The clouds were rumbling. Jevelene held Ariel's hand as he walked ahead of her. Milo flew above them. She did not know where they were going, or if she could trust him. He was a demigod, so she thought she cold. She had her father's letter in her mind. She had never met a demigod before. She could the glistening water of the brook from the little nets of trees. They were far away from home. What about Ariel? Wouldn't his master be angry? Finally, they reached a cliff. He looked ahead at the fields before him, "Wow..." The brook, passing between the huge fields
He could see the sunrise before him. Shining on the golden fields of barley, spreading till the horizon. She ran down with her hand in his, running through the fields.

The day was bright and long. Jevelene took off her coat, and then put off her shoes and her socks. She raised her dress and walked into the brook barefoot. The water reached her knees. Her soles felt relieved. The air was citrusy and green. She could almost taste the orange on the tip of her tongue. Ariel sat beside the bank, watching her. 

"Ariel, would your master not be upset that you did not return for his service?"
"He would," Ariel smiled as he chewed on an orange, "But I do not wish to return. I wish to run away,"
"Where would you go?"
"Towards my freedom,"

"Where are you taking me? Towards my freedom?"
He turned back at Jevelene, "I don't know where I am taking you, but trust me when I say that wherever it is...I will make sure to make it your home,"
Jevelene looked towards Ariel, "Why do you care about me? I am just a stranger,"
"I want to protect you," He looked down, "And give you...the love that you deserve,"

"But why?" Jevelene asked. 
"Because," Ariel looked down, at the flowers underneath their feet, "You were kind to me. I am returning your kindness,"
"Ariel..."

"AJAX!" Someone yelled and Ariel turned back. A tall man sat on a horse at the cliff that they had come from. A few other men sat on the horses behind him, "I've been looking for you everywhere, come, let us go back home,"

"Ajax..." Jevelene looked at Ariel, "So, that's your real name?"
Ariel took her by her hand, "Jevelene," She felt a strong pull as he turned back, "Run!" Ariel's hands were big and warm. She looked at his flowing brown hair as they ran. She felt his pulse through his palms, her heart was beating fast and so was his. She didn't know where he was taking her, they were just running aimlessly, away from that man who was chasing them on his horses on the road. Oh gosh, they would never outrun a horse. Once the trees cleared, the man on the horse tried getting closer to Jevelene, he almost grabbed her by her hair, when Milo attacked him. 

"MILO!" Jevelene screamed. Milo began clawing at his face. At then, one poisonous dart released from a bow, and Milo fell on the ground. 
"MILO!"

Ariel looked behind and then began running again, "Forgive me, Jevelene. But there is no time to grieve," He saw a dark road track. A horse cart carrying wheat was going towards another city. Ajax and Jevelene ran after it. Ariel and Jevelene had jumped on the slow-moving cart. He looked at Jevelene, "What do we do not, Ariel?"
"Do not fret," His eyes turned golden again, "He cannot hurt you,"

"Come back to me, Ajax! I BOUGHT YOU!" 
Ariel looked at the road, the earth cracked open and beneath rose huge mountains of graphite, so tall that they created an impenetrable wall, blocking everything that they had left behind, as if they were not in a separate world. Ariel's eyes turned back to green, they looked mellow, "I hope I did not scare you,"
"No, you can never," She looked at Ariel.
"Milo was...my father's last thing I owned,"

"I'm sorry. I wish I could've saved him,"
"I know you would if you could," She smiled.

His master's frustrated screams were covered under the voice of the wheels of the carn. With his past choked under those woody tracks, where was that cart leading them to? There was only one way to find out. They sat there the entire day, watching the fields, the mountains, the rivers, coalesce and then separate out to never meet again, or perhaps, meet in the sea. Sun lay peacefully on the clouds, his servants serviced him, till it was moon's turn to take over. Ariel woke up and looked around. The tram had stopped near a public house. Jevelene was fast asleep. 

"Jevelene," They got down and began walking into the streets. It seemed like a city. The roads were made of cobblestones, the houses were small and crammed. The markets big. Ariel walked ahead of Jevelene, holding her hand in his. She followed him quietly.

"Where are we?" She asked as she looked up at the nape of his neck.
"I don't know, Jevelene," She left his hand and walked ahead, "I might see a sign which reads what this place is called. Maybe we could ask a public house-" She suddenly fell inside a pit. 
"JEVELENE!" Ariel ran towards the pit and reached his hand down, "Grab my hand,"

She didn't reply, "Jevelene?" He got on his knees and leaned on the ditch and felt something crawling on his hands. He pulled it back up, it was black water. He looked up and found himself covered by black smoke, "Forbidden magic?" And soon many black shadows jumped out of the ditch. His face lost its composure and his brows furrowed, "Ghouls,"

There were many of them. His eyes glowed orange and his nails turned to gold, resembling golden claws. One of the black shadows ran towards him and he scratched his face and jumped back. He pressed his hands on the ground and it turned into mercury. He took some of the liquid metal into his arms and threw it at the ghouls. As it flew towards them, it turned into sodium darts which exploded near the ghouls' body, creating a white smoke. He removed his shirt and turned it into a sword. He ran at the white smoke, which made the dark ghouls visible against the contrast. He slashed down four of them. Suddenly, he heard his name. He turned and saw Jevelene surrounded by the ghouls. He ran towards her, "JEVELENE!" And all the ghouls ran away from her.

"Are you okay?" He asked and Jevelene hugged him. He blushed, "Jeve–" He felt a paralyzing pain on his shoulder. It was not Jevelene. It was a ghoul disguised as her. Its fangs were into his flesh. He tried to to push it away but all other ghouls flocked around him. They attacked him and he kept fighting them with some ghouls eating his flesh as he fought the others. His body was covered with dark blight. He began losing his senses as more and more ghouls flocked on his body, like vultures feeding on dead meat.

Jevelene crawled out of the ditch with a ghoul sticking to her back, "Ariel!" She ran towards him. But someone reached him before her. One slash of a powerful sword, and all the ghouls moved away from Ariel, screaming. He fell on the ground, covered in blood and blight.

"Ariel–"
"Don't touch him," She heard and looked beside her. It was an Asian man in his twenties probably. He wore a red changshan and held a bottle of water in his hands. He sprayed the water on Ariel while chanting some spells and Ariel coughed blood.

His body gave off steam and he screamed, "ARIEL! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Jevelene screamed.
"Removing his blight," He replied. He threw a talisman in the air, it floated in the air. And Ariel's blight began burning from his body, he screamed as he rolled on ground. Ariel lost consciousness from the pain and the blight disappeared. Jevelene couldn't believe what just happened.

"Ariel!" Jevelene got on her knees and touched his face.
"He is alright. Just sleeping,"
"I'm done, Milord," A man with blue hair stood behind him in a blue changshan. She looked around. All the ghouls were gone.
"Good work, Maks,"

She looked at them, "Who are you people?"
He looked at her and smiled, "Hello young lady, I'm Aleksei Vasiliev. And this is my star spirit, Maks, 'The Leadership of Love'. We are exorcists. We were called here to deal with some ominous presence but looks like the ghouls got you before us,"

"The Leadership of Love?" She gasped, "An elite star!"
Maks looked at his master and then back at Jevelene, "Yes, that is me,"
"Oh my!" She covered her smile with her fingers, "I never thought I'd meet one in this lifetime. You're the ninth knight, right?"

"How do you know that, miss?"
"I heard about you from a lady that used to recite stories to me. About stars and demigods and demons," Maks nodded.
"What are you doing here this late at night?" Aleksei asked. 

"We are lost," Jevelene said.
"We will take you home. Where do you live?"
"Home?" She looked at Ariel and then back at Aleksei, "We don't have a home,sir,"

Aleksei looked at Maks, "We could take you to the inn that we are staying in. It is too dangerous to be left on the street this way. Cities are full of demonic spirits,"
"That's so kind of you," Jevelene thanked them.
"However, tomorrow we are leaving for China," Aleksei told her, "Our ship leaves tomorrow,"

"China? I have heard about it. It is a sweeping arc of jade-colored skies, an empire of intricate beauty and profound contrasts. I know of the Qing Dynasty, my father told me about its dragon-emblazoned banners unfurling over a vast and diverse land. The Forbidden City stands like a silent poem in brick and gold, guarding the whispers of emperors and their celestial mandates,"

"You are quite well-read, miss. I am impressed," Aleksei looked at Maks.
"You have charmed me too," Maks smiled.

They took her and Ariel to the inn and got them a room with one bed for Jevelene. Ariel slept beside Maks. Aleksei looked at the bracelets in Ariel's hands, "These are made of gold, he must come from a place of wealth,"
"They are not what you think they are, Maks. Do not be fooled,"
"What? Are they not ornaments, my lord?"
Aleksei smiled, "Quite the opposite. Our little friend here, he is a slave,"

-To be continued

Aleksei Vasiliev
Dear Ms Lady Demigod