The Queen Of Time
The Lost Queen (Sixteen)

        "Hosh hosh, wait for me!" calistha shouted tiredly as she continued to run after Max and Gazelle who had run far in front of her. Behind him, the soldiers of Khronos were chasing him with their rapid pace.

        "Cals, are you okay?" max shouted in front of him while looking at him. The man then slowed down his running pace and chose to help Caslistha who looked limped as several times his legs were stumbling with rocks and fallen tree branches. Max's wide palm grasped Calistha's small palm so tightly. They then ran together, through the thick eastern forest that was the link between the kingdom of Chronos and the kingdom of Bibury. As she continued to run in Gazelle's footsteps in front of her, Calistha kept thinking about Aiden's attitude towards her just a moment ago. When the man let go of his hand and let him run, he deliberately yelled at his soldiers if he ran towards the palace courtyard, when it was obvious that his footsteps were heading towards the kitchen to

exit through the back door of the palace of Khronos. But, it looks like his escape this time is only to gather strength because he must return to the kingdom to free Tiffany. Their plan today to free Tiffany from the dungeon failed because Spencer had learned of their move.

        Gazelle suddenly halted his steps when he saw an old cottage located at the end of the eastern forest. The old hut looks inhabited, because the hut is glowing and on the roof there is thick black smoke coming from the chimney. Gazelle then decides to rest in the cottage because

the three of them were already impossible to run and continue on their way. Moreover, they all suffered injuries in some parts of their bodies due to being scratched by branches and also pointed rocks scattered along the forest road.

Tok tok tok tok

        Max knocked on the wooden door three times while staring anxiously at his surroundings. Calistha

began to lean his lung body on the stone wall of the cottage while rubbing his two arms that felt cold and also painful at the same time. Seen on her left arm, fresh blood seeped quite a lot of dirtying her dress. Both of his legs also looked scuffed because he forced himself to run using high heels.

        "What, is this cottage empty?" calistha asked Gazelle who had just returned from the side courtyard of the cottage. The brown-haired woman then shook her head while leaning her tired body beside Calistha.

        "I don't know, the window next to this cottage is tightly closed. But, the chimney belonging to this cottage reflects a thin black smoke that is quite a lot. There is a possibility if this cottage is not empty.”

Cclek

Kriiett

        Suddenly the door of the hut opened and made a loud noise of the door. A young woman came out from inside the hut while staring in surprise at the three humans who were currently standing before her with severed breaths.

        "Your Majesty, what are you doing here?" yuri asked in shock as she looked at Calistha's entire body with concern. Calistha then advanced forward to speak to Yuri. Meanwhile, Max and Gazelle are seen waiting behind in case the Khronos kingdom soldiers appear at any time.

        "Yuri, are we allowed to stay in your cottage for the night. It's a long story, and I promise I'll tell you everything after we get into your cabin. So, can we come in?" calistha asked impatiently. Yuri then gives way for them all to get into the cottage owned by her grandmother, but warm.

        "Please enter, sorry if this cottage is small" said Yuri embarrassed. Calistha reflex shook her head at Yuri as she felt all this was more than enough. It is better that he jostle in this hut than to run in the dark of the cold forest.

        "Who's coming Yul?"

        An old woman with her wooden staff limped over to Yuri who was still struggling with her unexpected guests.

        "This is my grandmother, Lisa's grandmother. Grandma, they are..."

        "We are your grandchild's friends" Gazelle replied quickly as she shook the old grandmother's hand warmly. While shaking hands with Gazelle, the old woman immediately let go of Gazelle's hand violently while staring dislikely at Gazelle.

        "What's the matter, Grandma?" ask Yuri in wonder. It's not usual for her grandmother to be so rude to a guest. During this time his grandmother always be gentle to anyone she meets.

        "You're not my grandson's friend. You are the evil woman who came from Khronos." said the grandmother cynically. Yuri who felt bad for Gazelle directly guided her grandmother to sit on the wooden chair that was currently also being occupied by Calistha.

        "Good night Grandma, forgive us for interrupting your rest days like this" Calistha said. The grandmother immediately smiled brightly when she saw Calistha. He then hugged Calistha warmly and gently stroked Calistha's dirty face.

        "You're hurt, I'll treat your wounds son. Yuri, please prepare a potion to help Miss Calistha recover her condition." Lisa's grandmother's orders were firm and directly obeyed by Yuri. Max and Gazelle look at each other not understanding with the change in grandmother Lisa's attitude to Calistha. Gazelle and Max were both injured, but the grandmother did not treat them and was cynical.

        "Eee, are you also going to treat my two friends? They were both hurt like me." Calistha said badly. Since then the two people kept looking at him strangely because he was treated with more special by the grandmother. But, the grandmother looked indifferent to Max and Gazelle, he actually looked busy pounding various leaves and roots to treat incision wounds all over Calistha's body.

        "Come, I'll treat your wounds."

        "What about them?"

        "You take it easy, Yuri will treat them after this" Lisa's grandmother said as she guided her into her room.

        When he entered Lisa's grandmother's room, the first thing he did was to carefully observe the entire room. Inside the small dimly lit room was a wooden cot on which was a tiny cotton mattress that looked so warm with a knitted blanket of brown wood. Lisa's grandmother then asked her to remove her dress so that she could apply the potion she made to all the wounds lodged in her body. After she took off her dress, Lisa's grandmother asked her to sit on her wooden couch, and after that her wrinkled hands began to apply the potion

it was tender and full of patience on the incision wounds that felt so painful and painful.

        "Why did you decide to run away with them?"

        The first question that came out of Lisa's grandmother's lips managed to make Calistha surprised, and he reflexively turned his head back to look at the face of Lisa's grandmother who was still busy treating all her injuries.

        "What do you mean? I don't understand."

        "Aren't you supposed to marry King Aiden tomorrow morning on a full moon night. Why did you decide to run away from him?" ask Lisa's grandmother again with a clearer sentence than before. Calistha who felt strange with Lisa's grandmother, then turned her body to look at Lisa's grandmother directly and also to ask for an explanation from the old woman.

        "Who are you really? Why do you know if I'm going to marry that cruel king?" ask Calistha sharply. Suddenly he pulled out his hard side at Lisa's grandmother to intimidate the old woman. He is afraid that if it turns out that Lisa's grandmother is one of Aiden's men or the man's spies who pretended to be good to him to set him up and after that they will be handed over to the cruel man.

        "If you think I'm gonna set you up and hand you over to King Aiden, then you're wrong. I wouldn't do that at all. I'm just an ordinary woman who will treat you. So, don't be so prejudiced by me."

        "But you can read my mind. How do you know that I and King Aiden are getting married?" rework Calistha again. This time Calistha's soft side had disappeared, replaced by the hard side Calistha had used to defend herself. Actually he did not want to be rude to Lisa's grandmother at all. It was just that the old woman looked suspicious, so she could not trust the grandmother just like that. He needed to take out his strict side so that the grandmother would be intimidated and not try to lie to him with false words.

        "This hourglass sign. By just looking at this sign I knew right away that you were the bride of King Aiden."

        Calistha then directly covered the hourglass mark that was on her right shoulder from Lisa's grandmother. He hated the fact that he had the mark and that he had to marry King Aiden to be the antidote to his curse.

        "The sign was created by the curse-maker to atone for his wrongdoings in the kingdom of Chronos. And the sign was deliberately given to the generation of the enemy so that the two hostile kingdoms would reconcile with each other." explained Lisa's grandmother flat without regard for the look of a confused face printed clearly on Calistha's face. The woman continued to digest Lisa's grandmother with a frown because she did not understand at all. Moreover, the grandmother said that the hourglass mark on her right shoulder was given to her because she was the princess of Kairos kingdom which according to grandmother Lisa is the enemy kingdom of the kingdom of Chronos. What really happened to his kingdom? Why did the grandmother say that her kingdom and the kingdom of Chronos were hostile to each other?

        "Who created this sign?"

        "Please explain to me, what really happened to the kingdom of Chronos and the kingdom of Kairos?" pinta Calistha pleaded. Lisa's grandmother seemed to weigh in for a while before she sat back down and gently stroked Calistha's brownish mane.

        "I can't explain more than that. You have to find the answer yourself through various things that you will go through later. And if you have another chance, I hope you're willing to marry King Aiden. Believe me, he is a good king."

        "But why did he destroy my kingdom? Why did he kill my brothers and my parents? Why did he do evil to me and only use me to heal his curse? I. was a woman. I don't want my precious life to be wasted by being the wife of a cruel king who doesn't love me at all." so Calistha was a little upset with Lisa's grandmother. According to him, every person he met in the kingdom of Chronos always encouraged him to marry king Aiden without feeling how hurt he had been because he was treated very rudely by the man. Even the queen's mother Hora became very resentful of her because she was the cause of the collapse of the kingdom of Hora and the death of Max's father. Only Gazelle and Max understood her heart and never touched on her marriage to Aiden. Instead they had to take such a big risk to save him from the clutches of the cruel king. Had he not had such formidable men as Max and Gazelle, his life would have suffered to the end, until he died.

        "Whatever is done by king Aiden must have its own reasons" said Lisa's grandmother wise. Calistha blatantly snorted in front of Lisa's grandmother because the grandmother's answer was the same as Yuri's. But, after all, killing is a cruel and unforgivable thing. Whatever the reason, he still disliked the cruel king.

        "Reason? What was the reason he had made the basis for his actions all along? It's too difficult to understand, and too complicated" Calistha denied Lisa's grandmother's words. The old woman smiled gently at Calistha and stroked the top of Calistha's head dearly. He knew, the young lady must still find it hard to

he accepted everything because he did not know his truth. But, as time goes by he will definitely know everything. Slowly, the secret will be revealed. And the evil one will bring out its true form.

        "Maybe next time you should ask King Aiden directly. Now rest. Good night."

        Grandma Lisa limped with her old legs while carrying a wooden cup containing the rest of her concoction herbs. After Lisa's grandmother died, Calistha tried to think about all the old woman's words. But unfortunately his common sense always denied all the things said by the grandmother, even though her little heart had already started to accept everything. He then tries to shift his mind with his plan to free Tiffany from the dungeon. But, he had not talked about this at all to Max and Gazelle.

        Speaking of Max and Gazelle, what are they doing right now? The last time before he entered this room, they were being treated by Yuri. Calistha immediately rose from her sleeping position to see the state of Gazelle and Max. He thought it was outrageous to have forgotten them after what they had done to him. Calistha slowly began to walk out of Lisa's grandmother's room to go to the front room. After he set foot there, it turned out that the two people were already sound asleep on the long old chair and on a shabby carpet that seemed to be deliberately provided by Yuri for Max's bed. Calistha then approached the two of them while looking sadly at Max and Gazelle. It felt bad for both of them because Lisa's grandmother was blatantly staring at them with a dislike look. Then Lisa's grandmother also did not want to treat them and provide a more comfortable place for them to sleep. Gently stroked the top of Max's head while muttering an apology many times to the man because he had made the man suffer like this. After stroking Max's head, Calistha walked up to Gazelle, and she did the same to him. It's petrifying

the top of Gazelle's head was still covered by her maroon scarf and she muttered an apology many times to the woman.

        "I hope they'll have a better life after we've destroyed the cruel king together" whispered Calistha's plea to God. Suddenly a soft hand rubbed his shoulder and instantly made Calistha turn around. Apparently the one who had rubbed his shoulder was Yuri. The woman is currently holding two hot brown glasses that emit a very soothing and savory aroma. He then gave one of the cups to Calistha while guiding Calistha to sit on a wooden chair in the corner of the room. When Calistha settled herself there, she could see

the eastern forest is clear. The sound of the night animal so loud continues to rumble out there like a night serenade that is so syahdu to be heard.

        "Your Majesty, are you okay? You must feel uncomfortable being here?" yuri asked breaking the silence between the two of them. Calistha who was sipping on her hot chocolate immediately turned to look towards Yuri while smiling uneasily at the woman.

        "No, I like this place. This place is so warm and comfortable. It's even more comfortable than my room at the Khronos palace. I was just thinking about a lot of things." Calistha said honestly. Yuri looked at Calistha concerned, and suddenly she reached out her hand to hold Calistha's hand. Trying to give strength and warmth to the woman.

        "Your Majesty, if you want to tell a story, I'm ready to listen to everything."

        "Thank you, you're very kind. But, I'd rather if you didn't call me with such a formal call. Just call me Calistha. That way we'll look more familiar."

        Yuri seemed to be smiling happily at Calistha because she did not expect her future queen to be so kind and humble. He was sure that if king Aiden managed to marry Calistha, all the chaos that had occurred in various kingdoms would soon end and change with an eternal peace, because he felt

Calistha is a bearer of change who will change the life of this country in a better direction.

            "Well, I'll call you Calistha. I guess that does sound better." joked Yuri who immediately responded to Calistha with a slight ruckus. It turned out that after getting to know Yuri more closely, the woman was not as weird as he had thought before. Yuri is a beautiful woman with a slightly brown complexion with a very cheerful character.

        "So, this is your home?" tanya Calistha tried to get to know Yuri more closely. He thought it would be good to ask simple things first before he asked the heavy questions of Yuri who had been stuck in his heart and mind since then.

        "No, this is my grandmother's house. My house is in the center of Khronos. I used to come to visit my grandmother so she wouldn't feel lonely. I happen to be visiting my grandmother tonight. After all while I was here I could think of all sorts of ideas for making new dresses. The atmosphere here is so calm and comfortable. In the morning you can hear various kinds of birds chirping beautifully. Emm, then what exactly is going on? They only say that you are being chased by the warrior king Aiden. Have you done anything fatal?"

        Calistha slightly sighed as Yuri asked for her bad memories today. Honestly, he really does not like to remember events related to Aiden because it will make him more sick.

        "I escaped from the kingdom of Chronos."

        "God! Do you really intend to run away before the wedding tomorrow morning? My God, King Aiden must be very sad."

           Again Yuri showed her sympathy for Aiden who according to Calistha was very annoying because he did not like Aiden at all.

        "For what reason would he be sad if he himself decided to let me go." Calistha was upset towards Yuri. The woman looked confused. His king wanted Calistha to heal his curse. So it's very strange that suddenly the king just let Calistha go, but he also sent an army to capture Calistha.

        "Why did king Aiden let you go if he also asked his soldiers to arrest you? Isn't that weird?"

        "Well, I think it's like that, too. But I don't want to think about it. After all, the most important thing is that I can get out of that sickening kingdom safely. But unfortunately I haven't managed to save my sister, Tiffany, who was locked up in a dungeon" Calistha explained sadly. Somehow to free Tiffany after this. He was not even sure of Tiffany's situation. It is possible that after he escaped from the palace, Aiden immediately killed Tiffany and threw her body into the tiger cage to serve as the main food of the wild animal. But, whatever happens to Tiffany, she will still return to the kingdom to ensure Tiffany's condition with her own eyes.

        "Calistha, I used to hear stories from my late grandfather about king Aiden. According to my grandfather king Aiden was cursed by some kings of the kingdom who did not like the kingdom of Chronos. The purpose of the curse was for King Aiden to be ruthless and destroy his own kingdom. The parents of King Aiden were very sad when his son became a wicked and bloodthirsty child. Even one day King Aiden once almost killed his own mother when he was on a rampage by pointing a sword right at the queen's neck. But then he felt sorry and chose to lock himself in the room so as not to hurt others. Every day the parents of king Aiden pleaded with God for the healing of their only child who would pass on the throne of his father to become king. Then one day an old beggar came to the kingdom of Chronos. The beggar asked the king for food, which happened to be at that time

sitting in the palace courtyard enjoying the twilight in the afternoon. Pitying, the king asked his servant to give him proper food and clothing for the beggar. After the beggar finished eating, the beggar thanked the king and said that his son's curse would be healed when his son married a girl who had an hourglass-shaped mark on her shoulders. Hearing this, the king was overjoyed and immediately ordered his entire army to search for the woman. For years the king and queen searched for him until they were almost frustrated that they could not find the woman for his son, while the king of Aiden was already suffering so much with his curse. According to my grandfather, every night King Aiden groaned in pain in his room because he was withstanding the turmoil to kill him which was so burning inside him."

        Calistha listened to all of Yuri's stories with facial expressions that were hard to decipher. On the one hand he felt quite sorry for the cruel king, but on the other he felt so hateful because the king had killed all his family and was also rude to him several times. And he was confused by his feelings now. Should he turn to the king and marry him or should he continue his original goals with Gazelle and Max?

        "Yuri, what is your grandfather's job? Why is he so familiar with all the problems that are happening in the kingdom of Chronos?" ask Calistha with interest.

            "My grandfather was a bodyguard in the kingdom of Chronos. But, after the king and queen died, grandfather decided to stop and stay with my grandmother here until she died."

        "Then, what caused the king and queen to die?"

        "The king and queen were killed by a king of a kingdom. But, my grandfather did not mention his royal name to me. At that time my grandfather came from the palace to share the sad news if the king and queen had died when they visited a kingdom to find an antidote to the curse for his son. After the king and queen died, king Aiden became devastated and he instantly turned into a very cruel and cold-handed king. On the first day he became king, he immediately beheaded all the ministers who were proven to have committed crimes in his kingdom. Then he began to set up various strategies for the welfare of his people and also to destroy all his father's enemies who had so vilely killed both his parents. It was a terrible moment. Almost every day warriors from the kingdom of Chronos passed by around the city while carrying swords in their hands. Not infrequently they returned home while carrying a prisoner whose condition was very terrible to be handed over to the king of Aiden. Therefore, I really want your marriage and the king of Aiden to be done, because I am sure that you are the bidder and queen who will bring change to the king of Aiden. Do you know, as long as you were in the kingdom of Chronos, king Aiden looked calmer and never snapped at servants. Before that, though, every day there was always a servant who returned to his house with a pale face because he had just been yelled at by king Aiden and was almost killed for a mistake that he himself did not know what. But it's up to you. Whether you want to accept your destiny or you want to fight it. I'm sorry, if I'm impressed to corner you. But you are the woman destined for King Aiden, you should have fulfilled that destiny and not gone from your responsibility to marry him and give us peace. Once again forgive me. Good night Calistha."

           Yuri left him just like that after the woman made him feel so guilty and angry at the same time. How could he say such a thing if in fact Yuri did not know what he was feeling all along. Yuri did not know how sad she had been all this time because she could not live like

other princesses in his kingdom. He was also saddened to have had the kingdom of Hora destroyed in an instant by the attack of the forces of the kingdom of Chronos. If so, would it be wrong for him to hate the cruel king? It would be wrong if he did not want to marry the king if he was only used as a tool to cure the curse of the king, whereas he did not benefit from the marriage at all.

         Calistha massaged her temple tired with all sorts of things lodged in her brain. He felt so frustrated with his life which suddenly became complicated like this, when his life was so beautiful in the kingdom of Hora. He then stepped into Lisa's grandmother's room to rest his mind. It is better that he save his strength for the long journey tomorrow morning because they will overtake the people

the rebels are currently in the kingdom of Bibury to ask for protection from the king of Bibury. And maybe after this they will attack the kingdom of Chronos under the leadership of king Bibury who also did not like the leader of the kingdom of Chronos.