The guards had a very hard time trying to keep him still, as he kept on thrashing about. He wouldn’t stop until he finally was free. Besides, it wasn’t like he did anything wrong, did he? Well, probably except for that one incident…
But what was it, exactly? The palms of his hands started glowing and then… the man was thrown back. Could it be what they call magic? Or something like that? And if it was, how come his mother didn’t tell of this? Could it have to do with why his father is…
Ignei didn’t have time for this. He just needed to escape the officers’ arms and the castle. As long as he escapes unharmed, he will know to never come into the city without supplies and an official identification card again.
Of course, he struggled with little success, and the officers managed to keep a tight hold on him despite the many attempts. Guess he would have to face the consequences for his accidental actions.
The head officer knocked on a large door that most likely led into the throne room, and as soon as he shouted, the doors opened right away. “Your Majesty, we have found another magic user!”
Ah, so Ignei is exerting magic after all. He really needed some explanations right now.
Anyway, he was getting dragged into a large room, where a young man was sitting on his throne, his cheek resting on the palm of his hand. He had a serious look on his face, and his golden hair was parted so Ignei could see his face. Strangely enough, the king seemed pretty young, rather the same age as Ignei in fact. How could someone so young be suddenly thrust into a position with a lot of power and responsibility?
“Release him,” he said with a high authority, and the guards quickly removed their hands off of him. Ignei fell to the ground, kneeling in front of the king. The young man dismissed them, and they soon left as the door closed behind them, leaving Ignei and the king alone to their own words.
Ignei knew that he had to be careful. Kings can have the worst patience, and so it’s best to let them do the talking. He waited for his punishment, trembling, hoping it wasn’t much.
“Look up, young man,” the king ordered him. Ignei forced himself to look into his eyes, and the other boy’s gaze haunted him. His eyes were glassy, and it unnerved him. He tried his best to stay in eye contact with him as he continued to speak.
“Heh, I never thought that such a youngling would commit such a disturbance in one of the outer cities,” he commented. He did? From how the outskirts seemed, it didn’t look like anyone noticed the accidental destruction that he caused. They were too busy doing whatever they were doing, like some kind of machine. How in the chaos could anyone report the incident?
Ignei wanted to speak out, but the king silenced him before he could utter out a word. “I know, I know. I should be lenient with you. But…” He stood up from his throne and stepped down, approaching him. He lowered his head down, and Ignei couldn’t help but stare at his creepy copper eyes. The king spoke in a low voice. “I don’t allow magic users in my city, boy.”
The young man straightened himself up and snapped his fingers. Immediately, a couple of officers came to his aid. “Throw him in the dungeons. He’ll be executed tonight.”
“Wait!” another voice shouted from afar. The king’s face morphed from emotionless to one of fury. “Please, don’t kill him!”
Footsteps echoed from the corridor, and Ignei could hear small puffs of breath. The king turned his head to the right, and Ignei mimicked his movement. There, he could see a small figure in a light blue dress. “Don’t kill him!”
“What?” the king rasped. As soon as she arrived, she cowered to his feet, catching her breath. Her pale hair shimmered in the light. Ignei noticed the strange blue streak in her hair, but thought nothing of it.
“I implore you, do not kill him!” She looked at him. “He’s the one! I can promise you that he is the one that you seek!” She immediately ran to him and threw her body in front of him protectively. She extended her arms, blocking the king from the fiery boy.
“Him? Witch, he’s a magic user. He’s an anomaly, just like you. Guards!”
Ignei couldn’t help but see the girl. Why did she mean so much to him? He didn’t even know her… “I…”
However, she shushed him before he could do anything. “Careful, I’m trying to save your life!” she whispered harshly to him. He kept his mouth shut and let her talk. “Look, I can promise you, but if you don’t listen to me, then your beloved sister will never be found. Do you want to find her or not?”
The king’s expression changed into one of despair. He lowered his arm and his eyes… they looked a little more sane, and watery. “Opal…” he called weakly. He left the throne room, leaving the girl with Ignei.
“Uh, thanks,” Ignei said to her.
“Don’t thank me yet. As you can see, their king isn’t stable right now. He’s obsessed with finding the rebels and ridding of them.” She gave him a sad smile. “Now, let me tend to you. You don’t mind that, right?”
Ignei nodded, just wanting to take a break from everything. He was tired, and very confused. At least she looked sane, compared to the other lunatics he met so far. He stood up, only to find that he didn’t feel well. He had a sudden headache, and his knees were giving way. The girl noticed this and steadied him. “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine.” She helped him up and led him towards an obscure room in the castle.
“Why are you helping me?” he asked weakly. She glared at him, and for the first time close up he could see her face. He noticed that there were small, dark blue tattoos in the shape of raindrops under her blue eyes, the color of a clear sky.
She pulled him up again. “You can ask questions later after we set you down to rest. I’ll tell you everything I know, okay?” He nodded.
They arrived at the door at the end of the hallway. She pushed the door and it clicked open. She then led him down to a bed and there she set him. He looked at her room. It was a grayish room, with bottles and vials of glowing liquid everywhere. It illuminated the room, giving it its gloomy atmosphere. The girl walked over to the exit. “I’ll be back with some first aid, okay? So… just… keep comfy.” And with that she left him to his own devices.
He wanted to explore the room, but his headache prevented him from doing so. Not to mention, he couldn’t feel his legs. He was numb all over. His vision was getting blurry. Could it be a side effect of blasting people to a wall? Ignei looked at his hands, and he noticed that he was getting pale. Heh, that never happened to him before.
He decided to rest a bit before he asked any questions. Besides, he couldn’t really do anything in his current state. It wasn’t long before he drifted asleep. The last thing he saw was a blurry silhouette and comforting words.
-.-
“Hey,” a soft feminine voice called out. He woke himself up, and immediately he knew that he wasn’t home. His mother wouldn’t sound this gentle and strangely beautiful. He felt something soft wrapped around his body, and a warm feeling in his chest. Could it be that…?
Ignei opened his eyes to see the strange girl who hovered a bag of ice over his head. His body was inside a cover that kept him warm, and his head was kept cool. He was still inside the gloomy room. He sighed. It wasn’t a dream after all.
“I… How long was I out?” he asked, slightly shaking.
“Not long, just a half hour or so,” she replied. “I didn’t want to disturb your little rest. You want answers now?”
He nodded and slowly sat himself up. “Okay.” He took in a deep breath as the girl sat on the floor. “Well, first things first, can you explain why I can use uh… magic?” he asked. She let out a small chuckle.
“I’m afraid that’s the only question I cannot answer. It’s within you, that’s all I can say.” He understood. She wouldn’t know the first thing about him anyway.
“Okay then, well, why is the king uh… a little not in the head?” he asked instead.
She sighed. “It’s a little complicated to answer. He’s been like that ever since his father died and well, other things.”
Ignei glared at the sitting girl. “You said that you can answer my questions, and you’re doing anything but.”
“I don’t want to talk about personal matters that I don’t want to understand. I don’t want to understand the king.”
Ignei wanted to ask about her reasons, but he didn’t want to intrude on her personal life. Besides, she seemed very gloomy already.
“Okay well, um…” He struggled to come up with a question. “Why did you save me from certain death then?”
She weakly chuckled again. “Well, I saw you in a vision, but I can’t tell you why, or it’ll ruin the path we’re currently on. Now, I know that you’re going to find the princess. His sister.”
“Why me?”
“I have no idea. That’s what my visions don’t tell me. But I can tell you this, you have to be careful with him. Hopefully, he’ll spare you and the worst punishment he gives you is a journey to find her.” From there, she removed the cool object from his head. “Now, I think you’re good now.”
Ignei stood up from the bed and the girl led him back to the throne room. “You know, I never got your name,” he reminded her. “I mean, I’d like to know the name of my savior.”
She shook her head. “No. I can’t give you my name. Names are very powerful you know, especially if you don’t have one. I’d rather keep mine a secret.” He nodded.
“Now, come on, he should be rational by the time we’re there,” she said as she tugged his arm more harshly. He ran faster and they made it to the throne room in a couple of minutes.
“Perhaps we’ll meet up again, Ignei,” she whispered in his ear.
As they approached the king, he only glanced the without a second thought. Ignei knew that he’ll only be an outsider to him. He brought himself to his feet and waited for him to speak. “Witch, if what you say is true, you really think that he can be able to save my sister?”
The girl, Ignei noticed, didn’t bow down to him like the other servants. “I promise you, he will find her. And she will come back. That is what I saw in my visions. You know that I’m right.” Even though that Ignei couldn’t see her face, he knew that she wasn’t backing down. She was confident about this prophecy.
He only nodded. “Okay then. You may leave,” he said quietly, and the girl fled rather quickly. Ignei then faced the king, as he bowed down to him, not wanting to see his face.
“Please then…” the king pulled Ignei up by the collar, and once again, Ignei had to go back to seeing his face. “Please save my sister from them. Please save her from those rebels. I beg you.” The king was crying. He was actually crying.
He nodded. “I promise you that I will return the princess,” he said quietly as he stared once again into his strange copper eyes. The king released him and Ignei took a couple of steps back, not wanting to be around this king any longer room.
“My servants will take you to a spare room in the castle. You will leave first thing tomorrow morning. Is that understood?” As soon as he said those words, two people in uniform appeared from where he came. They nodded silently and gestured him to follow them.
Ignei bowed down to him. “Thank you, Your Majesty, I will not let you down.” He quickly walked over to the servants, and as he left, Ignei could’ve sworn that the king mumbled something inaudible, but he dismissed it quickly.
Perhaps, this is what happens when he asked for an adventure. Next time he should be a little more careful with his choice of words. Because of that, now he was on a quest to find a princess. He chuckled, never once thinking that he would be the knight in shining armor.
It wasn’t long before they arrived in his room. It was a white room, with a white bed, a white desk, and other white objects that decorated the room.
Thank goodness that he was only staying for one night.
He thanked the servants for guiding him, and they bowed slowly. “We will give you your dinner later, mister.” They soon exited the room.
He fell upon his guest bed, thinking about the circumstances that he was in. He felt more confused than he ever knew. “What did that girl mean? She was a confusing one…” Maybe he could ask her about that tomorrow morning. But one thing did cross his mind before he heard someone knock on his door.
“Now that I think about it, did I ever give her my name?”
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