1 Chapter 1

THE DAY  - 18, Zul

THE YEAR - 3055

THE MAN - Young Prince Jordan

THE REALM - Cride, A Fae Realm

I lay up on my bed in my room with my hands folded behind my head, my unwonted onyx wings safely retracted and hidden in my back as I stared up, wishing that instead of the ceiling that was in my line of sight, it was an Opaz night sky.

If I had my way, every night would be characterized by a bright fuchsia night sky, a gazillion pink stars with an occasional large violet one lightening up the night, a glossy bright blue moon - more brilliant than the colour of the Churnes Sea - glistening with tears of serenity in its gaze, the galaxy of differently coloured stars easy to see and calmly returning our stares. It would have been a sight to see.

The mere image of it formed in my head created a feeling in me, familiar and unfamiliar at the same time, a nice feeling but one I couldn't recognise.

But, then, what control had I over nature?

Opaz nights were called rare for a reason. They were once in a blue moon. Or rather, blue moons - brightly glowing blue moons, that was - were once in an Opaz sky. Our normal night sky was a pale blue moon surrounded by lots and lots of dazzling stars, some of which occasionally shot across the large sheet of purple, dark magenta sky.

I got out of my bed and walked over to the balcony of my room and held onto the railings and stared up into the sky before looking down, my royal casual wears gently moving in the slow night wind. I saw a few faeries, probably maids and sentries parading the ground below.

I was bored.

With my Water element, I created a ball of water, forming it into different shapes to entertain myself.

A star, the sun, a flower, a tree, myself...

I heard a light knock before the door opened and wings fluttered behind me. Someone landed softly behind me.

"Is everything alright, Jordan?" a warm hand landed on my shoulder. Father.

"Of course, Father. I was just admiring the night sky. " I turned around to face him. No strand of white hair that was exactly like mine was out of place.

The usually firm deep blue eyes that he shared with my brother Jalda that would have been uncomfortable for most other people to look into for long bore a softness that was usually reserved for mother's children.

His presence was odd as well as it wasn't. He was my father and we - my mother's children - got most things most the others didn't get like this - a goodnight in our rooms before bed. But even so, Father was King, and he hasn't been able to find the time to do that for a while now. Not that I was complaining but I was sixteen now, and my birthday was in three months. I could survive without it.

"Your mother used to admire it a lot too. I wished she was here to see just how much you take after her." His tone was sad.

"Me too." I said. I missed her a great deal.

"You look so much like her." his tone grew quiet and wistful.

My Father once had three wives - my mother, Queen Sapphire, then Nataly and Nadia.

Nataly, the last daughter of the Guard commander had three children - Birch, twenty-three sunas old, May, seventeen and Lotus, fifteen. Nadia had Forrest who was sixteen and Izumi who was eleven.

My mother had Jalda, twenty three sunas old, Jacinth, twenty, me, seventeen and Jasmine, thirteen years old. My mother died fourteen years ago, when Jasmine was born.