Gold's Rule ✔️

Chapter 17 - Alec's Adventure

"Daniella, please get these scrolls and paper to Matthew, then come down and meet me in the foyer. Where did you say they found him, Daniella?"

"Out in the village. Most of the guards are there. I can take you."

"Rainbow. I need you to go find Lunar and get her to come. I'll go get us proper shoes and a coat."

"Got it, boss. I'll see you in the foyer."

。。。

Within minutes, I'm running down to the village with Daniella, Rainbow and Lunar at my heels. My over-the-shoulder coat is flapping and my sneakers were already dirty. My heart was in my throat as Daniella came hurrying over from where she'd been waiting for us.

"Daniella, lead the way!"

I barley saw the green ponytail zip my me, but next thing I know, I was weaving through town, following her.

I had Rainbow's hand in mine, and, without looking back, I knew she had Lunar's in her other hand. The town was still mostly deserted, but there's definitely more townsfolk here than last time I visited. Most of the farming families have returned to their homes, determined to rebuild their stocks. So, our hands connected together was more for moral support, and less of fear of losing each other.

I wasn't sure how I felt about Alec. Yes, I was happy and relieved he'd returned safe and sound, but I was also furious. Furious he'd abandoned us in our time of need, furious he'd left Funneh by herself, and furious he'd left us worrying about him for all these months.

Lost in my thoughts, I hadn't even realized we'd come to a halt before a circle of guards with their swords pointed at a figure in the centre. The figure had dark crimson hair, apparent even through the dirt covering his hair. His eyes, usually bright red with energy, were now dull, seemingly lifeless. Without meaning to, I felt a sharp pang of pity and sympathy for him. It looks like he'd healed no faster than I, after the events of Funneh's... 'death'.

His head snapped up from where they'd been staring at the ground, his eyes finding me immediately. "Gold...!" He said, in a slightly bewildered voice.

"It's Queen Gold to you." I snapped. With my head held high, I stepped inside the ring of guards surrounding Alec. "Put those swords away." I said to them, in my demanding, queenly voice. I am really getting used to this.

They immediately returned their swords to their corresponding scabbards.

Up close, I could see small cuts and bruises along his face, arms, and legs. There was a concerning amount of dried blood on the side of his rib, and one of his ankles seemed slightly twisted, as he was lifting that ankle slightly off the ground. His hair was a mess and I even saw an uneven part near his left ear.

"This is Alec, do you not recognize him?" I asked the guard nearest to me, who looked scared at being addressed.

"N-no- I mean yes, your majesty, we do, but Commander Kyran has ordered us to do so." He stammered.

"And where is Commander Kyran?" I asked, narrowing my eyes as I raked the guards for the familiar blue hair.

"He w-went somewhere, your highness, he-"

"I'm here." A voice said, cutting the guard off. I looked up to see Kyran, with his familiar midnight blue hair, walking to me- us, from a small wagon to the side. "I was just searching the wagon, your highness, for any sign of threat."

I felt a sudden whoosh of cold air as he addressed me so formally, with no sign of friendliness in his tone.

"Why did you ask for the guards to point their weapons at Alec?" I asked. I was surprised; Kyran and Alec were best friends- no, basically brothers. Why was Kyran being so... cold?

"Because he is a traitor, your highness. He ran off in our time of need, and returned with nothing more than an apology. An apology, your highness. He is as much of a stranger as a travelling merchant, if not more." The anger and hurt were clear as Kyran's voice rose with each word.

I could hear the sharp intake of breath from Alec, and could imagine the pained expression on his face. Although, secretly, I agreed with Kyran. Come to think of it, could Alec be... working for Draco? No, he wouldn't work for the person who almost killed Funneh, I was sure of that.

"Kyran, take your guards and patrol around our borders, then take Alec's wagon and divide the stuff among the townspeople. After you're done, meet us in the hospital wing. Daniella, please go and inform Nurse Lilac of our arrival, then go to the kitchen and grab something for Alec. Alec, come with me and my sisters." I said, ignoring Kyran's outburst and left, with my sisters and Alec behind me.

"But, Gold, what about Alec's personal belongings?" Rainbow asked.

"Oh, I'm sure he has nothing of much value to him in that wagon. After all, he didn't really have time to pack before abandoning us, had he." I replied, and in that single sentence, I knew they could all hear the anger in me.

"Gold, allow me to exp-" Alec started, but I cut him off.

"No need. Let's just get straight to the point. Kyran had taken over your position as Head Guard. I'll have to discuss with my sisters if you should have that position back. Draco has been attacking us with these bubbles called "Memory Bubbles", which throws you a memory of which the attacker chooses. A few days ago a trio of robbers came and nearly stole all our treasures, and nearly killed Kyran. Oh, and, Funneh has been found alive behind the bush and she's currently in the hospital wing, suffering her coma. Did I miss anything?"

There was a beat of silence as Alec's pace slowed, clearly stunned by the mountain of information I'd thrown on him, especially the news about Funneh.

I stopped in front of Funneh's patient room, and turned to look at Alec.

"Here we are." I said, and pushed the door open.

The smell of medicine reached me almost immediately, it seemed as though Funneh had just had her survival tubes refilled as well. I glanced at the digital screen showing her heart rate almost immediately, and was relieved to see it moving along regularly.

I turned to see Alec's reaction, but he had already gone to Funneh's side. A small whimper sounded, quite unlike his usual guard-y demeanour. "How... How long has she been like this?" He choked out.

"About 3 weeks after you left." I said, feeling slightly sympathetic towards him now.

He reached forward gingerly, and touched Funneh's cheek. That did not stir a reaction. Part of me hoped it would, considering (apparently, according to Kyran,) they had a thing.

"Would you like to try kissing her? Her majesty and I thought that could be a remedy." A voice sounded behind me, along with the click of door opening. Kyran stepped through and closed the door behind him, a slight playful smirk on his face.

Alec jerked his hand away like he'd been burned and shot a glare at Kyran, an embarrassed glance at me.

"Don't worry, common sense and logic told us it wasn't possible." Kyran continued, unaffected by Alec's glare and his obvious embarrassment. "But, hey, it's worth a try."

I walked over to my sister's bed, staring down at her peaceful, motionless face. "A few days ago her line stopped beeping. I thought she'd died. The doctors revived her, but who's to say it won't happen again?" I muttered, mostly to myself, though everyone in the room could hear me.

Rainbow came and placed a comforting hand on my shoulder. "She'll wake up, don't worry."

"Yeah... who knows, maybe her stubborn butt wants to stay in coma because you're rushing her so much." Lunar spoke up, from where she'd been sitting by the door. That was the first time I'd heard her speak in weeks, and that sent a joke of surprise down my spine.

"I... May I be excused?" Alec asked, though it didn't sound like a question, and he bolted out the door before hearing my response.