I tried to walk back to the throne room, but when Zydan saw me in the halls, he stopped me in my tracks.
"Where do you think you're going? And why do you look like you've seen a ghost?" He crossed his arms over his chest and leaned his back against the wall.
"The coronation? I need to get back in there," I said with a puzzled tone.
"The other maids will get him for now if he needs anything. You have to get ready for the ball," I guess I was so focused on the coronation that I had forgotten there was even a ball at all. The worst part was I barely knew how to dance. Zydan began to escort me to my room so I could get ready when I got an idea: If I would be able to get out of this ball, I could find Quillian and get him out while everyone was preoccupied.
"Do I really need to go to this thing? I mean the other maids aren't going so why do I?" Zydan put his arm around my shoulders.
"What? Are you too afraid I will out dance you on the dance floor? You need to go because Arksel wants you there. He is not the most..." He tilted his head back and forth as he thought. His long braided hair swung behind his back gently "flexible person when you go against his wishes; it puts him in a bad mood," I looked up at him and forced a smile.
"Is Arksel ever in a good mood?" I said, stuffing my hands into the pockets of my skirt. Zydan let out a low, breathy chuckle.
"He is like a crabby depressed old man most of the time, but there are spare moments that he shows who he used to be," Zydan explained. How did he use to be? So Arksel wasn't always so sharp and unpleasant. We approached my room, and I paused.
"What happened to him? I mean what changed him..." I asked
"His father, In my opinion, the old king is better dead than alive. He was a wicked king, but only Arksel truly knew the extent of his cruelty," Zydan pushed my door open and said his goodbyes before leaving. "Oh and I asked Aleta to help you get ready since I am guessing by the way you normally do your hair... You'll need help" I opened my mouth to protest, but when I glanced in my room there, there she was. Aleta sat on the chair in the corner upside down as she watched a small flicker of flame dance across her fingertips. She wore what all the other soldiers wore to the coronation. Aleta wore a thick black vest that had a cluster of all her badges on the bottom right section. A dark grey undershirt with the crest of the kingdom on both shoulders, thick black belt where some held a gun or sword, but Aleta's was bare since she was her own weapons. Her fire no doubt could do more damage than any of their weaponry. The one thing that set her apart from the rest was her boot; they ran up her legs and hugged her thighs tightly. Shiny black boots that had silver studs running down them.
She noticed me enter the room, and she flipped off the chair and onto her feet, a bit dramatic but effective way to get out of a chair. Her bright red hair was messy but beautiful; I guess that was one way you could explain Aleta in general.
"You going to keep staring at me?" she put her hands on her hips. I snapped back to reality and walked into my room, shutting the door behind me. I didn't want to be near her. She burned down my colony, and she attacked Majiey, which caused Leillan to get stabbed. I could only assume that wasn't her first times attacking the innocent and definitely won't be her last. She walked over to the big darkly painted wardrobe and pulled out a dress that was wrapped up in a cloth.
"The faster we get you ready, the faster I can go, and your room depresses me," She talked in a very bored and irritated tone, I shifted my weight from one foot to the other as she slid the dress out of the cover. It felt like hours of Aleta poking me with random object on my face and tugging at my hair before she deemed me worthy of putting the dress on me.
"What did you put on my face?" I asked since she refused to let me look in a mirror till the end.
"Oh, you know just stuff and thing," Aleta moved her hand around in circles as she gave me the world's most vague description. I pressed more, but she seemed too stubborn to tell me anything. My skin felt hot with irritation every second of her being around me. She didn't seem to like me too much either, though I don't think she liked anyone from how many people she threatened to fight on a daily basis.
"Not to be egotistic but I did a hell of a job on you," she walked over and sat back down on the chair, resting her legs over on arm and her back over other. I walked over to the mirror to finally see what she had been doing to me. What I saw wasn't me. It was me, but it wasn't at the same time. It was an odd feeling to look at yourself in the mirror and not recognize your own reflection.
She had straightened my hair, so only the very ends curled slightly, my eyes had sharp black lines on them that made my eyes more intense and alluring, my lips were plumper and bright red. But, the dress was something that made look like someone I didn't know. It was a long soft blue dress that had no back except had a few straps that laced together to and the front had a heart shaped top that hugged my curves perfectly, had intricate designs and jewel beading that took my breath away. It was tight until it reached my waist, then it puffed out slightly.
"Okay princess it's time to go," Aleta said, mocking me from my doorway. "I made you hot now I got to make myself even hotter. Which shouldn't be too hard" She tossed me the mask I needed to wear. I attempted to follow her quickly, but my heels slowed me down a lot.
"Aleta wait! Where am I supposed to go?" I called after her.
"The ball will be held in the ballroom...Thought the name was pretty self-explanatory" Well it seemed her helping me was finished. I stopped walking and watched her fade into the curving halls. With the help of a friendly maid, I made it to the ballroom, and I had no idea what to expect; dancing, talking, drama, me embarrassing myself and Arksel kicking me out of Vinick? Before I went in, I looked down at my mask. It was blue with matching gems as my dress scattered across it with white lace around the eyes. I slid the mask on and took a deep breath before heading into the unknown.
Beautiful people dancing, candlelight flickering, magic around every corner, the tension between foes and laughter among friends. I've seen so many beautiful things in my life, the Majiey kingdom, sunflowers, the eyes of someone truly in love, and stars. Those were all pure and light beauties, but this ball was a dark, seductive beauty.
Most of the girls wore shades of black or grey, so I felt like I stuck out like a sore thumb. I walked through a crowd of people when someone bumped into me. The man spun around and bore his extremely sharp teeth to me, his eyes giving off a green glow.
"Watch it bit-" He was cut off by someone coming between up. A girl was wearing a skin-tight glimmering red dress with a low cut neckline and large slit going up to her leg. She was facing away from me, so her face was hidden from me, but something about her flowing strawberry blonde hair struck me as familiar.
"Sorry about my friend, she is blind, and we left her cane at home" Her voice...it was too familiar to me. The man leaned to look at me, but I turn around so we wouldn't make eye contact.
"Best keep a better eye on her before she gets hurt," wasn't sure if what he said was a threat or advice. The girl gave the man thanks, and he left us.
"I guess I can't take my eyes off of you," she said with a sigh "you seem to get yourself in trouble without even trying Cy," the voice, the hair, It was Leillan, it was my Leillan! I spun around and threw my arms around her. She instantly wrapped herself around me; we stayed like that for a few moments before pulling apart. I felt my body get extremely warm when I looked over her dress again.
"Wow..thats-that's a nice umm," I hand gestured over her body "thing you got there," the red mask around her eyes made her brilliant blue eyes pop and sparkle when she smiled.
"You look beautiful to Cy," she said in a humming tone. I felt my palms get sweaty. She offered her hand to me. "We should dance so we don't look like two idiots standing in the middle of the dance floor. Unless you wanna repeat the bucket incident," she wiggles her eyebrow at me.
"You promised never to bring that up!" I whispered yelled and pouted for a second before taking her hand. It had only been a day without her yet, and I had missed her more than I had missed anything ever. She pulled me out of the crowd and to a less crowded part of the floor.
"Leillan, you know I can't dance," I said with a scoff. Without saying anything, she placed a hand on my waist and pulled me close to her, then lifted the hand that was interlaced with her into the air slightly.
"Just let me lead, follow what I do," she said close to my ear. I nodded as my cheeks became warmer. Why was my body doing this to me? Was it something I ate? Was I allergic to something Aleta put on me?
"So...why did you leave me in the doctor's station..?" Her voice got slightly colder. I looked up at her, trying to make eye contact through the mask.
"Leillan, I had no choice. Harmony said this was our only shot and I needed to go," Leillan began to sway us back and forth. I let her guide my body.
"So Harmony, a man you barely know asks you to do something, and you go? What is it about him Cy: his crown or his magic?"
"Leillan, please...I didn't want to leave you. I would never leave you. I knew I would be back soon, and the rebellion needed me to do this," she looked away from me, but I cupped her cheek with my hand and turned to her look at me. "You're one of the most important people to me. I would never leave you. I am sorry if you felt I did. Want me to dance on a table or steal something dangerous to make it up?" A small smile perked up on her face.
"Fine whatever I guess I can forgive you just this once...just don't expect me to get stabbed again for you, a girl can only be stabbed so many times before it gets boring," she rolled her eyes and giggled. We spun around each other, and she held me close to her. Her hand on my skin made me feel more relaxed than I have in a while, but also, but I felt a constant flow of energy running through me. Soon her smile fell.
"What's wrong, Leillan?" I asked. She bit her lip softly.
"The main reason I came here Cy is because Harmony sent me here to tell you something since he has been too sick even to leave his bed in the past week...We need you to plant something in here," Her voice began to shake as she spoke. "We need you to-" Leillan dipped me low then lifted me back up, this time we were closer than ever. So close I could feel her breath on lips, her nose brushed against mine, our eyes locked, and she stopped moving. Leillan ran her fingers over a strand of my hair. She seemed to be stalling for something. "We need you to plant a bomb in the castle," she whispered so softly I would've missed her words if I wasn't so focused on her. I felt my heart sink, and my mouth went dry.
"You want me to do what!?" I tried to keep my voice quiet, but the shock hit me hard. Harmony would never ask me to do that, right?
"Cy think about it," she pulled me into a corner that was far away from anyone to hear. "If there is a big distraction we can get Quillian out,"
"But people will get hurt! Innocent people will get hurt Leillan. Are we no better than the rest of them if we cause chaos for our own personal gain?" I crossed my arms over my chest. First Delaney wanted me to kill Arksel now Harmony wants me to plant a bomb! And here I thought this war would end peacefully. I have come to find peace can't rise without destruction.
"Cyra, this is just a simple distraction, not an act of war. There will be no death or injury by this bomb,"
"How do you know this," I raised my eyebrow, my tone turning more serious.
"We have found a place furthest from the ballroom and with the most coverage that it will be contained to one area. We have set up everything you just need to drop it and run back somewhere safe. No one will get hurt Cy. I would never lie to you," As Leillan spoke, I noticed she was hiding her hands from me. The tapping of her fingers against her leg was how I always knew she was lying, but now she hid them from me.
"No one will get hurt?" I asked with more sternness in my voice.
"No one will get hurt." Leillan moved the slit of her dress over slightly, exposing her thigh and something strapped tightly to it; it was the bomb. A silver box with small buttons and glass with flashing numbers.
"Leillan you were wearing the bomb!" I said, running my fingers through my hair.
"Well it's not like this dress has pockets," she said in a matter of fact tone. Behind the bomb was a small piece of paper, Leillan slipped it out and handed it to me. "This is where you need to bring this, okay? No detours, don't get distracted. You have 30 minutes to get there and come back," when I reached for the paper, Leillan took my hand and pulled me close again, bring me into an embrace. "You better stay safe, or else I will follow you into hell and annoy you for eternity,"
"Oh like you aren't doing that now?" I teased, and she nudged me.
"Come back, Cyra, I-" she stopped herself and took a deep breath. She held me for a few more seconds before leaning over and kissed my cheek. "I need to go, I'll catch you back in Majiey," then she ran off into the crowd. A lady in red within a sea of darkness. I placed my hand against my neck and leaned against the pillar behind me. One thought popped in my head, but I pushed it out the second it arrived. Leillan was my friend; that's how it would always be. Plus I had a damn bomb in my hand and 30 minutes to place it in a safe place or else I plus many others will get very hurt; no pressure on me or anything.
I opened the piece of paper and inside looked like a small map of the castle with a little star where I was supposed to go. I quickly walked out of the room and navigated my way through the halls. These halls had become more comfortable and easier to go through and less of a maze to me now, it felt normal to take jagged turns and steep stairs. I came to a set of doors that were made of steel. I gripped the cold handles and pulled with all my might before the doors cracked open enough for me to slip through. Inside there was more book than I have ever seen in my lifetime! Rows and rows wrapped around the room, my fingers craved to open one even if I had no idea what the scribbles on the pages said. I looked over at the fireplace that sat in front of a wall full of high red colored windows to see Arksel standing there, my palms began to sweat, and my knees felt weak. The world seemed destined to kill the newly crowned king of Vinick.
{Hey, guys! So things are really getting intense for Cyra, Do you think she will complete the mission successfully? Will Quillian get out? would you listen to Leillan?}