Last three steps and it will be all done with. 
Stare into those eyes, aim and shoot straight into that deep black heart ♥ 
And DONE 
The story which started would end up with this life 
[Breathe in , breath out]
Stare - Aim - Sh... uh oh not that easy .........

Okay so the Illustration is complete I updated the book cover on royalroad.com scribblehub.com and webnovel.com, I've also updated the synopsis to what is going to be on A m a z o n.
The illustrator delivered the illustration to me around 3 or 4 hours ago., so it was completed fairly recently.
It took me mmmm 7 or 8 tries maybe 9 before I was finally able to get kdp amazon to accept the illustration. I tried 6 or 7 times of those to get it to accept the pdf. In the end, it did not accept the pdf book cover, but I was able to make a workaround and submit the image through the cover creator by uploading the image and delete all text projected over the illustration by the cover creator and wallah only took a 2nd try to get it done after that.
This was for the paperback version mind you, no problems with the ebook on that front. Keep in mind I was just about to go too sleep when the illustrator contacted me and I only recently reverse my schedule back to somewhat normal. It was then that this whole fiasco started.
Now then, the ebook has passed review and is currently publishing which means their setting it up on their sites and apps for amazon, kindle and their various national variations.
The paperback is in review. Both the ebook and paperback should be released around or within 72 hours from what I've been told. I will also get an email when the ebook is published and maybe when the paperback is published not sure.
Next, I noticed when I was reposting the amazon version of the synopsis that the paperback's synopsis was lacking any spaces between sentences which is indeed an issue.
Now I would go ahead and edit the ebook and paperback just so they're more professional, but I tried that, it won't let me edit it right now and the button to do so are greyed out.
That said I do want to edit the synopsis of the two books so they're not a mess but I will have to wait, if they even allow editing of them after they've been published anymore. I know they used too.
I may or may not release another update when they've been published and or edited but for now you seem to have all the information and anymore may just be overbearing.
Also the paperback minimum price was 42 something odd dollars with no royalties, so I raised the price of the paperback to 50 dollars USD so that I can even make a profit off royalties, even with that each purchase of the paperback only gives me 4.25 dollars. The cost of printing is 25 something odd dollars per book, I guess amazon gets the rest and or put it into shipping costs???? Crazy right?
Anyway that's it have a wonderful night or day and I hope you buy a copy.

P.S. The ebook is 2.99 USD.

I have this story on Webnovel.com Scribblehub.com and Royalroad.com I have deleted my series on Tapas.io I am on P A T R E O N, besides these websites I have not published this story anywhere else.
----------------------------------------------

Ethereal.

A Primordial Storm.

A Hyper-Sentient Being A God?

No.

But his creations seem to think so?

Whole worlds sculpted from his own body.

Countless denizens living and breathing on and within his worlds.

Immortal Powerful Overseers descended from one born in the primordial Origin.

Massive Guardians Dragons that birthed all dragon-kind.All serving you, all look up to you.

Yet you say no, you are not a God.

Because I am not.

I can be hurt.

I can be killed.

I have limits.

My Power is Finite, not Infinite.

Thus I am not a god.

I used to think It was only me in the void, but I am not alone.

My fellow readers, it is, the greatest of all time, the creator of an unfinished story (well many). Anyways, for those that enjoyed the first arc of The Dark Demon Lord (before the introduction of Thron Academy), go onto Amazon to get either the ebook or even, the paperback! You heard it (or read it?), the paperback is now released. With 70 chapters edited and properly laid out. 

You can also find my latest book on Amazon as well, Cloud the Universe. A different read, but the same universe (wink wink). Support me if you wish and if you still want to see the book form of my first and second novel, TDDL and CU. 

The link to TDDL on amazon is: 
https://www.amazon.com/Dark-Demon-Lord-Descent-ebook/dp/B07NCMC33K/ref=sr_1_1?qid=1579588632&refinements=p_27%3AS.N+Collier&s=digital-text&sr=1-1&text=S.N+Collier

The link to CU on amazon is:
https://www.amazon.com/Cloud-Universe-Book-S-N-Collier-ebook/dp/B07WCR4QM3/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

Anyways, to all those who support, thank you. For the rest, thank you for reading anything I have released thus far. I will eventually release more TDDL (of course, the new version I am writtinv) but only on Amazon. Keep an eye out, as the season for me to write is back.

Demon Lord Arnin has reached the apex of his universe, with everyone and everything fearing his very name, however, no one knows of his tragic past. 

With his clansmen being brutally slaughtered when he was very young, he was forced to enter the ruthless world alone. Betrayed at every step and finding himself against the world at every angle, his heart turned to stone, not allowing anything to affect him ever again. 

Right when he thinks that the world is firmly in his grasp, he learns about the existence of the beings that partook in the Great Demon Massacre of time immemorial. Learning that their power significantly exceeds his own, Demon Lord Arnin finds that the best way to increase his own strength as quickly as possible is by reincarnating into a world that uses a power completely unknown to him and starting over once again so that he may merge his powers in the future. 

Will the feared Demon Lord Arnin finally achieve the revenge he yearns for, or will he collapse after his million-year reign, simply becoming a figure of the past?

Check out A Devils Lie, a new novel by yours truly, found on Webnovel. 

Support me on Amazon!! TDDL Descent of the Demon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NCMC33K

  Final update! This book has finally finished undergoing revisions and is now available for purchase as an ebook on Amazon, and soon to be available for paperback! If you liked this story, and wish to support me so I can continue writing stories like these, then you can search up the book or my author name (Leo Fraust) to find it on Amazon, and you can buy the ebook and see the finished product! Thanks again for all the support you guys give me!

Don’t forget to buy the full book at Amazon!
https://www.amazon.com/dp/1090583761/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_awdb_t1_De.8CbZETACGD

  In a world shared between humans and laibah, there's a lot of turmoil between the two. The laibah are foxes that often take a human form, and they had previously had a long conflict with the humans. Humans have eventually accepted laibah as members of society, but they still have a lot of trouble blending in with the human society. 

  Now, a mysterious girl named Emma, who hides many secrets, catches the eye of Wyatt. During the day, they attend college, but at night she seems to nearly vanish. Emma has a hobby as a clothier, but what else is she hiding?

If you'd like to support this story, or this author:

There are links for several methods on my own website: t e c h p i x i e . n e t
I have an account under the same name at: p a t r e o n . c o m / g u s d e f r o g
There is also: p a y p a l . m e / g u s d e f r o g

There is a bit of actual merchandise with Data Dragon Danika artwork on it available on Zazzle and DeviantArt. 

--------

There are ebooks of some of my stories. Patrons can sort my posts for epubs by clicking the Ebook tag on my posts there. Ebooks are currently published under the same title as the web novel versions.
On the various ebook markets:
Some of my stories are listed as: by gusdefrog 
While others are listed as: by K.A.H.D

--------

As always, thanks for reading! ❤️

After a great deal of preparation, Danika begins her new digital dragon's life in a very small way.

They say the "Living Jade Empire" creates individualized quests. They say it can read your mind. They say you can find your heart's desire. They say that there's never been a game like it, and they're right but… they're also wrong.

The game is a data mine, built to retell the old tales that humans have been telling each other since language was invented. It doesn't read your mind, but it reads your search history, your favorites, and your blogs. The "Living Jade Empire" is literally crafted from fables, legends, fantasies, and maybe just a bit of stardust.

But in the end, will the game be able to figure out what Danika wants most? Will the desires of other players take priority? Or, will playing it change her, until she desires what it can give her?

A journey is always made up of many small steps, and this game has still only just begun.

The first test. I never got nervous, not one bit. Ace beaker took the whip, and did what he was supposed to. Start the first test. I never cried, something I learned in life; you cry you lose. As the whip hit, different memories came to mind. I see my dad first. My dad always tried training me for this day, and he would do awful things like whips and stuff, and tell me I need to be stronger, or I will just like everyone else. I always thought I deserved it, and now I realized what my dad meant. I loved my dad, even when he did those things, and now I just miss him. But that can't stop me from passing every single test, even if it breaks me, I will pass this test, for him.

        They hit me forty-nine times just before Weylyn said something.

        "Stop! If you keep going at this rate, you will cut off her hands; or worse, kill her."

        "No...no, I will be fine," I said, not a tear in my eyes.

        "Boss requires us to stop at fifteen, he just did forty-nine. I think we are done. Next test," she said.

        When Weylyn gave me the book, I realized how long the book was. It had 7,312 pages in it, and the text was really tiny. It took me twenty-three minutes and 54.3 seconds to finish it. The book was called, 'The Blah Story' by Nigel Tomm.

        "Alright, next test," Weylyn said.

        Test number three. The easiest test out of four, and yet the most important. I chose a tight leather jumpsuit and a light silk rose gold gown with glitter on the top part above the waist, and a long narrow cut just before a wrap on the waist. The skirt would run down past my ankles and brushed lightly against the floor below me when I put it on. I put the leather suit on, and then I knew it was time for test four. The test that most people regret.

        I walked into this room with nothing but ropes, a vase, and a chair. I saw Al's face, and then it hit me. This would be the last time we will ever see each other. We were going to fight each other. We entered the room, and he had the most angry look in his eyes.

        "Are you okay?" I asked Al. Al's eyes were the color of blue ice, and his skin was pale, he always wore a white tank top and blue boot cut jeans. He never had to pick an outfit. They didn't make him, but why? "Al? What's wrong?" I asked him.

          "If they thought I was going to survive this, they would've made me get suits, but they didn't. They don't have faith in me, and neither do you," he said angrily. Al's fists clenched furiously. The curve of his back lacked in his posture, and his eyes were dark with anger. A vein popped from his temple, a single drop of sweat rolling down the side of his cheek.

          "Wait, what? Of course I have faith in you," I said. "That's why I-"

          "Stop lying!" Al shouted, his voice booming through the small room. The floor shook with the ripples of his tone, causing the entire building to shake.

          "Why would I lie to you, Al?" I begged, watching his face contort into pure disgust. "I want you to know I have faith in you-"

          "I said stop lying!" Al shouted once more, rage overtaking his entire physique. Al then charged at me with a rope in his hand. The rope was close to strangling my neck, but he missed. I ran and grabbed the vace nearby.

         "Come on, you're a better aim than that,'' I said, seeing Al's teeth grind against one another. I ran at him and smashed the vace over his head, hearing him groan in the process. It broke into a million pieces and scattered all around his head. He fell to the floor, harshly, and was defeated. 

Or so I thought. 

I turned my back for two seconds, feeling victory override me, until I felt a hand pull against my hair; causing me to fall hard, that I flew across the room.

    "Knew you didn't care," Al said angrily. "I knew you were lying the whole time."

    "I do care, Al," I said, feeling my chest crush against his words; making me feel bad. "You know me better than anyone. You know who I am. We've known each other since we were babies. You know if I cry that makes me weak."

    "I thought I knew you, but I turns out I don't," he said, with less anger in his voice. "Apparently I never did. The second you thought I was defeated you walked away, like I was nothing to you. You were about to leave me." 

    "I had no choice but to move on," I said with loss of breath. "We had no choice in this situation. You know you would do the same."

    "I would have some sympathy, you just completely acted like you didn't care or know me." he said in a sad voice.

    "Come on, don't make me feel bad, we have known from the start that we had to do this."

    "Before you finish the job," He said.

    "No, don't say it."

    "I love you, I always have and I always will. I thought maybe if I tried being mad at you it would ease my conscience if I killed you. But it didn't work."

     "I can't, I can't kill you, I love you too much," I said. I kissed him with pation as I grabbed the chair from behind me, and I pulled away from the kiss. "I'm sorry, I love you". He had a confused look on his face for a second before I swung the chair at him. I must have hit him really hard because his head was bleeding so much, I thought I could see brain for a second. I took a piece of the broken vase and stabbed him in the head several times vigorously. Looking down at the blood on my hands I dropped the piece of glass. Blood was all over the place. A tear dropped from my eyes. "Crying is for the weak." I whispered to myself. I wiped the tear and turned towards Weylyn.

    "God, what took you so long?" Ace said.

    "I-I…." I stumbled on my words.

    "Go get cleaned up and come back for your gown," He said. "Go, now."

    I ran to the end of the hall and used a rag I found on the floor to wipe the blood off my skin and clothes. The blood was also in my pink hair as well as my face and hands. When I got all the blood that I could off of me I walked back and grabbed my gown. I walked to one of the rooms that was near and put it on. Something didn't feel right, other than the fact that I just killed my only friend outside of my blood related family. Something just felt different feel right about me. Then I heard the door lock, I went to the door and tried to open it, the door wouldn't budge. I banged on the door, "hey, I'm trapped, let me out." I yelled through the door.

    "You are meant to change right now, we can't let you out until you change." Kenna said in a voice full of nervousness.

    "I'm already changed into my dress, what do you…." I said as I got interrupted by the difference increasing. A burst of this darkness came from my heart and spread throughout the sky. I fell to the floor and all I saw was darkness.

The year is 3201, all power is out, and no one is up for president after the government shut down. No laws, nothing. Analysis day, where six teen year olds are put through four tests to see what they will do in life and who they are, but Kenna knows it's just to see who the dark queen will be. The dark queen is a myth, mostly in the Hayes family, where in the year 3201 a evil queen with magical abilities will rise and destroy anyone who gets in her way of getting what she wants.

My brother in shorts accompanied by the unlikely duo and myself have left the big rock since more than 2 hours.

On this dirt road with no bends, the questions that come to my mind are many, but the one that burns my lips has remained the same for more than 50 minutes.

"I was wondering. This must be Master Kaio's planet here, right? However, if my theory is correct, where is the stupid monkey?"

My brother in shorts, open his mouth, then he closes it again. He walks up to the beautiful brunette woman, then whispers a few words to her.

"Miss Tessa, I'm very concerned about the Princess' mental health?"

The beautiful woman shakes her head. She looks at me for a few moments with pity in her eyes, before she replies to my brother in shorts who, like me, can't seem to stand the smell of the troll.

"I don't know, she says a lot of things that don't make any sense. Based on my knowledge of magic, I fear she may have undergone a lobotomy in that other world."

Dickheads, for your information, I'm less than 5ft away from you. As I contemplate the possibility to have undergone a lobotomy, my courage is waning.

Suddenly, my depression evaporates and I gaze at my adorable face in the little mirror Tessa lent me.

"Bernica, miserable little fairy, you neglected to mention how long it would take for me to reach the royal castle where my dearest mother awaits me. "

Um, it seems that my recurring personality change is somewhat disturbing to these three plebeians.

"Your highness, there is a misunderstanding. The queen would really have liked to see you again, however, unfortunately, it would have exhausted her to take care of a teenage girl. Oh, rest assured. She has granted you a small fiefdom that will fill you with joy."

What a disgrace, this woman discards her own daughter as soon as her returns to her own contry. It's not so dramatic. In fact, maybe owning my own land will even be a lot of fun.

"Bernica, may I know the reason why my esteemed self was exiled to another world? Was I the victim of a horrible conspiracy fomented by naughty people, by scoundrels jealous of my beauty?"

A flash of lightning bolts goes through my brain. My brother in shorts seems to be talking to me, but I have other concerns.

I quickly get down my shorts that my other personality has pulled up to my buttocks. I pull up my pink tee-shirt that exposed half of my huge breasts and to avoid letting this unpleasant girl take control of my brain, I immerse myself in the cheat codes of Tomb Raider.

The smelly troll, whose heavy footsteps raise dust as he moves forward, is suspiciously watching me. The giant scratches his head, then unable to keep quiet any longer, he risks an oral 1VS1.

"Princess, do you have cramps, if not, why are your fingers wiggling in the air?"

Damn, I'm doing air-keyboard. The lack of a laptop is already manifesting itself. The sweat that's been running down my forehead for some time and the slight spasms I've been feeling all over my body was the reason.

It's not the first time I've had this kind of seizure. As early as Middle School, I used to escape from my classroom and rush into the computer room.

Those school years weren't easy. At the age when other boys usually spend their time discovering girls, at drool over Youporn with a leaf paper towel in hand and playing with their colossus, I took pleasure in caressing the monitor of my over-boosted computer.

High School was simpler. The school administration being aware of my geek-gamer-addict pathology, I was allowed to carry in my bag a laptot on which I could tap in case of crisis.

"Brother in shorts, we need to take a break so that I can get my medication."

My shorts brother's face turned white. His concern for me is anything but fake.

"Of course, Your Highness, it will be done as you wish."

Those words are barely spoken, that I throw myself to the side and pull my smartphone out of my pocket. Fingerprint recognition, facial recognition, iris recognition, code: 2645, sms, more faster, tap.

Although the digital screen doesn't allow me to relieve myself as quickly as the audible keys that sink under my fingers, little by little, I feel my crisis slipping away.

It's getting better. Yeah, it's getting better, but after frantically tapping for more than 4 hours, I'm completely exhausted.

My breathing is jerky, my heart beats too fast, so to calm myself down, I lie down in the tall grass that tickles my ears. It's really unpleasant, but let's take advantage of this moment to take stock of the few pieces of information already downloaded in my brain.

I was born under the name of Pernisia exactly 18 years ago in the realm of forward-looking fairies, also called the Madokas.

With the Kingdom of Humans in the center, the enormous Kingdom of Ocelia which regroups many races in the North, the small Kingdom of puffy dwarves in the North-West, the Kingdom of Demons in the East and the Kingdom of Beastmen in the West, this Kingdom located in the South, would be one of the 5 Kingdoms which would constitute the northern territories of a continent named, Fraya.

According to my brother in shorts, it's a world of retards. At least, that is the conclusion I came to after listening to him talk to me about this continent.

Some of the beings who live in these lands are able to use magic, others are extremely powerful, (like a Toriko on steroids), but the engineers of these countries would be donkeys unable to design a good video game.

Seeing my disappointed look, my brother in shorts wanted to reassure me by praising the progress of technology. He told me about the books that could now be accessible to the greatest number of people.

Of course, I asked him about the available formats. PDF, ePUB, eBOOK, AZW, TXT...

I was very excited by his statement but when I was already contemplating the rapid progress of the engineers of this world, this false brother shattered all my hopes by proudly presenting me with something ugly made of goatskin.

"Go die, winged thing from the middle ages."

Lying in the tall grass, when I think back on my collection of Gundam that proudly trrones above my bedroom door, a tear runs down my cheek.

Yes, my body is certainly in this world where a multitude of exotic beings cohabit more or less in harmony, but my heart is always nearby my life-size Rem figurine.

"Brother in shorts, as a Princess, I demand a tomboy maid with big tits."

He's a failed school psychologist, she's a particularly strange student. 
He's moping about his past, she's living in a fantasy world. 
He's consumed with regret, the joy of life emanates from her.

When after a consultation he opens the door of his grey-walled office, she plunges him into her fantastic world.

I rose early, blinking at the clock. Sunlight had partially answered my question, but the clock confirmed it was after eight. I suppose we were taking it easy today.

I padded to the kitchen, beginning to fry up some eggs and boiling a pot of coffee for Edward and I. I smiled at the thought, eyes directed to the ground. To the feet I was crossing.

I uncrossed them, resting the heel of my right on the toes of my left. Simple, again, but something about it brought a smile to my face. 

Dragged footsteps rose my attention to somewhere outside of myself. I turned, watching Ed stride out of his room, dressed in a white tee and blue boxers. 

"Morning," he yawned, shuffling a hand through his hair. 

Another reason to smile. "Good morning," I replied, turning away to tend to the eggs. 

I pushed them around a few times, some part of me surprised to keep this smile on my face for so long. It must be a world record. 

I nearly laughed at the thought, fingers of my free hand curling in anticipation. I noticed Ed lean against the counter beside me, felt his stare even before I heard him speak.

"What're you smilin' for?" he asked, looking in front of himself as he did so.

I simply shrugged one shoulder, flipping over a spatula-full of egg. It sizzled in response, from the bacon grease I had left inside.

"I'm just... Happy," I replied, my eyes curving. 

Ed gave a smile as well, brushing his bangs from his eye. 

"I'm glad," he told me, the sound of my name sounding... Not so painful. 

Heat tinged my face, and I bowed my head a little, sure the blush was running across the deer-spot like trail of freckles that dashed across my nose. 

"Thanks, Ed," I replied. 

He nodded once, and his head leaned back, nearly hitting the overboard/top cupboard. He grinned at the coffee pot. "And you made me coffee too!"

I smiled, nodding quietly. "That's right."

Ed relaxed, shoulders lifting and clicking at the deflation. He looked over to me, holding my curious stare. 

It was as if time stopped. I felt myself become a bit weightless, looking into his eyes. Seeing his smile increase at one corner, and seeing his bangs swing a little as he tilted his head to one side.

"Good morning!" Alphonse exclaimed, jolting me out of the trance. 

I jumped, the shock nearly forcing the spatula from my hand. I held on tighter, focusing on the eggs a bit more. 

"Mornin', Al," Ed replied, obviously amused at my fear. 

I tried to swallow down my heartbeat, letting the spit sweep through my throat and my chest, never alleviating the jackhammer of my heart.

"The train doesn't leave 'til 11:30," Al was saying, "so I figured we could take a look at the map and see where we're headed towards next."

"Sure thing," Ed replied, voice a tiny bit muffled due to his lips against the coffee mug. I blushed a little, heat dusting my cheeks, but I wasn't sure why I was blushing. Was it...

I blushed even harder, barely hearing Al's voice. Was it truly because I was thinking of Ed's lips? Am I that childish?

Butterflies erupted in my gut, and I couldn't help but smile even more.

The sound of my name cracked my reality. I looked up, seeing Ed with his hand in his jaw, a melting smile on his face. 

"What'cha thinkin' 'bout?" he asked, teasing me. 

I blushed harder than before, red running across my cheeks. He just grinned wider, leaning forward, and I reached out, flicking his nose.

He flinched back, both hands covering the spot I had flicked, muffling his shout of surprise. 

Al and I giggled. 

Al was the first to bring us all back to reality. He looked up from his book, momentarily watching Ed eat and me fake my way through breakfast.

"We're hitting up Wellebley, right?"

"Yeah," Ed replied, standing and stretching out his lower back with his hands on his hips. "That should be our last stop."

Al unrolled a huge map, something I had only seen a handful of times in the month-and-a-half I had been traveling with the Elrics. The soul in the suit nodded, responding to Ed's statement and looking down at the map as I exchanged smiles with Edward. He looked down, to the map, and with a larger smile I decided I wasn't worth staring at anyway.

Al unclicked a pen, circling the town he had just questioned. "It's only a few stops away," he said, and part of me wondered why they even needed this worn down map at all. The destinations, the pathways, they all must be memorized by now. Paths and stories I couldn't retrace or recite, even if I wanted to. 

The light chatter that had been floating around me suddenly died down, and I focused enough to see golden eyes looking at me expectantly. Like a reply should be falling from my lips at any moment. 

Ed smiled, eyes closing. "Never mind," he said, and he straightened, hand slipping away from the map. "We'll leave in a little bit." 

And that was the end of the conversation. When we were on the train, I thought of another conversation, a discussion we'd never had before. I just thought of the Homunculi, and the underlying fear I had been hiding from the beginning rose up. Creeping and crawling over my stomach, the back of my neck. As trees passed by, I could only wonder how long they would survive. How many rings were inside each trunk. How, if we cut ourselves open, how many rings would be inside of us, at the end.

It had been quiet for almost a week now, the loss of the amulet still pulling at us.

I could only hope something would break through soon.

_____

It's rare that people talk to themselves. Usually it's from stress, though that would be implying I knew anything about people at all. He remained staring downwards, murmuring something to himself. He perked up, noticing I was noticing him. And Ed's face grew a bit pale, voice asking me if everything was alright.

I nodded a little furiously, returning the question back to him. And he matched my nod, as strange as it was. 

"Just thinking out loud!" he replied, grinning enough for his eyes to curve.
I matched his smile. Of course. That makes sense.

Al's helmet clicked, as he went back to reading. He was the only one who could decipher books endlessly on the train, not having to deal with motion sickness. How Ed could sketch on a train was above me.

I finished shaking my head, shaking my thoughts away and opening tired eyes to look at my skirt. I bunched up a hand, fisting fabric that mirrored the night sky.

Look at me, trying to be poetic.

I smiled bleakly, and after a few moments, sleep gathered me up in its arms.

I didn't dream, just experiencing that small black space, feeling like I was half-asleep and half-lucid until I heard a voice. Consciousness came to me like I was floating back up to the surface of water, air coming back as my eyes cracked open.

My vision was tilted, seeing a skewed Alphonse with an empty seat next to him. My head was resting against something—a firm but warm shoulder. Ed's voice was speaking softly, telling a story that vaguely sparked memories into my half-asleep brain.

Al's head shifted to look down at me. 

"Hey," I heard him say. "She's awake!"

"Hm?" Ed's voice was right beside me again, and I could feel his face inches away as he turned. "Oh, yeah." he said quietly, almost as if I could still be asleep. "She is."

I blinked, eyes dry as my mind came back to me. Ed was so close— the shoulder I was resting against was his! I pulled myself away, feeling my brain swim in protest as I sat up. 

"Sorry." I said, raising a hand to my forehead. "How long was I sleeping?"

Ed just shrugged the shoulder I was against, giving me a face I couldn't read. "Not too long. Maybe an hour or so?"

Alphonse nodded. I put my face in my hands as I whined. "An hour?! You should've moved me off of you!"

"Ah," Ed waved a gloved hand. "Figure I should use parts of my human body while I still have 'im."

A dark part of my mind connected that statement to something ELSE. A blush ran across my face, and from the corner of my eye I saw Ed's face turning red as well. 

"What?" Al asked us.

Ed seemed to snap out of his embarrassment, looking up before shaking his head. "It's nothing, Al. We got a few more hours until Albupow, huh?"

Al nodded and Ed replied, speaking about time to kill as he stretched his arms out, one of them almost bumping into a passing food cart. Ed immediately retracted his arm. "Oh, sorry." 

With the cart stopped, the Alchemist turned to me. I looked to the cart, then to him, remembering the LAST time this happened. 

"Don't..." I said, watching a mischievous grin slowly take over Ed's face. I leaned forward, voice rising. "Don't you dare!!"

"Excuse me," he turned to the employee, who had been waiting on us. "I'd like your—"

I clamped my hand over his mouth, feeling his smile against my skin as I spoke for him. 

"He'd like your least expensive item, please."

Ed took my hand away from his mouth, holding me by the wrist. "Just give me that bottle of champagne and we should be good." he told the worker. 

The employee put down the roll of bread, crouching to go beneath the cart. 

"Are you trying to get me drunk?" 

Ed grinned at me, the expression almost suggestive. "Hey that's not a bad idea."

"I can't believe you, Edward!"

The State Alchemist just laughed, quieting down to thank the employee as she handed him the bottle of champagne. He exchanged this with more money than it costed, and I leaned forward, pressing my forehead to his shoulder in defeat. 

My body jumped as I heard the cork pop out beside me, a squeak of metal sounding as Al caught the projectile, preventing it from hitting the person sitting in front of us. 

"Thanks, Al." Ed said. "Don't know how to aim these things yet."

I just sighed. This just might be a very long two hours...

When time proved to be on my side and passed quickly, I found myself chatting with Alphonse. Talking about something more than cat breeds and cuisine dishes. He told me of his last memories, the last time he was in flesh and felt something real. He remembered the current of Alchemy sweeping him away like the ocean's tide, he remembered reaching for his brother's hand as he was deconstructed. 

He became lost, like his body. Subjected to Truth and all it gave him.

Alphonse smiled, and I found a hollowness inside him that I hadn't seen before. Usually, I avoid eye contact, but this... This was something that hit too close to an inner-wall.

"I mean,"―He raised both hands, fanning his arms out in a loose shrug―"I don't have to use circles of Alchemy, and Brother feeds my body that's by my gate." His hands relaxed, bunching up his loincloth. "It's not much of a trade off, but..."

But it's something... The words hung between us, Ed's light snoring the foreground.

I'm sorry. I wanted to apologize. To do something other than stay silent. But I laid the notion to rest, knowing whatever I said was worthless. He deserved a better friend. Both of them did.

That's what I told myself, and that pain is what brought the smile to my face. I reached over, placing my hand on Alphonse's giant gloved one. He looked down, then looked to me. Expecting some sort of speech; some type of spoken emphasis to my action.
I gave him a small word of hope. Saying how Ed was sleeping right now, so his body must be doing pretty well!

Alphonse returned my smile, and the train kept bumping along. Bringing us closer to a new destination, a new town with hopefully new answers.

I tried to hide my disappointment, when things turned up empty. I tried to avoid the mirror, when we settled down for the night and Ed took the bed on the right. I tried to hide it all, masking my own face in my pillow, the mattress supporting my stomach and legs and the arms tucked underneath what I was burying my face in. I molded a new wall, a softness to this one. And gradually, very gradually, with an Alchemist snoring beside me gently, sleep gathered me in its arms and took me away.

"Astrid, hold on. I'm coming" Jareth charged into the trees, with his dagger in his hand, he heard fighting sounds making his heart race the more. 

"I shouldn't have let her run off on her own" he quickened his pace and ran towards the blue light.

*************

The Elven soldiers kept on searching for any sign of the hybrid princess, they couldn't find her still. Clive, being the most inquisitive one, he jumped on the trees, one hand holding a branch and another close to his eyes as he peered deep into the distance. 

"Sir, over there" Clive pointed towards the East, "A bright blue light is coming from between the trees. I bet that's magic sir."


"Where. I'm coming" Lieutenant Flynn jumped on a tree and unto one of its branches. 


"Over there sir, by your left" Clive shouted again. 


"Hmm, he is right. That is definitely magic, but Prince Blade... "


"Sir, your orders, should some of us check it out?" The second in command shouted, breaking his reverie. 


"Very well, take a five man team and check it out. If it is the hybrid princess, give the signal and we'll be there."


"Yes sir" he turned, "Four of you follow me" he gave his order and four Elven soldiers walked forward. 


He gave a nod and started running, the four soldiers followed suit, running after him towards the East. 


"Trees" he ordered. They diverted from the road, moving to the side of the road with trees and jumped on them. From there they kept on jumping from one tree to the other to get there fast. 

***********

Jareth pushed past some branches and came to a little open space in between the trees. He stopped dead on his track and hid behind the bushes. 

What baffled him was that, he thought Astrid was under attack, so he ran to assist her. Only to come here and chance upon this sight. 

Astrid fighting a moving tree and a moulded earthen man. She had a large chunk of earth on one hand, magic on the other and her stance was just right. 

She threw a ball of magic to the earthen man, rushed towards her left and punched the tree with her large hand of earth. 

The tree flung its branches at her, she turned her feets and moved to the side, stricking it on tge body. The earthen man charged at her, not giving her a break, she uttered some spells and controlled some vines to hold him down.


She clasped both hands together, drew it backs wards and extended them forward. Bright blue light left her hand and hit her aim, it fell on the earthen man's hand. 

Its left hand fell to the ground and turned into mud, It staggered backwards, looking at Astrid. It hit the ground with its only hand, it broke to large chunk of earth and threw them at her. 


She quickly dashed to the side, her movement scattered, bending low and jumping up evading the tree branches swung at her. With one kneel to the ground, she placed her free hand on the ground beside her knee and closed her eyes. 


Both made a lounge at her, ready to strike her down, she didn't move or do anything she just stayed in place, with her earth clad hand at her side. 


Jareth felt the need to help her, "What is she doing? She can't take them al... " before he could make a jump for it, they came crashing on her. 


Instantly, her eyes flew open, shining blue, the earth on her hand fell off, both hands clapped together into a fist, with a blue light on them. As they were few inches away from her... 

Bang!! 

Her magic flung the away before their hand and branches could make contact with her body. Instantly, the earthen moulded man fell and scattered to pieces, the tree fell down with a thud. 


She rose up on her feet, with a triumphant smile plastered on her face. 


Jareth rushed out of the bush and ran to her side. "What is wrong with you Astrid?"


"Jareth!!" She had a little bit of shock on her face as she saw him. 


"What do you think you are doing?"


-------------------------------


~The Human Kingdom – Throne Room~

King Bayard sat lazily on his throne, with one hand supporting his head and the other resting on his harm rest. 


Prince Owen stood in front of his father, a huge grinned plastered on his face as he address his father. 


Gerald stood at the side listening to the Prince's explanation, with arms crossed in front of him. 


"Father, finally we caught him."

"So, all evidence points towards him?"

"Yes father, we found all the money and robes in his house. He is in the dungeons awaiting your final judgment."


"Good. Would handle that tomorrow, for now... "

"Your Majesty,, Princess Cyrena" the familiar voice announced outside the throne room.

The most powerful being in all the magic realm, this is how it came to be. 

In a realm of magic... Fairies, mer-folks, elves, sorcerers and humans all coexisted. 

A marriage alliance between two kingdoms, a fairy princess and a sorcerer prince. Out of that union came forth a halfbreed, Isadora, a child having both powers. 

A tragic incident... The dead body of an Elven Prince, found on the land of the sorcerers, causing an all out war between the Elves and the sorcerers. 


Through the course of war, an unexpected fate, a love between the halfbreed princess and a mer-prince. A child born of land, air and sea. A non human girl, a hybrid princess, the most powerful creature in the realm. 

Astrid must venture through the magic realm in search of her mother, her kingdom and the truth behind the war. All the while escaping the traps and schemes of the other kingdoms.


What happens when a forbidden love springs forth. How is she going to deal with the betrayal of a love that almost caused her everything? 

Would she be able to scale through all the trials life brought her way and save her mother and people? 

Find out in this fairytale of love, trials, duty and power. 


---------------------------

Cover page not mine, all credit goes to the original owner. 

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