Meeting With The Oracle

-Shen Wei-

After the embarrassing moment in which he tripped and got caught by Zhao Yunlan, Shen Wei kept his distance from him. The Water Prince was apparently a great teaser and he had a way of looking at him that accelerate his heart and make him nervous, so it was better to be cautious around him.

The four of them walked up the long stairs and open the big gate of the Star Temple. As they moved in, Shen looked up and was surprise to see there was no ceiling above their heads, but a sea of stars that steal his breath away.

"Beautiful, right?" Zhao Yunlan said in Shen Wei's ear, making him jump away. Zhao laughed at the Fire Prince shyness and Wang discretely smiled behind the heir of the Fire Clan.

"Zhao Yunlan, please restrain yourself. We are not here to flirt." Zhao was too delighted with his cuteness to disagree.

"Never mind that, you have never been here before, right?" Yunlan asked.

"No. Father is the one who usually come here when summon." Shen admitted.

"He should had brought you along with him in one of those times. You are the heir of your country who will eventually inherit the Clan." Zhao said as they walked further inside the temple.

"My twin brother was often sick when younger. I was the one he took care of him, so I honestly didn't had the time to travel around." Zhao came closer.

"Wow, such a caring brother... tell me, you father had not promise you to anyone yet, right?" Shen Wei stopped in his track almost falling again, while blushing three times redder than before.

"Lord Yunlan, that's forbidden... don't even think about it." Shen said widening his beautiful doe eyes, but the teaser man only smiled.

"Lord Wei, I never said or imply I will ask for you to be mine. I was honestly just curious. I wonder why you even thought I was suggesting it... Still, will you like me to ask for you?" Wang couldn't hide her smile. The Water Prince was too good at teasing and her poor Prince too naïve and easy to fall in the other man traps.

"No." Shen Wei said, as he blushed even more. Then he make haste to reach the Star Chamber, leaving the rest of them behind.

"Lord Yunlan, please don't tease him too much. He is still inexperience and innocent." Wang pleaded.

"Ah, don't worry, I know he is too shy, but you know... if I were to be serious about having him, I will not ask for an arranged marriage, I will steal your Fire Prince from the palace and merge the two countries." Zhao said and Wang arched an eyebrow, looking at Sang who was as nervous as the Fire Prince.

"Merging the countries would be wonderful, but quite impossible, even if you steal our Prince." Wang reply sadly.

"Never said never, Wang. Our business here can change the course of how we had lead the Clans in the past. I wasn't joking when I said that something similar to what happen to those merchants in the Fire territory, also happen in ours. There is something altering the balance of the Clans, which I'm sure is why we were summon so suddenly." Zhao said more seriously as he watched with pure admiration, the Fire Prince back.

"Let's hope is something we can handle... if it involves Shadows or the Dark Lands..."

"Then we are in for a big mess and a very dangerous one. Let just find out and pray we are wrong." Zhao finish, walking a bit faster to reach the lovely Prince. Then, they enter the Star Chamber to meet both, their parents and the Oracle.

-Oracle-

As Tao Shi watched the two heirs of the Water and Fire Clans, he saw their stars shine more brightly in the Chamber's perpetual night sky. Their destinies were intertwined since birth, but he only thought back then, that it was because they were meant to change and lead the Clans in another direction, but seen the Water Prince look at Fire one, he could see more clearly now that it was more to it than simply changing the ways of the Clans.

They were the last to arrive, yet their joined presence in the room was not unnoticed. The heated discussion they had been sharing stooped in the moment the two heirs walked in and for that, Tao was glad. He was having a headache already, dealing with all the Clans at once and their many disagreements.

"Lord, Tao..." Shen Wei bowed respectfully to the Oracle, who assented with approval. The Fire Prince had a good head over his shoulder, calm, kind and collected, yet his fire strong and deadly. He was going to be a great leader.

"Lord Shi, long time no see..." Was Zhao greeting, which infuriated his father, yet make the Oracle laugh. He had always liked Zhao Yunlan, which was carefree and playful most of the time, but when things matter, he was undoubted the best leader he could rely on.

"Yunlan! Have more respect to your elders!" Yunlan father shouted, however the Oracle dismissed the angry father with a wave of his hands.

"Lord Xin, don't mind his manner. He will not disappoint you when the time comes. Have a seat with your respective Clans." The Oracle offer and Shen Wei looked at Yunlan for a second, before sitting by his father, but Yunlan remained were he stood.

"Please pardon my rudeness, Lord Shi, but I rather not sit here for hours arguing none stop for things that matter not."

"Yunlan! Come here now!" His father shouted even laudlier.

"Ah, Zhao Yunlan... such a sensible heir. We had indeed spend more time arguing than planning our next move. I was honestly waiting for you to help me out." The elder winked at him, which make Zhao laugh and the others members of the Clans murmur, some outrageously, others in approval, tired of the endless discussions themselves.

"So let me help you, Lord Shi. I have just come from the border between the Fire and Water lands and let me report to you, leaders of all Clans, that in both of our countries we had find a very strange happening. Some merchants die in a very abnormal way in the Fire lands. Lady Wang, here can tell you the details of the conditions of the bodies found in the middle of the road. I was informed of a certain area in my border which our patrolling guards found. There, a few villagers were found dead in similar conditions. Both cases suggested something unnatural never seen before in ages..." More murmurs between the leaders.

"Just a few minutes ago, the great Fire Prince which kindly offer to bring me here with his summoning fire and his excellent healers, came to a very respectable and most possibly conclusion." Yunlan looked his way, which make Shen Wei blush unintentionally, pleasing the eternal teaser.

"Which is?" The leader of the Sage Clan asked.

"The Dark Lands are active again and we have Shadows running free in our lands..." There was silence and the Oracle smiled very pleased with the Water Prince.

"Ah, Lord Wei is worthy of your praise, because indeed we have Shadows among us... which is why I summon you all here." Tao Shi raised his hands up and the star sky above them changed, replaced with a darker place, surrounded by thick gray clouds. There were a variety of creatures crawling from endless cliffs cover by a thick fog and vast mountains full of dark energy. There was also a shadow moving freely around the darkness, taking the shape of a man occasionally, with a shining red stone on his hands. There were many creatures at his back and they all understood they were ready for war.

Seen the Dark Lands mostly for the first time for most present make a good impact, as not even the leaders that had been argue about their Clans matters dared to say a word. Two precious day had already been wasted, so now the message was clear and urgent. They most make haste and prevent a war with the inhabitants of the Dark Lands now that they had a leader to guide them and rule them.

"We can use summoning magic toward the closet mark to the Dark Land..." Yunlan said, breaking the silence.

"Still, the closet summoning circle is too far away from the monsters lands." The leader of the Wind Clan said.

"For which we most make haste... Lord Shi, I offer myself for this needed quest. We must keep this creatures away from our lands." Zhao offer, as he make a very respectful bow toward the Oracle.

"Of course, Lord Yunlan... I would not expect less from you." The Oracle agree.

"Lord Tao, I too offer myself to free our countries of a possible new era of chaos. We don't need more bloodshed spilled in our blessed times." Shen Wei offer as well, moving away from his father and bowing by Zhao Yunlan's side.

"Yes, yes... the two sides of the same coin can never be parted, nor will I even dare change fate." At that, Zhao arched one eyebrow, a bit taken by surprise by the implication that could be have countless interpretations, most which would please him greatly.

"Then, I offer myself too. A healer will be needed in such a dangerous quest." Wang said, standing by her Prince.

"Then me... me too." Sang couldn't help but offer. He would follow his Prince and the woman he loved to the end of earth.

"I would like to offer myself too, in the name of the Earth Clan." Da Qing, the young heir of the Earth Clan offered next.

"So will I, for the Snake Clan." Zhu Hong, heir of the so called Poison Clan said.

"Me too, Lord Tao. I offer my assistance in the name of the Sage Clan." Guo Changcheng offer as well. His long white hair, was enough to represent that of his Clan, which he was the youngest.

"Then, I will too, in the name of the Puppets Clan." Chu Shuzhi offer a bit reluctantly.

"I will go in the Wind Clan name." Lin Jing, heir of the Wing Clan offer himself too.

"Oh, how marvelous... good, good. I had already make preparations for your hasted departure." The Oracle approved and then the doors of the Star Chamber open again and a few disciples came in and gave each one who offer to the quest a traveling gear, with everything they may need for survival.

"You will depart after a deserved feast. May the gods protect you along your journey to save our lands." The Oracle said, finally finishing the ordeal he had endured for two long days. Once they begin to head to the dining hall, Zhao walked closer to the Fire Prince.

"Lord Wei... so, what do you think Lord Shi imply by saying we are the fated sides of the same coin?" Shen stopped in his track and pull Zhao away from view to a solitary part of the Star temple.

"This is very important Zhao Yunlan, we can't mess this up with trivial implications."

"Shen Wei, this is far for been trivial, he is an Oracle after all."

"We don't have time for this..."

"We sure do or I least I have. This can be our very last journey..." At that Shen Wei stay silent for a few seconds, then look back at the handsome and quite brave Water Prince and sighed.

"I... I don't know... I don't have any idea of what he meant." He said sincerely.

"Then I will tell you now so you may think of it... If we survive this quest... I will formally ask for you, even if all I want is nothing more than to steal you away and we will unite the Clans into a different era." Zhao whisper, before he turned and walked away, taking the Fire Prince by surprise.

Shen Wei stood there for a minute just trying to decipher whatever or not to take him seriously, but after pondering for a while, he remember all those glances he gave him in the Clans gathering, the ones he had not mind a sometimes even return them.

"Seriously, you will definitely give me a hard time..." He finally whisper to himself, however as he walked back, he could not hide his smile, because, who knows, maybe in the end when everything was all over, he would want it, even more than Yunlan himself. Maybe...

AN: Thanks for reading. This was fun too, an epic fantasy in which Yunlan will had to work a bit harder to steal his Wei's heart.