The Petal Kingdom (Bringing Life, Falling Ash Book 2)

by CS Patra

  Rolling to her side, Lavinia was surprised by the presence of Light and Dark who had been looking at everyone. She was not sure what Light and Dark were supposed to be or who they really were. She called them that based on the fact Light emitted light and Dark was made of darkness. They seemed to come and go whenever they pleased but they were happy to come along. So far, they had caused no trouble and they didn’t try to get in the way. This time, however, Dark had come in with a piece of parchment and laid it down at her side. She wasn’t sure what this was, but she picked up and read what was written. It didn’t surprise her.

  “They’re looking for me,” she whispered. “Now they’ve decided to offer a reward. They know that I was last seen in The Frost Kingdom. We can’t let them find us.” She looked around to make sure they were alone. Light and Dark didn’t look like they were the kinds of spirits that slept. “Can you two do a favor for me and stand watch for the night? If you notice anything strange, alert me at once.”

  Both seemed to understand and nodded. She felt a little safer now. Light and Dark may not have been able to say a thing but they could help out a lot. She could send them to do anything. As long as she stayed one step ahead of everyone else, she could achieve her goals. She would get rid of this curse, save all the kingdoms, and finally go home to be the queen she was destined to be.

  I’m almost where I need to be. She told herself, going back to where the others were lying down. Now she could feel tired and get some sleep. Putting her head down on the ground, she closed her eyes and thought of what would come. Soon. I’ll get everything I want real soon.

  Chapter 2

  Although it was well into the early hours of the morning, Alice was having a hard time staying asleep. She would drift off for a little bit, but it was hard to keep her eyes closed. After tossing and turning around on the cold ground, she decided to try and make herself tired by moving about. Maybe that would help her out a little bit and get her to sleep. The cold was hard to deal with but if she walked about, she could stay warm. Wrapping up in her coat and scarf, she went out and rubbed her arms to stay warm. The only thing that could her mind off the howling wind and biting cold was the idea of being in the Petal Kingdom. She knew she would feel a lot better in a warmer place.

  Alice walked around the icy forest and pretended that this was a ballroom. She didn’t get much chance to enjoy the ball in the Frost Kingdom so she couldn’t practice how to be a proper lady. The brief dance that she had with Lavinia wasn’t enough. She wanted more dances and music. She wanted to be able to sway around the floor and be lifted into the air. She wanted to wear more fancy gowns, walking around in shiny shoes, and mingle with people she had never talked to before. That brief visit in the Frost Kingdom showed her that there was so much that she didn’t know.

  She looked at one of the trees and pretended that it was a person. She bowed before it and spoke, “Why yes, I would love the pleasure of having this dance with you, kind sir... ma’am... whoever you are.” She giggled and twirled around. “Let’s begin, shall we?”

  It was fun to move around the tree and she wasn’t worried about bumping into it with her bare skin. A tree was not a person so she could touch one and have leaves bloom out of it. As cold as it was, she touched one of the branches with her bare hands and let the flowers grow from it. There were bright red and gold blooms coming out of the frozen branches. They probably wouldn’t survive the cold night but for now, their colors were bright and added some life to the frozen land. Outside, all she could see was darkness, snow, and ice everywhere. A winter wonderland was nice if it was winter but not all year round. She couldn’t understand how anyone in the Frost Kingdom could survive.

  There was a funny feeling that she was being watched so she turned around to find Light and Dark watching her twirl. They were strange beings, one made completely of light and the other of darkness, that never spoke or did very much. However, they were friendly enough to her so she wasn’t worried. “Oh, it’s just you two! That’s good though. I could use some company and maybe a dance partner. At least I don’t have to worry about you two growing leaves everywhere.”

  Light nodded and dropped something at her feet. It rolled to her and she picked up the scroll. “I take it that you have found news from somewhere, huh?” She opened up the scroll and read it to herself. “You have been invited to the Petal Festival at the request of the King and Queen. Bring family and friends to come and celebrate ten years of peace. Lasting twelve days, see magic, eat delicious food, and be merry. On the final day, come and see us at the ball.” She rolled up the scroll again. “And this festival just happens to start the day after tomorrow. You two are very good at finding things before we do.”

  Dark dropped something else by her feet and she saw what it was; a crystal rose that was warmer than any of the plants. This hadn’t come from the Frost Kingdom or else it would feel cool to the touch. She held it and turned it around to see the letters ‘PK’ on the side. “Petal Kingdom? Okay, this comes from there but how does that help us? Does it belong to someone?”

  She wasn’t going to get answers from either of them but at least they had given her a reason to go the Petal Kingdom. They had an invitation to this festival so they could get in with no problem. The other thing that got to her was the fact that they were celebrating ten years of peace. No one in the Petal Kingdom was ready for a war if they were going to have a festival. They weren’t preparing their troops for battle so they probably were unaware of what the Frost Witch, Petal Witch, and Sugar Witch were planning. How they were going to get this news out remained a mystery. After all, she and Kian were just bakers. Lavinia might have been the princess of Themasa but she didn’t have too much power yet. There was only so much she could tell someone. Since she wasn’t well known anywhere else, no one would believe her if she claimed to be a princess. As of now, she didn’t look like one. All her best clothes and shoes were kept hidden in bags and she kept her money to herself until she needed it. Most of the people they met on their journey just saw Lavinia as a woman who had enough money to get what she needed.

  “The only way we can get anyone to listen to us is to show them what’s going on,” Alice realized. “That is another problem. We don’t know what the witches look like and we have no proof of what was being said other than our words. No one will take us seriously. How do we prove that something is on the horizon?” She looked down at the scroll and the crystal rose, unsure what the point of the latter was. “There’s a lot to think about. I don’t know what we’re going to do but I will keep hold of this. Thank you both for bringing it.”

  She stared at the ground and kneeled down to touch it. An idea had filled her mind and she wondered if she could make weapons out of her abilities. After all, if she could make something grow, surely she could create a sword or knife out of vines. It may not be the sharpest tool that she had but it could be sturdy enough to hold something back. Closing her eyes, she touched the cold ground and felt something growing from it. Grass was forming under her hands and it was getting taller. Her fingers touched one blade of grass and let it grow until it was long and sharp.

  “Perfect,” she whispered, gingerly touching the edge of the blade. It was sharp enough to be used as a sword. She whirled around and waved it like she was fighting. While she was not an expert, she knew she would be able to hold her own. There was a rustling in the bushes so she whirled around and prepared to fight. A little ice squirrel came out and ran around on the snow. She let out a deep breath and put the blade down. This would help a lot when it came to fighting.

  A part of her wondered why she had agreed to come on this adventure with Lavinia. She had never come this far for anything before. There were good moments of course but she was also scared. She knew that Themasa’s guards were after Lavinia and anyone traveling with her. While they would probably do nothing to Lavinia, Alice knew she would not be as lucky. Those guards would imprison her for kidnapping the princess or maybe they would do worse
. For her sake and everyone else’s, she wanted to make sure they stayed away from them. She didn’t want to use this curse on a person. She saw what it could do if she touched the ground. Making a person burst out into a bunch of flowers and vines sounded far more brutal and violent. For years, she had kept it a secret from most people in Themasa. She didn’t want to reveal it to more of them and see how they would react.

  This curse is the reason I have no family. It’s the reason I cannot get close to anyone. It’s the reason I can’t love anyone physically. She remembered all the reasons she had come here. She and Vinnie had the same goal. They wanted the same thing and this probably was the best way to get it. If there’s a way to live without, so be it.

  “Well, I guess we’re going to have to see what happens in this festival.” She decided out loud. “Who knows? Maybe we’ll find an answer over there and someone who can help.” She looked down at her hands, wishing she could hold onto something living. Making life from the ground did have advantages but she was ready to remove it. She wanted to say goodbye to it.

  “One way or another, I’m going to remove this curse.”

  Chapter 3

  The following morning came with something no one had expected. Both Lavinia and Alice were able to wake up when the sun poured through the tree branches. It was still very cold and ice was all over the ground but at least they had some light. If there was a time to start moving, now was it. The sun went down quicker over in this area so the further they could move while light was out, the better. They had no problem getting ready but their companion was still lying down.

  “Kian?” Alice called out to him as she grabbed her clothes. She heard him moaning as he shivered. “Are you all right? It’s morning and we have to move.”

  He sneezed. “I don’t know if I can, Miss Alice. I don’t feel well enough to move.”

  “What do you mean you don’t feel well enough to move?” She wanted to get close to him and feel if he was ill but stood back. It was difficult to know what to do without being able to touch him. “Are you hurt?”

  He sneezed again. “No, Miss Alice. I don’t feel good. I need to be someplace warm and maybe find someone to heal me. My entire body feels so cold.”

  “Oh, no,” she whispered, realizing what had happened. She and Lavinia had gotten warmer blankets and been sleeping closer to the fire. Kian had been a few feet away and the blanket he had wouldn’t keep him warm. “Can you sit up at all?”

  Kian coughed and slowly pulled himself up. That was when she saw how awful he looked. His nose was running, his eyes were watering, his cheeks had puffed up, and his face was not the right color. It looked like he had been run over by something and he needed to get warm quickly or he would freeze to death.

  “Oh, God!” Alice wanted to run over and feel how warm he was but it was difficult. “We do need to take you to a doctor or someone who can give you something. More importantly, we need to get somewhere warm! We can’t leave you like this.”

  “It’s okay, Miss Alice,” he whispered, covering his coughs. “Maybe this is to get back at me for what I’ve done in my past.”

  “No, you need to get better. If we find an apothecary nearby, they can give you something that can stop the coughing,” she said, throwing a blanket in his direction. “If you can get dressed, try to do so. Otherwise, wrap yourself in as much as you can and get on the dragon’s back. You don’t have to worry about flying or anything. We’re going to get you to a town where you can warm up and get better.”

  “Miss Alice…”

  “Don’t.” She stopped him. “Do not try to argue with me on this. You are sick. I may not be able to feel your forehead but you are not well enough to go on. We do need to make this stop.” She turned around to call for Lavinia. “Vinnie! Vinnie, please hurry up! We need to find an apothecary or doctor nearby. Kian is ill!”

  “What?!” Lavinia came back, fully dressed, and ready for the day. She took one look at Kian’s pale face and knew what this meant. “Oh, dear! We have to get you warmed up!”

  “Miss Alice, Vinnie, you don’t have to!” Kian insisted, wrapping himself in that blanket. Light and Dark both stood by him, trying to give him some warmth. “You have something to do. There is something far more important than I am. We have to keep this war from starting and you need to remove your curses. I’m not worth it. I’m just a thief and maybe I deserve this. “

  “No, you don’t deserve to be sick. You don’t need to worry about slowing us down because we will still continue to do everything. We’re not done with this,” Lavinia promised him. “We will still move forward but we cannot leave you alone. It doesn’t matter what you’ve done in the past. Your health does matter to us.”

  “I feel very weak though and you won’t be able to carry me,” Kian pointed out. “I’ll try to walk as best as I can on my own. I just feel so tired. I don’t know if I can climb the dragon.”

  “Then maybe there is a village nearby that we can walk to,” Alice suggested. “We can leave the animals right here with Light and Dark. Does anyone have a map?”

  “Look through my things. I got one from the same man who loaned me the dragon,” Kian coughed. “I think I did see one village that isn’t too far. If we start heading now, we’ll make it there and maybe they might have a place where I can rest. Maybe they’ll let me stay there while you find some medicine.”

  Lavinia found the map and saw the village he was talking about. “Yes, this isn’t very far at all. We just have to get through this forest and we’ll find it. I don’t know how big it is but at least there will be people who can look after you. There has to be an inn where we can stay and make sure you get better first.”

  “Vinnie, this is too much! I don’t want you to waste time for me.” He sneezed and wiped his nose. “If you have to leave me behind in the village, then do it. I won’t be of much help if I’m ill.”

  “You know places better than we do, so we will need your help. I think you will be fine once you have the right medicine,” Alice said. “Do you think you can walk? If we were in a warmer place, I would be fine with leaving you here but…”

  “I’ll walk.” He decided, wiping his nose. “In fact, maybe I should go by myself. That way, you won’t have to support me.” It was a terrible decision because as soon as he tried to stand up, he fell back down. His legs did not have enough strength in them. Everything inside of his body felt like it was made out of liquid. “I can make it. I just need time.”

  “All the same, I think I should go with you.” Lavinia decided. “If you were to fall down again, someone should be there to catch you.”

  “You couldn’t catch me though. You can’t touch anything, remember?” Kian whispered. “In all seriousness, Vinnie, I don’t know if you should risk going in the cold. What if you fall ill too?”

  “He’s right. It is very cold now,” Alice added. “Are you sure you want to go in this hour? Maybe we should wait until it is a little warmer.”

  “At the same time, I don’t want to risk him getting more ill. He needs medicine,” Lavinia said, looking over at Light and Dark. “Will one of you come with us? That way, you can send messages to Alice if things happened.”

  “Why don’t you take the dragon with you?” Alice suggested. “It might make things faster.”

  “I don’t know about that. He’s quite big and he may not have a space to stay in the village. Not to mention, I’m not sure how villagers over there would react to them. I’d rather all the animals stay with you. They’ll be safe and so will you.”

  “Are you sure you want to walk all the way there? What if it takes too long or there is too much ice up ahead? What if there are fallen trees and holes in the snow that you can fall through? You don’t really know your way around here.”

  “She’s right, Vinnie. None of us are aware of what is in The Frost Kingdom. The weather only makes it worse,” Kian coughed. “Forget about me and let’s just move forward.”

 
“You are no shape to move forward,” Lavinia scolded him. “I can’t send you back to Themasa because that’s another long trip. I don’t know if you’ll make it, so the best thing I can do is get you to a nearby village. If you need rest, then rest is what you will get.”

  “I think it’s more than that. I might slow you down more than you realize.” He rubbed his forehead. “I feel so warm and cold at the same time. I’m not sure what that’s supposed to be.”

  “It means you are ill and you need care,” Alice said. “Vinnie will take care of you and I will be right here. At the most, you should get some medicine. I would keep you with me but it looks like it will only get colder out here.”

  “It’s okay,” Lavinia assured him. “I don’t think we’re going too far. I’ll get you in a warm place and have someone look at you. As for you, Alice, just stay here and guard everything. Try to stay warm and keep the fire going as much as possible. I will come back for you soon.”

  “I will wait for you,” Alice promised, handing Lavinia a scarf. “Keep him wrapped up and don’t tell them anything about us. See if you can also find us a way to the Petal Kingdom. We may not have made any progress here but maybe we can get somewhere in the Petal Kingdom. We might be able to get through to the Petal Witch.”