Rise of Dawn

Rise 8

Rise 8
Exile

“Do not allow others to tell you how little you worth or what you can or can’t be. Remember that a compass will only point North, no compass in this world can lead you to your destination. You hold the sail and you are the master of your own sea. No fear, no hesitation.”
-TheLiesoftheBlessed, by A. Sterling

“You will be exiled to the land of the west, never to return.”

Yan ang huling mga salita na binitiwan ng reyna para palayasin si Leona sa kaharian.

“Princess, do not wallow in despair, your grandfather will not mistreat you.” Saad ni Amber with a soothing smile.

“Im sorry.. You shouldn’t be  here. You belong in the capital...” Saad ni Leona

Umiling si Amber.. “My home is where you are Princess.”

It pierce her heart.. “Thank you, Amber.”

The loyal maidservant uttered a soft ‘hmm’

Naalala ni Leona ang reaksyon ng kanyang mga kapatid.

Galit.

Poot.

“Do not worry about me. I will come back someday to take back what’s mine.” Leona
“They took away your crown but you will always be our little princess.” Nakangiting saad ni Levinus saka isinuot ang korona na gawa sa kahoy at mga bulaklak kay Leona
Isang mainit na yakap ang ibinigay ni Levinus kay Leona. “No matter what they say, I’ll always believe in you.”
“Thank you Big Brother.” Leona
Tumango si Levinus. Puno ng pagmamahal at pag-aalala ang kanyang mga mata. 
“Little sister.” Hinawakan ni Lorenzo ang kanyang pisngi.. “Take good care of your self. I-Im—We’re worried for you.”
Hinawakan ni Leona ang kamay ng kapatid saka ito binigyan ng isang ngiti. “Thank you brother, don’t worry about me. I can take care of myself.”
Nagbuntong hininga si Lorenzo. He dont want to let go of her.
“Little sister, please don’t forget about us. We will always think about you.” Malungkot na saad ni Luciano
“Of course I wont. I love the three of you.” Leona
Matapos marinig ang mga salitang yun, agad syang niyakap ng tatlo. Kung maaari lang patigilin ang oras. Hindi nila nais bitiwan ang kapatid.
“Be careful brothers. Take good care of Father. I will find a cure for him.” Leona
Tumango ang tatlo.

The king has fallen victim to a poison.

But since he’s a powerful being, he didn’t die. But he never woke up since that night.

Hindi na sya nakapagpaalam sa mga kaibigan. Nasa Xyrus Academia ang mga ito noong ipataw ang parusa nya.

“We’re here.” Saad ni Amber kaya muling nabalik ang atensyon ni Leona sa kasalukuyan.

Sakay sila sa isang kalesa na kayang maglakbay sa disyerto.

Tatlong araw ang kinailangan upang marating nila ang Horus.

Isang oasis sa naglalagablab na disyerto.

Agad napansin ni Leona ang mga pamilihan sa lugar. Marami ding mga mangangalakal. Simple lamang ang mga estraktura ng mga tahanan subalit makikita sa ngiti ng mga tao na sila ay masaya at kuntento.

Hindi nagtagal ay narating nila ang isang mansion sa pinakapuso ng lugar.

Huminto ang kalesa sa harap ng isang fountain ng mansion ng kanyang lolo.

Bumaba si Leona sa kalesa at agad na sinalubong ng nakakasilaw na liwanag ng araw ang kanyang mga mata.

Pinagtitinginan ng mga tao ang kanyang kasuotan.

Isang marangyang victorian dress. Hanggang ngayon ay suot nya ang korona na ibinigay ni Levinus sa kanya.

“Ina- Ina! Tingnan mo isang diwata!” saad ng isang bata

“Shhhh... Y-yan ang mahal na prinsesa..” saway ng ina ng bata

Isang ngiti ang ibinigay ni Leona sa munting bata at agad itong nagblush.. Tumakbo ito sa kanyang ina para magtago dahil nakaramdam ito ng kahihiyan sa magandang diwata.

“Leona!” nag-aalalang bati ng isang matandang lalaki.. Kasunod nito ang ilang tagapagsilbi ng pamilya.

“Grandfather.” Bati ni Leona

The eyes of the old man soften.. “How was your trip? Are you tired? I prepared all you might need. Are you hungry?”

Ngumiti si Leona saka niyakap ang matanda.. “I missed you Grandpa!”

The old man laugh.. “There, there, my favourite grandchild, grandfather missed you too!”

Napangiti si Leona.. Her grandfather is very much like her brother Levinus, easy-going and doting.

Arcadius Storm, the Lord of Horus, guardian of the West Lands. The hero who united the people of the west, he put an end to the civil war of the people of the desert. His daughter, Arcadia Storm, was the queen of Solas and my mother.

“Come on, let’s go inside so you can rest.” Arcadius

Nakangiting tumango si Leona. Leona narrated her three day journey to her grandfather over dinner. Arcadius inquired about her brothers and laughed after she tells him brief stories of their most recent times together.

“Im soooooo tired.” Saad ni Leona sabay landing sa malambot na kama

“Master, we’re going to stay here from now on?” Nisha thru their mindlink

“Yes.” Leona

“I already miss everyone.” Nisha

“Me too..” Leona

“Master, do not be sad.. We’re all here for you.” Saad ng isang munting bata, si Nero.

“Yes Master, we’re all here for you.” Sang ayon nina Aeras at Fysi, tumatalbog pa ang matambok nilang pisngi..

Hindi napigilan ni Leona na panggigilan ang tatlong  bata.. “Ang cute nyo talaga..”

Ikiniskis ni Nisha ang kanyang sarili sa binti ni Leona.. “Me too Master.. Praise me... Praise me..”

“Roar.....” Sali ni Igur, ang dragon na pinaliit ang kanyang sarili, kasing laki lamang sya ni Nisha at mukang isang napaka-cute na dragon.

“Ngh...” Hina, ang spirit of lightning

“Hmmmpp.” Dedma naman si Sana na nasa anyo ng isang paniki dahil kay Arius

***

The next day, Leona went to visit her Grandfather.

Dinatnan nya na abala ito sa kanyang opisina, isang ginoo ang kausap nito.

“Ehh... Did I interrupt your conversation?” tanong ni Leona pagkapasok sa pinto, may dala syang cookies dahil naaalala nyang nagustuhan ng kanyang lolo ang mga cookies na nilikha nya noong bumisita ito sa kanya sa Solas

“Ahh, Leona! My favorite grandchild.. Come her lass and give your grandpa those cookies!” masayang saad ni Arcadius matapos makita ang tray na naglalaman sa mga cookies

Ngumiti si Leona at agad lumapit.

“My grandchild.. Grandpa is really stress lately because of all of this work.. Huhu, good thing you brought this delicious snacks for me..” saad ni Arcadius na tila bata na nagsusumbong sa magulang

“There, there, grandpa, dont munch the cookies too fast, you might choke.” Alo nya sa matanda.. Puno ng mga dokumento ang lamesa nito at halatang napakaraming trabaho

Dylan’s lips twitched.. He’s a 22 year old merchant who leads the Horus Trade Council, he’s been working with Lord Arcadius for six years and it’s his first time seeing the soft side of the man known as the Tempest of the West, the hero who ended the civil war years ago. He’s used to seeing him frowning, serious and dignified. Who is this young lady?

“Ah, Dylan, do you want some chocolate chip cookies?” alok ng matanda

Ngumiti si Dylan.. “Thank you Sir Arcadius, but Im fine.” Tanggi nya

“Ayy, young man, this is your only opportunity to try my granddaughter’s out-of-this-world’s baking skills!” insist ng matanda

Wala nang nagawa pa ang binata, kumuha sya ng kulay browne na-wait ano daw ito? Cookies? He’s expecting it to be hard since the texture of this bread is hard, but he was surprise after the first bite! It’s soft on the inside, no, it’s chewy! And the flavour is not overpowering.. W-what is this?

“It’s good, isnt it?” proud na tanong ng matanda

Manghang tumango si Dylan..

“My granddaughter invented this!” Proud na saad ng matanda

Nakangiti si Leona pero sa loob-loob nya, gusto nyang tumanggi.. Hindi sya ang umembento ng cookies ah! Pero matapos makita ang manghang ekspresyon ng binata, wala na syang nagawa. Paano nya ipapaliwanag na galing ang recipe sa Earth? Teka lang, magbukas kaya sya ng restaurant na puro recipe ng Earth ang inooffer? Kikita kaya sya?

“Ahh, muntik ko nang makalimutan na ipakilala kayo sa isat-isa. Leona, this is Dylan Argos, the chairman of the Horus Trade Council. And Dylan, this is my grandchild, Leona.” Sabat ni Arcadius

“It is an honour to meet the Princess. Glory to the kingdom of Solas.” Dylan

Ngumiti si Leona.. “The honour is mine.”

Dylan smiled back.

“I know my granddaughter is the most beautiful girl in the whole world, but please stop staring at her.. She’s too young for you.” Arcadius

“...........” Dylan was speechless.  He just made eye contact for a few seconds and this overprotective old man berated him over it. Ahh, princess, you will have a hard time marrying someone.

“Grandpa, you seem so busy.. Is there a problem you’re having trouble dealing with?” usisa ni Leona para ibahin ang usapan

Nagbuntong hininga ang matanda.. “Yes, although our land looks flourishing on the surface, truth is, we’re under financial crisis..”

Napanganga si Leona.. Totoo ba? Sa nakita nya, kahit hindi marangya ang Horus, masaya ang mga tao at mukang kontento sila sa kanilang kalagayan.

“Horus is the center of trade in the desert, but ever since Nayla, the closest city in the south introduced Silk and chamomile tea, our primary products were slowly being ignored in the market, resulting to fewer trades over the years.” Arcadius

“You must be confuse because Horus looks just fine, but other lands of the desert are now suffering from poverty.” Dylan

“May I see the documents?” tanong ni Leona

Tumango naman ang kanyang lolo.

It took Leona ten minutes to flip over and read the documents. She discovered that the primary product of Horus are Black Tea, Sunna Tea and Haedus Cheese. There are also other products but other lands also produce them or a similar product so it’s not very noteworthy. Nagbuntong hininga sya pagkatapos. Nakita nyang abalang kumakain ng cookies ang kanyang lolo habang pinapanood naman ni Dylan ang ginagawa nya, curiosity can be seen within his eyes.

“So lass, what do you think?” Arcadius

“This is just my humble opinion, grandpa.” Leona

“Go ahead lass.” Arcadius said encouragingly

“Sa aking opinyon, hindi nyo dapat ipagpatuloy ang inyong plano na itaas ang buwis ng mga tao.” Leona

“Alam kong hindi yun ang pinakamahusay na solusyon. Pero nauubusan na kami ng ideya. We plan to invest in Nayla to secure the future. If we dont raise enough money, the economy will collapse.” Arcadius

“I dont think investing in Nayla is the best solution.” Leona

“Do you have a better idea?” Dylan

“Counter attack.” Leona

Napuno ng question mark ang muka ng dalawa.

“Let us introduce better products to the market. Make them invest to us instead.” Leona

“Better products?” Dylan

“Isn’t Horus situated at the heart of the desert? You have an endless supply of sand.” Leona

“Sand? Who will buy sand?” Arcadius

“The entire continent will, Grandpa.” Leona

“They will?” Arcadius

“Yes. Once we convert sand into glass.” Leona

“Glass?!” Arcadius and Dylan asked in shock.

Glass is a rare product from the kingdom of  Solair. But no one knows how to create them. They were a product of nature and Solair creates glass teacups out of them. And those glass teacups costs a fortune!

And Leona is saying that glass is made from sand?!

“Also, there’s a lot of trees similar to Arabica tree around here.” Leona

“Arabica?” Arcadius

Napaisip si Leona.. “I mean, the tree on the road sides, I think it’s called Satis.. Why dont we introduce it to the market?”

“Satis trees are indeed native to the desert but we dont really have much use to it. Even the fruits are too bitter so we cannot trade it to other lands.” Dylan

Ngumiti si Leona.. “We wont introduce it to the market as fruits to eat. We will process it and introduce it as a rival for all the teas in all the lands of Solas.”

“A type of tea??” Arcadius

Umiling si Leona.. “Not a type of tea Grandfather. We will introduce coffee to this world.”

***

Alam ni Leona na masyadong mabigat na desisyon ang nais nyang gawin ng kanyang lolo. Ganun pa man, binigyan sya nito ng pagkakataon na patunayan ang mga produktong naisip nya.

Una, coffee does not exist here.. Noong minsan nyang tinanong si Amber noong bata pa sya ay wala itong ideya kung ano ang kape. Maging ang kanyang lolo ay nagtataka kung ano ang kape na tinutukoy nya.

Ikalawa, glass. Creating glass is not as easy as she imagined. She knew that glass is created from melted sand and she needed to hire the best blacksmith in all of Horus to create it.

“Princess!” masayang bati ng mga tao sa plantasyon noong makita sya

“Magandang araw..” nakangiti nyang bati sa lahat

Agad syang pinagkaguluhan ng lahat.

She laugh heartily hearing all the praises and joyful words of these people.

It’s been a year since she was exiled.

With the help of her grandfather, she created the first ever Coffee Plantation and Glass Factory.

Nagkaroon ng trabaho ang mga mahihirap na mamamayan.

Sobrang galak ng kanyang lolo noong unang bese nitong natikman ang kape mula sa plantation months  ago.

They are slowly gaining a foothold in the market.

Sunod nyaang binisita ang opisina ng Horus Trade Council.. Agad syang binati ng lahat.

Hanggang ngayon ay hindi pa rin sya sanay sa popularity nya sa Horus, taliwas sa reputasyon nya sa Solas, iginagalang at nirerespeto sya ng lahat ng mamamayan ng Horus.

“Ahh, Princess Leona, have a seat.” Puno ng galak na saad ni Dylan pagpasok nya sa pinto ng opisina nito

Sa isang taon na nakatrabaho nya ang binata sa proyekto,  napatunayan nya na isa itong capable na tao, he established the Horus Trade Council at age 16, no wonder ito ang chairman ng council kahit pa napakabata pa nito.

“Good day Chairman.” Nakangiting bati ni Leona

“You can just call me Dylan, Princess.” Dylan

“And you can just call me Leona, Chairman.” Leona

Natawa ito, “Your grandfather will kill me.”

Natawa din si Leona.. Tama ang binata, she have an overprotective grandfather.

“Anyway, what brought you here Princess?” Dylan

“I heard you’re having trouble with the trades at the north?” Leona

“Ah, about that.. It’s true. They are giving us a hard time.” Dylan

“I have a new business idea.” Leona

“A new business idea?” Dylan

“Yes..” iniabot ni Leona ang isang folder  kay Dylan...

“Chocolate?” Dylan

Tumango si Leona.. “You must be familiar with the products of the east, chocolates.”

Tumango naman si Dylan.. “They’re considered luxuries and only nobles can afford them.”

Tumango si Leona.. Sa totoo lang ay namimiss nya na ang mga sweets and chocolates na madalas pasalubong sa kanya nina Levinus.

Tumikhim si Leona.. “Let us make chocolate drinks, similar to coffee.”

“Huh?” nagulat si Dylan..

Binigyan sya ng oras ni Leona na basahin ang laman ng business proposal, she just needs the support of the trading council to market the products.

“P-powdered drinks... T-this is a revolutionary innovations Princess!” bulalas ni Dylan

“Our coffee is already gaining a foothold in the market. We will also introduce powdered milk and powdered chocolate drink. They will only need to add hot water. Dont you think the north will die for this product?” Leona

Napatango naman si Dylan..

This is the answer!

Namamangha si Dylan..

Sa nakalipas na mga buwan, unti-unti nang nakakabangon ang Horus! All thanks to the princess! Tila sya isang anghel na ipinadala ng langit! She’s brilliant, confident and innovative! She’s changing the lives of everyone in Horus! No wonder everyone loves the princess!

Napailing si Dylan. Hindi dapat pumunta sa maling direksyon ang paghanga nya sa prinsesa. Una, masyado pa itong bata. Ikalawa, hindi nya gustong isipin kung paano sya babalatan ng buhay ng Lolo nito kapag nalaman nito ang mga naiisip nya! Ngayon pa lang ay natatakot na sya!

Tumikhim ang binata.. “Dont worry Princess, you have the full support of the council.”

“Thank you.. Same as usual, the council will receive ten percent of the income.” Leona

Tumango naman si Dylan.

Hapon na noong makabalik ng mansion si Leona.

Dumaan sya sa opisina ng kanyang lolo matapos marinig kay Amber na hindi pa ito nagla-lunch.

“Grandpa you should really look after your health! If you overwork yourself who knows what will happen!” Saad ni Leonaa sa kanyang Lolo na walang magawa kung hindi tumango.

After having dinner with her grandfather, Leona went back to her room.

Isang taon na ang nakalipas at ngayon ay komportable na sya sa kasuotan ng Horus. Kumpara sa capital ng Solas, tila mga belly dancer ang outfit ng mga naninirahan sa Horus, marahil ay dahil nasa disyerto sila kaya iba ang kasuotan at tradisyon dito kahit pa parte sila ng kahiraan ng Solas.

“What are you doing master?” tanong ni Nisha

“Im trying to design clothes.. Since every clothes is tailored specifically for people, Im thinking of introducing finished clothes that comes in different sizes. Hmmm.. Do you think creating my own clothing line is a bit too ambitious? “ Leona

“Not at all.. All your ideas are fantastic Master!” Nisha

“Thanks Nisha.. Seeing you reminds me of the Nightgale Butterfly.. I plan to create an outfit like that. It’s a rare butterfly that can be seen here in Horus.. I remember seeing it once in the plantation.. It’s as black as the night just like you, but when it flapped it’s wings, there’s a colourful pattern on the other side of it’s wings hidden when it was resting on the flowers. It was really beautiful.” Leona

“Nightgale Butterfly? Sounds delicious to me.” Nisha

Natawa si Leona..

“It seems you’re really enjoying your little vacation here.” Sabat ng isang boses

“Aries.” Bati ni Leona

“Hmmpp.. You have the lingering scent of that ugly human again..” Arius

“Dylan is not ugly.. I actually think he’s really handsome.” Leona

Ever since the little incident three months ago, Arius would be grumpy whenever Leona meets with Dylan.

“Handsome.. Tsk.. You must be blind.. Compared to me, he’s like a firefly and I’am the moon.” Arius

“Taas ng self-confidence ahh..” Leona

“Tsk.. I’m just stating the truth..” Arius

“Wala naman syang ginawang masama sayo.. He’s a really nice guy.. Bakit ka ba nagagalit?” Leona

“He’s coveting what’s mine.” Arius

Napailing si Leona. Magsisimula nanaman itong weirdong diyos na ito, dapat di na lang sya nagtanong.

“He thinks he have a chance? Huh! You’re already my property! How dare he touch your hands!” Arius

Leona rolled her eyes.. “That was three months ago. He was only helping me grab a book, he just accidentally touched my hand.. Besides, what’s wrong if the two of us ends up together one day? He’s actually my type.. Handsome, smart and reliable.. I may look like a fourteen year old but my mental age is older than what I appear to be..” Leona rubbed her forehead, hoping for the headache to go away.. “And just so you know, Im not your property.”

“You already belong to me.” Arius

“No, Im not.” Leona

“I’ve already marked you, you are now my property.” Arius

“No.” Leona

Naikuyom ni Arius ang mga kamao nya..

“..... Fine! If you dont like that idea, then—ahm... Then I belong to you! Yes, that’s right! I belong to you and only you. I’m your property. My body, my soul. All of me belongs to you.” Arius said desperately

“........” Leona

“Now that you have me you can’t touch another man!” Arius

“.........”

“Keep that in mind!” panic na saad ni Arius bago ito maglaho

“Was he blushing?” tanong ni Leona kay Nisha

Tumango ang pusa.

Leona was dumbfounded.

That stupid god!

~~~~~~~~