Potenkiah, the deathgiver

Chapter 9

***

She took a heavy cloak from the coat rack and took it with her. Even if she wasn't wearing riding clothes, she went to the stables and asked for her female unicorn, Zinget, to be saddled. She was a white mare from a dwarf breed -preferred by the young for their gentleness-, measuring only six feet to the withers. Her slender silver horn was twisted like an icecream cone.

She halted at the path's edge.

They'll be better off without me. At least they won't have to hold back from talking about what they're going to do in the city, for fear of hurting me.

She snorted and urged Zinget on, towards the lake. The Manaas Lake was her favorite spot, as vast as it was calm; a silver mirror that reflected the heavens like a second sky. During the spring, it was crowded with a massive flock of weks, the iridescent flakes of their shells like refracting flames. During the summer, visitors were of a different kind: nobles on cruises or fishing boats, and a few palace residents swimming in its crystal clear water, near the edge.

For now, she was content with galloping on the path to the docks. Even though the first snow flurries had not fallen yet, it was quite cold. Her fingers were numb, and her feathers covered by frost. It was still too soon to go ice skating, even if it would never be the same without her friends.

She sighed. A few days before she'd sworn she was fine, that she'd come to terms with the separation. Now, with the dresses...

The path she had picked led east, where a stone bridge crossed a small tributary of the Manaas. It was near the main road, called the path of the Ancient Kings; it was a wide corridor decorated with sculptures and fountains. She dismounted and pulled on Zinget's bridle the last few yards that separated her from the beach... only to discover that she didn't feel like screaming anymore, that she felt stupid for wasting the last few days she had left by grieving. It was best to take a deep breath, vent through burning a few calories, and return as soon as possible. It seemed it would rain soon, and she wasn't planning on going home wet again.

There was a small island nearby, maybe a thousand feet from the edge. It was the site of the Temple of Light and the final resting place of ancient monarchs, but that day the fog covered most of it. She could only see the tips of the obelisks built in their memory, while a sheet of red leaves covered the edge of the lake. She couldn't even see the gracious and imposing reflection of the five palace towers, so tall that they could be seen from anywhere, their tips touching the clouds.

Small concentric waves expanded in all directions when she threw a pebble into the water.

She turned around and raised her eyes. Beyond the woods, over the canopies of thousands of trees -elms, oaks, birch trees, and firs- she could see the palace. White, slender, asymmetrical, magnificent; each tower was encircled by a spiral, like a snake crawling to the tip. Somewhere in the northeast tower was Paty, speechless and wondering about her attitude. Her friend spent every waking moment analyzing why people did the things they did, served as moderator, referee, tutor, diplomat... and lately she had taken up a position as Annie's protector, knowing that the reality that awaited them in the city was very different to her small group of fans. She said she was afraid for her, that she was too pretty, flirty and immature to be on her own. Maybe it was an excuse for her own insecurities, or so Bridget thought, to whom the idea of building new relationships from scratch appeared disheartening.

Or perhaps, her weakened state was predisposed to frustration. Just the day before, her negative predictions regarding the debate competition had come true. Bridget had experienced a disappointing defeat.

"Your companions flat out lost their saviour," she remembered Paty saying to comfort her. "I really don't know what the Relic was thinking when he set up this unfair competition."