Aspasia

Chapter 8

    >Annette<  

     Will led me at sword point. I hadn't rested since yesterday. The sun rose gloriously above the mountains. It ignited the sky. On a normal day I would've smiled. Not today. I've been trying to reach Quinn's mind. I couldn't.  I was worried. Our minds were interlocked now. After Merlock had left with other two guys I knew they heard Quinn. How? I have no idea. I hadn't even heard her. Calm down Anna. It’s fine. I sighed. Then the battlements of a castle rose over the hills. It was gloomy even in the early light. I stood awestruck. I heard laughing. Then Merlock appeared out of the forest. He carried a body over his shoulder. I gasped as I recognized the blonde hair of Quinn. Her eyes were closed. “WHAT DID YOU DO!?” I yelled.

         “She isn’t dead if that’s what you are asking. Just unconscious. So what happened after I left you guys at Marl?” Merlock was calm with a hint of a smile. I sucked in an outraged breath. I was mad. I didn’t know that was Merlock at Marl.

              “Bounty-hunters.” The boys all stared. One cursed. I noticed he was holding his arm. I hope Quinn had inflicted a wound. Merlock smiled.  

          “Come on guys, we got to get them to Balios.” Merlock gave me another infuriating smile and started walking.  Will poked my back with the point of his sword. I winced and started walking. We walked in silence to the ever rising battlements of Krow. I gasped at the dark towers that rose into the sky. Large birds circled a tower that faced to the mountains. We walked past a pair of gallows. I sucked in a breath. The areas surrounding the castle were burnt black. We walked across a drawbridge. The intersection of the castle was even worse. It seemed to choke out all life. I drew a breath of the rancid air. I coughed. We walked to a large black door. It swung open soundlessly.  Will pushed me forward with his hand. I stumbled and caught myself before I fell. Merlock led us down hallways till he found the right door. He pushed it open soundlessly. His brown eyes shone as he led us in. It was a large throne room. A black chair sat surrounded by dark walls, blacked out windows, and dark flooring. I shuddered involuntarily.  Merlock knelt and gently slid Quinn onto the floor next to him. Her eyes were still shut. The rest of the boys came forward and knelt beside Merlock. I noticed a man sitting on the black throne. He sat upright. He had white hair, black eyes, and wore a blue robe. Wizard King Balios sat on his throne with a smile. His eyes held mine. I lowered my eyes. The smile widened showing me a row of rotten teeth.

      “Fantastic job Merlock,” said Balios' oily voice. 

      “Thank you sire, I do my best. We had to knock the mind-reader unconscious. They got attacked by bounty-hunters and a dragon. The mind-reader has a broken leg,” Merlock updated. How did he know about the dragon? They must have been following us.  

     “Who are they and where were they hiding?”

     “They were hiding in Algernon. The red head is Princess Annette of Algernon. She is the only oral witch left in existence, and she sees auras. The mind-reader is Quinn.” Balios gave me a triumphant glance. When he looked at Quinn he froze. The look disappeared. He stared at Quinn. Her face was a look of calmness. I looked at Balios. His face was immobilized, and pale. Then I understood. Quinn so closely resembled the Princess of Krow, Aspasia. It was like seeing a ghost. “Sire? Quinn knifed one of my men. Should we take them up to the North Tower? Then when James is done with Dan we can send him up to them?” Merlock broke into the silence. Balios snapped to attention. His eyes never strayed from Quinn. 

    “Yes. Now leave me.” Will grabbed me by the arm and pulled me to the door. Merlock threw Quinn over his shoulder with a grunt. We were marched up steep stairs. When we made it to the top Merlock reached into his black pants a pulled out a ring of keys. He separated a large silver key and slid it into the lock. Will kicked the door and pushed me into the room. A triangular window faced the mountains. This was the tower I had seen when we first came to the caste. The walls were all a gray stone. I large white, circular bed sat opposite of the door. Next to it sat a white, overstuffed arm chair. It was set against a wall. A vanity and mirror was across the room from the window. An empty chest was next to the window. The room was fairly large, but lightly furnished. Merlock walked in and threw Quinn's limp body onto the bed.  “Enjoy yourselves,” Merlock said snidely as he walked out of the room. I heard the lock slide into place.

     Great. Just great. I sat down next to Quinn. I undid the cloak, and pushed the hood back from her face. I examined the bandage I had made her when we first met. It needed to be changed. I gently undid the knot. I unraveled the wound. My stomach lurched. It was disgusting, and very deep. I averted my eyes while waiting for my stomach to calm. I took deep breaths. I stood and walked to the open window. It was large enough to jump through. The jump would kill you. Darn. I took deep breaths of the soiled air. I walked back to Quinn and put my hand on her forehead. She was burning. I needed a good doctor. Maybe there was something in my bag. Water, at least. I opened my satchel. It was empty. My satchel carried what I needed. My father had gotten it for me. All I did was say, “Pheno” then what I wanted and it would appear. It was a magic satchel from across the mountains. I whispered the word and followed with water and cloth. The two appeared in the bag and I pulled them out. I forced water down Quinn's throat. I unclipped the harness for her swords, and eased them off her body. Then I slid them under the bed so they were hidden. Next I tried to clean the wound. Looking at it made me sick again. I went back to the window. The burnt landscape was dismal. I was dismal. This was not at all like I planned. Tears of anger streamed down my face. I wiped them away. The only friend I had ever had was most likely dying. Here I was stuck in a stupid tower. Like the princess I was. A lone tear fell. I let it roll down my face. Maybe I should have stayed in Algernon. The sound of the lock made me turn. I turned just as a boy walked through the wooden door. He had short honey brown hair, and sparkling blue eyes. He had a slightly muscular build. He smiled an engaging smile. I felt myself smile.

    “Hey I'm James.”