Thirty Three |
Eyes turned to me as I left the arena and hurried down the path towards the castle. Outside, Ayden and Loli stood. I smiled at them, as they hurried over. It warmed my heart to see them so concerned.
"I'm alright," I said softly.
Ayden's eyes dragged across my form, "Your attire, did Lord Roisin heal you?"
"Yeah," I replied with a heavy sigh, "He did."
"He's not with you?"
"No."
Actually, as soon as he healed me, he left saying something about the appropriate attire for the tournament. It made sense, I certainly could not wear ripped clothing. I looked up towards the bright sky, there was so much on my mind and I couldn't help but think of Mama. Fionn and I both had gotten so strong, we had gotten so far and continued to do what she had been robbed of. Tears stung my eyes and I smiled slightly, I know she'd be proud of us. Even of Fionn—no matter how much his heart had frozen.
We returned to my room where I bathed. I allowed Loli to help as she instructed Ayden how to ready my baths and how I liked them. She wasn't wrong, and I was impressed on how much she had observed about me but I said nothing. I was much too tired to argue. They scrubbed the dirt and sweat from my body before dressing me. I was dressed into a lovely pale green gown, a white stay and a pair of black shoes, my hair braided before pinned to the top of my head in an elegant braided bun. As soon as I was fully dressed, there was a light knock at the door. I turned my head, and Ayden moved to open the door.
"Would you have lunch with me?" Eliza asked with a bright smile.
I nodded, my own lips pulling with happiness, "I'd love to."
"Ayden take this time to explore more, Rosa go with her," the princess commanded.
Rosa nodded, "Yes my lady."
"What shall I do?" Loli asked hopefully.
"I do not care."
She deflated as I followed after Eliza, guilt biting at my heart.
"Tough love will be good for her," Eliza reminded me.
I said nothing, simply continuing to chew at my bottom lip.
We settled in the large dining hall where lunch was being served. I noticed the amount of nobles at the table along with Erik, Eliza and the entire royal elemental guard force, including the man who now wore a bandage on his neck. Nervously, I took a step closer to Eliza who didn't seemed to notice and no one seemed to notice our sudden entrance into the room. Instead, we sat at the end of the table and Eliza scooted her chair closer to mine while the servants placed foods and wines at the table.
We were served wild boar stew with salted plums, bread, and blueberries. As we ate, Eliza sipped at her wine while I sipped at my water. I noticed how Fionn was not at lunch with Erik which was a rare occurrence but perhaps his facial wound required more medical attention than expected. I took the time to blend into the table, listening quietly to the tables loud chatter. They talked of the tournament mostly, occasionally discussing other noble families and taking bets as which families will sponsor elementals.
"Lady Roisin," a male voice called, making me flinch, "Are you prepared for the upcoming tournament? Your brother seemed desperate to train you in the space."
My eyes widened as I looked at the man speaking. It was the man whose throat was almost cut by Fionn in the morning. Which meant without Fionn here with me, I was practically thrown to the wild wolves. I straightened my back and stared at him carefully. No doubt the entire guard was enraged that Fionn had kicked them out of the arena—even more enraged that my brother had publicly embarrassed this guard.
"Not at all," I replied, keeping my voice sharp, "However, it is strange that the guard force would be so desperate for the space. You have had years upon years to use it. I have been within these walls for mere months. I believe it is simply polite etiquette to allow us the use."
His eyes narrowed, "Then you have my apology."
"I appreciate that..." I trailed off not knowing his name.
"Emmett. Emmett Triton," he grunted.
My eyes soaked in his attire. He wore the elemental guard attire—which was different than the normal elemental attire. He wore a golden rose symbol upon the flame symbol on his jacket, and a white cloak clung to his shoulders, pinned by golden shoulder gold clips, a sword at his waist. His blonde hair had been carefully brushed back, his facial hair cut short with youth, his brown eyes careful and calculated but the rage behind them was clear. He also had a brush of freckles across his nose—had he not been so annoying, I might even call the older man cute.
"Well Sir Triton," I said slowly, "I appreciate your apology. The Roisin family will remember it along with your morning actions."
"Thank you," he gritted, "I hope to have the honor of facing you in the arena."
The entire room went silent now, all eyes on us. Beside me, I could feel Eliza tense and across the table I could see Erik's eyes darken. He watched Emmett carefully, his hand curled towards him on the table. I kept my calmness, knowing it would be worse for the royal family to have to defend me. So instead, I pushed away my fear and smiled widely, being sure to show off my teeth. Emmett's lip turned up to a sneer but said nothing.
"I hope so too," I replied kindly, "It would be an honor to show you my strength."
"Well now," Eliza chuckled, "Let's keep lunch a brief affair, brother, will you be fighting within the tournament this year? We missed your presents last year."
Attention shifted onto Erik and the excited chatter began again.
Erik smirked, "It was a shame I was sent on a mission last year. This year I certainly will be in the area, fighting along side the guard force. It would be a terrible thing for us to demand a fight but not do so ourselves."
"You're the best my prince!" "We look forward to it!"
I settled down, grateful for the distraction. My eyes dropped down to my stew and I tried not to shiver. I could feel Emmett Triton's eyes staring at me deeply. Despite the delicious food, I was no longer hungry and I reminded myself why I preferred eating in my room.
"Do not worry about him," Eliza whispered in my ear, "He will not harm you."
I smiled weakly at her, "I know."
"I think I'm full now, shall we leave?" she offered.
My head jerked into a wild nod, "Yes please."
"If you'll all excuse me," Eliza said loudly, her voice gentle, "I must retire. I should be practicing as hard as all of you. I've been sloppy with my studies. Good day."
They exclaimed idolized words towards her and I stood quickly, following Eliza out of the lunch area. She walked fast, her long beautiful legs easily stretching across the stone ground. I scurried after her, curious as to where we'd be going.
"I think it was a mistake for men to teach you," she said after a while.
I blinked, "I don't understand."
"My brother, and Fionn, they wished for you to fight with anger correct?"
"Yes, isn't that the way to fight?" I replied confused.
She breathed out, grabbing my hand and leading me outside. We walked through the beautifully decorated archways, heading to a different side of the castle I had not yet seen. It was wonderful however, stone statues scattered everywhere, and not a single person around.
"Men are stupid!" she breathed angrily, "They understand nothing. Certainly not the fine line between passion and anger. I will teach you how to use your powers the correct way, as I should have done before they attempted to fuel foolish rage."
I followed her deeper, we came to a large set of stairs that led down into the ground. I didn't hesitate, trusting Eliza completely. The darkness was barely pushed away by many torches that had been sprinkled across the stone walls. Inside the large underground, I noticed large tunnels decorated as well as one could for this strange underground. It took me a moment to realize that this place was a large spiderweb of underground catacombs.
"Eliza, what are we doing here?" I murmured softly.
She paused her steps but didn't turn around, "We are going to visit my ancestor."
I gasped loudly, "I cannot! I'm not in the position to visit a royal gravesite."
Her feet began moving again, "Hurry up Ara, or you'll become lost. The last person who became lost in these tunnels was found dead weeks later. They can be very confusing."
Swallowing my dread, I followed after her. She was right about the tunnels, they were extremely confusing and terribly but I trusted Eliza completely. I tried to keep my gaze away from the large walls that were lined with stone coffins. Eventually, the room opened up to the size of a room fit for a giant. Around the room was abnormal amount of candles that shone brightly—hundreds of candles that made the room bright and had me sweating. Across the room, a set of metal doors that spanned from the floor to the ceiling. There was no possible way for any human to open them, I thought.
"This room is called the sacred tomb," Eliza explained, slowing her walk, "These candles were placed by those who buried our first ancestor, and they have never stopped burning, never going out. Many have tried, even air elementals but the flames will not stop."
I shivered slightly, "Are they fae candles?"
She turned with surprise to face me, "What do you know of the fae?"
"That they used to exist," I replied softly, being careful not to mention the man from my visions, "That something happened. Something terrible which caused them not to exist anymore, the only things I know of magic are them."
She frowned, "We are lucky they do not exist anymore. They were terrible beasts. However, yes, the candles are of fae magic. We do not know why they work or how. This entire room works the same way. Come, I want to show you."
Unease filled me and I followed her over to the doors. She stopped a few feet away, before lifting her hand. Suddenly, the wind picked up around us. My hands flew to keep the skirt of my gown down, wincing as the wind circled around us. Eliza didn't care how it played with her hair nor her skirt, the look of concentration etched into her face. She let out a noise, throwing both her hands out towards the large doors as they suddenly began to push open.
My gaze pushed past her as the wind settled and I peered into the room, a sudden gasp flying from my lips. My eyes wide as I looked at what was in this grand, tomb.