As if not able to hold the pain she had given him, Bianca's shoulders quivered and with a whimper, her tears began to fall. She closed her eyes. There was so much tension, so much love, so much ache that coiled in her that she felt hopeless, even helpless… for not being able to kill that woman at that time. When she opened her eyes, somewhere in the forest ahead, trees fell down as the ground cracked.

Dawn brushed her fingers on her daughter's cheeks to wipe away the tears. "Hmm… Sometimes we choose to do things that are painful because we know that the final outcome would be brighter." She patted her on her back. "He wanted you to grow into a strong girl so that you could take care of his kingdom, of the most vicious woman in the Lore, of the threat that still looms large over all of us." Dawn held her hands and added, "Now I don't know how will that happen but we can hope for the best, right?"

​​

"I don't understand mom," Bianca replied. "How can I kill a woman like Sedora who is a sorceress? I am half sorceress, and besides I am her granddaughter." She shook her head. "This is so twisted."

"How did I defeat Sedora? Hmm?" Dawn asked. "When I got married to Daryn, all I ever wanted was a happy life with him, but unfortunately I was always thrown into some game or the other, little knowing that it was eventually Sedora who was controlling the threads of her puppets." She remembered what Pia had done to her, and bile rose in her throat. She took Bianca's hand and covered it with both of hers. "Once you are thrown in a situation where the only outcome is death, you struggle hard to survive. That's what happened to me. I had to survive, needed to survive—not just for me, but also for your father and for my children. Daryn was my mate and Sedora knew it. However, in her experience mates didn't exist."

Bianca stopped with a jerk. "That's what I have been wondering about, mother. If Gayle was her mate, how did she survive his death? Mates follow each other to death…"

Dawn scoffed. "Sedora seduced Gayle to marry her. She used her sorcery to make him think that she was his mate. Gayle ended up marrying her after falling in love with her. However, things ended soon… He realized she was never his mate." Dawn was now seething with anger. "Your grandfather was a wonderful man. He supported me a lot against all the odds. And Sedora… she snatched him away from me, from Daryn. She took him hostage to bail out. Little did she know that he would sacrifice his life to save his children." A tear rolled out from her eye. She wiped it with her knuckle. How far would this go? "The woman still survives. It's so ironic that the mother of my husband wants to kill my daughter. She is pure evil…" Dawn shuddered on the inside. She walked with her daughter in silence for a few minutes to ebb her anger, her pain. "Bia, you are safe with Brantley. Now that you have restored nature's balance in Aztec, I do feel that your powers have unleashed to some extent."

"Do you think so?" she asked.

"Yes, baby," Dawn said reassuringly. "Stay with your husband and realize those powers. You should practice your magic and let me tell you a secret."

"What?" asked Bianca with curiosity.

"When I was learning my magic with Quetz, Brantley would often come and help me out. He used to push me to explore my magic—not because he wanted me to be a powerful magician, but because he wanted you to feel all that magic, because he knew that in a way he was teaching you."

Bianca gasped. The man had such a deep connection with her.

Dawn chuckled. "At one point of time he wished that all the magic that I learned because of Quetz, would transfer to you."

"Why?"

"Dragons are powerful beings. Quetz's magic flows in my veins. And Brantley wanted me to uncover my potential… for you."

"Oh my God!" Bianca blurted. She turned back to see beautiful husband. Almost instantly his gaze met hers. Politely he bowed to the group to leave and then started coming towards them.

Dawn let out a small laugh. "Yes, my dear! So let loose and release that magic. He is a great teacher, tailor made for you."

Bianca's gaze held her man. She wanted to run in his arms. He watched her intensely as he walked to her. Suddenly another group ran into him and he was stalled. Bianca pursed her lips feeling disappointed. She continued to walk with her mother. The wild blooms on the slopes of Rochnan were swaying in the cool breeze. She recalled how she dived in the pool for him to chase her and ended up making love to him. A blush rose on her cheeks.

Dawn continued drawing her out from her memories. "They say that you were born to kill Sedora. Your existence in this world is larger than life," said Dawn as she placed her hands on her shoulders. "But Sedora has chosen to remain dormant for a long time. And I have this feeling that she is up to something terrible. Ever since Kar'den kidnapped you, we know about Sedora's hideout. Every Lore creature is keeping a hawk-eye on her. But there is no activity from her side. It's like a— like a lull before a storm…" Dawn's body shuddered.

Bianca rubbed her mother's arms to soothe her. "Don't worry mom. Things are going to stay calm."

"I hope so, Bia!" she breathed.

"Does she have allies?" Bianca wondered.

"She does, and some very powerful ones. They can rip the Lore apart…"

"I am sure all those who hate her are our allies."

Dawn chuckled. "Yes of course. At least we stand united like that."

"What about allies?" his voice was like warm honey.

Bianca turned back and her cheeks heated under his gaze.

"Oh hello Brantley!" said Dawn.

"Hello Dawn," he replied while still looking at his wife, at her blush. He held her hand and asked unabashedly, "Were you thinking about me sweetheart?"

"We were talking about Sedora," Bianca said in a low voice.

"Ah! Interesting," he commented. He averted his gaze to Dawn and changed the topic. "Did you have lunch, Dawn?"

"No, and I am really hungry!" her stomach growled.

He offered his arm to her. "Let's go back and have lunch in the palace. We will come back by evening for the closing ceremony."

"Sounds fair!" Dawn replied. "I hope to see my son though!" She laughed at her joke. The boy was eluding and she was happy that he was enjoying it.

Brantley created a portal and they all walked inside the main hall of the palace. As they walked towards the dining room, Dawn said, "I wanted to talk to Daryn. It's been five days and I am not liking the feeling…"

"Do you want to go to Ixoviya?" asked Brantley as he opened the heavily crafted door of the dining room. Immediately all the servants became active. They drew the chairs out for the royals to sit. The head cook was called for.

"That's where I will be going from here," said Dawn. She couldn't shirk off the ominous feeling in her heart. "I stopped here just to see Samobian. And from what I am seeing, it is one beautiful festival you people have."