by SJ West
"Is something burning?" I asked Hana when she returned and handed me my helmet.
Hana looked at the column of black smoke rising up into the sky.
"No."
And that was all the answer I got before Hana took her seat in front of me.
"Please hold on to me, Queen Emma," she instructed.
I did as she asked and wrapped my arms around her waist like I did with Sora earlier.
As we lifted off the ground, I looked back at Sora's compound and saw that the black smoke was emanating from a small building a short distance away from the main house.
"Probably her den of dark magic," Aurora said knowingly.
"It's not exactly evidence of anything," I told my little dragonling.
As we were flying away, I felt a need to look back over my shoulder. I completely stopped breathing when I saw what was behind me.
The black smoke wasn't just an amorphous pillar anymore.
It had transformed itself into the shape of a cobra.
And it was looking straight at me.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
"Well if that isn't proof of dark magic," Aurora said, "I don't know what is."
I couldn't find a strong enough argument against Aurora's words. The phantom cobra suddenly dissipated after a strong gust of wind blew through its center, forever erasing it from existence.
While we rode back to the palace, Aurora remained silent for the most part. She knew my headache had grown progressively worse and that my head literally felt like a separate, throbbing entity sitting on top of my shoulders.
"You should lie down and rest when we get back," Aurora advised. "With all the stress you're under, it's no wonder your head is hurting. I can't imagine that this is very good for the baby either."
After Hana landed her mechanical dragon on the palace's platform, she leapt out of her seat and helped me down. She then escorted me back to my chambers. Almost as soon as I entered the hallway leading to my room, I saw Fallon and Dracen exit their own rooms a little further down the corridor.
"Glad to see you made it back in one piece," Fallon said as he and Dracen walked towards me, but his eyes immediately narrowed on me with concern. "What's wrong? You look like you're in pain."
"I just have a bad headache," I told him. "I'm sure it'll pass."
Hana turned to me and bowed at the waist. "I will leave you with your friends, Queen Emma. The celebration this evening will begin at seven. Arisu should be back by then to help you prepare for it."
"Thank you," I said to Hana. "I look forward to the festivities."
After Hana was well out of earshot, Dracen asked, "Well, how did it go? Were you able to negotiate a fair deal with her?"
"Yes. We get her troops. I only had to agree to a marriage between her son and Dena when she turns eighteen. Plus, a handsome monetary sum for her assistance. She was easier to deal with than I expected. I think she knew I wouldn't accept her first offer because she didn't seem too perturbed that I refused to even consider it."
"What was included in her first offer?" Fallon asked with a lift of his eyebrows, obviously curious to hear what Sora asked for.
In spite of my headache, I smiled. "She wanted a quarter of Vankaran land."
"She did ask for the moon," Dracen said with a chuckle and slight shake of his head at the Kamoran queen's audacity.
"Yes," I agreed. "She did, but I took your advice and brought her back down to earth. I don't think she considered it a serious offer because she didn't fight me on the point when I said no. The promise of a large sum of money seemed to satisfy her greed. She also promised to send our ships the supplies they need to start repairs."
"Good," Fallon said with a satisfied nod. "I'll get a message to Edeson and let him know they're coming."
"Are you going to tell them about what we saw there?" Aurora gently prodded.
I sighed because I really didn't want to get into all that right then, but I knew if I didn't Aurora would have a fit.
"I most certainly would not have a fit," Aurora said sounding rather indignant. "I'm simply trying to look out for you."
"Then can I please get a little rest first?" I asked her. "I'm having a hard enough time just standing here much less coming up with the words to explain what we saw. I promise I will tell them after I get some rest."
"Yes, Sarah," Aurora said sympathetically. "It can wait. Make your excuses to them and lie down. I know how tired you are."
"If you gentleman will excuse me, my headache isn't getting any better. I would like to go lie down for a while."
Both Dracen and Fallon looked concerned for my well-being.
"Is there anything we can do for you?" Dracen asked. "Would you like me to seek out one of their healers?"
I shook my head. "No, I think I just need some rest is all."
"You get all the rest you need. We'll make sure no one disturbs you," Fallon promised.
"Thank you," I told him, doing my best to give him a grateful smile, but I fear it came out looking more like a grimace.
Fallon slid the door to my chambers open for me. "I'll wake you if you don't get up on your own before the festivities are scheduled to begin."
I nodded letting him know I appreciated him looking out for me.
"I approve of Fallon if you wish for him to be your mate," Aurora said after Fallon closed the door behind me.
"I wasn't aware that I actually needed your approval," I replied.
"You don't," Aurora admitted, although sounding reluctant to do so, "but I thought I would give it anyway."
I laid down on the soft palette on the floor and expected sleep to elude me for a while. The next thing I know, I feel someone caressing the side of my face and softly calling out my name.
"Sarah, it's time to wake up."
I opened my eyes and saw Fallon knelt on one knee beside me. He took his hand away from my face and smiled.
"Arisu is here to help you dress for the celebration," he told me. "I asked her to wait outside first though. I wanted to make sure you were well enough to attend, or should we send our regrets?"
"No," I said, "we need to go. It wouldn't look right if we didn't at least make an appearance. The Kamorans might take it as a sign of apathy on our part and withdraw their support."
Fallon helped me sit up. My head was still throbbing, and I didn't feel as though I had gotten any rest at all.
"How long have I been asleep?" I asked.
"Four hours," Fallon said, watching me carefully. "Your headache hasn't gone away, has it?"
I almost shake my head but think better of that particular action.
"No," I told him. "I still have it."
"Then let's go make an appearance at this shindig and then get you some help afterwards. There has to be a doctor in this country with some medicine for a headache.”
Fallon stood and stretched out a helping hand to me. I accepted his aid and managed to stand up. Though, I instantly wished I could lie back down again. I had to raise a hand to my temples just to ease the ache there with a small bit of applied pressure at those points.
“Have you ever had headaches this bad before?” Fallon asked, his voice filled with worry over my condition.
“No,” I said in a low voice because even the sound of my own speech caused me pain. "Sora said it might be a result of spending time at a higher elevation, but if that were the case, it seems like it should be gone now that I'm back here."
Aurora is strangely quiet. I think she understood that I didn’t need the added stress of her voice echoing inside my head at that moment.
“Then we won’t stay long at this party of theirs,” Fallon said. “After you make an appearance to thank them for their assistance, you should come back here and get some more rest. Is that understood?”
I smiled weakly at Fallon.
"I'm sorry. I was under the impression that I was your ruler not the other way around," I teased him, secretly finding it sweet that he would fuss so much over my welfare.
Fallon raised an eyebrow at me.
"It's obvious someone has to take care of you," he said. "I feel more than up to the challenge. I can be very persuasive when I need to be."
"I don't think I would be able to present much of an opposition in my present condition anyway," I confessed.
"Sarah," Aurora whispered, "you promised to tell them about Sora and what Able saw in his vision."
I sighed in resignation because I knew she was right.
"While Arisu helps me get dressed," I said to Fallon, "do you think you could gather the others? I need to tell you all some things."
Fallon's eyes narrowed on me in concern. "What's wrong?"
"Possibly nothing," I admitted. "I would rather tell you all together though. That way I only need to say it once."
"All right," Fallon agreed, even if it was reluctantly. "I'll get them."
"Thank you."
Fallon walked to the sliding door and opened it.
Arisu was standing out in the corridor with a dress draped over her arms. She bowed at the waist to Fallon as he filled the doorway.
"The queen is ready for you now," Fallon told her.
Fallon stepped out of the room so Arisu could walk in.
Fallon turned back around in the hallway to face me.
"I'll be back in a few minutes," he said.
I got the feeling his words weren't only for my benefit, but also for Arisu’s, so she would know how much time she had to help me change clothes.
Fallon closed the door while Arisu laid out the kimono she had in her arms on a nearby table.
"Do you think I could just wear one of my own dresses tonight?" I asked Arisu.
The kimonos were beautiful, but their narrow skirts made walking extremely awkward.
Arisu looked a bit startled by my innocent suggestion.
"Does this dress not please you?" Arisu asked, sounding like a wounded animal. "I am sorry my sewing is not up to Vankaran standards, Queen Emma. If you would rather wear something one of your own seamstresses made, I can prepare one of your personal gowns."
I sigh inwardly. My intention wasn’t to shame the poor woman or insult her sewing skills. I simply wanted to be comfortable in what I had to wear that evening, but sometimes comfort isn't the most important thing.
"It's a beautiful dress, Arisu, and you are a very talented seamstress. I will wear the kimono you made with much pride."
Arisu smiled and looked somewhat relieved, for whatever reason. Though, I'm not sure why my acquiescence to wear her creation would make her feel that way.
The kimono was made out of a dark maroon silk with small, hand stitched golden phoenixes in flight scattered in the fabric.
"When did you make this dress?" I asked, thinking it odd Arisu would have dresses already made for me when I only just arrived that day and rather unexpectedly as well.
"Your uncle was planning to visit you in a couple of weeks," Arisu told me as she helped me take off the kimono I wore to my meeting with Sora. "He asked me to make you these dresses as gifts to present to you. I suppose with everything that has happened in the past few days you must have forgotten about his planned visit."
"Yes," I said, knowing I couldn't exactly tell Arisu the real reason I wasn't aware of my uncle's visit, "I guess it must have slipped my mind."
Arisu held out the maroon kimono so I could slip my arms into it. When she pressed down on the seam of the dress across my shoulders, I cried out in pain as I felt something sharp embed itself into my flesh.
"I need to take this off," I told her, wincing from the ache. "There's something sticking in my shoulder."
Arisu quickly stripped the kimono off. I looked over at my right shoulder and saw a straight pin halfway embedded there.
"I am so sorry," Arisu said, on the verge of tears. "I must have left it in the fabric after sewing and forgot to take it out."
"It's all right," I told her, feeling a need to console the woman even though I was the one injured. "Could you pull it out of me please?"
Arisu reached up and yanked the pin out in one swift motion.
"Please accept my humblest of apologies, Queen Emma," Arisu said bowing at the waist to me in supplication. "I feel sure Queen Sora will make me pay dearly for this transgression once she finds out."
I gently cupped Arisu's chin with one hand to make her look up at me.
"There's no reason to tell her about this," I said. "It was simply an accident. No real harm was done."
"But she should know of my carelessness," Arisu argued.
"Everyone makes mistakes," I reassured her. "No one is perfect."
Arisu stood back up and helped me finish dressing.
"Arisu," I said, thinking this a perfect time to do a little fact finding of my own. "What did you and Queen Sora do when you left after the tea ceremony? Where did you go?"
Arisu's movements stopped for a fraction of a second but then continued as if she realized her moment of hesitation.
"She was preparing something special for you," Arisu said.
"Do you know what it was?"
"No, your majesty. She doesn't allow us to go into one particular room of the outer building. I have no idea what she has planned."
"Should I be concerned, Arisu? You did warn me earlier that she did something to the king."
"I merely told you the rumors I have heard, Queen Emma. I have no way of knowing whether they are true. Queen Sora can be rather harsh when she wants to be, but she has never harmed me personally."
Arisu then brushed out my hair and styled it into a neat, braided bun at the back of my head. She adorned my coiffed hair with a beautifully crafted comb, which she slid securely through the bun. The comb was in the shape of a phoenix with rubies for eyes and teardrop diamonds that hung from each feather of its out-stretched wings.
"That's beautiful," I told Arisu. "Is it another gift from my uncle?"
"Yes, your highness. He is very generous with his gifts to those he cares about."
There was a soft knock at the door.
"Queen Emma," Fallon said, "may we come in?"
"Yes," I said turning towards the entrance of the room.
Fallon opened the door, and I had to hold back a laugh when I caught sight of Inara. Apparently, I wasn't the only one expected to wear a snuggly fitting kimono to the party. Poor Inara looked like someone who agreed to wear a straitjacket and was trying to make the best of a bad situation. Her dress was a beautiful shade of pink with a white sash around the waist. Inara kept tugging at the front of this sash like it was personally offending her body in some way. Her long blonde hair had been styled into the same fashion as mine, which seemed to have caused my friend to develop a twitch of the neck showing her discomfort.
Arisu bowed to me. "I will wait out in the hallway while you speak with your friends. When you are ready, I will escort you to the celebration."
"Thank you, Arisu."
After Arisu exited the room, my small contingent walked in one by one. I noted that the men had not been asked to wear anything special to the gathering. They were still dressed in the clothes they came to Kamora in. It seemed a bit like a double standard, but I let the discrepancy slip from my tired mind.
They all walked over and made a half circle around me.
"Fallon said you had a matter you wanted to discuss with us," Dracen said, looking concerned.
"Yes." I looked over at Able. "Our young seer here thinks he may have seen my death."
Able looked relieved that I finally decided to tell the others about his vision.
Inara quickly erased that relief from his face with a hard smack on the young man's arm closest to her.
"How could you keep something like that from me?" She asked him heatedly.
Able rubbed the offended arm.
"Queen Emma didn't want me to say anything. She made me promise not to," he replied in his own defense.
Inara rolled her eyes at him and decided to turn her aggravation on me.
"How are we supposed to protect you if you don't give us all the information?" She berated.
"I didn't want to tell you until the negotiations were complete," I replied. "If you had known, you would have argued against me going with her this afternoon."
"Damn right I would have, Em!" Inara said.
"And thank you for proving my point," I told her before letting out a heavy sigh. "As you can see, I made it back in one piece, and I’m still alive."
"Don't forget to tell them what we witnessed," Aurora reminded me gently.
"Before I left to go with Sora, my uncle insinuated that she may be involved in dark magic. Apparently, there is a rumor going around that she's used this magic on my grandfather in some way," I told them. "He asked me to watch for any proof of it while I was with her."
"Did you see something odd while you were with her?" Fallon asked.
"Yes, but I'm not sure what I saw exactly."
"Describe it," Dracen said.
"There was a pillar of black smoke coming from a chimney of an outer building she was in. It took on the shape of a cobra and, I could have sworn it was watching me as we flew away from her home. Does it sound like something you can conjure with dark magic?" I asked Dracen.
"Hard to say," he replied thoughtfully. "It could have been, or it could have just been a harmless illusion. But, it seems as though Sora has some magic in her. Whether she's practicing dark magic is hard to tell. I think we should exercise extra caution while we remain here and leave as soon as we can without drawing suspicion."
"I say we leave first thing in the morning," Inara said, sounding resolute in her suggestion.
"I agree," Fallon said. "We have what we came for. It's reasonable for us to leave now and continue on to the next part of our mission. I'm sure Sora won't try to persuade you to stay any longer, unless she really does plan to kill you."
Dracen looked over at Able. "Tell me exactly what you saw in this vision of yours."
Able goes on to tell everyone what he told me.
"Maybe we should just go right after this party is over," Inara said after listening to Able describe my fate according to him. "It could be what this little party of theirs is all about! Maybe they're just planning to sacrifice you, Emma. It's stupid to stay here. Let's just go!"