Lorelle dabbed at the wound on my back.
"Why would you fight Prince Xavier in the first place?" she asked, her delicate hands using a starch white towel to staunch the bleeding. I winced.
"He challenged me," I mumbled.
"I wouldn't fight him even if he paid me a million gold coins," she giggled.
"No, I'm sure you would." I straightened my back and yawned.
"That's true," she nodded, "I definitely would. But still. Isn't he the most skilled fighter in Astodia?" Lorelle set the scarlet stained cloth aside and picked up a roll of bandages.
"Not as skilled as I am. It's just that people don't know I exist. That's why he's at the top at the moment," I said gruffly as she wrapped the bandages carefully around me.
"Stitches?"
"I need this wound shut."
"Stitches it is." She disappeared for a few seconds, ordering a few maids around and then came back in, hiding it behind her back. "Don't be intimidated by the needle."
I rolled my eyes. As the needle poked through my skin, I breathed out evenly.
"So," Lorelle said, trying to make conversation and take my mind off the pricking, "If you don't mind me prying, why do you have such a rivalry with the prince?"
"I do mind you asking, actually," I said, resting my chin on my fist, my legs crossed and my back bent over, the sheets balled up in my fist against my chest to cover myself.
"If I were in your place," she continued, as I felt another painful pinch and the feeling of the thread being pulled, "I would feel lucky. He actually talks to you. I doubt any of us girls would ever be able to dance with him in a ball, according to our statuses," she sighed dreamily.
"But you're not in my spot and you should be very, very happy about it," I retorted. She waved the comment aside like it was a pesky gnat.
Lorelle giggled. "One day our wishes will come true too. After all, we're humans, even if we work for other humans. We'll all get our prince one day, even if he's just a small servant boy. It matters what's in your heart."
I stayed quiet, her words echoing in my head. I never gave a second thought to the workers around the castle, their lives, what they did, what they received and how much they gave. I never really cared. It was none of my business.
Not that I paid a lot of attention or that it mattered to someone like me, but I did realize something from Lorelle's words. No matter how low they were treated, how ignored they were, they had friends. They cared about each other. They all had someone to back them up.
"Is that so?" I raised my eyebrows. "Well I hope you find your prince. But I'm never going to find my prince, nor will he ever come looking for me. I don't need one," I responded curtly, rubbing my eyes as the needle went through again, making tiny holes through my skin and guiding the thread.
"Never say never," she said, a smile in her voice as usual. "Like I said, everyone has a prince. Yours is probably waiting for you to rescue him, instead of him looking for you."
I pretended not to hear that.
"Done," she said, gently dabbing at my back. "Just rest, please. I'll go check on Prince Xavier," she smiled and I groaned, falling backwards on my bed as lightly as I could. "Careful," she warned.
"Tell him to stay away from me," I said, closing my eyes and rolling myself in layers of sheets.
"Will do, m'lady," she bowed.
I grabbed a knife from the utility belt and held the tip, aiming, and threw it. The blade sunk right in the center of the dartboard.
"Bullseye," I smirked, grabbing another one. I had five laid out on my sheets in front of me. I'd used four. I threw it again and it landing next the other one, the aim sharp. Bullseye again. I picked up another one and aimed.
As soon as I was about to throw, the door swung open, diverting my attention throwing it there instead.
Xavier ducked just in time as it flew past his ear, burying itself in the wood.
"What did I do now?"
"Knock!" I yelled and threw my covers over my head. "Get out."
"Alright, m'lady, but first tell me how the stitches are doing."
I uncovered my face. "How do you know I have stitches?" My mouth formed an 'O' shape.
Lorelle. That little blabbermouth.
"The girl was fixing up my shoulder and telling me about my princess that was going to show up one day," he laughed. "I bet it's going to be Dystalphi's princess. She's fairly beautiful, is she not?"
I rolled my eyes. "Good luck with her. I bet she's way more in love with those springy curls on her head she's always playing with than a prince."
We burst out laughing at the same time, but I was quick to end it.
Silence hung in the air. Xavier fingered the door handle carefully. "Have I hurt you?"
"I'm fine," I said abruptly, waving him off. "I'm used to it," I lied. Pain was pain, and even I couldn't fight that. But as the saying went, "fake it till you make it". I could fake immortality long enough.
"Good," he nodded. "You won't murder me though, will you?" his genuine smile was back. I couldn't help smiling at the sincerity of his voice. The sparkle in his honey-gold eyes was back.
I bit the inside of my lip to keep from laughing at him. "No. You put up a fair fight. I'll spare you."
His grin was wide and almost contagious. I had to look away to keep it from rubbing off on me. A smile was enough. "Are you leaving?" I asked.
"She's a nice girl, isn't she? Lorelle?" Xavier said, still gripping the door handle with one pale hand.
"Yes." I furrowed my eyebrows. "What's wrong with you?"
"What?" he looked down, and I realized he seemed oddly distressed. "I don't know," he shrugged. "Maybe something I ate." He blinked his golden eyes a few times.
The color from his face was draining rapidly, and I stood up, throwing off my covers and tugging my shirt down. "Xavier, what's wrong?"
"I'm fine. It's nothing," he waved his hand, but I knew what was coming. I'd seen this before. I grabbed his arms and pulled him out the hallway, gripping him tightly and supporting him. I felt the pulse on his wrist. His heartbeat was too slow to be normal.
"Guards!" I yelled. I could hear the panic in my voice. "Help! Somebody come here immediately!"
A few guards came quickly towards us. I felt Xavier squeeze my arm in an iron grip. My arm was around his waist, supporting him. As the guard touched his arm, he slumped, his eyes drooping.
My hands were shaking. How could this happen? Wasn't Xavier guarded at all times? There was no way this could be happening.
I tried to clear my head and take a deep breath.
Xavier hadn't just fainted, ruining his manly reputation, but he'd shown all the signs of one thing.
It was poison.
The prince had been poisoned.
I felt his pulse as King Sadim stood beside me.
"It's a slow acting poison," I finally concluded, swallowing. "He has a few weeks, but it's going to be very painful. I've seen it in action before. All we can do is hope it doesn't destroy his liver."
The King looked almost as pale as Xavier. "Antidote?"
I rubbed my face, and for the first time, I was confused at what to do. "No," I whispered. "Only the creator has the antidote. There are many poisons with these symptoms and I can't give him the wrong antidote. It'll make things worse. We just need to find out who did this and why."
"Rebels," was the only thing he muttered as he dismissed everyone in the room with one wave of his hand.
"There's no proof," I said, after the room was empty. "We need something solid."
"It's them. You need to get in there as soon as possible. I don't care what you do, but I'm not losing my son." He took a long, grievous look at Xavier, and then he turned, exiting the room. I looked at Xavier.
His eyes opened halfway, as he grimaced.
"How are you feeling?" I asked.
"Perfect," he muttered hoarsely, cracking a smile. He put a hand on his chest and winced. "Is this where I die?"
"No," I said. "No, Xavier. I'll find the antidote as soon as I can, alright? Stay alive."
He coughed, and even that seemed to put him through pain. "I didn't think you'd care," he rasped.
"Well you were wrong," I said, turning my back to him. I tried not to look worried for his sake, but I couldn't help myself. I was already imagining the empty hallways without Xavier's boisterous laughter and his scarring pranks. What would I do without him?
I felt empty thinking about it.
"You do have a heart," I heard him chuckle softly.
"If you were gone," I said so quietly, "I'd be lonely." It was too quiet. I was beginning to think he hadn't heard me, breathing out a sigh of relief.
"So would I," I heard him say. I turned around, surprised. "Now get that antidote," he said weakly, his voice cracking, "so I can tease you about this for the rest of your life."
I couldn't find the strength to move. If I left, would he die? What if I was wrong and it wasn't a slow acting poison? What if he only had a few days? Hours? Minutes?
Seconds?
"Go, Adalia." He grabbed my hand, giving it a squeeze. "I'll stay alive for your sake. But hey, if I ever become a ghost I'll have the pleasure of haunting you for the rest of your life and you won't be able to kill me."
I scowled. "I will not let that happen." I waited for him to let go of my hand, and then I turned and walked through the open door. As I closed it behind me, I saw him smile, a big contrast to his sickly face. I finally felt the effect on my lips. I smiled, feeling the weight of my own heart.
I stuck two knives in my boots. I couldn't take too many weapons with me, or else they'd become suspicious. I had to leave my beloved sword behind.
I pulled on a battered old shirt and comfortable pants that were ripping at the knees. The boots came up right above the calves, and the soles were dug out under the flaps to hide my knives. I pulled on the boots and let my hair loose, not bothering to brush it or wash up for the sake of giving myself the "I am needy of your help" look. I was a master of disguise, but then again, nobody knew I existed so my experience didn't really matter.
I wrapped a dirty moth-eaten cloak around my shoulders and put up the hood, locks of dark hair tumbling from the front.
After notifying the King of my departure, I left to the stables where my horse was saddled and waiting, pounding the floor with his hoof impatiently. As I sat on the horse I realized the bruises from the battle with Xavier actually completed my look, like I'd been attacked. That would come in handy.
After I was done and I looked like I'd fallen through dozens of thorn bushes, I kicked the chestnut horse and we departed.
The rebel base where the Leaders stayed hidden was the main base. It was located nearest the Kingdom walls, close to the gates on the inside. It was amazing how they hid it so well.
After a lot of riding, I reached the outer edge of Astodia; the ring right before the gates. The map I'd created after gathering information told me that here was one of the five bases. The other four were present beyond the gates that protected the upper class.
The kingdom went out for miles outside the gates, but my job was to infiltrate the base that was closest to the castle. Except there was one problem.
I couldn't tell where it was. Every house, cottage, home, looked the same. Quickly trying to find a way to attract attention, I pulled on the reigns to bring the horse to a stop. Clicking my heel twice, I prayed the blade would come out of the tip of my shoe. As I looked down, it popped open.
"Sorry," I whispered to the horse and twisted my foot, aiming the blade at the horse's side, and pushed it in. The horse screamed, backing up on its two back legs and throwing me off. I turned just in time to land on my knees, scraping them in the process, as sharp stones cut in to my skin. The horse turned furiously, stamping its hooves inches away from my body. I stumbled away, crawling on all fours, and started shout, "Help! Somebody please! Help me! They're after me!" Tripping on my cloak, I staggered away, realizing I'd twisted my ankle in the fall.
This wasn't going as planned, and I realized it was much more real than staged.
The horse reared in front of me, and I knew if it wasn't stopped I would be trampled in a few seconds. I covered my eyes with my arm, and waited for the bone-crushing blow, when suddenly, I heard a loud thud next to my ear. I slowly opened my eyes to find the horses hooves stamping in frustration next to my face. I rolled away, gasping for breath.
"Whoa there," a soft voice crooned. "Calm down. It's alright, I've got you."
I stared at his face for a couple of seconds, and then realized what I was supposed to do.
"Who are you?" I asked, my voice dry. I was supposed to be a helpless maiden in distress, and at the moment I'd made it very realistic. I pulled my hood back and my dark hair tumbled out, trying to give him a better view of my bruised face.
"Me? Who are you?" the boy said with a smile, kneeling beside me and holding out one gloved hand. I noticed his thumb, index finger, and middle finger were bare while the other two were covered.
"Me? I'm . . . I'm Kristina," I replied, using the first name that popped into my head.
"I'm Lance," he said as I held his hand. "What brings you here?"
"I'm running away," I whispered hoarsely. "Don't tell anyone. They'll be looking for me. I heard if I hide with the rebels, I'll be fine. I just can't seem to find them."
He pulled me to my feet, light hair brushing his bright green eyes. He looked like a fighter. He was lean and slim, but not as tall as Xavier, even though he was a lot taller than I was. His white sleeves were rolled up and he had a buttoned green vest on top, brown pants and the usual boots. Impressive. "But who are you running from?"
I leaned close to his face so nobody except him could hear me, even though no one was around us at the time. "The guards," I whispered.
He raised his eyebrows. "What did you do to get them after you?"
"Nothing," I shook my head as tears started to brim my eyes, blurring my vision. I wiped them quickly, embarrassed, and said, "I worked at the castle. I stole to feed my family, and now they're after me." I cut it down short to make it seem that I didn't want to talk about it, and he got the gist. "I hate them."
He brushed his thumb against my bruised cheekbone. I had Xavier to thank for that. "Well, we have to get you cleaned up. Will you come with me?"
"Where will we go?" I asked, clearly confused inside and out.
"You don't like the King?" he said quietly.
"No. He's unfair and he has got everyone on his side. But I've witnessed his cruelty firsthand," I said, putting up my hood again.
He helped me onto my horse before mounting his chestnut mare.
"Where are we going?" I repeated, not wanting to stick around him any longer.
"We are going to a special place to save people like you from the King."
I hid a smirk behind my hood.
I'd done it.