CHAPTER FIVE

The black garbed man pushed Lady Gwynn forward. Valen and Kale stood in front of the princess while Aidan took a defensive stance in front of Thania and Mildred. The two young knights held out their swords as their eyes darted in preparation of something jumping out of the shadows. Soon five more moved from the shadows. Aiden pushed Thania and Mildred inside and told them to call the general. Immediately, the girls took off in search of General Leo.

Time – Auria thought. We need time.

“Who are you? What do you want?” Auria called out as she pushed forward from the cover made by Valen and Kale.

“You don’t need to know.” The man spoke in a gravel voice. His men looked at the children menacingly. He pointed a gloved hand at them.

“Princess Auria, come with us. There’s no need for you to do anything else. We just need you to come here.”

“Why do I need to go with you? Who ordered you to enter my home?” Auria demanded but the men remained close-mouthed.

“Your highness, you need to run back inside.” Valen whispered as he eyed the black garbed men and the one holding Lady Gwynn. Auria shook her head.

“No. I cannot leave you here alone. They are too many.”

“You have to leave, princess. We’ll try to divert their attention from you.” Aidan argued, his hand closing onto Auria’s arm. Auria shook her head vehemently. She looked at her tutor worriedly and at the same time, her mind was trying to come to terms with the defense. How in the world did they get in?

The black garbed men held onto Lady Gwynn who was struggling. Suddenly, she bit into the black garbed man’s hand. Momentarily distracted, she pulled away from them. The boys took that as a sign to advance forward to at least grab the woman before facing the enemy.

“Princess, leave!” Lady Gwynn implored but her arm was caught immediately by the black garbed man. Angered by the woman’s audacity to fight back, the man plunged the knife he was holding onto her back.

“Nooo!” Auria screamed. Valen and Kale advanced forward in the hopes of stopping the men before they could kill Lady Gwynn but they had to retreat back to keep their defense focused on the princess. Since, they do not have their hostage anymore, the black garbed men ran forward, their swords clashing with the young knights but of course these are grown men. What could a few kids can do to hold them off?

Frustrated and angered at the death of her tutor, Auria closed her eyes. Who are these people? How could they hurt a frail woman just to get to her? What do they want from her?

Aidan tried to get the princess’s attention but she was too engulfed in her grief that he couldn’t reach her. Gritting his teeth, he parried the thrusts done by the black-garbed men. He didn’t know how long he could do this. His arms were already getting tired and numb as the hits get harder.

Sounds of booted feet came from the doorway and he knew help will be arriving soon but he might not last that long. Suddenly, the hairs on the back of his nape stood on end as a surge of energy blasted their backs. The black garbed men immediately retreated in wariness as they fixed their gazes at the figure behind them. Aidan, Valen and a wounded Kale looked in awe as white light enveloped the little princess. She levitated in front of them and floated forward until she reached the unmoving body of her tutor. Her green eyes lighted with energy but sorrow can be seen from their depths. Tears streaked down her face as she thought of all the complaints she had during her lessons came back in her mind. She should have listened more. She didn’t want her tutor to die like this.

She knelt beside Lady Gwynn as she grieved. Using her lighted hand, she slowly drew out the dagger from her back. She passed her hand over the wound and used her energy to close it. Blood stopped flowing and slowly the pale skin started glowing. She might have been an annoying presence but Auria knew that the woman was more than a tutor.

She placed her hand onto Lady Gwynn’s forehead and fixed her enemies with a stare.

“You come here to my lands and harm my people.” Her voice deepened in anger, the unseen wind making her hair float all around her. She held her hand up and enclosed the black garbed men in invisible bubbles. “You don’t deserve to live but your existence in my realm is important.”

“Princess!” Leo called her, his eyes widened in surprise.

“I want to know how did they get in our gates, uncle. You will deal with them as what is fit for the harm they just caused.” Auria’s voice lightened and returned to normal, her eyes without the heat of the energy from a while ago. They turned sorrowful again as she touched her tutor’s hand. The knights scrambled forward as they tied up the black garbed men and led them out of the gardens. Valen helped his wounded brother out but Auria called them back.

When they approached her, she placed her hand onto the wounds of Kale. Soon, they too closed as the healing power from her hand moved over the wounds. The pain eased and Kale’s eyes widened. Valen breathed a sigh of relief.

“Thank you, your majesty.”

“I should thank you, too, Valen. The three of you have been a great help. I’m sorry we didn’t have time to speak what’s on your mind.”

Valen shook his head vehemently. Aidan eyed the young knight but remained closemouthed.

“There are other days for a meet, your majesty. Surely, we can manage.”

When the brothers left, Leo and Aidan solemnly waited as the princess cried over her tutor. It was heartbreaking to see her so young but had to see death up close and personal.

A sudden movement from the folds of the princess’ gown startled the general and the young boy.

“You can stop crying now, my lady. You are smothering me.” Lady Gwynn complained from the folds of the princess’s dress. Leo’s and Aidan’s eyes widened as the woman in question slowly sat and patted the head of the bawling princess.

“I’m only crying because I thought that my magic didn’t work.” Auria wailed as more tears poured out of her eyes. Lady Gwynn smiled softly and hugged the little girl.

“Thank you, princess. I’m sorry you almost got killed because of me.” Lady Gwynn murmured as she ran her hand through the princess’ hair. She let the young girl cry as she felt her relief through her tears.

“What happened, my lady? How did they capture you?” Leo asked as he knelt beside them. Lady Gwynn thought about what happened and she faced the general.

“I was making my way for home when I noticed that the usual guards stationed at the gates were not the ones that were assigned there. I did not recognize them but I thought they were just new recruits that you had ordered to take charge of the gates. So I just dismissed them and walked down the streets towards home. The next thing I knew was someone pointing me out as the princess’s tutor and then someone grabbed me from behind.” Lady Gwynn explained, her eyes moist with tears.

“I asked who they were and they said that they were from Gildan. But I myself was a resident of Gildan and I know almost all of the inhabitants of that quadrant. I don’t remember the voice of my captor but the nuance of his language makes him from a different quadrant. He sounded more like from Hildegard than Gildan.” Hildegard was the quadrant of the mages. Leo’s eyes widened further. Hildegard was well-known for its thirst for magic. They might have found out of the princess’ abilities and tried to take her during this so-called meeting with the leaders of different quadrants. It would be the perfect opportunity. But Leo knew he could not just make a move without properly informing the king.

“Aidan, what you have heard here will remain a secret between us. No one must know of what we have learned especially this ability that the princess now has.” Leo instructed the young knight.

While they were talking, the princess has already lost consciousness.