White Roses Bloom

Chapter Four

     It had been almost a month since Xavier and his search party had discovered the destruction of Idris, and it's like survivor. princess Portabella had been living within the castle of Risedo, taken in by the widowed king, and his young son. The two children had become close friends over the last few weeks, and the prince did everything in his power to protect and help the young princess.
    Though the sad thing is, peace never lasts. When the sunrises in the morning, it must always go down in the evening, and as darkness consumes the sky, evil consumes the land. Risedo was starting to suffer the same attacks that Idris had before its destruction. This was arising panic upon the whole kingdom. Night was a difficult time where most people stayed awake, fearing that at any moment, they may have to grab their loved ones and run for their lives. Darkness was consuming the kingdom, and everyone could catch onto this.
     It was a dark night, with a clouded sky, on the night that princess Portabella walked alone within the streets of Risedo. Moonlight lit up the clouds, lighting the paths below like a dim street light. The princess knew she should be in the castle, but she just wished to help people calm down. She had been knocking on doors for most of the night, offering aid for those inside. Despite not being the princess of Risedo, the residents of the kingdom had grown to love the young princess. They respected her for her will, her strength, her compassion, and her selflessness. They saw in her, the marks of a true leader, and were all secretly hoping that one day, she would lead them as their queen. She, on the other hand, just wanted to protect people. She did not want to see another kingdom full of innocent people suffer when she could have done something. She was tired of watching the way things were going, so she wanted to offer aid and protect this kingdom at all costs. Though her selflessness appeared to be her downfall.
     That night, as the princess walked along the edge of the river, one of those creatures stepped out of the darkness. The princess froze up as the creature let out a ferocious howl. Civilians peeked out of their windows, trembling in fear as their eyes fell upon this evil creature. No one left their homes to defend the princess. Before she could even react, the creature rushed towards her. With one swipe of its darkened paw, the princess was knocked into the river. Her eyes widened as the current pulled her away. The icy water made it difficult for the princess to swim. Her mouth and her nose filled with the liquid, suffocating her. She desperately tried to keep her head above the surface, coughing and gasping every chance she got. Water splashed over her head, pulling her deep into the river’s clutches.
     The river’s current flowed, sending the princess under Risedo’s walls, taking her outside the kingdom. The princess could hear screaming, yelling, and those godforsaken howls from within the kingdom’s walls. She swam in horror, realizing that Risedo was being destroyed at this very moment. The princess lost her home, her family, her kingdom, and now it was happening again. She cried out desperately for Xavier, or the king or the prince, but no one answered her calls. Another wave of water crashed over the princess’ head, filling her lungs with the thick liquid.
     The current pulled the princess into a rock, making her head smack hard against the rough surface. The princess spotted a piece of drift wood floating above her head and grabbed onto it. She felt her body get lifted out of the water. Desperate to stay above the surface, the princess lifted herself upon the piece of wood. A few seconds later, the princess lost consciousness, the last thing she saw being the moon above her head.