Clockwork Kiss

A Need for Guidance

The halls twisted and turned, and I wasn’t sure how many times I’d already walked the same one. I used the guards’ dismissal though to fuel my rage, and I didn’t give up as I pushed forward through the labyrinthine castle. The hallways were grand and numerous, and for all I knew, I could be walking towards the stables. The guards’ conversation had implied the tower was a major architectural feature, but elven architecture was proving to be intentionally confusing. A design, I assumed, meant to protect the ruling family.

I needed direction, and I needed it now. Every passing minute brought the solstice alignment closer to its peak…and to Valerius’s ritual.

I risked running, keeping my head low and my shoulders hunched. I tried to appear like a servant, rushing to finish a task. I passed several elaborate doorways until I finally found myself emerging in a circular foyer. Crystal chandeliers hung three stories above me, illuminating twin grand staircases that curved upwards, leading into unknown wings of the castle. Which path led to the Clock Tower?

I looked up one staircase, searching for any hint of a sign. A patrol. Anything.

“Looking lost, are we, dear?” The voice was soft, ancient, and undeniably familiar. I spun around, my hand already on the hilt of Torian’s sword.

Morwyn was standing beside a towering display of winter foliage. Her simple black frock was almost invisible against the backdrop of dark wood. Her lavender eyes seemed to lock on to mine, as if she could see through the mask I wore. She hadn’t walked, she had simply appeared.

“Morwyn…” I breathed, rushing to her. “They took him. Valerius has Torian, we have to-“

“Oh, I know dear,” she interrupted. She placed a firm hand on my arm. “The threads of fate often break right when the tapestry is most beautiful.” Was she referring to our almost kiss? Had she seen what happened in the archives? “The Sight is never silent when a Drakemoor is in peril,” she continued. Her eyes glossed over the cloak, and the bulge of the sword at my hip. Approval flickered in her eyes. “You found your tools. Good.”

“Where is it? Where is the Clock Tower Chamber?” The words came out rushed, half plea half demand, entirely desperate.

Morwyn pointed up the left hand staircase. The one I had instinctively known not to take. “Valerius has secured the Aegis Wing. The chamber is at the very top, beneath the main clock face. It is guarded by ruins and by every available man he has brought into the castle.” She stepped closer, dropping her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “But you do not have to fight them, child. Valerius’s arrogance is his weakness. He wants the key, not a prolonged battle. The tower has one main entrance, but it also has a maintenance path. It’s a narrow path, built for the clocksmiths. It runs directly through the old bell chamber.”

“How do I find that?”

Morwyn smiled, “It is sealed by the Mark of the Guardian. Your own mark, Anya. The maintenance entrance is hidden behind the tapestry depicting the First Solstice Moon on the third floor of the Aegis Wing. Just place your hand on the central clock face in the tapestry, and the stone will move for your blood.”

She reached out and adjusted the rough hood I wore, ensuring my hair was completely hidden. “Go now, child. There’s not much left of the Night. The ritual will begin at the peak of the alignment. Torian is strong, but Valerius will use everything he can against him.”

I nodded, the plan clear and terrifying.

“Morwyn,” I whispered, “thank you.”

“Save him, Anya,” she commanded, her lavender eyes blazing with prophetic fire. “And remember the cost of the key. It shields the realm, but it can never return you to the life you knew.”

Before I could ask what she meant, Morwyn stepped back, seeming to melt into the foliage display around her. She disappeared as silently and mysteriously as she had arrived. I was alone again, but no longer lost.

I took the first step onto the left-hand staircase. The Aegis Wing, third floor. My hand found the hilt of the sword, and I began my ascent.