It had been a year since that night—The Reddest Night—when everything was taken away. Kaelen called it the Blackest Night, but I didn't see anything black about it.

  All I remembered was red.

  Red.

  The black and red soul-blade that killed Papa.

  His scream.

  The sticky, red blood of Mama's hands and lips.

  Her last cold kiss.

  The secret room with that scary red glow.

  The strange magic now inside me that made me what I wasn't supposed to be, but now was: a mere human.

  A heavy puff from escaped my mouth as I lowered my eyes back to the grass, anger and frustration coiled inside. I hate this feeling. Kaelen said deep breathing helps. He was lying.

  Strands of dull brown hair stuck to my face, some getting into my eyes. It had been a year since I cut them.

  They used to be gleaming white. Mama called them platinum.

  The tip of my wooden sword drifted into the corner of my vision. It was a curved thing made of hard wood, with a smooth body that didn't give me splinters like some of the things in the village. I could barely swing it with my small hands without it flying out.

  It was different from the straight ones I've seen in the palace. Kaelen said it was a katana, from Asakura in the East.

  I raised it front of me with both hands, tip pointed to the throat of an imaginary enemy.

  The sun had not risen. The air was cool and filled with the lush scent of earth and leaves.

  My bare feet brushed along the damp grass. One step forward, my bokken came down in an overhead slash. Another step with a cut to the right. I angled the tip down and swung up.

  "Yah!"

  My sword hit the ground with a dull thud, my foot firmly planted in the earth.

  "Good."

  Kaelen Corr's low voice carried through the quiet. He appeared from the grey, a towering, strong man with a face of stone. His katana was at his hips. He didn't need that. He already had his soul-blade. He said it is for safety, doesn't attract attention.

  Attention? We were the only two people without tails in the jungle. Wasn't that attention enough?

  "But your movements lack purpose," he added.

  And there he went again.

  "Next form, Herald."

  "Yes, Kaelen."

  I did the next form without faults. And then the next. And the next. Every morning training like this. Without fail.

  What for? We had been hiding in this jungle for a year. I was wingless and magicless---just a Dustborn now. Even if I trained, there was no way I would win against a Wingly! Hell, I couldn't even beat Sylvester! I was just lucky to have survived this long. The Tzavots who wanted us dead were powerful. They could find me if they really tried.

  "Your Mother's seal had kept you safe, Herald. Be grateful for her sacrifice." Kaelen's voice brought me back.

  Grateful? For this? I'd rather—

  "Your form wavers when you dwell on the past, on your limitations." Kaelen said, resting a hand on the end of his sword's hilt.

  "What for, Kaelen?" My voice was close to a growl now.

  I was still the prince. And he was my father's right hand.

  That made us even in some ways.

  "I'm sealed. I cannot fly. I cannot use my Wingly powers. Why train?" I said, "I can't even beat Sylvester."

  He watched me with that stone gaze.

  Only the singing of crickets were heard.

  "You are the last Lucent King, Herald. When the time comes, you will lead the Lucents to reclaim Lumina," Kaelen said. "Her Majesty entrusted me with your future. I train you so that when the time comes, you will be prepared to face your destiny."

  "Destiny?" I snapped, defiance bubbling up. "I don't—"

  "The Tzavots are will stop at nothing to kill you, Your Highness. Without you, there is no hope for peace between Winglies and Dustborns."

  Kaelen paused, turning to look at the dark blue sky that is starting to lighten.

  "The time will come when the seal breaks. When it does, you can no longer hide. They will come after you." Kaelen said, crossing his arms, "It'll be too late if I don't start you now."

  Then just let me die then.

  I couldn't say that.

  Not when Mama told me to live. Not when Mama told him to take care of me.

  But this wasn't what I wanted.

  Why live when Mama and Papa weren't here with me?

  I want— I want to— Ugh!

  "I understand," I looked down, feeling the pointlessness of arguing. The words wouldn't come out.

  "Kaelen."

  I continued to train, my form wavering between flawless and distracted as I tried to shove the bloody memories that kept creeping out of the deep hole in me.

  Kaelen stood with his arm crossed, shifting his weight between his feet whenever my form wavered, but said nothing.

  When the skies began to turned blue and sunlight peeked through the canopy, Kaelen relaxed his arms.

  "That's enough, Herald," Kaelen said. "Let's get back."

  ...

  I trudged behind Kaelen, dragging the tip of the bokken along the dirt. I didn't care about destiny or Helel or whatever peace there should be between Winglies and Dustborns.

  Sounds of life began to mingle with the buzzing of insects as we approached the village, of Felid children laughing and playing, the grown-ups talking, and of water being collected from the river and carried up into the tree huts.

  Ibis, my hiding place.

  The world above was a world of tree huts connected by rope bridges, overarching branches and dangling vines—home to a small, isolated community of Felids, humans with cat ears and tail.

  The grown-ups talked on the porches on trees. The kids slid along the branches, leapt from trees to tress, or swung on vines. They climbed trees as naturally as flying is for Winglies, and they landed gracefully from heights.

  A large ancient tree stood at the center of the village. The Elder's House was built on it---Sylvester's home.

  Kaelen said our first ancestors, the First Winglies, created them millenias ago. So what? I was the least here.

  I took a deep breath, a feeling so strong surged inside made me want to scream and throw the stick in my hand.

  The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  My home—if it could be called that—was an old storage shed at the base of one of the giant trees. It was used to store fishing equipment for the village. The Elder had let us use it, and we made it as comfortable as we could.

  My eyes travelled halfway up our vine-ridden tree, where the Felids had carved something that would pass for a flat onto the trunk, and built their hut there. It was decorated with a small wooden fence. Some colorful flowers lined the wooden steps.

  Natalie's hut.

  Smoke from Ollette's cooking was coming out the windows.

  I'd never been allowed in. Morgan, her dad, got very angry once when Natalie invited me in. But, he let her play with me. And Ollette, her mum, gave me food all the time.

  Strange. I wasn't allowed in their house, but I could eat their food, and Natalie would bring them almost everyday.

  Thinking about Natalie bringing food again made me smile.

  As usual, I went into the tent Kaelen had pitched outside our shed to wash up. It was a simple shed made of thick sticks and rough cloth, with a big vase of water and some soap inside.

  I froze after I ducked through the curtains. Three Felid children were inside, curiously examining a glass bottle of shampoo like kittens finding an interesting prey. Their tails bristled when they saw me and one of the them--a girl--squeaked.

  They were... Scared. Of me? I was literally a harmless boy with a stick!

  One of them grabbed their friend, that friend grabbed the girl and they bolted past me, knocking me over. The shampoo hit the ground with a thunk, but luckily it didn't break.

  I stared at the space where they had disappeared, bitter and confused.

  *Everyone looks at me like I'm a ghost.

  A soft woosh came from inside just as I was undressing, followed by the crackling of fire. Kaelen had just lighted the stove with a Fire Bolt.

  Magic... If Natalie was around, Kaelen would be striking the flint.

  His cooking was bad. Plain rice, some cut vegetables, boiled eggs, meat seasoned with just salt.

  The water sloshed as I scooped it out of the vase and tipped it over my head, the coolness washing away my tension. I took my time scrubbing myself because after this was bad breakfast and studies.

  When I finally came out of the tent, what I saw made my heart leapt for joy.

  Two dark brown cat ears twitching at me. Her sky blue eyes blinking under her wild hair that had a white patch on her right bangs. Her white-tipped tail curled upwards when they saw me.

  A wide grin that bared her sharp canines spread across her cute face.

  "Natalie!"

  "Herald! I brought you some food!" She sang, holding up the basket to me.

  I took a deep breath, the savory scent made me eager to eat.

  "Ohh yeah! Your Mum made curry!"

  "Yup! And you must be hungry after all that training."

  "I sure am! C'mon in, Nat. Let's eat together."

  We careened into the hut together and plunked down on the ground around the low table.

  Kaelen was setting it up: Rice on clay plates, fried eggs seasoned with some kind of dark brown water made from beans, and some sliced cucumbers and onions.

  This was one of the better ones. The worst was just some mashed root vegetable that I couldn't never, ever name properly: Tapio something.

  Natalie opened the basket on the table and took out a few clay jars with treasures inside: An reddish-orange chicken stew, red pastey oil made from onion and chilli and fried anchovies and peanuts!

  Ollette's cooking has been my lifesaver all these years. They're so different from what I had at the palace. Spicy, savory and hot. I still hadn't gotten used to chilli's, but they were welcome compared to Kaelen's just-salt food.

  And he said my sword forms have no purpose.

  I drowned my rice in sauce and tucked in.

  "Your Mum's cooking is great, Natalie!" I said, "Must be great to eat her food everyday."

  She just grinned. But somehow--I think for just a tiny bit--I saw her sad.

  Did I imagine it?

  "Would you like some, Mister Kaelen?" Natalie asked, nudging the clay pot towards Kaelen.

  "No, thank you," Kaelen said.

  "So whatcha doin after this, Herald?" Natalie asked between mouthfuls.

  "I've got studies," I mumbled, sticking a thumb at the books on a shelf.

  We had arrived in Ibis Village with nothing but clothes on our backs. And sometime later, those books appeared. They look so out of place in this jungle. Gilded leather and crisp white pages, though they're little spotty now.

  Kaelen wouldn't tell me how he got it.

  "Oh..." Natalie's ear flattened a bit before perking up, "Are we doing the picture books today, Mister Kaelen?"

  I stopped chewing too. The last time we used that book, Natalie joined and it was a lot of fun.

  "No," Kaelen said, "Today's history and etiquette."

  I groaned as I took a bite out of the chicken in my hand. Natalie made a ouch-that-sucks smile at me.

  Etiquette? In this jungle? Just kill me already.

  After like... An hour or so?

  "Alright, knife diagonal on the upper right, and fork likewise on the upper left! Elbows off the table." Nobody cares. Felids eat with their hands.

  "And the War of the Magi was thousands of years ago." Even less important.

  I closed the books with a firm thud and pushed them away. I had survived class, thanks to Ollette's cooking and Natalie's company.

  "It's funny how you eat with those things," Natalie said, examining the silver spoon in her hand. "Eating with your hands are much better. The smell lingers on your fingers long after the foods gone." She smelled her fingers and licked her lips.

  She was right. But my royal background demanded that I eat with utensils.

  "Can we go out and play now, Mister Kaelen?" Natalie asked, bouncing eagerly.

  I looked at him too, trying to make that please-let-me-go face.

  His face never changes. Maybe they really were made of stone.

  "You may go. But you just return before sundown," he said as he turned away to do the dishes.

  "Thank you, Kaelen!" I said.

  "Let's go, Herald! Last one is an onion!"

  "Hey, wait up!"

  Together, we careened out of shed, laughing gleefully.

  Sundown can wait. For this precious moment, I can just be normal.

  Natalie's bright and gleeful laughter rang across the jungle as we ran across the village. She was sprinting fast ahead, and I struggled to keep up.

  She skidded to a halt and turned. Then, she became a blur. I felt a tap at my arm. And she reappeared again where she had stood.

  She was so fast I couldn't react.

  "Tag! You're it!" She called out, her tail pointing straight up, and she bolted away.

  "Hey! No fair!" I broke into a run, trying to chase her, "I didn't even see that!"

  She vaulted over the roots of the kapok trees, some of them as tall as my waist. I had to find ways around, or clumsily climb over to get to her. They slowed me down, but she's always waiting for me at the other side.

  When I made it across this time, she wasn't there. I halted, looking left and right.

  "Hey, Natalie?" I said between breaths. Where was she hiding now?

  A soft rustle from my left.

  "Nyaa—!"

  "Oof—!"

  And I was slammed onto the jungle floor, my blue pajamas was smeared with dirt.

  "Gotcha, Herald!" Natalie whooped triumphantly over me, laughing till her face flushed red.

  "Oh yeah?! I haven't been training for nothing!" I bucked and tried to roll over her.

  She was really strong. I pushed her back, only to have her pin me back down.

  Being a Felid, super physical strength was one of her natural traits. Once I had fallen into a ditch when my vine swinging went wrong. She easily lifted me out of it with her hands.

  It was during these times I am actually glad for Kaelen's training. I could keep up with her for a while, if she went easy on me.

  We'd tussled around like that, rolling over each other and trying to pin each other, grunting and laughing. Sometimes, she'd accidentally scratch me with her nails. Her nails look like mine, but with sharper ends, and she could extend them into claws when in danger. I forgot how many scratches she had littered me with from playing like this.

  In the end, I lost the wrestling match. Her energy never seem to run out. I lay panting, flat on the jungle floor, my royal tunic ruined by dirt. Natalie sat beside me, her dark green dress also ruined. Her tail flicking non-stop from all the energy.

  That tail. I could win if—Nah. Just like you didn't touch the wing base of Winglies, you didn't pull a Felid's tail.

  "You didn't let me win this time, Natalie." I said between breaths.

  "I did, silly," Natalie said, pushing me at my shoulders, "You didn't take it."

  "Huh, when?"

  "At the third time, you didn't notice I leaned back?"

  "No...?"

  "You were distracted, Herald."

  "Yeah, by your tail." I said, pretending to want to grab her tail.

  "Hey! Don't you dare pull it!" Her tail flicking away, the fur bristling, "I'll bite you!"

  I snapped my hand back quickly, laughing, "Just kidding, I won't, Nat."

  "Natalie, Herald."

  The voice sounded like a sweet bell. Standing there at the arched entryway the villagers cut into the very tall kapok root was a Felid woman. She was tall and slender, her dark brown hair also had a white patch on the right bangs. Like Natalie, she also wore a dark green dress, with an orange sash tied at the waist and a necklace of shiny riverstones at her collarbone.

  Ollette Birdsong, Natalie's mother.

  Her bare feet padded across the mossy jungle. And she looked at us—yes, us, not just Natalie—with her gentle, sky blue eyes. For a moment, a familiar warmth settled in my chest, the same one when Mama or Papa looked at me the way she did.

  She settled down beside us and patted Natalie's head. She leaned into her touch and purred. And then at me, still flat on my back with Natalie making sure I'm not going anywhere. Her fingers traced a gentle path across my forehead.

  Strange... The other village women never treated me like that. Only her.

  I caught Natalie's eyes too—she had gotten off now. They looked at me, and smiled like they had known me for a long time. I don't know how to say it.

  But all this while, I never dared to asked.

  I was afraid to. Afraid that I might lose whatever peace I found.

  "Have you eaten, my dears?" Ollette asked.

  "We've eaten breakfast..." Natalie trailed off, her tone anticipating more food.

  Ollette chuckled, and produced a small leaf-wrapped package from her sling-pouch. "I just came back from gathering herbs. And I also brought you some snacks you can take into the jungle with you."

  Natalie sniffed the air and her eyes twinkled, "Yay! It's Kueh Lenggang! My favorite!" Natalie was really bouncing with excitement now.

  Kueh Lenggang, the green-colored crepe rolled with coconut and brown sugar filling. Before I knew it, a wide grin broke across my face. I was already imagining the fragrance of pandan and the savoriness of coconut in my mouth. Her cooking was so much different than what I had at the palace.

  "I know you and Herald like them, so I made more today." Ollette handed the package to Natalie, "You can share them when you're hungry."

  "Thanks, Auntie Ollette." I scratched my cheeks.

  Ollette smiled. For a moment, I though I saw her eyes water.

  Why? Everyone in the village, even Natalie's dad, Morgan, treated us like outsiders, or worse, some kind of bad luck. Only Ollette and Natalie didn't.

  "Well, have fun, my darlings," Ollette said as she rose, "Mommy's going back now."

  "Okay, Mom." Natalie said.