The Princess of Two Worlds

chapter sixteen

Leo walked outside and bent to the side, stretching himself. Dawn was just rising and the sun was peeking over the thick mass of trees. Some people were emerging as well with baskets of clothes to wash or hovering over a pot and a fire. Many Starlings were decorated around the circular border and up in the leaves, their heads looking back and forth slowly not distracted by anything. The ground-level guards' hands rested on their wooden hilts, however, though not seen, poison dripped on the tips of the metal blades. The upper levels had an arrow placed in their bow, though not drawn, ready to fire at any given moment.

The Principissa had explained to Leo that the poison was called 'The Golden Liquid.' It was very hard to acquire for normal people but Starlings had it free at hand. It instantly killed without pain which was some mercy to the blade's victim. However, their brutal fighting skills were not to be scoffed at.

The more days he spent time here the more he learned about their weapons system and how they operated. While it would be nice for poison-dipped weapons, it would be impossible for more than eighty-thousand men to personally have the 'Golden Liquid.' Who knew if they would misuse it as well?

As he rounded the corner of his little village house, he stopped abruptly and hid against the corner. Jasper and Caia were having a conversation and for some strange reason he felt the need to not interrupt; the Princess would have also made a fuss if he had gotten in their way. He could not help but eavesdrop.

"So you did get hurt, Lady." He referred to the breach in the village days ago.

"I do not know where you're from but a Starling does not flaunt her wounds. In fact, my battle wounds are mine to take care of. It just reopened..."

He smiled, "We don't either and I rather admire that fact. However, it is good to accept help when it is needed. I doubt you are able to tend to the one on the back of your neck?"

"I have one there? Oh. Fecistis hoc tempore." Caia muttered, grabbing the bandages.

He snatched them out of her hand and she frowned at him but allowed him to continue, "What does that mean?"

"If I get a certain number of injuries then that means more training. I got one more than I was supposed to."

Raising an eyebrow, he brushed on the ointment making her shiver from the cold, "That seems a bit harsh, do you not think so? That was a hard attack, especially with the shower of arrows. Even our Princess could not get unscathed."

"It still looks bad on me. I have a question. Do you-do you like Evaline?" Leo listened closer, pressing his body against the tree. He was invested in knowing the answer as well.

"Yes."

Caia dropped the scissors she was holding and forced a smile on her face, "Oh, I see." As if now burned by Jasper's touch, she moved away from him and tied her hazel hair up. "I'm finished, thank you for your help."

Jasper immediately stood up and grabbed her arm. "Wait! What's wrong, Lady?"

"Nothing at all, I need to train."

"Why don't we train together-"

"No!" She snapped.

The knight dropped her arm but put her hand up gently to his lips, "Then, until next time. I apologize for my forwardness." With that, he walked away.

The General climbed up the ladder to the Principissa's home. Clearly, he had to do the opposite of what just happened. "Rise and shine, Prince- woah!"

Evaline's bare back was facing him and she was holding a large cloth from her waist down. Her hair, though a mess, was still beautiful in its voluminous curls shining in the sunlight. She turned near his voice at him and gasped, mortified, quickly wrapping the fabric around her. "G-General Leo, I did not hear you come up."

"I sincerely apologize, it was my fault for just coming in like that." He said, looking at the wall in an attempt to avoid the image in front of him. "Are you finished?"

"Yes, one of the girls wiped me down and I was just getting dressed."

"You shouldn't be up and about, Princess. After all, you just got injured."

She scoffed, "I can only be bedridden for so long. It's been three days since then." Tapping his shoulder, he turned to look at her. "We have found the destined land, the one Reuben wished for. It would be terrible if we sold them out and had your army and the nobles misuse the nature. Who knows what they would do to the Starlings."

Leo nodded, "But still, your freedom-"

"Never mind my freedom. I must also ask the Princeps how to heal my blindness. It would restore everything."

"I understand. We must be careful and not act rashly though."

She sighed as she descended the ladder, "Having nature respond to me in ways I haven't known before is a thrilling feeling that I cannot explain. This must be what it means to be a Starling."

As they walked to where Verna was, Ev described the relationship between the girl and the mystery man, how her mother danced in the trees whilst teasing him. There were some parts in the SageStone where she would let him climb with her. The memories captured were picture-perfect and Evaline, for some reason, wanted to keep them engrained in her mind forever of how happy her mother looked.

The Principissa nodded once hearing their request to leave and how to still achieve what they were looking for. "Darling, the trees here will work wonders, but in other lands, they may do other things as well. With your powers, you can wield them to your heart's desire. Across the Northern mountain, beyond the frozen ocean, there is a kingdom that supposedly also has one of the last descendants of The Inherited. Find them and they will guide you in perhaps healing and finding a new land."

Evaline smiled and threw her arms around her aunt. "Thank you so much for showing me the Way of the Starling. My friends and I are much indebted to you."

Verna caressed her cheek, "Keep the necklace. We will be waiting for your return, heir apparent."

Once the group had packed their things along with freshly stocked supplies, the whole village gathered out on the border with lit torches and lanterns. They murmured a tribal chant seeing off the heir apparent and Ev felt her heart clench tightly. The song of her people; this was her home.

She breathed in the chilly fog air, attempting to ignore the sad thoughts invading her mind. Could a descendant really be alive? It had been thousands of years since The Inherited lived and it was a legend. Nevertheless, it was worth a shot.

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Double update because it's Christmas!

Thanks for reading, my flowers <3

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