at him in disbelief. 

"He knew you would be here though. I'm just doing this as a favour to him since I owe him dearly." The old man walked on as if he had not just dropped a vital piece of information nonchalantly. 

"Wait!". I tried to grab onto him but my hand never actually reached him. Something prevented me from even touching the hem of his clothes. 

"Do you know where he is? Can you help me find him?" I asked with desperation in my voice. 

He let out a laugh that seemed to sound all around me at once. "Child, even if I told you of his whereabouts, you would not be able to reach him. The both of you are worlds apart. And I mean that in a literal way." 

Worlds apart I thought. How do I confront him then? Am I meant to understand what he did to me on my own and just live out the rest of my life being on the run from men seeking to lay claim to me?

"Worry not, he already put in plans for you so you'll be quite busy." The old man said as we got to a door that was between two long bookshelves that were about four times my height. "Come in." 

Stepping through the door I immediately found myself in a garden with a lone tree at the bottom and flower bushes scattered across. I spun around and to my surprise, the door we had entered from had vanished as well. 

"You're making me repeat myself a lot child." The old man was already at the base of the tree. 

I hurried to him and sat down facing him. 

"Tea?" I raised a questioning brow and looked down to find a smoking cup of tea in my hands and a blanket laid out with a teapot and a plate of sweet dried fruits on it. 

"You're one of them, aren't you?" I took a sip of the tea and relaxed a bit. For someone in this kind of situation, I don't know how I could remain calm but somehow I did. 

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Salah the forest Djinn." At the mention of his name, the trees and flowers seemed to dance as if celebrating being in his presence. 

"It seems Djinn are all inclined towards an aspect of nature." 

"Not entirely true my dear." He said while stroking his beard. "We all are the same magical creature, but the longer we live, the more we incline ourselves towards an aspect of nature that suits our personalities." 

"So the reason this city flourishes despite being part of the desert kingdoms is not just because of the sea but because you made your home here." I voiced my line of thought. 

He smiled. "Indeed. I took to loving the life given by the forest and its beauty, as well as its dangerous sides." 

The area in front of us immediately became filled with a murky-smelling fog. The trees hung low and their leaves drooped down from the branches. Thick vines wrapped around the body of the trees and the ground could not be seen as it was covered in a body of water. I was still staring in wonder at this setting I had never seen when I heard a snarl and something moved beneath the surface of the water. The sound passed and for a few more moments nothing could be heard. 

Suddenly, a huge lizard-looking creature surged from the water with a snarl and charged with long massive jaws filled with teeth of different sizes. I immediately raised my hand to repel it with my power when it hit an invisible wall at the end of the fog. 

As suddenly as the scene had appeared before us, it once again disappeared and the garden was once again back to normal. 

"Everything beautiful has a dangerous side to it. And we djinns are beings who live by those principles."