Celeste's life is far from the enchanting fairy tale one might expect from a princess. Her father, a ruthless and self-absorbed king, leaves a trail of death and destruction in his wake. To seal alliances and maintain his power, he arranges for Cele...
'Cell, wake up'. I turn around without an answer or a peep. This may have been the best night's sleep I've had in my life. I don't want to get up. I want to lie here for the rest of the day and not think about reality.
'We have to go Cel, wake up,' it sounds again next to me. I refuse to make a sound until I feel something soft on my neck. Immediately, my body seems wide awake. I lift my head and look into the twinkling eyes of Novak. He grins and pushes himself off the bed, already fully dressed.
'We have exactly fifteen minutes to have breakfast before we are thrown out,' he tells me, walking towards the door. I sigh deeply and push myself up. A stabbing pain shoots through my lower abdomen. Then the memories of last night come back. I've had sex, for real now. Christiaan is a jerk, a narcissist and terrible between the sheets. I can conclude that by now. There is no way I would have wanted the experience any other way. It was perfect, as far as it goes.
I cautiously get up from the bed and pick up yesterday's dress. Luckily it is as good as dry. I hoist myself into the dress, close it and run a hand through my hair. I reluctantly walk into the kitchen and just see Novak putting a bowl of sandwiches on the table. That woman must have brought them without me noticing.
'Coffee or tea?' Novak asks as I take a seat at the table.
'Coffee please. I will need the caffeine today. Today we will end at the Blood Mountain. The place where my journey has been leading all this time. It has taken a lot longer than I had hoped. I am afraid of what I will find there and what the next steps will be. I can only hope that Viko is there and still alive.
'Ma'am,' Novak says grinning as he puts a cup of coffee in front of me. He sits down opposite me and takes a sandwich from the tray. I take a sip of coffee before following his example. The options for toppings are not many. Cheese, butter, sugar and jam. I'm just glad we have something to eat. I grab a white brown from the tray and cut it open.
'How do you feel?' Novak asks with his mouth full of bread and cheese. I spread my own sandwich with jam.
'Good. I wouldn't have it any other way,' I reply with a smile. That brings a smile to his lips too.
'Neither would I.' I take a bite of my sandwich and it's quiet for a while. The silence is not uncomfortable, but neither of us seems to know what to say.
'I have to ask you something. I didn't want to mention it yesterday, but those scars on your back. You didn't have those the last time I saw you naked. Where did they come from?' I knew this question was coming. I put the memory of the flogging far away. It happened, it was terrible, but it cannot be reversed. Fortunately, Alisha kept her mouth shut about it when Novak and I were still there. I am grateful to her for that. However, I have to explain it now.
'When we arrived in the elven village, I was imprisoned in the dungeons. It was terrible. Cold, wet, dark and deadly quiet. I don't know exactly how long I was there, but it was terrible. When I was taken out, I was given a choice. Either I had to spend a month in the dungeons or I was given twenty lashes and had to do military service. I chose the latter.' The fact that it almost killed me is not mentioned here. Novak's eyes widen and a shocked reaction marks his face.
'Jesus. Why didn't you tell me this before?' he asks, shocked. I sigh deeply and take a sip of my coffee.
'It has happened. I can't do anything about it anymore and in the end I'm glad I made the choice. We wouldn't be here now if I'd had to spend a month in the dungeons.' It is true. That flogging was anything but the nicest thing I've ever had to do, but it has brought me to where I am now. Without my choice to land there, Novak would be dead and we would have a lot less information. I would never have met Alisha and Nalu. It was the best choice I could make out of the two options.
'If you say so. As long as you never choose that again,' he warns me. I nod, take a bite of my sandwich and leave the subject for what it is.
-
'Thank you for your hospitality,' Novak says as I untie our horses. The woman, holding the newborn lamb in her arms, just nods. I still don't know what to do with the woman. I hand Novak his horse and climb on mine myself. 'Good luck with the rest of your journey,' the woman says, walking towards the door. Novak mounts his horse and smiles at the woman.
'Thank you,' is the last thing Novak says before he starts his horse in motion. I smile one last time at the woman before I send my horse after Novak. Another half-day journey through the mountains awaits us before we reach our final destination.
The landscape changes rapidly. The hills make way for narrow mountain roads full of bumps. The green disappears and changes into grey rocks. Trees are no longer visible where the eye can see them. Life also seems to have disappeared. Wherever you look, there is no animal to be seen. The horses have trouble with the roads, the pace is completely off. We go slowly, but the weather is good.
Slowly, the black mountain appears in my view, the Blood Mountain. It owes its name to the life line that runs through it, the blood line. If there is anywhere magic is at its highest it is there. At the top of the mountain, the life lines meet and make up the greatest source of our magic. The air seems darker here, the wind heavier. There is no more water or life to be seen. The rocks are grey-black. It is a place where not many people or creatures come, so it is dead quiet here. If you don't want to come here, don't come here. The only reason anyone comes here is for the magic or the headquarters of the Night Riders. I hope to see a black dragon somewhere, but it is nowhere to be seen.
I've been here a few times before, but that was always with Rave. I have never climbed this mountain from the ground before. However, the knowledge I have gained from the air does help me find the right way. There must be a gate somewhere in the wall of the mountain. You can't get in here without a good reason. The gate is guarded.
After what seems like days, the gate comes into our sight. Two massive iron doors blocked the way into the mountain. Beside us runs an abyss so deep that you can hardly see the ground. The wind is strong, my hair and dress are swaying in all directions.
I stop the horse a few metres before the gate and jump off. This is the moment we have been waiting for months. I walk to the gate, but see no sign of life. I try to push the doors open, but they are stuck as tight as they can be. I sigh and decide to knock hard on the door. Just as my hand touches the iron, the door is pulled open. A man with white hair, white eyes and a black coat stands before me.
'Aah Celeste, I've been expecting you.'
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