The Half-Hearts Chronicles

by Kealohilani

  Arante removed Jonn’s school ID card and narrowed her eyes at the six people sitting against the log. She walked over to Erik and showed him the ID.

  “This was in your bag. Where is this boy?”

  “I don’t know,” Erik answered honestly.

  “His surname is the same as yours,” Arante stated sharply, turning to Kendra. “Where is he?!”

  “I don’t know either.”

  “Do not lie to me!”

  Arante put her dagger to Kendra’s throat. Kendra looked scared but her voice didn’t seem to know it.

  “I’m telling you the truth! We got separated! Now get that thing out of my face, witch!”

  “Or what?” Arante asked, coldly.

  Kendra sighed in frustration. Being at someone else’s mercy was not sitting well with her.

  “That’s what I thought,” Arante derided with a smirk.

  Lani had snapped out of her daydreaming when she noticed Kendra being threatened. She watched carefully, holding her breath while she waited for Arante to make a decision.

  At last, Lani sighed in relief as she saw Arante lower the dagger and return to Erik’s bag. She hoped the man she had seen would return soon. He seemed much more level-headed than his cousin and more likely to listen and understand. And, with that thought, her mind diverted itself back to her questions about him.

  Arante snapped her fingers and one of her people came running to her.

  “Go look for this boy,” she ordered— handing Jonn’s school ID card to him. He nodded and disappeared into the forest.

  Erik watched as Arante continued to dig through his bag. He loved the way the curls of her ponytail bounced as she moved. It seemed magical.

  Once again, when she finished going through his things, she put everything back the way she had found it. She looked at the things they had taken from Raoul’s, Justin’s, and Lani’s pockets. Lani had been surprised that Arante had missed the iPod Nano sixth-gen and earbuds in her smallest pocket, but hadn’t brought the oversight to her attention. She had taken Lani’s dead phone, her small wallet, her lip balm, and her small crystal Cinderella’s Castle keychain— which was everything Lani had besides the iPod.

  Raoul’s dead phone and his wallet were all he had on him at the time they got onto the Tower of Terror. Justin, however, was a different story.

  Arante was currently sifting through everything she had found in his pockets. His pocket watch, his wallet, a few bags of Cheetos— Crunchy, Crunchy Flamin’ Hot, and Crunchy Jalapeño Cheddar— so much loose change that it could have been used to make exercise weights, receipts he had apparently transferred from one pair of pants to another, for some unknown reason— from the restaurants they had eaten at for that entire week— as well as all the souvenir receipts, pencils— some of which Arante had found in his hair— and several other random odds and ends.

  Arante was about to fiddle with Justin’s phone— as she had done with each phone she had found— when two guards suddenly appeared from another part of the camp and spoke to Arante, pointing at Lani in a definitive manner.

  “What do you think these bat-flap-crazy cosplayers want now?”

  Justin’s whispered question went unanswered. Lost in her own thoughts, Lani had not heard him ask it. Her brain would not stop thinking about the man from the forest. She flinched and looked up at Arante as she cut the ropes that held her feet— she hadn’t even noticed her approach. Arante pointed her dagger at Lani.

  “You! Try anything and so help me— I will kill you. And then I will kill all of your friends.”

  “I won’t try anything,” Lani answered in a compliant tone.

  Arante stood up, turned to the guards, and gestured towards Lani.

  “She’s all yours. Take her away.”

  “NO!” screamed Justin in unison with Raoul as they both lunged forward in protest.

  “Over my dead body!” Justin added.

  “That can be arranged,” Arante said, coolly turning her dagger from Lani to Justin.

  “No! I’ll go. He won’t give you any more trouble.”

  Lani gave Justin a pointed and pleading look. He slumped back down against the log. His countenance fell and his shoulders drooped as he looked down aimlessly at the ground and then up again at Lani— his brow knit into deep worried lines.

  “I’ll be fine. I promise. You two just stay calm and don’t get killed.”

  Justin and Raoul nodded reluctantly. They watched helplessly as the two guards each grabbed Lani’s upper arms and lifted her to her feet.

  Arante sliced the ropes, which had bound Lani’s hands behind her back, with her dagger— muttering angrily about the sanity of her cousin— and then marched back to where she had been sitting before she had gone through their things. She began sharpening her blade once more, but this time the repetitive motion was quicker, more vigorous, and slightly less controlled.

  The guards held Lani’s arms tightly. They pushed and pulled her out of the main area of the camp and through the trees for a short distance until they came across a large supply tent.

  One of the men let go of her and opened the flap of the tent, while the other pushed her inside. She staggered a little as she tried not to lose her balance. The tent flap shut behind her.

  Lani blinked as her eyes tried to adjust to the minimal light given off by a bronze beveled-glass-paneled lantern, which lit the darkened space. As things slowly came into focus, she noticed that she was standing in front of the man she had met in the forest. He was sitting there just like— just like the man in her dream on the plane! That’s it!

  She knew him from her dream. It was an odd feeling to meet someone you had known only in a dream— like deja vu, but even stranger. She decided to keep it to herself. It was probably best not to let her captor think she was crazy— at least not unless it worked to her advantage at some point.

  Her eyes studied his chiseled jawline and his smooth, clean-shaven face. She quivered as she explored his uncommonly-handsome features. All she could do at the moment was stare at him and look into his captivating dark brown eyes.

  Lani had grown up in a culturally-diverse area and had become quite good at guessing the heritage of the people she met, before they could even tell her. If she were back in her neighborhood and were to guess his ethnicity, she would have guessed that he was mostly Tongan— and one hundred percent gorgeous!

  She could tell, even while he was sitting down, that he was tall— probably about six foot three. His arm muscles bulged between the very short sleeve of his leather vest and the arm guards on his forearms. And, although she wondered about his peculiar wardrobe style— it definitely suited him.

  However, the feeling of his character piqued her interest even more. She knew that would sound stupid to some people if she said it aloud— especially about someone who literally held her captive at the moment— but she could often feel things about people that proved to be true later as she got to know them.

  What she felt about this man’s inner self was so gentle and so strong and so… rare. His looks were dazzling to her eyes but whatever it was that this guy had inside his heart was what truly intrigued her. She felt inexplicably and powerfully drawn to him as if there were a magnet inside his soul that called to her own.

  Lani nervously attempted to smooth a few strands of loose hair back into place. She wished that there was more she could do to clean up her appearance. Her long light brown hair was in a single pull-through braid that fell past her waist, but some of her hair had been knocked loose from her long day of riding roller coasters— not to mention the mind-boggling experience of being mysteriously transported into a forest.

  Dirt was on her face and arms where she had fallen unconscious to the ground. She desperately wanted to brush it away— but felt that trying to remove it was not only hopeless without water, but would probably also look more awkward than it was worth.

  Likewise, trying to pull out the leaves and blades of grass— which had imbedded themselve
s in her hair, along with a small twig or two— would also be awkward and possibly useless, as they were very likely tangled beyond the point of simple extraction. She stood up as straight as she could and continued to stare at him— hoping that he wasn’t noticing her untidy look.

  The man seemed to recall himself to the moment, and rose to his feet. His movement appeared to be quite natural and instinctive— as if it had been ingrained in him since childhood that this was the proper way to behave when a lady entered a room. His shoulders were back and he was standing perfectly straight. A regal bearing.

  However, he still said nothing. His eyes were locked on hers, barely even blinking. His breathing was controlled— perhaps too controlled. She dearly wished that she could read his mind. He opened his mouth to speak, twice, only to close it again.

  An intoxicating scent, which had begun to waft in Lani’s direction the moment he had stood up for her, now reached her. She instinctively breathed deeply to drink it in. She could almost taste it. It was subtle yet hypnotic, as if his fragrance were capable of subduing her.

  She could feel it wrapping around her. She planted her feet firmly on the ground to restrain herself. She closed her eyes for a moment. She had to think of something— anything to change her focus. She wondered what the effect might be if she got closer to him, if this was what happened from ten feet away.

  “Hmm…. Excuse me… but… mm… wow… I was just wondering… I was wondering if you could tell me… Where am I, exactly?”

  Lani sighed quietly. She had to fight the urge to smack her forehead with her palm. She couldn’t believe her current inability to speak. She was normally so self-assured— so matter-of-fact. She almost always knew what to say. Men didn’t usually throw her— and yet there she was, feeling like a high school freshman who couldn’t talk to the senior she was crushing on.

  The man’s eyes widened and he blinked once or twice when he heard her speak. The corners of his mouth turned up slightly, but only enough to make Lani question if she were imagining it.

  “You, my dear lady, are in the Forest of Kar— on the border of the once mighty Kingdoms of Trisakne and Kelamosa. Now, if you will excuse my asking— what is your purpose here?”

  His voice was deep and commanding, yet he was so quiet that she barely heard him.

  “Honestly, we have no purpose. I have no idea how we got here. My friends Raoul and Justin and I were in Florida, and Kendra and Erik were in Hawai‘i and Kara was in Paris. We just suddenly appeared here all together and we have no idea how or why…

  “If you wouldn’t mind my asking— what are you doing out here? I heard the girl who captured me back there refer to you as ‘Your Highness.’ If you are royalty, why are you out in the forest like this? You seem more like refugees… I’m sorry… I didn’t mean to be rude… I don’t know why I feel like I can talk to you this way… So sorry.”

  One of Jharate’s eyebrows rose slightly as he continued to regard her.

  “I have not heard of those lands before.”

  “You’ve never heard of Florida or Hawai‘i or Paris? Where in the world are we?”

  “Allow me to answer all of your questions, fair lady. I am indeed royalty, as you have rightly discerned. My kingdom has been stolen by the great and evil entity who has slowly been conquering all of our lands.

  “He is known as Vranah. My kingdom has been fighting him and his forces for decades. We were able to withstand his invasions for most of that time, as all of the kingdoms surrounding ours fell one by one.

  “However, eventually the prolonged conflict dwindled our numbers and weakened our borders. Mere days ago, he finally seized my kingdom. I am the eldest son of the former King and Queen of Trisakne.

  “Trisakne is the kingdom in which you now find yourself. My father was killed and my brother was murdered during the overthrow. I alone escaped.

  “My party and I are on our way to Destavnia, which is the only kingdom that has not fallen. We must join their fight to defeat Vranah before it is too late. Destavnia is truly our last hope.”

  Lani sighed softly and cocked her head slightly to the side as she listened to him with rapt attention. The way he spoke was so impressive, so eloquent— and that accent! She had always loved listening to Tongans from New Zealand, and he had the most irresistible blended Tongan/Māori accent she had ever heard. There was also a posh-British sort of cadence and tone that added to the melodic nature of his voice. Lani was melting inside. All of a sudden, it clicked.

  Wait a minute… Lani thought to herself. Of course! I should have realized when he said the names of the kingdoms. Those places are not in New Zealand! They are in Alamea! This is my book! This is what I have been writing… Maybe I hit my head harder than I thought… Or am I really here and my book is actually true?

  If it were true, she wished she knew how the rest of her book went so that she could prepare for it. She suddenly felt very strongly that she was, in fact, awake— and that all of this was really happening.

  Her jaw nearly dropped at this realization. She fought to ensure that she showed no astonishment outwardly and decided not to reveal her shocking discovery to him— not just yet anyway. She determined that the best course of action would be to ask another question instead.

  “How did we get here?”

  “I do not know the answer to that question, dear lady. We heard a great noise in the forest— like a monstrous crack of thunder— and then another. The second occurrence brought with it a bright flash of light, which held all of the colors of the rainbow within it. We marked where we had seen it and journeyed forth until we found the six of you. I followed you and the rest of my party went after your… friends?”

  “Yes, they are my friends.”

  “You discovered my presence and then… I believe you met my cousin, Arante. She is overly concerned about my wellbeing at times.”

  “Yes. I can see that.”

  Lani smiled nervously, and he smiled back. His smile set a thousand butterflies fluttering through her stomach. A new moment of quiet passed between them.

  Lani again felt that time had somehow slowed around them as they both stayed perfectly still— not even shifting their weight from one foot to the other. After an unknown passage of time, Jharate drew a steady breath in, and broke the silence.

  “I do not even know your name.”

  “My name is Lani— Lani Thomas.”

  “What an exotic and lovely name. A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lani Thomas.”

  Lani’s cheeks turned pink as he spoke her name and she flashed a shy smile in his direction. Her smile changed from shy to playful as she felt a sudden wave of mischievousness rush through her body and vibrate out through her vocal cords.

  “And you must be Prince Jharate.”

  Her eyes twinkled with satisfaction and she positively beamed as she saw that her words had indeed had the effect that she had hoped they would have. Jharate’s eyes were wide with surprise and intrigue.

  “Yes… That is my name… Prince Jharate Inihma— or rather, it is part of my title. However, you may call me Jharate… How did you— how could you know my name, Lani Thomas? Who has spoken it in your presence?”

  “Oh please call me Lani. And no one has.”

  “As you desire, Lani. Please tell me how you came to learn my name.”

  “It’s kind of a crazy story— but I promise I’m not crazy. In the world that I come from, I was writing a novel. I titled it The Half-Hearts Chronicles— and you were one of the people I was writing about. I had only just finished the prologue and chapter one before I went on vacation with my friends. But I had no idea until now that it was a true story!”

  “Please, continue.”

  Lani took a deep breath and thought back to the words that she had written. Although it felt like it had been ages since the moment she last wrote, the story was as burned into her mind as if she had witnessed the events herself. She told him everything that she had written in her book so far— being ca
reful to be extremely tactful while relating her awareness of how his brother, Keanu, had died.

  Jharate listened intently without interruption. The only way in which his amazement showed, concerning the extent of her knowledge, was in his eyes— as they subtly responded to each key fact that she related to him.

  As Lani finally finished sharing all of the details about the coffin room at the end of her first chapter— including the threats contained in Drakne’s last thoughts— she took another deep breath in and sighed. She wondered if Jharate was alright.

  Jharate folded his muscular arms and looked down at the ground. When he looked up again, his magnetic eyes met Lani’s and she could see a deep intensity and a profound sincerity within them. She could also somehow feel it from his heart.

  “I must ask that you never reveal that I am a Half-Heart. That information would be lethal.”

  “Of course not! I would never even dream of doing such a thing! And… Jharate?”

  “Yes, Lani?”

  “I am so terribly sorry about Keanu and your father.”

  “Thank you for your kindness.”

  Lani smiled gently. Once again she found herself wishing she could read his mind as he looked at her. She felt a great desire to embrace him in order to comfort him. She wondered if he was feeling the same desire to close the distance between them that she was. But there was no way to tell.

  She tried to think of something else to say. However, the only thoughts that were coming to her mind right now were unhelpful at best. She paused for a minute and decided not to tell him that he, Jharate, was a character whom she had previously thought she had based on Josiah Harding.

  Nor did she think it a good idea to tell Jharate that he and Josiah could be identical twins— if it weren’t for a few minor details, such as the fact that Josiah bleached his hair and wore it longer. Once again, she figured it was best to simply ask another question.