Element Sense

Chapter Seven- Madness

Alyss awoke the next morning at her usual time, automatically preparing the necessary materials that enabled her to escape the prison she called home. Then she remembered the previous day's events. The King and Queen wouldn't allow her to leave with such an important guest here. She would be forced to spend her time with Prince Merek, unless...

She began her sewing, cursing herself for being too frustrated to poke the thread through the eye of the needle and instead pricking her finger, drawing blood. Rolling her eyes heavenward, she ignored the liquid flowing from her appendage, but keeping it away from the cloth. Finally succeeding, she focused her mind on each stitch. She knew that she couldn't afford to waste her time on something like needing to correct a bad stitch.

Although she had never enjoyed sewing, she rarely made any errors. That would simply persuade the King and Queen that her wandering wasn't necessary. Alyss had never understood how anyone could take pleasure in such a meaningless task. There was so much to do out in the world, things wouldn't be achieved by sitting around guiding metal through cloth. Immersed in her thoughts, Alyss finished.

She ran through a mental checklist. Reviewing the chapter she had read the night before about the Clandian Rebellion and laying a pattern out for the quilt she was to make was all that remained. Alyss concentrated on the key points of the pages in her mind while arranging the beautifully patterned squares, her injury completely forgotten.

Confident that Josselyn would record the order of the squares, Alyss rose. She changed quickly into her disguise that allowed her to freely roam the streets of the village. Thus dressed, she began to head out the door. At the last second, however, she pivoted on her heel and exchanged one pattern for another.

She simply stood there for perhaps a minute longer before stripping down once more. This time, she opted for a loosely fitting tunic and breeches with, of course, her ever-present staple, her cloak. She grabbed the dress to change into later. Now content, she lifted her hood to cover her features and left her rooms, lightly shutting the door behind her.

She tiptoed down the stairs, looking for Sadon. He was grumbling quietly to himself as usual by the door. She caught his eye and he pulled the door open for her. Alyss walked out of the portal with Sadon bringing up the rear. This gave her an opportunity to sort through her thoughts.

Alyss realized what she would have to be forced to choose between: either bringing Prince Merek along with her when she went to go meet Tybalt or staying at the castle for the day, something she avoided doing on even days she could hardly move for illness or lack of sleep. Alyss knew which she wanted to select, and which was probably the wiser option.

Sadon's complaining became background noise to her thoughts, and their running gave her a sense of serenity. There was just something calming about moving her arms and legs rhythmically.

Alyss hated keeping secrets from Tybalt. She felt it was bad enough that she had to keep her identity from him. In fact, she tried to make sure that it was the only thing he didn't know about her by telling him all the details he wasn't able to pick up for himself on a daily basis.

Personally, Alyss would have been annoyed by her guilty ramblings, but he soaked up the information like a sponge and often surprised her with the little tidbits he stored in his mind.

Alyss sprinted the last bit of the run and took a swig of water from her canteen, simultaneously turning toward Sadon, curious as to what she was to work on today. Grinning, Sadon drank some of his own water, the upturned corners of his mouth causing a few drops of the liquid to escape their predetermined destination and mix with the sweat on his garments. He walked over to his bag, which he had set down prior to the run, and pulled out a bow and arrow.

She inwardly groaned, now reminded of what she had been wanting to forget. It must have shown in her expression however, for Sadon frowned. "I thought that you would want something fun to do after the relentless training I've been putting you through. Using a bow seemed like a good way to achieve that effect." He muttered, confused as to why she wasn't taking to it as well as he'd planned.

Noticing his displeasure, Alyss forced a smile to her face. Lying came naturally to her now, no matter how much she didn't want to admit that fact. Tybalt was the only one who could ever know about that...incident and she quickly covered up her discomfort at the weapons in Sadon's hands and took one, along with a quiver that she slung onto her back easily.

"Of course! I was just so delighted that you left me speechless. However," She chose her next words carefully, "I'm perfectly content with what we've been doing. I've honestly begun to take pleasure in it. And...I feel as though archery is a bit impractical for me to learn. If I'm attacked at close range, I might have to defend myself. But if my enemy is further away, I can either have others take care of it or merely run away. There will be no use for me then." She tried not to wince at the cowardice her words seemed to contain.

Sadon grinned, now comprehending. "But of course, Alyss. I only wished for a little bit of rest time for you. But I can see you feel strongly about this. I will not bring them again." He had finished setting up the target on a nearby tree while he was speaking, and started to walk toward her.

Alyss grimaced when he turned around; she had hoped her words would coerce him to change his decision, but no such luck, it seemed. He stopped a little ways to her left and dragged his toe in the dirt, making a suitable line, and repeated the process three more times, getting further and further away from the target as he went. He then gestured for her to pick one of the lines to stand at. Alyss chose the last one-the one furthest away-and lifted the weapon to where she felt most comfortable, trying to ignore how fast her heart was racing at the mere touch of the longbow and fitted an arrow neatly in front of the string. Forcing herself to pay attention, she aimed.

Alyss paused, knowing Sadon would come fix her position. When he made no move to change it, however, she loosed the arrow at the target. She felt the bow become lighter and remained rooted to the spot, simply closing her eyes when she heard the crunch of the bow meeting its destination.

She reminded herself how to breathe, although inhaling and exhaling suddenly felt foreign to her. In the distance, she heard Sadon whooping. He was so far away, it seemed. Suddenly a soothing voice invaded the dark recesses of her mind, calming her, easing her pain. The voice was not hers, but she felt grateful to it. It was so familiar, yet alien. Beautiful and melodic. Confident and powerful. There were so many wonderful words to describe it that she could lose herself in them alone.

She abruptly opened her eyes when she felt a light tap on her shoulder. Alyss looked up to see Sadon's eyes staring down at her, looking concerned. She frowned. She had completely lost track of her surroundings. Her frown quickly dissipated when she thought of the voice, however, only to have it be returned when the full implications of what had happened came rushing at her.

She glanced at Sadon, who was still worriedly watching her, and told him she was fine. Taking her at her word, Sadon began to rant about the shot she had made-she had hit the center-and how it had simply been beginner's luck. Alyss knew what he expected her to do and obliged him. She stuck her tongue out at him and dared him to make a better shot than hers had been.

Sadon took up her challenge, and turned to make an attempt. When his back was to her, her smile faded. She had been told of people who heard voices in their minds. She hoped against hope that she wasn't going mad. What would that mean for her kingdom when she took over? She would have to keep it a secret. She sighed. Just another one to add to the list.