Heirs Of Misfortune

4 - The Human World

The next day was Amara's birthday. It has never been special to her, nor did she ever celebrate it with any of her family. Kalen brought her a small cake every year and they used to eat it together and laugh away into the night. This year was no exception!

,, Happy Birthday Amara!! " he shouted as she opened the door to her room. Her face lit up.

,, Thank you Kalen! Please come in!" and she gestured for him to step inside. They ate the cake as they remembered better times from their childhood, times less complicated. It was no denying that Amara loved Kalen with all her heart and from what she could tell he felt the same.

,, I will take my leave now Amara dear, it is getting late and tomorrow is another training day. We don't have long until you have to go.. "and he paused as his jaw clenched.,, Good night!"

,, Good night Kalen. Thank you for a wonderful birthday! I will always carry our memories in my heart! " she replied. They gave eachother a warm hug and Kalen left.

Amara thought for a moment that she could ask him to escape with her. But that would be unfair to ask. Here he had a bright future, but with her he would always be on the run hiding from both fae and vampires. But she loved him and to never see him again broke her heart. But she had no choice.

The days passed quickly. She feared the King would show up any moment, but there was no sign of him. That calmed Amara who enjoyed life far away from the castle. One morning, a week before her departure, Aiyla came to visit her.

,, Good morning Amara. " she greeted. Amara wanted to respond, but her mother conti ued talking.,, There is not much time left before your journey and I have terrible news. Nahla fell ill and is unable to go next week. We have two options, my dear, postpone the trip or you will go in her place pretending to be her. "

Amara knew it wasn't true and didn't even bother to ask how Nahla was feeling, instead she accepted to go in her place.,, No need to postpone. I will go." she replied dryly. Her mother's eyebrows raised all of a sudden and her face lit up with joy.

,, Good. I am very pleased with you Amara. I will make the necessary arrangements. Make sure you do not mention this to anybody." and she turned to leave. On her way out she stopped and turned her head halfway and said.,, Oh, and Amara? Make sure you don't mess this up and bring the token back to Nahla. Do you understand?"

Amara sighted and nodded her head in acceptance. After her mother left, Amara felt tears fall down her face, but she stopped herself from crying and feeling hurt again. Her mother only cared about her sister and her future Queen title and that was it. Amara headed for the training grounds where Kalen was waiting for her.

,, This is our last day of training. "Kalen said in a soft voice.,, Tomorrow you will set foot on human ground." his voice was now trembling. Amara was holding back tears.,, Let's go. " he commanded. Kalen was rough, he hadn't been this rough throughout their training, but Amara didn't let her guard down and defeated him fair and square. He grinned as Amara offered him a helping hand to get up from the ground.

,, Congratulations Princess! " he said and bowed. Amara smiled.,, Thank you! You are the best teacher and I will forever be in your debt!" she replied.,, Staying alive is how you repay me. " Kalen said as they were leaving the training grounds.

It was Amara's last evening watching the fae sky. She loved the silence the night offered and the starry spectacle was her favorite. She wished she could spend her last evening with Kalen, but he didn't show up.

In a blink of an eye it was morning. Roa came to her room to say goodbye. She brought her some breakfast.,, Eat well child. Who knows when you will get the chance to grab something out there. " she said. Amara was hungry, she had no dinner the previous night and ate all the delicious food.,, Thank you Roa for everything you have done for me." Amara said.,, It was my absolute pleasure Princess. Take good care of yourself!" she replied. After Amara got dressed Roa gave her a necklace with a beautiful pendant.,, You will never take this off, do you understand me? "she asked Amara.,, This is beautiful, I can't accept it Roa! she replied.,, It will hide your fae nature from vampires and it will protect you from their powers. Never take it off. " she commanded. Before Amara could say anything she reminded her it was time to go.,, They must be waiting, you shouldn't be late." Amara nodded and went to meet up with Kalen and his father. To her surprise only Xavier was waiting for her.

,, Good morning Princess Amara. Let us not waste any time and head for the portal." he said.

,, Good morning Commander! " Amara replied as she got in the car. The ride was short. Xavier explained the procedure to her. It was quite simple. They would get in a pressurized compartment, strap themselves to the seats, the portal would start and the vortex will suck them inside and toss them right in the human realm. He gave her a map with the location of the token. He didn't explain more and Amara thought that he knew she wasn't really going to retrieve it. When they arrived at the station there were but a few fairies there, the five warriors and the Fae Mage. He was a master at spells, chants and all magical things. He gave everyone a bracelet that would protect them from vampires and cast a protection spell. As they were embarking a car arrived. Amara recognized it as being Claude's because of the small flags it had. There was a great ceremony at the palace to witness Nahla's departure to the portal. Nobody got close to the portal though out of fear that they would be sucked to the human world. She hurried to climb the stairs to the compartment to avoid him. Through the window she saw Kalen get out of the driver's seat and open the back door. Nahla then came out and quickly got inside of Xavier's car. Kalen exchanged a few words with his father and then she saw the Commander drive off with Nahla. Kalen then boarded the compartment and wished everybody safe travels. He looked at Amara and smiled.,, Princess...may you return safely with the token. Remember our training. Always. " and he swallowed hard. The others looked at him with confusion. Kalen told them everything will be explained upon their return. He left the compartment and drove off in the King's car. Amara felt her heart beating fast. So fast that it felt like it was in her throat. They all strapped themselves down to their chairs, the compartment was pressurized and the Fae Mage opened the portal. It was truly a magical moment. The round gate started flowing in hues of gold and the wind picked up. As the colors spun faster the vortex grew bigger. It felt like a second before they were drawn by it. The compartment was spinning and they were being shaken badly. Before Amara even got a chance to scream they stopped. That was it. They reached the human dimension. There was no turning back. The Fae Mage closed the portal behind them. He gave one of the warriors directions as where to find him when the token was retrieved, cast a spell to mask the compartment and simply left to hide and cast the throwing of the token. He was the one who would cast the token into the human world for the future leader of the Fae to hunt down, so he wasn't allowed to join them.

The warriors told Amara they had a safe house and that they should go there first and make a travel plan. Amara agreed as she thought that, when they would be asleep, she could easily escape.