Chapter 19

Edda consented to Prince Leba's offer to usher her into the sun but with her consent surged a burst of hope, hope that a window may appear no matter how brief it was and that she would pounce on it and take whatever freedom it offered, even if the freedom involved death. She would take it for it was better to die fighting for her freedom no matter how minimal the chance of success was than to die during the Nula Anyl where there was absolutely no chance of survival.

The cell door opened to reveal that the Prince was not alone for a slim pale woman stepped into view beside him dressed in dark leather similar to the guards that accompanied Dahli. The woman had a shaved head which was peculiar coming from a Binorian and absolutely no eyebrows, she had a small build with very bony wrists that stuck out beneath the sleeve of her black leather jacket, she had large grey eyes that seemed to take in more than Edda appeared to be on the surface and her thin lips were pressed into a straight line as if in disapproval of what she saw.

"This is Masutap," Leba introduced the woman. "She is Rank two of the Black guard and is here to make sure that whatever attempts of escape you have in mind do not occur." Edda looked the woman up and down once more and felt like bursting into a laugh. What can she possibly do to prevent my escape? Edda thought but the thought was quickly foreshadowed with the memory of what Dahli did to her. Edda had learnt the consequence of underestimating someone and she corrected her thoughts concerning Masutap, the woman was after all rank two and regardless of the fact that she didn't know what that meant the subtle hint of danger couldn't be ignored.

Edda needed a weapon she could use against Masutap when push came to shove, her fingers tightened over the red coat that was draped over her shoulders, it was thick enough to blind an opponent if wrapped around their face and it could also be used to strangle. Edda rose from her chair and bowed from the waist before the Prince. "I am grateful for the opportunity you've provided for me to stretch my legs and bask in the sun."

Prince Leba smiled. "Of course, if we shall go this way." He indicated to outside the cell, motioning her to walk ahead.

Edda started to move when the woman spoke, "Leave the coat." Panic swept through Edda, she had been right not to underestimate the woman. She laid the red coat on the table and shivered in her yellow dress. She hunched her shoulders and exited the dungeon cell with Masutap behind her and the Prince following the guard. The dungeons were located deep within the ground and a singular path that sloped upwards seemed to be the only way out.

Multiple cell doors lined the path on either side and Edda could hear the occasional groan or scream emanating from particular cells. The torches lining the hallway weren't exactly bright and Edda struggled to make out the characters within random cells as she passed them but to no success. "You're very lucky you know, if it weren't for the Nula Anyl your fate would have been similar to these prisoners, dying of hunger and thirst in the darkness." Leba said.

"If you're so passionate about the Nula Anyl why don't you participate in it?" Edda asked a little harshly.

Prince Leba laughed and replied. "I can't do that dear, my duty as a Prince is to the people and I can't abandon it for the quest to ascend and stand before Meena for I shall die and my duty shall be left unattended."

"You're so confident that you aren't the chosen one of Meena? That you can't survive the Nula Anyl?" Edda asked, mockery lacing her every word.

"Only one with the Jojoh Meena can survive it but my father already has it and there's never been an instance where two people have it at the same time within the realm." Leba replied in a cheerful tone, presumably unaware of how his cheery nature irked Edda.

They walked in silence. Edda had given up on trying to peep through the cells they passed, instead she observed her bare feet as she took each step. The ground was cold and granules of loose sand stuck to the bottom of her feet. She wasn't looking up so it came as a shock when her head bumped into hard wood, they'd reached the end of the ascending pathway. Masutap elbowed her way past Edda as she rubbed her forehead with the heel of her hand. Masutap knocked on the wooden door thrice in quick succession then twice slowly.

The large wooden door opened and a ray of sunlight burst through the darkness of the dungeons and bathed Edda in a golden warm glow. Edda stepped outside the dungeon, unaware of the four inquisitors positioned on either side of the wooden door dressed in white. Her eyes stung from the light, she'd stayed in the dim dungeon for far too long and it took a while for her eyes to adjust but even then she did not squint away from the sun.

Edda stared at the marvelous Binorian landscape bathed in the golden light of the sun, she realized she was still at the inquisition building that she and Ingah had been tortured in and that they had emerged from beneath it. The inquisition building was the only black structure within the white palace grounds and from beyond the distant walls surrounding the Palace and the inquisition, she witnessed the magnificence of Binoria with white houses built facing the palace and other architectural structures that decreased in magnificence the further away they were from the palace.

Prince Leba came and stood next to her. "Beautiful isn't it? I too would have wept for the marvel of Binoria if I hadn't seen it so many times." He said. Edda touched her cheeks and found they were stained with tears, she wanted to shoot back that she wasn't crying because of some dumb reason such as Binoria's glory and that she was crying over the immeasurable surge of emotion that the tiny freedom afforded her under the sun had brought. She decided against it and instead stood in silence.

"See that red structure over there?" Leba pointed at a large structural element located at the outskirts of Binoria that resembled the hollow lower half of a sphere and towered over all the buildings and was second only in size to the palace. "That's the Juckwa Arena, it is where the Nula Anyl will be held."

"That is where I will die." Edda replied

"Nonsense, you might survive." Leba said.

"How? You said only one with the Jojoh Meena can survive."

"Yes, but maybe another God can intervene the way Meena helped Selarch." There was a brief pause where Leba contemplated his words. "But it's a pity there are no more Gods, Binoria made sure of that by wiping out any evidence of them for the past five hundred years, ensuring only Meena is worshiped throughout the realm, damn pity, maybe the God of your people would have helped you if only you could remember the deity's name to call upon them."

Edda turned to regard Leba. The Prince had earlier on praised the Nula Anyl as a glorious opportunity to go before the Goddess Meena but then again at the moment he showed remorse over the fact that the whole realm worshipped a singular deity, there was more to Leba, something hidden from the people that he was so eager to serve. "Do you know another God besides Meena?" Edda asked.

Leba avoided Edda's gaze, choosing instead to stare at the Juckwa Arena, a smirk traced his lips. Edda waited for the Prince to reply but he didn't. The silence prolonged and Edda drew her eyes away from the Prince and to the horizon. She felt the warmth of the sun upon her copper colored skin and she savored the moment. If only you could remember the deity's name to call upon them. Leba's words echoed in her mind.

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