2.10

Erin was busily showing Lariel a five-seat, silver drop-shaped shuttle. To Kamily surprise, there were windows inside that were invisible from the outside.

"Try not to break anything," Erin warned.

"To know what to break, everything is smooth, it is not clear how to control the ship," noted Lariel.

"Gesture control. I'll take you myself. Get in, let's fly."

Erin ran his hand up the front window. The shuttle gently took off and, gaining altitude, silently floated over the forest. 

Soon they approached a vast lake, next to which there was a small settlement.

Several men on a deserted street fiddled with their belongings. One of them noticed Kamily, who looking around, walked along the wide passage.

"Who are you, lost or what?" 

Her clothes seemed to him too clean and valuble for a wanderer. "Where is your husband?"

"He's nearby, fishing in the lake," she harried to answer. "I came here just to see if a single woman lives here. I'm looking for a sister who has been missing for a long time."

"Yes, there was one such, but she died, and her daughter Nainia lives in a hut on a large tree at the end of this street. A savage, does not communicate with anyone. Try to lure her out of there, she only comes out at night, there is no one to guard her. Don't go alone, it's dangerous!"

Kamily quickly found a large tree with a house hidden at the top.

"Nainia!" Kamily shouted loudly.

A girl peered out of the house and stared inquiringly at the newcomer. She hastily threw off the wicker ladder and descended to the ground.

"I saw you in a dream, who are you?"

Nainia stepped closer. Her gray clothes were very shabby, her long silvery hair tangled somehow in small braids.

"I am Kamily, I'm looking for helpers in my house in a big city. Maybe you are interested in this kind of work. I have a large orchard and many flowers, it needs care. I will give you also new clothes."

The girl looked at her in disbelief assessing the appearance and quality of the wanderer's gown.

"A good opportunity not to vegetate in such a remoteness! Kamily continued and looked around. "Something keeping you here? And my city is full of entertainment and work. You could marry a handsome man and have pretty kids."

"What?" Nainia raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Handsome? Never have met. Where are these guys found?"

"There are many of them in my city and everyone is looking for a wife. You can choose anyone."

"Are you talking about some city where the vampires live?"

"What vampires?" Kamily burst out laughing. "I don't know such a thing."

"Those who drink the life force from young women and drive them crazy. Have you never heard?"

"But these are all scary tales that frightening girls into not daring to explore the outside world beyond their village. Do I look like an exhausted woman?"

"Not at all, your appearance is blooming but I can't just trust a stranger. Suddenly you would lure me into a trap and vampires will deprive me of my health. My mother did not live very long after a fleeting affair with one of them."

"So you are the daughter of a syrinx, like me, and you don't need to be afraid of them," Kamily stared into her eyes.

Nainia blinked in fear, but she couldn't move to run away. Her mind was clouded and her gaze was frozen.

"You will come with me," Kamily commanded noticing that the girl became enchanted.

She furtively hiding behind the bushes slowly brought her captive to the shuttle.

"Deftly you managed to lure her," Lariel was surprised, looking at the pretty girl with a blank look. "When did you manage to learn charms?"

"It happened by accident. And so, I myself became a kidnapper," Kamily noted bitterly. "Did you ever charm me like that, Lar?"

"I'm sorry but you is the one who bewitched me."

"Is this the princess?" Erin looked at the captive with a mockery. "We have to comb her hair."

"And dress up," Lariel chuckled.

***

She woke up and saw Kamily sitting next to her on a bench in a lush fragrant garden.

"Where I am? Have you kidnapped me really?" The girl jumped up, looking around frantically.

In the distance among the greenery a large stone house loomed.

"Sorry, Nainia, please calm down! No one will hurt you," Kamily looked at the captive tensely. "Let's talk."

The girl was trembling with excitement, and when she saw the winged flying in the sky, she screamed in horror covering her face with her hands.

"The vampires! What a nightmare! Why did you bring me here?"

"These are syrinxes - handsome winged guys! They are not vampires at all! Do not be afraid! Nobody will touch you without my permission! I am their Queen Bee."

Her commanding voice calmed Nainia a little.

"This is the first time I hear about the Queen Bee of Syrinxes," the girl cast a distrustful glance.

"I was recently crowned. Now I am their Mistress, they obey me. They won't scare people anymore."

"Does my father live here?"

"I'm sorry, dear, he's not alive, otherwise he would never have left his daughter unattended," Kamily said in a sad voice. "Syrinxes do not abandon their kids. And now you've been given the title of princess."

"Wow!" Nainia was amazed. "I always considered my father a rogue, because I had never seen him, and my mother didn't talk much about him, she remembered only some fragments of their romance. She said that he was fabulously handsome, and I am very similar to him. His name was Rues. Same hair and eyes. He suddenly disappeared after numerous dates, leaving no trace. And every day she waited for him to return."

"It's amazing that she even knew who she was dating. My mother did not remember anything at all and also did not live long."

Nainia seemed to be trying to wake up and could not believe in the reality of what was happening. Suddenly, a cute lilac haired toddler in a purple tunic ran up to her, showing her a red flower with a smile. The girl was stunned by the fabulous appearance of the boy and his wings and could not take her eyes off him.

"Is he your child?"

"Yes, my son."

"How pretty he is!" Nainia couldn't hide her admiration.

"Eki, my name is Eki," his voice rang like a bell. 

"Daddy, daddy," the kid ran down the path fluttering the tiny wings.

Nainia looked after the child and saw a tall guy of extraordinary beauty in front, dressed in a tight-fitting lavender-colored suit matching his long hair. He slowly approached, stroking the curls of his son, who jumped beside him. She had never seen a syrinx so close, and she was struck to the very heart by his bewitching lilac eyes with star-shaped pupils.

"Lariel, at your service!" a charming guy gallantly introduced himself.

Nainia did not know where to go from embarrassment, she blushed deeply, lowering her eyes.

"Well, you came early and scared the girl," Kamily reproached him. "We haven't talked yet."

"I wanted to offer some gowns to choose…"

"We'll come back later. Leave them in her bedroom."

He departed, softly rustling his swaying gray wings, and Nainia whispered timidly, looking after him excitedly:

"Oh, he's so incredible! Lilac hair… Your husband?"

"You liked him, do you?" Kamily chuckled. "Lariel is the most handsome of them all. Yes, these winged men, in addition to their irresistible appearance, use charms to seduce especially stubborn women. So don't look them in the eyes."

"How to live with them, if they do so?"

"Syrinxes are very loving… So scary tales about vampires were invented about them so that girls would avoid meeting them. In fact, they are gentle and caring."

"How did you become their Queen?"

"They asked me."

"So what, I have to live in the midst of all this?" The girl spread her hands in confusion. "There are so many love-struck syrinxes around! I don't need it at all. What are the duties of a princess?"