Since the death of the former Vessel of Bolcan, the remaining Barrier Stones and the new Vessel - once she was born - were carefully guarded. We could not afford to suffer any more defeats at the hands of the demon worshippers.

"I'm afraid the situation is becoming too dire for us to continue sheltering a child when that child is our only hope of preventing the slaughter of our country," the Duchess said to Captain Strykar calmly. "We and other noble houses will be sending representatives to the Royal Capital to present the petition to their majesties." She sighed, once again smoothing the fabric of her dress over her knees. "Gods willing, their majesties will see reason on this matter."

Callum cleared his throat, having come to stand next to Captain Strykar. "Mother, who will be acting as our representative?" he asked. I saw him glance quickly at his brother.

The Duke looked over at him, giving him a smile that seemed to be more a savage bearing of his teeth. "I will be," he said. "Those dainty capital bastards will find I can be very... persuasive."

The Duchess sighed, , pinching the bridge of her nose as she did. "Dear, please behave yourself in front of our guest," she said, sounding strained.

The Duke murmured an apology, and she dropped her hand away from her face and rested her gaze back onto me. "As for yourself, Miss Rowan, the palace has asked that you go to Deadwall Fortress to assess the damage caused to the Wall, and determine if it has the same characteristics as the damage you encountered here," she began. "You will first need to go to the Royal Palace to receive permission from the Royal family to work on the Deadwall within another ducal family's territory."

Wait, I gotta do fucking what now?

My shock must have shown on my face, as the Duchess gave me a sympathetic smile. "Your parents may not have told you, but since you are a refugee from Arbor, you only have permission to use magic within the territory you settled in." She waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "Complete nonsense to be honest, but we must follow procedure or we will receive more criticism from the nobles that will disagree with our petition."

"If I were to use magic outside of the territory, what would happen?" I asked, feeling confused. As far as I knew, only another earth magus would be able to detect earth magic, and those seemed to be getting fewer in number.

"Wait," Callum said just as his mother opened her mouth to speak. "Why would anyone oppose the petition? Don't they understand the whole country will be at risk of being overrun by demons if the Barrier Stones aren't recharged?"

The Duchess gave Callum a look I recognised all too well from my own mother.

Oof, he's gonna hear it later for interrupting her.

The Duke was the one to answer Callum. "Mostly it'll be the city nobles that'll disagree with it. Those stuck up fops have no care for the safety of others since they themselves are safe and sound within the capital city. They'll probably argue the Vessel should remain protected," he explained. "Plus there will be a couple of nobles that will disagree simply because they dislike me."

Captain Strykar snorted at that. "That's hard to believe father, you have such a charming personality."

The Duke grinned broadly. "I certainly managed to charm the pants off your mother," he said.

Callum and the Captain both groaned in disgust. The Duchess - her face calm - flicked a finger at her husband, and a small spark of flame shot out at him. It hit him on the back of the hand, causing him to jump and yelp while his sons snickered.

Ignoring her husband's antics, the Duchess turned her attention back to me. "If you aren't caught doing magic outside the territory, then nothing will happen. Few territories have any earth magus, and those that do are in the southern parts of the country," she explained. "However, should you be seen by anyone, particularly anyone with authority, you will be imprisoned and flogged."

"...Ah," was all I could think to say.

That's just wonderful. Great policy. Not at all horrifying.

"It shouldn't be an issue for you to use magic on your way to the capital," the Duchess continued, picking her teacup back up. "The territories you will be passing through are all on good terms with our family, so they will be willing to turn a blind eye should the need arise." She took a sip from her cup. The tea must have gone cold, as she made a face and set the cup back down. "However, once you reach the capital you will need to be cautious. There is a family of earth magus amongst the city nobles that will be able to detect any magic you use, and from what I know of them would be only too willing to turn you in."

My jaw clenched, knowing who she was talking about. The Virga family. The only nobles to have made it out of Arbor during its destruction. The family that had abandoned us once we made it safely into Ardere.

Bloody scumbags.

The Duke scratched his neck and sighed. "With luck, you won't need to deal with those people, but it would be best if you don't use magic in the capital."

I lent forwards in my seat, hands clenched into fists on my lap. This was all moving too fast. "But why send me?" I asked, glancing between the Duke and Duchess. "Why not send someone closer to the Deadwall Fortress? Or the capital? Surely there are other earth magus capable of repairing the Wall."

The Duchess sat back in her seat, crossing one leg over the other and beginning to fidget with her necklace. It was the same one she had been wearing the last time I'd met with her, the black gem of the pendant glimmering between her fingers.

"You are the only one who can perform this task since you are the only one who noticed any abnormalities with the damage to the Wall in our territory," she said, continuing to twist her necklace. "Though your brother also repaired the Wall, nothing in his report indicated that he had encountered the same abnormalities. Thus he is either unwilling, or unable, to detect them. You must be the one to repair the Wall at Deadwall Fortress. If the same abnormalities you encountered here are also present there, then there may be a larger conspiracy at hand we must prepare for."

A conspiracy? Oh Gods, what am I getting dragged into.

The conversation from there began to become chaotic. The Captain began to discuss the preparations needed for a trip with his father, while Callum questioned his mother about what conspiracy she thought was happening. Their voices sounded like garbled noise to me. Though I knew I should be paying attention to what was being said, my mind refused to focus.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

I have to go to the capital? I have to leave this territory, and my family, for the first time in my life? How long will I be gone? I've already been away from home for a week, when will I be able to see mum, Da and Mason again? What do I do if I run into the Virgas?

My mind was swirling with questions and worry so quickly I felt a bit dizzy. The Duchess seemed to notice, and dismissed me with a pitying look.

"We will be arranging for a group to be leaving for the capital in four days time," she told me as I stood up from the couch. "Your basic necessities will be provided for, but if you need anything specific or specialised you will need to find it for yourself. I will have Harold give you some money so you may purchase what you find pertinent."

With that, I found myself standing outside the office with the door shut behind me. Silence wrapped around me, and I could hear my own ears ringing. The longer I stood there, the louder the ringing sounded. I walked down the hallway, scarcely seeing the heavy framed portraits on the walls or feeling the plush carpet beneath my boots. I walked until I made it back to my room. I could hardly remember the trip back.

I went up to the neatly made, plush bed, and let myself fall so I lay face down on top of it. My stomach growled.

What. The. Fuuuuuck.

How did I manage to get caught up in all this? And now I've gotta go to the capital city? To the Royal Palace, the fucking nest of Ardere's nobles?

I lay there for some time, allowing myself to indulge in the panic. Once my thoughts began repeating themselves, I sat up and made myself take a few deep, steadying breaths. Panicking was not going to help. I knew that. I just needed to change how I thought about this trip, and hopefully the need to vomit will go away. This is just a chore. It's just another task that needs to be done, and once it was I would ask the Duchess for a big damn reward.

Maybe I'll ask for some magic stone fixtures for our house. The baths here are simply divine.

My stomach began growling more insistently, apparently unbothered by the pit of nausea I was trying to shove down. I sighed, quickly straightening my hair so it was somewhat presentable, then stood. I had missed my usual breakfast time, and my body wasn't letting me forget it. I left my room and began heading for the kitchen. I decided to have a quick meal, then spend the remainder of the day with the gardeners, as I had all week. So long as Harold delivered the money promised by the Duchess today, I would go into town for supplies tomorrow.

Hmm... I had better write up a list of what I need.

I hadn't made it far past my room when I saw Alice headed up the hall towards me. She had a scowl on her face, which seemed rather uncharacteristic for her, and looked like she was in a hurry. Once she saw me, her face immediately changed back to her usual sweet smile, and she lessened her pace. A trickle of unease ran through me. Why did that seem so strange?

"Miss Rowan!" she said as she came close, her voice its usual bright tone. "What are you doing here? I thought you would be out with the gardeners again today."

I pushed the unease I felt aside. My conversation with the Duke and Duchess must have me on edge.

"I'll be headed out to them soon," I told Alice. "I was pulled into a meeting with the Duke and Duchess this morning, so I'm going to grab some food then go help the gardeners."

Alice's smile dropped a bit, her gaze sharpening on my face. "You were called into a meeting... with both the Duke and the Duchess?" she asked.

"Ummm, yeah," I replied, scratching my neck. Her reaction indicated meeting the ducal couple together was major news.

Alice tilted her head slightly to one side. "I hope everything is alright. Typically the Duke only becomes involved in matters regarding discipline and punishments," she said, voice tinged with concern.

"Oh, no no, nothing like that," I quickly reassured her. "Its just been decided that I'll be going to repair the Wall near Deadwall Fortress, so their graces were just informing me of that so I'd have time to ready myself."

I hadn't been told not to tell anyone about my trip, but I had a nagging feeling that I shouldn't mention the abnormal damage I was being tasked with investigating. A small voice in the back of my head whispered that the fewer people who knew the true purpose of my journey, the better.

"I see," Alice murmured. She straightened and gave me a polite nod and smile. "Pardon me, Miss Rowan, I've kept you long enough. I'll let you get back to your tasks."

After I gave her a quick goodbye, she continued on her way in the opposite direction to me. I once again began walking towards the kitchen. The kitchen staff greeted me warmly once I got there, one pushing a plate of eggs and sausage into my hands with a smile. I sat at the table, chatting with a couple of maids while I ate. Once done, I headed out through the side door into the vegetable garden and went in search of old gardener Gordon.

He was easy enough to find, tending to the flowers in front of the mansion. Much like Alice, the group of gardeners initially expressed concern upon learning of my early morning meeting with the Duke and Duchess, but were quickly reassured once I explained my upcoming journey.

"It'll be a shame ter see yer go missy," Gordon told me with a wistful expression. "I jus hope I get the privilege of workin with an earth magus again afore I breathe me last."

"Oh please," scoffed Max with a roll of his eyes. "A stubborn old coot like you will probably outlive us all. Don't try making Rowan all sympathetic towards you so she'll come back to do more of your work."

I laughed along with the rest of the gardeners while Gordon protested his innocence. I would miss their constant ribbing and jokes, it reminded me of messing around with Da and Mason back home. I would likely not see these men again, since I planned to go back home as soon as I had done what I must.

Once the laughter died down, Gordon looked over at me while wiping the tears from his eyes. "Really though missy," he said after clearing his throat. "If yer ever want a job here, we'd be more than happy to have yer. And I'm not jus sayin that acos yer an earth magus."

I felt my heart squeeze a little at the old man's sincerity. Honestly, the thought of working in a place like this had become appealing during my stay.

"Thank you Gordon, I'll keep that in mind," I told him. I knew in my heart that I could never leave my family's farm. Plus with Jason and Louise gone, we would likely be tasked with working their land as well. My family would need me.

The remainder of the day passed by quickly, as the gardeners all continued to chat with me as usual. When evening rolled around, I trudged to my room feeling pleasantly exhausted. The allure of another of the delightful warm baths kept a slight spring in my step.

Alice was already in my room when I got there, setting a couple of plates on the table with covers to keep the food warm set over them. She gave me a bright smile when I entered.

"Hello Miss Rowan, I've run the bath for you so you may wash before dinner," she told me.

I gladly skipped to the bathroom after thanking her. After I had washed, I sat with Alice and chatted as we ate. At one point, I mentioned that I was planning to go into the town tomorrow for some supplies - Harold had left a small bag of coins in the room during the day along with a note from the Duchess telling me to spend it as I wished.

"In that case, why don't I join you?" Alice asked. "I can show you the best shops for the things you'll need."

"That would be really helpful," I replied before hesitating for a moment. "But, are you sure that would be ok? Won't it interfere with your duties?"

Alice shook her head. "No not at all, I have tomorrow free."

One of the knots in my stomach I had been trying to ignore loosened, and I felt a small amount of relief. The thought of navigating my way through the town on my own had been rather daunting.

"Then that would be great, I appreciate it." I told her.

We finished eating our meal shortly after. Alice collected the now empty plates and bid me a good night. As I settled into bed, it suddenly occurred to me that Alice had never asked me why I would need to go to Deadwall Fortress when there should be other earth magus in that area. I shoved the little niggling worry down into a corner of my mind, reasoning that she must have heard about what happened through the mansion rumour mill, and drifted off into sleep