Peacebringer

Chapter Thirty Nine - Facing Gairadon

Asha's tears turned harshly to confusion. "How do you know my name?" she dulled her flames to warmer orange, and let their size diminish slightly.

"That was the name the Queen picked for our second daughter..." Gairadon's eyes had gone soft and warm. For a moment he seemed to forget the fate of his other daughter. "Does this mean that Raza..."

"Raza is my mother. She's alive." Asha said quietly. Even though she had pieced together moments ago that her mother was the Queen, she didn't think that her mother would have kept the same name if they were in hiding.

"I thought I'd lost you both...it's been fourteen years..." Now the King was the one covered in tears. Asha felt her heart tug at the sight. Her father had missed her.

Asha refocused herself. Valda had warned her about Darkwater. Even if the King was softening, Darkwater was probably still around here somewhere. She needed a way out. Clearly escaping through the library wasn't going to work.

There was window on the wall right behind the King. They were only on the third or fourth floor...if she could make it to the moat...I could jump and make it... she thought. It would have to work.

"And you're a fire spinner," The King said, wiping his eyes. "I always wondered if Raza was..."

"Being able to spin is probably the reason she left!" Asha suddenly let her anger overcome her fear. The flames in her hands sparked and crackled. "You were already hunting down spinners and you had two right here in the castle. Of course she left! She didn't want to suffer the same fate as the Kardans you were rounding up like cattle!"

The King stopped, considering what Asha was saying. "But I thought you had died at the hands of the spinners. That's why I increased my efforts."

"BUT WHY WERE YOU FIGHTING THEM TO BEGIN WITH?" Asha was screaming now, her flames and eyes burning with white fire. "THEY DID NOTHING TO HURT YOU. YOU HAVE IMPRISONED AND KILLED INNOCENT PEOPLE. WHY WERE YOU SO AFRAID OF THEM?"

The King stuttered for a moment, wracking his brain for an answer. "I...I don't know..."

"YOU DON'T KNOW?" Now the flames were reaching up towards the ceiling. "HOW CAN YOU NOT KNOW?"

At that moment, another shadowy figure appeared. This one was small and thin, wearing a cloak.

"Darkwater," Asha muttered under her breath. Darkwater looked up, and seemed surprised to see Asha's face.

"You're...You're supposed to be dead..." She said.

"No. However, your guard killed the princess...my sister." Asha said solemnly. She could see Darkwater processing what she had just said.

"Sister...no, It can't be..." Darkwater said in disbelief. Asha memorized every line of her tiny, pointed, sallow face. She looked almost snakelike in the white light. She had left her usual veil behind upon hearing the disturbance.

"I am the lost princess." She said it quietly at first, almost a whisper. Then she roared, "I AM THE LOST PRINCESS."

"This...this wasn't supposed to happen," Darkwater said.

"Asha," the King whispered. "Asha, let's talk about this. We can bring your mother back here and talk about all this. I want to-"

"WHY WOULD I TRUST YOU?" Asha's anger would not allow for any negotiations. "YOU KILLED SPINNERS. WHY WOULD I TRUST YOU?" Her face was red and wet.

"Asha please," He pleaded.

"NO. I WOULD NOT PUT MY MOTHER IN DANGER." Asha turned her attention towards Darkwater. "YOU'RE THE ONE WHO CONVINCED US TO LEAVE. MAYBE YOU'RE THE ONE WHO NEEDS TO HAVE A TALK WITH THE KING."

Asha slammed both fists into the ground, lighting the ornate carpet on fire. Darkwater bolted immediately, the king following soon after. Asha stepped through the flames towards the window. Fire couldn't harm her.

She could hear guards running from the other side of the corridor. Now was her chance.

She thrust her flaming hand through the stained glass window and hoisted herself onto the window sill. The moat looked a lot farther down than she had thought.

She heard an arrow swish past her and jumped.

The fall felt eerily silent, even as she felt the wind rushing past her. She couldn't make herself take a deep enough breath to be able to scream.

Hitting the water felt like it had shattered every bone in her body. And it was so cold and dark. She remained motionless in the water for a moment before realizing that all her limbs still worked.

She swam along the edge of the castle, where she was least likely to be seen. Her backpack, now full of water was becoming heavier and heavier.

She swam to shore under the bridge that they had used to get to the kitchen entrance, and carefully climbed up the river bank. She checked to see if the coast was clear, and then disappeared into the forest.

She managed to find the same small clearing that she and Valda had sat in that afternoon. She could still see the imprints of where they had sat in the dust. Asha found a patch of grass and sat down heavily.

She didn't know what to feel. Valda was dead. Her father wanted her to come back. He had almost seemed reasonable.

Finally, after her brain swimming for what seemed like hours, exhaustion took over. She leaned over to go to sleep.

"Asha..." It was Havi's voice in her ear again. Asha let out a sob, the voice triggering all the feelings she hadn't been able to process. "I know it's late, but I'm hoping that you and Valda made it out okay by now. We're looking forward to seeing both of you again!"

Asha closed her eyes and willed herself to fall asleep, the tears trickling silently down her face. She needed to escape, even if it was just for a few hours.