Mira stared at the unconscious man on the floor with fascination. Unlike the healer, he was clad in darker clothing, and his hair was a different shade of blue. This man seemed to be just as tall as Zander Tamein was, but he was definitely more solidly built.
His face was rugged and distinctly masculine. His chiseled jawline and strong brows gave off the aura of strength and a sense of command. He shared a resemblance to Zander Tamien, but where Zander Tamien was cultured and worldly in a cool and suave manner, this man was handsome in that sexy devilish manner.
"Why is he on the floor?" Mira rose from the couch. Thankfully, she no longer felt light-headed.
"There was only the one bed, and you were unconscious so I left him on the floor to tend to you."
Mira blinked. Zander was definitely not from around here. He thought the couch was a bed.
She glanced at the large slouchy leather sofa. It was rather old, and no longer as firm as it was when she first bought it, but to Mira, this was not a negative trait. Its leather worn and smooth from years of use. It had mellowed and turned into a soft comforting embrace.
"Was he also affected by the rupture?" Mira asked, although she was still unclear as to what, exactly, a 'rupture' was.
"No. He has been poisoned."
"Oh hell!" Mira snapped in irritation. "He shouldn't be lying on the floor."
She bounced up and went to the man on the floor. "Help me carry him up."
Zander Tamien slowly rose from the floor, as if in deep thought, and in one fluid motion, picked up the man and deposited him on the sofa where Mira had just vacated.
Mira let out a grateful breath. Zander Tamein was far stronger than his slender frame led her to believe. Although she wanted to help, the man was large, and looked quite heavy. She knew that she would have never been able to drag him towards the couch, let alone lift up his large frame.
"Who is this guy?" She asked as she spread the afghan over him and straightened the pillow under his neck.
"His name is Erick Rashak of Ashrya," Zander spoke, with a touch of sadness.
Even in the dim light, Mira could tell that whoever this Erick Rashak was, he at least had a very good tailor. His clothes were made of very high quality fabrics. The cloth had intricate gold embroidery throughout the fabric, and was dyed in a deep purple hue that complemented the blues in his hair.
She turned back to look at Zander Tamein. Unlike Zander's slate blue hair, De Khai Rashak's hair was more of a teal-ish peacock blue.
"He's very big," Mira muttered. "Is he a warrior?"
"What?" Zander turned and gave her a strange look. "No. He's a prince."
Mira gasped. "What's a prince doing in a place like this?"
"Indeed," Zander shook his head. "What IS he doing in a place like Azure? Even I have no answers."
"Azure?" Mira gave him a curious look.
"Azure is the name we call your world, because that is your language's translation for the color that we see when we look at your world." He explained patiently.
"Ah. That makes sense. We call our world Earth."
"What does 'Earth' mean?"
"Hmmmm. I never really thought about it. I think it means 'dirt'."
Zander gave her a desultory look. "How boring and banal, to name such a beautiful world 'dirt'."
"Oh give us a break." Mira wrinkled her nose. "The only way to know that Earth looks azure is from space." She pursed her lips in thought, and then continued. "We have been Earth-bound for a very long time, so the old 'dirt' name remains. Earth is sacred to us in that it nurtures us. She is our mother."
She then looked back at him. "What does Ashrya mean?"
"It means 'land of the royalty'," he said with pride.
"That does sound fancy," Mira nodded. "So everyone who lives on Ashrya is royalty?"
"No." Zander said bluntly.
"What a shame." Mira clicked her tongue. "It should be named 'land of the mixed-blood' instead." She stole a glance at Zander's thunderous look, and secretly smiled. It was so easy to get a rise out of him.
Zander Tamien began doing some healing things to Erick Rashak, which mostly looked as if he touched the man's face in various areas with his pale slender fingertips. Mira thought she could see tiny blue sparks coming out of the tips of Zander's fingers, but she couldn't be sure.
"Are you royalty?" She asked, as she watched him work on Erick Rashak.
He stopped his administration and gave her a quizzed look. "You can't tell?"
Mira shook her head. "How am I supposed to know?"
He got up and walked over to the french doors that led to the back yard. With a single motion, he flung open the doors.
"Daran! Quill!" Zander called out.
Suddenly Sofie's tiny furry face emerged and she sprang into the house. She caught sight of Mira and began jumping with joy. Then she turned towards the opened french doors.
Her eyes widened and mouth opened in a huge O.
Standing in the doorway was a muscle-bound stocky ogre-looking man. He was bald and had a protruding forehead, bulbous nose, and jaws that looked as if they belonged on a neanderthal.
He looked like an ogre, but he was super short. In fact, he wasn't any taller than she was, and Mira was barely 5'4". He wore a leather vest that had been dyed a brownish black color over his coarse brown pants and shirt, and from behind him, she could see a huge broad sword, sheathed and strapped to his back.
"Your Highness?" The ogre gruffly responded.
She was about to respond when she caught sight of the same six-inch bat-man wearing a black leather skin suit fluttering through the open doorway. This was the same mutha that had dive bombed her before!
She raised a finger, pointing at him. "That---that's bat man!"
Zander Tamien turned to Mira. "Now can you tell the difference between royalty and non-royalty?"