First Light [An inspired fairy tale]

The beginning

Bron lazily lifted his eyelids when daylight poured down from the window and overflown on his body, leaving a tingling warmth on his skin. Pushing himself to sit up, Bron again took a look around Dhia's living room. The fire in the fireplace had gone out during his sleep, but the room overall still the same.

"Oh, you're awake already," Dhia popped her head out from the curtain, the turned away to yawn. "Breakfast?"

"I actually brought a lot of food with me, so..." Bron stretched and moved toward his bag.

"Great! We can share our food."

Their breakfast did not begin until Bron and Dhia had finished cleaning up all of her gear on the table and spreading out a decent table cloth. Then Bron started to make two portions of bread and ham, with some leftover chilli paste from the Fourth Realm, if Dhia liked to add some spice. In the meantime, Dhia went to fetch two glasses of milk and a basket full of cherries.

"Do you need me to help you prepare your supplies for our trip?" Bron asked when Dhia came back with the milk and cherries.

"That won't be necessary," Dhia lightly shaked her head. "I just need my map and compass, as well and some clothes, that's all."

"You sure you don't need more things? It's a one-week trip out of the forest anyway."

"One week? I can get us there in one day."

Dhia grinned confidently in front of Bron's confused look on his face. He wanted to ask why she said that, but Dhia hushed him to finish their breakfast first.

After they swallowed their last bite, they both got some water to wash their hand and face. Then Dhia took just a few minutes to collect her stuff. Her medium size bag, consisting of exactly one map, one compass and two outfits contrasted significantly from Bron huge bag.

"Why so many stuff?" Dhia questioned him.

"It is not that many. We need food, candles and tools. I also have to bring different clothes since realms have different climate from each other. And my family insisted in me bringing the robe and the sword if anyone dare question my nobility. And..." Bron sighed. "I did pack a lot of things, am I?"

"Don't worry, dear prince. Being well-prepared is a great personality," she gave out a half smile.

Both left the cottage. Just when Dhia stepped out of her home, her shining skin turned to normal, which was shining no more. She explained that he own light would blend with her father's, the sun light, during day time. Bron only shrugged, seeing that her saying were fair enough for him.

They did not go far. Right behind Dhia's cottage, a huge round rock stood on their way. While Bron was looking back and forth in the search for the rock's mysterious appearance, Dhia tapped on it, making a rhymed sequence of clacking-s.

The big rock began to roll to the side, revealing a hole under it. Bron again had his eyes wide opened, his face muscle tired of stretching to much in a short amount of time.

"Gods never failed to surprised mundane..." he whispered to himself, watching Dhia climbed down the hole.

"Come on, Bron," her voice visible in the air, yet her body were completely hidden underground.

He sat down next to the hole, his feet felt a figure of a wooden ladder. He too climbed down and found Dhia standing near the ladder, waiting for him. Just as soon as he touched the dirt, the rock above them rolled again, sealed the only light source and submerge them in darkness.

Bron instinctively reach for his bag for some matches, but that was when Dhia's body shone. Having no sun light meant she could give out light on her own.

"Well that's just unsurprisingly convenient," Bron joked.

"No need to waste money on torches," her grin was in display again. "Start walking. Like I said, it'll take us a day."

Dhia, for the second time, was leading the way, just about the time this was a tunnel, rather than a simple hole occupied Bron's mind. He quickly followed Dhia.

"What will we do in a day? I mean this is just a tunnel, and there're nothing in this tunnel, right?" of course a young prince would prefer enjoying the view up on the ground to strolling inside a tunnel of nothingness, and that was why Bron asked.

"We can talk," is Dhia's, yet once more, simple plan. And then she did talk.

Living for years and years since gods place their first mountain and river in the First Realm, Dhia showed herself as a promising historian. She told the story of the beginning of human, when gods and goddesses created Bron ancestors and placed them on the grassland of the First Realm. Back in those days, the six other kingdoms were still existed but yet to be discovered. With their courage and adventurous spirit, plus little hints from the gods, human soon traveled to other lands and owning the realms. Bron's home, the Third Realm, was discovered by a group of the Second Realm residents, who disliked their old kingdom's rule. They left and established a place that fitted them, thus came the Third Realm. No wonder why the Second and Third Realm seemed to have an apathy in between.

"You're a great storyteller, Dhia," he complimented her.

"It does feel nice talking about world's history to someone who didn't yawn," Dhia smiled. "But I really said a lot so far. Why don't you tell me about yourself?"

"Um..." Bron suddenly froze.

Sorry for being a buzz-killer, but good stuffs are better with waiting.
Stay tune for my next chapter.