Present Day...
The Jacks Clan.
Born to the ruler of the Jacks clan was a young prince, named Jordan. Jordan was different from others, often spending more time with the other clans than his own. His goofy personality was loved by all.
But he wasn't a proper Jack. That means that he wasn't a perfectionist like his people. King Julius, Jay's father, and Kaiser, ruler of the Kings Clan were the only people who knew about this and advised to keep it a closed secret, for it could bring disturbance to the order in the clan.
For long, Jordan never displayed his skills in front of others and would find some reason to evade. Each member had a different style of showing their skills. One would be a multi-tasker, another would be a show-off, and so on...
The Ace Clan.
Today was once again, a bad day for Alexa, for she had no luck in stealing. She took to the ways of thieves, robbing people for food & money, for she had no one to look after her when she was a child. She was an outcast no one cared for.
Alexa walked through the markets, looking for a target to rob. And her luck turned. She found the perfect person.
If there was one rule the Ace clan was strict about, it was against the use of their powers in public. With a twirl of her forefinger, Alexa stopped the man in his tracks, stole his pouch, and took off. The man quickly recovered and chased her. Alexa ran as fast as she could, even exiting her clan. She looked back and saw the man gaining on her. Fate had her enter the Jacks Clan.
She looked back. The man disappeared. She proceeded to walk towards the market where she was met with surprise by none other than the man from who she stole.
"Hey," He greeted.
"Hey..." She replied.
"Just give it back to me if you don't want trouble,"
"What are you gonna do? I'd like to see you try and take it from me," She replied.
"Prince Jordan, What's the matter?" A guard came up and asked.
"Nothing, Julien," He replied.
"P-pr-prince?!" Alexa stuttered.
"Yeah. Prince. It's pretty embarrassing that a prince got robbed. That too in broad daylight. But it's gonna be a lot more embarrassing when you get caught doing it,"
"I'm sorry. I didn't know. I just needed some money,"
"What do you need?" He asked politely, with a gentle smile.
"No no. I don't want to trouble you. Not after this especially," She replied.
"It's fine. I would be glad to help. Tell you what, let's go and get something to eat,"
"No. It's fine," She rejected.
"Come on now. I insist. You can't say no,"
After a while, she agreed. They ate and spent time talking about their lives.
"You know what? I've never laughed this much ever," Alexa spoke.
"I'm having a great time too,"
He looked at her for a while and spoke.
"Let's go somewhere,"
"Where?"
"Just come,"
"Ok,"
They headed outside the clan, walking through the jungle, walking on fallen trees.
"Where are we going prince?" Alexa asked in frustration.
"Hold on. We're reaching," Jordan spoke.
They reached. It was somewhere deep in the jungle.
Alexa gasped, as she had never seen a sight more beautiful. They were at a riverbank, the water flowing in patterns, crashing along the rocks with minimal force. The splattered water from the rocks clashed with the colorful flowers and the crisp green grass. Bees & butterflies hovered over the flowers.
"What do you think?" Jordan asked.
"I-I don't know what to say. It's gorgeous," She exclaimed.
"Be careful around here. The Queens hate it when outsiders come here. This is their territory. Once they almost caught me and if I had been caught... ooof. I don't wanna think about it," He remarked.
"Wow. Just Wow!" She exclaimed. They proceeded to sit near the water.
"Why? Why did you bring me here?" Alexa asked.
"I don't know. Felt like I needed to show you this place,"
"Thank you," Alexa spoke. She felt different. The way she thanked him was different. Her hand slowly reaching for Jordan's hand.
"Hey. Can I say something to you?" Jordan spoke.
"Sure. What is it?" Alexa responded, quickly withdrawing her hand.
"I haven't told this to anyone, and I feel I can trust you. So here it is. I'm an improper jack,"
"Uhhh.... What is that?" Alexa asked with confusion.
"It means I'm not like the other members of my clan. My skills are not as perfect as theirs. The last time they found an improper jack, they exiled him, claiming that he can never be like us. And if they find out that I'm like that, there will be chaos for keeping me around all this time. I'm telling you this only because I feel I can trust you,"
"Whoa. I didn't expect that," Alexa remarked.
"It's getting dark. Let's go back,"
"Sure,"
"Oh and keep this," Jordan said, handing his pouch to her.
"Oh. No Prince. I cannot keep this. Take it back,"
"Nope. I insist. Keep it,"
"Prince. Please. I can't,"
"You can. I insist, again. And no need to call me Prince every time. I hate the sound of it. Call me Jay,"
"Alright. Th-thanks,"
The Next Day...
Jordan headed over to the Ace clan, waiting for Alexa in the market area. He stood there, greeted by the bystanders in a friendly way like he was their best friend when he felt a tapping on his shoulder. He turned back to find a surprising sight.
It was Alexa, but she was different. She was new. Her hair was silky, neat, and her dress was beautiful.
"Wow!!!" Jordan exclaimed with amazement.
"Thanks," She spoke, with a smile growing on her lips.
They walked to the riverside again and sat near the water.
"I've heard that you guys are pretty secretive about your powers. "Why?" Asked Jay.
"I don't know. But I've heard that our powers are unimaginably powerful and using them at full capacity could mean doom,"
"Then why did you use it on me?"
"Oh. I didn't think about that,"
"Anyways... It's fine,"
"Let me show you something," Alexa said.
She waved her hands. For a while, nothing happened. But after some time, her hands glowed yellow. The river water rose, strips of water began forming arches. Branches of trees bore fruits, flowers bloomed elegantly. Jordan erupted with happiness and excitement. He pranced around the field with joy. Alexa joined him. But the magic lasted only for a little while because Alexa lost her consciousness. Jordan quickly rushed to her and held her up in his arms, her head resting on his knees.
"Alexa. Wake up," Jordan called. She didn't respond.
"Alexa. Are you okay?" He was worried. He gently placed her head on the ground and rushed to the river, taking water as much as his hands can and sprinkled it on her face. Her eyebrows winced. He dropped the rest of the water on the ground beside him and rested her head in his knees again.
She woke up.
"What happened?" Jordan asked worriedly.
"Oh, don't worry. I've heard this happens when I use too much of my powers,"
Alexa's eyes rested on Jordan's and Jordan's eyes rested on hers.
"Are you okay now?" Jordan asked.
"Yeah," She replied in a low voice. They continued to look at each other.
"Let's get going. Shall we?" Jordan said, breaking the tension.
"Sure," Alexa agreed.
That night, Alexa had only one thing in her mind: That moment with Jordan. She never experienced happiness like that before. She knew was falling for him. For Jay, it was a different feeling. One he had never experienced before. Something about her made him take her to the riverside. Her vivid eyes made him understand that it was love. Something he never familiarised himself with.