《Empire's Heir》-Nalia-

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She thought for sure Dyra didn’t walk back into the fort. Nalia waited behind for about a minute before deciding to call it a night and head upstairs. Just before she could reach the stairs, she spotted the banners. The same red ones with the golden dragons and swords she found not even four days ago. Four days, she thought to herself. So much has happened, and she hadn’t even stopped to realize that a week hasn’t even passed.

Nalia stared at the banners, trying to remember where she’s seen this pattern before. Her mind traced back to her conversation with the cobbler. Akrathi War… It clicked in her mind. They lived here. This was their banner. How long had this been up for? It had to have been at least over a thousand years.

She heard footsteps coming down from the stairs. Talion’s. He rounded a corner, spotting her staring at the banners.

“There you are,” he sighed. “Was wondering where you went.”

“Oh, hey. I was waiting for Dyra to come back inside. No idea where she went.”

“Whatcha looking at…?”

“Remember when I told you about the conversation with the cobbler?”

“Yeah. And that this fort is absolutely ancient.”

Nalia pointed at the banners. “This was their banner.”

Talion squinted at them, muttering, “Well I’ll be…” Talion suddenly gasped. “Do you know who this reminds me of?”

“Who?”

“Mr. Bunberry. Remember him?”

Nalia had instant flashbacks to the orphanage back in Lindoria. “Mr. Bunberry” was a name she hadn’t heard in a long, long time. One of the countless teachers there, he seemed to have a constant fascination - well, more like an obsession - with the Akrathi War. She nor Talion ever listened to his constant ramblings. It was extremely boring to listen to, anyways. Most of the time they would skip class whenever the topic was brought up, which probably explained why neither of them knew the significance of Fort Direwood until now.

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She looked back at the banners again. “If only he could see this in person…”

“He would never stop talking,” Talion groaned.

Nalia chuckled. “Maybe, maybe not. Maybe he'll finally get tired.”

“I doubt it.”

“Ya know,” Nalia began, “I’ve always wondered how big a dragon is in person.”

“Heard they’re massive. Big enough to block out the sun.”

Nalia scoffed. “That sounds insane.”

“Excuse me, have you seen one?”

“No, but then again you thought giants were bigger than mountains.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

The two fell silent for several seconds as they both stared at the banners. Finally, Talion broke the silence.

“I’m going to get some sleep.”

Before he could leave, Nalia wrapped her arm around his.

"I'll come up with you."

Talion smiled and nodded. With that, they started walking together upstairs. Not much more was said.

Nalia stopped in front of her door.

“Well… Goodnight.” Talion said.

Nalia let go of Talion’s arm.

“Yeah,” she smiled, playfully punching him. “Goodnight.”

Nalia stared at Talion. He stared back. They both chuckled awkwardly, meekly smiling at each other. Something deep down drew her closer to him. She found herself slowly leaning into Talion, stepping on her tippy toes. Her hand, which was balled up into a fist, rested on his chest. He took notice, leaning down as well. His arms fidgeted by his sides, unsure of what to do with them. As they drew closer, Nalia could feel her heart beating against her chest.

A sudden crashing noise echoed through the halls, interrupting them.

“I think Aigor fell down again,” Talion sighed.

“Is he going to be alright?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I think so. Or, at least, he says so. I’m still going to go check on him, though.”

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“Okay. Yeah, you do that. I'll see you tomorrow.”

Eight long seconds passed without either of them going anywhere. Neither of them could keep solid contact. She felt just as flustered as Talion looked.

“I should… I should really check on Aigor,” he muttered.

Talion and Nalia pulled away from each other. Nalia watched as Talion rounded a corner. As he disappeared from sight, Nalia opened the door to her room. Her face felt like it was burning hot. She slipped inside, closing the door behind her. Nalia let out a deep sigh, fixing her hair. She was glad her skin was already red as is, or else she would’ve been blushing like crazy.

She plopped down onto her bed, staring into the wall in front of her. Nalia couldn’t help but smile like an idiot.

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      To Be Continued...
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