The Emberocks

"Louise! Louise!"

I jolted awake. I was filled by a rush of coldness as I desperately gasps for air. Blinking rapidly, I found myself staring into Alexa's concerned face, her features etched with worry.

My temples were throbbing intensely. With a sharp inhale, I parted my lips, only to be met with the water splashing over me.

Shocked, I wiped the liquid from my face, shooting Alexa a deathly glare.

"Why did you splash water on me?" I demanded.

Lily stood nearby, her expression mirroring Alexa's concern as she handed me a white towel.

"You were screaming," Alexa explained, her face softening. "We couldn't wake you up, no matter what we tried."

"So you decided to drench me?" I exclaimed, dabbing at my face with the towel.

"Well, what else was I supposed to do?" Alexa answered, now her frustration was visible. "Gently nudge you awake? We were worried sick about you!"

As Lily helped me find a new dress, Alexa, still weary, attempted to explain what had happened. She handed me a glass of water, urging me to calm my nerves.

"What on Quailsham did you dream about to scream like you were a Cryerdies?" she inquired.

I sank weakly into a chair, my head throbbing nonstop.

Was it truly just a dream? It had felt so vivid, so achingly real. Every sensation had been tangible, every emotion raw.

How could it have been merely a figment of my imagination?

The echoes of the children's cries still echoed in my mind, haunting me even though I was already awake. Their pain, their wounds, their fear—it tugged at my heart, consuming me from within.

Alexa seemed to observe the emotions etched across my face. So she wisely stopped from asking further, sensing the depth of my fear, anger, and sadness.

Suddenly, the ground began to shake violently. It was accompanied by a surge of intense heat that engulfed the room.

"What the hell?" Alexa exclaimed. She hurriedly exited the room, disappearing in a flash.

I turned to Lily whose expression mirrored my own shock and confusion.

"Prince L-Ludwig," she stuttered, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Why?" I demanded frantically, my heart pounding in my chest. "What happened to Lud-, Prince Ludwig?"

Lily's eyes trembled as she cautiously approached me, her voice barely audible as she whispered, "He nearly exploded."

The words hung heavy in the air. I gasped.

"What? Why? How?" I stammered.

Before I could gather my thoughts and attempt to understand the situation, a deafening crash echoed through the room as the door was forcefully knocked down.

I gasped as the heavy door crashed to the ground with a resounding thud. My body was still tense with fear.

From the darkness emerged Ludwig's towering figure. Then his presence warming me as he quickly enveloped me in a tight embrace.

"Lud..." I managed to choke out. "I... I couldn't breathe."

Ludwig released me at Alexa's gentle nudge. While Lily offered comforting support, her hand massaging my back as I struggled to catch my breath amidst my coughing.

Ludwig turned to face Alexa with a fury that seemed to shake the very ground beneath us.

"I told you to fucking guard her!" His voice thundered through the room.

"I am guarding her!" Alexa argued, her own voice rising in defiance, though lacking the same intensity as Ludwig's.

"If you were guarding her," Ludwig spat out between clenched teeth, his breath coming in ragged bursts, "how did she end up in the South? Damn it!"

He struggled to regain his composure, but his anger continued to burn slowly. "She was right in the midst of the fight!"

Still with coughs, I struggled to understand the escalating argument between Alexa and Ludwig.

"What are you even talking about?" Alexa's voice wavered slightly as she attempted to reign in her emotions. "She's been right here all night. She was asleep while I kept watch!"

Alexa faltered as she struggled to understand his accusations.

"What do you mean?" Ludwig's voice was laced with disbelief. "We saw her. We saw her with Liam. She damn near got burned by the Emberock. And don't you dare tell us we were hallucinating, because we weren't!"

His gaze soon bore into me with such intensity that I nearly choked on the water I was drinking.

The color of his eyes seemed to shift, and the heat in the room intensified to a suffocating degree.

Sweat beaded on my skin, and the furniture seemed to melt under the heat.

Lily rushed to my side, offering assistance.

"Ludwig," Alexa interjected, her tone firm as she attempted to diffuse the tension. "Can you please stop yelling and try to think logically? How could Louise possibly end up in the South?" She took a deep breath, her frustration evident. "That's nearly a few miles away from here. Louise is just a human. She can't teleport or move at superhuman speeds. Even running at her maximum capacity wouldn't get her there in such a short amount of time. And besides, I was right here beside her. She was sleeping soundly until... she screamed."

As Alexa spoke, a shimmering energy began to swirl around her.

It seemed as though she and Ludwig were on the verge of another heated argument when suddenly, Liam burst into the room.