It has been a thousand years since Princess Valora took her place in history. The people of Avaris have come to live peacefully in an age of technology. Dragons and Gods have become the foundations of myths and legends; for no one has seen them in nearly a thousand years. Yet the people of Avaris still cling to those legends, because the Princess Valora still sleeps within the shrine of Oro.

            Lord Tratan, a descendant of Lord Satqin, is now the caretaker of the shrine of Oro and guardian of the Sleeping Princess.

            “Lord Tratan! Please wait! Lord Tratan!” a clumsy young man called out.

            The Lord stopped halfway up the shrine's stairs and turned around. “If you can't keep up, then don't insist on tagging along Junak.”

            “I'm sorry, My Lord.” the young man uttered as he tried desperately to catch his breath. “Couldn't you have waited for me? I did call to tell you I was running late.”

            “I could have, but then I would have been late too” the young Lord smiled. “You know you don't have to come with me every day and, how many times must I tell you to stop calling me 'My Lord'?”

            Junak smiled “I know you don't like it, but you are a Lord.”

            Tratan placed his hand on Junak's shoulder and said “And you are my best friend. You do not have to worry about formalities when addressing me.” Both young men gave a little laugh and smiled. “Now, let's get going before we are really late.”

            “Alright!” Junak replied with enthusiasm.

            “You really do enjoy going to the shrine.”

            “Yeah!” Junak replied smiling widely. “For some reason, I feel at peace whenever I look at the Princess. It just makes me... happy. Do you think she is happy?”

            “What?”

            “I mean, many things have changed since the Princess... you know. Do you think she is happy with everything that has happened? With how everything has turned out?”

            “I'm sure she is” Tratan responded reassuringly. “If she wasn't, I'm pretty sure that we would know. After all she is the daughter of the Dragon King and she is still the Princess of Avaris. If she were displeased with the way things are, I'm sure she would be doing something about it.”

            “Yeah, you're right.”

            The two young men finished climbing the stairs in silence. When they arrived at the entrance to the main building, they were surprised to find the head of security waiting for them.

            “Good morning Zaindaria! I thought your vacation started today, what are you doing here?” Tratan asked, jokingly greeting the frazzled woman.

            “My Lord!” the woman responded. She approached the two young men and stated dauntingly “I'm afraid my vacation will have to wait.”

            “Why? What has happened?” Junak asked.

            She took a deep breath and let out a heavy sigh. “There is something you need to see. Please, follow me.” She turned around, led them to the main building, and ushered them inside. Once inside, the men quickly understood why Zaindaria had postponed her vacation.

            Lost for words, all Lord Tratan could say was “Zaindaria!”

            “When the morning guards came on duty, they unlocked the doors and found the shrine in this condition. Then they called me and I rushed here immediately. I couldn't believe what they had said. I had to see it with my own eyes.”

            “It is alright Zaindaria.”

            “But, My Lord! The Princess...”

            Tratan looked at the shocked woman and calmly said “There is no need to worry. I installed security cameras last week. I shall take a look at the tapes and see what has happened.” He walked to his office and opened a locked cabinet. Then he turned on the monitor and rewound the tapes.

            Zaindaria and Junak followed Tratan and together they reviewed the footage. As the events unfolded on the monitor, the three onlookers fell into a state of shock. Nothing could have prepared them for what they saw; The Sleeping Princess had awoken.

            “Lord Tratan, what should we do? If the people find out...”

            “Zaindaria, tell the people the shrine is closed for renovations and maintenance. Notify the media as well. Tell them that the shrine has shown signs of fatigue and that we closed it as a precaution. We will reopen the shrine once the renovations are complete and we feel it is safe for the public.”

            “Yes Lord Tratan!” She responded obediently and left to complete the task she had been assigned.

            Tratan took a seat behind his desk and contemplated the situation. What do we do now? We have to prove renovations are being made, but how? If we hire contractors, they will find out that the Princess is missing.

            “Tratan, I know it is not my place to say anything, but... do you really think that was a wise decision? What if the Princess makes an appearance? The media will say that you were hiding the fact that she was awake.”

            “Junak, did you know that my family has been guarding the Princess for generations?”

            “No, I had no idea.”

            “She asked my ancestor, Lord Satqin, to watch over her and she did so without ever asking him how he felt about it.”

            “Tratan...”

            “No one knew how he felt, not even his own wife. It wasn't till generations later that we learned the truth. My great grandfather found his journal and do you know what it said? It said that he was glad that the Princess had chosen him, because he had fallen in love with her. He spent his remaining years watching over the woman he loved while bound by marriage to another.”

            “If that is true, then why would he agree to be her guardian? Why didn't he just refuse?”

            “I think he wanted to protect her no matter what may happen and that is why my family has continued to guard her all these years. To be honest, when I found out about all this, I was like you. I couldn't believe he would willingly agree, but then I got the chance to read his journal and I could see how he truly felt. After reading the journal, I decided that I would continue guarding her until the day came when she decided that it was no longer necessary.”

            “Tratan, if that is the case, I will do everything I can to help you. You can count on me.”

            “Junak, you have always cared about the Sleeping Princess, that is why I knew I could tell you about all this. I know I can trust you with this secret. You are my best friend after all.” Tratan smiled.

            The two young men sat down and discussed what their plan of action would be. They decided that it would be best to hire a contractor to make renovations to the shrine. If anyone asked where the Sleeping Princess was, they would just say that she has been moved to a different location for safety and protection.

            “Now that we know what we are going to do, why don't we grab a bite to eat? It is that time of year after all” Tratan teased Junak.

            “Come on, are you ever going to give it a rest?”

            Tratan pretended to think about it, but quickly replied “Never!” The two of them laughed about it and decided to go and eat at their favorite place. When they got there, they were shocked to see a young woman waiting tables. Tratan gave Junak a little nudge in the ribs and whispered in his ear “Speak of the Devil.”