MEHJABEEN

••• Currently In Elffenda •••

As promised I took my mother to the Kingdom of Toralina to meet the priest. Usually to pass the doorway of Toralina, takes at least half a day. So when we finally reached the Kingdom, we entered the mansion and the Troll guards took us to the garden where the King is having his morning meals.

After the greetings, he motioned Quentin’s mother, the Queen, to follow him as they discussed the future of Quen and Elffy. Using a glass goblet the Troll King cast some spells on it and showed the bright future that they hold. When the King started talking about the good and the things we have to do in hope of getting good grace from the Moon, Quen slowly plugged himself out of the room and released a sigh of relief.

As he waited for his mother on the veranda and the chillness of the Morning air called him to look at the Beauty of the Troll's Kingdom, Quen let his mind finally drift to the world where Elffy is married to him and Quen playing mischiefs with whatever chances he got.

His imagination ran wild and high when he reached the stage he imagined her naked legs suddenly seemed appealing, and started mumbling words like 'delicious' to his lips and— in-between the line of his thoughts, a shiver zips across his arms as he look around. Just like this morning, there seems to be no one here, but he can't help the feeling that something weird is going on. Something that he was missing.

So Quen calls his portal security guard and asks to check on Elffy though. But a mental image broke his sight and dwells him in the pool of darkness. Quen was confused yet ready to attack the mischief creator but what he saw has blown his head into gazillion pieces. Before him, in the view, Quen saw Elffy wrapping her fingers around the chunky necklace, surrounded by a muddy cave and later her trying to run away from something that is hunting her, as she ran towards him wailing for his help. She's trying to run fast but fails before she reaches him. Then, just like every silly girl in every damsel-in-distress story that she has ever despised, sags against the ground and passes out right before his eyes. What. The. Freak? Quen slams a mental gate down on his thoughts, trying to force his brain back to neutral. He kept repeating that he was not imagining.

Or did he? Quen was not sure about that one.

Or maybe he should have changed the subject when he had the chance.

Suspicious caught him, so he sent a beauty fly to his guards and asked about the update on his Kingdom. Sometime later, his messenger came. But unlike a happy vibe, the beauty fly radiated a bad vibe. It doesn't sit well with Quen. Without waiting for the fly, he took the scroll and read the content in it, as the fly buzzed over his head in sadness. In the scroll,

"From, The Portal Security Guard

Miss Edwina Elffy isn't found on the territory and I've sent the warriors in search of her. Lastly, her location was on the forbidden riverside.

Will update you on the good news soon Sire.

From, ( a fellow Elvan of Elffenda )

My Majesty. I'm Edwina's only friend, Inés. It's a concern about Elffy’s wellbeing. It's been a half-day since Elffy isn't reachable. I've called her but she isn't answering me. And her home spirit Willow and Kubri too are not found. Fearing, I've gone to check her personally. But the daisy flowers said that she had gone to meet me yesterday and had not returned yet. I asked my brother Igor to check the perimeter, but there ain't any evident pieces left on her trails. Please ignore this message if she's with you. And if you don't mind, say to her I'm waiting for the add-on details."

Reading this note, after all, they've been through, Quen's eyes blurred with unshed tears; wanting to read further to know that she is okay. He crushes this letter, the same way his heart got crushed into a puddle of paper that it is now!

Without wasting any minute he walks into the Troll King's Room and orders without any due respect, to let him see Elffy's current state and what has been happening to her.

The Troll at first stood grim at his disrespectful act, but once he explained his cause, the Troll nodded his head and used the goblet and cast a spell and a picture was clearing in the globe. It's like a fallen leaf in the ground of dirt. But when the picture is cleared, it resembles a figure of a girl with Ash Blonde hair, left spiraled on the dirt floor like a fallen leaf. Her body was shown with more scars and blood oozing out her feet. Quen shouted at the globe hoping that will wake her up.

On count, Elffy woke from her unconscious state and blinked directly at Quen and around him. She looks to be confused and lost in her world. Before Quen could speak out, she faints back to the former state she's in. And just like that, her figure fades off from the glass ball.

As seen, Quen's mom tears up at the state the girl is in. The Troll King silently bows as he denies further possibilities to find her whereabouts resulting in vain. And walks out and leaves the family alone for some time.

Quen who stood like a rock slowly dwells on the scene playing in his mind and soon melts as he kneels on the ground and lets his tears fall onto the red carpet ground "I'm so sorry, Edwie. I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault." As he imagined the worst scenario in his mind which plays out in the future.

Imagination’s Play...

Quen runs back down to the place Elffy was seen in the globe and lifts the top half of her body and holds her on his lap, letting his skin touch, in a way assuring her that she is not alone. "Please don't die," Quen sobs. "Please don't die, please don't die."

"Remember... I ..." Elffy's words die on her lips as life vanishes from her eyes.

And She’s gone. (End of Imagination)

"No!" Quen shouts. His mother tries to console him, but he isn't listening to her words and is not in the state to listen. As his heart keeps on questioning him.

Why is she gone? She was here when he left, less than half-a-day ago. The Troll can't detect her current location, so Quen was left with no other choice than to go on his own. So without wasting a minute, he whooshes out with his air spirit to the Elffenda and searches all around the woods, but there are no trails of her to be found anywhere.

The very day, in the evening dusk, during his search along with his most skilled and trusted guards, Quen feels a sudden wave of connection. A well-known bond. It's her. He knew that. He could feel her. Thus, made him happy so he concentrated on the bond and soon found a message in the air reaching him with Elffy's voice trailing along in his mind.

“If our love is meant to be, why'd I leave so soon... Why aren't you not here? I'm left alone in this unknown madness. Can't you hear me, my love? I'm dying.

All for you. For loving you. My, DEAREST Quen ••• ”

Quen's lips trembled as he in-took the message his love send for him. It's a death note she has sent him. And again it reminds him to search for his love even harder knowing that she is alive with one thought storming his brain,' I failed her! And she believes that I'll help her out when I don't know how to when I know nothing about her whereabouts! '

••• Currently In Alffenda •••

Elffy battles her way through pain and tangled dreams for what feels like days before restful sleep finally takes her in. When she eventually opens her eyes and finds a world that isn't spinning dizzily, her first thought is that she has not been here before, at this moment. Waking from a long, injury-healing sleep. Lying on a couch with Quen kneeling beside her. The memory is so strong that when she turned her head to the side, all she expected to see was her Prince. But it isn't Quentin sitting in a chair beside the bed, though. It's an old lady in her fifties. That's when she was fully awake and found herself in a dimly lit room. With a ceiling that feels too high. Elffy rolls onto her side, rubbing her scratchy eyes. The room is bare except for a couch and a small table. On the table sits a lantern with a candle flickering inside.

"Oh, you're awake, dear. How lovely." Says the Old lady who's wearing a long dress.

"Hey," she says, looking up from a collection of papers in her hand. She places them on the bedside table and leans forward in her chair. "Ready to face the world again?"

"I think so. So, Who are you?" Edwina asked.

She smiles down at her. "Someone who decided not to leave you out there in the woods."

"The woods?" Edwina repeat. She's still trying to make sense of where she is, how she got here, and what happened before she fell asleep. In the end, she's coming up blank.

"The creepy woods in the forest. They usually parade that zone for their prey. You shouldn't have been there." Saying she shakes her head in disapproval.

Elffy looked down and saw a few scars encircling her skin here and there. Her gaze shifts to check the other parts; where the skin is perfectly healed.

Elffy slowly tries to sit up and attempt to run her hands through her hair, but the dried mud matting the strands together makes it difficult. At least she's no longer wearing the torn, skimpy dress. The clothes she's dressed in look like some girl near her age.

"Sorry, I thought it would be a little difficult to wash your hair while you were unconscious," The Old Lady says. "You'll have to take care of that yourself."

"Sure. How long have I been asleep?"

"About a day."

"Oh. It felt a lot longer than that." Elffy swallowed as she prepared to ask the question that plagued most of her nightmares before she eventually fell into a dreamless sleep. " Am I still in the woods?"

The Old lady smiles and says, "No."

Hearing this, Elffy closes her eyes and lets out a relieved sigh, knowing that she is safe in this place with this Lady now.

“Technically, you shouldn't have been here, but I ordered the fellow guards to take you in case you weren't exactly in a state of talking. Or standing.”

"And what is your name, dear?"

Her name. That's an easy question. And she has the answer. It's right here on the tip of her "Edwina," The name came to her. Saying Elffy looked relieved

"And?" The lady further asks.

"And what?" Elffy was quizzed. What more does the Lady want to know?

"What else do you remember?" What does she remember? Now that one's a little harder. She searches her fuzzy head, then shakes it. "To be honest," Elffy says, "not much other than me lost in the woods."

AUTHOR'S POV:

“ Sadly Edwina knows nothing, though she was indeed out of danger. In her escapade process, got herself caught as prey in the headless creature’s den. Where she is currently being hospitalized. Which is none other than the enemy Kingdom, THE ALFFENDA! ”