The Prince and the Sun Dancer

Chapter 1 - First Meeting

The night was cold, the cream-colored drapes flapped in the wind blowing through the open windows of the palace. King Morax gazed out to the starry sky, Cold wind ruffling his bangs on his face, cooling his skin. His kingdom sleeps peacefully under the moonless night. Then he hears one of his soldiers' footsteps, the marble flooring making his boots echo off the walls.

"Your majesty! Bandits have been reported to be on the move and they are destroying villages in the east." The soldier exclaims. "We just received the report from the carrier bird just now!"

Morax stood up slowly from his chair, he clicked his tongue and ordered his men to prepare to move out. That night was the night where a small baby's life would change in the blink of an eye.

The sound of people screaming shattered the quiet night, as a fire spread uncontrollably in a tiny village that was nestled deep in the forest near a river. The flames turned the dark sky a bright reddish-orange color from its burning embers. People scrambled to escape the vicious assault of the bandits plundering nearby houses. They would go door to door, breaking in and dragging the villagers hiding inside of their homes out to the street. Once they finished rummaging through the homes for anything of value they would slaughter the villagers in cold blood or anyone who tried to fight them off was killed.

"Kill everyone. Don't let anyone escape!" The unknown woman ordered. She laughed as her men swarmed the area and caused panic.

One by one, villagers fell. The ones who tried to escape were hunted down and killed. Many of the men did everything they could in fighting them off, but they were greatly outnumbered and soon suffered the same fate as the others.

Startled awake by a loud crash, a woman jumped from her bed and looked out the window. She gasped at the scene unfolding right outside. In a panic, she bolted out of her room and down the hall to where her baby was sleeping. She opened the door and quickly rushed over to his crib. She scooped him up into her arms, covered him up with a blanket, and cradled him close to her chest. She dashed out of the room and made her way to the exit.

She stopped at the door and peered out through a crack, looking on in horror as villagers were being killed. Lifeless bodies littered the main path. The bandits yelled and cheered as they continued their assault, enjoying every moment as each person was slain and discarded like trash. She took a deep breath, steadying herself. She glanced down at her baby in her arms.

'I must make sure they don't find him.' She told herself, squeezing him tightly. 'He deserves to have a future.'

She took another deep breath, then pushed open the door, making a break for the forest.

"Hey!! One's getting away!!" A bandit yelled.

She choked hard as a chill ran down her spine. Her adrenaline kicked in as she entered the forest and could hear the thunderous sounds of hoofs behind her.

The woman kept running, darting in and out of the trees to try and lose the men closing in on her. Suddenly, without warning the ground gave out beneath her. She screamed as she tumbled down the cliff. She managed to tuck her baby in close, covering his head and body with her arms in hopes he wouldn't get injured. She yelped the moment she landed on the ground with a loud thud, dusk kicking up and surrounding them. She groaned as she placed her hand on her head. Blood was streaming down the side of it. She coughed a couple of times as her vision started to go blurry. Sudden cries from the infant snapped her out of the trance she was in. She uncovered him and looked him over. Tears covered his face as he cried, but he seemed unharmed from the fall. She let out a relieved sigh that he was not injured.

"Shh. It'll be alright little one." She whispered.

<p>     She gently touched his soft face with her finger, and after a moment his cries slowly dyed down to low whimpers. His eyes cracked open slowly. She smiled at her beautiful baby nestled in her arms. Bright golden-colored eyes stared back at her. He wrapped his tiny hand around her finger and giggled. Unaware of the dire situation they were in. His entire world hung in the balance. The woman practically jumped out of her skin the moment she heard the bandits getting dangerously close. Looking around frantically for a place to hide, she saw a tree and what looked like a hole at the base. She got to her feet and made her way to the tree, stumbling a bit along the way. The hole was just big enough to hide her child. She kissed him on his forehead and placed him inside