The Demon Prince [BOOK ONE]

Chapter 9: Another warning

Gone. 

 Dyrroth and Harley are gone. The kids were worried about what happened to both of them and what caused Harley to leave at such a panicked rate. 

 "So he left without telling any of us where he has gone?" Popol repeated. 

 "Yes." Ruby drawled. "You keep asking us the same question, and it's getting annoying."

 Harith watched as a blue butterfly fluttered past the window he was looking out of, lost in a trance. Nana was cleaning the last of the window's broken shards and put the newly conjured pillow into a closet then slumped on the sofa in relief. 

 "You guys think he teleported?" 

 "It's obvious Nana unless he cast a spell that made him run as fast as the wind then yes," said Popol. "but we don't know why do we?"

 "Popol is right, he might have cast a teleportation spell... but to where?" Lylia harrumphed, watching Harith stare at the blue butterfly, clearly resisting the urge to open the window and catch it with his gloved hands. 

"Say... can't you do a teleportation spell to Lylia?" Ruby asked. "I mean you are a mage after all." 

 Lylia sighed. "As I said, that spell is too advanced. Harley was the only one who can perform this spell by learning it for just three days."

 Harith smirked at the window. "So much for a genius." 

 "Any ideas on why Harley ran off all of a sudden? Anyone? Anyone?"No one answered Popol for a moment as the question was left dangling until Lylia made to grasp it. 

 "He did act weird since this morning before Dyrroth is gone or after that." she said. "and even weirder when Zilong took Chang'e home like earlier. Like he knows something, do you think?"

 Everyone stared at her. 

 "That," Popol stood up, Kupa was stirring. "is the stupidest thing I've ever heard." 

 "Then do you have a better view of it?" Lylia bristled.

Popol nodded confidently. "I think Harley left because he sensed an evil pressure somewhere in the Abyss, so he might be in the Abyss, right now, battling demons all by himself, and maybe Dyrroth is behind it YES!

Everyone stared at him, baffled.

 "If there was something more evil coming from the Abyss, I will be the first one that sensed it Popol," said Harith. "Also Harley isn't dumb enough to do that without any help." he looked away, trying to stuff his anxiety deep in his stomach. He continued to stare out of the dark window, the blue butterfly was gone. Harith stared beyond the trees in the direction of the Abyss, for some reason, he can't stop thinking about something. 

 Harith sat there for hours and hours, not bothering to move from that place as if waiting for something, his adrenaline growing as each hour passed.

 A bite on his tail sends him screaming like a banshee and barreling away from Kupa. 

 "OH MY GOD, IT IS LIKE 9 PM ALREADY, GO TO SLEEP NOW!" Lylia hollered, peeking out of her room, red-faced. 

😈

Lylia was standing in a dark space, this time Gloom is beside her. 

 A dream. 

 She walked around the dark space and tried to find a way out of this place. She can't use her magic but she didn't know why.

 Lylia noticed a faint blue glow somewhere in the darkness. She walked towards the glow, staff clenched tightly. When she was inches away, she spotted a silhouetted outline of someone holding a staff too, which emitted that blue light.

She slowly approached the shadowed figure, until she could see that figure's face.

"I knew I would find you here."

Lylia shivered upon seeing Harley's face, as his eyes were glowing silver and the sclera of his eyes were black and not white. Weird thing was, Harley's body and head were still shadowed in the darkness. As if the mist was trying to obscure that part of him on purpose.

Even weirder, Lylia could have sworn she saw his hair looks a little blue. "Is this a dream, or are you real and we are communicating in our dreams?"

Lylia saw Harley shift in the darkness as if he was folding his arms. "It's obvious."

"Okay, so if you are real, then why did you leave the treehouse all of a sudden without saying anything to us? Why did you leave Where did you go?" Lylia attacked. "You left all of us worried!"

"That is none of your business," Harley pointed a lavender-gloved finger at her out of the darkness. "I just came here to tell you this, whatever you do, do not go to the Abyss."

Lylia bared teeth. "So you did go to the Abyss!"

"No, I didn't, I just said do not go to the Abyss." Harley scoffed.

"Don't lie, I know you well enough Harley," Lylia accused. "I know when you lie."

The mage closed his eyes, a little frustrated in himself before saying: "Okay, for the last time, just don't go to the Abyss."

"But why?"

"Stop asking other questions!" Harley snapped. "Trust me when I say do not go to the Abyss." something beside him shinned and it made Lylia shield her eyes for a moment.  When she unshielded, she saw a few things that look like tentacles grab Harley's legs. He looked at them, feeling uneasy. 

"What is that?" Lylia gasped, pointing at those things.

Harley frowned in response. "Nothing, and one more thing before you wake up," Lylia saw Harley's silver eyes turned violet and he met her gaze. "Beware of the octopus." 

Lylia opened her mouth to say something, but it was too late, Harley was swallowed up by the darkness. She stood there, staring at the same spot, looking at the after-image of where Harley's 'seeming-violet-eyes' just disappeared.

Before she knew it, Lylia woke up with a jolt on her bed.

Don't go to the Abyss.

Lylia looked up and saw Harith standing at the doorway, face suspicious. "Let me guess, it was Harley was it?"

Lylia nodded, not questioning how did Harith guess.

"That's it then, what did he say?" 

Lylia took a moment to answer, picking out the right response for his question. "We are going to the Abyss," she said, eyes flaring. She didn't care if Harley told her not to, she was going into the Abyss right now and no one can stop her.