Awakening: The Prince of Nabalar (The Princes of Uvieroein Book 1)

by Samuda, C. D.

  She now noticed the necklace Heopsie wore. The main stone, nestled against the woman’s throat, began to glow faintly. Gradually increasing its luminosity, it became a bright glistening stone.

  Heopsie’s eyes flew open as she jumped to her feet. Her eyes darted around the room before settling on her son. Then her head snapped round to Herman, and then Ariella. With a scrape on the floor, pushing her chair back, she quickly ran from the room. Heffun hurried after her, followed by Julkaz.

  “Mother!” Julkaz called after his mother, his voice registering his concern.

  The human stood and followed as well. He was the only one who didn’t seem perturbed by Heopsie’s actions.

  Finally, her curiosity getting the better of her, she leaned into her husband, asking, “Who is that man?”

  Mirsux smile, his eyes gleaming. “He is the scientist who defected from the Council, Leonard Styles. He has many secrets to tell us.”

  “He seems to know what’s going on with Queen Heopsie.”

  He nodded. “Yes, it appears so.”

  It appeared that the meal was finished, now that everyone had either lost interest or had their fill. As for Ariella, the confusion caused her to lose her appetite. She was concerned for the queen, but had no idea how to help her. Moreover, Heffun and Heopsie seemed to have developed a bond.

  Now that everyone was distracted, she could finally get her father alone. When she touched his hand, he turned to her with a smile. She noted an unmistakable pain in his eyes. What troubles him? She was determined to find out.

  “Let’s take a walk in the garden. You will love it.”

  Excusing them both from the table, she led her father out of the great hall. As they exited the palace, a few guards fell in behind them. It had taken time for her to get used to their escort, but she now accepted their presence with ease. Herman’s face showed his displeasure, and he voiced his concern.

  “Are you a prisoner here, Ariella?”

  “No father, these are for our protection.”

  “Oh,” he murmured, nodding. His glances over his shoulder in the direction of the guards, however, demonstrated his continued concern and apprehension.

  Taking his hand, she led him to the far garden. His eyes widened at the beauty of the plants growing there, marveling at their variety of color and form. He was captivated most by the prismed light effect of the Alzanuas’ crystal petals. Even though she saw them every day, their beauty mesmerized her as well.

  Seeing her father tentatively reach towards the plant, she warned, “Be careful Daddy, they are sharp to the touch.”

  He allowed the hand he’d outstretched towards the plant to fall to his side. “You seem to know a lot about this planet, my dear,” he said, turning to her. His voice was soft. “Now tell me about this thing which you supposedly have troubled.”

  “Awakened, Daddy,” she corrected, trying to suppress a giggle.

  “Why would you awaken some being that sleeps on a planet you know nothing about?”

  With a vigorous shake of her head, she smiled. “No, it’s not a being,” She said. “It’s the life force and I did not know that I awakened it until it was awakened.”

  His eyes narrowed as he tried to understand her. Seeing his continued confusion, she searched for the words to better explain the life force and its awakening.

  “Daddy, when you met mother, did you feel anything special?”

  His brows knitted, showing his deep confusion at her question. “What do you mean?”

  “Like something pulled you to her, like an electrical charge,” she explained.

  He narrowed his eyes and nodded. “Ha, yes. I felt like a bolt of lightning hit me first…” he said, beginning to comprehend what she was trying to explain to him.

  “And every touch, every smile, feels like you’re being electrocuted, right?”

  “Exactly,” he smiled, still nodding. “Wait, have you felt like that with someone?”

  “Daddy, imagine what you felt with mom. Then imagine that feeling multiplied ten, maybe twenty fold.”

  “Hmmm.”

  “That’s what it is like, Daddy, the Z’raschein. It embodies so much more than physical attraction, as well. Without it, these people cannot reproduce; their power to do anything lies dormant.”

  “And you, my daughter, have awakened such a force as this? How?” He looked at her wonderingly.

  “Mirsux, Daddy. I love him and he loves me.”

  Herman’s eyes widened in dismay, or perhaps shock. Maybe both. Ariella wasn’t certain what her father’s expression meant. After staring at her for a long time, he silently paced the garden. His silence concerned Ariella, but she needed to give him time to completely absorb what she’d told him before telling him the bigger news.

  “Okay. Tell me more,” he finally said, taking a deep breath and then coming to stand before her. “Tell me everything. Is Mirsux Heopsie’s son?”

  “No Daddy, that’s Julkaz. Mirsux… .”

  “You haven’t awakened Julkaz’s Z’raa… whatever… life force, have you?” he interrupted her, his eyes troubled, worry lines evident on his face.

  She shook her head, smiling. “No Daddy, only the prince of Nabalar, Mirsux.”

  Letting out a long slow breath, his face relaxed. “Ariella, are you sure you love this… this alien Prince?”

  “Yes,” she replied, shuffling, anxious of what his reaction will be upon learning they were married. “Daddy, there’s more.”

  He looked sharply at her. “What is it you are nervous about? What have you done?”

  “Princess?” a voice at the edge of the garden called. “Princess Ariella!”

  It was Gulk and he was headed their way. Herman turned to her with a deep frown.

  “Princess Ariella?” he asked slowly.

  “Princess!” Gulk was upon them, impatient for her attention. “The Oracles seek council with you.”

  “Yes, I will be in shortly,” she replied as the servant bowed, then turned to leave.

  As soon as Gulk was out of earshot, her father grabbed her shoulders, forcing her to look into his eyes. He searched her face. Her nerves were making her a little jittery.

  “What do they mean by Princess Ariella? What have you not told me?”

  “Daddy, please don’t be mad,” she hesitated before continuing in a shaky voice. “Mirsux and I are married.”

  His hands dropped as he stepped back. A shadow crossed his face as his pacing resumed. He shook his head, moving back and forth before her. She knew it was a shock. She decided to give him time to absorb all this before telling him about the prophecy and everything else.

  “Daddy, I need to go back inside to speak with the Oracles.”

  He nodded with a sigh. “Okay, I’m right behind you, Princess.” His voice registered his displeasure.

  Chapter 28

  Ariella’s eyes flicked from one oval-shaped object to the next as they hovered across the screen. Regardless of how hard she tried, she couldn’t tell the difference between the faces of the Oracles, nor could she distinguish a disparity in their voices. The only difference she could discern was the variant colors of the egg-shaped objects in which the faces floated.

  “You wish to speak with me?” she inquired, curious as to why they summoned her.

  “Yes, my child,” the one in front replied. “I am the chief Oracle. We are also known as Guardians of the Galaxy.”

  Heffun, who was standing behind her, gasped. Turning slightly to look at the queen, Ariella noted her astonishment. Also moving closer, Mirsux and Volnomy appeared befuddled as well.

  “They speak with Ariella in a way they have never spoken with us,” Heffun whispered to Volnomy.

  “Be quiet,” her husband scolded in a low tone.

  Ariella noted that the Oracles appeared to be waiting patiently for her as she turned her attention back to the monitor.

  “I have a gift for you,” the chief oracle stated.

  With a pucker of its lips, it b
lew out a breath. For a moment, the screen became frosty. Then, emerging from the screen, light sparkles materialized in the shape of a ball right in front of Ariella, floating about eight feet above the floor. Ariella gasped as the sparkles swirled around, reminiscent of the magic dust from the fairytales read to her as a child.

  Surprised, she took a backward step, colliding into Heffun. Having never witnessed anything like this before, her eyes widened with the wonder of it. All watched in awe as the sparkles began to take on the shape of an object. Slowly it formed, until she eventually recognized the gleaming object as it coalesced before her.

  “My God!” she breathed, as the aberration revealed itself.

  The length of a saber was evident, similar to the one gifted to Mirsux on their wedding day. The blade’s center was crystal, just as Mirsux’s, but where the pommel of his sword had a small Diainspar jewel, there was a gaping hole. As the sparkles dissipated, the saber remained suspended in mid-air.

  “This is your Ysark saber. Only you may use it. Take it,” the oracle instructed.

  Moving forward, Ariella tentatively reached for the weapon, slowly taking hold of the hilt. At first, the saber felt glued into place, resisting her hold of it. But with a small determined tug, Ariella freed it from its invisible bonds and it came to her.

  Raising her eyes back to the screen, she asked breathlessly, “Is it really mine?”

  The oracle slowly squinted its eyes and replied, “Yes, my child. It is yours. You must place your Diainspar inside the slot. It must always remain there.”

  “Thank you,” she beamed, not knowing what else to say.

  “We will converse again. Be prepared. The battle is only beginning.”

  The screen when blank. No one moved. Silence filled the great hall. She turned, staring into the awestruck faces of Mirsux, Heffun and her father. Volnomy, who appeared unaffected, walked to the dais. Taking his seat, his eyes never left the small group.

  Mirsux was the first to move towards her. He was about to pull her into his arms when the screen flashed on once more. Only one Oracle appeared. It blinked, puckered, and blew another breath. As the frost dissipated from the screen, another set of sparkles materialized.

  As the object fully emerged, the oracle said, “I believe this belongs to you as well.”

  Heffun moved quickly towards the object suspended in front of the monitor. She reached towards the knotted braid of hair she had burned when Ariella left for Xygor.

  “How can this be?” she asked in wonder, pulling the symbol of Ariella and Mirsux’s marriage from the air. “It burned before our eyes.”

  “It seems the oracles have great magic at their disposal,” Volnomy said, smiling.

  Heffun walked over to Ariella, and took her hand. “My daughter, I never gave you a chance to be the princess you were obviously meant to be. For that, I apologize.”

  “No need…,” Ariella said, but Heffun wasn’t finished.

  The queen continued in a soft sweet tone. “The Oracles hold you in high regard. Never have I seen them speak with anyone the way they converse with you. You must be special to this universe. Welcome to Nabalar. Will you be so kind as to remain as my daughter?” she asked, handing the knotted hair to Ariella.

  Ariella’s mouth fell open. She hadn’t expected Heffun to apologize, let alone ask her to stay. She looked over at Mirsux whose eyes were gleaming. Volnomy was beaming, obviously proud of his wife. But it was her father’s expression that gave her hesitation.

  Focusing on the doorway leading out of the great hall, he looked like he’d seen a ghost. Following his gaze, she saw Heopsie. Dressed in a long silver robe, her white hair fell carelessly to her waist. Ariella saw a seriousness in Heopsie’s face unlike any she had ever seen before.

  “Heopsie!” Heffun moved towards the other queen, concerned by the woman’s appearance. Heopsie held her hand up as if to stop her.

  “Listen carefully and hear me well,” she said, in a crisp tone.

  “There will be many things which will be revealed that you must decipher well. You will be confused, and that is normal, given the situation in which we were all thrust.”

  “What are you talking about?” Heffun asked, baffled.

  “I am not the Xygorian princess whom your husband impregnated,” Heopsie replied, looking directly at Heffun, her sapphire eyes hardened.

  “What are you talking about?” Volnomy rose from his chair, moving to stand beside his queen.

  Perplexed, Heffun looked up at him. “My king, I do not understand.” It was obvious by the look on his face that he too was confused.

  Heopsie moved forward, fully entering the room, followed by Leonard Styles, the scientist. Her shoulders were square; her chin held high. She seemed to glide across the floor as she moved to the window overlooking the land.

  “When I was a young princess, I was sent to live on Xygor hidden from the council, my kingdom’s enemies… our enemies. The real Xygorian princess was the one sent to Nabalar to bear your heir. When the council found out she had become impregnated, they ordered her memory erased. But they mistook me for her, and wiped my memory instead.”

  Heopsie turned to face them all as she told her story. Something about her demeanor convinced Ariella that she spoke the truth. Perhaps it was because Heopsie seemed more assured of herself than before. However, something else drew Ariella’s attention. Heopsie seemed familiar to her in a way she couldn’t explain.

  Heopsie continued in a cool tone, “After a few years, I became ill and was sent away to heal. When I came back I returned with memories that were not my own.”

  Julkaz, who had not been present, rushed through the door. As he moved towards his mother, she stepped away from him, holding up her hand to stop him.

  “Do not come closer,” she said, her voice cracking.

  “Mother, what has happened? Why are you acting this way?”

  Heopsie reached out her hand as if to touch her son’s check, and then haltingly withdrew it. Ariella noted the pain in the queen’s eyes as she gazed at Julkaz. Ariella’s mind raced, trying to decipher what Queen Heopsie said earlier, that she was not the princess sent to Nabalar thirty years prior. Did that mean that Julkaz and Mirsux were not siblings?

  Looking away briefly, Heopsie inhaled deeply, then slowly released her breath before looking back to Julkaz. She took his hand and held it between both of hers, lovingly rubbing her thumbs against it. Her pain was evident, as moisture collected at the corners of her eyes.

  “Listen, my son,” she said, her voice cracking. She cleared her throat, and then continued. “What am I about to say will shock you, but listen carefully…,” she paused. Gathering strength, she took a quavering breath before continuing, “I… I never gave birth to you.”

  Julkaz frowned, perplexed. He searched his mother’s face before bursting into a fit laughter. “Ha-ha-ha, Mother, that was hilarious. Now stop fooling around.”

  “I am totally serious, Julkaz. Your birth mother is the real Xygorian queen. She was the princess who bedded the Nabalarian prince thirty years ago. It was not I.”

  “What nonsense is this, Heopsie?” King Volnomy’s booming voice caused the glass panels to vibrate.

  She turned to face the king. “You all have been deceived. We all have been deceived.”

  The man in the white lab coat stepped forward, facing everyone as they looked at him expectantly, then addressing the group for the first time.

  “What she says is true,” Leonard Styles said in a smooth clear tone. “As you all know, Volztaggh and I worked together for the council for over fifty years.”

  Volnomy stepped forward, facing Leonard, his jaws set. “Go on,” he said through clenched teeth.

  “After the execution of the King of Oxilia, his daughter was hidden on Xygor to save her life. As you know, the daughter of the Xygorian king was sent here to Nabalar and you were forced to lie together to bear an heir.”

  “Yes, we know all that. But what has this to do with what Heop
sie is now claiming?”

  Styles waited patiently until the King finished speaking before answering, “Heopsie is the Oxilian child whom we hid on Xygor. A simple DNA test can prove it.”

  Disbelief was apparent on Volnomy’s face. Julkaz displayed an incredulous look, while Heffun stared wide-eyed at Heopsie. As Mirsux pulled her into a tight embrace from behind, Ariella sensed his tension. The story was confusing to all, but the truth needed to be told.

  “Mother, how can this be possible?” Julkaz asked, gripping Heopsie’s hand.

  Leonard continued to speak. “When the council discovered what the kings of Xygor and Nabalar planned, they ordered them to be executed. I was there, under the tutelage of Volztaggh. When they argued about a solution for the real Xygorian princess and her child, I came up with a solution. I knew the Oxilian princess was on Xygor but I never intended for things to happen the way they did.”

  “This is your doing?” Volnomy asked, his tone accusing.

  “I was supposed to wipe the Xygorian princess’ memory clean, but I ended up mistaking Heopsie for her as they looked so much alike. When I found out what I had done, I tried to remedy it. But I only ended up transferring the princess’ memory to Heopsie. Heopsie’s own memories became suppressed.”

  “I do not believe any of this!” Julkaz exclaimed.

  Volnomy moved up beside his bastard son and rested a hand on his shoulder. “Neither do I, my son.”

  “It can be proven,” Styles reiterated. “With the test. You all know that each planet bears a different DNA strain.”

  Volnomy walked a few paces, then came back to stand before the scientist. “Why did you take this long to do anything about it?” the king asked.

  Leonard sighed deeply. “I figured it was a great way to protect the Oxilian princes, while at the same time appeasing the Al Qithoghuex.”

  Julkaz, whose sapphire eyes deepened to almost a navy hue, directly at Leonard Styles. “If she is not my mother, who is?”

  “I’m not certain where your mother is. After the mix up, Heopsie assumed the role of mother, except for a few years when she fell ill and had to be sent away.”