A Taste of Death

Chapter Thirteen

"Everyone's in, lock everything." Amarelis instructed as the group pushed beds, chairs and anything they could find to prevent entry, Waylon healing any cuts and bruises the others might have gotten. After securing the area, Cassiopeia grabbed the powerbinding cuffs on Kai, focusing as her purple aura wrapped around it, slowly but surely breaking the restraints, metal clanging on the floor. "Thank you." Kai nodded to the princess. She looked at him with an unamused look on her face. "Don't make me regret it." She walked past him, checking with Elowen. "She'll change her tune once they know the truth." Neveah gently took his arm and they sat down on the floor. "Why should she?" Kai looked at Neveah, then back at Cassiopeia. "The things I did-"
"The things you did were not in your control. I'm just glad you're okay." Neveah gently rubbed his back in an effort to comfort the prince. "Well, he's not quite in the clear yet." Vesper sat down. "The Council still wants his head, and it'll be a matter of time before they try to eliminate us too." Elowen nodded. "I'll make it quick then. Kaiyan showed me a few memories. He was forced to commit horrible acts by a being that also killed the Void Order." Elowen took a breath. "The real person at fault is Adelaide, the Queen of the forbidden tribe." The room bursts into chaos as multiple people began talking. Waylon went pale, looking over at Neveah. "I thought they had all turned into the Quirati." Neveah frowned. "Somehow, Adelaide survived." Neveah commented. "According to the legends, she was pretty powerful." Vesper looked over at Kai. "I didn't think she'd be able to topple one of our world leaders." Kai flicked his eyes down then back up to meet Vesper's. "She killed my father." He replied, everyone looking at the male. "What?" Cassiopeia breathed. Kai nodded, sighing. "Somehow she used my powers and-"
"That's impossible." Amarelis cut in. "Only one can hold Darkness at a time. Which makes me think that you are still at fault, Kaiyan." As Amarelis stepped forward, Elowen caught his elbow. "Or she made him think it was his power." She looked Amarelis in the eyes, then faced everyone else. "From what it looked like, she has Mental Manipulation as an ability." Kai nodded in agreement to this, crossing his arms. Vesper glanced at Amarelis, who sighed. "Well, then we'll have to go into this with our minds fortified." The runecaster concluded.
A loud bang on the door caused the group to jump. "You are all under arrest for Assisted Escape and Obstruction. Surrender now or be killed." Rosa shook her head and grabbed a wooden plank. "I don't plan on dying today." Casey stood by her, raising a plank of her own. "We've always said we'd die in style, right?" Rosa chuckled, both friends grinning. "The kids are right. I'm not dying to the Council." Cassiopeia hands lit up in purple light. "The Council that's corrupted by Adelaide as well?" Kai mumbled, shadows rising behind him. "You know, that would have been helpful to know sooner." Vesper raised an eyebrow. "Agreed." Amarelis unsheathed two daggers. "Elowen." The female looked over, catching the weapons. "A Thank you." She acknowledged, grateful as her crossbow wasn't with her. Amarelis nodded and conjured a sword, Vesper standing next to him. "This is your last warning." The voice on the other side warned. Cassiopeia walked up to the door, placing her hands on the barricade. "Eat dirt." She muttered, loud enough for the other side to hear, before the barricade and the door exploded, sending the five people of the council back, the princess smirking.
"How dare you?!" The head of the five shrieked, a beam of magic shooting towards Cassiopeia. "Attacking royalty? How low of you." Neveah played a few strings of her lyre rather aggressively. "Kai, heads up!" She called out as the beam diverted to him. Shadows wrapped around the beam, turning it into a black and dark purple color and catching the rising beam in his hand, the energy swirling as he shot it back. The two humans ganged up on a member. "Remember when we used to pretend we were doing this very thing?" Rosa looked over at Casey, the blonde chuckling. "Well, there's no one else whom I'd beat up bad guys with."
With the group fueled with rage, vengeance and a sprinkle of determination, they beat back and knocked out the council. Vesper used vines to tie them together and set them in the room. "Alright, we need to leave." He turned to the others, everyone hustling down the halls and fighting off the guards that tried to stop them, Amarelis conjuring the horses and the group loading into the wagon, the horses moving when Amarelis prompted, galloping away. "We're not going fast enough." Vesper called. "They're going as fast as they can." Amarelis informed. Kai looked at Cassiopeia. "Are you willing to work with me?" Cassiopeia looked back at him and held out a hand. "As long as you're on our side." He took her hand and the purple and black mana swirled together. Neveah got out a pouch and placed a gold leaf on their joined hands, the object disintegrating into the magical display and wrapping around the wagon, suddenly boosting forward, the group holding on tightly.
However, as they arrived at Elowen's cabin, they beheld a terrible sight, the seer herself covering her mouth in shock. "No." She whispered, running to her home, now burned to the ground, nothing remaining but the charred frame and ashes. Amarelis, without a word, went over and comforted her. "Who would do this..." Neveah whispered, even though they all knew knew the answer. Cassiopeia's eyes hardened, walking into the woods surrounding the area. After a few minutes, she came back, arms crossed. "We'll seek shelter in Lore." She gently pat the horses as Elowen looked over. "But won't Ysaeiva be in danger?" Cassiopeia gave Elowen a look. "Tell that to the Akeski." She hopped on a horse. "Who's the Akeski?" Rosa mumbled. Kai looked over at the humans. "Elves you don't want to mess with." Cassopiea looked back. "I took my fighting classes with them. They're descended from a group of humans who crossed into Vonyaheil into Ysaeiva." She chuckled. Elowen sighed and nodded. "Alright." Everyone loaded into the wagon and Amarelis got on the other horse. "Are you sure about this?" He asked the princess. "Absolutely, now let's go, before we're on fire next." The runecaster nodded and they set off at rapid speeds, crossing into the Province of A'syne and before long, the center of the Elven kingdom of Ysaeiva.
Cassiopeia hummed as they entered the gates. "Welcome to Lore, the capital of Ysaeiva." She called back to everyone. "Well, look who's back." A female soldier wearing slim garments appeared next to the wagon, walking alongside it. "Sera, good to see you're still alive." Cassiopeia responded with a smile. "How's father." Sera grinned. "The same as usual. He's missed you." Cassiopeia laughed. "With you around appearing out of nowhere all the time?" She joked. "Who'd you bring with you?" Sera inquired as wagon was secured and everyone got out. Cassiopeia pointed at each person as she introduced them. "Two humans, Rosa and Casey, you know Amarelis and Elowen, Waylon and Neveah, both Faeries, and Kaiyan."
"Whoa, you brought the Demon prince?" Sera commented. "It's complicated." Cassiopeia replied. The others followed, the humans in particular gaping at everything they saw. "By the way, I'm Sera Ekelle, Captain of the Akeski." Sera introduced herself, showing the group to a wing of the palace. "Also a word of caution, we don't mind exploring one bit, but call for a guard if you wish to. With the current events, we don't want to risk any more deaths than we have." Cassiopeia nodded, looking out the window as a purple energy dome rose over the city once more. "Ysaeiva has a pretty strong defense but precautions are still good just incase." She commented. "So, what now?" Amarelis questioned. "I have to touch base with my father then we'll most likely have a meeting later about what to do. For now, everyone should rest." She smiled encouragingly and she and Sera walked out of the wing, talking in low tones to each other
"Another battle is soon, then?" Waylon asked. Amarelis nodded. "Unfortunately, but the good thing is that we're no longer alone." Elowen headed to a room, "Cassiopeia's right though, we should get as much rest as we can while we can." She disappeared into the room, others soon choosing their own rooms. Casey offered a hand to Rosa, who took it, the two standing in front of two doors. "I'm scared." Rosa spoke quietly. Casey looked over, and nodded. "I am too. I always thought I'd enjoy being in those actions and fighting books and movies but it's not as fun as one would think." Rosa laughed lightly. "Yeah, kinda sucks, doesn't it?" The two smiled lightly, sharing a moment of laughter. "See you later." Casey replied, heading into the room. Rosa watched her and looked out the window. "Yeah, see you later." She sighed and entered the room.