Sightless.

Wasn’t there any other name for the place? To call it sightless, it was huge. I mean huge huge! 

When Salzar flew over, I held my breath. There were rising towers, more pyramids, old temples, domes buildings, streets lined with markets, a replica of the white house I guess, a few Greek buildings, something like a coliseum and a lot of mansions and tons of small houses. The lanes were crowded with people whom I shall not say specifically which species they belong to. But most were not human. There were Pegasus flying around, some unknown flying creatures and of course, a few more Chinese dragons. They flew alongside Salzar as we arrived. Each one of them had a different colour. One was gold, another was red, green, white and the last was black.

‘How is the Palace?’ asked Andrew.

‘Worse, my prince,’ said the gold dragon.

I looked down at my watch. It was two in the evening. We took two hours to fly all the way from England to Egypt.

I still could not understand what the big “problem” was. Well, not until we reached what seemed like the river Nile that I noticed there was a sand tornado encircling in the center of the city besides the Nile.

There was such a roar of the wind that Andrew had to yell to speak.

‘What about the others?’

Lightning cracked from somewhere and there wasn’t even storm. But then I realized that the lightning was coming from within the miniature sand hurricane. Andrew turned to me.

‘Call then off,’ he shouted.

‘WHAT?’ I had to yell so hard that I tasted sand in my mouth. Salzar did the craziest thing. He plummeted into the storm.

I closed my face and felt bits of sand piecing through my skin. Andrew held on tight to Salzar. From below, I saw a building much more with a Roman look to it with some Greek buildings like the Parthenon surrounded by a medieval looking fortress.  But this thing was huge and it had so many structures from different designs that it looked like the architect could not decide to which era and culture the building was supposed to belong.

It took me a while to notice the creatures inside the storm. Tiny people were flirting and zapping through the air. There was a loud musical buzz, more like the storm was chanting to itself. Somehow, I could understand what they were chanting.

‘Destroy… destroy…’

Okay, not what I expected.

‘Stop!’ I yelled.

The tiny creatures around me stopped. Then I saw them. They were fairies.

‘Destroy, destroy, destroy...’

Goodness, that was creepy.

‘No one is destroying anything,’ I yelled. Much to my surprise, my voice echoed like that of a bell and everything stopped, as if time froze.

Then they started to move again.

Oh my, this is going to be a nightmare, I thought.

Salzar slowly headed in front of the palace. Lucky for him, he had scales. But the tiny sand fairies were still monotonously chanting the same word over and over again.

Then I saw someone push a large marble coffin out of the palace.

‘Destroy…. Have to destroy….’

They seemed very angry about something.

‘Send them in,’ said Andrew.

‘Huh? Like they’ll listen?’

‘Order them.’

He sounded like I was their leader or something and that I was responsible of keeping them in check.

‘Go into the box,’ I said.

Their chanting increased. Great, now they were even madder.

‘Destroy…. Destroy….’

‘I SAID, GET INTO THE BOX!’

I was out of my breath when I finished yelling. And guess what, they did go back into the box. Slowly, they poured in taking the sand along with them and the chanting dies down. But then they got all stirred up again.

‘GO IN,’ I shouted.

Then they started to pour in once again. I could not imagine how that box could hold a whole hurricane of fairies, but somehow it was enough. Finally the sky cleared and sunlight fell over us. This old bearded guy wearing a Greek drapery and a muscular golden skinned boy with a chiton pushed the concrete slab over the coffin, or box or whatever it’s called.

Then there was silence.

Then came a very relieved sigh.

‘That was close,’ said the muscular guy.

‘Close, Perseus?’ said the old bearded guy. ‘What made you think that you should open this? You should have known this is a sealing vessel by the looks of it!’

Perseus shrugged. ‘What? It looked like normal. Who knew there were Sand Pixies inside?’

‘This is the reason why I never made you into a god! You’ll ruin the world. Even Dionysus was not this reckless and stupid!’

Perseus imitated the old guy annoyingly.

‘Not funny Perseus,’ said Andrew.

I was gaping. Wait, did he mean the Perseus?

Andrew noticed my expression. ‘Yup, this is Perseus.’

‘Then…. He should be dead. He died. If he’s alive them he should be at least three thousand years old!’ I said. I was not Greek mythological expert, but I knew enough of the legends.

‘He’s a Demigod.’

‘Yeah, but that doesn’t mean…’

‘People here can live as long as they are remembered,’ said Andrew. ‘Well Perseus… you know they story.’

‘The reason why I’m a legend, dragon-boy is because I am skilled and charismatic,’ said Persues showing off his biceps. He turned to me. ‘Isn’t it right young lady?’

‘Uh…. Guess so.’

This is not what I was expecting of my favorite Greek hero.

The old guy snorted. Then his eyes fell on me.

‘Andrew…. From where did you find her?’

I think I heard Andrew gulp.

‘School,’ he said coolly.

Persues and the old guy stared at each other.

‘You are not planning anything psychopathic…. are you father?’ said Perseus.

If Perseus’s father is the old bearded guy that means me must be…. ZUES!

Since when did Greek gods come to life?

Zeus threw daggers at me with his sky blue eyes. Lightning flashed in between his beard and thunder rolled.

Did I do anything wrong? I looked around. There were a few people peeping out from the building and they slowly stepped out. Most wore business suits, some in robes. There was this thin dark guy with a pointed nose and beard and in a Tutankhamen hat who was wearing a while white Egyptian robe like thing, walked over to Zeus.

‘Look,’ said Andrew. He seemed to panic. ‘I-I’ll explain.’

‘INSIDE! NOW!’ growled Zeus.

‘No need to panic, my lord,’ said the Egyptian. ‘I am sure this matter can be resolved easily.’

‘Enof…. This is not a matter that can be resolved easily.’

I turned to Andrew. ‘What did I do?’

But Andrew didn’t say a word. He simply followed Zeus into the Roman looking building with pillars. Enof nodded at me with a smile and gestured to follow. I felt my feet wobble as I walked after them. We passed a hall within the building which too had a lot of pillars inside. Inside the hall, I noticed a lot of people staring at us, some were whispering while some pointed at me. I felt awkward all over. Everyone stared at me with a look which told either that I was a criminal or that I was something that should be extinct.

At the end of the hall was a large wooden door with carvings of Greek female water bearers. The doors were oddly guarded by two unicorns? I must have stared at the whole single horned horses for a long time since Zeus cleared his throat while holding the door open. I staggered forward and felt a hand on my shoulder. I jumped and looked over. Behind me was a lady with long black hair held in a loose bun and stormy grey eyes wearing a Greek dress.

She smiled, then mercilessly shoved me inside this magnificent looking room with marble life sized statues, cushioned seats, a golden chandelier and a red carpet and closed the door behind her. I wasn’t given even time to breath before Zeus started barking, ‘What are we going to do with her! Where did she come from?’

I jumped. ‘F-Flinton…. In England,’ I mumbled.

The god’s eyes flared.

‘Father,’ said the lady, rolling her eyes. ‘Don’t put it all on her. She doesn’t even know what is going on.’

‘Then whose fault is it?’ snapped Zeus.

‘Uh… I think its called coincidence or fate,’ said Perseus.

‘What made you think you can be of any help?’ snapped back the god again.

I really had no idea over what they were all so stressed about. I scanned everyone’s faces, trying to catch a hint.

‘I’m really sorry… I could go back, right?’ I said turning to Andrew.

‘I can take her back,’ replied Andrew without an ounce of emotion in his voice, like as if he were already bored.
‘It’s not too bad,’ said Perseus. ‘We have two Enchanters now, that’s all. Isn’t it supposed to be a good thing?’

Lightning flashed from within Zeus’s beard. ‘A good thing?’

‘Maybe bad.’

‘Bad! This is the worst thing that could happen in the course of history. There will be a bloody war again! Two bloodlines to hold the throne will cause havoc, its history repeating itself all over again.’

I turned to Andrew. ‘So I guess he has turned insane over the past three thousand years?’

‘He’s perfectly sane,’ replied Andrew. ‘It’s just that you… might cause a problem here.’

‘Why would I cause a problem?’

‘We already named Andrew as heir,’ said the lady. ‘It’s already decided.’

Zeus eyed me with a frown. ‘I doubt the council will care. We named him when he was only one year old. And he is still too young to rule.’

I stared at Andrew. ‘So you really are a prince!’

Zeus sighed. ‘You really do not know the situation you have caused us, have you?’

I shook my head.

‘You are an Enchantress,’ said Andrew.

‘So, I’m a witch? I doubt that.’

‘Enchantress,’ explained Enof, ‘are Seers with the power of control over certain invisibles. In your case they are fairies.’

‘Uh huh, so… I can talk to fairies. What’s the big deal?’

‘It’s not talking,’ said Andrew. ‘You control them.’

‘They get drawn to you,’ said Enof. ‘In simple words, you enchant them. They will listen to anything you say and do whatever you want. You have perfect control over them. Enchanters are such and they are very rare these days. Like Prince Andrew here.’

‘I still don’t understand why it’s a big problem?’

‘Enchanters are the most powerful among Seers,’ said the lady. ‘They belong to both worlds. Therefore they were given the right to the throne of Sightless.’

I think I’m starting to see the problem. A bit...

‘So?’

‘So tell me girl, what happens when many heirs fight for the same throne?’
‘It will end up like “Games of Thrones”?’ I said.

The lady raised an eyebrow.

‘It will end in a war, I guess.’

‘Precisely!’

‘I still don’t see how I can cause a war.’

‘Andrew is the only living Enchanter after three thousand years. Since he is the only one the right to the throne automatically goes to him. Now, there are you as well and by right, you too hold the right to the throne.’

That’s when the whole situation really sunk in. And then I started to panic. ‘But… that’s crazy!’

‘It is,’ said the lady. ‘Ever since my father (she scowled at Zeus) killed off the last two remaining heirs to the throne three thousand years ago Sightless had been thrown to a chaos over holding power in the invisible realm. It had been a dispute for millennia causing certain rulers from multiple origins to take the throne starting from my father. After that, the enchanter bloodlines were killed off by the ones who didn’t want them to obtain the throne. The matter was resolved long ago where the throne was left vacant while the Council ruled over Sightless.’

‘Andrew solved the problem for the Ruler of Sightless,’ said Zeus. ‘Now you that are here, the bloody war will start all over again.’

‘What do you mean, I don’t want the throne,’ I said in a matter of fact.

‘It’s not decided by you girl. You hold the right. There are those on the council who do not approve Andrew as the Emperor and they will use you to create an opposition. And most likely they will use the excuse that you are older than him.’

I looked at Andrew. ‘I guess this is bad.’

‘I have to admit, the situation now really is a big problem,’ said Enof.

‘If I can kill her off, then everything will be settled,’ said Zeus, while rubbing his beard.

I backed away. The lady shook her head, disappointed. ‘Killing won’t solve… it might solve it but it’s not the wisest choice.’

‘Please,’ I said. ‘No killing.’

‘What do you expect us to do then?’ said Zeus.

‘I can disappear.’

‘Won’t work,’ said Andrew. ‘Everyone saw you. Simply relinquish the throne to her. She is older.’

‘WHAT!’ I screamed. ‘No way am I going to become ruler of Fairyland!’

‘Majority won’t approve a girl who barely knows anything about the invisible realm,’ said Enof.

‘Then it’s decided, Andrew can keep the throne,’ I said.

‘It’s not that simple,’ said the lady.

‘Athena… Just let me kill her,’ said Zeus.

‘No,’ the lady snapped. So she’s Athena.

Athena arched her eyebrows, thinking while staring at Andrew and me. She seemed to be running her eyes alternatively between us.

‘Tell me,’ she said. ‘Are you two related by any means?’

Both of us shook our heads.

‘Hm…,’ said Zeus, rubbing his beard. ‘I see…. There is a slight resemblance, even ny coincidence.’

‘We are not related,’ said Andrew.

I nodded in approval.

‘Doesn’t matter,’ said Athena. ‘We will make you related. Even better; siblings!’

I gaped at her. ‘W-What?’

‘You are not serious, are you?’ said Andrew.

Zeus beamed. ‘Perfect idea… Athena! No one can ever argue with that. The older one will receive the right to the throne by law.’

‘Wha_ Are you people out of your mind?’

‘I am not going to be her little brother,’ said Andrew.

‘I am not going to rule a… a…. whatever it is!’

‘A little bit of teaching and training will do the trick,’ said Athena, turning to Enof. Enof nodded slowly. ‘I guess it is better than the other options.’

I could not believe this. These people were crazy.

‘If you don’t agree, I can always blast you off,’ said Zeus. ‘Trust me, being struck by lightning does not hurt a bit. Just only for a few seconds and you will not even know you are dead.’

I gulped.

‘You’ll do fine,’ said Andrew.

I shot him a look which I tried to convey, ‘One more word and you are dead too.'

‘I hope Andrew will not mind,’ said Anthena.

‘He does mind,’ I said.

‘I don’t,’ said Andrew. ‘It’s troublesome anyway.’

‘Can’t I relinquish the throne in a public announcement or something? Declare that I am mentally unstable and unfit to rule?’

Andrew rolled his eyes. ‘Amethyst!’

‘It is decided then!’ said Zeus.

No one listened to my opinion after that. The simply went off with the crazy idea to make us related. I got so frustrated over the whole thing that I yelled I want to go home. The ride back home was very silent, just like the ride to Egypt.

Andrew dropped me off at the bottom of the Oak tree, before he left, I asked.

‘What is your, specialty?’ I asked.

‘Huh?’

‘You know, you are an Enchanter too, right?’

He didn’t say anything but got onto Salzar once again.

‘Dragons, isn’t it?’

Without a word, he tugged Salzar’s name and the dragon took off. I think it was a yes. Either he was upset about not being able to be king or he was totally mad about being stuck with me. Not that I think about it, he must have been raised with the idea that one day he will become king of Sightless.

It was six when I came back to the visible world. I was dead hungry and I had to walk home. Lucky for me, no one was in school. So I didn’t have to worry about being caught as a ghost.