IGNITE (The Heir Chronicles Book 1) Page 3

  I turn around and lean against the glass wall in front of the runway. I behind the glass wall, I see Adrian and Drake standing near the biggest airplane I have ever seen.

  I wave my hands frantically, hoping that he would notice me, except that he doesn't. Adrian looks dejected and just when he is about to board his plan, his eyes fall on me.

  CHAPTER-7

  His eyes fall on me. He looks as though he does not believe what he is seeing.

  Really? I flick my hand and gesture him to come here.

  He immediately calls the nearest guard to tell the pilot to wait a few minutes, I think.

  After he is done with the guard, he rushes over towards the main building and in about four or five minutes, he is at the security checkpoint and is having a conversation with the officer in hushed voices. Within a few minutes, my name us called and I am led away towards the private jet. I stop for a minute to say goodbye to Leo and mutter thanks to him for his bike.

  "How can someone be so stupid as to forget their ticket?" Drake mutters, munching some of his roasted nuts.

  The jet is bigger than my house and is filled with the most expensive things that I have never even seen.

  "Oh, shut up. In my defence, I didn't even want to come here until 9:30 and, in the hurry to reach here, I forgot to pick the letter up." I pick up a handful of nuts myself and start munching on them.

  "Do you really know how to ride a bike?" Adrian asks with astonishment.

  "Mm. Mm." I reach out to pick up my glass of orange juice.

  The taste of the juice is so thick and rich, I feel as if I am eating the fruit itself and I can't resist the urge to roll my eyes contentedly.

  Drake snickers and Adrian tries to shush him.

  "Do you guys always eat and drink like this?" I ask, taking another sip and sighing.

  "Um, yeah. Haven't you ever tasted orange juice before?" Adrian asks rather accusingly.

  "Yeah, I have but it's not as pure as this. This is infinitely better than the one I have been drinking for so many years."

  “Oh, and Fena, learn the rules from the rulebook right there. You shouldn’t have any problem learning them from what I think,” Adrian says and walks away to his private chamber.

  __

  "So, um, do you know how to cook?" Drake asks.

  "Yes," I reply. We have been talking for about an hour now since Adrian went to his room to get some rest.

  "Ever worn a dress?"

  "Nope."

  "Do you know how to sew?"

  "Humans, yes."

  "How to apply makeup?"

  "Noooooooo.

  "How to ride a bike?"

  "How do you think I got here?"

  He rolls his eyes and continues.

  "How to build a tent?"

  "Yeah."

  ____

  "Wake up sleepy head!" Drake shouts in my ear.

  "What the hell!" I mutter sleepily and roll back on my bed. I feel as if I'm sleeping on a cloud. The mattress, pillows and the covers are just so comfortable that I could keep on sleeping here for the rest of my life.

  "Oh, come on?" He mutters and rips the covers off the bed. I huff and bury my face in my pillow.

  "Really?" This time, he walks towards the foot of the bed, grips my legs and pulls me down. I finally wake up and shake his hands off my legs and ask," What the hell is going on?"

  "Just look out the window."

  "Ookay."

  I go to the window and the view just takes my breath away. It's the royal palace. The creamish coloured stone building stands in the middle of a huge garden. It's totally majestic and looks like it's straight out of a fairytale book.

  "We're gonna land in the palace?" I ask, straightening up.

  "Yes." Adrian appears in the doorway. "Hey! You're awake!" Drake goes and slaps him on the back. "Yeah! And we are going to land in about," he looks at his watch."Now."

  And true enough, the plane starts getting lower and lower until we reach the terrace, which has a runway. Whoa.

  "Your Majesty," the guard greats Adrian as he opens the door. As soon as the door is opened, I see three figures standing in front of me. One of them is a man, about my father's age, the king, the other man is younger than me, maybe one or two years. Prince Altin. The last one is a woman, about my mother's age, maybe younger, the queen.

  Adrian descends the stairs and hugs his mom while his father pats his back and gives a fist bump to Altin. When he is done, all of the royal family's eyes are fixed on me. I don't remember what I am supposed to do until Drake pushes me forward and I climb down the stairs. I curtsy to the king and queen, both of who smile at my failed attempt of doing a perfect curtsy.

  When I reach Altin, I start to curtsy when he stops me and says," Oh, don't bother curtsying to me. You can just hi-five me." He raises his hand and I give him a high five. I didn't know that the royal family was so . . . easy-going. I turn and see Drake coming down. He too is greeted very cheerfully by the king and the queen as though he is their own son.

  When we all turn to leave, I am accompanied by Altin. "So, did you really take both of them out or was Adrian just exaggerating?" He asks, wiggling his eyebrows.

  "Yes, I really did take them both out."

  "Well, it means that now we have at least one person who is better than Adrian in one thing." We both laugh and turn down the corridor. Adrian, who is walking in front of us, stops in front of a room and says," Fena, you'll be living in this room. The room towards your right is mine and the one across from you is Altin's." He opens the door, letting me in.

  "Whoa." Is all I can manage. The room is so big that it can fit two bedrooms the size of the ones at my home and still have space for a walk-in closet. The walls have a blue coloured wallpaper. A bed is places in the centre of the room. It has white bed sheets and if I want, I can fit a football team in my bed. It has light blue muslin curtains and about five pillows and cushions.

  I walk in into the balcony. It overlooks the garden. The garden is totally majestic and it too, looks straight out of a fairytale. There are different kinds of flowers which I have never even seen and in one corner of it is a hedge maze. I turn around to see both brothers staring at me in astonishment.

  "What? I have never been in a palace before. Cut it out." I say and they both laugh.

  They both turn to leave and I am about to close the door when Altin turns around and says, "Fena, if you need anything, you can come straight to me or Adrian. Consider me your brother here. Okay, you can talk to me and I can tell that we are going to get along," and then in a hushed voice he says, " If you have a habit of going out for any midnight snacks take me along with you 'cause I love to have midnight snacks." He says with a wink. I laugh and close the door.

  What about my clothes? The thought suddenly strikes my mind and I go straight to Adrian. I knock on his door and go inside. I tell him about my problem. He laughs. "Fena, your wardrobe is there in your cupboard. If you want to add a few more dresses, you can inform me and if there is a problem with your dresses' fitting, let me know."

  I walk out. Well, that was a relief. I think and enter my room and shut the door.

  CHAPTER-8

  I wake up with a start, and in the process, hit my head. I put my hand on my head to massage the spot where I got hurt when I hear a crashing sound. It comes from Altin's room. I quickly get down and wear my slippers and dash out the door, but, me being me, I slip on the floor. I get up and run towards Altin's room and kick open the door. Altin is lying in a pool of blood under the chandelier. I mean to scream, but my voice gets stuck in my throat.

  I wake up with a start. Ow. My head. I raise my hand when something clicks in my brain. Oh no, the dream. I get down but don't bother looking for my slippers and dash out the door and run into Altin's room and push him away from the spot he is standing in when I hear a crash behind me. The chandelier. I turn around but a stinging pain makes me wince. Someone else also enters the room. Adrian. I try to move my leg but in vain. He comes an
d helps me lift my leg. "Ow. Crap!" I mutter in pain. "Wha-ho-bu-when?" Altin mutters in confusion. "Shut up and help me!" Adrian shouts and he immediately rushes over to me and helps me sit up on his bed. "You fine?" Adrian asks and I nod my head. "Altin, the first aid kit," he says. "Huh?" Altin asks, still in shock.

  "Forget it." Adrian mutters and reaches out to pick up the first aid box. Just then, Drake enters. "Great, let's have a fun reunion here," I mutter and roll my eyes.

  "What happened?" Drake says, ignoring my latest comment. "Um, nothing much, had a dream, woke up, hurt my foot by a chandelier crashing down, typical welcome night," I say and he rolls his eyes.

  "Seriously, what the hell happened?" He asks Adrian who is currently searching the kit for an antiseptic lotion.

  "She told you."

  He finally finds it and reaches out to touch my wound but I grip his wrist and tell him to give it to me. He hesitatingly hands me the lotion and I start to apply it. Ow! It hurts! I hiss a little but soon, I am done and Adrian ties a bandage on the wound. "Oh!" I put my hand on my eyes and shut them. "Okay, I know it's not a good time to ask, but, how did you know that the chandelier was gonna fall?" Now that was what was confusing me too. "I don't know, I just . . . I had . . . a vision, I think." I have been having visions since my childhood. Whenever I asked someone about It, they just changed the topic.

  "Um, how did you know that I was in here?" I ask Adrian. “I just heard a sound and came in and the rest is history," he replies, staring into distance.

  "Um, I think that I'm gonna go sleep now." I try to get up but immediately my knee wobbles and I almost fall down until Drake catches me by my shoulders. "Whoa, easy there," He says, while I try to stand up.

  But try as I may, the pain was making it impossible to stand up straight. Drake sighs in frustration before picking me up and carrying me to my room. "I could've walked over here myself, I don't need your help, you know," I frown, as he throws me down onto my bed.

  "Yeah, why don't you prove it?" He says, sarcastically. I scowl and try to stand, but instead end up falling down and hitting my head.

  "Why didn't you catch me?" I shout, rubbing my head. He raises his hands in front of him in a defensive position. "Hey, I thought that you didn't need my help," He says and I smack him in his chest. "Whoa. No violence lady," he says, tipping an imaginary hat. "Just get out and shut the door," I scoff and he turns and leaves.

  I pull the covers on me and close my eyes and try to sleep, but fail. I don't know why, but I don't feel sleepy anymore. After all that has happened tonight, it should be normal for anyone to have a sleepless night. I toss and turn in my bed but can't sleep.

  Finally, I give up on sleeping and walk over to my balcony. Wait, I can walk without any pain. I quickly reach out and untie the bandage. The wound is gone and in its place is just a scar. Huh. Weird. I stand in my balcony and look over into the gardens. I lean on the railing, facing the garden and let the cool summer breeze blow past my face. I want to go out into the gardens. I want to let my feet sink into the lush, green grass with the wind fanning my face. I turn around and go in the direction of the big glass double doors. In the blink of an eye I am outside the doors and in the garden. The soft, green grass feels so good. I walk over to a fountain and sit on its edge. I put my hand in the water. Just then, I see an image forming in the water.

  Two little girls, identical in appearance, with the only and the most obvious difference between them being their hair colour. One has light blonde hair, almost white while the other’s are bright, deep shade of red.

  "Psst." Someone hisses in my ear, making me jump and erasing the image in the fountain.

  "Ugh! Adrian! You scared me!" I say, standing up.

  I am the same height as his, maybe an inch or two less. "What are you doing here?" I ask. "I could ask you the same question," he says. "Well, I was feeling a little-" I couldn't complete my sentence. I was interrupted by a sharp pain in my head. I grip my head on each side but that does nothing to help. I mutter a number of curses but still no relief. I shout in pain and soon, I stop. The pain overwhelms me and I am surrounded by darkness.

  CHAPTER-9

  I am standing on a cliff. "Help me Fena," a voice calls from behind me. I turn around to see a girl just like myself. She is wearing a long gown and when I see her hands, I notice that she is wearing a ring like mine, except that there is a turtle carved on it. "Help me Fena. Find the Heir of Time," she says. She tries to move forward but as she takes a step forward, instantaneously a circle of fire appears around her.

  "Fena! Fena! Are you alright?" Someone is shaking my shoulders, I try to open my eyes, but they feel heavy.

  "Fena, you have to do this, for you, me for the people you love." In a flash, she disappears and my eyes flutter open to reveal a white room. A constant beeping sound is present.

  "She's awake," Altin shouts.

  "What?" I ask in confusion and getting up.

  "Adrian said that you collapsed. He then carried you here." Adrian reaches me.

  "Hey! How are you feeling now?" I just nod my head. "What happened to you out there?" He asks.

  "I don't really know, I just my head started to pain and then I saw a girl who looked exactly like me. I think that I just imagined it. Then, the next thing I know, I wake up in this room," I explain what happened to me while all of them listened attentively. "What time is it?" I ask. "It's 3 in the morning. I'd recommend you to get some sleep because you have a long day ahead of you." Adrian says before exiting the door along with Altin. Drake lingers for a few more minutes, examining my ring and eyeing me warily. Even though his expression is kind of frustrated, I can sense him analysing me.

  “You really shouldn’t have come here,” he says and leaves, shutting the door behind him.

  That guy has really got to sort out his matters.

  I switch off the lamp near my bed, the only source of light in here besides the faint moonlight and shut my eyes. After about a minute or so, I hear the door creak open once again. Someone enters inside and hunch over the table beside my bed. Through the faint moonlight filtering through the long curtains, I can make out only one detail. A symbol.

  It’s a slanting line drawn between two parallel lines, connecting them and then going in the other direction the moment it reaches the end of the bottom line, making it appear as if it is the tip of an arrow.

  My fingers brush against the tattoo as the person rises up and leaves.

  __

  "So, here is where you will be having your fighting lessons." Adrian states, opening a door. It's big with metal walls and all kinds of fighting equipment anyone can ever dream of. "Whoa. You actually own all of this?" I say, and then mentally slap myself for saying that.

  He chuckles a little and then replies, "Actually, I own this very ground that you are standing on." I roll my eyes and mutter, "Show-off," and then move the punching bag in the centre of the room and put on the gloves. "Okay coach, any advice for this?" I ask. "Um, yeah."

  "Okay, put your hands like this," he put his hands in front of his chest, both hands bent diagonally and facing each other and I mimic his stance.

  "Bend your knees a little and spread your legs a little and put your right leg a little forward, yeah right. And then hit it with your right hand," he demonstrates how to, and, the result-- the punching bag goes flying into the air about three feet high.

  "Now, your turn," he says and clears the spot for me.

  "Okay," I breathe in and out and then, I hit the bag, moving it about one centimetre.

  "Ugh," I wince and Adrian silently snickers but soon stops and comes behind me to help me. "Okay, so you need to stiffen your hands and tighten your fist, got it?" I nod and follow the instructions. He steps back a step and helps me arrange my hands correctly.

  "Now, pull your hand back and hit it, gathering all the velocity that you can. Okay, on the count of three. One . . . two . . . three," and I throw my fist forwards and hit it as hard as I can, this time m, sending the bag highe
r than Adrian sent it. "Whoa, great!" He claps and laughs. "But, no seriously, how did you hit it so . . . strongly?" He asks in a serious tone. “ A warrior never tells his or her secrets," I say and take off the cloth covering my knuckles and flexed my fingers.

  Sure enough, there are bruises but I am not bothered. I walk over to the next station and pick up the bow and arrow when suddenly, he jerks them off my hand.

  "Now I know that you are good at archery and fencing, so we will come to them later, for now, we will just focus on punches."

  He glances at the clock and turns towards me. "Okay, we still have an hour before the etiquette lesson, so let's start practicing." He claps his hand in front of his face and drags me over to the punching bag.

  "Okay, on the count of three, You will hit the bag and send it as high as you can. Got it?" I nod and take my position. "One . . . two . . . three." And I prepare myself for another round.

  CHAPTER-10

  "Okay, so, table manners are important. So, please listen to me very clearly or else you will become just a joke among the nobles, got it?" Adrian says in an all-business tone. I nod.

  "So, you will be deserved from right to left.

  The glass on your right is used for wine," he says, motioning towards the glass on my extreme right.

  After the food lesson, we have now reached the dance training.

  “Oh, no, no. Absolutely not,” I say. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that I have two left feet.

  “My I have this dance,” He asks once again, offering me his hand.

  “Come on, one last practice,” he pleads and I take his outstretched hand.