Twirling her wrist in a circular motion, Princess Caerleon clung to life by utilizing her sorcery. Mela Sif Caerleon was born and raised in Acre, a glorious kingdom by the Hy Byscil Bay. The Hy Byscil Cliffs were the outlying region of Acre and they had thin wheat fields coating their rocky exterior. It seemed impossible but true. These meadowy fields of wheat ensured the human capital city of Acre had the most fresh and delectable bread. But those mornings of fresh baked cinnamon rolls and croissants were a faded memory which only belonged to the past. Though twenty-nine year old princess was in the beginning phase of puberty when the world took a turn for the worse, she still could recall the expressions on her parents' faces which would confuse her as they tucked her into bed. Her mother and father were kind rulers who did their best to keep their kingdom safe, as well as happy.

Though her brother was three years younger than her, he would claim the throne when the time was right. It didn't bother Mela as she grew older but when she was younger, she felt cheated and though her parents couldn't explain it very well, she understood it was tradition. In her mind it was a stupid tradition that should be changed but as she grew up and the world began to morph into a dismal place, she learned that life wasn't fair and often made little sense. Despite the rift between her and her brother, Raxell, they grew very close during their teenage years. This was likely due to the lessons they were taught. Both were given basic training with the sword, bow, axe and staff. Then they were taught about the four basic elements that magic gave birth to.

Raxell was quite skilled in combat whereas Mela found her niche with magic and potion making. The two trained together and developed a fine chemistry of being able to fight in sync to enhance one another's attacks. Mela often created shields out of rock and soil and would hurl fireballs or iceballs at the target from afar while Raxell dashed forward and take care of heavy damage. They were trained under same masters who became parental figures to the royal teenagers when their parents were busy trying to deal with the damages that were going on in the city. Mela could recall one winter, about four years into the plight when a massive tidal wave crashed into the side of their city and took out half of the Hy Byscil Cliffs. The golden wisps of wheat flowing in the wind, overlooking Acre were iconic and losing them, damaged the city's morale.

Even so, the Caerleon family didn't waiver.

Mela and Raxell trained even harder and would take turns inspecting the city for intruders. If there was someway to help, Mela would find it. When she turned nineteen, she asked her father for permission to travel outside of Acre in order to further her dream of helping the world, even those who were non-human. Her father denied her request which sent the girl into a sea of depression. For several weeks she didn't speak to anyone, she hardly ate until she had a visit from one of the elderly residents of Acre who wanted to thank her and Raxell for all the help that they gave her, looking after her pets and making sure her area was safe. Seeing that her attempts were successful, Mela found her fire had been rekindled. She decided to continue to focus on the humans she could help. When Raxell turned eighteen, he was taken by his father to learn more about ruling.

With her brother busy with her father, this left Mela alone.

Still, she continued to patrol the city and the outskirts. Several times she had defended the border with her sorcery from opposing elves or dwarfs. On one occasion she could have sworn she saw a mermaid from the shore of Hy Byscil Bay. As things grew worse, she began to see people fleeing the city. They were either fed up with how bad things were, or they were scared that the army of sorcerers and sorceresses couldn't hold off large scale attacks. If Mela couldn't join the army or protect her city on her own, she felt an even stronger need to leave and make change happen somehow. Before she could make preparations to go on out on her own, Raxell stopped her when he caught her rummaging through the kitchen. He pointed out that leaving suddenly wasn't how she really wanted things to go. The two siblings agreed that they needed to spend more time together 

And that's what they did. Both Mela and Raxell went back to training together, just as they had done so many years ago. But fifteen years after the initial destruction of most of the world, King Caerleon decided they needed to move the Prince and Princess to another location for their own safety. Once they were settled, he would send his wife along too. King Caerleon wanted to stay by his city and restore it to its former glory but for now, he had to think about his loved ones, as it seemed the people were beginning to revolt out of fear and anger for the world's situation. In reality, Acre had done rather well compared to most other cities and capitals. Mela and her brother were given an escort by the army to the safe house which was about a two week's journey from their home by the frisky ocean.

As they traveled, Mela found her eyes wandering, soaking in every detail of the land. Though it was barren, she still fund beauty in it. On the tenth night, Mela gathered her things and went to do some exploring while the small troop, plus Raxell, were preparing dinner. As she wandered around, she lost sight of her bearings and found herself separated from the group. The adult was skilled enough to not lose her head. She ended up setting up a camp of her own and got a fire going with her magical talents. She conjured up some water as well, but didn't sleep much as she was on the lookout for any danger. Three days passed and she still couldn't reunite with the others. Panic and fatigue were slowly setting in. Mela had used her skills to keep herself warm and hydrated but it cost her energy.

With the sun dipping below the dusty horizon, Princess Caerleon knew the end of this third day would be important. She needed to find another village or town soon or her supplies would run out, as would her luck. Mela brushed her blond hair back behind her pointed ears. Yes, she was a quarter elf and as such, she had inherited the dominate trait of pointy ears. It was something that should have hindered her development but it strengthen her. While ties with the elves were tattered, the woman had taken pride in her heritage and as such, had the ability of keen listening skills. Despite the advantage, she couldn't detect where her brother had gone off to. She knew he was more than capable of taking care of himself once he got to the safe house but it didn't stop the older sister from worrying.

Quickly glanced to the west, she could hear footsteps.

Were they friend or foe?

Mela braced herself for a fight by arming herself with her thin sword, a gift from her father on her eighteenth birthday. Princess Caerleon was tired from the travel and magical use, even so, she wasn't going to back down and give up. Three shadows soon took the form of armor clad dwarfs. They began to yell at her, ignoring her dark green fancy attire, a signature of humans in Acre. They not only produced wholesome baked goods, but also green intricate jewelry. Her pointed ears were hidden behind her sleek blond hair and her blue eyes tried to remain focused. "Get back, you're picking a fight with the wrong woman!" She growled. Though she had battle experience, fighting didn't exactly bring a smile to her face. Since she also had a talent for making potions that could heal or enhance someone's skills, she preferred to help rather than make war with words or wounds.

The trio seemed to laugh at her. Even though they were shorter than her, they were armed and in a better state. As they began to draw their weapons, she jumped back and used a spell to create a wind tunnel around her blade so her attacks would jettison them away from her. At the most, they would get cut from the sharp winds. She didn't feel like fighting, she wanted a real meal and she wanted to see her family again. "Stay back or I won't hold back." Mela said as two charged at her. She swung her sword and the two men were thrown back several feet. The third one hurried toward her and slid, aiming a kick at her shins. While she had her stylish armor on, her own health had suffered, as well as her emotional state. So when the armored boot connected with her, Mela fell back and dropped her sword. She was tired and she missed her home. She regretted wandering off, even if she thought she couldn't help it.

Getting to her feet, she didn't bother with her sword anymore and began to build a fireball, she would end this, even if it killed her. Clearly her enemies were reckless and didn't deserve to live. It angered her to see life wasted, to see people hurt one another. But if she could stop just these three from harming anyone else, Mela wouldn't hesitate to jump into the fray. "Looks like burnt dwarfs are on the menu tonight." The woman smirked boldly as the sun finished setting, letting her growing fireball which was almost as big as her face, illuminate the area around them. The two who had been thrown back now got to their feet and were also advancing on the princess. They laughed and claimed their special armor which had been forged in the Obsidian Cavern would resist fire but since her knowledge was limited to what she read in books, she wasn't sure if they were lying or not. There was one way she could find out. "Either you're lying or I'm crazy, let's find out." Mela said loudly as her fireball grew even larger.

Just then she felt a massive sharp pain roll from her stomach up to her head. She had reached the limit of her magic. Having used it so frequently over the past 74 hours or so, Princess Caerleon could only rely on her sword skills, so she quickly lunged for it but one of the dwarfs picked it up and pointed it at her. "Your mouth is too big for your own good, now it's our turn to have some fun."

Mela clenched her jaw and eyed the trio, determined to stand her ground.