If Stratagor Ziras doesn't kill me, my training program will!
Every day I wake up and go through the motions, but they've figured out that I'm not a Knight. I can't ride, I can't fight, I can't do magic, and worst of all, I can't see whatever it is...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
I can't see much because Trelix's wings block most of my view, but I can tell when we gallop over the bridge and inside the castle walls. I catch glimpses of curious elves lining the streets, but I can't make eye contact with the spectators. I killed one of their own. I can't handle the scorn and disdain I know I'll see on their faces.
Trelix rides fast until we're at the castle steps. As soon as he stops, an elf plucks me off the unicorn. Without warning, Trelix picks me up and carries me to my room. I can't decide if I like it. Jonah gives me piggyback rides, but Trelix carries me like I'm a baby. The grim faces of the elves following us remind me of my reality. I stop thinking about myself.
The guards stop at my door, but Trelix marches inside and puts me down on my feet. Albína runs to me.
"Are you alright?" she says, beginning her examination.
"She's in shock," Trelix answers.
I nod to Albína and try to push past her. I don't know where I'm going. I just don't want her touching me.
"Come on, let's clean you up," Albína says, gently guiding me toward the bathroom.
I mechanically follow her but freeze when I see my reflection in the mirror. My hands and arms are coated in gore. Blood is smeared across my chest and legs. And my black boots are red. I left bloody footprints across the floor. My face and hair have a spattering of blood, and crimson tearstains streak down my cheeks.
I bring my hands up to my face to examine the evidence of my selfishness. Then I look down at my body. This is my blood and Lenox's, the creature's, and the elf's. So much blood. An image of the lifeless elf flashes across my brain. He bravely stood there and defended me, knowing he was going to die.
I look at Trelix in the mirror. "That elf that saved my life. He's dead now." I whisper. "This is my fault. I killed that elf and badly injured Lenox."
"She was alive when we left," Trelix says.
I don't listen to him. That elf can't survive injuries like that.
"Do you know his name?" I ask. This will lead to a lecture one day about how humans are obsessed with names, but I want to put a name to the person who had offered his life for mine.
"Her name is Solara."
I nod reflexively. Solara is an odd name for a man, but elves are weird. I'd never judge anyone as brave and courageous as Solara. I'm alive because of him. I keep picturing him lying under that monster, both of them dead.
"What were those creatures?"
"Gryphons."
I nod again.
"Okay, that's enough," Albína says, as she gently places her hand on my shoulder. "Trelix, you need to leave now so I can get her cleaned up."
Warm water splashing down my face, and body wakes me from my trance. How long have I been standing in the tub? Not long; Albína has just started to hose off the gore.
