Page 4 of Simon

This place was absolutely stunning, and I was here ready to explore it all.

Chapter Two

Lucy

Theenormoushorsesgalloped–yes,galloped–along the smooth pathways to our destination. The road was well maintained, especially the main roads between kingdoms. It was the perfect sand, dirt, and ground rock ratio. They really thought of everything. Especially when they don’t use concrete.

When we first arrived in Bergarian, I poked and stared at the dirt for too long for everyone’s comfort. They must have questioned my sanity. The shifters stared in shock when I took teaspoons of samples in a glass jar so I could study it later.

“How does the trip fare, so far?” I was abruptly startled by the captivating presence of Elmira, the breathtaking female warrior with luscious chestnut hair. Her arms, adorned with lean muscles, rippled beneath the snug, sleeveless tunic she donned, which emphasized her sculpted physique. With a graceful flick of the reins, the horses let off a squeal of excitement and jumped forward again.

I was grateful that Elmira was up here, in the front of the wagon, with me leading the horses. I felt more at ease with her here than one of the men.

“It’s wonderful,” I said as I stared out over the road. To the left of us, we passed by the Vermillion Kingdom. It was completely destroyed during a terrible war a decade ago, but you couldn’t even tell now.

Towering trees that looked ancient, though I knew they were actually very young, stretched towards the sky, dominating the landscape. They cast a shadow of mystery to the place. A sense of foreboding hung in the air, as the dense canopy blocked out most of the light from the light sources, inside the forest that hid the kingdom within. Perched atop a hill, just like in a fairytale, was a palace shrouded in darkness, emanating an eerie presence. It was rumored it was built the same as the previous palace, with only minor changes.

I couldn’t tear my gaze away from the ominous silhouette of the palace atop the hill. Legends and myths surrounded the ruins of the Vermillion Kingdom, and stories of curses and restless spirits haunted its grounds. The air seemed to grow colder as we passed by, the horses snorting nervously as if they sensed the lingering darkness.

Elmira must have noticed my unease, as she cast me a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, Lucy. The Vermillion Kingdom may look dark, but we are at peace. The temporary rulers, untilthe prince comes of age, are very close friends with Queen Clara. Nothing will harm us.”

The other shifters running alongside the wagon took off into the woods, snarling and barking at each other’s heels. They came back out moments later, rolling into the tall, deep green grasses with red tip blades, and jumped in front of the horses. The horses let out a whine, stomping their feet harder into the dirt, and jerked the wagon along faster.

I wanted to ask more questions about Vermillion, but my attention was brought back to the horses. More time for Bergarian history later.

My ADHD just can’t, right now.

“Why are the horses so big?” I gripped my seat, my short hair flying backward and my body leaning against the polished wood.

“Didn’t you know? Everything in Bergarian is bigger. Just like they say about Texas on Earth. Bigger is better, am I right?” Elmira winked at me, and we sped along. “This world is just naturally stronger. You can call it evolution, as you believe with your scientific mumbo jumbo, but I think it was out of necessity that the gods gave us these things. We were built different ourselves, so why would they give us weaker animals to work with?” She shrugged.

That was true. These horses had been at it for nearly a day and they showed no signs of being tired. Neither had the shifters that pranced and ran alongside us. This was just a walk to them, while I was tired from sitting on this wagon full of supplies.

The closest I had come to working out was carting a bunch of books in my arms from one table to another.

“Yeah,” I said shakily. Perhaps I was too confident coming on this expedition alone. I was really out of my element, but I was just so excited to come out here. This was every researcher’s dream, and it was mine for the taking.

I gripped hold of the wagon again when we hit a hole in the road, and I let out a squeal. A wolf with dark gray fur and a white chest darted toward me. It was Dutton. I made sure to know what his wolf looked like before we started our journey. He got closer to the wagon and sounded off a playful bark, warning me to push myself up.

Yes, the books I could handle, as well as the research and having my two feet on the ground, but not the extra adventurous thrill ride that came with it.

Was I that boring?

Elmira grabbed my elbow and pulled me closer to her. She gave me a confident smirk and wrapped her arm around mine to keep me in place.

“You’ve got this, Lucy. I’ve been around many humans that have come through the portal and have trouble adjusting. Children don’t have any problem, their minds are full of curiosity. You actually remind me of them.”

“I do?” I questioned as I noticed a fast moving cloud, or at least I thought it was a cloud that went over us, causing a shadow. Once I looked up, I realized I was mistaken.

I gasped.It was a dragon!

I squealed and stood from my seat. Elmira grabbed the back of my dress to hold me steady, along with the horse’s reins. “It’s a dragon! Did you see that?!”

Elmira laughed, and my heart raced when I realized I just confirmed what she meant.

Ah, yes. I guess I exuded child-like excitement.

Anyone would be excited to see that, though. It was a freaking dragon!

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