Spellbound

Chapter Twenty-Two

           

Syaoran sat on a flat rock by the river alone and in silence. The sun was setting, casting its orange light over the land. Depending on whether Sakura's captor kept moving for the entire day, they should be very close to the border, if not past it.
Unfortunately, the barriers he protected and maintained weren't invincible. They had small points that only people in his empire, and the other three kings, knew about. Soldiers protected those points, also known as gates.
The nearest gate was half a day's ride to the west.
Syaoran had sent notice to those soldiers in case that was where they were headed, as well as a scout to report back to him of anything suspicious.
He hadn't heard anything so far.
"What are you doing here?" Meiling asked as she came to a stop at his side.
"Trying to clear my head." He replied.
She sat down, "Who do you think could have done this?" she asked.
"I asked the soldiers if anyone was missing and had been for a while. Apparently, a man named Rin didn't show up for training or any of his shifts." Syaoran murmured. "I would hazard a guess that he is probably the mastermind behind her abduction."
"Rin, huh? Guess he had us all fooled." Meiling muttered.
"There was a reason I chose to marry Sakura so soon after she had arrived." Syaoran murmured. "I didn't trust them not to break their promise not to cause us any harm. To keep her as safe as I could, I made sure there were permanent things in place that would tie her to this country."
"So, you married her." She said.
"They're aware of what it means to kidnap a kings' wife. But it's not like I had no fault in this." Syaoran said quietly.
"Are you talking about when you and the other kings liberated the magicians they were holding prisoner?" Meiling asked.
"Yes. You see, I was the one who broke the treaty by doing what I did. It's my fault she was ever hunted down in the first place." Syaoran confessed. "But there's no point to dwelling on the past."
"No, there isn't. For now, we focus on getting her back safely." She said.
"Any news about Lydia?" he then asked.
"Takashi asked me to come and find you. You should find out for yourself." She answered.
Syaoran stood and headed off to find Takashi, and Meiling soon followed behind.

He met with the tall soldier outside the black tent. "What did you find out?"
"She was working with the spy, who gave her the drug to slip into the queens' food." Takashi answered.
"Was the spy's name Rin?" Syaoran asked.
"Yes. She explained the plan they had for the queen, and you're not going to like it."
"What was Lydia's motive?"
He sighed. "She claims it was to protect her family. Basically, she was told about Sakura's magic and how it was somehow dangerous to us, and we'd be better off without her."
"In other words, they took advantage of her grief and hate for Sakura. So, what is this plan, exactly?" Syaoran murmured.
"They intend to use the queens' ability to hold vast amounts of magic power and release it onto the barriers protecting our country to destroy them, allowing their armies to invade."
Syaoran felt alarm. "But that will kill Sakura!"
"I told you, you wouldn't like it."
"I need to send word to the other kings and call a meeting. It takes time for her body to build up the amount of magic they need, and if we're lucky and Sakura's magic isn't somehow blocked off, she'll stop it from ever reaching that point." Syaoran said.
"What should we do with Lydia?" Takashi asked.
"She can stay in the tent for now as a prisoner. I'll decide her fate when this is dealt with." Syaoran answered. "Did you verify if her husband had anything to do with this?"
"He was uninvolved in everything she did. I allowed him to leave to take care of his son."
Syaoran nodded. "Very well."

After sending off the messenger birds to the three kings, a strong wave of exhaustion hit Syaoran. He made his way over to the bed, the mess having been cleaned up, and he sat down. He was aware he needed sleep, but he was so worried about Sakura he didn't think he could rest.
He looked up as he sensed Meiling's presence; she entered without him having to speak and he noticed the cup in her hand.
"Knowing you, you'll hardly sleep due to worrying about Sakura." She said, "But you need sleep to lead and bring her home. This will help."
He took the cup and investigated the murky water. "What is it?"
She rolled her eyes. "It's a sleeping draught. It will kick in in about half an hour once you've taken it." She replied.
"Thank you." He murmured.
"Drink." She ordered.
He swallowed the bitter remedy and she took the cup from him and left the tent. With a small sigh, he removed his boots and collapsed on the bed, dousing the lights with his usual click of the fingers.