The Princess And The Lord

"I wish, I could tell you" Arthea shakes her head in regret, pain, and sorrow brimmed in her grey eyes as she stares at Lory with deep remorse.

"Why can't you tell me?" Lory squeeze her hands into a fist, after everything she had been through should she deserved at least an explanation, she can be patient when is only her life who is at risk but know everyone life is at risk, the world itself is at risk and when everything falls apart it would be on her. Could she responsible for the death of billion people, it's ridiculous!

Her shoulder sagged "Why so much secrecy – you, Father, Mother even Lucas…why none of you ever told me what's going on, why can't you all trust me. Is it because I'm not strong enough, brave enough, smart enough, am I so unreliable? TELL ME!" she burst in anger her chest rose and fell with rapid breaths.

"No Lorient, you wrong is nothing like that!" she moves so fast she shorten their distance in a flash that even Girsha didn't have time to react, Arthea grab her hands "On the contrary, is because it was you, your parents knew if there anyone who can make it through this ordeal it would be you…. and Lucas loves you, he didn't tell you anything because he doesn't want to lose you, can't you understand their feeling?"

"Oh my dear princess, they are weeping for you, your Father and Mother decide not to tell you anything because they want their children to have a normal life, they don't want their children life to overshadow by horror and fear for the future so they kept it hidden, it's the reason your father is so strict with both of you, he trained both of you like soldiers than royalty, it's because he wanted to prepare both of you, he wanted both his children ready….ready for what may come"

"My father already knew everything, isn't he? and my mother…she had known it all along" Lory smile bitterly she asks more of affirmation than a question. 

"My mother, she was born as 'The chaos child' and she foresaw everything even before she met my Father, the moon and sun – me and Lucas, she knew it all along, that's why she….she…" the words 'sacrifices herself' couldn't escape her lips, she pressed her lips into a thin line, the moment she knew the reason her mother death, pain, guilt, and anger overwhelmed in the attempt to control herself she burry that feeling deep inside her heart, she tries to avoid the excruciating pain in her heart, she adamant to live her life the way it uses to be, with smile….

However, on the back of her mind, she knew that the feeling lingers and it eating her from inside, she thought if she could understand her mother's decision if she got all the answer perhaps it would give he a sense of peace even if just a little.

"She make decision…to save her children, a decision that came with great consequences…..nonetheless she ready to pay whatever it cost, just like you…." Arthea voice was calm and gentle but her expression hinted with grief.

Lory lower her head "I don't understand why she has to do all this, why must she sacrifice herself for something inevitable, why she so persistent? if I die then everything will end with me if only she let me destroy my own soul then Lazarus would never get this far and all those people, that poor innocent people, even Lao Min Na….everyone will be saved" the pain hit her like a thousand needles prick her heart, remorse and grief combine into one it swallow her like a vortex.

"You don't know about that Lorient" Arthea cut her off, she tilted her head and smile mysteriously "What make you think everything will be better after your gone…?"

"Your mother, Lorenna saw something….a small thing that would change everything"

"What the Queen saw, Seeress?" Girsha asks impatiently.

Smile bloom on her beautiful pale snowy skin "Possibility" Arthea eyes flickered like brilliant stars "Because there's not much to look at in the twin's future as everything has set in stone, so Lorenna changes her perspective. She decide to look further into the past and when she peeks behind the veil of the time she accidentally stumbles into a secret, a small secret that eventually changes the fate of many people including the world itself"

 "What secret?" Lory's heart beating like a drum.

Arthea takes a deep breath then she let out a long deflated sigh "Your Mother accidentally found something that Lazarus has carefully hidden, Lorenna figure it out what Lazarus was, or rather.... who he was, and finally she found the loophole she painstakingly searching for, however, it did not come without risk, in fact, it came with an unimaginable risk, if she succeeds then everything will go her way but if she failed….two worlds will be destroyed because of her failure"

"Two worlds?" Lory staggered "Don't tell me…is not just this world would fall apart, is Verrion too?" her eyes bulged widely, she can't believe all her fear become real 'What should she do – what could she do?' she shouted inside.

All of the sudden the dark – grey cloud above swirl, the midnight sky become even darker then already is then the lightning come like a rip in the inky night followed by the thunderous boom. Arthea takes a step back she knows she didn't have much time left.

"As you know, Lorenna takes a huge risk to save you and Lucas, for her child she make a lifetime bet, and she bet everything she had for you…"

Lory didn't bother with the rain, she trotted towards Arthea "To kill Lazarus, she wants me to kill Lazarus?"

Arthea bored her eyes into Lory's face and she says: "You are not sent here to kill Lorient, you sent here to save him…" she give Lory a meaningful smile then a second later her body gradually become transparent.

"Arthea – wait, what do you mean, is it about Zhao Li Xin? But, I already save him…..ARTHEA!

"Where there is death, there is always death…." soon her transparent figure transform into a bright white light and dispersed into thousands of tiny light, Lory trip herself and she falls on her knee on the ground, just like a bad omen the lightning strike leaving deafening sounds behind then follow by the downpour, the heavy rain hits her skin mercilessly the pain and the coldness make her body trembles profusely.

Lory stands still in the pouring rain, the repressed memory she painstakingly burry in her mind broke out like a dam it hit her like a hurricane. Fear, anxiety, anger, and loss fill her mind make her body feel numb, just like a broken marionette she falls on the wet ground with her arms to withstand her weak body, she clenched the grass tightly.

The last time she heard these words was when she has to make choice between her and Lucas's life, could the past repeated, do they want her to make the same decision.....will there be a day when she has to choose between herself and Zhao Li Xin? NO, she can't do this anymore!

She can't hurt Zhao Li Xin like she hurt Lucas, she can't live through this ordeal anymore, she's not strong enough. 

[What should I do Girsha, I can't – I just can't…] her choking voice render by the heavy rain but girsha could hear her clearly.

Girsha mum, he doesn't know how to comfort Lory, the magnificent 'Lord of the Sky' feel helpless in front of his little girl, what can he do to make her feel better? What could be done? What's the point to be the first kind if he failed to save his little girl over and over again, what's the point to have all this power if he can't help one girl.

Girsha enlarged his body he crow his wing above her to protect her from rain "Don't give up now Lory, Arthea didn't say whose death it would be, we still have a chance, don't give up now Lory, you must be strong, yo are the King's daughter aren't you!"

'Never forget who you are Lory' her Father's last words ringing in her head, her wailing stop instantly only her head remained bowed. Girsha is right, is not over yet, not until the very end before that she will fight like hell just like she always do. It only ends when she's no longer breathing.

"LORY!"

The shouts make her startled when she looks to the side she saw Zhao Li Xin march toward her with an anxious face. The man who usually always look noble and aloof right now is completely soaked from rain, but it didn't diminish his charmed even the slightest. Lory stares at the man who runs toward him with a blank look, the tears that she painstakingly stop is flown again in her cheek.

'I Love him' she said to herself, she rarely said the words out loud but she truly love him from the deepest of her heart, before she met him she lived in limbo, she had no direction or purposed for living. Just like a leaf fall on the stream she just follows where the current take her, is not like she had something to hold on to, but then she met him.

She like a drop in a dessert, he make her flustered, confused, and laugh and before she knows it she has something to wait for. slowly but surely he seeps into her heart, he mends the cracks on her heart, he fills the loss inside her, make her feel good to be alive. Lor cannot imagine where she would be right now if she not met Zhao Li Xin.

He swoops her from the ground without waiting for her answer, while carrying his freezing princess he runs to the bedroom and kicks the door impatiently, he takes off Lory wet close without permission then change her into a dry robe and cover her thick blanket, then he's not forgotten to raise the fire in the furnace and order the servant to fill hot water in the bathtub and prepare chicken and ginseng soup to warm her up, Zhao Li Xin does all of that without changing his wet robes. 

His soaked and messy appearance almost make the servants scream, normally Zhao Li Xin is already scary adding the rain, thunder and his soaking figure with messy long hair and water dripping from his hair is expected that people thought he was a water ghost, luckily Zhao Li Xin is to worry for Lory he didin;t care with other people reaction.

In the meantime, Lory was wrapped like a cocoon watched Zhao Li Xin every moves it seem she try to ingrain his figure in his mind, Lory is not a sensitive or crybaby type of woman but watching Zhao Li Xin sorry state because of her make her heart ached and her eyes swam with waters again.

Zhao Li Xin stunned when he saw Lory start to cry again, his princess is not someone who easily cry so what had happened. His expression turns grim as he promptly strode towards her then sit on the bedside, he narrows her gaze while gritting his teeth and asks "Who hurt you?