8 : LOST MEMORIES AND THE LAKE OF DEATH

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***

Leonard went to her and placed his hand on her shoulder.

His action made her look away from the bodies and at her father.

She kept her gun in the holster, stepping over the bodies and even crushed one of the werewolves head with the heel of her shoe.

" Father, are you okay? " she asked keeping her emotions at bay.

" I'm fine. " he said looking around, still unable to comprehend what had happened. " and you? " he asked bringing his eyes to his daughter in worry.

" I'm fine. They didn't stand a chance against us Father. Leonard has proven to be very skilled with his knives and sword and the time spent on my lessons were clearly not wasted. "

He nodded but he still seemed shaken.

" Your highness perhaps you should retire to your Chambers. " the blonde sister suggested.

" you're right. " the king replied.

" I'll go with you father. " the princess said holding onto his arm.

" Leonard " the king said turning to the princess's personal guard. " assign new guards and maids to the castle and get some men to find councilman Ernest. Without a doubt he had a hand in this. And there's a sister of light tailing him. If she's still alive she must still be tailing him. Ensure she's brought back safely. "

Leonard bowed and hurried off to do as the king said.

The sisters took their leave.

While the princess followed her father to his Chambers where he struggled to fall asleep. She made small talk with him and in no time he was fast asleep with a whisper of her mother's name on his lips.

' Marianne '

When she was sure that no noise or disturbance from herself would awaken him, she stood up from the chair she had been sitting on by the bedside and wandered across the room. She tried to recall her memories from when she was younger but as usual nothing came to mind.

After her mother's death, Clarissa had lost her memory. She remembered only her father. Anytime she tried to recall her mother's face, it was only a blur. If not for the pictures in the halls and the one in her father's room which she was staring at now, she would have completely forgotten her mother.

Her father had told her stories of the woman her mother had been, stories of the kind of mother she had been and the type of queen she had been.

She had been brave, beautiful kind, caring, selfless and so much more than most could ever become.

Clarissa believed that if her mother had not been so kind and trusting, then she would not have been betrayed. She wished she could see her mother or at least recall something about the woman her father described.

But alas all she had was this picture hanging on the wall.

***

Meanwhile not too far away from the DeVille caves, a place crawling with creatures of dark intent, councilman Ernest climbed over rocks with a huge pouch filled with gold weighing him down.

The cloaked sister of light tailing him wondered if she should leave to go inform her sisters of his plan to escape or continue tailing him until he got to his destination.

When she had seen him pay some guards at the palace gates, she knew something odd was going on but she never expected him to try to escape without even trying to aid those who he had joined hands with.

But if he really was working for the dark witches like her sisters suspected, then it wouldn't just be the people of Haven's Peak after him but also the dark witches who would want his head for not following through with their plan.

But then again the dark witches were not known to be loyal. They killed even those who helped them especially when they were no longer of use to them.

So the councilman was wise in escaping. But she could not let him escape. He had to pay for all his crimes.

Just when he got to the ledge that would aid him in lifting himself above, she lifted her arrow and aimed for his right leg. She let go of the arrow and it hit it's mark.

The arrow tore into him and ripped out the most painful scream she had ever heard from his mouth.

He immediately let go of the ledge and found himself in the lake of death.

A lake filled with dangerous creatures such as the sirens who lured men at night with their sweet voices and beauty. After sleeping with these men, they would drain them of their blood leaving their skin to eaten up by other creatures in the lake. And there were the leeches who caused you to hallucinate as they drank your body dry of blood. There were so many more water creatures who could have easily taken him for food.

But it was the sirens who were the first to perceive the scent of blood. And they came as a group unable to hold back their blood thirst.

Just when they had their fangs in him, a bright light shine driving them away from their prey as light did not mix with darkness.

" councilman Ernest for the crimes you have committed, you must pay your dues. You won't die so easily. "

The Councilman could not see the person who had spoken but still struggled hoping to escape but the poison from the fangs of the sirens had him paralyzed unable to move.

***

Leonard heard a scream and then the sound of something dropping and hurried with the men he had paid towards the direction of the sound.

On getting there, he saw the sister of light the king had spoken of using her powers to lift someone out of the river.

One of the men around him screamed in shock almost falling into the river. " how is he moving?! "

" I suggest you stay away from the river bank. You don't want to join the many skeletons down there. " Leonard said advising the man who kept moving closer to the edge of the river.

Leonard looked at the sister of light who turned just in time to catch his eyes.

He brought his eyes to look at the Councilman, confirming that it was indeed councilman Sebastian.

The sister continued to look at him even as she took off the hood of the cloak ignoring the men who screamed at her sudden presence.

If she was not mistaken, the human had seen her through the cloak.

Leonard moved past her and knelt beside the councilman checking to see if he was still alive and when he was indeed sure, he stood up, bowing slightly at the sister of light.

" the king requires your presence and that of the traitor. " he said calmly.

She nodded her head, still wondering how a human could have seen through the cloak of invisibility.

She walked off ahead of them while the other men still stared at her in shock.

" will someone else carry the body or am I expected to do this as well? " she asked with her back faced to them.

The men hurried and struggled to drag the fat councilman along with them.

Author's note

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