70. Ivan’s Lost Soul

A few suns and moons have raced against the clock, and Akshara’s life in the ice castle has been scheduled to ‘Rest Less and Works More’. Eating becomes the reward for her tireless work. Akshara would share her reward, i.e., food, with her pet birds, Sun and Shine.
Her roommate, the ferocious animal, doesn’t look ferocious anymore to her. She finds it cute and kind. When her work didn’t meet the reward, the ferocious animal would help her with the fruits from the tree located in the dungeon.
Akshara had rotted in the dungeon with the ferocious animal, which had more mercy on her than the castle's inhabitants. Nora and Indigo did everything they could to bring their evil to torture Akshara solely because of her title as the Hybrid Crown Prince's Bride.
Apart from the tiring day, Akshara found joy in fewer resting hours. Dev’s words lingered in her mind, "Come into my arms wherever you are in trouble.” The ecstasy of running into the arms of Dev after tiring daylight becomes her tonic for her wounded, parted soul.
*****
Elsewhere in the forbidden tower, Dev and his dragon warriors worked hard to rebuild the energy shield that keeps their enemies away from the thing that has been protected with tight security in the forbidden tower.
Since both Akshara and Dev’s sleeping times differ, he told her to find him when the moon reaches its peak. She too did the same and found him in her dreams. Some nights were deceiving to both; some were remarkable lustful make-out sessions, while others were merely sword training.
In their dreams, Dev recalls and remembers every single word she uttered to him, especially her complaints and her compliments. He rewarded her with smooching for her compliments on him, but her complaints always ended up as aggressive make out.
In their every make-out, he passes her his energy and powers to stabilise her body with vital strength, which eventually enhanced her beauty and skills. As she wasn’t allowed to look into mirrors, she didn’t notice the changes in her.
*****
When the task is to recreate the energy shield in the forbidden tower, the tower is marching towards its end. Ivan looked at Dev from time to time while progressing on the energy shield.
The happiness beamed on the face of Dev, which turned out to be the talk of the day. Ivan asked him about that, "Dev, what’s with the gleam on your face?"
"What else? It’s always Sara." Dev exhales while recalling his night spent with her.
Ivan grunted and turned his face away while smacking his lips. "You are nothing but a rude dragon."
"Rude?" Dev asked with a great question mark on his face, "How rude am I?"
"You are rude to torture every single unmated dragon here with your lovey-dovey actions." Ivan criticised and walked away from Dev.
"Hey," Dev called Ivan who was murmuring to himself, "Ivy, I am still single."
Ivan stopped his legs and started walking towards Dev, "Then don’t sleep until we reach the castle. Make out with her inside your ice-walled chamber, not here, (Dev opened his mouth to say something but was halted by Ivan) not in your dreams too."
Dev smiled at Ivan’s anger and asked, "What’s bothering you?"
"A part of me is happy for you, Dev that you've finally moved into a relationship with the girl of your heart. But another part of me boils for your happy relationship with your heart-picked girl." Ivan explained his complicated happy-hate feelings for Dev.
"Why is that?" Dev wondered at Ivan’s strange feeling which he haven’t encountered in centuries together.
Ivan exhaled. "Huh, (Ivan exhaled) because I feel like I am alone and I lost my friend," Ivan said out loud.
"You haven’t, Ivy. You still have me. (Dev rested his hand on Ivan’s shoulder) You know what promise she made to me first after I titled her to be my bride?" Dev continued to explain while Ivan faced him sideways with crooked eyebrows.
"What? Something like every girl would do, (Ivan shrunk his face and mimicked) I will be with you forever or we will die together. (Ivan voiced in his tone) What else?"
Dev laughed holding his stomach at Ivan’s mimicked voice, "Have you overheard some lovers’ vows?"
Ivan maintained his silence and smacked his head to show his frustration, yet, Dev couldn’t stop laughing or his tears.
******
In the Magma Chamber, Karen spends many nights hunting the forest animals for him and his warrior werewolf pack’s living. He waited for a sign to enter the ice castle and reclaim his love, Akshara.
"My lord, it’s been months since we are residing in the same place, I think we should move forward towards the castle.” Zohan passed his word with Karen and he nodded back.
“We found a cave near the waterfall. Should we move?” Zohan asked Karen, while Karen still fixed her gaze on the faint image of the ice castle.
“Move our pack there and I will stay here to get the word.” Karen spoke, and Zohan smiled at him, "You are not staying without me, my lord."
Zohan stayed still beside Karen who fixed his eyes on the icy mountain.
*****
In the forbidden tower, Ivan smacked his lips, unwilling to laugh, Dev eyed his face, which was facing away, and said, "She didn’t promise me anything like dying or being together. She stated that she will not act as a stopping wall between you and me."
Ivan turned his face to him slowly. He grasped the silence for a moment and spoke, "I know, she told me that too. Though, I feel abandoned.”
Ivan lowered his head in disgrace with a deep exhale. Dev smiled at him and was convinced, "Ivan, you know that you are like my brain. Why do you worry about my heart? (He mentioned Akshara as his heart)"
Ivan widened his eyes and said, “She told me that too.”
"She did?" Dev arched his eyebrows with a surprised look in his eyes and thought to himself, “My Sara is nothing but a bundle of surprises.”
Ivan nodded and said, "She told me that I am your brain and there’s nothing to fear of her presence. I remarked to her that she has your heart. And she wants me to team up with her."
"Team up?" Dev chuckled, and Ivan continued, "Hmm, team up to be on your side through your brightest and darkest times until death."
"She told you that she would stay with me forever in a different way!" Dev's little smile emerged on his lips, and he felt happy about her statement to Ivan.
Dev swallowed his smile and fixed his stern gaze on Ivan’s face, "You both allied behind my back to defend me. Yet, you fake your anger at her.”
"Dev, I...” Ivan opened his mouth to say something but was stopped by Dev.
“It’s time for you to find your mate.” Dev patted his shoulder and tried to walk away. But suddenly Dev forwards to tell in thE ears of Ivan, "Find your mate in the dragon bloodline. (Ivan rolled his eyes at Dev.) Humans are hard to satisfy. Trust me, brother."
"Hey, are you talking about... my sister?" Ivan suddenly stood up for Akshara after convincing his heart of the fact that she isn’t toxic to their friendship and it’s his envy towards Dev is the cause of his frustration.
"Nope, I am talking about my sister?" Dev mocked Ivan, who suddenly changed his concern over Akshara.
"Your sister? You haven’t got one. If you do, then I will revenge her for my sister’s sufferings." Ivan stated firmly, with a cool look.
"Revenge me by torturing my sister? Thank to my parents.” Dev chuckled and continued, “Ivan, I don’t have one, so you can't get revenge on anyone for me. For you to know, your human sister is a real torturer." Dev complained about Akshara.
"In what way does she torture you?" Ivan moved forward with careful words towards Dev, and Dev backed his legs, "You are the one who abducted her from the witch palace. (Ivan forwarded with a pointed finger on his chest of Dev as Dev backed his legs) You are the one who erased her memories first. (Ivan stroked Dev’s chest) It’s you who put her into the Frozen Crescent by lowering her survival and dignity as a barmaid. Now it’s the same you who claimed her as your bride and brought her to the castle to turn all the evils directed towards her. You are the torturer in every phase from time to time."
"Then it’s her mistake to be born with eternal beauty and exotic eyes, not mine,” Dev said in a single breath maintaining his coolest tone.
“Don’t blame me, Ivan; I am a pawn in the hands of destiny," Dev told him in an equally lurid tone as Ivan.
"You can’t always escape blaming destiny,” Ivan rested his hands around his waist, looked away for a few seconds, and inhaled deeply, "Fine.”
Ivan nodded several times and swallowed his anger and warned Dev, "If you ever made my sister suffer, then don’t hide behind the word friendship between us."
Dev smiled at him and said, "Noted and etched in my soul." (He gestured over his heart). "Ivan, we both know that I won’t ever hurt my own heart, not even in my dreams. If I did something to intentionally hurt her, and then just realise that I was on a mission."
“What mission you are on hurting my sister, I mean your sweetheart?” Ivan was puzzled by Dev’s declaration of the mission.
“You will find out it soon. Don’t hatch the eggs without my word.” Dev mentioned to Ivan that he would spill the beans to lessen the curiosity about the mission. Ivan nodded and agreed.
*****