THE ELEMENTAL CHRONICLE

Thirty-Six |

Thirty-Six |

        I stared at him carefully, unable to understand his words. He grimaced as if the weight of his words had dragged down the room and when I glanced towards Aldrich and Kahuna, both looked away as if eye contact was forbidden.

            "Explain yourself," I demanded. "Better yet, show me."

            Edric sighed, "I implore you to rethink this."

            "Why?" It came out a vicious snarl. "I have seen the body of Gwynestri Yarrow, there is little else you can possibly show me that could frighten me."

            Aldrich stepped forward. "The body of Gwynestri—wha—"

            "Show me!" I screamed tired of being played.

            Silence dropped into the room like a pin. I didn't care. Nor did I care that my body was growing hot, I could feel my scars burning as if it'd been pressed by the sun, and my magic did little to cool the rage within my ribs. I squeezed my fingers together until my palms bled and finally, all too late, Edric nodded.

            "Follow me, Lady Roisin."

            There was a strange, stiffness in the air full of a golden shimmer. As I followed after the King of Neorian, it only got thicker. A hot and stifling air full of magic clung to us while we walked. It was so strange, as if I was being weighed down and yet, Edric walked as though he could not see it. I winced as we neared the dungeon doors and there I could see a blue light dancing under the door as if it wished to claw it's way to freedom.

            I swayed to the pull of the magic.

            "Ara?" Kahuna asked lightly, steadying my arm.

            I pulled away from her. "I'm fine. Don't touch me."

            She frowned. "We are not your enemy."

            "No. Simply liars."

            "That is not fair," she snarled back. "We held our secrets for a long while, long before you appeared. We could not simply break the truth just because you appeared. We did not ask for this life, and we certainly did not ask you to go to war for us."

            My words caught in my throat.

            "Kahuna," Aldrich hummed. "That's enough."

            She rolled her eyes and stepped back.

            "Children," Edric called from where he stood at the two large doors, "Are you coming?"

            I pivoted on my heel to face him before moving after the king. It took four guards to push open the large and tall entrance, the hinges groaning as if they hadn't been opened in a very, long time. I shifted my weight back and forth on my feet, that pressure of magic seemed to only grow as the doors opened. It stuck to my body, forcing down my throat and clinging to my lungs. I could almost suffocate. My own magic warmed through me, as if sliding into a defense mode. I inhaled sharply, forcing the magic back.

            Edric then looked to his children. "Stay here."

            They didn't protest. 

            "Come along," he then told me.

            I didn't protest either.

            The entrance to the dungeon was what I'd expect from any castle. Wide and dingy stairs that seemed to spiral down into the unknown. It was dark even with the torches fastened onto the walls and there was a particularly musky scent in the air. I crinkled my nose, looking around carefully. It was odd to say the least. The golden bits of magic seemed to be suspended in the air, unable to go further and yet, the cerulean magic seemed to move freely and almost better down here than outside these doors.

            "Do you wish to turn back?" Edric asked me.

            I looked at him, despising that hopeful tone in his voice. "No. Lead on."

            His shoulders sagged and he did, slowly leading me down the stone steps.  

            The ache in my head grew with each step I took, the cerulean magic in the air swirling slowly around me. I bit my lip to keep from collapsing, my legs shaking with each step I took and it seemed Ebby could feel something was wrong because my wrist stung with his warning.

Still, I persisted.

"Ciara," Edric said lowly after a while. "May I ask you something?"

I glanced at him carefully. "You may."

He didn't look at me, simply looking ahead and down the steps. "I understand he passed while you were still but a child but...do you think—I mean—was my brother...was Jerrik happy? Did he live a happy life in the end?"

I paused, my fingers digging into the wall.

"Papa!" I squealed as he spun me.

He laughed, his eyes crinkling like the feet of crows, and I realized how handsome papa was. At five summer's old, I could see his warmth and I knew he was a good man. A strong man even if he was weak and fragile.

"Jer," Mama scolded, her smile betraying her tone. "You'll make her dizzy."

Father chuckled, placing me on the ground where I dramatically swayed back and forth before throwing myself at the ground. Fionn appeared at my side, plucking me up by my stomach and holding me like a sack of potatos.

"Careful," he grumbled. "You'll get hurt."

I wiggled in his grip. "Nuh uh!"

Father ruffled his hair. "She's alright Fionn, she was being silly." 

Fionn blinked slowly. "Silly?"

"That's right my boy," Father chuckled, sinking down to his knees. "Although, I don't think any father could be heartbroken over an overprotected child. You're a good boy."

Fionn let me go, and I flung myself at father, my heart growing green. "Me too!"

"Yes my dear," he cooed. "You're my favorite daughter."

"But Papa," I whined. "I'm your only daughter!"

"Is that so?" he teased. "Well then you must be my favorite!" 

"Ciara?"

I blinked the memory away, my vision blurred by fat tears that rolled down my face. He'd passed away at the end of the summer that year and I was left fatherless at five and yet I couldn't deny Jerrik's question. Was father happy? I bit my lip.

"Yes, he was," I whispered, looking at the aged man. "He was happy but that changes nothing. It doesn't change what my father was owed—it doesn't change that he didn't deserve just happiness, he deserved far more. We both know he'd never blame you but I do. I blame you Edric. I blame you for forcing my family away to their deaths."

Edric looked away. "Yes. I see."

"Walk on your highness," I mocked, raising my chin and wiping my tears away. 

It was for the very fact that father lived a happy life despite the betrayal he faced that I had to change this world. It is not enough to simply have happiness, it is not the justice that this world owes my family, it is not the justice that this world owes the fae.