“L-Lord Claude… Faria…. is she…” I couldn’t finish what I was asking. Lord Claude being here meant that Faria really did leave that symbol as a message.
“I can’t say whether or not she’s alive, but do you believe that your sister would just go down like that?” Lord Claude responded with a grin.
I felt my legs buckle beneath me. Thankfully, Hazel was there to catch me.
“And you brought a friend.” The man chuckled as he leaned down and took my mother. “Come, we’ll let your mother rest.”
It took all the strength I had to not collapse into a ball of tears. I had prepared myself for the worst, not for this. My sister was alive. She was out there somewhere.
Taking Bella from my arms, Hazel helped me stand and walked with me as we followed Lord Claude up the stairs and into one of the rooms. The room was larger than what I had anticipated. It was nearly the size of my room in the castle. The main difference between the two rooms was that my bedroom was meant for only me, while this room was made to house at least four people. It reminded me of the servants’ quarters back at the castle, just with normal beds instead of bunks. Aside each bed was a wide nightstand with multiple drawers, only one of which had stuff on it in the room.
“Sit.” Lord Claude spoke as he laid my mother down on a bed. “I’m sure you have questions.”
Eager to learn more, I gratefully dropped down onto a bed. Hazel followed quickly, sitting next to me after setting Bella on the floor.
“So… where do I start?” The man asked himself as he sat at the edge of the bed he had laid my mother on. “Your sister spoke to me about a month ago. It was in one of our private lessons. She told me that she was going to fake her death and run. I was surprised to say the least. I thought she was joking, but she insisted otherwise. I tried to convince her otherwise, but stopped when she told me that she would die otherwise. She never told me why, but the way she spoke told me that I didn’t need to question it. Somehow, she knew of my connections with the rebellion and asked me to introduce her to my contacts. Nothing much happened afterward, but just a week ago, she came to me with her plan for getting out and asked for my help. I accepted and she told me exactly what I had to do and when to do it, including waiting here for you.”
“You’re a rebel?” I asked excitedly, stopping as Lord Claude held a finger to his lips. Taking the hint, I continued, controlling my emotions.“That’s all you know?”
“I wish I knew more, but she refused to say anything else. She told me that it would be too dangerous for me to know, and I believed her.” He shrugged. “I should be feeling ashamed for letting this all happen but, your sister, she has wisdom far greater than her age.”
“What did she say we needed to do after we arrived here?” I asked.
“She told me that I would know when the time to leave came and that we would need to leave for Dreah as soon as we could. I’m not sure when that time is, so we should lie low until the time comes.” The man explained.
We all nodded in agreement. It made sense to stay hidden, especially after the scene that Hazel had most likely caused by announcing that I’d been kidnapped. Whatever plans that father had for me were definitely in jeopardy now. A part of me wanted to see the look on his face, but the one he’d shown me a few days ago was enough, the memory of which caused me to shudder.
“So, what’s your story?” Lord Claude asked, turning to Hazel with a smile. “The princess never mentioned another passenger.”
Hazel shriveled under the sudden attention. She was perfectly content sitting quietly, but was unprepared for becoming the topic of a conversation.
“Um… I… We…” She stuttered, seemingly afraid of saying the wrong thing.
“No need to be nervous.” Lord Claude reassured. “I assume that you’re the friend from the kitchen that the princess has told me about. I never expected you to be a part of this as well.”
Hazel nodded furiously and kept her eyes trained on the floor.
“Lord Claude, I wanted to ask.” I started, gaining the man’s attention. “Why aren’t there people in the streets? When I grew up here, there were people everywhere.”
“The king placed a curfew on the whole capital. Anyone found wandering the residential areas in the evening was to be taken in for questioning. He’s quite furious.” He chuckled. “Though I pulled some strings to keep this area clear of any soldiers for a while.”
“How far can we go?” I asked. I wanted to visit the woman who made it possible for my mother and I to stay off the streets.
“The entire street. Though I wouldn’t go too far in case someone decides to poke their head in.” He warned.
It was still light out, so I definitely had the time to make the trip, and the woman’s home wasn’t too far from the inn.
As we finished our conversation, a bird fluttered down, landing on the open windowsill just above the bed that Hazel and I were sitting on. A mrrp and a thump sounded just behind us as Bella jumped onto the bed, eyeballing the bird.
“Bella, no!” I cried out as the cat leapt toward the bird, barely missing as it flew just out of reach.
However, what the bird didn’t know about was Bella’s fierce determination. The cat leapt once again, catching the bird with both paws, dragging it down with her as they fell out of sight.
Jumping to our feet, Hazel and I rushed out of the door, down the stairs and out the front door. We ran around the side of the building to find Bella still sitting just under the window with the bird trapped under her paw. There was a look of pride on the cats face as she turned her head to look at the two of us, meowing in victory. She bent down and bit at the neck of the bird, carrying it as it frantically flapped its wings, trying to escape. She carried it all the way to where Hazel and I were standing and tried to drop it at our feet, only to have the bird fly away. The cat tried to jump at it again, but couldn’t react in time, allowing her prey to escape.
Bending down, I scratched her head and scooped her up. “Dumb cat. You had us worried.” I scolded her, only for her to start purring and nuzzle against my chest.
“Quite a troublemaker.” Lord Claude laughed as he stepped aside me.
He reached down to try to pet Bella, but was denied as she swiped at him with her claws. He tried again, but stopped when she started to growl at him.
“Sorry. She doesn’t like most people.” I apologized.
“That’s fine, animals don’t like me much anyway.” He brushed it off, though I could tell that he really wanted to pet her.
“There’s someone I’d like to visit nearby, is it fine if I go?” I asked, nervous he would deny my request.
“Sure, just be sure to avoid trouble. Nobody knew what you looked like, and seeing as you’ve disguised yourself some, there shouldn’t be a problem.” He reminded me.
Taking Hazel’s hand, I started towards where I remember the woman’s home was. It was a small, two-story house. The three of us slept on the second floor and worked and ate on the bottom floor. It was a short walk to the woman’s home, but when we got there, I felt that something was off. I had seen this image countless times and the storefront looked the almost the same as I remembered it. However, the usual plumes of smoke rising from the chimney were missing.
Letting go of her hand, I pushed open the front door and stepped inside. It was cold. It all still looked exactly how I remembered it. Very little had changed, but what had changed was important. The entire building was devoid of life. There were usually stray animals roaming around at all hours, desperate for the warmth that the woman provided with her fireplace. Slowly, I climbed the stairs leading up to the second level. This floor was surprisingly clean. What had been a messy pile of bedding and stacks of washed clothes was now nearly empty. The first thing to catch my eye was a pile of cloth in the corner of the room.
“What was this place?” Hazel asked as she followed up the stairs.
I walked over and inspected the pile of cloth in the corner. It was the bedrolls that my mother and I used when we stayed here. They had been patched and cleaned.
“My mother and I lived here for so long.” I answered, distressed. “The woman who owned this place let us live here.”
Pulling the bedrolls into my storage ring, one question filled my mind. Where was the woman? She never left this building for any reason. Food was brought to her by the neighbor and my mother and I took care of everything else. The neighbor! He must know where she was.
Quickly, I rushed down past Hazel and out the front door. The man who helped take care of the woman lived in the building right beside her own. I could see plumes of smoke rising from his house, so I knew he was home. I ran over, Hazel close behind, and knocked on the door.
A gruff looking, older man opened the door, looked down at me and asked. “Can I help you?”
“I-It’s me. Malcolm.” I announced, afraid that the man wouldn’t recognize me.
The man’s eyes widened with surprise. He fully stepped out of the door and crouched down to my eye level. “It really is you!” He exclaimed, running a hand through his grayed hair. “I almost didn’t recognize you.”
I smiled slightly at his comment. Now that I thought about it, I still had my hair colored differently, so I was probably more difficult to recognize. It was nice to know that it worked so well.
“Where did she go? That woman that took care of my mom and me.” I asked abruptly.
The man lowered his eyes, breathing deeply. “You’d better come with me.” He spoke softly, standing straight.
He reached behind the door and pulled out a thick coat. Leading Hazel and I through the small passageway between the two buildings, we came out into a large square patch of dirt, fenced off on all sides with the only entrances being the path we came through and a small opening on the other side. A short distance away, a small signpost was placed in the ground, surrounded by various budding flowers of all colors. This sight confirmed the suspicions that brewed deep in my heart.
“I’m sorry, son.” The man tried to console me. “She passed in her sleep just a month ago.”
I trudged over to the signpost and knelt down in front of it. The post was well cared for and read clearly: ‘Here Lies Victoria - A Woman Who Opened Her Home To All.’
“I’ll leave you two alone.” The man spoke, turning and leaving back down the path. “If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask.” He spoke as he left.
The emotions inside of me were all jumbled. I was sad for her death, but glad that she passed peacefully. I was ashamed that I had never bothered to learn her name until now, but happy that I knew it now. Most of all, I was at peace knowing that she would be cared for, just as she had cared for us. Seeing just how many flowers were present made me wonder just how many peoples lives she had touched. It was customary for those in Kiech to plant a single flower by the grave of those whom you loved.
I had no flower to plant, only an idea. Standing, I activated my aura and summoned a magic ring. I thought for a moment before deciding what spell to cast. I wanted to leave a flower that showed how grateful I was for all that she had done for my family. Finishing the spell, the ring disappeared, and I watched the ground in front of the signpost split as a tiny bud pushed through the soil. The bud rose and grew, opening to reveal a pure white flower.
Admiring my work, I closed my eyes, thanking Victoria for all she’d done. If possible, I’d want to bring my mother here in the future.
“Look what I found!” A voice sounded from the small opening. “A dead boy and a little liar.”
Turning, I saw Marcus standing in the opening. What was he doing here?
“I knew something was going on when I heard that you’d been kidnapped.” My brother explained. “There’s no way that you, of all people, would be worth kidnapping. And it looks like I was right.”
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“What do you want, Marcus?” I asked, pulling Hazel behind me.
“I snuck out here and decided to do some investigating. I knew that you grew up around here.” He explained further. “And since you were so desperate to disappear, why don’t I help?”
Marcus stepped forward, activating his aura. He dashed forward just as I dodged to the side. Hazel did the same, dodging in the other direction. Marcus reacted instantly, turning on his heel and reaching out for me, though I had managed to fall just out of reach as I activated my own aura.
Stopping, Marcus stood straight, eyeballing me. “I’ll hand it to you. You’re pretty quick, but that hardly matters.” He growled.
Moving as if he was about to attack me again, I ducked away, only to realize that it was a feint as he turned on his heel and charged at Hazel, catching her almost immediately. Grabbing her by the neck, he lifted her into the air. Kicking and flailing, Hazel fought to free herself from his grasp.
“If you don’t want your little girlfriend to die here, then I suggest you cooperate.” Marcus threatened.
There was no way that I could trust his words. Marcus was the kind of person that liked to torture animals in his spare time, just to watch them struggle in pain. I had to get her free somehow.
Holding out my hand, I summoned a magic ring and cast a spell as quickly as possible. The ring disappeared as a tiny ball of flame appeared in the air and surged through the air toward the boy’s arm. Suddenly, Marcus turned to face me, swiping at the fireball with his free arm, knocking it away and destroying it.
“You’re so easy to read.” He mocked. “You know that I can stop your magic if I know what you’ve written.”
Frantically, I cast another spell, only to have Marcus destroy it as well.
“That’s right. Keep struggling, both of you!” He exclaimed with a vile grin on his face. “It only makes it more fun!”
No matter what I did, it was useless. I was too close to him. He could read what I was trying to cast, and my spells were too weak to break his defenses. To make the situation worse, Hazel’s attempts to break free were becoming weaker. She really would die if I didn’t do something soon. Faria taught me that my emotions could be a source of great strength, but where was this strength now?
Turning her head, Hazel looked at me with tearful, pleading eyes. The fear in her eyes made my heart skip a beat as an intense pain filled my chest. The pain came from the Dragonstone. The rock inside my chest that had laid still beside my heart had begun to move again, circling around my heart. The pain was almost unbearable, but I could feel the stone shrinking as it revolved, releasing some kind of energy in my body, until it disappeared completely. The pain faded immediately after the stone disappeared, but it was replaced with a swelling through my body.
Was this the strength that Faria told me about?
Holding my hand up again, I summoned a magic ring and tried to cast a spell. However, the moment I decided what I wanted to cast, the ring shuddered in the air as the spell, in its entirety, was carved all at once. The words that usually took on a gray color were now a blood red color that matched the Dragonstone. The ring disappeared as a ball of flame rocketed towards Marcus. This fireball was larger and faster than the ones I had cast before.
Marcus was visibly surprised by the sudden appearance of the larger fireball and moved to knock it aside like he’d done to the others. However, the fireball exploded when his arm hit the flames, knocking him back and forcing him to drop Hazel who fell to the group, coughing and gasping for air.
“You little!” Marcus shouted angrily, clutching his burnt arm. “I don’t know what trick you used, but it’s useless for you to try something like that again.”
The fireball’s explosion burned most of his left side, leaving his arm blackened and dangling by his side. Charging toward me, he punched forward with his only usable arm, but missed as I dodged aside.
The swelling in my body, at this point, had become debilitatingly painful, causing me to stagger just enough that Marcus was able to sweep his leg, hitting one of mine, knocking me over. I hit the ground hard, but strangely felt no pain. Looking down at my leg, I was surprised to see that it was wrapped in a black aura. I was a mage, and a mage’s aura only came through their eyes and hands. A warrior’s aura flowed outside the body.
What was happening?
Marcus took this opportunity to attempt to punch down at me, but I reacted and, to my surprise, caught his fist as if it was nothing. My brother’s eyes widened in surprise as he jumped back, eying me warily. I pulled myself to my feet and watched as my aura wrapped entirely around my body, like a warrior’s aura would. Tilting his head, Marcus sneered at me and charged again. This time, I decided I would fight back.
Against my father’s wishes, I had Faria teach me how to defend myself. It wasn’t enough to win most fights, but it was enough that I was confident that I could deal with my brother. Ducking under his punch, I grabbed Marcus by his arm and, using his own momentum, threw him against the ground a good distance away. Seeing as the combination of this and the damage from the fireball had hurt him enough that his aura was fading and that he was struggling to get back up, I raised my hand and summoned a magic ring. I’d had enough of his bullying for the five years we’d known each other. He was a monster and deserved everything that came to him.
To my surprise, as I stood there with the magic ring, cursing Marcus in my mind, words had written themselves on its surface. Before I could realize, the ring disappeared and a metal spike erupted through the ground, piercing through Marcus’ chest as he tried to stand. A look of shock appeared on both of our faces as blood spewed out his mouth. Falling limp, held up by the spike, Marcus died. I wanted to say that I regretted what had happened, but I couldn’t lie to myself like that. I wanted him to die, and those feelings seeped out and manifested themselves through the magic ring.
Turning away from my brother, I ran to Hazel’s side. She was still breathing and had managed to force herself to sit upright on the ground, but she was still clearly injured. Aside from her severely bruised neck, she wasn’t too hurt. Helping her up, I stared at my brother’s corpse. I had the sudden realization that this may have been what Faria meant when she said we’d know when to leave. How would she have known this would happen, though?
Holding Hazel up, we quickly left and hurried to the inn where we found Lord Claude waiting outside with a covered wagon.
“The time has come to leave.” Lord Claude announced quickly, gesturing to the wagon.
“We know.” I replied, helping Hazel into the back of the wagon where I saw my mother laying atop layers of blankets.
Fully seeing Hazel’s state, Lord Claude asked with worry. “What happened?”
“I’ll explain somewhere safer.” I replied, climbing into the back after ensuring that Hazel was comfortable. “We need to leave immediately.”
Lord Claude nodded his head as he pulled a cover over the wagon.
Immediately after, we started forward, heading east through the edge of town. Dreah was where the College was located. Compared to the capital, Dreah was an impenetrable fortress, located atop a plateau overlooking the rest of the kingdom and surrounded my ravines that dropped down into the rushing waters that separated Kiech and Farrol.
It took us a short time getting around to the eastern gates, only to find that they were closed.
“We were too slow.” Lord Claude muttered under his breath.
The sound of marching footsteps grew closer as a man spoke. “The king has ordered all gates to and from the city to be closed until the prince is discovered. What purpose have you for coming here?”
“I am a soldier in His Majesty’s Royal Army.” Lord Claude introduced himself. “I am escorting my family home before I return to the war front.”
There was a moment of silence before the person spoke again. “Check the wagon.”
It took less than a moment for the cover to be lifted as two soldiers poked their heads inside. They peered around, inspecting every visible inch of the wagon. Thankfully, they didn’t recognize me, and nobody knew my mother. If Hazel had not covered her neck with a scarf, they would have seen the bruised skin around her neck.
“I’m sorry, but my wife is sick. She’s taken medicine, but has not fully recovered.” Lord Claude explained. “I believe a night in her own bed would help her greatly.”
“A night in our own beds would help us all.” The person outside agreed. “Take care, solder. I wish your wife the best.”
“Thank you, colonel.” Lord Claude spoke as the screech of the gates opening could be heard.
We started again and made it out of the gate shortly before it closed again. After gaining some distance between the capital and us, I explained what happened with Marcus. Lord Claude laughed and sighed deeply.
“What a mess.” He mumbled, shaking his head.
Nearly an hour after we had made it out of the capital, I felt something wrong. The swelling feeling that had started during my fight with Marcus had not stopped, but had grown more intense. I waited patiently for it to subside, but that relief never came. At this point, the pain had started growing stronger, faster. It felt like I was about to explode.
I silently cursed Faria. She told me that it wouldn’t explode. If I died because of this, I would haunt her for the rest of her life.
Suddenly, my aura activated itself as the pain grew worse. The black aura flowed through and around my body and I started to see specs of red floating inside the black. Seeing my pain, Hazel had moved herself across from me, watching closely and trying to find ways to help, but nothing helped. Finally, she reached for my hands, intertwining her fingers with mine. The moment she did this, I could feel the swelling ease as the energy that had been building inside me rushed out into her. My aura stretched out, wrapping around Hazel’s hands and moving up through her arms. After just a moment, the both of us were wrapped in the black and red aura, sharing the load that had built up inside of me which had gone from extreme pain to mild discomfort.
Then, all at once, the energy in my body sucked itself towards my heart and into my source. The aura wrapping around both Hazel and me exploded outward before shrinking back down. Shortly after, the aura began to change, becoming purple in color. After this change, the swelling feeling faded and was replaced with intense relief as we both dropped our hands.
To my surprise, as well as Hazel’s, even after letting go, the aura persisted around her. She raised her hands, watching the purple aura pulse as it flowed around her body. Then she lurched forward, clutching at her chest as the aura’s pulsations grew stronger. I recognized what she was going through immediately. Her source was opening. What concerned me about this was that she appeared to already have an aura.
After a short moment, Hazel relaxed and laid down on the wagon floor. The purple aura faded from her body, as mine had just done. After letting her rest for a moment, I grabbed her hand and had her sit up and explained to her what had just happened to her. She was incredibly surprised and did as I said to activate her aura and watched as the purple aura wrapped around her body. I could tell from the moment that she activated her aura that, like me, she could use the powers of both a mage and a warrior. I didn’t know why I knew. I just did.
“What’s going on back there?” Lord Claude asked, worried.
“I’m not sure.” I replied simply. “But it’s definitely something good.”
Looking down at her hands, Hazel raised her head and simply smiled. Smiling in reply, I turned and watched through the gap in the wagon covering as rain began to pour down from above.
╚╩╩╩╝ Hamil ╚╩╩╩╝
The uproar from the death of the crown princess was violent and lasted several days. News of her assassination by agents of Farrol had kicked up a storm among the people. They loved her. Now it seemed as though everyone was calling for retribution, finding various ways they could support the war effort. Though I felt bad for them all, none of this really affected me personally. The thing I was truly worried about was Jaime and what she was currently going through.
That day, when Jaime hurt that girl, I could feel something from her. It felt like there were two voices prying for control. One wanted the girl to leave her alone, the other wanted violence and revenge. Worst of all, her aura had activated, so she nearly crushed her arm. We managed to convince her to stop, to let go. I could see the shock on her face when she let go, like she had no idea what she was doing. I’d seen some pretty good acting which would usually make me doubt her, but I could feel genuine guilt from her. She tried to make it better and did, and I could feel a small spark of spite from deep inside the girl who introduced herself as Clementine.
Clementine and her absent brother were from the Northern Isles. Their accents gave it away. My father was a monster, but he was right about some things. One thing he told me several times was that I should never trust an islander. The Northern Isles were filled with criminals of all kinds who had run there to escape punishment. Some migrated back to the mainland, and while they showed honesty and integrity on the outside, most continued their criminal behavior.
After Madame Wark came and brought us back home, we became isolated from the outside. The people reacted violently, not only towards Farrol, but to their own communities. Some even took this as an opportunity to steal from and harm others.
It was nice to be able to relax and not have to worry about my father strangling me in my sleep. Everyone else looked fine, and they were for the most part. Despite her outward appearance, I could feel that Jaime was still horrified by her actions against the islander girl. I tried, on occasion, to help her feel better, but nothing I did seemed to help.
She just needed time.
╚╩╩╩╝ Earl Terrence Gelling ╚╩╩╩╝
Today was a pleasant day. To support the war efforts, other, less important, nobles were actively buying and shipping supplies to the front lines. This increased the taxes that paid into my treasury. I was worried, however, since Camparn had been trying to request an audience with me since before the princess had kicked the bucket. Bad news from him could mean bad news for me since my benefactor did not like bad news. I’d put off meeting with him for some time, but I had a feeling that putting it off for too long could get me in trouble as well.
Sweat ran down the back of my neck as Camparn came into the room. He usually came by himself, but this time, a tall, cloaked figure followed in behind him.
“My lord. We believe to have found the whereabouts of the artefact that you have been searching for.” Camparn announced excitedly.
Good news. Thank the heavens! I wasn’t going to die today!
“Where is it?” I responded even more excitedly.
“The first prince of the kingdom currently possesses it. A medallion with the image of a rat.” Camparn explained.
Before I could speak, a familiar feeling of intense pressure overcame my body.
A voice that rattled my mind echoed through the room. “Servant! Do not hide yourself.”
Camparn and his companion were startled by the voice, but the cloaked man regained his composure with surprising speed. Raising his hands, I noticed that his skin was blue and that, after he had removed his hood, his entire face was blue and he had a blade-like horn sticking out of the center of his forehead.
“This servant is elated to finally meet you, master.” The blue man beamed as he dropped to one knee and bowed his head.
“It seems that I’ve been busy.” The voice spoke, seemingly amused. “You’ve felt my source calling out to you. You shall be rewarded for your service.”
The cloaked man’s body shuddered as the horn on his head grew slightly.
Camparn still stood frozen in place as I’d been. My benefactor has never revealed himself to any other person before. What did this mean for me?
“I can see that the servant has surpassed the master in usefulness.” The voice spoke the words that I had been dreading to hear. “I have long since grown tired of your grotesque form. You have outgrown your usefulness. Goodbye.”
I felt a sharp pinch in my neck as the pressure subsided.
“Camparn. I know your ambitions. I know your desires. Assist me, and I will give you what you wish.”
I watched in horror as a grin spread across Camparn’s face.
Bowing sharply, Camparn accepted. “I will do as you ask, my master.”
“Ah, one who knows how to address their superior.” The voice spoke happily. “Come, we will leave.”
The duo left the room as the cloaked man hid his head once again.
How dare that man take what was rightfully mine! I was given that promise first, and I would sooner die than allow that man to steal it from me!
“Butler!” I cried out.
The butler came in just moments after, ready to take my order.
“Two men have just left the building. I want-” I commanded angrily, but stopped as I felt a pain in my stomach.
I had not felt this kind of pain in a long time. Not since before I took over as head of the family. It was hunger. I was… hungry.
“Butler, forget that order. Bring me something to eat immediately.” I ordered in a panic.
Moments later, my butler carted in large amounts of delicacies that I devoured greedily. However, despite how much I ate, the pain of hunger never went away. The pain only grew stronger.