"How was the campaign?" Mom asks me as I enter the dining hall, placing my sword on the table.
I grin as I see the eagerness in her eyes. "I think it was my best battle yet. Everything felt so effortless, and nothing went wrong. It was amazing. We did not even suffer a single casualty," I boast proudly.
"Wow that is amazing!" Little Felicity, one of my many cousins, beams beside me.
I mess up her hair with my hands playfully, causing the child to squeal.
"Nivia, no games at the dinner table the same for you Feli," my father scolds.
"Really? Let her have some fun, she just conquered one of the primary cities of the Terra. That's quite a step up from the towns and much smaller cities," my aunt, Winter, steps in.
"She needs to learn table manners."
"For who? We do not have good foreign relations and everyone else in the empire is no different to us. So unlike all those people she will not need it to impress some foreign dignitaries. If anything they need to impress her."
I smile widely at my aunt's argument. Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like to have Winter as the Empress. She is a wonderful leader and when she was a teen she was a wonderful fighter I heard, but that was before she lost a leg and an arm after being attacked by the Terra during a hunting party. The reason for the war. To make sure we are not taken advantage of by the Terra anymore.
"You make a good point Winny. Alister, relax. There is nothing wrong with letting our beautiful crown princess relax and play around a little," mom says elbowing dad in the side, making the whole table giggle.
"But at dinner- Fine," he surrenders in defeat.
I laugh at him whilst dishing up my plate of food. It is cold, I guess that's what I get for losing track of the time and being late to dinner.
The ground shakes. I look down. Cracks meet in the ice. I jump back to avoid falling in the trench. The wind knocks me back and when I rise to my feet the castle is gone. We are outside. All of us. But they are not with me. There is a small crack between us.
"Come Nivia!" They shout, calling me to them.
I run to them, stopping myself on the edge as the crack widens.
"Jump Nivia!" They call to me.
I take a breath, walking back, and I run. I run forward and I jump. My outstretched hand reaching for theirs.
An invisible barrier stands between us all. It stops me.
I watch the trench widening and my column of ice gradually getting lower.
My clenched fists bang on the invisible force. The barrier that separates us. I must pass it. I cannot lose them. They are my life; I cannot live without them. I need them. I need them all. I cannot lose them. Life is meaningless without my friends and family. I would die without them.
The ice begins to do more than drift away. The ice I am on cracks. The shards that fall off, descend down into the darkness of an abyss.
I look at the shrinking figures with their outstretched hands. Why can I not reach them?
The ice crumbles beneath my feet. There is nowhere left to flee. It all crumbles, crashing down.
I end in a cold pit of ice.
They are all gone. They cannot come here. I am alone.
I jolt up in the bed. Beads of sweat drip down my skin. I cannot stop the tears that are swelling in my eyes. I am in the exact same bed as I used to sleep in, but nothing feels the same. It feels so lonely being without anyone.
No horde of cousins barging in at 1 am for "secret" sleepovers. No guards rushing in, worried about the screaming only to find girls squealing at the latest gossip or any interesting topic. I cannot tell them stories about my adventures, occasionally overexaggerating to see the excitement and anticipation on their faces.
The room that has so many memories feels bland and empty. It looks the same, but it feels so horridly foreign. As if I do not belong in it.
I slip out of my room. A nice walk always used to clear my mind, maybe it will work now as well. A nice midnight tour.
I am probably being too harsh on this place and time. Things change. I could not have expected them to live forever just like I could not have expected the buildings to remain the same. People change, culture changes. Maybe there is something that will give me some peace and solace. Something I can invest my time in. Something that is not fighting.
"I say we just take her to a lab!" I hear someone exclaim.
I rush down the stairs to the sound. I see the council hall and I sneak closer, standing behind the door. Listening in to council meetings in secret, just like when I was a child.
"I agree. Her ice, it is strange and unique. If we can get samples of blood and skin, we can study if there is some change between her and us. It might be possible to recreate the ice that made these buildings. Imagine the money the empire would make from her."
I glance in to the meeting. A hall filled with grumpy old men and the King. Grumpy old men? Where is everyone else? This cannot be the entire council. There are no women, no young men. It is just them.
And their words are scaring me. I wait for some interjection. Ant at all.
They keep agreeing. They add more and more. They keep talking about me like some inferior thing. I am not human to them. A relic or artifact is more appropriate. Such treatment I cannot accept. But bursting in would go badly. I am a master of my element, but I am weaker, and that Ignius King... Yes I could have beaten him once. He is strong but I would not say he dedicates his life to mastering his element. Now I cannot beat him. Not with the ice in my veins having lost their practice. I would need an army anyway.
"Why not just let her live like a normal citizen?"
That voice breaks through. The King. Did he just vouch for me? I feel hope and excitement. He has to change their minds. But surely a day or two is not enough to convince him that I am not in the wrong. I did attack him. Maybe it is just his sense of justice.
"A normal citizen you say?" Valion repeats, a hint of humour in his voice. It is as if he finds it amusing, funny even.
"Yes exactly that," firm and unchanging, the King says.
I can imagine a stone-cold glare with those words. He is firm set on his course of action, giving me a rush of relief. He seems influential.
"You must be out of your mind. That uncivilized thing knows only violence. A creature of war has no place as a normal human being. It is peace time. I do not need a war-minded thing trying to kill us all. You saw that thing. When cornered all she does is attack. She threw ice at a council man. She does not belong with society."
I can picture a spine of ice growing beneath his seat. Slowly growing up and up before impaling him, spewing his blood everywhere. I cannot do that. I cannot justify his picture of me. He deserves it though. Keeping me to be studied. Used. I do not know what they can do but it will be bad. I cannot let this rage get the better of me. I cannot kill him.
"I assure you that Princess Nivia is not a wild animal. Do you call your founders animals? It may be a time different to her own, but she is still one of you. Will you tell me that you intend to abuse and exploit one of your own?"
"We will do exactly that. The girl is filled with treasure. Secrets of the past. We can cut them out of her. She is not meant to be here. She is just like any artifact. Imagine the things we could discover from her. It would be worth the pain; I doubt she feels any pain regardless."
My hands clamp over my mouth, they mute any sounds threating to escape my mouth. How can they- how can they do such a thing! They are just as bad as the Terra. The Terra, as bad as they are, at least have hearts. More of a heart than people wishing to use me. The way they speak, it is horrible. It is beyond evil. I thought they might have helped me. I know I am not perfect. I did horrible things, but I did not torture people. I did not slice them up and keep them alive. I made it quick, and I had a reason. If I did not conquer them, they would hurt my people. They would pillage, kidnap, and attack us. What I did was to protect people. What can these people say to justify their actions? Who are they protecting by torturing a single woman who just wants to be left alone?
The King fights back against them again, "This is immoral, how can you justify such an act."
"We know the stories of the princess, a cold-hearted killer, a war machine. Think of it as retribution for war crimes."
War crimes. A cold-hearted killer. Is that what they think of me? He never said the stories were good or bad. I just thought it was good. I was a hero. I fought for them. I can admit that my actions were immoral, but I did them to protect us. I am no villain. Do they know what would happen if I did not fight? If there was no war they would have been born slaves, if they were born at all.
"War crime trials were forbidden by the tri-nation treaty. As such, punishments for involvement in the war. Punishing her is out of the question."
"Look here. This is just a case where the pursuit of knowledge takes precedence over the life of one silly girl. We asked for your opinion not for you to intrude with your international laws. What happens to one of our own is our own business. I hope that is clear to you, your highness."
Why are they doing this? I do not want to be hurt. How was anything I did wrong? I do not understand. Does that make me some vicious monster to them? I was protecting our people. I was defending them against the evils of the other nations that tried to harm us. How could they not see that?
"I thought this was about punishing her for a war. A war that I know all sides felt was just at the time. Choose a standpoint and reasoning and stick with it. Is all you want to hurt an innocent woman."
"She is far from innocent."
"If she is so corrupt and deranged, why did she try to protect your daughter from me when she thought I was a threat. If you pursue knowledge I am certain that she would gladly share her culture and abilities with you. But forcing her and dehumanizing her, is no way to treat anyone," the King argues.
I can hear his fists slamming on the table of ice. Hard. Banging against it. A sound that echoes through the hall.
His support is rather heart-warming, but it cannot change that I am going to be hurt. He does not live here. Once he leaves, they will cut me up and hurt me. I do not even know what I did wrong to deserve such to happen.
. .
A/N
Thanks for the support. I hope you all enjoy the chapter.