Ethipia

The Lady Of Love.

The palace is calm today, the chaos that Queen Nandi had caused for the past moon cycle had left the citizens of Ethipia scared of what she could do next. There were even rumors of a revolt from the top ranks in the council. Lumia walks past the servant’s wing quickly the white cloth in her hand concealed against the prying eyes of the habitants of the palace. The frenzied activities that had been happening for the past three days had slowed down; the tension was gently going down. She walks past the dragons talking in hushed tones near the wings exit and heads up the stairwell that leads to the private wing of the council. She notices the damage on the high ceilings along the corridors; a portion of the ceiling burnt off leaving behind smut of smoke blackening the drawings of dragons and the royal families. The golden staircase railings have been leaped off the floor leaving behind ugly dents on the stairs. The paintings of the former rulers of Ethipia are gone from the walls, either burnt off completely or destroyed beyond recognition. Only the painting of Queen Tice remains on the wall, though it’s been clawed in half and hangs haphazardly off the wall.

She leaves the stairs on the third landing and follows the corridor to her right. The third level wing is only meant for Council Love, it’s a very beautifully decorated part of the palace and the only one that didn’t suffer the wreckage that had been imposed all over the palace and part of the kingdom. The chandeliers above high on the ceiling thrum silently with the water element lighting the corridors in a magical light and reflecting off magically on the walls in swirly blues. The level is deathly silent but it vibrates with a calming energy that calms the soul. The magic cast on the level is the strongest magic that exists in Ethipia only possessed by Council Lady Amina. A magic so strong and wicked. Lumia knocks on the sixth door and pushes open the heavy door to Lady Amina’s chambers; the love in the room almost overwhelms her. Lady Amina is sitting by the window on a sunflower yellow chaise lounge her red gown sweeping the floor around the chaise. She is a sight to behold yet only a few in the kingdom had ever seen her, she only made appearances during the transition festivals to bless the hatchlings for their first shift. She calmed their spirits with love, imprinting their memories with the sights of the things and the people they love. But even then her beauty was shielded with veils made out of the best elements and lace in the empire.

‘Did you find anything?’ she asks Lumia. She rises form the chaise and smiles at her kindly. Lumia nods with a brilliant smile.

‘Great. Let me see.’

Lumia hands over the white cloth. Lady Amina takes it gently as if she is afraid it may disappear. She opens it up and removes the strange looking bracelet from the cloth and holds it to her chest. Immediately her eyes fill up with tears and she collapses back to the chair still holding it to her heart. The magic in the room heightens with a heavy thrum.

‘She is truly back.’ Lumia nods her smile flattering a little.

‘Where did you find it?’ the lady of love asks staring deep into Lumia’s eyes. Lumia steps closer to the lady and delicately touches Lady Amina’s forehead with her pinky finger.

‘The caves. We should go there.’

Lumia shakes her head no aggressively; she reaches again and touches the lady’s forehead. Images of dragons shifting back to their human forms flicker in her consciousness, walking towards the entrance of the caves. Another image flickers past of the dragons drawing their weapons.

‘It’s too dangerous. We cannot,’ Lumia’s voice echoes in her mind. Lady Amina sighs in defeat and slowly stands up and walks to the huge glass windows facing the other private wing of the palace. The moon of Jotv reflecting on the gold that furnishes the outer walls of the palace. Its blue glow creating a mysterious feel and a horrible premonition that gnaws deep at the hearts of Lady Amina and Lumia.

‘Your magic is volatile; even you cannot figure it all out. It’s forever evolving, changing and also being changed by factors. It’s a magic controlled by emotion, I cannot risk you getting hurt or hurting anyone. Let’s wait and observe what happens next. The dragons you just saw are the Queens Legion; she sent them as soon as the energy shifted. The returned Queen will get over it, let’s hope she has her old memories back,’ Lumia’s voice echoes in the lady’s mind. She nods half distracted.

‘Don’t do anything stupid, Amina.’ Lumia walks to the window and takes Amina’s hand in hers and silently they watch the moon.

‘I wish you could just talk to me with words not with your thoughts’ Amina says as she turns around to look at her lover Lumia. She smiles sadly turning again and looking outside. She had met Lumia one hundred years ago, when she had taken a trip to the land of the Palms and the sea. Her magic had swelled inside her threating to consume her, she had never had to fight for control over her magic like that time. She had felt suffocated, excited, scared and jealous the whole time. She had chased after her like a mad person, following her in that tiny kingdom. All she had wanted was to hold her and listen to her voice. Just a word from her full lips. Just a sound. Unfortunately she had never gotten that wish because Lumia could not speak, she had been born with a power that only allowed her to communicate with her thoughts like a psychic but never with her voice. That never stopped Amina who had fallen deeply in love with her. For Lumia it was exhilarating to be loved by a goddess of love, sometimes Amina drove her crazy but other times Amina consumed her insides with love.

‘What are you going to do about Queen Nandi?’ Lumia’s voice echoed in her head. She sounded worried. Amina exhales heavily, she opens her mouth to speak but the words don’t form. She knows she is been lying to Lumia for a long time.

‘Tell me my Dove’

‘She is far from saving. Even if Queen Soila makes it here she won’t be of much help.’