The growling and screeching of the corrupted beasts echoed in the courtyard as Ash covered his mouth with his hand. They couldn’t hear his breathing, right? Besides, he told himself, these creatures were chained up, they couldn’t just attack him.
But then… why did he feel such a pressing need to hide from the Commander’s gaze?
He massaged his temples as he tried to think of what to do. He couldn’t just go to sleep, not after seeing those creatures. Maybe they had hunted them down and brought them here to try and find where they came from, or why they attacked the convoy…
He bit his lip. He hadn’t slept for too long before all this mana swirling in his room woke him up. Could they really have made their way to the convoy, tracked these creatures down, caught them, and brought them back in such a short time? In what was basically just a few hours?
The timeline didn’t add up, and it wasn’t the only thing bothering him about this whole situation. Without even trying to steal one last glance, he crawled back into his room and shut the balcony door carefully as to not make a sound.
Ducking under the swirling mana, he threw his nightgown on the bed and quickly put on the clothes he was given before rushing out the door into the narrow hallway. It was dark, but the mana infused into the castle’s every brick helped him locate the door to Prince Daith’s room easily. The doors had a different outline after all.
He paused before the Prince’s door as the words he said in anger earlier surfaced in his mind. He couldn’t help but feel resentful and angry. He still didn’t understand why he was so suddenly marked a liar in the royals’ eyes. And the Prince had done nothing but threaten him and his family – not that Ash cared about his father one bit.
But now wasn’t the time to dwell on that. This was important, he needed to alert the prince and princess, even if they didn’t trust him anymore. With a shake of his head, he loudly knocked on the door, hoping he would at least hear him out. A few moments passed in silence before he knocked again. The eerie silence continued to reign as he scowled. Was he asleep? Or perhaps not in his room? Or did he not even want to see him?
He hesitantly reached for the door’s handle and pushed it down. A soft click sounded as the door silently opened just a bit. He opened the door fully, and immediately covered his eyes as a storm of light blinded him for a split second.
The bed was barely visible through the golden sphere surrounding it. The sphere made of the prince’s mana flashed and glimmered uncontrollably while swirls of dark blue and crimson mana tried to get through it. Where Prince Daith’s mana and the mana within Castle Myrkur touched each other, lights flashed violently.
Ash let the door close behind him as he covered his eyes with his hands. This wasn’t normal, he was sure of it. This was very, very abnormal. Was the mana within the castle attacking the prince?
As dread loomed over him, he took a deep breath, then dashed forward, wading through the darker coloured mana that floated around the golden sphere. It seemed to physically push him back, like he was trying to walk into a wall of gelatinous matter.
“Daith!” He shouted at the top of his lungs as his fingers touched the golden sphere. He felt its warmth, it was comfortable and safe, like the light of the Kindling. Then, as he breathed, the darker coloured mana filled his lungs. It felt like he had just inhaled mist – but unlike it, it was burning hot and icy cold at the same time.
He coughed as he stumbled forward, passing through the golden sphere without much resistance. The prince was still fast asleep on the bed. Ash tried to suppress his coughing as he shook Prince Daith awake.
“What are you –“ The prince exclaimed with anger before he noticed the storming mana around them. He narrowed his eyes, squinting as he inspected his own protective spell. “Something is attacking us.” He concluded after a few seconds.
“You think?!” Ash exclaimed, not bothering to hide his annoyance. Could he be any slower? “Do something!” he then shouted as the crimson and dark blue mana continued to press against the golden sphere that kept them safe. He coughed between breaths as his lungs were on fire and freezing over at the same time.
Prince Daith shot him an odd glance before he hopped off the bed. The sphere moved along with him, and so did Ash as to not remain stuck in the middle of all this rather volatile mana. “What do you see?” Daith asked. He grabbed his coat from the hanger by the door and put it on.
“Crimson and dark blue mana. It’s all around us, like…” He sought a comparison but failed to find one. “It’s like smoke that moves with us, but pretty dense. It was pushing me back when I tried to move through it, and I inhaled some of it.” He pressed against his chest. “It’s kind of unpleasant.”
Daith’s eyes widened. “You inhaled mana?” He asked before quickly shaking his head. “There are so many issues in what you just said that I don’t even know where to begin explaining them.” He opened the door, then raised his eyebrows and shot Ash a glance. “Is there mana out there too?”
A single glance was enough for Ash to shake his head. There was no floating mana in the narrow hallway connecting their rooms. In fact, he didn’t remember seeing any floating mana anywhere aside from their rooms and the courtyard when they first arrived.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
They hurried out of Daith’s room as soon as he indicated it was safe, and the floating mana stopped chasing them. Ash breathed a sigh of relief as he watched the almost gelatinous mist-like mass of crimson and dark blue mana slowly float back towards the bed. “Oh!” He then exclaimed as he remembered what he first came to Daith for. “There is something you need to know!” He turned around to look at the prince, but he had already made his way halfway across the narrow hallway.
“If something attacked me, then they surely targeted Aoife as well.” The prince called out. “Come here – I can’t see as well as you do.” He added as he knocked on the Princess’ door. There was only silence in response, and that looming dread resurfaced in Ash’s mind. Daith, clearly of the same thoughts, didn’t hesitate to open the door. He squinted to try and see what was going on.
The princess was sitting upright on her bed, in a lotus position. Her legs were crossed, and her hands rested loosely on her knees. Her eyes were closed, but she was scowling, and didn’t seem comfortable, peaceful, or meditative at all. A soft, golden light enveloped her like a protective membrane.
Just like in the prince’s room, a cloud of crimson and dark blue mana surrounded her, taking up almost half the room. Wisps of darker coloured mana floated within the cloud, circling her like a predator circling its prey.
“There is definitely mana here too…” Daith muttered as he squinted in an attempt to see. “A lot of it,” Ash nodded. “It’s all around her.” He felt his lungs begin to burn and freeze again and took a step back. “We need to hurry.” The more he watched, the more the golden glow around her slowly dimmed.
Daith nodded as his lips formed a thin line. He extended his hand, and his mana weaved a complex pattern around them both. The golden sphere that he had allowed to vanish once they left his room reformed, giving them both some protection from the volatile mana within the Princess’ room.
They rushed inside, passing through the cloud of mana without any trouble. The crimson and dark blue colours clashed against the prince’s golden barrier, creating flashing lights that hurt Ash’s eyes. Daith, seemingly unable to see all this, shook his sister awake. “Wake up!” He hissed as soon as she opened her eyes. He ignored her confused expression. “We were wrong about Lord Galdron!”
Without more explanation, he dragged her out of her room, and only allowed his golden protective sphere to vanish once the door was closed, and Ash confirmed it was safe out here. As Daith explained what happened to the Princess, Ash leaned against the wall, taking deep breaths in an attempt to suppress his want to cough.
Aside from his lungs feeling like he had inhaled both vaporised ice and fire at once, he felt alright physically. His panic, however, had only increased. Were the two royal siblings really attacked? What did Daith mean by being wrong about Lord Galdron? Was this his doing? What were they going to do now? They were essentially trapped inside the castle of their enemy now!
He hadn’t even noticed how fast and shallow he was breathing until someone snapped their fingers in front of his face. “You weren’t even attacked, why are you panicking?” Princess Aoife asked with a dry voice. “Or are you having trouble breathing?” She scowled as a hint of concern sounded in her voice. “How much mana did you inhale?”
Ash shook his head. “I’m not sure.” He pondered for a moment. “A whole breath’s worth?” he guessed. “I’m ok, my lungs hurt, but I’m ok…” Somehow, he had calmed down just a bit – enough to remember why he went to see Daith in the first place. “Listen, I saw them bring in those creatures – corrupted beasts – into the courtyard. That commander lady was leading them, they were chained up and all.”
The two royal siblings shot each other quick glances. Daith seemed worried, while Princess Aoife was more furious. Her golden eyes glimmered with anger. “That man wasn’t an ally to begin with, was he?” She asked, looking at her brother. Daith shook his head. “I suppose not.”
Ash pressed his palm against his forehead. His previous headache was only getting worse the more they stood inside. He longed fresh air, but now wasn’t the time or place to indulge. “What’s our plan?” He asked while keeping an eye on the mana all around the walls. If Lord Galdron truly did mean to attack and harm the royal siblings, and if he had the ability to use the mana infused into the castle walls, then they certainly weren’t safe while standing here – in a narrow hallway with only a single exit.
“We’re leaving the castle.” Princess Aoife said with a sharp voice. “He tried to attack us while we were asleep, he won’t dare try something now. That coward…” She hissed, her voice seething with anger.
“I don’t think we should count on that.” Daith chimed in with a much calmer voice. “Besides,” He caught his sister’s arm, stopping her before she opened the door leading out of the narrow hallway. “Do you even remember the way out?”
Princess Aoife scowled. “We’ll find it!”
“Or” Daith continued with a calm, collected tone. “We’ll get lost, cornered, ambushed…”
Ash shot a glance at his room’s door. He had forgotten his pack in his panic. Everything he owned was in there. While the two royal siblings continued to argue about how they were going to leave the castle, Ash opened the door to his room.
“What are you doing?!” Princess Aoife exclaimed in a panic, but her voice died down a moment later as she peered into his room. She squinted, trying to see the chaotic mana that was in her and Daith’s rooms. “I don’t see any mana.”
“There are a few wisps of floating mana,” Ash pointed at the wisps as he walked past them. The hot and cold feeling in his lungs had subsided by now, and these wisps of mana didn’t seem to reignite it. His pack was put up against the wall by the bathroom door. He threw it over his shoulder and was about to turn back when he noticed the closed balcony door.
“That’s what you wanted to get?” Princess Aoife rolled her eyes. “Belongings can be replaced, lives cannot. Anyways, even if they ambush us…”
At this point, Ash stopped listening to her. The courtyard was right there. He opened the balcony doors, and stepped outside after glancing around to make sure there was no one who could see him. Leaning over the marble railing, he looked down at the ground. It was somewhat high up, but surely these two knew a gravity-defying spell or two.
“Ash!” The Prince’s voice reached his ears. He sounded annoyed. “Come on, don’t get left behind.” He glanced over his shoulder – Princess Aoife was already headed to the hallway, and the prince was standing by the door.
“Can’t we jump down?” He asked, making sure to keep his voice low. There were still a few guards in the courtyard after all, and while they were pretty much dozed off, he didn’t want to risk waking them.
Princess Aoife paused, then walked across the room and came out to the balcony. She looked down with pursed lips and raised eyebrows before finally nodding. “Well,” She muttered with a hint of disappointment in her voice. “I was looking forward to beating up some of his guards, but this might be a better idea.”