If someone asked me to describe the events for the rest of the day; I won't be able to tell them. One moment I was in the dining room trying to convince my mother I was safe enough to join the rebellion, and then before I knew it, I was standing in front of a long metal tube with four high wheels and many windows. When harmony told me we were taking this death contraption to Majiey, I stared at him in disbelief. I looked over at Leillan and my mother, but they seemed indifferent to the metal tube. In Rycline we had nothing like this. Nothing that transported people in such a way that this thing did. The only way we were able to move around the colony was by foot or horseback.
"You should hurry and grab your stuff Lady Enaye. There is no telling how long you will be in Majiey." Harmony said.
I nodded and headed back inside to grab the long nightgown I had borrowed from one of the many drawers in the pink room. The silky fabric always felt strange against my skin. As if it knew it didn't belong to me. As I was about to leave the room when I saw myself in the mirror. My eyes already looked sunken in and slightly bloodshot from the lack of sleep the past few nights. The color of my face was just as pale as the white bonnet that was tied close to my face, though apparently not tight enough since a few stubborn black curls slipped through and framed my face. I tried to pinch my cheeks to back down to meet back up with Harmony with the nightgown eyebrow in
"Yeah, house fires do have a way of burning up all your stuff," I said with a slight smirk, this earned me a chuckle from him. It was nice to hear him laugh; it was nice to hear anyone laugh. These hall's seemed to be full of nothing but tension and panic lately that the uplifting sound of joy brightened up a room. Harmony's smile appeared to illuminate any room he was in.
We didn't need to wait for my brothers, my mother or Quillian to get ready since they would be joining us later. Harmony said it would be too suspicious if six people just suddenly vanished into the night. My mom also wanted to think of an excellent way to explain the situation to my brothers since they were still in the dark about what exactly was going on. Quillian stood at the top of the staircase and leaned against the glossy wooden railing.
"Is this the time when I get all mushy? Because I've been practicing my fake crying in the mirror all day." Quillian walked down the staircase two at a time in an attempt to get down sooner.
"Is this the time when I give you a lecture on not getting into any trouble while I'm gone." Quillian looked down at me as if he was memorizing me. Deep blue eyes had a look of sorrow to them.
"Everything is okay Cycy, and you have nothing to worry about." though his face and tone made it seem like he was telling the truth I knew him better than to trust that. I watched his fingers tap quickly against his leg. That was a habit both the twins used when they were lying. Before I could push anymore, my mother came into view. She looked distraught and anxious, her short hair sticking up in every direction and a patch around her neck was red from her rubbing it in an attempt to calm her nerves.
I walked over to her and hugged her close to me. I was a bit shorter than her, so I laid my head on her shoulder "I'll be fine." I promised her. I felt her relax only slightly. "I have people to protect me."
" You mean you have leillan? What is she going to do if someone comes after you? Sarcasm them to death?" I know my mother was being serious, but I couldn't help but smile.
"I love you mom" I whispered knowing we had to get going
"I love you too" she gave me a small kiss on the cheek before I pulled away.
As we approached the black metal tub Harmony opened the front door to the metal tube for me, and I closed my eyes as I slid in, Harmony laughed at me. "I am still not sure how you trust this thing" I mumbled to myself. My hands made their way to the shockingly smooth tan leather of the seats. The seats caused goosebumps to rise from my skin from how cold they felt even through my clothing. The tube sat low to the ground made me feel unusually small. The longer I sat in here, the more I leaned into the back of my seat, and the heavier my eyelids felt, it almost as there were stones tied to my eyelids. The last thing I remember was watching Harmony walking to the car before the smell of mint lulled me to sleep.
I woke up to the see Harmony was steering in the front next to me and Leillan was in the back sleeping. Her ginger hair covered her face like a veil, and it made me laugh a bit. Harmony looked over at me for a second and smiled.
"It was good to see you were resting lady Enaye, no offense but you looked like you needed it." his voice was quiet, so he didn't wake Leillan. I sat up in my chair and adjusted my bonnet in the small mirror that hung from the ceiling.
"You don't have to call me lady Enaye. You can call me Cyra is you want." I thought I heard him mumbled my name softly to himself
"That's a pretty name. Does it have a meaning? All pretty names have a meaning."
I starred out the window for a moment, watching the trees' figures flash past us in the dark of night faster than I have ever seen anything move. "My father used to say that it meant sun."
"Where was your fathers this evening? I do not believe I have ever heard your mother speak a word about him." once again he glanced over at me for half of a second before looking back at where he was guiding us.
"My father...he passed about ten years ago." an awkward silence passed between the two of us. I looked over at him to see he was already looking at me, the motion of the tub slowed down a bit. The darkness of night made it hard to decipher his dark features, but I could make out his lavender hair and green eyes that seemed to glow.
"Lady En-Cyra I didn't mean to bring up that topic if you would like to change subjects."
"N no it is fine. It was ten years ago; I barely remember him." That was a lie. I remember my father as if he had just left yesterday. I remember how he used to tuck me into bed at night but only after he checked our room for monsters. My father died in a battle with Vinick when Rycline had an army actually to fight. The day I found out about my father's passing I was alone in the house when a man knocked on the door. That man would hand an 8-year-old a letter that would announce her father's death. "Remin Enaye's noble service will be honored; We are sorry for your loss" was all it would say. That night I didn't cry. I sat on our slowly crumbling porch and waited for him to come him. I refused to move, but with each passing hour, I felt my heart cracking more and more. It wasn't until the next morning when my brother Taj came outside and put his arm around me that I let the pieces of my heart finally fall apart. I cried until my throat felt raw and my eyes had sharp pains. After that day I promised to fill in the place my father left as a provider, protector, and leader. To my surprise, my mother turned out being the one that filled those roles without me realizing.
There was another silence between Harmony and me yet; it wasn't a heavy, awkward silence. It was more "I don't want to push the subject any further" stillness.
"You know, you and Leillan are very different people. It surprises me how you two became friends at all. She is very impulsive and doesn't think before speaking. You put careful thought into your actions." What he said was not funny yet, I couldn't help let out a soft, breathy laugh.
"We lived right next door to each other since we were born. We have gone through everything together. We've gone through everything together. I am not sure where I would be without her." At that moment leillan began to snore from the back seats softly. I turned to look at her. "It was nice to have someone there with you when you are in a rough patch in life rather than doing it alone." From the corner of my eye, I could see Harmony biting his lip softly.
"You know growing up a royal I was never allowed, true friends. So I guess the concept is very foreign to me." I found it strange that someone with someone of privilege was complaining. I always believed people with power and wealth also had the ability to achieve perfection. It seems you never honestly know what struggles a person goes through.
"Well, you're in luck Harmony! Today it seems I have room for one more friend in my gang of misfits." I expected him to laugh at my joke, but instead, he gave me the brightest smile that I could even make out through the almost pitch blackness of night.
"Thank you, Cyra."
The rest of the journey was a mixed experience. When the morning came, and I finally realized how far we were from home, I felt overwhelmed, and my chest felt tight. I was surely convinced I was dying from the say my heart was racing and my inability to catch my breath, but Leillan assured me I was being a wimp and to stop it. But then she allowed me to rest against her until I calmed down. I just hated the feeling of leaving my security. The safety of that small little colony made me feel. I knew that colony inside and out, every person I was aware. Now I was being launched into the unknown.
After that, it was more enjoyable. I spent most of my time pressing my face against the cold glass on the door. Every new thing excited me in such a way I could not describe. It was almost like a small adrenaline rush would pump through me and last just a few seconds.
We were about halfway to the main Majiey palace. Leillan and I were annoying Harmony with endless questions when I viewed first saw it. Another transport like our, only it was almost triple our size, and every inch of it was covered in thick red and grey armor. I looked even closer and noticed on the side nearest up was the symbol of a snake striking through a ball of flame, They were Vinick, and they were rushing at up through the open field with incredible speed.
"H-Harmony" That didn't seem to gain his attention. I felt my muscles tense up.
"Harmony! There is a Vinick transport coming after us!" That time he sure as hell heard me. His head quickly snapped around to glance behind us. A few veins in his neck became very prominent as the dire state of the situation set in.
"Cyra get in the back and get low to the ground." His tone told me that he wasn't suggesting me doing it. He was directing me. With a quick nod, I swung my body over my chair and got into the back, lowering myself near Leillan near the ground.
"Okay now-" He was unable to finish his sentence before the back of our transport got slammed into. The loud smash of colliding and crushing metal nearly blew out my eardrums. Leillan and I quickly gripped todo each other for support. I heard Harmony swearing loudly from the front seat. He accelerated our speed as much as he could to put distance between us and the Vinick's. He made a swift and robust movement behind us and upshot an enormous tree right in front of the Vinick's. But their armor was so thick it just busted right through it.
"Yeah, that didn't work your majesty," Leillan said with an odd amount of anger in her voice.
"You think I don't think I see that?!" he spat back at her "If I can not stop them I need to slow them down enough for us to escape!" They hurled into us once again but this time with more force than the first time. I was driven forward and cracked my head into something sharp. I contained my hiss in pain since the throbbing in my head seemed the least of our concern. Harmony again threw a hand behind us. I glanced up to see he was wrapping strong veins and long grass around the tires. They would break through, but he would lock them back into his plant embrace. Were slowing down but not enough for us to make a clean break. Harmony's face was turning paler than it's natural chestnut color and his skin begun to glisten from the sheet of sweat that had formed.
We soon began to feel the earth become unsteady and transport began to shake.
"Harmony what's going on," I said trying not to sound like I was in a blind panic.
"They must have earth casters with them. They are trying to crack open the ground below us," he announced. I began to bite the end of my fingernails out of stress, a habit I haven't done since I was younger. Harmony then attempted a combination of large trees and veins that were now wrapping around every inch of the transport. Some even getting under the armor and pulling it off, which allowed the trees a more impact full hit. With each tree, the Vinick's would plow through it. Then a larger one would take its place. It took some time, but soon cloudy grey smoke arose from the front of their transport. Which was perfect timing since ours couldn't take another hit. Plus the ground right under us was ready to plunge us into the earth. Seeing the Vinicks slow down and gradually get smaller in our mirror was the single best feeling I think I have ever felt.
No one talked for the rest of the journey. The car was filled with gasps of harmony trying to catch his breath and the angry energy that was emanating from Leillan. I looked over at her from my spot on the ground, and her eyes grew wide.
"Jesus Cyra you're bleeding!" she said then immediately searched around for something. I looked up at her with disbelief before I reached up and touched my forehead. My fingertips were met with thick hot liquid. I ran my fingers down the trail of fluid and looked at it. It was a dark crimson red.
"Well lookie here you're right. I hit my head when we got hit, but I guess I had all my attention elsewhere." Harmony signed and opened a department in the middle of the front seats. He handed Leillan a medium sized bandage.
"Will this do for now? We are almost there. Then I will have may medics look at it." Harmony's voiced was laced with concern, but it was also feeble and hushed. As if he was in pain himself. Leillan snatched the bandage from his hand then began to unwrap it.
"How do you feel? Other than the sizable gash in your head." Leillan asked before applying the bandage to the right side of my forehead. Now that the situation had finally calmed down and my body had begun to relax I was finally able to feel all the symptoms of my head injury. The dizziness, the pain, ringing in my ears and how tired my body suddenly felt.
"Well, I feel like I had just literally been hit by a huge hunk of metal on wheels. Do you think this scar will give me some street cred?" I tried to make light of the situation, but it just led to Leillan glaring at me.
It wasn't long before Majiey came into view. It almost seemed like the glorious kingdom seemed out of place. The various building that laid throughout the kingdom were made out entirely glass with pure white frames around the outside. A mixture of magnificent flowers I've never seen before and veins climbs up every structure and brought the streets to life. The strange thing was, this kingdom was placed in the middle of a sandy landscape that lasted for miles, and there seemed to be minimal signs of rain. So how were these plants still glowing so beautifully? When we finally entered the city, it was like nothing I've ever seen.
Girls with beautiful hair that was not covered my bonnets and clothing that was so dazzling I couldn't tear my eyes off them. So many colors, shapes, and styles I've never seen on a female! And the men hair was mostly bold colors that made Harmony's hair look natural. It was apparent from the second we drove in me, and Leillan would stick out like a sore thumb if we didn't change soon.
"Welcome to my home Cyra and Leillan," Harmony said with a lighter bright tone but still tired. I drew my attention away from the beautiful people outside to bear witness to Harmony's palace.
"Your castle is the size of our colony kingy" Leillan said with a scuff. She leaned back in her seat and crossed her arms. Something was seriously up, and I needed to get to the bottom of it. Who knew if Harmony would allow us to stay here with Leillan mouthing off to him all the time. If Leillan left I would have to as well, I wasn't doing this without her. I looked up at his castle, and Leillan hadn't over exaggerated. This place was undoubtedly about the size of our colony. It stood towering over every other building in the kingdom, and the walls were entirely made out some white crystal that reflected a random when the light reflected off of it. The windows were plentiful, and some even showed an entire room. The garden was the most alluring part of this whole place. There didn't seem to be a single inch of the castle grounds that wasn't sprouting some enchanting plant. We slowly drove up to the cobblestone road that circled the castle and up to a set of wide white crystal staircase.
On the steps, there was a man with long green hair and wore he wore a grey suit with a purple rose in her coat pocket. He seemed to be sweating bullets, and I would even see sweat stains on his white undershirt. He was pacing back in forth impatiently awaiting us to get out.
Harmony exited the car first, I quickly followed. Stretching my aching limbs till I heard a satisfying pop though at this point the whole caste was spinning in my vision, so I help onto leillan for support. She gripped me tightly around the waist to keep me upright.
"Sir I heard of your arrival as soon as you entered the kingdom, and I-I have... Well, it's crucial that you..." If I believed his sweating to be bad before it had only gotten worse. Harmony walked right past him.
"Plase Nikae I am too weak to concentrate on anything, Let me rest and I will call a meeting," Harmony said
"But Sir you really need to hear me."
"Nikae I-"
"The Vinick king has died. They are crowning his son within the week"
{Hello guys! I want to thank you all for the loving support and welcomes I have received lately. It brings my heart joy! anyways here is my question: why do you believe Leillan is so mad at Harmony?}