Tezaro stood in amazement at the girl while the cracking ice spread through the mud giant. Her withdrawal caused the ice statue to sway violently and fall backwards shattering into jagged chunks of muddy ice. The effort had been too great for her waning strength.

The girl's eyes rolled back and closed before she collapsed. He ran and skidded to her, slowly kneeling down beside her before sheathing his sword at his back.

Drenched from the rain, her matted hair continued to hide her face from him. After completely turning her over to search for any injuries, he brushed the hair away and stopped in mid motion.

His breath caught. He knew that face. Her face. Up until this moment he had not seen the face of the girl he had to rescued, nor would he have imagined it would be her. His hand reached out to touch her, skimming her cheek. She was real.

Reaching beneath her shoulders and knees, he lifted her onto his arms effortlessly. "My hero," he sighed sarcastically. Then he ran into the night with her cradled against his chest without looking back.

It seemed as if time had slowed down and prevented him from arriving at the inn any quicker. When he finally did enter the room he had allocated, he placed the girl on the bed and examined her for any injuries.

Long hours into the night, he sat by the side of the bed, looking in bewilderment at her. In the recesses of his mind he knew that nameless face but he could not explain it. His heart pounded rapidly thinking that he had finally found her. A wiry smile crossed his face at the irony of it all.

There was an unwarranted sigh of exasperation as he shut his eyes tight. This was far from coincidence, it was fate. The Key and the woman in his prophecy were one and the same. Over the years, her face had become both a comfort and a torment. He'd searched for her across hundreds of faces but she was a mirage.

Tezaro reached out and touched her cheek to see if she would fade away like parting mists. Her warmth seared her existence on his fingertips. His pulse raced as he realized he walked a fine line now that he'd found her.

Frustration gnawed at him like a savage beast restrained, but only barely. He stood up and strode out into the main room, yet still left the door open so that he could hear her if she called out.

The interior and the trappings were different, but inns in any realm seemed to be standard. A large payment could ensure comfort and secrecy.

This was the fourth location through the Crossing he had come through. In the days he had searched for her, he had quickly mastered the devices and routines of the city. The crystal had latched on to her quicker than he'd expected, but she had eluded him.

And then, he had seen Mimika at a distance and knew he had to find her first and fast. Finding Fennaris had been unexpected. He did not tend to minor tasks like capturing a prisoner. This, however, only laid credence to her identity.

He had to clear his head. After he returned to the bedroom, he stepped out onto its balcony, and stared out into the city lights. His mission was to find the Key and take her to Armindia. Finding the Key was merely a means to an end. He had to push any thoughts of his prophecy out of his mind, no matter how tempting she appeared. Anthonias had the information he needed. That would have to be his priority.

Aurora began to thrash about in the bed.

"Wake up. It's only a dream. You're all right. Wake up. You're safe here."

Her eyes were shut tight; the dream refused to be done with her. Groggily she heard the words seep through her unconsciousness in echoes. You're safe...you're safe here...A male voice, the sound of steel, pain in her hands. Here...here? ...Here! Aurora's eyes flew open as she sat up, throwing the sheets off of her.

As her eyes scanned the room that wasn't hers, she came across a strange man a few feet from her.

"W-what's going on? Who are you? Where am I? What do you want? Stay away from me," she hissed with outstretched hands.

Aurora stood on the bed slowly retreating to the wall. It was then she noticed her clothing. Or lack of it. She wore a long shirt that wasn't hers but covered all the essentials. Rage filled her and she began shouting, "You pervert! You creep! You--"

"Saved your life last night, remember? Remember?" Tezaro crept closer, palms open as a sign he did not intend to harm her.

"And you think that gives you the right to--- whoa." Her legs wobbled and she felt her knees go weak.

"Here." He reached out to her. "Sit back down." Aurora cautiously took his hand. "I'll go bring your clothes and you can change. Drink this. You're still weak." Tezaro returned shortly with her dried clothes and found her sitting at the edge of the bed covered with a blanket and sniffing the tea. He left the room to give her some privacy, she assumed.

Aurora looked about the room, trying to make sense of where she was, how she had gotten here, and what exactly had happened the night before. It was then her gazed landed on her bandaged hands.

She quickly changed into her clothes, but stayed away from the tea afraid that it could be drugged. With her clothes back on Aurora searched for her backpack while her mind reeled.

The rain... a chase through the alleys...a crash of thunder and steel...a man of mud. She did remember his coming to her rescue, but the events were still foggy.

He was waiting at the table when Aurora finally came out, fully dressed and calmer, though she kept a distance from him. Afterall, from what she recalled, he carried a sword casually and apparently knew how to use it well.

Aurora bit her lip nervously, unsure of where to begin. "Thank you." Her voice was timid, though her eyes glanced around the room searching for a door.

She was going to continue when: "Your clothes were soaking wet. You would have gotten sick. Do not worry. I did not look." He was blunt and unapologetic. Odd that she felt even more vulnerable now fully clothed than minutes before.

"You bandaged my hands." She lifted them slightly in acknowledgement.

He gave a simple nod. "They were bloodied and shredded and in need of a healer."

She needed an explanation for last night, and apparently he was the only one who could give it to her. "What happened last night?"

Reluctantly, Aurora took a small step closer and began to study him in the morning light. He had strong handsome features and she could easily guess that he was several years older than she.

His eyes reminded her of mixed ashes, while his dark tow-colored hair was tied in a thick knot at his nape. Aurora swallowed her nerves. She found him very attractive. His bronzed skin was corded with sinewy muscles that were revealed by his bare arms. If she looked closely, his light stubble covered a small scar across his chin.

She heard a faint humming, but she easily dismissed it as a buzz in her head caused by the excitement from the previous night.

"Last night, Lord Fennaris and his sorceress, Mimika, tried to kidnap you and take you to Mithoran. Their plans were most likely to steal your energy or kill you if you did not cooperate. Either way, you'd be dead." He spoke so matter-of-factly that she had no room to doubt.

She blinked and sat a distance away. "But I haven't done anything. I don't even know them. Why me?"

"Because you are the Key." His gaze bore into her.

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. "The Key? What is this Key?"

"You are the Key."

Aurora shook her head causing her bangs to partially cover her eyes. "You're going in circles. I don't understand."

Tezaro leaned back in his chair and crossed his feet on top of the table. "First, you should realize that neither Fennaris, or the others, or myself are from your world."

That had been made painfully obvious; she nodded. "We come from Nuvee, a different realm connect to yours. A long time ago in our histories, the gates between your world and mine swung open. Going through the Crossing was a common occurrence."

"At any rate, your world began to renounce magic and the Crossings began to wither." He took his feet off the table and leaned in close to her.

"Magic, true magic, in your world is nearly dead. A great amount of magic is needed to open a Crossing and even then, they only last a short amount of time." His voice became somber, low.

"I come from a kingdom known as Armindia. The royal family was lost many years ago and now all that is left is an empty throne and a broken country. Politics split the kingdom in half. The Prophecy of the Key has maintained the only fragile peace within Armindia's halves."

His eyes stared off into the horizon of memories. "The kingdom of Mithoran has tried to conquer it several times, but the people have remained strong. It is the only thing uniting them.

"The Key is said to have the power to save Armindia although I do not know how. That, you will have to ask of Anthonias, the Steward and Supreme Consul, ruler of Armindia until the return of the royal family."

Aurora had been lost in his story. What he revealed was like a chalk drawing on the sidewalk washed away by rain. "Now what?"

"We have to leave: the elf lord Fennaris knows you are with me and will try to make our Crossing even more difficult." He stood, high above her head, swinging his cased sword through his shoulder.

She stood to minimize the height difference, but was disappointed when she still had to look up at him. "I didn't say anything about leaving with you. Look, I'm grateful for last night, but I don't even know you." Her tone was incredulous. They faced each other off.

"Are you always this stubborn?" He turned and walked away.

"You told me about Armindia and Anthonias, but who are you?"

He breathed out loudly in annoyance. "Guess so. We met last night. My name is Tezaro Bladewoods, and I saved you last night. I'm not going to hurt you. Your safety is too important to me. What more do you want?"

She took a step closer to him. "Why are you doing this? I want to believe you. I think I do." She tilted her head not understanding the reason behind it herself.

"I want to trust you, but your words sound hallow somehow. What aren't you telling me?" Had she not seen her strange attackers last night, she probably wouldn't have believed a word he'd spoken. Still, how or who could explain her powers?

"You need proof." Tezaro reached for his coat and dug his hand into a pocket. He unwrapped two glowing objects from a leather rag, thus evading her question. "This is the crystal that led me to you."

That was where the humming was coming from! She could hear it louder now. "Why does it keep making that humming noise?" She took another step towards him.

"What noise?" His disbelief was apparent in his expression.

"You don't hear it?" Her eyes widened.

"You truly are the Key." Tezaro's voice lowered. 

She took the crystal he offered and placed it in her pant pocket then waved him off.

 "One way or another I have to get you to Armindia. Even if it means kidnapping you." 

Her head snapped up. 

Tezaro's hands were on her shoulders,  "Though it goes against everything I've stood for. I'd prefer it if you'd come of your own free will. What's holding you back?" He demanded.

His words brought reality slamming at her face. "For starters, I don't think I'm this 'key' you're searching for and as for that Anthony guy? He can kiss my purple butt."

The corner of Tezaro's lips quirked but he reclaimed his stoic features quickly. "What is your name?"

The question caught her by surprise. Through the harrowing night and battle of wills, they had she had not yet given him her name. "Aurora." She clasped her hands over her mouth at her foolishness. Why had she told him her real name!

"Aurora." The sound of his deep voice saying her name caused a strange sensation in her stomach. "Aurora, do I look familiar to you?" For some inexplicable reason her throat had gone dry, so she simply shook her head. Such a strange question, she thought. Why would he be familiar?

She cleared her throat to recover her voice. "Look, I appreciate the fact that you saved my life last night from Lord Farquhar or whatever, but I'm not going anywhere with you. As soon as I get my backpack...Lily!"

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Image does not belong to me but to a very talented artist.