Devotion: A Tale of Liars and Beasts

7. Feast

Enara felt as though she was floating as she walked down the halls of the great palace.

Her encounter with the mysterious God had shaken loose every bit of tension from her long journey. She felt divine.

After he'd left her, she'd bathed, dressed in her chambers, and applied some of the fragrant oils to her wrists. Just as she'd finished pinning up her hair, Enara realized she was being watched.

There on the bedpost, sat a little sparrow.

Not the usual kind. This one was rather odd.

Atop its feathered body, sat the head of a green snake, where a bird's head ought to be. Its eyes intently trained on her, tilting its little head this way and that. At first, Enara hadn't been sure what to think of the tiny creature. She'd tried to approach it, to see if it was friendly. But it had flown away from her, out her chamber door.

It came back moments later, and they repeated the same dance. It was only then that she realized the bird was expecting her to follow.

So she did just that. She followed.

Down the labyrinth of passageways she went. Occasionally the snake-sparrow would fly too far ahead, disappearing around a corner. Enara would gather her skirts and hurry after it, afraid she'd be lost without her guide.

But the strange little bird would always come back.

It led her into the hall in which she first arrived, and into the adjacent ballroom. Up two tremendous flights of winding marble stairs, and down some more broad corridors. Finally they arrived at the Great Hall. Enara was slightly winded, but otherwise intact.

The snake-sparrow flew on ahead, leaving her to gawk in awe at the grandeur of her surroundings. Like the entrance of the palace, here too hung the impressive metal chandeliers, casting candlelight in every direction with the help of dozens of tiny mirrors. 

The columns of the hall were the trunks of ancient trees, growing straight through the chamber. Vast stained glass windows lined the longest side of the hall, and Enara noticed the vague shape of a balcony beyond them, whose stone railing was lit only by the moon.

Enara remembered Darius' note, a chill coming over her.

Come to us before tonight's full moon. If you refuse, it may very well be your last night as you are; intact.

She still had no idea what she'd even been running from before arriving here. No idea what dangers would've preyed upon her had she not come. But she supposed she'd finally get a chance to ask.

She turned her attention to the long wooden dining table in the center of the room. There sat several figures awaiting her arrival.

She was reminded of all the times Darius had said we.

She'd known there would be others, she just wasn't sure when she'd finally meet them. Now, apparently. Enara suddenly felt nervous, the walk across the broad hall feeling longer than it should have.

"Little nymph, you've finally come to join us," 

Darius stood, striding towards her in his flowing emerald robes. Gone was his simple black cloak. The bronze accents of his king-like attire glinted with every step, his deep golden complexion looking even more dashing against the rich hues.