Chapter 6
Nikita frowned and pursed her lips, then grumbled to herself and threw down her embroidery onto her footstool. On the other side of the room Lady Craft peered at the princess over her book.
“Everything alright, Nikita?” Craft asked.
Nikita looked up at her. “Oh, I’m fine. Just got another stitch wrong.”
Craft nodded and returned to her book.
After a moment, Nikita scooped up her embroidery and swept out of the hall, her two guards falling into step behind her. There had been something on her mind ever since her trip out to the city the day before. The symbol burned in her brain and she desperately needed to find out what it meant. If it meant anything at all.
She quickly returned to her chambers and placed her embroidery in its place before heading to Shards’ chambers. The Duchess was bound to have some ideas - she seemed to know things, things that Nikita had no idea how she knew.
Nikita knocked lightly on the door before entering and found Shards in the outer chamber. She was stood at her desk which was littered with scrolls, all opened and apparently discarded. Shards herself was reading one of these and, as Nikita entered, dropped it onto the table with the others before turning to the shelf behind her. It seemed to Nikita that there were a lot of scrolls on the desk - so many that Shards’ large, secret, book was completely covered - yet the shelves on the opposite wall were still bursting with them.
“Shards?”
The Duchess was muttering to herself, though Nikita only caught one phrase. “Got to be here...somewhere...”
“Shards?”
The Duchess spun around, a bone-handled knife in hand. Where the weapon had come from, Nikita had no idea, she had not seen Shards holding it before. When she saw Nikita, Shards lowered the knife and it disappeared again, back to whatever hiding place she kept it in.
“My apologies, I did not realise it was you,” Shards said politely, hopping down off the ladder she had been stood on.
“I’m sorry to disturb you, it seems you are in the middle of something,” Nikita replied, indicating the piles of scrolls with a sweep of her arm.
“Oh no, it is fine,” Shards smiled. “Can I help you with something?”
“As a matter of fact, you can,” Nikita said, fidgeting nervously.
“Well, what is it?” Shards asked after a moment.
“I was out in the city yesterday, looking at the preparations for the celebrations, and saw something that... I do not understand.”
“Well, I do not know if I can help you, tell me what you saw,” Shards said, removing scrolls from her chair so she could sit.
“There was a person at the edge of the street, I do not know what they looked like, they were cloaked. In the person’s hand they held a strange symbol, made of twigs that had been bent into impossible shapes. It was a triangle, with other shapes attached to each side, on the inside of the triangle. I have never seen it before. I thought...perhaps...you might have some idea...” Nikita told her, wringing her hands together.
Shards thought for a while, her hands in her lap and her head down, looking at the table. Eventually, she looked up at Nikita. “I do not claim to know much about this sort of thing. But I believe what you saw to be a symbol from times old, before anyone alive now can remember. I have my suspicions as to what it might be, though I do not want to tell you if I am not correct.”
“What does it mean?” Nikita asked.
Shards shifted uncomfortably. “As for what it means I do not know. But if I am right about what it is, there is only one in Irallian that can give you the answers you seek.”
“Who?” Nikita wondered hopefully.
“The Soothsayer.”
“The Soothsayer?” Nikita echoed, disbelief evident in her voice. “Forgive me for questioning your advice, but, the Soothsayer is a fortune teller. How will they know what this symbol is?”
Shards stood and stepped through to her bedchamber, Nikita followed after a moment and found her by the window.
“The Soothsayer knows many things, not just the future. He is greatly interested in the past, for he believes that to fully understand what he sees of the future, he must understand the past. He has a great underground library, one which should hold your answer,” Shards informed her.
Nikita was still dubious. “I do not know what the Soothsayer’s library will have that the Royal Library will not.”
“Trust me, Nikita,” Shards said, turning to look her friend in the eye.
Nikita sighed. “Alright.”
“You will find the Soothsayer in the South Western side of the city,” Shards said, and Nikita joined her to look out the window. “His house shares a road with the Black Cat Inn, ask direction for that, and you will find the Soothsayer’s street.”
“How will I know which house is his?” Nikita asked.
Shards’ lips twitched into a grin. “You’ll know when you see it.”
Nikita could see that she was going to gain no more information from the Duchess and hurried to her chambers. She needed to go that night. The following day she would be too busy with the celebrations and she was desperate to find out the meaning of the symbol. She knew it was not wise to go into the city by herself at night. Shards had told her to take someone with her, but Nikita didn’t know who she could trust anymore - she’d have to go alone.
She gave a startled cry as she reached for her chamber door for it to be opened from the inside.
“I’m very sorry, Princess, I did not mean to frighten you,” Lady Mylene said, stepping aside so Nikita could enter.
“It’s alright. I had my mind on other things,” she smiled wryly as her maid shut the door. “How is your father?”
Mylene turned and stared for a moment before speaking. “Oh, he will recover well. He just needs rest now.”
“That is good news,” Nikita said, then went into her bedchamber in search of a cloak to wear. She found one made of a blue cloth so dark it looked almost black, it would certainly do for the city at night.
“My lady, pardon my asking,” Mylene paused and Nikita nodded for her to continue. “But does my lady mean to go out tonight.”
“I do,” Nikita replied, “and I would appreciate it if you told no one of my departure. I should not be too long.”
“But my lady, it is night. You should not be going out at this hour. Do you intend to take a guard?”
“I do not,” Nikita informed her, putting on the cloak and pulling the hood up over her head.
“That is very unwise, my lady, though it’s not my place to say so. There are people out there who...may mean you harm. The city is a dangerous place at night for one of your ranking and for one who does not know the streets. There are some places very unsafe, especially for a lady alone. Please do not go out, my lady. And if you must, please take someone with you,” Mylene begged, following Nikita into the outer chamber.
Nikita paused and turned as Mylene caught up, and frowned. “Mylene, you appear to have a limp, are you alright? Have you been hurt?”
Mylene’s eyes went wide, but they soon returned to normal size. “Oh, I’m fine, it is nothing. Only a small fall, it should not take long to heal.”
“If you need any time off your duties-”
“That will not be necessary,” Mylene smiled.
“Alright, but do not overwork yourself,” Nikita said. “Now, I must leave.”
“I can see I cannot persuade you otherwise,” Mylene said quietly. “Be safe, my lady, and good fortune to you.”
“And you.”
Without another word Nikita slipped from her chambers and glided down the corridors, keeping her hood low. The castle was empty at this time of night, all were sleeping soundly. She had slipped out of the castle unobserved before, when she was younger. She used to sneak out through the servants quarters; there was a door there that lead to the city. It was locked, but unguarded, and it had not been hard to obtain the key the first time she had left that way. She had a copy of the key made, in secret, for her own personal use.
Nikita was nearing the servants quarters when two guards on patrol rounded the corner up ahead and she was forced to turn off her route down a different corridor. There was a small alcove nearby and she ducked into it. She held her breath as she listened to the sounds of the guards’ boots until the corridor was once again silent. Once they had passed she carried on her way and entered the servants quarters unobserved.
It was not long before she reached the door to the city and Nikita unlocked it with the duplicate key and flitted through the doorway out into the courtyard beyond.
She hurried around the outskirts of the courtyard, keeping to the shadows, glancing up occasionally on the guards patrolling the walls high above her. The square was used for deliveries into the castle and was empty at this time. The portcullis was shut, as she had expected. Nikita went to the door next to the portcullis, for which she also had a duplicate key, and slipped through the small gatehouse and into the city.
The streets were incredibly dark, more so than Nikita had been expecting. It had been a long time since she had snuck out of the castle, and never before at night. She held her cloak tightly around her as she hurried through the streets, heading in the south-westerly direction Shards had indicated, and stumbled occasionally on the uneven ground.
There were very few people out at that time of night, and those who were would be found in the taverns - which she made sure to avoid, not wanting to be spotted. It was obvious when there was a tavern up ahead: there would be light spilling from the windows and the distinctive sound of laughter and music.
The cold night air had seeped through her clothes and clung to her as she continued on her way, and by the time she reached the South-West quarter she was shivering. She had no way of knowing where the Black Cat Inn would be, like Shards had said, she would have to ask for directions. But from whom?
“My lady?”
Nikita gave a startled yelp and spun to face the person who had spoken to find herself face to face with Sir Airen standing a couple of metres away from her.
“Princess Nikita?” he said, surprise evident in his tone. His hand had been rested on his sword but now it fell to his side as he approached her. “What are you doing out at this time?”
Nikita stared at him for a moment: she had been caught out at night. Of course, she was allowed to go wherever she pleased, but it was certainly suspicious behaviour. “I am allowed to go where I please, Airen.”
“It is not wise for you to be out alone at this time. Why is your guard not with you?” Airen asked.
“I chose to come alone. There is something I must do,” Nikita informed him, trying to hide the chattering of her teeth from the cold.
Airen frowned, shifting nervously where he stood. “I am afraid I must escort you back to the castle, for your own safety.”
“Please,” Nikita said, taking a step forwards. “It is very important. Please let me on my way, and do not tell anyone that you saw me.”
Airen grimaced. “It is my duty to ensure your safety. If you will not return with me then I must accompany you.”
Nikita contained her frustration and smiled at the knight. “Well then, if you must, then you must.”
She turned on her heel and continued the way she had been walking. Airen fell into step beside her after a moment and they walked in silence.
They had walked down several more streets before Airen spoke up. “Your highness, do you know how to get to where we’re going.”
“Of course I do,” Nikita snapped. Then she stopped and sighed. “No.”
“Well, where are we headed? I might know,” Airen said, turning back to face her.
Nikita opened her mouth, about to say the house of the Soothsayer, when something stopped her. She didn’t want her true destination to be known. “A place on a street where the Black Cat Inn can be found.”
Airen processed this for a moment. “The Black Cat Inn? I know where that is, but I do not understand why you wish to go to such a place.”
“My intentions are for me to know and for you not to know. Can you take me there or shall I wander the streets until I eventually find it?” Nikita said, folding her arms across her chest and raising an eyebrow.
Airen sighed and shook his head. “This way, your highness.” He turned back the way they had come and Nikita followed quickly on his heels.
*
The Glass Hall always seemed most beautiful to Shards at night. Moonlight cast a pale glow over the hall through the glass, domed roof, illuminating the great fountain in the centre. Water trickled from the white, marble mouths of the four faces of the sole god of the Ilsian religion, Oedis, into the wide pool. Ivy that flowered golden buds wound up the stone pillars that held up the flat portion of roof around the edge of the room. White benches were spaced between the columns.
Shards was knelt on the cool, stone floor in front of the fountain, her eyes closed. She wasn’t praying, not exactly, but she found the room peaceful and she seemed to be able to think better there. She had chosen not to light the sconces around the edge of the room, preferring to sit in the pale, natural moonlight.
Frustration had slowly taken over her as she had been unable to find the scroll she had been searching for. It was not long after Nikita left that she had given up the task to seek solitude in the hall. There was something at the edge of her mind, something she knew was there but that she could not quite remember. She wasn’t even exactly sure what it was that she was looking for, which made finding it even more difficult; but she knew it was important, whatever it was.
“Duchess Shards, what a pleasant surprise.”
Shards’ eyes slowly slid open and the face of Oedis stared back at her from the fountain. The voice had spoken from behind her, but even so she recognised it as the voice of Duke Mikaei. He had been standing there for some time. She had heard him enter, but had remained silent, waiting for him to begin the conversation. The Duke probably thought she had not known he was there.
“Duke Mikaei,” she replied, restraining the urge to make a sarcastic quip in return. Her glimpse of the cloaked figure leaving the Duke’s chambers came to the front of her mind.
“What brings you to the Glass Hall on this night?” Mikaei asked in a conversational manner, crossing into Shards’ line of sight.
She watched his booted feet out of the corner of her eye as he moved across the hall. “I seek peace in which to think.” She saw Mikaei’s lips twitch into a grin but she kept her face straight and continued to stare ahead at the fountain. She had always harboured a dislike for the man, but recent events had caused suspicions to arise in her.
“But of course, what better a place. I come here often myself for much the same reason.”
Shards knew that was not strictly true: she frequented the hall often and had not once seen the Duke there before. This she kept to herself though. “One of the greatest pleasures in life is the privilege of having a place in which one can seek solitude.”
“Indeed,” the Duke agreed, continuing to circle the fountain - he was on the opposite side to Shards, now, standing just enough to the side so their view of each other was not blocked by it. “It is the times when there are things on your mind that you realise it the most...” He trailed off and their eyes met, his lips twitched again before he broke the contact and continued around the fountain once again.
There had been something suggestive about the way he had made the last comment. Could it be that he had seen Shards outside his chamber when she saw the person leave? Did he know she was suspicious of him? She attempted to control her racing heart and keep her breathing steady - she shouldn’t assume that, she was probably just being paranoid.
“Times are hard. There is so much uncertainty that it is difficult to know what to think,” Shards said.
“I couldn’t agree more,” Mikaei said with a sweep of his arm as he crossed to her left side. “We must not allow ourselves to be guided by the beliefs of others - we must stay true to our own ideals.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Shards said, imitating the Duke’s previous words. He was barely a metre away from her now, but she refused to look up at him. Even so she could almost sense the wry grin on his face.
“Well,” Mikaei said. “I enjoyed our little conversation, but I think I shall probably leave you to... think...” He walked past her, so close they almost touched and she closed her eyes and listened to his footsteps fade as he left the hall through the single door behind her.