"Why do you ask that, sir?" Haline asked in return. Abram took in a deep breath, walking away from the artifact. He stood in silence for a while.

"Why do you think that out of all the artifacts we have here, this is the only one we have covered up?" he asked, turning to the young girls.

"It could be precious," Marina replied.

"Or it could be dangerous," Haline added, causing both Abram and Marina to look her way.

"Dangerous?" Marina muttered, glancing at the artifact. Abram smiled.

"Smart girl."

"But then why would you have it here? In public?" Haline asked, folding her arms.

"No one knows if it is actually dangerous. That's just what we've come to know about it. I myself have not uncovered the artifact ever since we found it and let me tell you, we found it a long time ago," Abram stated, pursing his lips.

"Why not?" Marina asked.

"Do you think its time that we uncovered it, Father?" a mature female voice asked from behind the trio. They turned to find Abram's daughter, Adelia, making her way towards them. To say she was beautiful was an understatement, for she was a tall, lean woman with black hair cascading down her back. It was tied up in one big braid, with the violet strand left out, which fell over the front to her waist. Abram looked at his daughter warmly but said nothing.

"There are many who wish to know what is underneath this cloth and what secrets it holds," she added, stopping next to the young girls. Marina looked up at her and smiled widely. Adelia glanced back at her and Haline, and smiled in return. Abram observed the exchange between his daughter and the young girls in silence.

"Is it really time to give the people what they want?" he asked absentmindedly. Adelia looked up at her father and pursed her lips. Haline watched the two elders go silent, their eyes distant.

"I would like to ask my question again, Abram sir. If you thought this artifact was indeed dangerous, why would you bring it out in the public like this? People are bound to notice it and the way you have kept it hidden like that, it will definitely arouse their curiosity," she stated, ushering towards the artifact. Abram looked up at her, his eyes holding a hint of regret.

"The last time this artifact was uncovered, it drove the seer mad. It is too dangerous to be kept at our observatory, so till we find a suitable enough place for it, we decided to keep it hidden in plain sight," he replied, knowing from the expressions on Haline and Marina's faces that they weren't convinced.

"Abram sir, as much as I respect you, you're not making this up, right?" Marina asked, making Haline turn to her in shock.

"Marina!"

"No no, it's alright. She has every right to question me. I understand why she is asking me this. My fellow Teachers tend to get a little... Carried away when they find new artifacts to show or stories to tell. We keep them in check as much as we can and I assure you, this is not what we train them to do but alas, things don't always go as planned," Abram replied.

"And I assure you, little one, we are not making this up," Adelia added. Haline and Marina shared a look.

"So what will you do, then?" Haline asked, crossing her arms.

"As much as you must have wanted to see this artifact, I'm afraid we will be unable to cater to your request," Abram stated, much to the young girls' disappointment. Haline pursed her lips and nudged Marina on the arm, who looked her way and nodded.

"We'll take our leave then, sir and ma'am," Haline stated politely, linking arms with Marina, who smiled at the two elders.

"Oh none of this 'ma'am' nonsense! Just call me Adelia, little one," Adelia hastily said, her cheeks turning pink.

"And you may call me Haline."

"And I'm Marina. Thank you for your time, Abram sir and Adelia," Marina added. Abram smiled in return, nodding. Both elders followed the young girls out of the tent where their stall was set up. Just as they were about to begin their journey back towards the Zones, Marina stopped short, noticing something off. Abram stopped as well, sensing something. A sudden vibration was felt under their feet as they heard the sky rumble. A wave of cold wind whistled past Marina, making her look towards the sky.

"What is that!" she cried out, pointing upwards. What was usually a clear, blue sky had suddenly turned a pale yellow hue. Next to her, Haline gasped loudly and she covered her mouth with her hands. Clouds of dust hovered over the Grand Marketplace, slowly creeping forward. Marina felt goosebumps erupt all over her body. Everyone in the marketplace came to a standstill, silence enveloping the area.

"EVERYONE INSIDE!" Abram barked loudly, just as the first wave of the sandstorm hit the Central Zone. At once, havoc wrecked all around. People screamed and ran in every direction, trying to find shelter from the storm. In less than a minute, visibility was reduced to zero as dust engulfed everything in its wake. Abram and Adelia quickly pulled Marina and Haline back into the Teachers' tent in hopes to stay protected but the storm was nothing that any of them had seen before, even Abram. Even though the tents were built to be quite sturdy, the deadly winds ripped through them, threatening to tear them from their bases. Abram pulled out a handkerchief from his pocket to cover his mouth, while the girls used their sleeves to cover their faces.

"How did we end up getting hit by a sandstorm of all things!" Marina cried out, her voice muffled under her sleeve.

"This isn't any ordinary storm. We hadn't predicted anything like it. It really has caught us by surprise!" Adelia replied, shutting her eyes tightly as a wave of sand pierced through the tent. All the artifacts were beginning to get covered in sand.

"I just hope our parents are okay," Haline muttered to Marina, who nodded in reply. Both girls were crouching on the ground, huddled together in the back of the tent, using each other as a shield from the winds blowing from every direction.

"This sandstorm hit us from the west," Abram stated, glancing at Adelia.

"The west? You don't mean..." she trailed off, furrowing her brows.

"I'm afraid so," Abram replied, his eyes dark and expression grave. Marina and Haline looked at each other in question.

"I heard there is something really evil lurking to the west of Azure Gul. That's why the Warriors have stationed themselves in the West Zone. And that's also why they built the protection barrier around the city," Haline told Marina, whose eyes widened in surprise. Her curiosity taking the best of her, Marina turned towards Abram and Adelia just as another brutal wave of sand crashed through the tent. She wanted to ask them what exactly lurked to the west of their home when the question died off in her mouth. Since they were in the very back of the tent, they stood near the infamous hidden artifact, it resting behind Abram and Adelia. Although as Marina looked towards it, it was no longer hidden. The violet velvet piece that was used to cover up the artifact had been blown away by the sandstorm and was lying in a heap at the very corner of the tent. Marina had noticed that something circular was hidden underneath the cloth but with its veil gone, she could see clearly what it was. A round cheval glass mirror stared back at her, the size of two watermelons combined, with a delicate gold frame that had unknown symbols engraved on it. It was rusty and dirty with age but still seemed beautiful to Marina. She forgot about the sandstorm around her as she lowered her arm from her face and stared at the mirror. What seemed unusual to her was the convex base it had, which was not normal in mirrors. Suddenly, something stirred inside the mirror and Marina gasped. All at once, she sprung to her feet, startling Haline and stood extremely straight, her eyes fixed onto the mirror. Abram and Adelia looked towards her in surprise as well but she paid no attention to anyone. She then began walking towards the two elders like someone who had been bewitched.

"Marina, are you okay?" Adelia asked, lowering her sleeve from her face ever so slightly.

"Child, what are you doing? It's not safe for you to keep your face uncovered during a storm like this," Abram stated, reaching out to take hold of Marina. He froze all of a sudden, staring in horror as Marina's irises turned white. As she took one step after another, the coloured strand in her hair turned from green to red, to blue, to purple and suddenly turned all white. Haline screamed as she sprung to her feet and ran over to where Adelia stood, hiding behind her. Abram took in a deep breath to calm his nerves.

"Marina, can you hear me?" he asked in a loud, firm voice, slowly walking towards Marina. Marina didn't respond and kept walking towards the mirror.

"I think one of the artifacts has bewitched her!" he cried out to his daughter. Adelia immediately began looking around her to see if there was anything that seemed threatening enough. She turned as gasped, noticing the mirror.

"FATHER!" she yelled, pointing ahead. Abram turned around to see the mirror uncovered. His eyes grew wide as he frantically searched for the velvet cloth.

"There!" Haline cried out and dashed towards the corner of the tent. She picked up the cloth and threw it to Abram, who caught it with one hand. Adelia sprinted over to the mirror and as Abram swung the cloth towards his daughter, she caught it and immediately covered up the artifact. At once, the sandstorm died down, the screeching winds disappearing as though they had never struck the Central Zone in the first place. Everything went quiet, yet nothing was calm. Sand littered everything, the tent was torn and artifacts had toppled over, some broken. Marina's hair turned green again as her irises turned back to black.

"Marina!" Haline cried out, running towards her best friend. Abram stopped her midway by catching her by the arm, for Marina was far from normal. White smoke escaped from her mouth as her eyes began to refocus. She blinked multiple times, breaking out of the trance.

"Marina?" Adelia called out softly. The little girl slowly looked up at her, her vision foggy.

"I-I don't f-feel s-so good," Marina mumbled. Haline tried to get herself free from Abram's hold but was unsuccessful. Marina looked at Haline and tried to take a few steps forward. However, her legs gave away as she swayed and collapsed.