The Creeping Dark

Airie, Aurania's precious princess, was the kingdom's pride, the jewel of the Auranian bloodline. She was soft-spoken, gentle and kind. Her skin was a unique pearlescent white, her hair, snow-white and her eyes, a rare shade of amethyst.

She was the only child of the king and queen of Aurania, and the pair were now too old to have more.

Marrying her out to a foreign prince was therefore as good as saying that Aurania and Sidera would merge once the ruling kings and queens of their nations stepped down.

With Airie's soft, beautiful and unique features, that she would come to bear a child with Donncahd's raven black hair, his red eyes, and his huge, sturdy warrior build of Sidera...

That would have truly been an interesting child.

It would blend the most unique and striking features of both Aurania and Sidera.

But that would never come to pass.

Rache stared out the window of the castle.

She could walk around freely now, though she could get a bit dizzy if she pushed it - and so Laine had forbade her from working just yet.

On the horizon line, somewhere outside the bounds of the city, she saw Donncahd's encampment.

They were perhaps a day out. Maybe two.

When Princess Airie left the palace arm in arm with Prince Donncahd, she would never return again.

The next time the warrior prince - then king - stepped foot in the palace, the marble would stain red with blood so deeply that it could never be clean.

Donncahd's forces would kill every living creature in the city.

His men would hunt down every single person, turn over every rock, and burn down every building and place of shelter just to ensure that none could survive.

The streets would run with blood like floodwaters.

She remembered that now.

It was only a short refrain in the book, mentioning the horror of the fall of the capital of Aurania in retrospect.

He razed the capital just to make a point.

Sidera did not engage in diplomacy.

King Donncahd would not be moved by politics and manipulation.

Those who tried would be turned to ash, and the cloud of smoke that rose above their cities would fill the air such that neighboring nations would see it and know the fate of those that insulted Sidera.

...She rubbed her arms, shuddering lightly.

"...Are you cold, dear?" Laine spoke from behind her.

Rache wasn't certain when the woman had even entered the room.

"No, no, I'm fine, Laine. Thank you."

She looked up to give the older woman a smile, but instead, she noticed that Laine was frowning.

"Are you sure, dear?" She held up a blanket, and Rache flushed.

"Oh. Well, um..."

Laine carefully draped it over her shoulders.

"You mustn't push yourself." She gently placed a hand on Rache's forehead, apparently to check her temperature. "There's no one you need to prove you are strong to. You'll be better in no time at all."

"Alright. Alright." Rache smiled at her. "...Thank you."

"Of course." She smiled at her. "Let me warm you up a bit more, yes?"

"Uh-huh. I'd...like that."

"Good, good." Laine gave a pleased nod.

Then, she scurried off to get some food to warm Rache up.

Rache turned her gaze out the window, at the horizon.

Donncahd was getting closer.

"Soon now." She murmured to herself.

She couldn't allow Laine to be here.

Next time Donncahd arrived...

No matter what, she wouldn't allow Laine to be here.

She bit her lip.

She wanted to say that she had a lot of time, but the truth was, there was no telling when Donncahd would become king, and once he became king the sand in the hourglass would fall quickly.

Even before he got to Aurania, it would be difficult to escape.

She sighed and shook her head.

There was just no way to relax until she got out of this nation.

Walking through the palace was eerie.

Like she walked through a house full of ghosts. Every person she saw as she walked by, she couldn't help but picture how they'd be massacred.

It was awful.

The sheer terror that pervaded the halls of the castle was overwhelming.

"Are you still cold, darling?"

Rache turned, and looked at Laine.

Her face was pinched and tense even as she held the bowl of soup. "Your expression is so dark, my dear. What weighs so heavily on your mind?"

She stared up at Laine a moment, before...

She sighed and turned her gaze down to the pale, frail looking fingers she had now.

"...What if I wanted to leave this castle? Would you come with me?"

"Of course, dear." Laine hummed and reached for her. She stroked Rache's hair gently. "You are my sister, are you not?"

Rache's heart twisted.

"But, would you really? What of the other maids...?"

Laine sighed and smiled. "Well. I'd very much like to be here. We're all family here, after all. But if your heart is pulling you elsewhere, then I simply can't let you go off on your own, now, can I?"

"But. It could be dangerous."

"It could." Laine agreed. "But I trust you, my dear. And wherever you go, I'll go with you."

Rache swallowed.

She met the woman's gaze.

"...I can't tell you why. I just. Need to leave."

"Well." Laine set the warm soup in Rache's hands and gently stroked her hair.

"If that's the case, I suppose I'll have to get ready for travel. But for now, you need to focus on recovering. Mmh? No more thinking such dark things."

"A-Alright." She smiled faintly up at the woman. "...Laine. I've really been blessed, to have you in my life."

Laine blushed and laughed, waving her hand. "What are you saying, now? You are such a sweetheart. Go on now, and drink your soup before it's cold. You'll have this old lady blushing."

Laine didn't look old to her at all.

But it was a small relief.

Even if it felt selfish.

If she just sat here, drank the soup, and planned to leave...

Not only would she be condemning the delicate jewel of Aurania to death, but every person - man woman and child - in this capital city would die.

...She...

Still didn't know if she could live with that.

And as far as time limits went...she really was running out of time for that one.

It was now...

Or never.