[ TIME TO AWAKE THE DEVIL ]

The young lady stood at the door and yawned before cleaning her eyes with the back of her hand. She staggered to Azura's bed and when she noticed who was by her mother's side, her heart rejoiced. She run to him and hugged his neck as he was still squatting in front of Azura's bed, and he turned to hug her back.

"Did you come to see my mum?" She asked when she let go of the man, smiling happily as she spoke.

"Yes, and you too." Abesselom said as he pulled Chesa's checks, which made her giggled more. He stared into her eyes not understanding why his spell didn't work on the little girl.

"Why is everyone sleeping?" Chesa asked as she looked at her mother who was sleeping peacefully on the bed.

"She's just tired, she'll be waking up soon, please don't let anyone wake her up." He instructed and Chesa nodded her head to say yes.

" I saw everyone sleeping, some are even standing or sitting as they are sleeping, did you do that?" Chesa asked. She knew just like her mother and her, there are other people who had power over things and one was the man in front of her and Marcus the king.

" Am sorry you saw that. it was to get your mother here, but please don't tell anyone I was here. I'll be taking my leave now." Abesselom said and made to leave as he didn't want to answer anymore question from the girl, who seem to have great effect on him.

He waved his hand to the girl as he walked out of the room and closed the door behind him. He disappeared immediately he closed the door, and his frozen spell got nullified with his disappearance. In less than a minute, he appeared in his mansion in the dense forest and started passing in front of his bed.

He looked bothered by something and was trying to figure out what or why it happened. "Why was she not affected by my spell? She was supposed to be frozen like everyone." He muttered under his breath as he walked around. "Why does she have so much effect on me, even more than her mother?" He asked himself inwardly as he looked up.

On the day he found out that Azura, the girl he loved and cared so much for, was the princess of the Kingdom he stayed in as a stranger, he had vowed to make her his, and had even asked for her hand in marriage. But Marcus beat him to marring Azura before he could.

His heart was broken and his mind was unstable. He would never forgive Azura for accepting to marry another man. He promised himself, yet he gave his pet his permission to look after her and report to him her every move.

But when he found out Azura was pregnant, his whole world got shattered. He stopped his pet from seeing her again, and promised himself never to see her again. But it wasn't as easy as he thought it would be.

Five years down the line, he couldn't resist the urge to see Azura, even if it meant hurting himself again. He found Azura playing happily with her four years old daughter, and his heart ached even more. "So you are happy to have his child." He had muttered to himself. He disappeared from her garden and went back to the dense forest where his house was, but didn't feel like staying.

Weeks later, Abesselom had gone back to the palace to see how Azura was doing, even though it hurts when ever he did so. And to his dismayed, he had found the king in an argument with Azura, the queen.

From their argument, he was thankful to find out there was nothing like love between the two. And he knew it was time for him to get back what was meant for him. Which is why he disguised himself as the masked man when ever he visited Azura.

But in his quest for the one he loved, never did he know he would end up getting affected by the child of his sworn enemy. Two years back when he had first met her, he knew he didn't hate the girl as much as he thought. But he never knew to what extent he liked her. And now even his spells that no man has ever escaped, was not having any effect on her.

" Is it because she's Azura's daughter?" He asked himself, sitting on the red sheets on his abnormal size bed.

"What did Azura's daughter do?" He heard a voice in his head and he knew who it belongs to.

"That girl seem not to be affected by my spell and I don't know why." Abesselom replied, still looking worried.

"Don't forget her father is of the darkness just like you." Gideon replied telepathically.

"I doubt if that's true. If so why is he not on the other side of the boundaries? or are there other dark supernatural beans in this kingdom that I don't know about?" Abesselom asked.

" I think it's time to awake the devil in you, he's been sleeping for far too long." Gideon replied.

" Never, he's the reason I lost Azura in the first place. If he hadn't taken possession of my body, I would've seen who took Azura and to where." He replied angrily.

" Remember he did that to save her." He heard Gideon's voice in his head again and this time, he turned to face his pet.

" Do you know how frightened she looked the first time she saw him? I think she stayed because she could still feel me or maybe because she wanted to get what she came for. Am not letting her see him again." Abesselom said angrily and stood from the bed. He went to his bathroom to freshened up, but Gideon wouldn't leave him in peace.

" That body of yours belongs to both of you, thanks to your mother. And wether you like it or not, Azura will be his if she becomes yours." Gideon shouted in is head again.

To stop himself from hearing his pet's tantrums and constant nagging, he dipped himself down his pool-like bath till his entire body was submerged in the water. But even the coldness of the water in his bath, could not quench the heat in his body, which was caused by the volcano-like anger in him.

__________ Douglacia's residence.

Azura waked from her sleep late in the evening, and she felt she had the best sleep ever since she waked up in the kingdom she found herself. She looked around and found her ladies in waiting in the room, and Chesa was seated right next to her on the bed. Looking around She realized it was late in the evening, and she was still in her stepmother's house.

"Lora, why didn't you wake me up, now we'll have to spend another night here." She said with an accusing voice, which got Lora and Lucia on their feet.

"Sorry your Majesty, please forgive me, but princess Chesa wouldn't let anyone wake you up." Lora said with her head bowed, and Azura turned to Chesa with a questioning gaze.

"Sorry mum. He said I shouldn't let anyone wake you up." Chesa said with her head lowered.

Everyone in the room turned to her, waiting for her to say who it was that gave her such instructions, but she had no intention of talking. Azura held her chen and lifted her face to look at her, but she still wouldn't talk. "Come on tell me, who was it?" Azura asked.

"He said I can't tell anyone." Chesa said.

"But how will I know if you don't tell me?" Azura asked, trying to convince Chesa to talk.

" Guess, guess, guess." Chesa said as she bounce her body on the bed, not willing to break her promise.

Just then Lady Douglacia knocked and entered the room with worry written on her face. She looked at the faces of the people in the room and knew something was up. "Did you by any chance get me to my bed? I asked Africh and he said he wasn't the one." Lady Douglacia asked.

Azura looked at her stepmother figure as she was thinking. "Only a man with a great will, can life her up." Azura though. She turned to Chesa and tilted her head to the side as she asked. "Was the masked man here." Azura's question was out of curiosity, but after thinking about it, she wondered why she didn't think of anyone but the man in a mask.

"I didn't say anything, but you are right." Chesa said as she got down from the bed, held Lucia's hand and run out of the room as she dragged her along.

"The masked man. Who is that? Lady Douglacia asked, looking more curious than Azura was.

Azura and Lora both told lady Douglacia what they knew about the masked man, and why they think he might be the one who got them to their various bed. The old woman couldn't believe any of what the ladies were telling her, since she hadn't seen nor heard of any masked man in the kingdom.

"Could he perhaps be the one represented by the red star?" lady Douglacia asked out of curiosity.

" I also thought the same thing, even before he came here." Azura confessed.

" If he's the red star, then can I say your daughter is the blue star, and maybe the yellow stars could be the san I saw in your destiny?" lady Douglacia asked.

" You can say that. I also think the brown star is Marcus. He's the only one I can think of." Azura stated sadly. She had no idea why but ever since she waked up from the comma, the only danger she saw in her life was Marcus, even though she was married to him.

"Then who could the silver star be?" She asked all of a sudden, making both Lora and Lady Douglacia turn to her.

Lora was at a lost in the conversation, she had no idea what stars the two women were talking about, but in some ways, she guessed it could involved the revelation Azura had about her destiny. Their conversation went on for a while and they even ended up having their dinner in Azura's room. And when the night was deep, they went to bed in their various room to await the next morning.

__________

The night was a short one for the travelers, since they had to wake up early to set off so they could reach their destination on time. Azura's entourage was already prepared under the guidance of the vice commander of the royal knights, Hamfry, and Maria.

The only thing left for them to set off was their queen, and her daughter Chesa who kept insisting on spending one more night before leaving. Thanks to Africh's promise to visit her soon, she had accepted to leave. Yet, she wished to see the masked man for the last time before leaving. Unwillingly, she entered the carriage with her mother Azura, and they set off to the city of Kelvindor.