CHAPTER SEVEN

Jake

"Your...your eyes are white"  He said as he seemed to walk further away from him. Jake stepped back, touching his eyes. His eyes always turns from grey to white whenever he is angry. This is the reason why he does not want to associate with anyone. Now look at what has happened? How is he going to explain this to this stranger?

He closed his eyes, taking in some fresh air, and then he opened them again. His eyes were back to grey.

"What are you?" The stranger asked as he looked at him, as if he was trying to find out something about him.

"It is none of your business stranger. I have to get going" He says as he walked away.

"The name is Sam. Hope we meet again" He said, making Jake stop instantly. When he looked back, there was nothing to see as the stranger had disappeared.

Amelia's pov.

Amelia watched from the shadows as he walked. She had been so scared when he had ran to the middle of the road, trying to kill himself. She had wanted to save him, but someone else did. She saw the stranger using his eyes to move him from the road to the spot besides him. There was no doubt this man was from one of the Kingdoms of the Protectors. She knew there was only a Kingdom left which was ruled by the sixth Protector. But this man does not look anything like the Citizens of Snow Kingdom.

Who was this stranger?

And what was he doing in the mortal world?

She heard their conversation and even witnessed the transformation of her Mate's eyes. There was no way a person's eyes could turn all white. It would have been understandable if he had powers but Jake is clearly a Mortal. There is no way he could have powers.

Although she knew there was something unique about her mate, she could not figure out what. She had sensed power the minute she saw him but could not point out what.

She wanted to find out who that man who saved her mate was. As soon as her mate fell asleep back at his house, she gently kissed him on his forehead and went in search of that man; whoever he is.

Sam Gunnigham

In the dappled sunlight amid the boughs and strong risen roots, Sam could feel his spirit weave itself into nature, as if for this time he is one with this place and all the life that is here.

If one had only seen woods as a photograph, it would be your dearest wish to take a stroll amid the trees with senses open wide. He closed his eyes, inhaling nature's sweet scent. He loved nature he wouldn't deny.

All his life he had been one to live in the woods, not wanting to have anything to do with the outer world. He had been captured when his home was destroyed completely by an enemy. He supposed to be working as a slave for the Ice King but since he found favour in his sight, he was aloud to serve the King as a soldier.

 So who is this guy? He acts like he was an immortal but he looks like a Mortal, like it's him that's the usurper. But why did his eyes suddenly turn white? He had never heard of anything like that before. The more he mulled it over the more his brain becomes a spinning top, always finding more questions than answers. The weird part is there's a familiarity to him he couldn't shake, not a memory per se, but echoes that call to his intuition.

He sat down in front of a puddle as he heaved in a deep sigh. Now he was in the mortal world, what will he do here? He knew he had a solo mission. Get in, achieve the goals, get out. How will he find the destined Ice King and the Phoenix? 

He bit his lips as he seemed more confused. He sighed again as he closed his eyes, green mist surrounding him. He began to transform to his true self.

His original being.

Unknown pov

"I know he will be looking for the Ice King now, and i know Amelia will have found her mate again. You do not know what you have caused yourself my Amelia. Very soon, all will be mine and i would rule. And then i would prove to our Creator that witches are very important in creation"

A wicked laughter she gave as she looked in her pot. 

"You will lead me to her" She said, looking at the gnome which she could see through her pot.

Amelia Pov.

Amelia hid on top of a tree as she looked down at the gnome whom was staring at his reflection on the mirror. She did not expect the stranger to be a gnome. She watched as the gnome washed his face and used his clothes to clean his face. What was a gnome doing here?

She hid as he turned and looked around. It looked as if he had sensed her. One advantage of being a gnome.

"Who is there?" He said as he looked around. She could see that he had walked to the tree in which she was hiding and looked up. There is no way she was going to escape since he had already known she was there.

But she was scared of going to meet him as she did not know if it was her aunt that sent him. But she had a feeling she could trust him. So she did what came to her mind. She turned into a real phoenix and flew away. She heard as it called after her but she did as if she did not hear as she flee to safety. But she hoped she saw what she had left for him.

She flew high up until the sky, enjoying the window on her feathers. This was the first time she was turning into a Phoenix and it felt good. 

It all happened suddenly, as she became weak. And soon she was on the ground, her body took weak to stand. She saw a kindly figure as her sight became a blur. She drifted into consciousness as she felt hands on her feathers.

Sam Gunnigham

He knew he was watched but never expected it to be the Phoenix. He saw as she took off, and he knew a Phoenix when saw one. He scratched his head as he grunted in frustration. "Why was the Phoenix spying on him?"

Now someone had found out who he really was. He turned around and something caught his eye. He walked to it and saw it was a snow man, but what he saw written on it made him gasp in surprise.

"The boy you saved close to the road, meet him and take care of him. I do not want anything to happen to mate" He read as he gasped in realisation. The Phoenix had asked him to take care of her mate which means she was in danger.

But if she had found her mate and it was the boy he had saved on the road, this means he had met the Ice King without realising. He turned back to his human self as he ran through the woods. He had to find him......fast.

Jake

He woke up with a headache he could not understand.The headache was the kind that stopped all other traffic in the brain, as suddenly all had met with red lights. He did not know what was going on with him. He had been feeling weird right after he had met that boy and he still felt that way....the sleep did not help at all. He got up as he dragged himself to the bathroom, he had to freshen up. He had a party to attend and hopefully, he would get over Amelia.

Taking off his clothes, he really walked to the tub and turned on the water.  He leaned on the bathroom wall as he ruffled his hair. His hair was soft...and long?

His hair was never long, it was always short. He brought his hair to his view and gasped when he saw his hair.

His hair was not only long........but pure white. He rushed to his mirror right in the bathroom and gasped in surprise. This certainly was not his reflection.....he was staring at another person entirely. His hair was long, pure white and silky, his skin was pale.......and  pure, just like snow.....his eyebrows had little ice crests at the end of each one.... his lips were pink, his ears.....his ears were pointy, more like an elf, and his eyes.......his eyes are blue, ocean blue!

Now he clearly did not understand, what was all these? Why all these transformation? What was happening to him. He stared at his reflection and some sign on his shoulder caught his attention. Looking at his arm, he saw a drawing of a snow flake, highlighted blue. But he never had a mark like this before. He bit his lips as he held his head.....the headache, it was too much to bear.

He shouted as he fell on the ground. What is happening? Using his hand, he found the chair and used it as a support to stand up. And that was when he saw his eyes....his eyes had turned white again! But he was not angry, why had it turned white?

"Arrgggh" He shouted as the pain became unbearable. He did not know what happened or how he happened but he saw himself on the ground, his room frozen and his body numb. Something happened but he could not point out what. And there it was again! A white mistake came out of his hand, making his chair to be frozen.

He had powers.

But he was so weak to realize.

Everything became a blur as he lost consciousness, the cold around him not affecting him at all.

📖

As he rouse from a heavy slumber, he is first aware of the coolness of the air and the frosty surrounding he was in. The floor was iced and cold but it did not affect him at all. It was more like he was on a comfortable bed. His clothes felt damp and frozen. He still wondered if he was still dreaming as he sits up to take in the shafts of the night time that burst through the gaps of his window above. It was snowing outside.

Now he was fully awake, perhaps more fully awake than he had ever been. He remembered all he had noticed right before he fainted. He got up and tried to find the switch to his bedside lamp in the dark. When he had found it, he switched it on. Rushing to the mirror, he saw what he had seen.  There was no doubt that he was not dreaming. Touching his hair, he realized that the headache he had before was gone. How was he going to hide all of this from the world?

First of all his eyes, now his whole appearance? What will happen now?

He just felt like an outcast. All these transformation......it was hard to understand. He wished someone could explain to him what was going on.

He looked around, checking for his phone. When he found it, he checked the time. Good Lord! It was 1 am. That means he had been out for about sixteen hours. He opened his phone and checked his contacts for anyone.....just anyone who could help him.

But he found no one. Every one on his contacts were people either from school or from parties. There was no one he could trust, there was not even a soul that was close to him.

All his life he had been all by himself. Yes, he is a handsome guy, the hottest in college. He is a playboy who f*cks girls he hardly knows, but never had he thought of making a friend.

Because somehow he knew he was different.

He looked up as he stared at his reflection on the mirror. Now he knew for a certain that he was different. He dropped his phone and looked at his hands, there were two snow flakes respectively on his palms. He felt so.......powerful.

He closed his eyes as he tried to get used to this feeling he could not control, and when he opened his eyes, they were white and unexpectedly he fell on the ground, releasing a strong blast of ice which formed innumerable crystals in the middle of the room. He slowly got up as he walked towards the crystals.

He never knew he could do that.

And then, there was a knock on the main door. Who could that be? He tensed as he looked around. There was a knock again.

He looked around, finding a good disguise. Luckily, he found a hoodie. He wore it and ran down the stairs to check out when was at the door. Opening the door, he found out it was his father.

"What took you so long?" His father asked as he pushed Jake, making him fall on the ground.

"Tell me huh? Damn you made me knock on the door for close to thirty minutes" He said as he used his leg to kick Jake on the stomach, making him spit blood.

"You fool! I curse the man while your mother got you from. You are a disgrace!" He said as he pushed him, making him hit the table. A lone tear fell from Jake's eyes, turning to tiny crystals as it fell on the ground. Why does his father hate him so much?

"And why did you cover your face huh? I am glad you have finally known that you are ugly" He said, punching poor Jake on the face, blood gushing out of his nose.

"You unlegitimate child!"

Jake could not take it anymore, he let the tears fall as he took in the beating. Tears which fell asleep crystals the moment they fell from his eyes. Everywhere hurt but what could hurt more was what his father said to him....that he was an unlegitimate child.

"I picked your mother from the road and took care of her. I fell in love with your mother but hated you like a plague because to me, you were a sin. I wanted some desperately to kill you but because of your mother, i had to be nice to you. But you know what? I will forever hate you because you are a sin" He said as he  hit Jake's head on the table.

And that was when it dawned on him.

The man standing right in front of him, inflicting all manner of pains on him was not his father. He was no where related to him. This brought an ache in his heart as he realized that he had been lied to all his life. No wonder this man he called a father changed drastically the moment his mother was found dead. He was never his father.

He took in the beating without uttering a single word for the pain he felt in his heart was far more worse than the physical pain this man was inflicting on him. He never even raised the hoodie he wore, and that was a relief to him because he did not want this man to have the chance to insult what he had become anymore.

He left on the ground weak and battered when he was done. Jake whimpered as he hurt all over. He remained there for quite some time as the pain in his heart was getting much worse.

Amelia's pov.

Opening her eyes, the first thing she saw were the bars. She tried to get up but was too weak to stand. She managed to sit up and realized she was still a bird. Turning back to her human form, she got up.

Where was she?

She walked to the bars and held them. They were frozen. This could mean only one thing......she was in Ice Kingdom. Who has captured her?

She looked around, trying to find a way of escape but could not find one. Suddenly, she felt pain. She screamed as she fell on her knees. She felt she was in torture but her heart ached the most. She bit her lips as it dawned on her.......

Someone was inflicting pain on her mate and it hurt a lot. Her heart felt like it wanted to burst and her body felt as if it was taking lashes. She cried as she felt the pain of her mate but what hurt more was that she could not help him in anyway.

There was no way she could heal him as she was quite far and they have not really mated yet. Her heart aches the more as she continued to feel pains.....

Pains of torture.

Pains of hurt.

And then she heard footsteps. She could not look up but could tell that there was a presence in front of her.

"It has been a long time Asteria. We meet yet again"