The Goddesses Throne

by A. Kingsley

  “We have to send a letter to Clare immediately,” Sage said.

  “And what if Cassius reads it?” Gracielle asked as she handed her daughter a quill, she seemed more frail than she had been before. Sage knew she wasn’t skipping meals, but her mother was silently stressed. ‘Could her mum take any more pain?’

  “Then good. Maybe he will stop his father.”

  Gracielle shook her head. “Handsome boy, but gullible. If his father has written to him and told him he believes Clare fancies Antoine, I imagine he will throw a fit of rage. You need to get this letter out to Clare first so that way she can convince him otherwise before he is even told.”

  Her mother was right and she was giving that boy more credit than he deserved. Sage still hated him, but he was going to be family some day, she’d have to make room for him in her heart. “Right, well what am I waiting for?” She opened the desk drawer and pulled out a fresh piece of parchment. Smoothing it out on the desk, she wrote.

  Dear Clare,

  You know that I miss you dearly, but I do not have the time to write such things. I am in a hurry to send this to you, so I will send it to your last location and hope that Fran will point our guard in your direction if you have moved. You have been caught. I do not know if you love Antoine, I mean you have not even fancied him for that long, but I know a spark is there and so does King Erebus. That damn bastard had spies at our recent events. Protect Antoine with every ounce of magic you have if that is what you must do, they are coming to find him and when they do, they plan to execute him. In the meantime shower Cassius with affection. This is all you can do to prove them wrong and save his life. I love you lots and I believe in you.

  With Love,

  Sage

  Sage neatly folded the letter and stuffed it into a cream envelope. She pushed it frantically to her mother who wrote the address in neat handwriting. She then called for a guard who took the letter and ran down the hallway and out the door as fast as he could. He was told to ride his horse as fast as the animal’s legs would take it and not to rest for a second. Sage’s face now twisted in anger. “If they manage to kill Antoine, we can’t stand down, we have to go to war.” She told her mother, her hands raised in the air.

  Gracielle frowned. “I thought I told you, you must be level headed about these things. But you are most likely right, only because the Demetrias’s would declare war first and we would be obligated to follow. Antoine is very special to Julius, you know that. If Maximus sees his brother upset, he will scorch the Earth and kill as many people as it takes, to make sure Julius smiles again one day. For him, he’d kiss the sun to soak up the rain.” She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. “It is time that I show you something, come on.” She stood up and helped her daughter stand from the chair.

  Gracielle guided Sage down a few flights of stairs and gave her a lantern, They arrived at an old cellar. The room was large with no windows and was only lit by flames. She shone her own lantern light against the wall and illuminated a row of armor, swords and daggers.

  “This place is where you will run incase of an explosion or attack. It is your best chance of survival if you can’t get out of the palace and it is where you will suit up for war. A queen should never fight on the front lines, but I have a feeling if something happens to me, my ghost wouldn’t be able to stop you from joining your soldiers.” She smiled at her daughter’s soft laugh. “This place was your fathers. Somewhere to store his armor. We didn’t have room for it in our closet since my dresses took up a lot of space. These weapons and armor belonged only to him and his brother. He’d want you to have them. Just like he wanted you to have Amicus, he told me someday, this would all be yours. And don’t fret, Clare has some of his clothes and old sketchbooks, she gets her artistic skill from him. She will not be jealous.” She slipped Sage a small note, “this is the code to open the door to this place. I hope you never have to use any of this, but with a tyrannical king in power, I believe that you might.”

  “You know, you always said papa died in the war, but you never told us how.” Sage ran her finger over the bright white metal armor. Gracielle bit down on her lip. She hated this story, she wished she could take it to her grave, but her daughter had the right to know.

  “Right. Well, I was not there, so I truly do not know, I only know what Jesse and their higher ranking officers told me.” Her lip quivered, her mind trailing off to that horrible day. “I had been sitting on the sofa, reading a book, it was a romance novel, one Wade had recommended to me, he was a big reader as you know. Then there was a knock on my door and I thought he was coming home.” Her eyes began to water, “so I opened the door and there was his mate Jesse, he was crying, sobbing. The man next to him I had never seen, he was wearing all black and he was holding up a certificate. He told me he was sorry to inform me, but my husband had died in battle,” she began to cry.

  Sage pulled her mother close, her own eyes watering at her mother’s distress.

  Once Gracielle had collected herself, she continued. “He showed me the death certificate and said that they had already cremated him, like I had asked in case something happened. The man left and Jesse came in. He was sent home from the war because they feared he was not capable after Wade's death. A man stabbed your father in the eyes, he went blind. Jesse tried to pull him to safety, to a medical tent, but the knife had hit his brain and he had passed on.”

  There were a few moments of quiet understanding as Gracielle cried and Sage held onto her tight. Once her tears had stopped, Sage whispered, “What happened to Jesse?”

  Gracielle shrugged. “I don’t know. I never invited him back to the palace because I would have been reminded of Wade. I should have kept him in our lives and I regret it. I don’t know where he is darling, but if you ever find him, bring him back to me, so I can tell him I’m sorry. I was grieving and I was foolish.”

  “It’s okay mum, you were going through a hard time. I’ll do my best to find Jesse. I’m glad you showed me this place. You are right, no ghost can stop me, not even yours.” Her watery eyes flickered up to the ceiling. “I hope Clare gets that damn letter soon.”

  “She will darling,” Gracielle said.

  And as they slipped inside of bed that night, Excidium was preparing for the dead.

  A wise woman

  They arrived at Natalia’s a day later. The mountains were only a few hours from Fran’s place in the woods, but getting the horses to climb up the steep hills to the large cabin added more time onto their trip. After the Deus guards recognized their royal status and Antoine’s citizenship, they were allowed to cross the border without official documentation. The three of them and their horses managed to arrive at the home an hour before sunset. The cabin in the woods was larger than the previous one that they had visited. The exterior wood was painted white and the royal blue roof was sloped, curving out into triangle shaped points. Natalia stood in front of the smoky gray door. She was similar in age to her sister, but she had aged less visibly. In fact, she looked as if she was only in her early forties instead of her late fifties. Natalia had pitch black hair and high cheekbones. She was a lot tanner than her sister, but they shared the same dark brown eyes. She wore a long, royal blue dress with puffed out sleeves. Underneath the dress was a grey button up top and on her feet she wore gray flats. She smiled upon meeting the three of them.

  “It is so good to see you Princess Clare, Prince Cassius and Antoine. Welcome to my home, come in please.”

  “How do you know who I am?” Antoine asked.

  “I’m a Deus citizen, I’ve seen you around,” she said.

  The three travelers left their dirty shoes at the door and followed her into the kitchen. On the oak counter she had laid out three pastel blue tea cups on neon blue saucers. The cups were already filled to the brim with a light tea. On the table there was a bowl filled with sugar cubes and a bowl filled with cut up lemons. She made them each a sandwich and then sat herself down. Once the three of them sat beside her, she
wasted no time getting started.

  “I assume you have come to me for help with your magic, so I will help you. I am going to train Clare and help her control some of her powers. But what exactly are you two doing here?” She raised the cup to her lips, her eyes flickered to the two boys.

  Cassius was the first to respond. “Well I’m here for protection and comfort. I’m not sure what he’s here for.” He glared at Antoine who was smiling warmly while he sipped his tea, his leg bouncing up and down.

  “I’m here for emotional support and problem solving. I suppose we thought we’d be running into monsters and criminals on our journey, but fortunately that has not been the case. I hate to ask more questions, but how did you know Clare has magic?”

  “I can sense it in her. And a lady can defend herself, Prince Cassius, you are not needed, but I’m glad you two are accompanying her. Magic can be emotionally draining. Having two people you trust by your side is good, even if they might corral.” She turned to look at Clare who was attempting to be as polite as possible while ignoring Cassius and downing her tea, she was extremely thirsty from the day's travel. “Clare, I would like you to change into something more comfortable and meet me in the back of my home. As for you two, you may have some free time or come watch us train, but since there is still some sun in the sky, I’d like to get in an introductory session. I’m not sure how much time you have and I want to send you back home to your kingdom or to continue your journey as quickly as possible. I heard you planned to be away for months, but that is not necessary. I want the princess to go home as quickly as possible.”

  After they had all finished their tea and sandwiches, Clare changed into what Natalia had provided her with, which was a loose pair of mesh, royal blue pants and a white button up, short sleeve top. Clare pulled on a pair of her own white boots and tied her hair up into a messy bun. Cassius had gone outside to take in the view, leaving her and Antoine alone.

  “I’m nervous,” she whispered to him.

  His hands found hers and he held them gently. “I bet you are and it’s okay to be nervous. If anything goes wrong, I’ll be a few steps behind you and your fiancé will be too.”

  Clare nodded, her voice tight, “I trust you.” She raised their hands up and gave his knuckles a quick kiss before breaking away, there was a bright blush on his face.

  “Let us go,” he said.

  Clare and Antoine met Cassius and Natalia outside. Cassius was laying on the ground staring up at the sky and pointing out the different types of butterflies to Natalia. He didn’t seem like an insect lover, so she was a bit put off, but she went along with his excitement anyways.

  “Yes, I do get a lot of butterflies out here, Cassius,” she said. She then turned her attention away from him and waved to Clare. Maybe she should have continued to call them by their royal titles, but she was in the middle of the woods and they were teenagers who were now guests in her own home. She decided she could do whatever she wanted.

  Cassius sat up from the floor and waved as well. “You look quite ravishing. I hope I get a piece when you’re done,” he told Clare teasingly. He watched her go still, at first she was stunned by his joke, but once she comprehended it, she rolled her eyes and shrugged. She moved towards the center of the clearing where Natalia stood.

  Antoine walked away from her and sat by Cassius. “I think you made her uncomfortable,” Antoine said shyly.

  “I was joking,” Cassius said grumpily.

  Clare met Natalia at the center of the clearing. When the woman bowed, Clare followed. “I feel honored that you want to train me.”

  “And I feel honored that you are accepting my help. We are going to start off by grounding ourselves. Magic takes control. You must know that you are in control of your own body. Take long and deep breaths.”

  Clare squared her shoulders back and drew in a deep breath, she gently exhaled and repeated the process until she cleared her mind. The thoughts began to leave her one by one like leaves falling from a withering tree. She forgot that Antoine and Cassius were watching her and she stopped thinking about her sister's absence, instead she focused on relaxing. She opened up her eyes to see Natalia smiling at her.

  “Now think about your magic like water. Your magic has a constant flow and is surging within you. Think of this magic as a stream of water that you can control. You must believe that you are in control of yourself to manipulate your powers to do what you want them to do.” Natalia closed her eyes and together they concentrated. After a moment, she opened her eyes and put something in between them while Clare was drawing in deep breaths. She had placed down a wounded bird with a broken wing. “Now I want you to open your eyes and look below you.”

  Clare looked to the ground to see a small gray bird, one wing flapping, the other hanging sadly by its side. The bird let out a distressed chirp. Her eyes scanned the small bird and then she saw it, blood, crimson and sticky.

  Natalia noticed her eyes go wide. "You have to learn how to control yourself. We will help the bird, I promise, but pretend you are in public and there are eyes all over you, you are a princess, you can not have an outburst, you must stay calm. I am not itching to help this bird, nothing is drawing me in. I am holding back the energy inside of me and so can you.” She watched Clare’s fingers twitch and grip the side of her pants. Clare ripped her eyes off of the bird and instead focused on Antoine who was picking flowers from the grass, twisting their stems into one another.

  The bird made another noise and she turned her attention back to it. Instead of thinking of the blood, she let her mind wander, she was sitting in a flower field with Antoine, counting the petals of a flower, he was smiling and telling her about the novel that he had just finished.

  “Very good.” The strict voice broke her train of thought. “Now we are going to take the bird to a remote location so we can heal it in private. Pretend the two gentlemen observing us don’t know you have magic. Go ahead, pick up the bird.”

  Clare knelt down and the urge returned. The closer she was to the blood, the harder it was to push the urge away. As she scooped the bird up in her hand, her fingers twitched and closed in tightly. Before she could ground her magic, her fingers began to release an emerald green mist. Within a second, the bird’s wing healed and her shoulders dropped in relief. The bird chirped and then flew out of her hands and into the woods.

  She caught the eyes of Cassius, he was amused and staring.

  “I failed,” she said bluntly as she looked to Natalia.

  “That is alright. You can not expect to succeed at everything the first time. Life is a game and you must play to win it. Most inexperienced players do not win on their first try. Plus, your magic seems to be stronger than mine. Most healing magic glows blue, when someone’s magic has turned evil it turns black, I have never seen green, I am not sure what it means, but it must be harder to control. We will try again. Cassius, bring me something wounded.”

  The prince stood up from his place on the floor and peered behind the tree. There were a few wounded animals lined up, she must have injured them for the training. He placed a squirrel with a broken paw in the middle of the two women and stepped back. “You are strong Clare,” he said reassuringly, before retreating back to his spot next to Antoine.

  “You should pick some flowers and help me,” Antoine said to Cassius as he continued to weave the stems together.

  “Fine,” the prince murmured, his voice annoyed as he began to pull the flowers growing in the ground out in fistfuls.

  Antoine shook his head, “I guess that works, but I am not so sure why you ned to go about it so aggressively,” he said.

  There was no blood on the floor, but it was clear that the animal in front of Clare was injured. Though she had the urge to help, she felt relatively at ease. “Blood must pull you forward,” Natalia concluded. “Now let’s try this again. Pick up the animal and move it out of sight. Imagine a wall, a damn, and behind it the magic, trapped, unable to escape.”

  Clare
knelt down and picked up the squirrel. When she felt the wounded flesh, her hands began to tremble, instead of focusing on something else, she focused on her magic, she wouldn’t let it escape. She hurriedly walked behind a tree and when she was out of sight the imaginary magic damn burst open and her magic poured into the small creature who then scampered away.

  “You did it,” Natalia said proudly. “Did you know there is a way to perform magic without your aurora spreading, in other words the glow. It is something that I have just recently mastered, but seeing as you are powerful, I think it is possible for you to pick it up in a few days. Would you like to see it in action?” She looked at the girl who was still stunned from her own abilities and grinned, “very well then.” She headed off to the same tree Cassius had picked up the squirrel from and brought forward the last animal, a cat with a broken tail.

  Natalia placed the gray tabby on the forest floor. She then knelt down and placed her hands just above the creature's tail. She focused and then pressed her hands down, the cat let out a hiss as her hands touched the tail. The damaged bones snapped back into place and her hands retreated, there had been no blue glow. “How did you do that?” Clare asked in bewilderment. “I need to learn how. If I’m able to remove my aura then it will be easier for me not to get caught with magic.”

  “Months and months of practice. But like I said, I think you can learn it quicker. It takes an immense amount of willpower and strength, but you have that Clare, I see it in you. Just know that this trick does not extend to all situations. It is easier to perform without an aura on minor injuries like a cut or scrape, but it is draining to perform on broken bones. I feel a bit winded. Controlling your magic’s visibility is almost impossible when it comes to a person you love. If my sister was ever in danger then I wouldn’t be able to control the way my magic looks, in fact, I am not sure if I would be able to control my magic at all. It just might burst out of me to help save her. Your magic is connected to your heart. That is why we can differentiate between good magic and bad magic. If someone is truly in your heart, then your body will attempt to do anything that it can to save them. Would you like to try controlling your healing magic on a person? I don’t expect you to be able to hide your aura, I just want you to resist temptation.”