Crown

Ruarza Tala-Hidden Ties

Everything suddenly made sense. Her intense gaze, her blunt way of speaking, right down to her the way her presence commanded attention and why it all reminded him of his mother.

Diana shrugged. "That's what I said no?" She turned her attention back to Rhona and the others. "Take me to the Eclipse Empress or I'm afraid you'll have to say goodbye to the Prince and his little friend until she says she wants to see me."

There was a beat of silence. For Diana to blatantly call Illya's official title out made them question her motives even more. Illya's people often referred to her as a Queen but she did in fact control land outside of Solaria. She was indeed an Empress and if Diana wanted to speak with her so desperately, they could only assume that she was after power.

"I thought you said you didn't want to fight," Ea tried to reason.

Diana grinned. "Trust me this won't be much of a fight."

The devious curl of her lips put everyone on edge and they suddenly realized the severity of the situation. If she really was Illya's daughter, they should probably avoid provoking her. The family was notorious for their often catastrophic outbursts.

An anxious sigh left Rhona's lips as she straightened herself up. "Release the Prince and their guest first and we'll take you to her."

"No. You take me to her and then you can have them back. I'm not letting them go until I get what I want."

Before anyone had time to so much as take a breath, Diana's sword was already at Ri-is' throat. Ea began to reach for his, but Tah Min quietly grabbed his arm.

"...One condition. You have to wear one of those magic restricting collars. It may not do much against physical attacks but if what you say is true then at least we don't have to worry about a massive supply of magic," Rhona declared.

Diana smiled. "Fine. I accept your terms. As a show of good faith, I'll also throw in another little handicap. I'll only take one of my men with me. That way you won't have to worry about us jumping you in the middle of our little journey."

Tah Min and Ea exchanged glances. Neither was keen on this arrangement but both would be lying if they said Diana's claim didn't strike the least bit of curiosity within them. Ea sighed. He figured that as long as they exercised appropriate caution, everything would be alright.

"Okay then. We'll be waiting for you at Lake Shoan. That's where we first came in. When you've decided who to bring with you, please meet us there."

Rhona summoned a gust of wind that made the stray leaves around them flutter into a cloud that engulfed them. When the wind settled, Tah Min, Ea and Rhona were gone. Diana chuckled and turn to the rest of the group. As she prepared, the night sky had begun to dim and gave way to the hours before dawn.

•~•~•~•~•~•~•

After her night out, Illya had come back home to settle down in bed but a sudden surge of energy triggered a vision, one in which she was bleeding profusely and all she could make out were blurry faces trying to keep her conscious. The intensity of the vision caused her to actually faint and so now here she was, as dawn peaked it's head up from the horizon, Illya sat in bed, wide awake and anxiously tapping her finger on the pillow beside her. Sora was lying on the bed next to her and took her hand in his to cease her nervous tapping. 

"Stop worrying so much love. He'll be here soon."

A long, contemplative sigh left Illya's lips. She leaned into the pillows that rested behind her. A couple minutes of silent hand-holding went by when a curt knock came from her chamber door. 

"Majesty, the court physician is here to see you," Seibel announced from behind the door. 

"Let him in!" Replied Illya. 

Seibel did as he was told and opened the door to allow a man in. He was tall and his face was covered in the tribal markings of those from the Amasu region in the Raeha continent. His pointed ears protruded from his pale champagne hair and his fox-like eyes peered across the room until the settled on Illya. He entered and was immediately greeted by the impatient Empress. 

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" She yelled in a hushed tone. 

He raised his finger to his lips and shushed her. "Quiet down Nanami."​​​​​​​

She immediately softened to the sound of her old name. It was given to her by her foster father. She hadn't heard it in many years. Not since she had given it up and people started calling her by her birth name. 

"So what was the emergency? I was busy with an exorcism in the Koralia Empire but when Seibel called me here so urgently, I was worried."

Sora sat up next to her and wrapped a hand around her shoulders. "Illya had a worrying vision and passed out shortly after having it. We were worried about their health so we called you."

Illya frowned "Seimei! It was bad. I was losing so much blood I was losing consciousness. I couldn't make it out clearly but I'm sure that among the blurry faces I saw one man at the very back of the crowd around me. He was just standing there. I couldn't see it very clearly but I know he was smiling."

Seimei walked over to her bedside and began his examination. He assured her that everything would be okay gently placed a hand on her forehead. Concluding that everything was fine physically, Seimei took out a little charm and some incense. 

"Okay. Hold this charm. Sit here and wait for the incense to burn out. This should make sure that no curses or anything of the sort were put on you. Try not to do anything that would invite unnecessary stress. Avoid overexerting yourself. I know that's a long feat to ask of you given your stubbornness but neither of you will be able to remain healthy if you don't find ways to keep calm."

She stared at the charm in her hands and nodded. "Okay...thanks."

Sora placed a kiss on her forehead and got off the bed. "Seimei, do you have any other work to do? I was thinking that you should probably stay here for a while...just in case..."

Seimei could tell that even though he was trying to remain calm for Illya, he was secretly very worried for their well being.

"My son can take care of any other exorcism requests. I was thinking of staying to keep an eye on things myself so it shouldn't be a problem."

Sora breathed a sigh of relief. "Great! I'll help bring your stuff to your room."

•~•~•~•~•~•~•

An hour later Illya was sitting on her throne, having collected herself she decided to hold council to make sure that security would be tightened during the next five months. Cheng was there too, waiting patiently for Illya to finish speaking so he could talk with her himself. An Arunian knight knelt before her. He was lean but fairly well built with messy blond hair and blue eyes. He was a Knight that had been assigned to her by her brother when she was younger. It happened sometime after she discovered the ruins of Aruma An beyond the rifts. She didn't want him at first but after having been forced to stay with him for so many years, she had gotten quite used to his company and now he was the Knight Grand Officer with a fairly large commandery. 

He very rarely spoke unless he was alone with Illya but even though he didn't speak, he was highly respected for his valour and courage. He was a very genuine and kind person, of course, that didn't stop Illya from looking at him like he was a little dork. 

"Listen Wild. I know this may seem a little excessive but I can't rest unless I'm sure that everyone is safe. Something will most definitely happen to me but I can't let it happen right now." She explained that she wanted everyone to be on high alert for the next few months. Just as he bowed in understatement, the doors at the end of the courtroom clamoured open and in marched Ea, Tah Min and Rhona with Ri-is and Yukimi. Illya looked up with surprise and Wild stepped off to the side. 

"Rhona, it's been a while! What brings you here today?" Illya asked curiously. 

Her curious tone faltered and she went pale when she saw Diana step out from behind the group and wave. 

"Hello, mother dearest!" She beamed sarcastically.