The Royal Flame

Marked

The moment Eresa left, my body drained, fell immediately in a dark sleep. No matter how uncomfortable the whole conversation about the city of Ancia and its citizens made me, I was easily swept into a blue darkness. Floatingly my body swept through the waters of an unknown ocean. I was not drowning, I was at peace. Bubbles from my slight movements turn around my body to freedom that a surface would offer, in front of my eyes they flow upwards. Showing me a direction I should follow. With big strokes my arms push my body up. But no matter how much my arms and legs push the water along my body downwards, the distance to the surface did not seem to decrease. Instead my body feels heavier and heavier till I am out of breath by only trying. Instead I float there, within the nothingness and tranquil waters of an unknown lake or ocean.

From afar a black shadow forms from darkness, slowly increasing in size it nears me. Unable to move I calmly wait for what the shadow would bring to me. Light rays burst through the surface of the water, lighting the ocean around me. While the shadow nears, it respects the boundary created by the light. Staying in the dark blue waters of the ocean it floats around me. The boundary of light seems to form a division between me and the shadow. It keeps circling around me, as if in search for any imperfections in the barrier of light to seep through. Giving up its search the dark cloud like shadow halts.

“Ariella” a soft but kind whisper.

“Ariella” my name, spoken as if my long lost mother tries to sooth me to sleep.

I near the barrier, with a small push the water allows me to move this time. The shapeless shadow seems to be like a dark cloud within the ocean. Infiltrating the ocean as the ocean infiltrates the shadow. An arm like form out of the shadow forms and moves slowly towards me, penetrating the barrier of light, losing small particles of its own by doing so, it reaches out to me. From the watered down arm fingers are created, stretching towards me.

Reluctant to come in contact, I try to move backwards. Instead I feel a pull forwards.

“Ariella” The soft tones of my name, calm me down, to stop the automatic urge to fight against the pull. Slowly the shadows fingers wrap around my elbow. Tightening its grip the pull becomes stronger, even painful. It pulls me towards the shadow, out of the safety of the barrier of light. With my three free limbs, I use all of my strength to stay within the barrier, as the shadow creature further pulls. Despair washes over me as the grip tightens as well as the pull. I want it to release me, it is hurting me.

Two flame reddish eyes wink open within the head of the shadow. A fierce stare into my eyes reaches up till my soul, my past, my memories, Nick. A screeching scream breaks the overflow of memories flashing by. Immediately covering my ears, I close my eyes and whimper. Offering myself to whatever there is to come, the shadow and anything else as long as the screaming would stop.

“Ariella?” I shoot up out of my sleep. Eresa’s green eyes look concerned at me.

“Are you all right my dear? I called your name a couple of times as you seemed to be amidst a nightmare.”

“Just a nightmare” I quiver by the thoughts of it. Unlike any nightmare, I have ever experienced before, I feel completely drained.

“You must be mentally drained. Let’s get you into some warm clothes and to the kitchen for something to warm your soul up with.” Eresa jumps off the side of the bed towards her wooden dresser. A fine piece of furniture with wooden leaves and branches along the sides.

As I sit upright in her bed, I look up to her blonde messy bun and her greenish top and brown long skirt that are lightened by a beam of light that seeps through the window.

“Eresa, can I ask you something?”

“Anything my dear” she further rummages through the drawers correcting various fabrics and pieces of clothes.

“How did you know my name is Ariella?” With my eyes on the window sill and the rays of light that flow over it into the room, I can still hear Eresa freeze on the spot.

After a second of recollecting herself she grabs two white top and three layers of skirts. As she turns around with a kind smile plastered on her face.

“You are a very important young woman, my child. Even though you might not understand it now, time will tell you.” She lays the clothes out in front of me on the covers and the whitish pelt that covers the top of the bed.

“If you intend to hide your name you could better introduce yourself as Ella. Far more common and a riddle than Ari.”

“So you do know me.” Slipping my legs out of the covers on the side of the bed, Eresa pulls out long underpants with flares at the end from one of the top drawers. She apparently knows me and a lot more.

“Far more people do than you might know. From now on you better introduce yourself as Ella.” Kneeling she signs me to put my foot into the underpants as she holds them.

“You do not want people to know you before you have been able to decide if they are a friend or foe.” Her head tilts up, looking me in the eye to make sure I truly got this message. What does she know about me? Who walks around here with my name that is so important for everyone to know? And why should I hide my identity?

Lifting the pants up I stand now in front of her. With her hands on the hem of the gown she lifts it over my head.

“Remove that my child and wear those clothes, for the time being I will lend you one of my corsets. Even I got suspicious of the clothing you wore.” My bra is definitely out of place. The candles around the room give away that indeed I am no longer in a world with electricity nor bra’ s. Thankfully Eresa does not question the clothing like Klyn did. During the time I was unconscious she might have been able to process her curiosity about my clothing.

However somehow all the strangers I meet help me get undressed. A smile appears on my face by the realization, which immediately disappears as I put my arms through the sleeves of the white top. Five red lines are burned into my skin, right around my elbow. Exactly where the shadow in my dreams grabbed me.

“Child hurry up, we have a busy schedule ahead of you.” Eresa skillfully pushes me into one of her corsets that not only pushes all my intestines up, it holds all the loose fabrics in place. With all the sailing, I have not worn a dress or skirt in ages. But none of them would ever measure up to the volume that is in this.

However, my mind is too occupied with the scars on my skin. With a last tightening pull Eresa gives me no chance to contemplate if I should ask her or not about the red eyes that haunted me this night. Pushing me without her hands touching me through the door of the room, she leads me through the inn downstairs past the drowsy male crowd into a big but almost empty kitchen.

“Mer, could you please warm something up for our young lady guest Ella?”

A darker skin toned young woman further dribbles through the kitchen after giving a warm big smile.

“This is our Mer. Always pitter patting through the inn eager to learn. Which will also be expected of you soon. But we will have to first treat those blistered hands of yours if you are ever going to use them again.” Glass softly tingles a melody of its own as Eresa moves with her fingers over the closed off bottles with their yellow turned labels.

A sigh is released from Eresa. “Thyme would have to do it for now. I cannot seem to find anything else suitable.”

“Bark from the Pinus Pinaster tree might help my lady.” Mer dribbles through the kitchen, handing over a small glass bottle filled with pieces of bark.

“Thank you, Mer” Eresa proudly looks at Mer as she runs off to the boiling pans. She immediately returns with a wooden bowl. Filled with a horrible looking porridge but the upwards moving heat reaches my nostrils, instantly making my stomach rumble.

As I dig into the bowl with porridge, Eresa holds one of my hands. Covering a paste over my blisters which immediately calms my skin. Mer bows over the table, watching with glee how I scoop the porridge spoon by spoon.

“Your eyes are such a lovely mystery. I cannot wait for you to discover the powers within you.” The excitement jumps off her.

“We will know soon enough.” Eresa further pats concentrated the paste onto my blisters.

“I also discovered my powers late.” Mer is an opening book filled with sunrays as she speaks to me.

“How come?” I muffle through the spoons of porridge which only further enlightens her glee.

“It is not often that a child of two humans turns to be bestowed upon by the powers of nature.” Eresa adds, reaching out for my other hand bringing me to a halt of stuffing myself full.

In the meantime, Mer reaches out to my head with an encouraging smile, grabbing me by my temples with her hands I feel myself spin back in my chair.