Her eyes resembled Arla’s sunset, burnt orange with specks of blue and purple scattered like stars across the night sky. She didn’t know exactly where she was running towards, only that her mother's last words were to run and follow the purple wind.

***

It had been seven hours since Princess Ely’s mother, Queen Rosar, departed for the sweet heavens of Gardenia. The night she died, Rosar called the Circle of Vue into her bedroom, a group of ladies she handpicked and gifted the Power of Sight as her first act of queen. Wearing white cotton dresses embellished with black intricate lace around the neckline and a black sheer veil, these women were her most loyal servants. They surrounded her bed, prayed for her, consoled her.

It was the eleventh hour when she cried out for her daughter, Princess Ely. Polly, the youngest servant, found Ely on her balcony, gazing up at the night sky. In her high collar dress, she took off towards her mother's room where she found her mother sickly on the lone bed in the room, her bronze hair draped over her narrow shoulders.

As soon as she laid her eyes upon her, a small gasp escaped her pink, plump lips. The sight was unkind to the eyes. Her mother’s bones were withering away like pea flowers in the winter, while her ivory skin grew even paler as a flush of grayness covered her cheeks.

After a long moment, Ely shook off the unkind sight and crouched down next to her mother’s bed. The women immediately moved away from the bed.

“Mother.” Ely whispered, before sweeping a hand across her mother's forehead.

A tiny sigh escaped Rosar’s lips. “Where are you, my child?”

Ely kissed her mother on the cheek. “I’m here. Can you not see me?”

Rosar slowly shook her head. “I cannot.”

A loud sob was suddenly heard from behind Ely, capturing the princess’ attention.

“Apologies.” The servant whimpered, then lowered her head. Her name was Tyroni, a lady from the great House of Marad, one of the twenty houses from the land of Diné. Tyroni had known Rosar all her life. She was her confidante, her private counsel. She knew Rosar’s secrets. Well, most of them.

“It’s time.” Rosar croaked, capturing Ely’s attention again.

Ely softly placed a hand on her mother’s ivory cheek.

“I’m not ready.” Ely murmured.

A violent wind suddenly swept the room, slapping all of their faces. The youngest servant, Huna, immediately ran towards the window and latched it closed. Ely gave her a quick nod before turning back towards her mother.

“Mother.” Ely whispered softly, just as a tiny tear departed her right eye.

“I can no longer see, my daughter.” Rosar began, voice trembling. “The winds are a stranger to me. I am a stranger to the winds. I can only see Gardenia.”

Ely’s hands began to shake.

“I don’t want this. I can not do this with you.” Ely responded shakily, then closed her eyes. “I don’t want this power. I'd rather die.”

“This is your destiny. With my death, you will be reborn.”

The room suddenly felt colder than usual. Cold, windy, and dark.

Ely softly placed her head on her mother’s deflating abdomen. “Mother.”

Rosar, with all the strength she could muster, placed a hand on her daughter’s back.

“You must follow the purple wind.” She breathed. “The purple wind is your freedom.”

“What are you saying, mother?” Ely mumbled back, her gaze fixed on the window. “In time, you’ll understand.”

Ely raised her head with a frown.

“Understand what?”

Rosar slowly smiled. “Arla’s past and future are about to collide.”

Ely turned her gaze to Lady Tyroni, who only shrugged her shoulders.

“The Gods, Mesyla, Manar…..”

“Mother, I don’t understand.”

Ely’s vision suddenly began to blur.

“Mesyla gives the key. Manar is rebirth. You have the beginning.” Rosar added.

Ely slowly came to a standing position, her vision still blurry.

“Stefan is not the enemy nor a friend.” Rosar continued, suddenly speaking much faster than normal. “Enter the Red Crypt and take what’s not his. Fate lurks. Birth the prophecy.”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

A sharp pain suddenly exploded in the front of Ely’s skull like a lightning strike, causing the Princess to crouch. The sharp pain then turned into a harsh throbbing sensation, like violent waves crashing against the shore.

“You don’t have to fight.” Rosar continued. “But you must run…..”

“Run where?” Ely cried, tears running down her face.

Then suddenly, with violent force, a strong wind slammed against the window, causing it to open again. The sound of the sentient Thalassic Sea and the beasts that lurk underneath could be heard, howling and shouting, as if the unrelenting wind was disturbing them.

“Princess!” Lady Tyroni shouted, eyes wide and scared.

All of the ladies whipped their heads towards Ely. When they laid their eyes upon her, each slowly removed their veils, revealing stunned faces.

Ely wiped the back of her hand across her tear stained cheek. “What’s wrong?”

Lady Yiner, Ely’s favorite, ran towards the wooden wardrobe in the corner and grabbed a mirror to present towards Ely.

When Ely saw her face, her heart skipped a beat. Blood stained tears. She glanced towards the Circle of Vue, then her mother. “Mother.”

“Follow the Purple Wind. It’s a gift.” Rosar breathed, her very last words.

Then Princess Ely passed out.

***

As the Ascended Incarnate of Diné, Ely inherited the gift of visiting the future through colorful winds that were only visible to her and accessed through the astral wind plane. After she woke up and the Ascension was complete, Ely drank hypno tea and entered the plane where the Purple Wind immediately made its presence known to her. Ely was nervous, but she couldn’t let her mother down. So she followed it. When she reached the beginning of the swirling wind, she cautiously touched it and a woman immediately appeared before her. The woman was in a cluttered, colorful kitchen, reading a recipe book. The woman was wearing clothes a servant would usually wear. White pants and a long sleeve shirt with red ruffles at the end. She didn’t understand what she was supposed to be doing.

Embarrassed to be eavesdropping, Ely sought to release her hold on the wind. But before she could let go, the woman reached out and grabbed her by the hand. Ely’s heart began to race and she scrambled to remove her hand from the woman’s grasp but couldn’t. The woman was ridiculously strong.

“Rosar is dead, I see.” The woman said bluntly, still not meeting her gaze.

Ely flinched, but remained silent.

“I’m sorry for your loss.” The woman added.

Ely frowned. “Who are you? What is this? Do you know my mother?”

The older woman smiled. “I go by many names.”

Ely tried to remove her hand from the woman’s grasp again.

“You can call me Gin though.” The woman revealed, then finally turned her gaze onto Ely. “That is the name I go by.”

“Gin?”

“Ginnefere-Kaolin is the name my family bestowed upon me but I prefer Gin.”

Ely tilted her head. Something was very familiar about the woman. “Why do I feel as if I know you?”

“You should.” Gin answered quickly, a smug look across her face. “You and I met many, many days ago.”

Ely slowly scanned the woman’s face, taking in her blemish and wrinkle free face, before directing her gaze down to her feet. She was wearing a pair of gold boots. A pair of familiar gold boots.

“I served you and your mother Moon Cake.”

Ely’s eyes narrowed before it dawned on her . “You are a servant of the Mountain Queen. Mesyla’s caretaker.”

Gin nodded slowly. “And more.”

Ely’s heart skipped another beat. She tried to remove her hand from Gin’s grasp again but to no avail. Gin laughed.

“What is this? Who are you? Why can you speak to me?”

Gin slowly bit her lower lip before releasing it. Her eyes sparkled with mischief. “I am an Old Friend.”

“An old friend?”

Gin nodded again. “I know you have a lot of questions. Why can I talk to you? Who was I to your mother? Who am I?”

“Are you not Gin? Did we not just establish that?” Ely interrupted, visibly confused and a little scared. She felt her knees beginning to shake.

“There is not much time. Mesyla wants tea, but there is so much to tell you.” Gin said instead, ignoring Ely’s question.

A soft drizzle began to fall from the dreary sky in the astral plane.

“Why can you speak to me?” Ely asked again, voice trembling. “This is the plane of Diné.”

Gin only laughed, then stepped closer. “I told you….I’m an Old Friend.”

The glee in her eyes was suddenly no longer there. Instead, her face was stone cold.

“War is coming, Ely.” Gin added, jaw clenched.

Ely stared at her for a couple of beats with her mouth slightly open before shaking her head. “War? Am I going mad? What is going on?”

Gin waved her free hand in the air. “I know Fate better than anyone.”

Ely’s knees slightly buckled. “Fate?”

The rain suddenly picked up, crashing harder against the white pavement. Ely’s eyes shot towards the sky.

“She’s angry and envious but it was inevitable.”

A bead of sweat began trickling down Ely’s face. Her mind was racing, thoughts of her mother and her new godly life were scrambling inside her head.

“What are you talking about? What is this ‘Fate’?”

“In time, you’ll understand.” Gin murmured.

And for Ely, that was the wrong answer.

“What does that mean?” Ely shouted, anger suddenly coursing through her veins like crackling fireworks. “First, my mother tells me this. Now, you. What will I understand?”

A clash of thunder suddenly rumbled in the sky causing Ely to jump.

“What will I understand?” She asked again, this time much softer.

Gin closed the gap between the two.

“When a flower withers, it does not mean it is lost forever.”

Ely’s lips slightly parted, her eyes widened.

“It means it has given life to another.” They said at the same time.

Gin smiled and nodded.

“I’ll be seeing you, Princess.”

Then before Ely knew it, Gin let go of the princess’ hand, leaving her standing alone in the astral wind plane….. with a parting gift,

A snow covered white rose flower with a blue stem.

A dream flower.