The Blood Kingdom was not as Elena imagined. As their warrior guide, who introduced
himself as Aaron, drove them through the city, he walked them through the places they had
passed.
The place where they were found was called the border market. Most citizens of the
blood kingdom do not like associating with outsiders, but the ones who can manage it go out to
other Kingdoms to buy goods. No matter how big the blood kingdom was, there were still some
things they needed and couldn't be found in their kingdom.
The kingdom was an Ice wonderland. They continued their remaining journey through
the market, and Elena's gaze tore through every area of it. Some children ran happily about, with
their mothers loudly scolding them. Some of them were young maidens, with the way they
swung their hips, a basket placed at their side, and walked proudly as men whistled to them. The
buildings were architectural marvels, a blend between cement and ice. They were built together
to form homes that were not the conventional four edges home used back in the remaining
kingdoms. Some houses took on unusual shapes, from circles to cones to a mix between a shell
and a rectangle. They gave Elena a feeling of cosiness, and her curiosity rose on how it would
look inside. As they continued their journey down, Elena noted that the trees were so different
from the ones she was used to. In the place of leafy green leaves were leaves as white as the ice.
The barks of the tree were brown, though much pale compared to the ones she had seen back in
other kingdoms. The roads were paved white, and despite how cold it was, it wasn't slippery.
Elena made a mental note to check if the horse wore anything to prevent it from slipping.
She didn't want to admit it, but the kingdom was beautiful. The clothes the people wore
were so different from what she was used to seeing others wear, both royals and commoners
alike. All wore clothes that were lined with fur. They were made so that the fur didn't just cover
them as to protect them from the cold, but also fashionably sewn that it was still able to
showcase the shape of the women and the hardness and strength of the men. She had never
thought it possible, as during the cold times, the royals she had seen– as they were the only ones
who could afford to wear a fur coat– had worn some so big their heads were the only things one
could see. She wondered what they would think should any of them visit this place.
The stove in their carriage warmed them all, and Elena was satisfied. Since her visit, she
has been filled with all sorts of curiosity. She decided to quell that by asking first,
"Where are you taking us to?" She asked Aaron. His turning back slightly as if he meant
to look at them was the only inclination she had that he heard them.
"Our King has created shelters for strangers brought here against their will or who
mistakenly entered it. These days there has been a rising surge of people entering the land
through the same means that you had. Your attackers were the first to call themselves Warriors
of the Blood Kingdom."
"So, there truly aren't slaves in the Blood Kingdom?"
"It's been abolished for years now. Our last king made it a law and punished thoroughly
whoever disobeyed it. Our current king does the same, but some people think that he is too
young, and they challenge him openly in his face to see what he can do. It never ended well."
Elena shivered.
"Truthfully, our current king is not as brutal as our past kings, but most understand that
for someone to attain the kingdom at his so young age, he possessed a power more deadly than
his predecessors. Some do not understand that and try to go against him at every turn. They are
the ones who still keep slaves despite the law, though they do not boast about It."
"You mentioned that your king is very young. Did he attain the power upon his father's
death?"
Aaron's laugh flowed through the frigid cold. "Our method of governance is different
from what you are used to. Our Kings are chosen when they can awaken the power of our
ancestors. The power doesn't choose people at random but follows a bloodline. Whoever
awakens becomes the king automatically, and the current king has to step down. Our King
awakened his at a very young age, younger than any of his predecessors. Some fear him. Others
do not because of his age. The former is wise to do so."
She remained quiet after that, the silence a reprieve to all that had been going on in her
mind. Her father had wanted to sell her to the current king as an extension of his goodness.
Another ploy by his queen to get rid of her, but one that he encouraged nonetheless. She
squeezed her hands tightly. If this land was just as favourable as Aaron said, she would stay here.
She would perhaps ask him to train her in the way of a warrior. What better way to learn how to
defeat your enemy but from the person he fears the most? She looked towards Forest, who,
despite snuggling himself as close to the fire as possible, still looked at the environment with
awe and a bit of confusion. He also probably was shocked at how the blood kingdom was.
Elion faced the outside with a deadly calm. Her face betrayed no hint of emotion except
the wariness that passed her gaze every time Aaron turned back to look at her. It would have
been a funny sight to behold had she not been thrown into her situation.
The drive to the shelter didn't take too long, as they reached the shelter in barely half an
hour. The carriage slowly stopped in front of a building that looked like a shelter, save for its
unusual shape. It took the form of a long cylinder, and circle holes covered with glass– what she
surmised was windows– were all over it. People walked in and out of the shelter, some children
playing across the front yard and women sitting together and laughing. Some men sat by the
other side of the lawn, a table between them as they played some sorts of board games. Some
citizens of the blood kingdom walked between them too, and she could recognize them not from
their clothes– as even the foreigners wore them– but from their beautiful dark skin. Some ran
between ebony and bronze hues, and some as golden as sunlight.
Calhoun would fit well with these people, she had thought. He shared the same features
with them, and despite the reserved look he kept for everyone, she had sensed the wild abandon
that struggled to be let loose inside him. And she knew, in the deepest part of her soul, that the
day he did just that would be a day no one would ever forget.
She jumped down from the carriage, right after Elion with Forest right behind her, and
they all waited as Aaron walked up to them after making sure the horse and carriage were safe.
Something told her that no one would dare to cause it any harm. The children who played in the
courtyard looked upon it with awe and walked closer, though none came any closer. They stood
mere feet away, studying the outline of the majestic beast and the carriage it carried behind.
No one paid them any attention. Elena didn't mind it at all. She had never been one who
liked the attention of several people on her at once, and so she was relieved that no one gathered
to study them as if they were strange goods. Some threw her passing curious glances, but that
was it.
"Let's walk in," Aaron said, not without glancing at Elion. The said female barely spared
him a blink. Aaron started into the shelter, and the three of them walked right behind him, unable
to hide their awe, wariness, and confusion at all they were seeing. Well, her and Forest. Elion's
expression didn't change slightly. A mask of deep indifference. It was skills like this that made
Elena wish she could be just like Elion because, unlike her, she wore her heart against her sleeve
all the time. She was very easy to read.
They finally entered the building, and Elena had to bite back her gasp of awe. Even Elion
allowed a crack of emotion to show, wonder shiny through her eyes. The shelter was built like a
palace, every area lined with things she didn't expect to see with commoners, let alone foreigners
themselves. A huge chandelier shone right in the middle of the enormous room. That was what
had snacked her gaze, as she had stood for a few seconds, studying its intricacies, before Forest
nudged her to continue forward.
Beautiful expensive couches sat at the entrance, and the shelter walls were as white as the
part ice used to make it. The room made her decorative heart sing, and she told herself that if she
had more time there, she would study the interior decor slowly. At the far end of the room sat a
woman behind a desk. Aaron motioned for them to follow, quietly explaining that the woman
was a receptionist.
They walked towards the woman at the reception table, the first room they had entered.
"Hello!" She said, smiling brightly. "How may I help you?"
Aaron stood in to answer for them. "I am a warrior of the Blood Kingdom. The people
with me were captured and brought against their will to this place."
"Another case of the merchants then?" The lady said, writing down something in a book
on her desk. Aaron just nodded his head. They remained in front of her table, looking at her as
she jotted down some things. Then suddenly, she reached for her desk drawer, grabbed it open,
and brought out a bunch of keys, handing them over to Aaron.
"Follow the stairs to the second floor. The first door would be for the ladies, and the one
directly opposite it, for the male." She said, motioning her head to Forest.
Aaron nodded and started his walk towards the staircase. The stairs could be found in
another open room, just a short walk from the reception table. It was small but beautiful. A red
carpet had been placed on it, and Elena wanted to meet who had decorated the place. As they
reached the first floor, Elena marvelled at how a statue made of bronze stood at every door.
"Despite the cold, the blood kingdom is blessed," Aaron said, gazing at what she had
been looking at. He also answered her silent question when he added,
"They are all well cared for and provided for. Besides, all statues have the insignia of the
king. No one in their right mind would sell it, not to talk of buying it."
Elena nodded her head, understanding what he meant. The expensive statues were placed
boldly in front of the rooms because no one in their right mind would dare to take it away from
there.
They continued their climb up the staircase till they reached the second floor. There was
not much difference between the first and the second, except for the shapes of the statues that
stood by their doors.
"Here is your room," he said, pointing to the first door by the left as they all stood by the
passage's entrance. He was about handing the key over to Elion, thought it better, and instead
handed the key over to Elena.
"Yours is this one," he said to Forest, pointing to the first room on the right side of the
passage, directly opposite theirs.
"I know you all have been through a lot, and are still processing this. But you can stay
here for a while. Just for tonight even. Whenever you're ready you would be returned to your
homeland."