Ethereal

Chapter 6

~~~

During the next two days while Alethea was unconscious, Athanasia was forced to sleep in another room and everybody refused to tell her what was going on.

She tried to get the maids to tell her by acting cute but they refused, saying his Majesty had ordered that nobody talked about it and when she tried to visit her, she was forced away by an apologetic Felix, who was tasked with staying guard over the unconscious princess so nobody could get in without Claude's permission.

'That stupid bastard, he can go in whenever he wants but he won't let me go visit her.' Athanasia raged in her head as she sat in her temporary room, coloring a very gruesome picture of her father. 'Die! Die! Die!'

Once she calmed down, she felt sad again. She had known before this how attached she had become to her little sister but she didn't know she was going to feel this lonely without her. Athanasia felt like she was missing something when Alethea wasn't right next to her when she had woken the last few mornings.

It didn't feel right to be alone, like her sister and she weren't meant to be a part. it felt unnatural, she noted as she laid down on the floor, 'I hope you get better soon, Thea.'

~~~

After sitting in an empty void for who knows how long, Alethea was happy when the scenery around her changed. In place of the dark and empty space she had been stuck in was now the most beautiful flower field she had ever seen.

It was quite easy for her to tell it all had to be a dream but that didn't stop her from plucking the enchanting flowers and turning them into flower crowns. It was much more peaceful and relaxing to do this instead of wandering around the dream world like she was probably supposed to do. After all, she had read many fantasy novels, and the whole meeting someone important in your dreams was an overused cliché. She wouldn't be surprised if someone was waiting for her around here somewhere.

"I was expecting you to have made it to where I was waiting by now." a voice from behind her spoke, breaking through the previously establish silence.

'Called it.' Alethea thought to herself before asking, "Who are you?" Alethea turned around, her flower crown slipping slightly on her head. Before her stood a figure draped in a flowing cloak, their face hidden by a blinding light the person emitted. A mysterious aura emanated from them, filling the air with intrigue.

"I am the goddess of light," the figure said, their voice carrying a melodic quality that sent a shiver down Alethea's spine. "And you are now this generation's saintess, my personal messenger and a bridge that connects the mortal realm to the godly one."

Instead of waiting for her new Saintess to say something, the goddess continued, "Why don't you met me at my temple as soon as you can so we can talk some more then."

~~~

After he finished his work, Claude went to visit Alethea. He nodded toward his knight as he walked past him and entered her room.

Whenever he visited the young princess, all he ever did was sit silently by her side for hours, just like he used to do with his mother.

"If I remember correctly, that bastard of a head priest said something about her waking up within two days." Claude mumbled to himself, "Shouldn't that mean you should be getting up soon."

The emperor waited a minute as if Alethea was going to wake up and respond to him any second, "I suppose not then."

As he settled into his usual spot, a worn leather armchair next to her bed, memories of his mother flooded his mind. The way she used to lie in her sickbed, weak yet filled with an unyielding spirit that kept her fighting until the very end. It was the same spirit he saw in Alethea, even in her unconscious state.