Tribal

10

Acacia woke up in a pale room; the bed was soft, and the blankets felt amazing. She was so lost in thought that she hadn't even noticed that she fell asleep in the woods. How did she get here? She was panicking when she noticed that her torn and bloodied cloak had been replaced with a finely crafted white one. She looked over at the nightstand next to her and saw a note with a glass of water. She just realized how dehydrated she was and drank the whole glass and read the note. It said, "I found you in the woods covered in blood and you were passed out. I panicked, and the palace was closer than the village, so I brought you here. I had the maids take your old cloak and replace it with one of the palace ones. Don't worry, you are safe now. Sincerely, Ghost." She quickly blushed at the thought that he had found her in the woods, but more importantly, she feared about what may have happened to her.

Suddenly, the door opened, and Ghost walked in carrying a plate of food. She was starving, but her fear overtook her hunger. Her glaive was next to the bed, so she grabbed it and stood, pointing at him. "Where am I? What did you do to me? Do not lie! I will kill you!" Ghost slowly walked over to the other side of the bed and placed the tray of food down on the nightstand.

"Do not be afraid. You are in the white palace, did you read the note? I found you in the woods, bloodied and passed out. I feared for your life and brought you here; you had no serious injuries, so I assume the blood is not yours. I promise you were not violated by myself or anyone here. I'd stake my life on that promise." Ghost spoke truthfully; she could tell. She believed him, but she did not trust him. She was eyeing the plate of food; she was starving, she hadn't eaten in at least a day, and was starving. Ghost looked at her and spoke gently. "It's yours, I'll leave if you want me to and I promise it's safe." Ghost took the fork that was sitting on the plate and took a small bite of it. "Get your strength up, I'll return in a few hours. There is a guest bathroom in the room behind you; none besides myself have a key to the room so you won't need to worry about intruders. Eat, freshen up, and I'll be back in a few hours to speak with you some more."

Ghost left the room, and she heard a click, signaling that the door had been locked. After she was sure he was gone, she quickly approached the food and ate. She was surprised at it; she had never tasted something like this before. It was amazing! After eating, she stood and walked over to the bathroom and began running a shower for herself. She thought over her actions, and she was mentally insulting herself. Such a fool she was! She killed all those bugs! They didn't need to die. She could have left them and returned home. How she wished she could apologize to Clover for what she did. She knew that it was likely that she was permanently exiled; Ash likely found the bodies of the group and connected two and two together and already placed a permanent exile on her, as well as her death warrant.

"They deserved it." That voice. It was him again, the shadow.

"N-No, I... They were begging to be spared, and I..." Acacia could not see him past the shower curtain, but she knew he was standing there. Watching her. The thought made her voice stutter as she spoke.

"They deserved it. I'm glad your mind was so easily influenced by my power though, getting you to kill all those bugs who were just minding their own business by making you think they were about to assault you? Hilarious. And it was an amazing scene of bloodshed. One I shall likely never forget." Those words petrified her; he made her do it? He had made her kill innocent people by casting an illusion? Had he also made her attack Clover? How powerful was his magic that he was able to influence actions so easily? Before she could ask, she felt his presence disappear from the room. He was gone. She quickly finished in the shower and had dried off; when she stepped out and had gotten dressed, she heard the door click again.

"Hello again. It's me." Ghost walked in again, and she was sitting on the bed staring at the floor. "I brought you some more water." He was being so kind to her; why? He had bested her in combat. By all of her tradition standards, he should be treating her like dirt. She was weak and didn't deserve his compassion.

"Why are you being so kind to me? You bested me; I should be seen as trash to your eyes. Nothing worth your time. I do not deserve your kindness." Acacia refused to look at him.

"I guess, I just want to help you." He sat next to her and reached a hand to her shoulder when she slapped his hand away.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Ghost was taken back by her behavior. She was breathing very fast and pulled her legs into her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs and began crying into her knees. Ghost stood and sat on the other side of the bed. Facing away from her he began to speak again.

"I did not mean to scare you; I just want to help." Ghost had empathy in his voice.

"I am not afraid of anything! I don't need help." Acacia knew she was lying; she wasn't afraid of him; she was afraid that she would do something horrible again.

"Okay, can you tell me what happened? Before I found you?" Ghost was here on business, after it was revealed that the blood was likely not hers, his brother had requested that he find out who's or what the blood belonged to. Acacia did not know if he would believe that a shadow monster had cast an illusion and made her kill innocent bugs, so she told him what had happened from her perspective.

"I was patrolling around the morning after our duel, and a group of insects had threatened me; they were going to assault me, so I...I." She stopped, and her voice hitched. Ghost understood; he stood and walked over to her and gave her a soft hug. She could not resist anymore and buried herself in his chest and let all her emotions spill out. He did his best to soothe her, and when she had fallen asleep from crying so hard, he placed the covers on her and left the room. Outside he met with his brother and Hornet, who had arrived when she heard the news that one of the mantis lords had been taken into Ghost's care.

"What news do you bring brother?" Hollow inquired.

"The blood belongs to a group of insects who had tried to assault her. She defended herself and killed them." Ghost repeated Acacia's story.

"Very well. What do you think, Hornet?" Hollow looked to his sister.

"I will send for the other mantis lords. For now, keep her here. We need to keep an eye on her." Hornet looked at Ghost.

"I understand sister; I shall keep a close watch on the mantis." Ghost took a bow and left the room. As he walked out, he heard his brother call to him.

"Do not allow your feelings to cloud your judgment brother!" He could hear Hornet and Hollow snickering to themselves as he left with red dusting his face.