|45|
You felt as if your mind was in a hundred different places a minute. When you had woken up in the morning you immediately remembered the task that you were to set out on today, and a rippling wave of anxiety took hold of your body once again. And it only made it worse that Judar had shown he was in no hurry to leave. So you had to sit beside him like everything was fine despite almost feeling as if you needed to throw up every few minutes.
You managed to stay collected despite the growing number of concerns you held. It wasn't too early in the morning so workers were scattered throughout the palace by now. You hadn't heard any extreme commotion of a missing maid so if Erina did choose to follow your instructions she seemed to make it out. Unless she didn't listen to you and was continuing to work like normal. You didn't have the availability to check right now so you could only wait to receive your answer.
"I can't believe that hag tried to make me do something today. As if!" Judar had thrown himself across his bed with his head tucked into your lap. He was currently irritated because the Empress had asked him to complete a task for him when he already had plans. Though, he would probably still be just as annoyed if he had nothing to do the entire day simply for the fact that he despised the woman.
You silently listened to him complain. Having no words to say, you decided it would be best to just let him get everything out until he finally decided to leave. You didn't want to mention anything now that he was ranting, he would most likely only get more annoyed and just stay in his room the rest of the day. Although you desperately wanted to ask him if he still had intentions of leaving today you only sighed and nodded your head along with him. Occasionally mumbling small agreements to possibly help him calm down.
While Judar appreciated the fact that you weren't opposing him, he could also tell you were just talking. He frowned against your skin before lifting himself so he was sitting up. You followed his movements as he did so, watching as he lifted his hands to grab your shoulders. Suddenly, the magi began to shake you around, forcing your body to violently rock.
"Pay attention to what I'm telling you!" Easily overpowering him, you stilled your body so he couldn't shake you anymore. Your hands flew to your head while you rubbed your eyes. Judar released his hold on you but crossed his arms to show that he was not pleased.
"I'm sorry, my mind is just a mess." He huffed at your statement, slouching back into his seat. Nervously opening your arms, you watched as he eyed you skeptically before finally finding his place back against you. It didn't take long for him to get comfortable despite your occasional fidgeting and small movements. There was silent tranquility for a moment, one you weren't necessarily opposed to. That was until Judar had to ruin it.
"Ugh fine, let's go." He quickly got up from the bed while groaning obnoxiously. You were startled by his sudden demand, confused as to what made him change his mind all of a sudden. You followed after him to the middle of the room, watching as he tucked his wand into his top and flipped his long hair over his shoulder, quite sassily. Before you could even ask him why he decided to leave now, he answered.
"I'm tired of hearing your anxious rukh all around me. I wanted to leave later when it wouldn't be so hot but I'm sure that hag will try to bother me if I stay longer." You watched as his eyes trailed over you, seeming to look at something you couldn't. 'Most likely the rukh he was talking about.' He let out a dramatic sigh as if having to get up for once was the most tiring thing for him.
"Well come on!" You jumped at his order, quickly following him to the door and out of the room. Blinking in surprise, you didn't expect it to be that easy to get him to leave. He surprisingly held the door open for you before closing it behind him. The maids walking by gave small glances but chose not to pay too much attention. Once Judar had closed the door, he began to walk down the hall and you followed slightly behind him. You noticed that he decided to go a different way than usual but it was most likely to avoid too many people.
The walls of the palace seemed to pass by in a blur. You knew the way you were going, it was practically impossible to not memorize everything with the amount of time you had been here. Yet your mind could barely focus on any of the familiar carvings on turns. You shook your head to try a clear your mind, it didn't matter, you shouldn't overwhelm yourself.
You squinted your eyes as you were outside, the sun a lot brighter than you were expecting. Maybe you should have waited for it to cool down a bit. Oh well, you sure as hell weren't going to say that to Judar when he was already all the way out here. He would probably have a rampage. So you just sucked it up and waited for him to summon the magic carpet.
When the floating cloth finally appeared before you two, Judar stepped to the side so you could get on first. You hoisted yourself onto the fabric and waited for the magi to follow after you. When he did, he glanced around for a second, seeming to be checking for something. After his brief search, the carpet flew into the air and some unknown direction. You had no idea where Serpantina was to this area or how to get there.
You looked towards the dark magi, his eyes were closed while he had his arms crossed over his chest. He didn't seem to be paying much attention to the area which made you worry less and more at the same time. You must have been staring for a bit because he opened one of his eyes to peek at you. He looked slightly annoyed, probably irritated that you were just staring at him.
"What?" You blinked at him, clearly looking confused as to why he was asking you the question. Averting your gaze to the scenery that passed, you tried to think of the best way to word your question without upsetting him.
"Do you know how to get there exactly?" Both his eyes went wide as he stared past you. His eyes then narrowed as if you had just insulted him. Lifting his chin a bit, Judar looked to the side.
"Of course I do! I have a general idea." You sweatdropped when you heard him mumble the last part. It only made your confidence falter more but you supposed you would have to trust him for the time being. You had no idea how long this journey would take but there was nothing you could do to occupy yourself except to stare at the scenery. Well, you could talk to Judar but he already seemed to be moody enough. You didn't want to deal with that, especially in this heat.
Kou seemed to have a lot of forests because you were flying over one once again. Or perhaps it was the same one you had seen last time. There really wasn't any way you would find out without asking but you weren't in quite the mood to talk. You stared at the trees as they passed by, occasionally catching a view of the land beneath. It wasn't the optimal way to spend your time but there wasn't much more to do.
The distance smell of seawater began to weaken so you could only assume you were heading more inland. You didn't know exactly where your country was located on the large continent, but you knew at least part of it was along the water. You also knew that Kou territory currently surrounded all other sides of it which seemed to pose as a disadvantage. The trees beneath you began to increase in distance from each other until the dense forest was a field of grass that stretched for miles.
You didn't know how much farther the country could be, but such a drastic change in the environment had to mean you were getting closer. Looking into the distance, you could see what looked to be mountains. Searching for any memories you had, you could vaguely remember mountains in the surrounding area. You leaned forward slightly to try and get a better look. The magi noticed and looked at you with a raised brow.
"What are you staring at?" You didn't even look at him, simply pointing to the structure in the distance. He followed your line of sight.
"Over there, it looks familiar." His eyes narrowed at the mountains, not thinking they were of any importance. But you probably knew the area better than he did so he would have to take your word for it. Judar directed the carpet towards the area you pointed at, still slightly skeptical but didn't care enough to press on it.
You sat normally once again but kept your eyes trained on the area. There was definitely something about it you recognized but you wouldn't know the answer until you got there. Judar had gone back to relaxing with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. Out of the corner of your eye, you could see his long hair being blown by the wind. You reached out to grab the long, banded hair. He didn't react as you pulled it out of the air and into your lap so it would stop flying in the wind. You probably just saved his hair from getting messy.
On the ground, you could see slight movement. Looking down, you noticed that there was a caravan heading in the same direction you were, albeit much slower. That had to be a good sign. There weren't many reasons a group of people could be heading for the mountains. It didn't take long for you to pass the travelers and you waved at them as you flew by, fully aware that they could not see your actions.
As you neared the mountains, you realized they were closer than you initially thought. 'Is my eyesight really that bad?' The carpet approached the mountains, which looked a lot more like extremely tall hills now that you were close. They lacked that rocky terrain you associated with most but that didn't take from the fact that they were extremely tall. You could hear the sound of running water meaning there was most likely a river or two nearby.
"So, where do we go now?" You turned towards the priest, blinking at his question. He was staring at you, expectantly. You really hoped he didn't expect you to memorize the way there but given the look on his face, he did. Scratching the back of your neck in thought, you glanced between the mountains.
"I think between there..." His eye twitched at your words. He glanced from you to the valley, and then back to you.
"What do you mean you think?"
"Well I don't know cause I haven't been here in years. But I just have this feeling." He eyed the valley suspiciously as if there was something about it he didn't trust. If there were any threats he could probably eliminate them but it gave him an off feeling.
"If we get lost you're walking the rest of the way." You knew his threat wasn't serious, or you hoped. The carpet was soon moving between the mountains, lowering a bit so you could look out for anything on the ground. The bottom of the valley looked like it was being used as some sort of pathway so you crossed your fingers in hopes that you had been right. Luckily, Judar didn't notice or he would probably start complaining you would get him lost.
The carpet was only a few feet above the ground as you glided through the air. The valley was a lot longer than you originally thought but it seemed like a straight path for the most part which was good. If you had gone the wrong way it would be easy to find your way out. You noticed the magi squint at something before the carpet began to gradually speed up. You had to adjust your position slightly to make sure you didn't fall off.
Hearing running water once again, you looked around for the source. There seemed to be a stream or river starting near the top of the mountain and falling along the side. You couldn't see where it let out but you knew it couldn't be too far. The carpet continued to fly through until it finally escaped the valley. When it did your eyes went wide and you let out a gasp.
"So you were right."
In front of your very eyes was the country you had been taken from so long ago. Your mouth went slack as you looked around. The city you were currently in was a lot more modern than you remember, probably due to both bad memory and outside influence. Buildings lined the area and the river that you had heard earlier connected to a channel of water that went underneath a bridge. While it wasn't bursting with life, you were still surprised and pleased to find that there were people. More than you expected.
"If I remember correctly, this is the city Fela. My parents said anyone new to the country would always come here first." Judar let out a noise of confusion while he looked around. He truly wasn't expecting the country to be nearly as sophisticated as it was for being without rule for so long. Not only that, but it was a lot larger than he was expecting. He turned back to glance at the mountains surrounding them.
"So they used those mountains to protect themselves for so long. Hmm, clever I guess." You disregarded his comment, too busy in awe to care. It seemed as if your eyes naturally found anyone who looked the slightest bit similar to you and a large smile came to your face. 'So there are still some Serpantines living here.' You probably could have just watched the scenery for hours if your lover hadn't started groaning.
"Is it always so hot here? I thought the mountains would make it cooler!" You turned to him with a small glare and a frown. He looked almost miserable but you knew him too well. He was definitely being overdramatic. He fanned himself with his hand yet you couldn't see nor smell any sweat on him. You gave him a blank expression, gathering your thick hair and lifting it off your neck to show that he really shouldn't be the one complaining.
"So where's the palace?" Of course, his sole reason for bringing you. He simply wanted to find some way into the royal palace in an attempt to snatch up whatever was in there. Was there even still anything in there? You wouldn't know until you actually got in the building. Pointing further into the country, you set a determined gaze in the direction.
"That way... The center of the country." He turned his head in the direction and hummed. The carpet raised a few feet once again before it took off further into the city. The sudden acceleration luckily wasn't enough to send you toppeling backwards. People turned their heads towards the sky as you flew past, some looking far more in awe than others. Many of them had probably seen magicians or other magic users come by before.
As you flew over, you didn't expect the city to be as well-maintained as it was. Perhaps it was the few people living there that decided to take care of the area. You otherwise wouldn't have expected it to look so well, especially after a war had taken place. The water channel flowed throughout the city, with a few bridges to provide passage over them. Most of the buildings still looked intact despite the few collapsed ones. There were plants growing and you would occassionally see an animal wandering.
It almost looked as if the kingdom was fine.
"There!" You turned to the magi, not having to expected him sound so enthusiastic. But when you saw the look in his eyes, you knew it was closer to sadism than enthusiasm. Turning to look in the same direction he was, you could begin to see the faint outline of what appeared to be a gate. Your eyes narrowed, it looked a lot smaller than you remembered.
Judar leaned forward a bit with a strange grin on his face. The carpet sped up in response to his motions and you almost felt sick to your stomach. This was what he wanted all along, so why did you feel so much worse about it now? Staring at the ground, you could only watch everything go by as you got closer to the gate.
It didn't take long. A shadow soon covered over your form and you had to look up to realize that the gate was towering over you, and it was much larger than you had originally thought. So your memory wasn't too far off. Past the intricate detailings and carvings you could begin to see part of the actual palace. However, the walls surrounding it blocked most of the view. You heard Judar grunt, sounding as if he was annoyed.
"We need to go higher." You turned to him with a raised brow.
"Huh?" It had barely left your lips before you felt the carpet angle upward and zoom up. A small gasp left your mouth, your arms going to wrap around the magi who seemed to have no problem staying still. Unlike him though, you didn't have magic to keep you from falling to your death, so you had to rely on this. Your arms around his body tightened as the carpet went higher, your fear level only rising with it.
When it finally came to a stop and leveled out, you practically fell onto the high priest. More so your upperbody fell across his lap in some weird and uncomfortable angle. You could practically feel him grin down at you, probably in amusement as you tried to adjust yourself.
"I know you like it on top but you might want to look."
You ignored his inappropriate joke despite your face physically showing signs of reactions. Finally managing to lift yourself off of him, you brushed your hair out of your eyes to clear your vision. You looked down like he told you to and your eyes went wide. From the height that you were, you could see the entirety of the Serpantina Palace, and it was nothing short of elegant. The wall wrapped all the way around to keep the palace secured within, and the design seemed closer to that of Sindria than Kou. Truly amazed, you couldn't help but lean forward.
"Oh wow."
♥
Word Count: 3228
|Sep. 27, 2021|
You guys are probably like "you ugly bitch why did it take you so long to update". Well I would like you to know, cookie run is a very addicting game. But jk I actually had to start my classes and do actual work again. I know booooooo. But yeah my ass is fat hope everyone has a great day <3
Don't remember if I used that gif before but oh well
Update:
Crying myself to sleep