2.1 | Alice ✔

Harbinger

Saber trudged through the lonely fog of Veloren, dragging herself along on the support of her staff. Her limbs were so weak, and she didn't have any sort of willpower to continue. Her emotional outburst had drained her physically, and she was alarmingly close to passing out.

It was only the sense of familiarity of the surrounding area that kept her pressing on. Relief overwhelmed her as she began to see mushrooms along the path, and before she knew it, she was in the presence of Eris, and the others.

"Saber!" Raelen gasped when he saw her, but before he could take a single step toward her, she dropped to her knees and passed out. For a long moment, all she could hear were frantic voices calling her name over and over.

The next time she woke, she was in an all white room, reminiscent of the sick room she regained consciousness in when she first came to this realm. Out of nowhere, her vision was swarmed with familiar faces: Ezra, Raelen, Katherine, Zephyr and Meredith. A smile came to her face as her heart swelled with warmth. Their expressions were a mix of worry, anxiety, elation and sorrow. She didn't understand the sadness that emanated around them, until a heavy pang of loss pierced her heart. Zain's not here.

"Saber, we were so distraught!" Meredith conveyed, brushing her bangs out of her eyes. "We thought you weren't going to make it . . ."

"We weren't completely wrong to make that assumption," Ezra whispered mournfully. They all exchanged looks as Saber sat up, shaking her head in regret.

"Zain wanted to return . . . but he just couldn't," she whispered. Her eyes burned despite her having no more tears to shed. "We didn't heed your warnings . . . I barely escaped Red Kingdom myself. I wish they were as inhospitable as you claimed them to be, Your Highness."

Meredith looked guilty before quickly offering a smile. "Alfred received the letter from Jeremiah. He was moved to tears of joy. He's so relieved that his baby brother is well, and with a kind word." The smile quickly disappeared again. "But I can't understand. If he was never sick, then . . . what of that letter?"

"King Alfred claimed that it was Jeremiah's very handwritting," Ezra added. "How bizarre . . . do you really think it was just a trick?"

"And who would do something so heinous, anyway?" Zephyr snarled. Saber pursed her lips as Ophelia came to her mind, but she didn't really have proof that it had been her. What would be the motive behind it? And how would she have been able to even get into White Kingdom? She couldn't have gotten past Zhenya, let alone Zyanya.

"I suppose none of that matters now," Meredith said with a reluctant sigh. "It's unfortunate that Zain couldn't return with you, but we're happy to have you back, Saber. We're very close to getting you back home."

"Now that Jeremiah is well, that's the White Kingdom's top priority!" Ezra exclaimed dutifully.

"We're all going to do our best to help," Zephyr smiled gently. "We all owe you that much."

Saber forced a smile. She was really touched by their dedication, but going home was the furthest thing from her mind. She couldn't imagine what it was going to be like, returning home without Zain by her side. Sure, she intended to tell his parents that he died for a noble cause, but how were they to live with that answer? How was she to live with telling them that lie?

"Stay here and rest, my dear," Meredith said, placing a hand on her forehead and gently pushing her back down. "I know that everything is hard to cope with right now, but everything will get better. You're a powerful woman, to have stuck to the mission the way you did. That's not at all an easy feat, and you did us a great service because of it."

"Thank you, Your Highness," Saber replied weakly, feeling a lump form in her throat.

"You won't leave here without the full extent of our greatest thanks," the queen promised, leaning down and kissing her forehead. "Ezra will be back to fetch you later. Sleep, my dear."