The Mark of Aether

Ardoria

A stir of warmth brushed past my face, bringing me out of the depth of sleep. Taking the leisure from time, I opened my eyes, blinking as light harshly hit them. Gold bathed the room, dancing rays twirling from one side to the other. Sheens of colors ruled over the place, my eyes adjusting to the brightness of the day.

Hearing some shuffling, I turned to see the same maid from yesterday, her arms full with plied, fluffy towels. When she noticed me, she bowed and spoke. '' Good morn, milady. His High Lordship has assigned me to be your personal maid. Do you wish for anything?''

"Who?''

"Lord Ramos,'' she said, looking rather surprised. ''Do you wish for a bath?''

"I will be much grateful,'' I said and she turned away, proceeding to her task.

My head was slightly swimming in darkness, my eyes still stinging. Ramos's words rung like an echo in my head and it took me everything not to think about them. About what I'd learnt. Breathing in the morning air, I got out of bed, removing the silky duvet. First to catch my attention was the missing bruises. No blood, no scar, no pain. No remainder of that night in the woods except my memories.

Waiting for the maid to come back, I allowed myself to discover the room. After falling face flat on the mattress, I did not take my time savoring this beauty. Mostly, the oddity of it.

As a first, there was no ceiling, nothing but a clear birthing sky. Flecked with waves of pink, indigo and gold, the firmament enshrouded the room with beaut. The floor was clear of a translucent gold, as though a plaque of a frozen ray of light. Wherever my foot would land, it rippled like dancing water. My bed was enormous, covered by a comforter the colors of deep beige and gold with matching pillows. The bed rested underneath the intertwined branches of two willows. The leaves were the color of pure silver covered with what looked like twenty-four karat of golden glitter.

Too fancy, yet breathtaking.

Arched doors made of pure glass were standing in the transparency of the widely stretched glassy walls. Three of them were there, one from which the maid had disappeared. Beautiful statues were dispersed, each representing a creature that might have belonged to my wildest dreams.

"Everything is ready,'' said the old woman, appearing out of nowhere. With a from here, she guided me through one of the doors.

The crystalline door opened to a room of similar designs. Instead of where a bath tub should have been, a pool was crafted. A farther waterfall cascaded streaming, hot water to the bath that was filled with rose petals. Suddenly, I felt unbelievably spoilt. This was a whole new definition to luxury.

"The other door with the silver knob is for the closet, the golden one for the exit. If you shall desire anything, I will be doing the bed and waiting to attend to your hair.'' And with that she disappeared again. Attend to my hair? That was getting way too much. Yet, I allowed myself to enjoy this rare showing of care.

I sank in the hot water, the warmth relaxing my tensed muscles. Everything came back to me, my conversation with Ramos flashing again and again.

Dead. My parents were truly dead. My mother at least. And apparently, the king was not much far away. And with that, a childhood dream I didn't know I was still hanging onto shattered. Heiress, princess, royal, they were all words that rung too heavily in the air. It was impossible. Impossible for a nobody like me to be of such birth. And yet, if anybody told me twenty four hours ago that another world existed, I would have probably laughed before sending him to an asylum.

As I traced my symbol with my eyes, I allowed some silent tears to shed, to flow free. I wasn't one to cry in public or to beg and grovel. I wasn't a coward, or a bully. I was just a teen that life taught her the hard way how to survive. How to hide the scar and pull on a fake smile.