The Elven Queen

CHAPTER 15

ITOTIA’S POV

I stand motionless as the balcony doors swing shut blocking my view of Eztli’s retreating figure, letting her go was the right thing to do, she needed space, she’s always hated crowded places anyway so she just left for air, I did the right thing, I kept reassuring myself, so why does the right thing sting so much?, a gentle hand came down on my tensed shoulder,

“Go to her” the words didn’t fully leave Gabor’s mouth and I was already pushing through the balcony doors, racing down the hallway, tapping the crystal on my hand

“Kaxtik Eztli” find Eztli

A long beam of light shot out of the crystal creating a straight line leading me, a line that only I could see, these crystals were ones specially made for the Queen and her shadows, where ever she was in this world as long as she wore her crystal we would find her

not long after it lead me to the hall of Kings, there she was, sitting on the floor, one leg tucked under the other staring at a tapestry, the oldest tapestry, the tapestry of the first king of Lumeris,

I notice Hugo standing by the doorway, an array of emotions swirling behind his thick exterior the most prominent one, frustration, his Queen needs help but there’s nothing he could do, I understand him, Hugo joined the Queen's Shadows later than most of us, having known Eztli since she was 8 being her cousin he didn't choose to join the shadows till she was 14, none of us know why he suddenly decided to become a shadow or why he chose to serve Eztli, he could have lived the rest of his life as royalty never having to raise a finger and yet he chose to be a shadow and we respected him for it, Yes Uncle Des presented him with the offer of being a shadow but he never planned on forcing him, I gave him a nod gesturing he give us space, he looks down reluctantly pulling himself away from the doorframe, walking past me I put a reassuring hand on his shoulder to which he gives a light pat before I turn back to my Queen

“Eztli” I approach her slowly, she doesn’t answer me, she doesn’t react, not even a flinch

"Eztli..." I call again and get no response

“EZTLI!!” I scream louder this time making her flinch squinting her eyes in annoyance

“Keep your bloody voice down, I heard you the first time”

“What happened back there?” I pushed

“Can you remember the first time we came to Lumeris?” she’s deflecting,

So I played along

"Yes, your parents arranged a meeting to plan out a joint trade route between them and neighboring countries but ended up getting into a fight over which of them had a better heir so your parents made you and Khalfani fight” I walk towards her slowly, and plop down beside her

“Do you remember who won?”

“You did”

“I did, didn’t I?” a dry chuckle passes her lips as she rests her head on my shoulders, choosing not to point it out I look up at the withered old blanket hanging from the ceiling, what about this thing warranted so much of Eztli’s attention?, I part my lips to ask her why she ran out when….

“That’s enough reminiscing...” she cuts me off “....let’s go back to the party”

She was a See-saw of emotions this evening, I could see how it took so much from her just to stand yet she wanted to go back so as not sour the celebration, not one to throw sand on her efforts

“Let’s” I help her to her feet and we walk back to the celebration but Eztli never truly did return to the party, for the rest of the night she was distant, she drank when she was offered, laughed when joked to, side stepped all of Khalfani’s advances but it was never, truly her and, I didn’t have the heart to call her out on it, No, I was just a coward

The rest of our stay was uneventful, the shadows spent it circling the castle, after the blood moon Hugo never left Eztli’s side going so far as sleeping outside her door, Gabor and the guards were busy arranging for our trip back while I spent the time intercepting messages

Durhgan is burning and the death of that creature was what sparked that flame, Atleast that is what researchers believe, to get rid of the monster's corpse the guards burnt it in an open fire outside the prison, not long after the sky turned black, chalking it up as a coincidence they thought nothing of it pegging it a passing storm, they couldn’t have been more wrong, not knowing that it would be the last time they would see the Sun

The real problem came with the rain, the black rain, its been raining for 3 days non-stop in Durhgan, the water pitch back and undrinkable, processing it was no easy task, the rain was polluting their water reserves, they’ve reached out to allied countries for help but with Durhgan’s history they don’t have a lot of allies so Naturally, they sent a letter to Sylphorren, a letter that I’m keeping away from Eztli, not out of spite for Durhgan but out of fear for Eztli, I’m scared that she will disappear and this letter would be the cause of it

With the passing of festivities soon approached our departure, standing at the harbor watching as our cargo gets loaded on I look up at the deplorable oversized rowboat putting my stomach in a knot

“Please, Don’t be a stranger” I hear Khalfani begging with Eztli in his arm, that is a very long Goodbye hug, “Whenever you’re less busy feel free to drop by”

“Thank you and you too, it’s been too long since your last visit” she manages to say while squished to his chest, cargo loaded, anchors rise and we are off

Too many thoughts race through my mind, to which I am thankful, for they keep my mind away from the rocking, Eztli spent most of the voyage in her room, I chose to keep her company, we talk, we reminisce, we even joked around but every smile felt false, every word was calculated, even the look in her eyes, who exactly does she think she’s talking to? She even dismisses the Island she so badly wanted to excavate, defeated, I stay by her side fully given up on making conversation, time goes by and our voyage came to an end.

As soon as we arrive at the palace I usher Eztli to her room, I was a woman on a mission, turning out of her bedroom, I see her uncle barreling towards me, I walk up to him and stretch my hands out in a T pose telling him to stop, clenching the papers in his hands he looks down at me, literally, not many can do that, with my build I easily tower over most woman and stand eye level with most men, only before the Queen’s uncle do I feel so small

“What is the meaning of this?” he asks in no mood for my behavior

“The Queen just returned from her journey and is very tired at this moment so I suggest you leave any and all work for after she is fully rested”

He sighs, using his free hand that wasn’t bunching up a pile of documents to rub his temple “What is this really about, Itotia?”

“Let’s not talk here”

Surprisingly, he didn’t ask any more questions and followed me obediently till we were in his office with the door shut behind us

“Talk” he ordered and I did, I told him everything, from our conversation on the balcony before my departure to Durhgan to what transpired in Lumeris, to our last few days, to me intercepting state documents

“So that’s why we haven’t gotten any word from the Queen about sending help to Durhgan” He scolded me from behind his thick lashes looking at me disapprovingly

“I didn’t know what to do!!! I don’t know what to do” I said the last part in a defeated whisper walking backwards till I hit the door, I bring my hand up to cover my face and slide down till I was on the ground leaning against the door, instead of scolding me, he walked to my side from her prior position at his desk he drops himself beside me, slinging an arm over my shoulder comforting me, since the death of my parents he was the only paternal figure I had, I’m taken back to the days when we were young, how he’d gruel Eztli and I through rigorous training and sneak into our rooms afterwards to press down our sore muscles with a towel and hot water

“I understand but we can’t keep this from her...” he paused “...the rains stopped and with it came an illness that’s sweeping the country, their doctors don’t know what it is” something of this scale clearly can’t be kept under wraps but I feared there was more

“Anything Else?”

He hesitated then continued as if trying to find the words “Remember the Elves you brought back from Durhgan?” of course, the elves and other creatures we rescued from under the city were all sent back to their countries, the Elves in Sylphorren were put in quarantine and were given great care, their families were contacted and were even making steady progress

“They’re all sick”

“What?!” I shot up

“We don’t know what it is, they all fell sick at the same time, their complexion turned pale and they have these scale like patterns all over their bodies, it started two days ago and doctors don’t know what to do”

“Wh….” I paused hearing shuffling outside the door, someone was there and Uncle heard it too, creeping slowly to my feet Uncle moving to th side so I could open the door I grab the knob and swing it open, nothing, no one was there, the hallway was empty

“Let’s finish this conversation another time, please”

Uncle nods in understanding, time had really gone by, it was already night time, it was a full moon tonight, her favorite time, walking into her room, no surprise she’s out in the balcony

“What? Aren’t you going to nag me about knocking?”

“Would you listen?”

“Probably not” she’s still here, she’s still where I can protect her

“I’ve always wondered, you didn’t get much of a say in this whole being a shadow thing, you were still a child when a maid brought you to me and now you’re a shadow, if you could go back in time to that moment would you still choose to be my shadow?”

“Of course, given the chance over and over and over again, I would still choose to be your shadow without hesitation”

“Really?”

Unsure why she was asking me this now of all times or what to do to make her believe me I bend the knee, salute to my chest, I recite the Shadow’s oath

“I know no name, but the name of my Lord

I have no Land, Have no kin

I have nothing for I am darkness

I gain nothing for I am a shadow

To live for my Lord is my purpose

To die by my lord is my Faith”

I look up from my pledge to see the single tear roll down her cheek

“Happy?” she teased, staring at me accusingly while roughly rubbing the tears out of her eyes

“It’s surely one way to get you to shut up...” I lightly bump her shoulder “...you’ve had a long day you should get some rest” not much of a suggestion, I drag her to bed closing the balcony doors behind us, looking back I finally notice the bird’s nest on her head, feeling nostalgic I grab a brush from her bedside and run it through her hair braiding it into two rows just like when we were kids, back then she hated her hair and would always cut it short rather than actually taking care of it, she still cuts it from time to time, that’s why her hair barely falls to her shoulders, I can’t imagine having short hair with how I’ve never cut my own hair so it falls all the way pass my butt, who says you can’t fight with long hair?

Finishing up, I put the brush back into the drawer and turn to leave when she grabs my hand

“Let’s have a sleep over, like when we were kids” the request came out of nowhere

“Stop being ridiculous” rolling my eyes I shrug off her hand and give her a little love tap on her forehead, causing her to hiss in pain “..Go to bed” I walk out on the image of her rubbing her forehead and staring daggers at me, she’s fine, she’s ohkay, everything is fine

so why do I feel so conflicted?

My questions were soon answered the next morning when I arrived at Ezli’s room, she wasn’t there, she’s gone. How do I know she's gone?, the communication crystal which was also a tracker that she had worn every day since she was 12 was sitting on her bed next to it was a note with my name on it, below it was a scribbled up

I’ll be back