[STORY DEVELOPMENT] ♛ THE HIDDEN KINGDOM ♛

“Where am I?” Mikha looked around the place. It was a strange place. The trees were made out of old leaves and what seemed like dead twigs the other. There was a waterfall that was the colour of ebony, and  dark cotton candy disguised as clouds. The flowers were skeleton shaped that were singing depressing songs. Mikha stood up and looked at himself. He wasn’t wearing his casual clothes anymore! Instead, he was wearing a dark green, long-sleeved shirt, with a brown cape tied and pinned with a brooch. Mikha tried to interpretate the brooch that settled on in the middle of his chest. It was a picture of a turquoise-colored serpent, with eyes colored in maroon. Mikha was confused –what happened? Where was he?  Why was there this brooch-?

“Who are you and what are you doing out here?” Mikha looked at the stranger that had asked that. It was another boy, the same age as he was; only the stranger was a ginger, had freckles and he looked more muscular. He was wearing a maroon, long-sleeved shirt with golden cuffs on it. He had a black cape tied around his neck with the same exact brooch Mikha had. He was also holding a set of daggers. Mikha was grateful because he thought that the boy was in the same team as him.

“ Oi! Did you listen to what I just said? Who are you?!”

“…Do you know where we are?”

“ARE YOU DAFT? WE’RE IN MOONSHIRE!”

Moonshire? Where was THAT?

“Moonshire?”

The ginger groaned. He ruffled his hair and frowned even more.

“How were you picked to live in Numerus in Serpentem if your brain is a size of a walnut?”

“I don’t remember really.” Mikha said, lying. Hey, if this was the only way to save himself, he had to do it. The kid was holding a set of daggers, for sake. The ginger head only sighed and put away his weapons. Then he kneeled down so his emerald green eyes were locked in with Mikha’s periwinkle ones.

“Look- sometimes I get out of hand, and sometimes I throw a fuss over something so belittling. Let’s start over. What’s your name?” The boy asked. Mikha gulped before slowly answering the question.

“M…Mikha Cedric.” He answered, hoping that the worst wasn’t going to happen.

“Well, Mikh, I’m Callas Pierot. I am the captain of the T.O.R.A.   – Troop of Orkhana Rebellious Alliances.” The gingerhead replied, standing up and held his hand out to Mikha, intending to help him stand up. Mikha held his hand and stood up.  He looked at Callas, smiling a bit.

“Callas, this brooch is the same as yours. What does this mean?” he asked, looking at Callas. He hoped that the boy would know the answer, and he did. Callas pulled out a piece of paper from his messenger bag. He unfolded it, revealing a map. He motioned Mikha to stand beside him. Mikha obeyed and did what he was told to.

“Do you see here? This is Lagios – where we live, and the big alliance, Numerus in Serpentum, lives. That’s the alliance in charge for trades, a very important role in this city. This city is located underwater, under the Caspian Seas, to be exact.  Now this is where we are.” Callas explained, pointing to a city quite far from Lagios. It seemed like a dark city, and there was a symbol of the moon settled on top of it.

“ This is Moonshire. The city is also known as the ‘City of Night’. This is because the sun doesn’t exist here. The other cities are much bigger so they overshadow the sun away from the city. Despite only having darkness, Moonshire is known to have incredible magic. The wizards and witches that inhabit the city produce enough magic in order to light up the city, so it isn’t incredibly dark. In exchange for light, wizards provide the knowledge of certain spells to trusted partners, such as Lagios.” Callas finally pointed towards a certain location. It was marked with an X, and circled around. When Mikha looked closer to the map, the location didn’t seem like a city at all. It was only a recollection of clouds.

“But those are only a set of clouds.” Mikha asked, confused. Callas chuckled slightly as he looked at Mikha, as if he knew something that Mikha didn’t. As if he knew anything of the world he’s in. Callas wasn’t surprised though, because only certain people knew what was hidden in those clouds. He then wrapped the map and put it in his bag. Mikha looked up at him confusingly.

“Why did you put it away?” He asked. Callas was acting strange, like he was hiding something from Mikha.

“We’re here, in Moonshire. A war’s about to start and the commander asked me to deliver the message to the south regions, especially our allies. Then we set off to the east.” Callas said. He intended to talk like it was a normal conversation, but it sounded more like a command to the other. He nodded anyway, entering the city.  As they both walked on the road, Mikha looked both ways. The place seemed empty. Nobody was in sight at all. He was beginning to think that they’ve gone to the wrong place.  He looked at Callas. He seemed very serious. For a while, they walked in silence, until Mikha finally spoke up.

“Callas, nobody’s here-”

“Mik, you’re being rude. They’re watching us, you know.” Mikha widened his eyes. Who were they? And why were they watching the two? He shuddered at the thought of people watching him. He wasn’t exactly too bright on the idea.

“Callas, I really don’t see anyone…” He said, shuddering. Callas must’ve noticed his reaction, because he slightly chuckled before grabbing something in his pocket. After he rummaged through his pocket, he gave it to Mikha.  It was a pair of bright blue goggles. He was confused.

“Here. Take it; it will help you to see them.” Callas explained.  Mikha just nodded, grabbing the goggles.  As he put them on, he could see figures. They weren’t humans- they were shadows. Shadows with no face, just eyes. 

“Woah..what are they?”

“Shadow creatures. They’re awfully shy towards other species, only special kinds of glasses can help you see.” Callas explained, smiling at the shadow before them. The shadow simply bowed, before passing through them.

“Why aren’t you wearing goggles or glasses then?” Mikha asked, as he noticed that the taller boy was able to see the shadow without any aid. Callas smirked before facing Mikha again.

“Take a look at my eyes, idiot.” Mikha blinked before slightly observing Callas’ eyes. Previously, they were emerald green, but now they were demon red. Mikha got startled and tripped, only to bump into a shadow. He immediately apologized to it before walking on. He stared at those eyes for quite a while, until Callas quickly commented,

“It’s rude to stare you know.”  Mikha quickly blinked and shook his head in realization. He was caught staring at the first time! It was really embarrassing too, because the inhabitants were staring at him, even Callas was. Who could blame him for staring, the eyes were gorgeous after all.

“How do you do that?” He asked, tilting his head slightly. Callas sighed and continued walking, leaving Mikha behind. Mikha called out and tried to catch up with Callas. He was really curious to know the history of those eyes. After bumping into some shadow creatures here and there, he finally caught up to the ginger, who was walking fast.

“Hey! You didn’t answer me!” he said, grabbing the other’s arm. Callas quickly pulled away, glaring at Mikha. His eyes were burning red. His cheeks were flushed and his mouth was scrunched up. If eyes could kill, his would be burning a hole. Mikha quickly stepped back. It was as if he had triggered a switch for Callas’ anger. The gingerbread spoke.

“I don’t need to tell you.” Callas said sharply, before turning away and walking into a small shop. Mikha looked up at the shop name. Shoppe de Glacies.

‘What a name.’ He thought, entering the shop.

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