Cursed

Irlon

"Look, up there!" Aidan pointed above the trees.

My lips parted in a gasp of surprise.

"Is that? Is that the Gate?" I asked excitedly.

"Yep. Or part of it anyway," he grinned.

Two tall towers arched high in the sky. You could just see the tops of them from here, but we were really close. I turned to Aidan and gave him a grin of my own.

"What are we waiting for?"

I kicked my horse into a gallop and raced through the trees. This was it. I was finally going to see my family. I was finally going to see Irlon. I know this might seem foolish, but I had always dreamed of seeing a city. There were plenty of cities that were bigger than Irlon, but I had always dreamed of visiting it someday. I pulled my horse to a stop as I reached a long line of people, wagons, and horses. The two towers reached the clouds. A huge, thick wall circled the city keeping the unwanted out. I saw knights standing at the entrance. The kingdom's flag waved proudly in the sky on both of the towers. I could just make out the lion's head with a snake between its teeth. Aidan was only a few seconds behind me. I couldn't help but sticking my tongue out at him.

"I won," I taunted.

"I wasn't aware it was a race," he snorted.

I tried to hide my smile as I replied, "It's always a race."

He rolled his eyes, but the corners of his mouth turned up into a smile too.

There were all kinds of people waiting to get inside of Irlon. I stared at the wall. It was said to be built in a single day. Twenty dragons attacked the city, destroyed everything, killed countless people, and ate most of the livestock. A knight by the name of Sebastian North was said to have defeated all of them single-handedly. Unfortunately, the knight was recruited to be part of the King's Elite and was called away. In his honor, they built this wall so they could protect themselves. Nothing could get in or out without them knowing. That made me suck in a breath. I turned back to look at Aidan.

"Uh, what if they figure out my, uh, bloodline?" I asked.

The kingdom wide ruling for anything Immortal related was immediate death. The villagers in my hometown were risking there own lives just to let me be free. If anybody else found out...I didn't even want to think about it. Aidan smiled confidently.

"Don't worry about it, all you have to do is stay calm," he shrugged.

That plan was anything, but foolproof. There wasn't an alternative, so I kept my mouth closed and just tried to keep my attention in anything but the guards. The line was moving surprisingly fast. With each step my anxiety built more and more. The Gate was beginning to seem very big and intimidating by the time we reached the guards. The were fully dressed in shining armor. The kingdom's crest was engraved on it. I stared straight up as we stopped. The guards didn't even look up.

"Reason of business in Irlon?" The shorter one asked, bored.

Aidan didn't miss a best. "Visiting family," he said smoothly.

My mouth dropped. How could he have known that I had family here? Before I could question him about it, the guards motioned us through the gate.

The horses hooves clacked a little on the stone walkway. There were people everywhere. It was unbelievable. Buildings of bricks stood in stories and rows lining all the streets. Children played a game that included a rock and an old wagon wheel. Women were washing clothes in different fountains that were scattered across the city. All different kinds of people were selling everything you could possibly think of. I saw some of the merchants bartering with customers. The places was filled with delicious smells, loud voices, and laughter. It was absolutely wonderful.