The day started so well for Azar. The sky was crystal clear, the wind was calm and cool, the bird was humming their songs, and he was just about to enter a big city and have a fine meal. But all of that was gone. Instead, he was chained up in a dark, cold, and disgusting dungeon with both hands held high. At first, Azar wondered why his cell smelled so vile like something was dead inside it. And then he caught the sight of some mice eating the rotten corpse of a bigger rat in his cell.

“Well fuck that !”

Azar closed his eyes,

CLICK …

Both of his chains unlocked. Azar took a quick look around and saw that no one was near.

“Fuck you mice !” Azar snapped his fingers, and the mice and the dead rat were incinerated under a green flame. It was so quick that the mice could hardly make a squeak. Yet, the smell was still there. Once again, Azar made a quick glance, then conjured his power once more.

“How about a slight sense of jasmine ...” Azar blew in the air. All that rotten smell disappeared and was replaced with a mild sense of jasmine.

“That’s better,” Azar levitated and lied in mid-air. Then, he yawned as if he was comfortably lying in a bed and asked himself.

“Come on, how long do these humans take to start the interrogation already !?”

*******************

“Out of my way !” a middle-aged man, hustling through the hall. He was tall, with a perfect cheekbone, wavy long raven-black hair, deep green eyes, wearing clothes from the most expensive silk and a golden cape with a symbol of a lion. He was the king of Avalon, Henry Leon the IV. And following right behind him was his wife, with long silky brown hair and bright blue eyes, the queen of Avalon, Amanda Leon. The news just came to them. Their daughter had been found. In fact, as they heard, she had been found right at the front gate.

Burst opened the door, tears welling up in their eyes. They could not believe it.

“Elizabeth !”. Under all those rag old clothes, the dirt, and bruises, it was their daughter, undoubtedly. They both pulled her in for a hug,

“I can’t believe it! Thank God !” They cried.

“Ummm… what the fuck is going on ?” Elly spoke for the first time since she was taken into the castle.

“Elly! Watch your language !” her mother told her.

“Who are you again ???” Elly bluntly asked. And the queen almost fainted when she heard that.

The king immediately stood up and called for one of his most loyal severance.

“Harold !!!”

“Yes, my King …” right away, a man showed up to Henry’s side. It was Erling Harold, the king’s personal severance. Unlike Henry Leon, who was graceful and tall, Harold was short, with curly dark brown hair and eyes as dark and cold as an icy void. The slight wrinkle on his forehead made him look a little older than the king. However, it could just be because of all of the labor work he had to perform for so long.

“What is the meaning of this? Why doesn’t she recognize her own parents ?”

“Yes, my lord, I think the kidnapper had done unspeakable things to her while she was in captivity. He probably tried to brainwash the princess.”

“What fucking bastard! Where is he !!!??” The king shouted in a fury.

“My lord, he has already been put in our captivity,” Harold answered while bowing his head.

“Umm … excuse me …” Elly softly asked. But her voice was unheard by all around her.

“Good! Interrogate him at once! Find out who and why! After that, execute that bastard in public !” The king ordered.

“Yes, my lord. I shall go at once….” Harold replied.

“What are you talking about Harold ?” The king responded, “I’m giving orders to General Geralt. Your job is to take the princess to the priests and heal her. Maybe they could restore her memory.”

Harold did not respond to that but bowed his head knowingly. Finally, the king put his hand on Harold's shoulder and told him kindly.

“I understand that you are eager to help, Harold. But best leave this to the professional. You just focus on your job alright.”

“I’ll, …my king.”

“EXCUSE ME !!!!” Elly shouted; finally, she got their attention, “Azar did not kidnap me! He saved me! Let him go !”

Henry turned to Harold with an icy gaze.

“Don’t worry my lord. There have been some instances that the kidnapper manipulated their victim into believing that they were the heroes, sometimes they even made their victims fall in love with them !”

Both the king and queen were red with fury.

“That filthy, fucking ….” The king almost lost his temper. But he managed to swallow his rage for the moment. “Geralt! Go and interrogate the kidnapper right now !”

An elderly man, somewhere in his mid 50 or early 60 got on his knee. His hair had turned gray, the wrinkles on his forehead were as clear as day, but the determined and stoic piercing blue eyes were timeless. Geralt Nottingham, the legendary general of Avalon, bowed down to his king and answered clearly.

“Yes, my lord !”

Once again, Elly’s words were written off. They did not listen to a word she said, and she was quickly taken to the high priests to be healed. However, before she was taken away, some memories had already sparked within her head. A voice, a very familiar voice, came to her. It was from someone in that room, and it gave her the chill.

The high priests did everything they could to heal all of her flesh wounds, but they could not help her with her memory loss. All seemed lost until a particular paladin walked in to offer her help.

“Oh my God, Elly !!!” The paladin shed tears the moment she saw Elly. “I am so glad that you're alright” She hugged Elly tightly.

“Again! Who are you !?” Elly was getting very frustrated with everyone hugging her and acting as they had known her since forever.

“Don’t you remember your best friend ?” the paladin held Elly's hand and looked her in the eyes. “It’s me silly, Sasha Olivera !”.

Elly took a closer look at the young woman in bright shining armor. With skeptical eyes, Elly took notice of the smooth white skin on her kind and angelic face, with long honey blonde hair like it had absorbed all the light from the sun and mesmerizing piercing blue eyes like the surface of a calm lake. The young woman in front of her was like a God’s sent. The warm and tender feeling from her hands was so different from the roughness of Azar’s. Then, Elly suddenly felt a slight headache, she started to remember something. Something had triggered her memory. Sasha Olivera, she had known her before. Elly started to remember her past, but that was not just it. Elly recalled something from her recent memory as well, the real reason why her memory was triggering. She had heard of Sasha's backstory before, somehow.

“Sasha ? … Sasha! It’s really you !” Then, it was Elly’s turn to hug Sasha tightly.

“Yes it’s me” They both cried on each other’s shoulders. “I’m sorry I wasn’t there for you! I’m so sorry !”

The high priests quickly took notice of the room and left the two young women alone for a few moments. Of course, they also sent someone to quickly notify the king and queen about the great news.

“Elly did that man do anything to you! Are you really alright !” Sasha hastily asked.

“No, you don’t understand.” Elly shook her head. “Azar, he is the one who saved me !”

“Elly …” Sasha held Elly’s hands kindly “ From what I heard, they caught him red-handed. He even lied about ….”

“I don’t even remember who I was back then! He was only trying to help !” Elly shouted, “Besides, if he was truly evil, then why did he heal my feet with those healing herbs and give me his only pair of shoes.”

“That's a basic brainwashing tactic, Elly !” Sasha replied firmly, “They kidnap you, then act all good and nice to manipulate you, that’s what they do !”

“You don’t understand Sasha! Azar’s not that kind of person.” Elly desperately tried to explain to Sasha, “Yes, he may be a bit rude and cold, and he's probably a bit of a liar too. But he means well, I can tell.”

“Elly … I know this is very difficult and painful for you … but you have to trust us on this, alright” Sasha kindly put her hands on Elly’s shoulders. “You’re still too naive to the outside world, those people outside are not like us here, they aren’t that civil, they can be very cruel and evil. Believe me, I know better...”

“Sasha please, listen to me, I know what I saw. Please, for God's sake, the worst thing he ever did to me was trying to lie about his journey to impress me !”

“His journey !?”

“Yes, he told me that he has been traveling for 10 years, and only because of something about following the North Star….”

“Wait what !?”

“He said he has been traveling alone for the last ….”

“No not that, the latter!!!” Sasha held Elly firmly, almost to the point of squeezing her shoulders.

“Follow the North Star… Ouch, Sasha !” Elly squeaked. On the other hand, Sasha looked as though she had just seen a ghost. Even though Elly was right in front of Sasha's face, Elly could not see her reflection in Sasha’s eyes. She had already space off somewhere else. And then she rushed out of there without saying a word to Elly.

“It’s him !” Sasha mumbled as she ran to the dungeon.

*****************

Back in the deep dark dungeon, it had been 30 minutes since he was sent there, and Azar was growing bored and sleepy. Levitating in the air surrounded by the enchanting aroma of fresh jasmine, it crossed Azar’s mind to take a little nap. But while he was about to drip off, a sound echoed to his ear.

CLICK

Someone was coming for him. Azar quickly got back to his original position. Hand all chained up and help up high. Azar also acted as though he was exhausted due to the whole ordeal. However, there was something strange about the footsteps.

“Only one … wow the disrespect …” Azar could only hear one pair of footsteps, one beating heart, but that was not just it. The footsteps were also very light, which told Azar that the one coming was not a big and bulky human man, but a woman instead.

Azar sighed deeply and disappointingly when he first saw who had come for him. As he expected, it was a weak and ugly human female. Though she tried to hide behind that shiny armor, Azar could still tell she was still just a lean human. Her skin still looked as soft and fragile as Elly’s. However, Azar could also tell that this one was different from most of the female humans he had met. Though pale compared to a human male’s, the sound of her footsteps was much stronger than any female. Her body was lean but very firm and sturdy. Her kind and angelic blue eyes were the perfect covers for the cold and focused demeanor of a well-trained warrior. In addition, behind those icy eyes, there was a hint of pain and rage burning from within. Azar recognized that instantly. He had seen that thousands of times before, every time he looked at himself in the mirror. But most importantly, Azar felt some magic power hidden within her. That was the most distinctive aspect of this woman in his eyes.

The moment their eyes interlock, Azar could tell something had gone wrong. Her eyes were wide open, and her hand started to shake a little bit.

“Hey, are you alright over there ?” Azar casually broke the silence. The girl seemingly snapped out of her own thoughts, gasped, and shocked her head. Her eyes suddenly went narrowed.

“Wait, why do I smell jasmine !?”

Azar instantly realized his mistake. He had forgotten to take the scent away.

“Uhhh… are you asking the guy who you chained up and sent to YOUR prison why does your dungeon smell nice … ?” Azar raised an eyebrow.

But after hearing his voice for the second time, the girl remained silent once more.

“Sasha Olivera, have you ever heard of that name before ?” she finally asked him the big question.

“Sasha Olivera …” Azar closed his eyes and thought deeply. “How do you know that name …” Azar replied in a cold and stoic voice. He remembered.

“Tell me how you know her !”

“What kind of weird interrogation method is this !” Azar smirked, “If you think you can use her as a way to get to me, you’re an idiot. She is just a little kid who I saved 10 years ago. If I recall correctly, the last time I saw her, I had taken her to some kind of a religious building and the people there had taken care of her injury. I always wonder how she is today ...”

The girl in front of him went completely speechless, her eyes went teary, and she took a few shaky steps backward. She put her hand and covered her mouth, seemingly trying to stop her cry. Those bright amber eyes, that face, that story, it truly was him.

“It’s you …” her voice cracked, and streams of tears ran down her eyes. “It’s really you….”

It did not take much for Azar to realize

“Wait, you’re that little girl from before !” Azar looked at her again from head to toe and thought to himself,

“Wow, she has grown up .... kind of disappointingly”. He shook his head. 10 years, and not once did he see a good-looking female human, Azar blamed God for that misfortune.

“Wow, kid, you grow up … nicely I guess….” Azar huskily told her. “At least I see you have a better life now, good for you kid !”

“Stop calling me kid! We are practically the same age !” Sasha loudly replied, “And what are young doing here, kidnapping the princess, what happened to you !!??”

Azar sighed and shook his head in disappointment. He thought that if she wasn’t beautiful, then at least she would focus more on her intellect, but he was wrong again.

“I didn’t kidnap the princess! Use your tiny little brain just once in a while !” Azar bluntly told her, “If I was trying to kidnap her, then why the hell did I try to bring her back to the city through the front gate !!!???”

“Wait, you two were going in !!??”

Azar almost lost his mind when he heard Sasha ask that question. She was so poorly intelligent by his standards, to the point that he almost felt sorry for her. It wasn’t bad enough that she looked like a weak and ugly human being. She did not even seem to be able to perform simple deductive thinking.

“Dear God, what do these people teach you …” Azar coldly told her.

But before the two could properly reunite, someone else interrupted them.

“Do not speak to the prisoner, Captain Sasha !” A firm voice came to their ears.

“General !?..” Sasha instantly responded and bowed her head. General Geralt finally arrived, and the true interrogation was about to start.

“Is this our perpetrator …” He glared at Azar. “He won’t last 5 minutes …”. Geralt smiled menacingly.

“Wait! Sir! He’s not the true perpetrator !” Sasha quickly jumped to Azar's defense.

“That’s not yours to determine !” Geralt shouted at her. “Take him away !” He ordered the soldiers behind him to unchain Azar. Sasha could only bow and watch as Azar was taken away. And when she could catch a glimpse of his eyes at that moment, her stomach turned. He was looking at her with eyes filled with despair and disappointment. Sasha held her fists tightly. Azar saved her life before, risking his own by defeating those men while he was only a child. And now, all she could do was watch as her commanding officer dragged him away to the torture chamber. Sasha once against felt like her 8 years old self, weak and powerless.

***************

Upfront, at the city’s gate, someone else was very hastily trying to enter the city as fast as possible. Behind him, there was a long line of carriages and wagons. The short curly hair, the dark honey smooth skin, the deep and soulful brown eyes, the falcon on his shoulder, and the jewelry on his fingers made him stand out more than anyone else. Everyone else instantly made way for him to enter, and the guards need not ask of his identity either.

“Master Munir, welcome back to Tolemac” one of the guards bowed his head.

“Yes, yes, It’s an honor,” Azar replied eagerly. The moment the guards let him through, he just wanted to rush his horses and ran to the castle as soon as possible.

“Now now son, calm yourself” an low and charming voice stopped him on his track, “I know that you’re very eager to see the princess, but you can’t run through the streets like that.”

“I’m sorry father ….”

“Haha,” the old man laughed and padded Munir on the back. “I understand your feeling Munir, young love, … oh how I can relate to that ….”

“It’s not like that father, the princess, and I … we are just good friends !” Munir loudly replied.

“Ummm yes, good friends, and the fact that your face always lights up since the first time you met her, or those dark circles under your eyes after knowing she had been kidnapped, those are all because of your friendship !!?”

Munir’s face grew red with embarrassment. His silence was more than enough to answer.

“So why don’t you just confess your feelings to her? You're a bright handsome young man, and you’re my son, wealth and fortune was no concern.”

“Isn’t it obvious father, she is a princess, and I’m … well I am not even blood related to you. If they were to find out about my past, they probably wouldn’t let me step foot in the castle.” Munir spoke sorrowfully.

“We may not be blood-related, Munir. But you are my son, no one can take that away from you”.

“Thank you father, for what you have given me. I can’t ever repay you enough.”

His adopted father laughed and put his hand on Munir’s shoulder and told him.

“If you want to repay me, then go, right now, go to your princess and tell her your feelings !”

***************

Elly was carefully escorted to her room. The day could not be any stranger for her, she thought. Her memory was coming back, but it was like a fog blocking her mind, letting her see bit by bit of her past but not revealing all of it. However, one thing kept popping back up in her mind, Azar’s story. She was already fascinated by it from the start, but she did not understand why. Elly just felt as though she had known those stories before.

“Elizabeth !” A loud and clear voice rang out from the outside of her chamber. A small commotion appeared to be going on right upfront. Elly carefully sneaked open the door to what it was all about. What she saw was a tall and handsome young man, wearing a dark blue silk tunic with a symbol of a falcon on his chest. He was arguing with the maids outside of her room. It sounded like he was asking if he could come and see her. He said he had something important to tell her. Her intuition told her that she knew him. Once again, Elly felt a headache. Another of Azar’s stories passed through her mind. Another part of her memory slowly opened up.

“Munir …”

Elly quickly stepped out of the door and told the maids

“It’s ok, he is a friend,” She gently told the two maids.

“Elizabeth !” Munir shouted her name the moment he saw Elly figure. The two maids could not hold him anymore. He forced through and stepped right in front of Elly. “Thank God, you’re alright !”

“You don’t have to thank God for that Munir” Elly calmly answered him.

“Are you hurt !? Did they _”

“Enough of this for today already !” Elly cut him off. “I’m totally fine !”

“Well then, I’m glad….” Munir suddenly held Elly’s hands. “Elizabeth, I have something I need to tell you, ….”

“Yeah, hold that thought !” Elly pulled her hands away. “There is a dirty and rude man that I need to save.”

Elly walked right past Munir, paying him no attention. As an instinctive response, Munir held her by the hand and stopped her.

“Wait! Who is that person !?”

“The good man who saved my life”

Elly gave Munir a quick briefing of what happened, and of course, just like Sasha, Munir first response to Elly was

“Elizabeth, right now your memory is not fully recovered yet. I am not saying your memory of him is wrong. But think Elizabeth, isn’t the, even the slightest chance that you may be wrong. Those kidnappers, it’s their signature tactic, brainwashing their victims to make them easier to manipulate and control….”

“Oh shut up !” Elly pulled away from Munir. “I’m so tired of people like you, not today. Always looking down on others, looking down on me, or anyone else that you don’t consider to be at the same social standard. You haven’t even met Azar and you still judge him. He is kind and ….”

“What was his name !!!” Munir cut her off. His eyes opened wide, his face went from concerned to dead serious “Elizabeth, What’s his name !?”

“Azar …”

“Dark hair, bright orange-like eyes, ice cold face, talking strange stub about heading to the North Star or something !!!”

Elly only managed to nod her head before Munir ran away.

“Wait where are you going !” Elly shouted. But Munir did not reply. He did not even hear her voice. In his head, there was only one voice, his voice, telling him.

“Can it be him !”

It was the second time Elly got left behind by one of her friends. Again, Elly just stood there, face full of confusion.

“What the hell is wrong with everyone today !!!??”