Already a man of few words, YiHuang goes absolutely silent. As the arms pull him closer, securing themselves around him, he tries to relax. He fails. If anything, his body goes stiff as in ironing board.

Zhang leaves a shaky breath against the nape of his neck before stepping away. He smiles impishly and scratches the back of his neck, clearly embarrassed at what he had done. Then, glancing at the exit that was still blocked by the rock, he says in a shy tone, "Best case scenario, this works, worse, it fails, and I die. I did not want to regret not thanking you for all that you have done for me." He explains.

"Do you truly want to thank me?" YiHuang inquiries, narrowing his eyes as if to observe the man in front of him.

"Of course," Zhang replies. His fingers tap the mask he had removed before launching himself at the Yuanjian. "I am sorry if I startled you. I didn't..."

"If you want to thank me, then shouldn't you ask me what I want instead of doing something you want?" YiHuang's eyes blaze.

'Did I offend him somehow?' Zhang wonders, and meeting the dark orbs, replies, "You are my savior and benefactor; as long as it's mine to offer, you can have anything you want."

It's Zhang's turn to go silent when less than a heartbeat later, the prince steps into his personal space, and staring intently at him, speaks, "I will hold you to it, then." He takes the mask from the human's hand and adjusts it on his face, "Once we are back, I will ask for it."
YiHuang steps away; intertwining their fingers, he moves towards the exit. He slides the rock closing the cave's mouth with his free hand, exiting it with Zhang in tow. He turns Zhang to face him and gestures him to breathe just like they had planned the night before.
Zhang nods and pulls in a slow breath. Meanwhile, YiHuang waits patiently by his side.

Zhang takes another breath. "It's working!" He exclaims excitedly and smiles before moving his eyes excitedly over his surroundings. 'It's a garden.' Zhang reckons, 'It looks like the ones in pictures depicting heaven, a place fit for Gods and immortals.' And whispers mesmerized. "It's beautiful!"

"Yes, it is." The Yuanjian agrees, following Zhang's eyes. "We learned from our mistake." His words hold a hint of pride and his eyes affection. The words that follow, however, are laced with an undercurrent of hopelessness, "I wish we could keep it forever."

Zhang doesn't miss it. He tries to voice his thoughts but just then, his eyes catch a movement from the corner of his eyes; he turns swiftly, "What was that?"

"It's Xihun." The prince replies. "Would you like to look at it up close?"

Xihun was a gentle, giant bird that could be compared to the Indian Peacock. The difference between the two species being that the Xihun's feathers were a vibrant vermillion while the Peacock's looked like a limited-colored rainbow; when unfurled, the Xihun's feathers looked like a mix between fire and molten lava. Both males and females of the species possessed them. The Xihun were worshipped by the Yuanjians, who believed that the First could escape from their home planet due to his pet Xihuns sacrificing themselves to buy time.

Zhang's smile brightens. "Can we do that?"

"Yes, Xihun are the softest creatures in existence." The prince replies. He points towards a spot where the bird had disappeared. "In the middle of the grove, there is a pond. It's a place where you can see most creatures of the grove. They usually gather there at dusk and dawn."

Zhang glances at the sun. "Will we be able to catch them if we go there now?"
YiHuang looks scandalized for a moment. "Catch them?" He asks. His eyes are filled with judgment.

Zhang laughs softly, "I mean, to see them. Will we get to see them?" He points at the barely risen sun. "It's almost dawn."

YiHuang feels like a fool. However, he successfully manages to keep his face neutral. He nods, "Alright."

When the duo enters the thicket, Zhang spots a charred strip of land. It leads to a serene lotus-filled pond. His brows knit. "Is that where my ship crashed?"

"No." YiHuang stops when his eyes land on the blackened patch. "Wait here. I need to check something." He instructs and proceeds to the charred strip of land.

Once there, he digs his finger into the soil and closes his eyes. The charred strip vanishes, leaving behind young, glossy grass. Then running his fingers through their soft-looking blades, he smiles and returns to Zhang's side while the latter looks at his companion with awe.

As they continue walking towards the thicket, Zhang asks, "What was that all about back there?"

"The TengFei soil has life; it breathes. It thrives on care. It doesn't judge or punish, even though it feels pain. I just helped it heal."

"How come you left this part out when you were telling me about your race?" Zhang presses on, intrigued.

"Because not all of us can do it." YiHuang plucks fruit from the low-lying branches of a tree and observes it. His brows knit, and his lip pursed in a thin line. "Unlike humans, who are all born equal, Yuanjians can be categorized into two...sub-races."
"Sub-races?"

YiHuang bobs his head, and with his eyes fixed on the fruit, he explains, "Only Yuanjians born into royalty possess gifts. The rest just have varying degrees of internal force."

"It sounds a little bit like God played favorites." Zhang teases. "My Ah-Huang has not only looks but gifts as well. Tsk Tsk." He clicks his tongue.

The said Yuanjian feels warm and fuzzy at being referred to as My Ah-Huang. However, his face betrays nothing. He continues to roll the fruit between his fingers.

After the two have walked in silence for a while, YiHuang whispers, "It's right up ahead. Don't make any sudden movements. Stay close. Don't talk." His fingers close over Zhang's forearms as he continues to instruct, "Xihun are gentle, but the same can't be said about others. If they come for you, take shield behind me."

Zhang looks at the prince questioningly, "What about you? Won't they hurt you? Are you an animal whisperer?"

YiHuang cocks his head, "Animal whisperer?" He parrots. "I don't talk to animals. I am not blessed with that gift. I can, however, sense their feelings. Just like I can sense the soil." He finally glances at the human by his side, "It's a secret. No one knows about it. I don't know why..."

"Maybe you wanted it to be just yours. Something private. I get it." Zhang replies, bumping their shoulders playfully.

Just then, the prince pulls them off the trail all of a sudden. He digs his finger into the soil again and looks up at the sun. "There should be more fauna here at this time."

A cacophony of loud, shrill, and rough voices drift over to Zhang, whose eyes follow the source. Just as the prince had informed earlier, the human notices a pond. It is much bigger than the one he had seen next to the cave. It is surrounded by all shapes and sizes of animals; similar to the Xihun, which looked like distant cousins of Peacocks, the ones in front of him were mere variations of animals found on Earth. Once again, he wonders how that had come to be. Even if he discounted that Yuanjians looked almost exactly like humans, how was it that even the animals resembled the ones on Earth!?

"I should have come to check on them sooner," YiHuang adds. He retrieves the metal container again, and the nanobots get to work. Meanwhile, Zhang watches in amazement, a sight that he would never have hoped to witness in his wildest dreams: animals and birds drinking from the pond in the wee hours of the morning.

As the two men wait for the bots to return, YiHuang tells him how his father had seemed increasingly worried over the past few weeks every time he had brought up the groves. "I am sure something is bothering him, but he refuses to involve us."

"Maybe he thinks he can take care of it," Zhang sighs, "or he thinks that telling you might put you in harm's way. He may be an Emperor, but he is your father too."

YiHuang nods, but before he can say more, the bots return. They hover in midair as if awaiting instructions but then abruptly fall back into the metal container. YiHuang pinches the bridge of his nose.

"What's wrong?" Zhang demands. His companion looks crestfallen.

"The population of fauna has fallen by 30 percent over the last one year for no apparent reason." The prince examines the leaves on the tree nearest to them.

"It sounds serious." Zhang agrees and inquiries, "What are you planning to do?"

"I have not decided yet."

Zhang gives the prince's shoulder a light squeeze, "I am all better now. You should..."

"I am not leaving you." The prince states decisively, letting the human know that he won't change his mind.

"I am just saying that I understand even if you do. After all..."

YiHuang turns Zhang to face him. He fixes him with a cold gaze, "You are not just anyone. I told you that you are special." Then stepping closer, he enunciates each word, "I am not leaving you."

The gaze sends shivers down Zhang's spine. "Ok." He mutters and drops his eyes to the ground.

YiHuang clears his throat. "I didn't mean to scare you." He says awkwardly; tugging on Zhang's arm, he adds, "Are you still up for getting acquainted with the Xihun?"

Zhang bobs his head excitedly. "Yes, please."

A small smile flutters across the prince's lips, but it's gone before Zhang can catch it. "Just follow me." He instructs, and the two slowly creep towards the watering hole.

Ignoring the rest of the creatures, YiHuang approaches a Xihun closest to them and puts his hand out as if to beckon it closer.

Xihun cranes its long, slender neck and bends down to take a whiff of the prince's palm. Its winds unfurl, and it pushes its head into the palm of his hand.

Encouraged, Zhang peaks from behind the prince and mimics the latter's actions. Unfortunately, things don't go as planned. The Xihun lets out a loud, piercing screech attracting the attention of all animals towards the two men who now find themselves behind advanced upon by a hoard of animals that were enjoying themselves barely moments ago.

{Author's Note:- Word count 1791

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