Standing in front of the magnificent ruby castle, Alexia lovingly caressed the storage bracelet, which was now full of mountains of gold and silver. She stared at it with affectionate eyes, feeling better.
"I'm rich. Ah, now this is what I call a happy ending," she sighed happily.
"Can you stop touching that thing? You act as if you two are entangled lovers," a smooth, velvety voice sounded from behind her.
It would have sounded so much better if its contents weren't so sarcastic.
She turned her head to the stunning young man behind her. A svelte figure was walking towards her with leisurely strides. His hair blazed like the sun, carrying with it hints of orange that illuminated the obsidian sky above the castle. It draped to his warm, golden-brown skin, which tempted one to touch it. His yellow-gold eyes shone with mirth, while his cherry-red lips were held by pearly whites as he fought back a grin, trying to appear serious. Which he was failing at terribly.
Alexia had been surrounded by beautiful people since birth. The palace was home to all kinds of beauties, especially her mother. But in the presence of this creature, she had to admit one true fact:
"This guy is a living temptation."
While she thought that way, her face was deadpan, displaying disinterest. The last thing she wanted was to boost the ego of the birdbrain. She answered him in a flat tone:
"And don't you have anything else to wear?"
He looked down at himself. All he had on was a flimsy robe that barely covered his private bits, leaving his alluring body out in the open. She almost couldn't count how many times she tried to hold back her gaze from tracing the contours of his chest.
"I've been locked up for more than a thousand years," he said.
"You should be grateful I even have something decent to put on. It's not as if I enjoy walking around like this." He was smiling, but she could see irritation in his eyes.
Deciding to change the subject, she asked, "Oh, right, what's your name again?" He widened his eyes at her in disbelief.
She sighed; she was sure he had said it a few times before, but she had been distracted then. It was his fault, anyway.
"It's Aetherion."
"Oh," she said. "Do you suppose you have another one?"
Hearing his name, she was surprised, but she soon realized a problem.
"You can't use that name. It's almost like Aethera, the name of this kingdom. Using it will get both of us in trouble."
She informed him while turning around, already making her way to the onyx door. "Of course it does," he said.
"Your precious kingdom was named after me. But that doesn't explain why I have to change my name."he said, hurrying to catch up to her while struggling to maintain a semblance of dignity in his flimsy robe.
"Just change it," she said, making sure to focus anywhere but behind her.
"Okay, then call me..." He paused probably to think, then he let out a radiant smile while snapping his fingers in the air. " ...Helian. Yeah that's my proper name," he replied feeling satisfied with his choice .
She frowned slightly, her footsteps slowly down unconsciously. "What do you mean by proper name?"
She heard a soft sigh, " Are you telling me you don't know about this?" He tilted his head, his tone sounding genuinely curious."I never knew you were so illiterate, but don't worry. I,teacher Helian to the rescue."
Her face flushed at his words but her ears perked up when he started speaking. " A proper name is just your birth name." He shrugged. " While the other name is like a.. title of sorts. I'm surprised you don't have one."
His tone made him seem more pleasant until he continued talking causing her to hasten her strides.
" Just one of the anything aside from my beauty, that you don't possess." He said his tone dripping with pity.
Her fists clenched at her sides as she gritted her teeth. ' Calm down and answer politely. He's the equivalent to a deity around here. Try to train respect.' that's what she thought but her words came out differently.
"I'm sorry, old man, that a green girl like myself couldn't accomplish the same feat as a reverend elder such as yourself. I'll make sure to accomplish it before I turn seventy."
After she got that off her chest, her body relaxed, and a smile graced her face. Only for a short while, before his affronted voice sounded behind her.
"Why did the heavens give such a dreamy voice to a lunatic?"she thought bitterly.
"I'm only eighteen this year, you damn girl,"
Her happy expression shifted to surprise.
And she paused, hoping to hear an explanation. He delivered it when they were both standing at the onyx door.
"I was killed and imprisoned here," he started off "I was reborn eighteen years ago. So, yeah, I'm technically eighteen." He said this as he gestured for her to continue walking.
Tilting her head to the side, she looked at him. "But since only your body is reborn, doesn't that still make you a fossil? Mentally, at least."
" You're clueless about phoenixs. Aren't you "
He smiled, his eyes twinkling with amusement. She wanted to debunk his statement but he continued talking before she could speak.
"No, as a phoenix, everything, including my soul, is burned down and rebuilt," he explained. "The more powerful one is, the longer it will take for those ashes to reform."
She wanted to keep asking questions, but all the words got caught in her throat when he unexpectedly pulled on her hand, making her bump into his chest. Her face grew warm when he naturally wrapped his hands around her waist.
Feeling the warmth underneath her back, she was dazed for a bit before she reacted. Her face burned as she tried to pry her hands free while yelling at him.
"Aetherion or Helian, whatever your name is, release me this instant!"
She was putting a foot down,she thought while stomping on his foot. How many more times could her heart take all this?
Helian kept a smiling face even in the face of her anger. He shrugged helplessly and used his head to gesture for her to look up before resting his head on the nape of her neck. " You can keep scolding me if you know how to fly."
Lifting up her eyes, Alexia could make up a hole in the ceiling covered by wisps of fog. It was the hole that she had fallen through for her to get the onyx door.
Her eyes widened slightly before she pursed her lips, staring at the floor as if she could somehow carve something out of it with her eyes. She felt a rumble at her back, followed by a deep chuckle beside her ear.
" Hold on tight." He said before summoning and spreading his blazing red wings, the hints of shiny orange fighting off the gloomy fog that surrounded by them.
Ignoring the sensation on her back, Alexia blinked her golden eyes. " What did you say?"
He responded with a flap of his wings and a whoosh, thrusting upwards. The sudden movement prompted a small yelp from her lips as she closed her eyes.
Before she knew it, she was being carried upwards by Helian. The distance that didn't seem long before, now felt like a thousand miles. Hoping to distract herself, she turned her gaze to the wings on his back. "They are much smaller than I remember," she thought.
Once he landed, she quickly escaped his arms, pushing him. Helian stumbled backwards while retracting his wings. While he was distracted, Alexia's face burned as she ran towards the entrance.
Hurried footsteps echoed behind her, accompanied by laughter. " So this how it feels to be used and dumped. What a heartless woman." Unnoticed, Alexia put a hand to her chest to calm down. She couldn't let him get to her.
The fog was almost nonexistent now, unlike the fearsome way it had surrounded her when she first came here. This allowed her to see clearly and made the escape seamless.
Reaching the exit of the cave, she took in a deep breath but coughed slightly when the hot acrid air entered her lungs. Thankfully, she calmed down before Helian reached her.
When she didn't hear anything, she turned to face him. His eyes were studying the golden molten pools of lava and towering crimson trees with obvious curiosity. She smiled at him while walking forward.
She coughed again, her voice emerging husky and low. She mumbled softly;
"Welcome, dear traveler, to the lava lakes, of the kingdom of Aethera," she spread out her arms gesturing to the landscape.
He looked up at her. Just staring for a few minutes. Before softly shaking his head while chuckling. " I can't believe I'm stuck with a crazy girl." He muttered, adjusting his robe as he followed behind her.