The Unseen Road

Chapter Twenty-Three

It wasn't long before Kylie began to wish that she hadn't gone off on her own; try as she might, self-encouragement could only drive her so far in the dark. But still, she clung resiliently to whatever motivation she managed to scrape up from her determination to find the Prince- and get out alive.

More bound by her will to the dense forest than anything else, she saw no other choice but to keep searching. But even that was becoming increasingly difficult now that the clouds were beginning to block out whatever moonlight the merciless night had to offer. Kylie couldn't even make out the shape of her own hands in front of her as she crept along, taking each step carefully, as if it could be her last.

Vulnerable as she was, however, she figured that it would be better to have at least one hand on the hilt of her sword. Blindly, she brought her hand down to where she knew her- and Nicolas's- sword was. Her palm rested nicely on the edge of its hilt, somehow assuring her.

Her thoughts flickered to her sister, causing a pang of remorse to creep upwards, starting from the very pit of her stomach and settling right in her heart, weighing her down like a rock.

She stopped. It had been at least an hour and a half since they last separated; she hoped that in that time Celeste had found the way out... Even so, even that couldn't have eased the guilt she felt for what she had said.

Regardless of whether or not Celeste knew it, they had hurt each other. While Celeste's words had stung Kylie beyond immediate forgiveness, she knew that she had hurt Celeste as well. Kylie didn't know if her sister would ever show it- or if she would even be over it by now- but she knew it from the look in her eyes, at least in that moment.

Of course she had fought with her sister before—but in times like this, wasn't it important to stick together?
Was she really that foolish? Was she really so selfish, unable to see any perspective but her own—How did Celeste put it? Blinded by love?

Maybe; coming to terms with the thought hurt her, but she knew what she wanted to do- there was nothing in the world that could keep her from her will to rescue the Prince. And yet, every time she thought about her sister and the fact that, after all, she might be the one at fault, it tore her through the middle- she was responsible now not only for Nicolas's disappearance, but also for anything that might happen to Celeste.

She closed her eyes; the darkness within was nearly identical to what was outside, but somehow, deep inside her mind, it was more peaceful. If she could just block out everything—

No. That wasn't an option.

She opened her eyes again and continued walking. For Nicolas. For Celeste. For Mina, who was still out there somewhere.

For her own strength. But right now, the problem was being able to navigate through the pitch black.

A chill stemming from the stagnant forest air sent a shiver up Kylie's spine, but she kept the one hand in front of her and the other on her sword.

"I wish there was a way..." she said to herself, fumbling as her hand contacted tree bark.

And then she realized it. Somehow, she had thought of Nicolas- of him telling her that she was strong, and what he would tell her now.

He would tell her to use her strength. To not be afraid- or ashamed.

Celeste wasn't around now. She had no reason to hold back.

She was a Dragoness- and somehow, she knew, as if by instinct, that if she only closed her eyes and opened them again, she would be able to see.

So she took a deep breath and closed her eyes, and focused on channeling her inner Dragoness. Here, alone in the dark, she felt like there was no reason for her to feel awkward about it, but to be able to fully accept it. After all, it was a matter of life and death for Nicolas.