Jasmine:

The Aeolia sped across the sea at an unbelievable speed. It seemed to skim across the surface of the water, rather than cutting through the waves like an ordinary boat. But ordinary boats were not powered by four Arcan Protectors, each of whom was vying to outdo the others with displays of strength. We were only two days out of the Arcan Realm and we were already nearly there.

I sat alone by the prow of the boat, watching my friends fill the sails with wind to propel us quickly towards the Brizan Realm. I couldn't help remembering that the last time we had been aboard a boat, it had been to escape from the Helians. Despite the danger, that trip had been slower: the Tielle-Marie wasn't built for speed, especially with so many people on board. Cameron and Imogen had also often been the only Protectors propelling the boat forward, since Brae had been in and out of meetings and Devon took frequent breaks to check on Brody. Her powers had been too erratic to be helpful anyway. Today, she had better control of her emotions and she had benefited from a lot more practice. The glee was evident on her face. She loved being able to use them properly.

I wished that I could say the same for my own powers... I was definitely a hazard aboard the ship, given that I could set things alight with an ill-timed sneeze. I only hoped that I would be able to produce water quickly enough to put the sparks out again. Sitting alone at the side made me feel slightly useless—I was a complete liability at the moment.

Hopefully, this trip to the Brizan Realm would fix that. My hair was up again and most of it was hidden under a woollen hat, which was both keeping me warm in the fierce Arcan wind and protecting me from the stares of the crew. Brizan sailors were superstitious and I really didn't want them to start seeing me as a bad omen. Plus, we would be arriving in the Brizan Realm that evening and I didn't want to attract strange looks the second I stepped off the boat.

Brae took a break and came over, stretching out beside me on the deck. He was smiling more than I had seen in a while.

"Slacking off?" I joked, more than happy to have some company.

"The others have got it under control. I thought I'd come and pester you for a bit instead."

"And here I was thinking I could enjoy a nice, quiet afternoon." I pouted in mock disappointment.

"What's with the hat?" he asked, eyeing it suspiciously.

"It's cold!"

"Are you sure you're not trying to hide how awesome your hair is? Worried it might make us mere mortals feel inadequate?"

"My hair isn't awesome." I tugged the hat further down onto my head, but Brae lent over and pulled it off, shoving it into his back pocket. A tumble of violet streaked ringlets fell down around my shoulders and I scowled at Brae.

"Much better." He grinned, before turning to look out across the sea.

I had now attracted the attention of the Brizan sailors, all of whom had stopped to stare at my hair. They looked wary and some began to mumble amongst themselves. I quickly turned away from them, to face out to sea with Brae.

"You've done it now. If we hit a storm they'll probably sacrifice me to the Water God." I shuddered.

Brae took my hand in his and squeezed. "The only storms we are in danger of hitting are ones created by us if they do anything to upset or threaten you. I wouldn't worry." He grinned at me before looking back out across the sea. "Besides, those streaks are a sign of how important and special you are. You shouldn't hide them away; you should be proud of them."

I smiled and looked at the shimmering silver strands in Brae's hair. They had grown even more intense since our escape from the Helian Realm. When the sun hit them, they would capture its light and send it sparkling out in every colour imaginable. Even after all this time, it could still make my breath catch in my throat. That was what it was supposed to be like: a Protector's hair was a symbol of power and status; it should create a sense of awe, but above all, a feeling of security. Protectors were there to protect, after all.

My hair didn't have that effect. "Violet doesn't have a very protecting feel. My hair induces a rather different reaction to yours."

"Do you know what the other Realms say about my hair? That it's sparkly! How emasculating is that!"

"And you think purple would make you look more manly?"

He laughed. "No, but at least it has more of a kick to it."

"I'll swap with you?" I offered; silver hair would attract far less attention.

He laughed again, before responding. "Imagine if my mum had her way and we had kids—they would have truly beautiful hair. Shimmering violet."

I wasn't really sure how to respond to that without sounding a little too into the idea; I didn't want to spoil the moment by making it awkward.

"I guess I got lucky with a good combination really—blue and red. Imagine if it had been red and green, that wouldn't have worked so well."

"Could you imagine a Helian and a Sephan ever falling for each other?"

"Well, no, but then I wouldn't have thought a Brizan-Helian relationship would have been likely either, especially not around the time of the Occupation; there's too much hatred there." I paused, before voicing something that had been worrying me for a while. "You don't think—"

"No, Jasmine. I do not think that you are the product of rape. So don't spend your time worrying about that, okay?" He put his arm around my shoulders, drawing me towards him. "We'll be there soon. It shouldn't take too much longer at the pace we're travelling. Once we arrive, we will find out the truth.

"In fact, we should be able to see some of the outer islands soon."

As he spoke, I made out a few specks of rock on the horizon.

But at the rate the Protectors were propelling us, they didn't stay specks for long.

Brae put his hand around my shoulder and steered me to the left, pointing to where a small island was emerging on the horizon. "That one's Leucothea. It's the outer point on this side, the first land the Brizans reach if they're returning from the Arcan Realm. Most of the merchant ships will stop on its shores to pray before going any further. The island to its right is Agnes. That's one of the uninhabited ones.

"The waters on this side are much colder; probably because they're closer to us. On the other side, the waters are really warm. They used to be more densely populated over there, but that changed after the Occupation."

As we neared the two islands, I saw more boats out on the water. Fishing boats of varying size bobbed up and down on the waves. We passed one large, indigo boat which had a huge net trailing from the back of it, while a smaller, turquoise boat had only three Brizans on board. They were dressed in loose black shirts and were sat with long fishing rods cast over the side. They nodded to our sailors as we passed. Not everyone was as peaceful though; a sky blue speedboat cut in front of us at one point, pulling a Brizan behind it who's feet were attached to long skiis. She was shouting in delight as she raced across the waves. Brae nudged my shoulder and pointed out some windsurfers to our right. This was one pastime our two Realms shared. Brae and I had both learnt to how to windsurf a few summers ago, though with less success than the Brizans we were watching now. As we neared the Realm, the sea seemed to fill up around us—there must have been far more Brizans out on the water than on land.

"In the southeast islands, the waters are filled with pleasure boats. Brizans lay out on sun loungers by the water for hours on end, relaxing in the sun—surrounded by all the extra security measures on that side of the Realm, of course." Brae's eyes lit up as he told me about the Brizan Realm, recalling details from his visit here earlier in the year. It seemed so long ago now; so much had happened since, so much had changed. But Brae spoke about the Realm as though he were returning to a favourite holiday destination.

"This is nice, you know." He smiled at me. "Last time I came here, I knew very little about the Realm. Being able to tell you everything I've remembered is great."

"I'm glad my ignorance is of use!" I laughed.

We slowed suddenly as the others stopped the winds propelling us; it was time to navigate the channel between Nehalennia and Laerielle, which the sailors were more confident doing with control over their own speed.

The Brizan capital was situated to the north of the central island and we had to pass through a narrow channel to reach it. Steep, chalky white cliffs hemmed us in on each side, towering above us, circled by inky blue gulls. High up, on the tops of the cliffs, I could see Brizan outposts; additions from the end of the Occupation. When the Helians had attacked in the middle of the night, they conquered the Brizan capital easily. Now, the Brizans left no element of security to chance.

As we approached, the sailors on board our ship hoisted a flag of shimmering blue fabric, outlined in silver.

"That's to prove that we're a friendly ship—the material it's made with can only be found on the Brizan Realm, so it can't be forged elsewhere. The silver border is reflective, so that it can be seen at night," Brae informed me knowingly. "If we were approaching from the other side of the Realm, they would also board the ship to perform a security check."

We emerged from the channel, taking a sharp right, and the Brizan capital came into view.

A sea of whitewash buildings with grey slate roofs met my eager gaze. They were spread out in a haphazard fashion, gently inclining up the hill the castle had been built on. Houses were crammed in as close to the shore as possible, clustered around the harbour.

My eyes were instantly drawn to the temple, which was situated on the hill, close to the castle. It was magnificent: made entirely from blue glass in a range of shades, rather than solid walls. It glinted in the sunlight as we approached, sending a wave of colour across the nearby white walls. My breath caught in my throat at the beauty of it.

Beyond it, at the highest point, was the castle itself. Like the houses below it, the castle was made of white stone, only rather than a grey roof, it had turrets and towers. It was far more extravagant than its Arcan counterpart, and more elegant and welcoming than the palace in the Helian Realm.

As we approached the port, I could see a small group with vibrant blue hair waiting on the shore; the Protectors had come out to greet us. I felt a thrill of anticipation—I was like them, they could teach me how to use and advance my powers. They might even lead me to my parents.

The ship sailed gracefully into port and two sailors jumped ashore to tie up to the worn down wooden quay, which was covered in a thin layer of soft, white sand. I pulled Brae over to the side of the boat, to make sure that we were the first ones to step onto land.

The air was cool, with a strong, salty tang. Up close, I could see the houses lining the shore in more detail. They went right along the edge of the sand, each with space for a boat to be pulled up outside. All of them had hardy looking flowers and plants on their window sills and in petite front gardens.

Rowan was standing on the quay, his hair a mixture of sandy blonde and blue, his eyes the same, piercing cerulean as mine. He was barefoot, and smiling. The girls were barefoot too, in flowing chiffon dresses of white and periwinkle. Lorelie's hair was cropped short—a dramatic change—and it looked bluer than when I had seen her last. It was clear she had been training hard since her return home. Beside Lorelie stood a tall boy, whose own sandy blond hair contained only a few streaks of electric blue.

As we stepped ashore, his eyes rested on me—or rather my hair—and I wrung my hands anxiously. On his face was a wide grin of excitement and awe.

"Welcome to the Brizan Realm." Rowan smiled warmly as he stepped forward to greet us. "Euphrasia and Lorelie you already know, of course," he said, gesturing to the two girls, who smiled politely. "But this is my newest recruit, Lorelie's brother, Kit." He indicated to the boy who had smiled when he saw me. He was still grinning now, his lively blue eyes glowing with excitement. Kit was a little shorter than Brae and built in the same, muscular way as most Brizans, with glowing, windswept cheeks. He wore dark trousers, high boots and a black shirt, which made him look more like one of the sailors from the ship than the Protectors he was standing beside, in their flowing blue clothing.

"Thank you, Rowan." Brae stepped forward, ever the diplomat, and introduced each of us.

As Rowan turned to lead the group up the hill, towards the castle, Lorelie and Kit fell into step beside Brae and I. "I'm glad you're here," the Brizan girl said quietly. Her voice was cheerful, yet softly accented. "I wanted to thank you both again for what you did for me in the Helian Realm." Her cheeks flushed red; she was embarrassed.

"All the thanks should go to Jasmine; without her none of us would have escaped."

"It sounds so exciting!" Kit gushed, his eyes bright.

"Only because you've heard about it from the safety of your own home." Lorelie shuddered. "Kit's powers only began to develop the month before we came over," she explained to us.

"A few more months and you'd have never been able to keep me at home." He ran his hands through his short blond hair, still smiling.

"And then we'd really have been in trouble!" the Brizan girl laughed.