After changing his form and reviling himself to the others, it seemed like Van was starting to wake up and it was at the perfect time. Ray placed him on the floor and allowed him to slowly open his eyes.

  "What happened?" He said as he felt a banging pain in his head. Although the spell wasn't damaging, it was still unnatural to make someone fall asleep on the spot. There would be slight side effects to the whole thing.

  But when Van's eyes finally opened the first person, he set his eyes upon, were Ray. "Am I dreaming." He thought.

  Lately, Van started to think about the Redwings leaders' action more and more. It seemed like not only was the leader brave but the whole group. For years all the other kingdoms had fallen victim to the bullying of the empire, but the redwings seemed like they weren't having any of it.

  And their actions revolved around one person. "I want to be like you," Van said in a soft-spoken voice, but then the sound of laughter was heard coming from the two women in the room.

  When he turned to take a look, he noticed that Mia and Bliss where there. "Van I didn't know you swung that way," Bliss said laughing.

  Quickly, Van's face started to go bright red. He began to touch his whole body all over, realising that this wasn't a dream.

  "You, what are you doing here in Roland, and with them. What is going on?" Van said in a panic.

  The only way to ascend the tower was by climbing the long ascending spiral staircase, which would lead to each floor. The divine being was located at the very top. While the group ascended the long staircase, Ray started to explain his story.

  He went back to the very beginning about how the Divine being that was discovered at Avrion. How he had been given a task to locate all three pieces of the divine being and Roland was the final piece of the puzzle for him.

  The Redwings weren't on a quest to defeat the shadow like everyone thought, but they were just on an errand run for the divine being. But while this was happening, the shadow would constantly get in their way.

  But not even the Redwings knew the true goal of the Redwings, for all Ray was trying to do was get his body back and get answers about what had happened to him.

  "Then why bring me?" Van said.

  "I don't know why but the Devine being said If we were to vanquish the shadow, I would need your help and that is why I have brought you with me here today," Ray replied.

  "Do you think it has something to do with the Shadow being after Van?" Bliss asked.

  "I can only suspect I know just as much as you do, but the Divine being chooses to answer me in riddles or fragments. Perhaps scared that if I learnt the whole truth, I wouldn't do her bidding."

  "Why would she think that?" said Bliss. "Of course, if it can get rid of the shadow, you would do anything to help."

  When Bliss said those words, Ray didn't say anything back. It was then that she realised that Ray perhaps wasn't doing all of this out of choice.

  "Why did you let me follow you?" She asked.

  The vision had not only shown Van. But also shown a dark-haired female who wielded a magic staff. At the time, the vision was quite blurry, but now he was sure of it. Bliss was the other person in the vision, it also couldn't be a coincidence she resembled the Divine being so much.

  "Just a hunch that you may be able to help," Ray answered.

  Right now as they travelled up the stairs, Van had a serious look on his face.

  "Ray, I guess I should call you now? This is it, isn't it?" Van said. "You're planning to leave after seeing the divine being. You have no more reason to stay, and you're clearly more powerful than anyone of us here. You have nothing to learn from the academy. I guess what I'm getting at is, I want you to take me with you. Please, allow me to join the Redwings."

  Ray looked at Van and was surprised to see how much he had changed. When he first met him, he was a shy and timid boy, and he still was. He didn't speak much but right now when he had requested to join the Redwings. The sound of his voice wasn't shaky, and he didn't hesitate.

  "Van you have changed, it would be a pleasure to have you join the Redwings, but I do not wish to make another enemy so soon. You should first speak to your mother before leaving. As you know, we are at war with the empire, and if the prince of another kingdom was to join, I'm afraid it would cause a misunderstanding."

  "Prince!!!" Bliss shouted. "Van, you're a prince and the prince of Alure kingdom. Why didn't you say anything? Nobody would have even touched you in the academy."

  "Would that have changed anything?" Van replied. "if others were to know how I am and treated me differently than who am I really speaking to. Shouldn't you treat people the same way regardless of who they are? My whole life has been sugar-coated, but when I was younger, the guards would always say things behind my back. Because of my abilities, many people had died when I was a child. They still hadn't figured out what was happening but could only assume I was cursed. However, when Amy came, that all started to change."

  When Ray heard that name, a pain in his chest was felt. He too knew what Van was going through because it was the same for him. In the village, everyone had outcasted him on the spot because of his hair colour, but Amy was the first to see past that.

  The second person was her Brother Gary. He was the only person who had seen the strange scales and other things on his arm. Yet he didn't treat him any differently, and he also didn't tell anyone about it.

  'I promise Gary, I will get you back from the clutches of the shadow' he thought.

  Finally, they had arrived at the top floor of the tower. Before they could enter, there was a large steel door blocking their entrance and a circular lock at the front.

  "I'm afraid this is as far as I can take you," Mia said. "I do not know the code to this door, and only Mia does. It's why the security inside the tower isn't so high. Because without knowing the combination, there is no chance of getting through this door."

  "So the whole trip was a waste then!" Bliss shouted.

  "I did as I was asked by Lenny. To take you to the place where the Divine being was located. There is nothing else I can do." Mia snapped back.

  "Don't worry, I can get us inside." Ray then placed his hand on the door, and the system message appeared.

  [Would you like to unlock the door?]

  [Yes]

  ****

  Notice, I'm sorry for no upload in the past few days. I have moved to a new apartment, and there is no cell service or Wifi. Hopefully, this gets sorted out soon so I can upload more regularly same as before.

  Thank you for all the support and gifts they really help me in soon becoming a full time author.