Two Pictures this chapter!!! This is Eilean Donan Castle in Scotland. The picture was taken by Mum. Like the other two chapters, there is a small amount of inspiration from this place but it isn't identical. What do you think of the pictures and the story so far?? I'd like to hear your opinions!! :D

We say our goodbyes on the top of the roof. Queen Sophie walks over to me.

"Remember Isla, be strong," she smiles, tapping my shoulder. I get onto Tanya's back and she stretches her dragon body, ready for another long flight.

"We'll see you all soon," Yvette waves as we take to the skies.

"I'm going to get a little more sleep," I say to Tanya as I rest over her back. She lets out a little roar, telling me she had heard me.

"Is something wrong Isla?" Princess Kayleigh asks. I shake my head.

"No, I just didn't sleep well through the storm," I reply as I close my eyes. That was an understatement. I haven't slept at all. I spent the night at my window watching the lightning strike the ocean and the clouds flash. The storm was so alive, I could almost feel the energy running through me. Every time I laid on my bead, my eyes would stay wide open and I could not sleep. Even though I loved watching the storm, I could not help but feel a sort of danger behind it. Like a bigger storm is on its way. My eyes droop shut and I let sleep take over.

I wake, instantly knowing it is much colder. The cold doesn't affect me, but I can still feel it on my skin. Looking at the ground below, I can see only snow.

"We're in Zultan!" Toryn shouts as I sit up.

"That's good," I reply with a yawn. We fly around large hills and mountains that are covered completely in snow with the occasional rock face jutting out from the white blanket. As we rise over another peak, my eyes widen again. These lands never cease to amaze me. A huge Frozen lake is surrounded by huge mountains on all sides. On the land around the almost circular lake are hundreds of stone buildings of different shapes and sizes all fitting perfectly together. That is not what makes my eyes widen. In the Middle of the Frozen lake is a large patch of land witch is, like the rest of the land, covered in snow with stone rocks jutting out here and there. On this land mass, sits a huge stone castle. It has lots of different sections which are all attached to each other along with towers with spires. A long stone bridge stretches over the lake to the land with arches making up the structure that holds it up. I can see three people waiting for us in the snow, in front of the large doors that make up the castle entrance. We swoop down landing in front of them. I smile as I see Oliver and who must be his parents.

"Welcome to Zultan!" Oliver shouts, rushing over to us and wrapping his huge arms around Toryn and I. I laugh and pat his back.

"Let's get you all inside into the warm," a woman says who I assume is Oliver's mother. As we enter, Oliver introduces us.

"This is my mother, Princess Sapphire and my Father King Grant," Oliver tells us. We all bow and they smile warmly. Oliver and his father look very much alike. They are both huge muscle mountains with creamy blonde hair. Oliver has his short however whereas his father had it hanging down his back in thick dreadlocks. Their eyes are both grey and their skin pale. Both a very handsome also. Sapphire looks different, however. Her black hair glides down her back smoothly and her skin is tanned. Her eyes are a striking sapphire in colour also. She is very beautiful. Her smile is soft and gentle as she speaks to us.

"Welcome to our home," she says. "We are glad you have arrived. Our meal will be ready in an hour so take this time to get ready and freshen from your travels. Oliver will show you all around whilst we talk to Princess Kayleigh and Lady Indira," she informs us.

"Let's go!" Oliver shouts.

Again, it is interesting to see how clothing changes depending on where we are. The snow means that clothing must be thick and warm, not that I feel the cold. Dresses have no skin showing apart from the head. They also have layers of materials and are decorated with thick furs around the neck and sleeves. Men also have lots of furs and layers.The five of us all sit in my room. Like all my other rooms, it is amazing and decorated to be similar to feel of the rest of the building.

"How's your journey been so far?" Oliver asks.

"It's been exhausting!" Tanya says as she lies back on my bed.

"Not for us," I chuckle, looking at Toryn.

"That's because you aren't doing any of the hard work," Serenity replies.

"It's good training," I smile and the both grumble. Oliver chuckles.

"It's certainly very different here than the hot lands of Zara, that's for sure," my brother says. I nod my head, standing up to go and look out of my window.

"Yep," Oliver replies as I stare over the huge frozen lake and mountains with a smile. I gasp as a memory resurfaces.

"Mummy!" I shout.

"Yes, my little one?" she replies.

"Come and dance on the ice with me!" I stand on the frozen lake water, looking at my mother who stands on edges of the land mass. She looks beautiful with her flowing hair of lilacs and blues and a beautiful cream dress hugging her body.

"But I haven't got any skates," she replies. I look down at the boots on my feet with the metal blades on the bottom.

"You don't?" I ask, confused. I thought I saw her pack them. "But I saw them in your bag," I reply puzzled.

"I meant on me now silly, they're in my room," she chuckles. I skate toward the land and spin in front of her.

"Very delicate my little one," she smiles.

"Why don't you go and get them mummy?" I ask.

"If I go and get them, then I won't be able to watch you," she tells me. "and I want to see my beautiful daughter dance." I smile and skate away from the land, spinning and jumping. I love the ice and the snow. I feel so happy around them, so calm and relaxed. Now, I am a big girl at nine years old, I am allowed to dance on the ice on my own as long as I am being supervised. I still like it when mummy or daddy dance with me though.

"Isla!" A voice shouts. I turn and see Oliver skating joining me on the ice, King Grant now standing next to my mother. I frown and zoom into them. They talk in hushed whispers and have worried looks on their faces. Mummy has been having that look on her face a lot recently, she is worried and upset about something. I am about to skate back over when Oliver barges into me.

"Ollie!" I shout as I fall on my back. He laughs as I get back up. I'll make him stop laughing. I skate over to him as fast as I can, ramming my body into his. He flies back and lands on the ice heavily. Laughter erupts from my mouth. He stands up slowly.

"I'll get you water girl!" he shouts, skating toward me. I laugh and begin to skate away.

"You can't escape me Isla!" he laughs.

"Yes I can!" I shout as I make an wall of ice rise in front of him. I hear the crunch as he skates straight into it.

"Not fair!" he shouts as he smashes through it. I laugh, then stop laughing as he turns invisible.

"Hey!" I shout. "I can't see you!"  Suddenly, I'm flipping around in the air and landing on my back. Oliver reapers in front of me, laughing. A plan forms in my head as I sit up. The ice beneath Oliver disappears and he falls into the water.

"Hey!" he shouts as he swims around in the small pool of freezing water. He changes into his polar bear form and pulls himself back onto the ice. We spend the rest of the afternoon chasing each other and fighting with our powers, laughing and smiling.

"Are you okay?" Oliver asks.

"Yeah, I just remembered something," I tell him.

"Really, what?" he asks.

"Us, playing on the ice. More like fighting actually," I smile.
He chuckles.

"We did that a lot," he tells me. I frown, why did I remember that one specific one then. I have had memories returning slowly throughout the few weeks we've been here. Mostly minor ones which I just suddenly remember and don't really show themselves to me in visions like I've just seen. I remember the small detail, the worried discussion between my mother and Oliver's Father. I will have to ask later.

"What do you prefer?" Oliver asks. I turn back to face him.

"The frozen lands that are my home, or the desert lands of Zara?" he asks. I think for a few seconds before replying.

"Here, I think," I smile. "I love the snow and ice, it's relaxing."

"Speak for yourself," Toryn tells me. "I like the heat." I roll my eyes.

Dinner is laid out very similarly to the other nights. A large table of a variety of food. The conversation is light as we all discuss what we're learning and the lands we've visited along with other things. 

"Isla," Lord Grant asks.

"Yes?" I reply.

"I heard you beat my son in a fight on your first day," chuckles.

"Yep," I smile, looking at Oliver with a smile.

"You want a rematch!" Oliver stands up quickly with a wide smile on his face.
I smile too, liking the challenge. Oliver's parents reply at the same time.

"Not at the table," Princess Sapphire says.

"Fight!" is what King Grant shouts. I stand as Oliver jumps over the table toward me. I jump out of the way before he gets me. We both stand, looking at each other, seeing who will attack first. I surprise Oliver by being the first to charge. My foot hits him in the chest, sending him flying into the wall which cracks.

"Oliver, Grant, Enough!" I hear Princess Sapphire shout, but she isn't heard over Grant and my siblings who are cheering. I am too wrapped up in the fight to stop, especially as this one seems to have no rules. Even some of the staff have come into the room and are watching and cheering as the two of us battle it out. Our fight is brutal, but I can't help but enjoy it. The predator side of me enjoys the adrenaline of the fight. Oliver hits me a fair few times and I him, but it ends with jumping toward him and slamming both my feet into his chest with all my strength. I land on my back, he, however flies toward the wall smashes as he goes right through it with a huge crash. King Grant shouts with excitement, his huge booming laugh echoing around the room. He walks over to me and holds up my hand.

"We have a victor!" he shouts. I smile widely as Oliver stands and walks over to me.

"Good fight," he chuckles.

I am surprised by the amount of people who are now in the room. Lots of staff and some other guests perhaps.

"Not again," Princess Sapphire sighs. I look over at her, but she is glaring at her husband.

"How many times have I asked that dinners don't turn into fighting competitions?" she asks. All the others in the room are smart enough to leave.
King Grant chuckles.

"It's just a little fun, my love," he says. She raises an eyebrow and King Grant and Oliver share a look. She growls and walks out of the room. I guess that these fights are pretty common here.

"Sorry I wrecked your wall," I say.

"That's alright Isla, we ruin lots of furniture here," King Grant laughs.

"I'm not in trouble with Princess Sapphire, am I?" I ask.

"No, we're the ones in trouble," Oliver mutters. "It's always us she blames," he moans.

"That's probably because you two always start the fights," princess Kayleigh speaks up. The two boys look at each other then shrug. I roll my eyes at the two. They are very similar.

"Well, I'd best go find my mum," Oliver says and hurries out of the room.

"Well, that was an eventful dinner, but I best do the same. I have a lot of apologizing to do," he sighs.

"Wait, King Grant, there's something I would like to ask you," I say. He beacons me to walk with him.

"What is it you would like to ask, Isla?"

"It may not be any of my business..." I start, "But, I remembered something today."

"Go on," he says.

"Well, Oliver and I were fighting on the ice," I begin.

"Yes, you two fought a lot," he chuckles. "I am glad that it hasn't stopped. A healthy competition is good for you." I smile.

"Well, this time on the ice, I saw you and my mother talking and you both looked very worried." He sighs.
"Yes, I think I know what conversation you are talking about."

"May I ask what it was about?" I wonder. He stops and looks at me.

"What I am about to tell you, only a very few people know Isla. I am only telling you because you are to be the queen of Zola and this does concern you." He is very serious know.

"Your mother and I were very close friends. Like you and Oliver, we would often fight each other and compete with each other and she would often win," he chuckles then sighs sadly. "Your mother's visit that time was because she wanted to tell me that..." He sighs. I frown.

"She believed there was a traitor high up in Shadow's hierarchy." I gasp.

"What?" I whisper.

"She believed someone was feeding information about their plans and whereabouts to the Nightshades."

"Why?" I ask. "Why did she believe that?"

"I don't know, she wouldn't even tell me, but something had spooked her and she kept going on about this traitor. We weren't sure what to believe at first," he carries on. "We've always believed that we are fair and peaceful people. We've always made sure that all our people live happy lives, that there's no one starving and no poverty, so the thought of there even being a traitor was highly unlikely," he carries on. "Especially someone so high up and so respected." He takes a seat on a stone bench and I take one next to him.
"She only told a handful of people. Myself and the other rulers but we were too naive to think that someone could actually betray us." All this is so much to take in. "We told her that she needs to find proof, show us. Wel,l that had happened." I had a feeling on where this story was going.

"The attack," he sighs. "It could only have been done if there was a traitor."

"How?" I ask, my voice hardening.

"Only the Royals and the High families knew what day the Dragons Ball was going to be on for a start and all the dragons, it was kept extremely secret." I gulp. "But that wasn't the main reason we realised there was a traitor. The Nightshades knew the whole layout of the palace. They knew where every room was. They knew where you would be. They knew about a secret entrance to the palace, which is what they used to get in undetected," he sighs. "They managed to block all the link to the dragon form, the link to powers so no one could shift. They blocked off every exit so no one could even escape. The attack was so sudden that no one really had a chance to defend themselves." Anger and sadness surge through me as tears run down my face.

"If we had only believed her, then we may have been able to do something," he sighs, leaning back on the stone. It is silent for a few minutes. I stand up slowly.

"Thank you for sharing this with me," I tell him. "I do not blame any of you because the attack would have happened whether you believed her or not," I explain. "But I will discuss this with all royals at a later date and we will find who it is."

"We've been looking for the past seven years, Isla," he sighs. "We've not found a trace."

"Well you haven't had us for past seven years," I tell him. "Our memories may have been wiped for more than the fact that the Nightshades didn't want us returning. What if we saw something, something that at the moment we can't remember?" I ask. His eyes widen as he sits up.

"Our memories will return and if we remember something then we may be able to find whoever betrayed us. If we don't we could always say we remember something just to flush them out." He nods his head and smiles.

"That could work," he mutters. "Will you inform the other royals?" he stands.

"Not yet, once the excitement of our return has died down, we can get to work on finding out who it is." He nods his head.

"What will you do to the traitor if you find them?" he asks. I look into his eyes and speak with a cold voice.

"I will kill them, slowly and painfully."