While a certain immortal is pacing, the Dragon King continues to use his powers to find this ‘Brendon Ball’.

He was strangely not worried that not only was a girl in the same room with him, but that she had gone very quiet.

In the corner of his eyes, he could still see her, and he had liked how curious she had been to when he had started to use his powers. She might be holding a guard up, to state ‘don’t touch me’, but her eyes shined with a certain childish charm, that made him want to look longer at her.

All these years he was surrounded by those whom were adult and mature, and then alone, but it had been a very long time that he felt that an innocent’s eyes were very beautiful.

Obviously, she had some type of past trauma, yet she looked like she was not going to let anyone help her overcome it…That she wanted to be strong to overcome just about anything all by herself…Which only made him like her even more!

 

With just these few moments that he had to spent with her, he noticed all these things like they somehow dragged his eyes to see, his memory to keep and his heart to thump like it only had before when he finally had seen his Phoenix for the first time…

She really was a treasure!

His dragon sense was keen on obtaining this little girl and keeping her near him for some reason. Even just the thought of that made him let out a rare smile and found himself letting a future of going to her after a hard day’s work.

He could bask in her innocence and spend some time to get her to trust him. He could show her his powers and perhaps even see what kind of powers that she would possess, for when her own creature comes out.

She can’t even be more then sixteen, maybe fifteen, yet why did he want to put her in a cave and watch out for intruders!?

Every action she had done had seemed to bring out his curiosity and he hadn’t questioned these many things since…Well he couldn’t remember!

 

Her walk was almost like she had nowhere to go. Her bowed head looked discouraged and scared. Her scent was really nice and then the fact that she knew something about his Phoenix, made him even more protective and he didn’t want her out of his sight!

He felt the urge to connect to another, even if it wasn’t for any other relation besides obtaining some type of treasure. He wanted to give her somewhere to go, yet still lock her up in a cave…It was…Really strange…

The fact that she was also scared of him, made him frown. He didn’t want that, yet he didn’t know why…

But even though he knew he didn’t want her to be scared, he didn’t know how to change that!

Then, he wondered how she could be so discouraged, when she was in his presence…When she had something that he wanted!

Was there really something to be scared about? Was there really something that would make her feel like she was in the wrong if she told me about my Phoenix? But why?

…She can’t be scared of making me happy and getting gifts for it?

That’s…That would be Stupid…

 

Seeing a bird fly in and land upon her shoulder, Duke raised his eyebrows in interest.

“Pet…He’s a pet!”

With her sudden voice, louder than he’d ever heard it, Duke looked at the bird and narrowed his eyes.

His Phoenix would attract birds like this, was her creature another type of bird perhaps?

Seeing her coo and look awkward as she patted the bird, whom didn’t move to the finger touching its feathers, Duke sighed in his heart.

He’s best to get back to what he was doing!

Wasn’t he closer to finding out more about his Phoenix?

What if what he could learn from this girl directly brings him to her!?

How could he waste time watching this girl and being so…Attracted…

Shaking his head in a bit of anger, Duke started to realize that even he was going too far!

The only female that he should feel any type of feeling for, should be his Phoenix!

And he had to get back into finding her!

 

He felt like he had taken one deep step closer to finding his Phoenix, just by having met this girl! And who would he be if he didn’t make the most of it!?

Even though he had only gotten two facts out of her, that was still something that he had not known beforehand!

All he had to do is see if it was true or not, if it were, then this girl…She would lead him to his Phoenix!

Perhaps, he thought, that was why I like her so much!

Upon manually finding this person, ‘Brendon Ball’, with a heron creature, Duke smiled and stopped himself from looking directly at the girl that he now wanted to know the name of.

Forgetting for a moment that he had found the name ‘Brendon Ball’, Duke found his curiosity get the better of him and he looked up, to see her surprised, and so he then looked down in a hurry.

He was mad at himself…Because he had no idea why he was so nervous!

Clearing his throat, he finally asked, “What is your name?”

Hearing mumbles, even with a keener sense of hearing, the Dragon King was upset that he could not understand what she had said, “Stop mumbling!”

“Perdita!”

 

Looking down, back at the book with references to past ‘heron’ creature people. The Dragon King secretly smiled.

At least she hadn’t stopped talking to him!

The small bit of anger that she held in her voice didn’t make him feel bad either…Because she wasn’t as edgy as she was when she first came in.

Perhaps getting her angry will make her feel better…But…

He sincerely didn’t want to make her angry…Due to this thought, he wondered what it was like to see her smiling instead. Would she look just as beautiful as her innocence?

Blinking rapidly, Duke nearly slapped himself out of his thoughts.

Again, he was taken away by her and completely forgot what he had thought just moments ago about his Phoenix!

 

As much as he thought this girl as a treasure, it would never change his thoughts upon who was first!

He was loyal, as he had always been and…Well, this was the first time that he had any type of thoughts that really did make him worry about his loyalty!

Why…Why is she so…

Shaking his head, Duke did not want to think further upon his question…He had to find his Phoenix!

Putting a hand upon a new sheet of parchment, then another hand over a few books, the Dragon King closed his eyes and let lightning travel through the books and write down anything that had to do with this name of ‘Brendon Ball’.

In no time, a few names and creatures were written down, just like that of an address.

Slowly smiling, the Dragon King looked up and said, “Brendon Ball lived in Questro! He also can fit the age of being my Phoenix’s father!”

With a bit more dragon magic, servants were brought up too, with their creatures, and Duke found that Perdita had been right! A maid, that had a falcon creature, had indeed worked at Brendon Ball’s residence!

 

Again, he searched for children that had been born in a specific time to his calculations, of knowing when he personally knew when his Phoenix had turned eighteen through his connection to her and according to the rainbow that showed itself as well.

Duke waited until the new notes were written in slight, weak fire upon the parchment, that was slowly getting full of his Phoenix’s first life.

Sadly…Only one child was born in that time, and it had the status of commoner…Dying early…Otherwise, there was nothing…

But…Upon looking upon the children’s names, the Dragon King lost his smile and frowned. “But it doesn’t state here that he had more than three children…Tell me, is there anything else you know!?”

Perdita nodded, then said, “Ed…Na!”

She put a hand to her head then and Duke got up in a fit of worry.

What was wrong with her!?

“Are you alright!?”

 

Putting out a hand to her, Duke saw her flinch and he retracted it.

Hearing a wince, he frowned and sighed…This…Was really setting his nerves alight!

He’d never worried so much over anything else, except his Phoenix…It almost felt like he was waking up from some deep slumber…

She…Was really something…

And with that, Duke could not let her go! He had to make sure that she was healthy!

She had to be healthy…For him to find his Phoenix, she must not die!

“Someone come! Get a doctor!”

That sweet voice came to him then, making his eardrums feel soothed, “No, no. It’s ok, I’m fine. Please don’t do that!”

Duke scoffed, “You are unwell! Of course, a doctor must come and heal you!”

“But…”

“No buts!” Duke stated, frowning at her.

Does she want to be in pain? How stupid!

 

Duke wasn’t going to let it go!

Going as far as walking out to call upon someone to get a doctor directly, there was one person in particular that was not happy!

With a rush, a couple of people came in and a particular woman was one of them!

She was fretting so much that she had clammy hands!

Breathing slowly, she knew she had to stop the Phoenix from showing itself to the doctor, so she just…Just had to stop the Phoenix from showing that it was there…

How do I do that!?

If there was anyone who knew how powerful the Phoenix was, it was her! She had tried so many different things, for none of them to work!

 

Having to shut down any link to the body…It would be very taxing! Even if she were immortal! And it wasn’t because she was weak, no it was because the Phoenix was just too strong!

Getting as close as she could to the girl, Sharlae then went into a standing meditation, ready for when the doctor went to take her pulse.

There was no way that she would stand there and do nothing!

If His Excellency found that the girl was the Phoenix, especially when he sees that she herself has enslaved her…

…She just couldn’t let that happen!

Even if it could only work for a short time, she had to try and cage up the bird and not let it link itself to the body!

 

“Please don’t…” The girl stated, backing up to the wall once again.

She had gotten off the chair and gone back to the corner to where she was before, not willing to be touched.

There was only four people in the room, but it was enough to bring back some memories of those who had wanted her tears, who had wanted her feathers and had wanted her body!

“Perdita, headaches aren’t normal, especially the ones that you’re getting. Please…Let the doctor treat you!” Duke was getting more and more nervous and worried.

What had she gone through to become like this?

Yet, while he was questioning this, there was one person that realized that the Dragon King was being especially mannered and worried about the girl.

The King of King’s wasn’t known for his politeness, he gave out orders and didn’t speak much but…This was obviously different!

 

Having no idea that he was being somewhat different to normal times, Duke was more worried about the girl and how she was acting.

Noticing that she was holding her bag tightly to her chest and her eyes were watching closely to all that was surrounding her, Duke frowned and wished that he was wrong…That there wasn’t a past as bad as he thinks there is!

But, with her acting like this, he found himself severely upset that there was a past that she wasn’t protected from, that she had been hurt…That she…

He wanted to sit by her, to hold her hand for some unexplained reason but she was so…Well, at the moment, she looked particularly pitiful and scared…

Sighing in his heart, he still nodded at the doctor to check her and the doctor stepped forward, making the girl shrink further into the corner.

 

A different type of battle was happening to Sharlae, it wasn’t a battle of taking a person’s pulse, nor a battle of overcoming nightmares, it was a battle of inner strength!

As soon as the doctor stood closer to the girl, she quickly got her mind of her man and determinedly went through her ‘master and servant’ link to the girl’s inner creature and immediately went to work!

A golden cage had come to the creature inside of the girl’s body and as it shut firmly around the Phoenix, it made the girl suddenly scream out, arching herself and making herself fall completely onto the floor from her sitting position.

“Help her, dammit!”

“Don’t touch me!” Perdita stated, through clenched teeth and a hoarse voice.

Duke blinked, frowning and stood back. He felt extreme pain flowing through him as she had stated this and did not want her mad. As it was, he was seriously doubting that she would stay with him, just as a friend…This…This was becoming so…Difficult!

 

The doctor went to take the pulse and closed his eyes, looking like he was concentrating. Not just fingers connected to the wrist of the girl, but that of a bit of green and light did as well, making people actually see the pulse through the light.

The person to his right was concentrating harder though, as she tried often to utter a word to her weakening, golden cage.

A Phoenix squawk wasn’t heard from the cage, and it wasn’t just any squawk, it was an angry one!

Using claws of her golden winged serpent, to keep the cage shut and then wings to help through wind, the cage cluttered and clanked as the Phoenix pushed and shuffled against it. A beak found the claws of the golden winged serpent and bit down hard on it, even though it wasn’t of real material but the Phoenix itself wasn’t just an ordinary creature and was able to hold onto this ethereal type of matter.

Sharlae wanted to scream to the Phoenix’s bite, she wanted to let it all go and fix her wounds! Her creature was a part of herself and she felt pain having been inflicted. Even though she knew that not much would harm her, that even if she did get an injury, she wouldn’t die…But the Phoenix being able to hurt her to this extend, made Sharlae very angry!

 

The doctor had not pulled back just yet, from taking the girl’s pulse, and so Sharlae had to urge herself to continue!

Clamping down the lock on the cage, Sharlae was not even aware that sweat had gathered upon her brow and that her nails were digging into her hands. She hadn’t felt like this since she had tried to do something to the Phoenix all those years ago!

The doctor finally finished with his diagnosis and took his hand away from the girl, leaving no green or light behind, as some thought he would. At the same time, Sharlae did the same and released the Phoenix from the golden cage, by no longer using the ‘master and servant’ link…

In an instant, the Phoenix escaped the cage, becoming free once again, and Sharlae felt like she could collapse…She had used a lot of her power for just that small moment and really wanted to kick the Phoenix around because of it!

In return, Perdita was breathing really heavily and finally relaxed from her tensed up posture.

Duke clenched his hands to the girl looking pathetically into a distance, not showing any reaction, and found his heart stir…

Why did it look like the girl went through an attack just by getting her pulse taken!?

Why was she sweating all of a sudden? Why was she getting flushed cheeks?

Even…Even her hands were slightly trembling!

 

“My Lord…”

The doctor was interrupted by the fourth person, who had also come into the room, who said, “You’re bleeding.”

All except the girl, turned their heads to Sharlae, and raised their eyebrows, “Why are you bleeding?”

Sharlae held her bleeding nose and put her head up, which still didn’t help but expose her own flushed cheeks, “Your Excellency…I think both her and I need to be quarantined…”

She had troubles thinking of this, as a headache was forming and she felt extremely hot, but luckily, she was angry and it helped thinking of the Phoenix to this extent that she really did try to get the girl away from His Excellency!

With a frown, Duke shook his head, “Go and collect yourself!”

He wasn’t stupid, Sharlae was an Immortal and she wouldn’t die from just some trifling headache! Then yet, maybe Sharlae was the one that had made this girl sick!

This made Duke extremely vexed!

“Your…”

Duke interrupted Sharlae, “Just go!”

 

How could he let an Immortal, with a potential sickness, stay close to a mortal…One that he was…Still…Wanted…

Looking at the doctor, Duke held himself back again from wanting to be closer to the girl. “What is it?”

The doctor walked to the table, that Duke had just been sitting at, and stated, “She has a temperature and headaches, with no other symptoms it seems. Her oxygen and carbon dioxide levels are fine and there weren’t any poisons in her immune system. There was no bad scent in her body, in fact…Her scent was rather nice and relieving…So, I am quite convinced that her body should be fine. With the medicine that I prescribe, it won’t affect her if she is ill with something else but…My Lord, if there are any other symptoms, you must tell me, so that I can help her if she has another illness.”

With such strong headaches, the doctor was not sure if this could only be just a mere high temperature. If her creature was out, it would be easier to understand but at the moment, for a normal person, the pain of the headaches didn’t make sense to him, after all, he was more of a doctor to people who had awakened their inner creatures.

The doctor looked back at the girl, after he got a piece of parchment, and sighed, “A patient that doesn’t trust the doctor is not easy to diagnose and I entrust you to make sure that if there is another problem, to tell me so that I can help her further.”

 

(Interesting aren’t they, Sea Slugs. Some things that I wrote about the doc here is something that I had read up on the Sea Slugs ?)