The Kingdom To Kill For

Chapter 9 - Alzinder City

Persis had never seen an Alzinder City before and built on the banks of a careful crafter harbor and a gorgeous urban phenomenon.

There were the sky towers in the center, shopping malls, modern buildings, some rising to six stories tall, and the rest was parks and wild spaces, a chance to walk among nature or enjoy the trails.

Daily life is not too stressful in Alzinder, employment is tremendous, and it has attracted a lot of attention. New cultures have left their mark not just on the architecture or on education but also upon their identity, especially the Dragon Cove Academy. What historically was a city of little diversity has grown into a multicultural hub, and it is this that unites a thousand creatures to this day.

Everything you are looking for is in the city of Alzinder, the heart of the Dragon Cove island.

The coffee shop was in the city square, a sort of covered patio with tables a respectful distance apart. Around the edges were food vendors, giving the middle of the plaza a kind of market atmosphere.

Both Sekhmet and Persis walked in, wrapped up in the cold Saturday morning, dressed for the casual occasion with black button sleeveless fashion capes.

Persis is so eager to warm up her hands and make herself relax and indulge such sweetness of the aroma of her matcha latte. “Ahhhh… This is heaven,” she smiled as she slid into one of the empty leathered couches inside the cafe. “Finally, we’ve got out of that boring school,”

Sekhmet had her tea cold mixed with milk and whip cream on the top. She preferred cold drinks and delicious sweets like donuts with cream on the insides, everything about desserts that blends with sweet cream.

Persis fell her eyes on Sekhmet. Her face frowned upon seeing her friend take out a book from her tiny sling bag.

“Oh, you're carrying a book all this time? I thought we are going to have fun,” Persis sounds disappointed, knowing Sekhmet is here to read a book instead of having fun in the city.

Sekhmet lifted her chin, “Yeah, we are, but we’re still here for your latte, while I’ll have my time with my book,” then back to read her book.

Persis leaned over to see what she read this time, an embossed title curved on the hardcover- GLASS, “So, what is that all about? Why glasses?” she asked, leaning her back to the couch.

She paused for a moment to take a sip on her milk tea, then to Persis. “Well, actually, I was curious to know what kind of glass was used to conceal the Phantom Anemone,”

Persis studied her friend, crossing her arms, and said, “Then what? What are you going to do with that information if you find out what glass is made of?”

Sekhmet closed the book. She can’t continue to read if this friend of hers has no plan of letting her continue to read. She shook her head, “My plan was just to know and what elemental power would destroy the glass. As what the professor said about this, it can’t be broken so easily.”

“And you think someone has destroyed the glass on purpose?”

“Obviously,”

“That’s kinda complicated.”

“Why?”

“You see, if you will know and find these reasons, an elemental power that can destroy the glass, finding this creature who wields it, it’s kind of impossible to capture without evidence. And besides, what if this person was using a fire element, it can’t be you, right?”

Sekhmet nodded in agreement, “You got a point.”

“Good. So, are you going to have fun now and keep the book?”

“Oh, I'm having fun this weekend and accompanying you, okay? But keeping the book, nope.”

“Why do you have to bother with this kind of thing, anyway? Don’t you know how to have fun for a moment?”

“I am having a moment. With the book and you,”

Persis' posture slumped the moment Sekhmet didn’t agree with her. She gives up. Why does she have to do this, they weren't in school to study anything. They are supposed to have fun today. It’s Saturday. And reading a book full of glass and finding this culprit is no fun at all.

“I understand that you are looking for this, we are both injured if someone is doing it on purpose, but just this day?” She pursued, showing her teary eyes to Sekhmet. At least she would fall for my puppy eyes.

Sekhmet keeps her book back inside her bag. “Okay,” and took a bite on her donut.

Persis was delighted to see that and grabbed one of the donuts and chewed it.

While they were having their moments, a girl came over between and interfered with their conversation. Both Persis and Sekhmet heads up.

“Hey guys, so glad to see you here,” She waved. The girl wore the casual maroon dress with a white big ribbon on her peter pan collar and a short black cape at her back with a hood.

She has a blue long sleek hair revealing her full, lived-in face, but did not match the blush that she’d smeared on her cheeks which were full of small brown spots on her skin.

“Ah, who --- you forgot your basket, dear, and your cape should be red,” Persis mocked. She looked at her up and down. She didn’t seem to like what she saw.

The girl giggled, scratching her head awkwardly, “I’m sorry, I thought you know me, I’m Shilna, you’re classmate,” her violet eyes are squinting, smiling shyly.

“The half-orc,” Sekhmet said.

Persis’ eyes narrowed, then studied the girl in front of them. “Are you serious?” It sounds unbelievable to see that the girl is an half-orc. She did look young and more human than any orc she saw and met.

“Actually, since I’m half, I looked like my mother who is the countess of Kulshodar,”

“I see,” Persis nodded. “Sorry, if we didn’t notice you in the class. We’re too many to know everyone.” And it’s true. Their class has more than forty students and for her, still early to know one another and keep it in her mind. She’s not good at that.

“May I join you?” Shilna asked.

“Of course,” Sekhmet tapped the couch as she moved to the other side.

Shilna slid in, “Thank you, and I’m here alone. Our other classmates don’t like to come with me today, is it okay if I tag along with you two?”

“Well,” before Sekhmet could answer, Persis turned and lifted her chin to her. “Well, we are kinda busy, too. And we are going home after here, right Sekhmet?” She glanced at her friend with her eyes widened and thin lips. 

Sekhmet seems hesitant to agree, getting what Persis’ message of not having with the girl to come with them, and she nodded, “yeah,” almost a whisper.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I was heading to the Matcha shop, you know. I thought I could have an escort to go there, but, I guess…”

“What? Why didn’t you say so?!” Persis’ eyes were glossy to hear that, “I love that idea, that will be great that you could come with us,” Sekhmet raised her brow at Persis by her sudden change of heart as Persis parried away from her serious stare.

“Really? You will come with me?” Shilna sounds excited to Persis.

“Oh, hell, yeah.” 

“Oh, thank you.”

Getting to the latter shop, Persis’ eyes were shimmering with delight.

The shop was small and was gleaming inside and out, air conditioned and dustless, but it was a minefield for the clumsy. There were row upon row of stainless steel shelving choked with a vast array of canned and boxed goods. A cute little sign hung in the window, “Your Brew Kingdom”.

Persis immediately wandered between them, her eyes flickered with delight, “This is totally heaven. Double Cloud 9. No, an eternal heaven!” She praised while moving from one shelf to another and started grabbing goods into the cart. 

Sekhmet shook her head as she watched Persis, “Are we allowed to buy those and keep them inside the campus?” Sekhmet asked Shilna, who was standing beside her. She was sure she had read one of the rules of the academy of bringing lots of goods from the outside.

“Of course, I was keeping them for a month already.” Shilna beamed, “and I am going to buy some, too.” and she walks towards the other side of the shelves.

“Persis,” Sekhmet sighed and called. She stood behind Persis, “maybe not too much to bought that, they might confiscate that,”

“Ah, don’t worry, I’m a princess, they will never let this confiscate.” Persis said as she busied herself getting tea powders and other goods.

“Right. You’re a princess who never let them go out or order something from here. Okay, I got it.”

“That was different, and this time, too.”

“Fine, buy whatever you want,”

Grabbing one of the green boxes of tea, they feel the ground is moving. At first, no one moves. And the noise is like extended thunder only worse because the vibration is coming from above. 

Then the shelves rattled like a freight train just passed and the lights swung violently from the ceilings. They exchange looks, eyebrows raised.

“What is that?”

Sekhmet shrugged, “maybe a dragon flying above?” she guessed.

Then all at once the shop is moved up and down, as if the entire place suddenly fell from the sky and struck the earth with mighty impact. Glass smashed. Boxes and canned goods fell off from the shelves. With such a force they sprawl over the floor, falling heavily to the tile.

The screams from the other creatures are lost under the deafening noise. As the shaking retreats they creeped out from their hiding, all of them scrambled up to their feet when fear and panic ensued as the ceiling shook and teared away from huge strucks of something bigger.

An ogre appeared, standing over the wrecked no-roof shop. Twenty feet and was five times as broad as an even an olympic wrestler would be, it was hunched at the shoulders and peered towards inside with its dull grey eyes.

“An ogre?” Persis said as she carefully peeked out. They were curled up under the table.

“What do you mean? An ogre used to hide from the daylight and normally be ten feet tall,” Sekhmet joins in. She could tell the ogre was as big as any she'd ever seen. Its forehead took on the usual look of thick bone under leather, the scars over the top raised from being ripped open over and over.

“Normally? That is twenty feet or something. And it looks like he was looking for something to eat. Oh no, my teas,”

As it sniffed the air it began to drool. Huge dribbles of thick saliva rolled to the tips of the tusks that overhung it's rubbery lips and onto the tiled cracked floor.

“How are we going to get out now?” 

Then, there were screams.The creatures came out and fled outdoors. The screaming were desperate, terrified when the ogre  grabbed two small creatures from the shop. 

In an instant, Sekhmet moved, leaping off the ground with ease. She draws closer to the ogre’s upper body, hand drawn. She didn’t give him the chance to strike, a brilliant blue white light from her was enough to blind the creature. The ogre staggered back screaming in pain. Persis flew and grabbed the two hostages when the ogre loosen its grips to them and carry them off far from the debris. 

“Sekhmet,” Persis called, “have you seen Shilna?”

“No, and I don’t see here. We have to look for her in the shop,”

They stepped inside the wrecked place of the shop. And again, the ground is shaking.

From the heaviness of the footfalls they knew it was large, every movement giving away its position, cracking grounds and sending rocks rolling down the embankment. Another twenty-feet tall ogre came and drew close to them holding a huge single-weapon. It runs fast like a horse and it can stand the sunlight, charging with a murderous look.

“We need to get out from here,” Persis stepped into the clearing and spread her feathery wings. In seconds she was airborne with Sekhmet holding her hand.

But the ogre took a huge leap and seized her leg. With a sudden movement of its long, giant arm, it hurled them like a catapult. Their screams can be heard up in the sky and a matter of seconds, none of them were nowhere to be found.