The Damsel and her Knight

23rd ☾ Under the Crescent Moons

Darling, close your eyes and you will see,

In your deepest thoughts, there lies what will set us free.

23rd ☾

Under the Crescent Moons

"How did you..." My eyes widened in shock, placing my tightly clenched right hand over my mouth.

"Don't be afraid," Lancelot appeased me. "I didn't tell anyone about it. I only asked about you—Cassandra Montforth. A few days ago, I was able to meet with an old sorcerer who once worked for my father. He said that my father desperately searched for a girl with a seal on her right hand four years ago."

"I already know that. Tell me something I don't. How..."I said, my voice breaking—refusing to believe that he had kept this from me all this while. "...did you know that I have this seal?"

"I saw it on the first day I met you," Lancelot confessed, "when I dragged you to the shore."

"And you didn't say a thing about it?" I blew out a breath, keeping myself still.

He stared at me for a moment, before he replied, "You never said a word about it, either."

I held back my words, realizing his point.

Lancelot went on, "I was able to confirm that my father was looking for a Cassandra Montforth, and the reason for it was because of that seal cast on your birth."

I sighed. "No. It appeared when I was twelve, okay?"

"But that was what was indicated," Lancelot replied.

"Forget it," I told him. "What else did you hear about me? Did they specifically indicate why I have this seal?"

Lancelot shook his head. "They didn't indicate anything. Nobody knew, except my father."

"I should go back to Alec," I just said.

He held me back. "You're far too precious to be caught, Cassandra. Don't act without thinking. You're probably the only one who could keep my father on his toes. Something about that seal of yours makes him restless."

As he was talking, I heard an unusual sound coming from afar. I held a hand up, silencing him, "Shh."

"What is it?"

"Could it be?" I wondered.

We both went silent, listening closely for whatever it was that was gradually approaching. It didn't seem like the guards' footsteps. A little forceful but drastically less raucous than that. But there it was, whirling from a distance. The forceful surge left a crisp sound behind.

And it was coming nearer.

"Fire!" I screamed upon realization, turning to Lancelot, who also realized it the same time I did. There was a horrified look in his eyes. I looked at afar, seeing a glimpse of what was coming for us—a sea of devouring flame.

"Let's get Alec first. We have to run," Lancelot urged me, pulling my arm as I was still in shock and processing what was going on. "How can this be happening?"

"Did the fire spread?" I said.

"We have no way of telling," Lancelot answered.

We arrived at where Alec was sitting; he was clueless on what was going on. With sweaty hands, I helped Lancelot as we lifted him up to a standing position. Nervousness was also evident in my voice, as I stammered, "Alec, we... have to go. The forest's burning down."