The Land of Khoria

𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 2

~𝘈𝘭𝘦𝘫𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘢~

When I opened my eyes, I didn't expect to be greeted by the most stunning girl, hovering over me. She seemed to be stroking the hair out of my face and putting it behind my ear. I opened my eyes completely and attempted to look around.

The girl flinches at the sudden movement, "Damien." She looks behind her before nodding her head towards me, "Shes up."

A boy with curly brown hair and dark red lipstick walks towards us. I muster up the strength and use my hands to push myself into a sitting position. My head feels so heavy like someone is holding it underwater, refusing to let me rise to the surface again.

The boy, Damien, kneels to my level, "Hey, do you know where you are right now?"

I looked into his almond eyes and shook my head. I honestly had no idea where I could be. The room had blue-grey walls and a white marble floor. I was sitting on top of a couple of folded-up blankets and a winter jacket that had been used as a pillow. Next to me, there was a small table with a cup on it.

Before they could speak again I blurted out, "Where am I, and who are you guys?"

The girl raised her eyebrows, looking to Damien before introducing them. "I'm Carina. Carina Chahal. And this over here is Damien."

Damien nods his head saying hello, "Can you remember anything that happened going up to the events of you passing out?"

I scratched my head, "I don't believe so. Why... did I pass out?"

"Well..." Carina said, "The Serpents attacked during an emergency meeting. They destroyed a lot of the kingdom and killed a lot of the people."

She looked down, and I could tell that sentence was personal to her.

Damien continued, "We were running around trying to fight some of them off when we saw you on the ground. We knew if we didn't take you they would have captured you. We didn't feel like seeing anyone else get hurt, and if they didn't kill you right away, they'd probably use you as leverage. Right now we're in a building, somewhere that used to be a village. It's another place that the Serpents ransacked, so we should be safe here for the time being, since there's a low chance of them coming back."

I nodded, trying to process everything. My family's kingdom in ruins? My mind just couldn't comprehend it.

"Where is my mother?"

Carina looks at Damien again this time with despair,

"We ran before we could know for sure, but we have evidence that the queen was killed."

The weight of the world fell onto my shoulders. My mother... the person who raised me, cared for me, taught me everything I know, gone? It doesn't feel real. The thought of never hearing her voice again, never seeing her face. This can't be happening to me... It can't...

"NO!" I screamed, agony dripping from the single word. I grabbed the glass from the table and threw it to the floor, shattering it. Damien and Carina both were standing defensively, looking at me wide-eyed.

"YOU'RE LYING!" I clenched my teeth as tears flowed down my face.

Damien put his arms out, "Hey, Hey. It's okay, come on, just please calm down."

I shook my head, backing up until I hit the wall.

"No, no, you can't be serious. You're wrong. You HAVE to be wrong. This doesn't make any sense. My mother is the strongest person I have ever met, I know she would have put up a fight."

"She did, and you know that. Alejandra, I wish I could tell you that she is alive, but I am not one to give out false hope. The best we can do is attempt to comfort you if you'd accept it. We don't know each other. However, I hope that you do not become irrational and do something you'll regret. "

My throat was dry and my legs felt unsteady. With my blurred vision, I look into Carinas' chocolate brown eyes. My mind didn't want to trust her, but she seemed sincere. My father was kidnapped, my mother was dead, I didn't have much of a choice but to trust them, and I knew it.

I placed my face in my shaky hands and gave them a small nod, allowing my body to relax. I hear Damien let out a sigh of relief. The room was silent when I heard a pair of footsteps walk towards me. A hand grabbed my wrist and pulled it down from my face. Carina looked down at me, and all I could focus on was the way her mocha skin seemed to glow. She took her hand a wiped a tear from my face.
"I know that it's hard, but it's going to be okay." I could tell that it wasn't like her to be like this. Caring, nurturing. But she understood what I was going through... I wondered what has happened to her.

"What are you staring at?" Her voice knocked me out my trance.

"Uh, nothing. Anyway... what do we do now?"

Carina smirks, "Although you've been passed out for a while, you need to get some real rest. Then we'll make a plan from there."

"Right now, we need to just get back on our feet the best we can. Rest up. I'm gonna go scout around a bit, and make sure we're still in the clear."

"I'll be right behind you!" Carina calls as Damien walks out of the building. "Sleep well princess."

With that, I was left alone. My thoughts kept circling, urging me to stay awake and think about everything. But I pushed them away the best I could and allowed myself to enter the dream world.