Impenetrable- Sequel to Arcanum

Chapter 26: Kaliska

The sound of someone softly muttering in their sleep woke me up, and I stretched and leaned over the side of the bed. Colt laid on his makeshift bed of blankets, muttering quietly. His eyes were shut closed, and I couldn't stop giggling as I poked him, and he continued to mutter.

"Colt?" I whispered to the guy, and the guy grumbled and pulled the blankets over his head. I giggled to myself, and rose out of bed, finding myself dressed in someone's dress. I assumed it was Queen Charlene's.

"Hello." I heard a voice when I exited the room, and I looked to see the Queen looking at me.

"Hi, Queen Charlene." I smiled, and was about to bow, when the Queen stopped me,

"No need for that." She giggled, "now, I see you're wearing one of my dresses."

"Oh, Colt must have put it on..." I sighed, and Charlene laughed,

"I was just teasing. I put it on you." She smiled,

"It's a good thing, we wouldn't want Colt to faint again." Spruce came up beside us, grinning mischievously. I rolled my eyes at him, and Queen Charlene looked at her son,

"What's this about?" She asked, and Spruce started to explain the story,

"Shut up!" Colt suddenly flung at his brother, covering his mouth.

"You boys better tell me what's going on." Queen Charlene said, and Colt glared at his brother. I snickered, as Colt tried to keep Spruce quiet.

"I think I'm going to go to the gardens." I yawned, but Spruce grabbed my shoulder,

"No way, don't forget you were in this too." He grinned, and I sighed, and faced Queen Charlene,

"Let's just say Colt ran into me bathing." I shrugged casually,

"Colt! I swear I should ground you for a month!" The woman chased her son down the staircase, and Spruce and I laughed as she chased him around.

"Is your family always like this?" I asked him,

"Pretty much, yeah." We both laughed.

---

I rode Noir through the forest, heading through the spot of my old village. It looked nothing of what it used to be, with destroyed buildings, and half of them burned to the ground. Thankfully, the fire had disappeared, but it was sad to see my home like this. I rode through the village, missing the sound of children playing, and villagers talking.

When I came across the town market, it was even sadder of a sight. Rotten fruit and pieces of clothing were strewn out across the ground, and the market booths were torn and destroyed. I kicked Noir into a canter, as we travelled up the hill toward the castle.

To my surprise, it wasn't half as charred as everything else. In fact, it probably was the only building that hadn't been highly affected. I dismounted off Noir, and tied her to a nearby tree, and headed into the castle.

The furniture around me was covered in black ash, along with everything else. You could barely even see out of the windows.

I headed up the staircase, up to my bedroom, and walked in, since the door had burned down. My bed was covered in a thick layer of ash, and my window was smashed wide open. I could still remember that horrible night.

I had just returned to my room, after having a conversation with my dad. Picking up my favourite book, I sat on my bed, and began to read it. Not only ten minutes later, I heard people screaming and the sound of something burning outside my door. Smoke started to rise into my room, and soon, it was accompanied by fire. I had no choice but to smash open the window, and jump out, or else I would have been swallowed up by the flames.