The Rise of the Songbird

Chapter 2: City of Banishment

    "Rose!" a familiar voice shouted, startling her awake. Her eyes flew open, but her vision was black. Her body ached all over. She shifted, the bed creaking underneath her. Rose froze. This is not my bed. The icy chill bit into her, shaking her body. She wrapped her arms around herself, grimacing at the pain it brought.

     "Jacob?" she called out, her voice timid. As she reached out blindly, her hand found another. Recognizing it to be Jacob's, she slipped her hand in his.

   "Give your eyes a few minutes to adjust to the dark. Noah is off trying to find a candle," Jacob said. Her mind still sleepy and foggy, she raised her other hand to rub her eyes, but her fingers hit something before touching her face. Rose took her hand out of Jacob's and felt her face. It was partially covered, with only her cheekbones and up exposed. It felt natural. Like it was a part of her face. She could talk, breath, and move normally, without any difficulty. It almost felt like the mask her mother had to wear when she got sick but still needed to work. Her fingers gripped the sides and tried to yank it off, but a sharp pain stopped her. It felt like her face was being yanked with the mask. Curious, she reached up and felt Jacob's face. He had a mask too, covering up his nose and mouth.

    "What's on our faces?" Rose asked, confused.

    "It's a mask. It prevents people from song casting and apparently protects us from the awful air. You can press a little button on the side and it'll retract to be only little earpieces. It only lasts for 30 minutes though. Everyone here has it."

     "...Where...where is here?"

     Jacob hesitating before answering softly, "The City of Banishment. We have been exiled from the kingdom." Before Rose could reply, she heard a door fly open.

     "I found some!" her other brother exclaimed, triumphantly. Rose heard a scratch and a small dot of light glowed in the dark. A flame. Noah lit five candles and positioned them around the small room. Rose looked around, getting to see her surroundings for the first time. The room was eerie in the soft orange glow. Cold stone walls surrounded them. The floor was wood, and there was a nightstand beside the bed she was in. One other table accompanied the room, but it was crumbling and falling apart. The City of Banishment? Rose slowly let that information sink in.

     "Wait, exiled?"

     "Yeah."

     "You're joking." Rose's eyes widened, remembering the events that had unfolded a few hours earlier. "Wait, where's mom?" Noah and Jacob exchanged a pained look.

     "Mom didn't come with us," Noah whispered softly, his voice breaking slightly. Rose looked back in forth between her brothers, trying to understand what they were saying.

     "You don't mean- you can't mean..."

     "Mom's gone," Jacob said.

     Rose shook her head violently, dismissing the idea. "No. She's not. Stop making things up. We are at the castle and mom is here." Rose swung her legs out of bed, and touched the floor, jumping at how cold it was. Ignoring it, she marched out of the room, picking up a candle along her way out. "Mom!" It was hard to navigate the unfamiliar hallway, especially with only the small glow to light her path. Her hand dragged against the wall, waiting to feel a doorknob. The cold metal hit her skin, and she closed her fingers around it.

     "Rose, come here," Jacob called, his voice strained. Rose didn't answer. She threw open the door with her eyes closed. Open your eyes. You know you'll see the beautiful garden, the palace in the background. You are just in the garden shed. Mom will be standing there too, arms full of flowers. Just like usual. She slowly opened her eyes. Instead of a beautiful garden, she saw a dirt road and broken buildings. A cold wind whipped through the deserted streets, but she barely felt it. Her eyes scanned the view, desperate to prove her brothers wrong.

     "Mom?" Rose called, voice breaking. "Mom! Mommy where are you?" Her voice escalated, turning into a shout. No, no, no. She can't be gone. Arms wrapped around her and pulled her away from the door as it slammed shut. Sobs racked through Rose's body as she fell into the arms holding her. "No!" Rose wept into Jacob's chest.

     "I know," he whispered into her hair, kissing her head. "I know."