CORRUPTED FILE [Lumina Chronicles Past Drafts]

Level Twenty-Three

[MAGGIE's PoV]

The massive wall that surrounded Lumina's capital loomed ahead of us, magnificent and imposing.

"...Ooh, this is so exciting..!" Carlyle sighed. He draped himself across my lap, careful to hover a few inches above my skin. I had gotten better at controlling the memory swap thing, but it was still jarring any time it happened without preparation.

Carlyle had been right about the impossibility of sleeping while the carriage was moving, but luckily angel's required sleep too, so Rhiannon had no trouble stopping for a few hours every so often to let us rest. During the day I'd taken to riding up on the driver's bench with her. At night I stayed inside the carriage, and Carlyle and I practiced memory swapping.

As we came ever closer to the wall, Rhiannon tensed at my side. Though she was going to take me all the way to the palace, I understood why she didn't want to. The walls were high, and solid, and heavily guarded. And she was exactly what they were trying to keep out.

"Just keep your eyes closed." I squeezed her hand. With both her eyes and feathers covered, there was nothing to immediately give her away as non-human.

She nodded curtly, her teeth clenched.

The trip had passed without any trouble. She'd warned me bandits might be a problem, but luckily we never came across any. Not that I was too worried—at Faye's brithday I'd watched Rhiannon absolutely demolish basically everyone there in an arm wrestling competition. If we encountered any bandits, she'd probably take them out without a problem.

"State your business," one of the knights guarding Réalta's gate demanded when we pulled to a halt in front of them.

"I'm escorting Lady Jacintha Carlyle to the ball at the palace, sir," Rhiannon answered, jerking her head toward me.

"...I do love that you used my name. It has a very majestic ring to it..." Carlyle commented.

The knight gave me a scrutinizing look, his hand resting on his sword. "Step down, please."

I swallowed and did as I was told, doing my best to carry myself like nobility.

Two other knights opened the carriage doors, looked under the seats, under the wheels. I half expected one of them to open my luggage and start looking in there. The whole time, I was acutely aware of the vial of poison still in my pocket. Hopefully they wouldn't do a body check.

The knight who spoke was easily a head taller than me, and he stared me down with a look of pure skepticism. "Invitation?"

I frowned. "Invitation like a paper invitation? I don't have one."

"No invitation no entry," he said firmly. The curve of his lips made it seem like he found amusement in turning me away.

"But Cas—Prince Casimir invited me personally." Through the gate I could see the bustling city. So close. I was so close. Was this one stupid thing really going to be what stopped me?

"Very funny, miss Jacintha. Now head back to wherever you came from." He said, turning away from me.

"Believe, me that's the goal." I muttered, too quiet for him to hear. I crossed my arms, then said louder. "Cas will be quite disappointed if I'm not there. And you can tell him that you're the one who turned me away."

The knight turned back to me, saying something, but I completely missed whatever it was. On the other side of the gate, Casimir's knight Julian was strolling along in conversation with a tall, blonde man in glasses.

Yes! Julian could totally vouch for me. He hadn't seemed to trust me when we first met, but he was still a witness to Cas inviting me.

"Juju!" I shouted. I hurried past the knight, trying to wave through the gate. "Juju, hey! Juj—ow!"