On his way to the Lotus Pond, YiHuang gets a sinking feeling in his chest, accompanied by shortness of breath and suffocation. It terrifies him.

YiHuang increases his pace, wanting to reach the lotus pond as soon as possible. Despite his apprehension to mount the sword, for he was not authorized to it, and it would call unnecessary attention to himself, he does it anyway.

Destiny awaits.

Once on his sword, it takes him less than a minute to reach his destination.
The sight in front of him chills him to the bone. He watches as a wide tear appears in the barrier, and an unknown object enters their world, his father's kingdom. Almost immediately, it burst into flames.

'Nooooooo!' His mind screams, and his knees give way. He loses his footing and falls to the ground; YiHuang feels like he is the one being burnt by the fire that was raging in front of him. He doesn't understand what is happening to him when his throat hurts and closes up.

'Why is this happening!?'

Trying to control his mind and body, ignoring the numbness taking over his limbs, he runs towards the flying object that had entered his sanctuary and landed in the middle of the pond, setting half of the blooming lotuses on fire. As he nears it, he realizes what it is.

A space vehicle!

He remembers what his brother had told him hours ago, and the sinking feeling in his chest intensifies. There was only one person he knew who possessed such a thing. It was none other than the one who had filled his waking moments with warmth without ever having met.

Zhang!

If there was ever a doubt in YiHuang's mind about who was inside the vehicle in the first place, it dissipates in that instance.

'I need to get inside.' He thinks desperately, walking closer to the alien vehicle.

YiHuang tries to get closer,  but the flames block his way. Tears start making their way down his face. He feels like his heart is being wrapped in barbed wire.

Zhang, are you ok?

Zhang, are you in pain?

Zhang, please stay strong.

Zhang, I will not let anything happen to you.

Zhang... My Zhang.

The ship slowly starts to sink into the lotus pond, and the water from it extinguishes the fire at the base of the space vehicle.

YiHuang walks a little closer, and his eyes fall on the small burnt square button. He remembers this button. He had seen it in one of his dreams. The second prince lifts his sword over his head and brings it down on the button.

Suddenly, cold steam emanates from hundreds of tiny holes circling the circumference of the ship, effectively extinguishing the fire within seconds.

A moment later, the main entrance to the ship is thrown open, sending protective waves of energy in all four directions.

The force from the wave hits YiHuang square in the chest, and the impact has him getting flung a few feet away into the pool.

Ignoring his now-drenched clothes, the second prince swiftly walks inside the space vehicle.

His breath catches in his chest when his eyes fall on Zhang's unmoving form next to a pool of blood.

"NOOOOOO!" he exclaims and runs towards Zhang. He gently lifts the injured man up and puts his face close to the Captain's face.

He leaves a breath he didn't know he was holding and inspects the source of bleeding.

'Damn it!' He mutters under his breath, observing what looks like a deep gash on the unconscious man's back between his shoulder blade.

'I need to get him out of here.' YiHuang thinks and picks up the human in his arms. He carries Zhang effortlessly. Something that surprises him too. His heart feels warm and light at the same time as air gushes into his lungs, freeing him of breathlessness.

While his feet automatically carry him towards the cave next to the lotus pond, his mind starts thinking of ways to protect the human in his arms.

What will my people do to him?

Did anyone notice that the barrier has been breached?

Should I ask my brother for help?

YiHuang lays the unconscious man on the hard surface of the cave- a place that he often used for meditating- wishing for the first time that he could have made Zhang more comfortable had he invested a little more time on furnishing the place.

Since the time YiYang had mentioned Zhang's name, the second prince had been feeling restless. Like one feels when something they have been waiting for is about to happen... This feeling had made YiHuang secretly happy yet anxious.

YiHuang bites his lips, almost drawing blood at the thought of things that he had seen the two do, in what he had presumed to just dreams till a day ago.

The dreams had been the main reason the second prince had taken to coming to this secluded place. To clear his mind and calm his body.

At that time, YiHuang had thought that the man in his dreams was just a figment of his imagination. Like something his brain had cooked up because he had always felt like he didn't belong...This man had always made him feel like he belonged and made him feel loved.

'You are ever more beautiful in person.' YiHuang whispers, touching Zhang's cheek gently. He knows the human can't hear him.

A deep flush rises to YiHuang's face as his hands shakily go to the unconscious man's uniform; he unbuttons the top few buttons. He lifts the latter up, and with one hand supporting his front, he slides the shirt off his back. He winces, looking at the deep gash. YiHuang notices a small shard of glass stuck in the flesh.

"He is lucky." The second prince mutters under his breath. YiHuang is aware of the consequences if it wasn't him but another YuanJian who had come across Zhang. "You would have been killed on the spot, let alone being rescued and tended to, do you realize that?" The says woefully.

The prince turns the human on his back and looks around the cave for something he can use to stop the bleeding. He finds nothing.

Having left with no option, he tears off one of the cloth belts sewed into every YuanJians dress to mark their level in society. He keeps it next to the wounded human.

Remembering that the water of the lotus pond has medicinal value, he procures it and sets it next to the torn piece of cloth belt.

YiHuang gets to work. With practiced hands, he pulls the glass shard out of the wound, thanking the powers that be for the human's unconscious state that made it possible for him not to feel the pain. He cleans the wound and pours the medicinal water on it. To his astonishment, the wounds close.

He had never expected a human's body to react so positively to the pond water. It's what humans would have called a miracle. He wonders how it was not mentioned in any of the countless books he had read about humans and their physiology over the years.

When it looks like the water has done what it can, YiHuang takes the cloth belts he has placed next to Zhang and wraps the wound with them.
Satisfied with his handy work, the second prince fixes the human's shirt expecting the human to regain conciseness. He looks at Zhang's face that has lost more color.

'Why is his face still losing color?'
YiHuang puts his face once again close to the human. He realizes that Zhang has stopped breathing.

No!

'The wound is deep but not fatal. Why has Zhang stopped breathing?' The second prince wonders and starts panicking.

He sprinkles water on Zhang's face and caresses his cheek, "Wake up."

'I can't lose him. Not like this!'

He tries to recall everything that he has ever read about the land dwellers.

'There has to be a way to save him... I must have missed something.' The YuanJian thinks.

Closing his eyes, he concentrates, wanting to find anything that can help him save the human in front of him, the human he had subconsciously come to rely on, the one he had unknowingly come to love.

{Note :- Word Count 1313

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