Whose Daughter Is Amaya?

Ibarra stepped in front of the painting where Danaya seemed to be floating from the dark sky illuminated by millions of little stars and constellations. She was looking down at the two people lying on the seashore below. Ibrahim used a different kind of charcoal as his medium. He also added golden glitters to represent the stars. Danaya's long hair, spreading and spanning the entire sky was painstakingly painted with gold.

"This is amazing. How can someone paint like this on an island in the middle of nowhere?" Someone from the crowd exclaimed.

"Who is this woman? She is so beautiful."

"Isn't it obvious? She looked like Princess Amaya. So she must be her mother."

"This is initially just charcoal. Then Daddy added gold later on." Amaya explained to Ibarra when she saw him study the painting. "Daddy and I would look at Mommy's star almost every night."

Something squeezed at Ibarra's heart at how intimately Amaya called Ibrahim her Daddy. But he cannot complain. Ibrahim after all did so much for her. Besides it no longer mattered. Ibrahim was dead and Danaya was his first wife and recorded in the annals of Lireya.

Ibarra approached a portrait of Danaya. She was looking straight through his eyes. Her smile was bright and her eyes were clear. Ibrahim painted her using vibrant colors resulting in a cheerfully beautiful woman. Ibarra briefly closed his eyes and tried to remember if Danaya has a photo or a painting similar to the one he was looking at but could not remember. So, Ibrahim must have painted her from his memory and how vivid it was. It seemed as if Danaya was always alive in his heart and mind.

Ibarra examined the rest of the paintings. They were of Amayas as she grew up. Every year on her birthday, Ibrahim would paint a portrait of her. He dated it and signed his name.

Amaya also painted two portraits of Ibrahim. One, she painted when she was twelve and the second one was just a few months before Ibrahim died. Her first portrait of Ibrahim showed a cleanly shaven man with thick long hair that extended below his shoulders. Amaya used different pigments of plants to capture the color of Ibrahim's eyes and skin tone.

Her second portrait showed Ibrahim with even longer hair and a beard. He looked ruggedly handsome in the portrait. Other than the two portraits of Ibrahim, Amaya's paintings centered around the different animals and sceneries on the Island of Miraga. Father and daughter were both gifted artists.

Marx led the group to another smaller room where there were two wooden boxes. Inside the box was the skeleton of a kind of big bird still half buried in the earth.

"That one we dug out in one of the caves. Daddy said it is a fossil from millions of years ago and we have to be careful in digging it out. It took us two months to finish digging. The other one looked like the skeleton of a wolf but is not a wolf. Daddy didn't know what kind of animals were they." Amaya shared.

Marx led Prince Ibarra, Amaya, and his guards through a closed door. What greeted Ibarra's line of sight was a rectangular box made of gold.

"That is Ibrahim's remains. We did not open the coffin so we don't know how he looked inside." Marx said.

Ibarra felt sad seeing his brother's coffin. "This coffin is not prepared by you?" He was surprised.

"No. That's the original coffin we dug out from the island. The coffin was made by your daughter Your Highness." Marx replied.

Prince Ibarra looked at Marx unbelievingly. Then he glanced at Amaya.

"It is just actually made of wood Daddy Ibarra," Amaya spoke.

'Daddy Ibarra. It was the first time Prince Ibarra heard Amaya call him daddy.' His heart warmed.

"The box was pretty easy to make. And then I just melted gold and poured them over and inside the box."

Prince Ibarra and Amaya stood in front of the coffin silently while the guards and Marx waited at the back.

The Crown Prince has a forlorn look on his face as he gazed at the coffin. Amaya stole a glance at the man beside her who looked like her Daddy.

"Daddy said to tell you and Grandpa this… whatever happened in the past, he already let go. He has forgotten and forgiven them. What he lost, he gained back. Daddy died in peace. When I found him lifeless that morning, he has a contented smile on his face." Amaya's voice trailed.

Prince Ibarra's legs wobbled and he almost fell. Two royal guards came to support him.

What a profound statement from a seemingly innocent young girl. Amaya's words were the release needed by Ibarra. He finally felt that he was freed from the bondage that shackled him for so many years.

A lone tear dropped from his eye. 'Thank you, brother!' He whispered.

Prince Ibarra has regained his composure when they went out of the room.

"All of these belonged to my brother and my daughter and should rightfully belong to Lireya." Prince Ibarra told Marx. He was asserting his authority.

"I was the one who found them so I have equal rights." Marx briefly said. "But don't worry Your Highness, all these artifacts will be shipped to Lireya in a month's time. I will just create a replica to be displayed in the Skylar Museum. Consider it as my gift on Lireya's centennial.

The Usturian scientists have expressed interest on the fossils that Ibrahim and Amaya discovered. Usturia and Lireya can do a joint study if Your Highness agrees. Rest assured that credits will go to Ibrahim and Amaya Rocas."

"We can discuss this further with my Father. I believe you will be coming with us tomorrow?" Prince Ibarra asked.

"Yes, it is my duty to escort back Your Highness and Princess Amaya back to Lireya. She is after all my savior."

Marx contemplated and then he asked.

"I have a question for you Your Highness. Whose daughter is Amaya?"