Dangerous Encounter Part 1

Astoria was astonished by Nexi's beauty. This woman had long blue-black, wavy hair, a small round and radiant face, and porcelain skin. Her almond-shaped, glittering cobalt eyes were deep-set, and she had neat eyebrows. A particularly notable feature was her very faint freckles and thin, pink lips.

'Are most of the human-looking species in this world this good looking?'

She changed into her nightgown, made from silk, and put the dress she had worn in a basket. Coming out of the bathroom, she saw that the elf had already made a bed on the floor using a blanket and pillow.

"Are you gonna sleep there?"

Keya, who was in a sitting position, nodded.

Astoria sighed. There was no way she would let the pretty elf sleep on the floor when a large bed that could fit five people was in the room. Why was the bed so large, anyway?

"Nope," she said, holding Keya's hand, "get up."

The elf stood up, a look of confusion on her face.

"You are gonna sleep on this large bed with me," she told her.

"But that's a bit," Keya paused.

"It's fine. It's fine," Astoria said, getting on the bed.

"This bed could practically fit like five of me. Now hurry up."

The elf awkwardly got on the bed and watched as the Astoria covered them both with the blanket. The blanket was very fluffy and warm, making Astoria wiggle in delight. Keya was as stiff as a post, unsure about how to feel in this situation. Astoria noticed.

"Hey, no need to be so stiff. Relax."

She could feel the elf begin to loosen up and stared at the ceiling, letting out a sigh of relief.

"Anyway, thank you for today. I felt a bit at ease having you by my side."

"I am only doing my job, Pri-. I mean Nexi," the elf responded.

"Can I ask you something?" she asked the elf.

"Of course."

"What am I like? I mean, what kind of person am I?"

"You are quite optimistic, sympathetic, and selfless. You are also very ambitious, disciplined, and friendly," Keya replied.

"Most times," she continued, "when you are going through a hard time, you never tell anyone. I once asked you why you keep it all inside, and you said that you did not want to be a burden to others since they might be going through their problems as well."

"Uh huh."

This was similar to her personality, minus the whole being optimistic and friendly. She always struggled with those two traits. However, she had her reasons.

"Okay, you're only telling me good things," she said, turning her head to face the pink-eyed elf.

"What about my negative qualities? Flaws? Do I do things that are not good or unusual?"

The elf was silent, unsure if she should say anything. She was afraid that it would anger the princess and get her in trouble.

"You won't get in trouble if you tell me, nor will I be angry," Astoria reassured her as she sensed her hesitation.

"Well," Keya gulped nervously, "you do have some negative qualities, but don't we all?"

"Okay, tell me."

With a soft sigh, Keya began to speak.

"Sometimes, you can be impatient, stubborn, and naive. You can also get a bit aggressive and hostile. However, that only applies at the sight of orcs."

"Orcs? Why is that?" Astoria asked curiously.

The elf was silent. She did not feel like explaining, afraid that it could trigger the princess to feel dejected.

"Tell me," Astoria said.

She knew what orcs were since she read her fair share of fantasy novels. Orcs were misshaped fanged humanoids. A brutal, sadistic, ugly, and malevolent race of monsters. She once read in a book that some could either reach human height or be shorter and smaller in appearance. They also share a human sense when it comes to morality.

"Well, they..."

The elf paused, clasping her hands together.

"They..." Astoria said, urging her to finish her sentence.

"They killed your mother and the queen," Keya hurriedly stated.

"I'll show you. This is a spell called Pestuno Canilso. It lets the caster show another person their memories. Since I was also there on the day of the incident and remember everything vividly, I'll show you what happened seventeen years ago."

(Author's note: From here on, the incident that led to the deaths of Nexi's mother and the queen will be revealed with Keya using her magic to project moving images of the incident.)

A moving image began to hover over Keya's hands. It showed the king telling the queen and Nexi's mother during dinner that he had to meet with the other North and East Kingdom rulers the next day. He said he would be gone for about a month as they had a lot to discuss and places they needed to travel to.

During one of the days, the queen decided they should all go to town for a meal at Phanio, one of the best restaurants in Ashen. Since the queen did not want Nexi's mother to tell the king that she left them and had gone to the restaurant with her children only, she decided to invite them and Keya along. They all got into the carriage, guards following behind them.

Before they could reach the town, orcs appeared from behind the trees, killing all the guards. They forced everyone out of the carriage. Nexi and her siblings could not fight or defend themselves since their magical energy forces were not awakened yet. Morvin and Naida were tied to a tree.

Keya's powers were no match for the orcs, so they also tied the elf to a tree. The orcs did not tie Nexi as her mother had quickly and swiftly pulled her from the hold of one of the orcs. It was not their goal to tie Nexi up since they demanded to take her with them as she was the one they were after. Nexi's mother blatantly refused to let them take her daughter.

"What do you want with my child?" her mother asked, hugging her protectively.

One orc got furious and took out a long, broad, barbed blade made of metal and held by a grip wrapped in extravagant, forest green salmon leather. With a single, sharp edge, this weapon could protect anyone from incoming blows and give them the ability to shred their enemies to pieces. The blade had a jagged, twisted cross-guard, adding just enough weight to make sure the blade sat firmly in the owner's hand.

"Listen here, lady," one orc said rather aggressively, "We are not politely asking you to take your little girl with us. We're telling you."

"The girl is leaving with us, and what we want to do with her is of no concern to you," another orc chimed in.

Nexi froze in her mother's arms, her heart beating so loud and fast that she thought it was going to burst. The queen was held tightly by another orc, thus restraining her movements. It irked her to think that a disgusting orc was laying its hands on her.

Nexi felt her mother slowly move one of her hands to one of the ruffles on her dress. She swiftly took out an awakening potion she had hidden under the ruffles of her dress. This would give her magical powers for a short duration. Nexi wondered when her mother had hidden that potion there.

"No. You all better listen to me," she said, quickly taking a few gulps of the potion, causing her body to glow an indigo colour.

"My daughter is not going anywhere. Anyone that touches as much as a strand of her hair will not live to see tomorrow."

Nexi's mother's cobalt eyes blazed as she stood straight and powerful before the haughty orcs.