The Curse of Thir
Chapter 23

There was a tentative knock at ten exactly the next morning. Both Naveen and Xylee lay huddled in a mass of blankets, unwilling to leave the safety of slumber. Yet the knocking did not cease, and grew more urgent with each tap.

“WHAT!!” Naveens’ blanket enveloped body erupted up words and shocked Xylee awake. It had been the first good night’s rest Xylee had ever encountered, so her loud awakening came as a massive shock to her system and she flew out the bed ready to defend herself from this new attacker.

The door opened to reveal a tray of fruit, bread, tea and a few dozen soldiers. Naveen grinned at Xylee as she slumped onto the floor after realizing where she was, who had shouted and what was going on.

“Just put the tray on the dresser, we’ll get to it in a bit. Thank you, sorry I shouted.” She addressed both Xylee and the sever girl who entered and placed the tray on the dresser, curtsied and left in a hurry. The door remained open revealing one of the guards hovering at its threshold; he cleared his throat and spoke in a most official tone.

“King Tyres request your presence, Princess Naveen Delbar Tyres and your companion named Xylee.” His regal announcement did not entirely sink in until Xylee realised that her name had been said and not once did he say demon.

“He did? My father requested both of us?”

“Yes Princess.”

“That is surprising, Xylee what are your thoughts? Should we heed my father’s request?” Both Naveen and the guard waited for Xylees reply. She shrugged.

“I don’t know,” she looked at Naveen, “he isn’t my father, but he is the King.”

“He is the King isn’t he? Oh well, please tell my father we will humbly accept his request after we have had our breakfast and readied ourselves to be in his Kingly company.”

Her sarcasm was noted, but the guardsmen simply bowed and closed the door behind him.

Climbing carefully out of her bed into the cold mid morning air, sent a small amount of winter chill down Naveens spine.

“Aren’t you cold Xylee?” Naveen wrapped a large fuzzy brown blanket around her shoulders and walked to the warmth of tea and bread.

“...not really.” Xylee rubbed her eyes and stretched out her arms, then flinched as her shoulder tweaked with pain. She frowned then remembered.

“...yesterday?” rubbing her throat she felt very little pain but no scabs or scars. The chain lay limp against her chest.

“Yes yesterday did happened, doesn’t entirely feel real.” Naveen poured a cup of tea for both herself and Xylee. “I don’t know what exactly happened but I truly hope it never happens again. I was really frightened,” the clink of the tea spoon was exceptionally loud as she stirred the cane sugar in, “both that mad man and... you, almost ...leaving.” She handed the cup to Xylee and sipped at her own, there were a few moment of silence as both appreciated the warm liquid flowing down their throats, but it was broken by Naveen who had been keeping burning questions unasked.

“How did you manage to... tackle him like that? I mean the guards there’re full grown trained combatants and they couldn’t get him to fall... but you, you just flew at him, and your eyes... they were so bright.” Xylee felt unnerved by her questioning so she merely shrugged and sipped her tea.

“Do you have magic? Like Gelnane said? Is that what made your eyes so bright and your horns...” she motioned from the crown of her head up, “to grow like that?” Again Xylee shrugged. She stood up and grabbed an especially large and red looking apple and proceeded to munch away.

“Xylee, as friends we shouldn’t keep secrets from each other.” She walked to the edge of her bed and sat down, waiting for an explanation on Xylees part. “I don’t want my father to have anything to hold against you, so if I know then maybe I can prevent that from happening.”

The chewing noise of the apple seemed extremely loud at that moment. Xylee swallowed the large chunk and was about to take another when she realised Naveen was staring at her and wouldn’t stop staring till she had gotten an explanation.

She sighed loudly.

“I don’t know.”

Naveen gave her a cynical look and sipped some more tea.

“No really I don’t... I feel like I should know... or know something that I should remember, but I keep forgetting how, and then I forget about it completely and I think about something else.”

“What?”

“I don’t know. I feel confused.” She crunched methodically on the apple and said nothing.

“So you’re forgetting something that you should remember? But you don’t know how and then you forget completely? That doesn’t really make any sense.”

“I know... I just... I don’t think... I mean I should be different? But I don’t remember why or how. It’s just cold... inside my head.”

“...I don’t understand...”

“Exactly... I don’t know. I don’t know what I know...”

“Okay? Maybe you don’t want to know?”

“Maybe.”

“So you might have magic?”

“Maybe.”

“Ok. Let’s just say yes, but you didn’t know if my father asks at all.”

“But I don’t know.”

“Yes, but we just need to tell my father that if he asks.”

“Everything that I just said?”

“No, just the bit where you didn’t know about the magic.”

“... Okay?” Xylee felt as muddled as she had when she had woken up in the wagon alongside Anakal.

They finished their breakfast of fruit and bread with minimal conversation, washed faces, chewed a mint leaf, got dressed and left to see the king.

The hall was occupied by only a few guards, Gelnane and the King who sat impatiently in his white marble throne.

Xylee recognised three of the guards as those who had been involved in yesterday evenings attack. They stood uncomfortably close to each other and upon seeing Xylee smiled awkwardly which made her feel uneasy and highly suspicious of this gathering.

“NAVEEN!” the king jumped from his thrown and rushed into an embrace.

“Father that is most improper for a king to behave in this manner in front of his royal guard is it not?.” His embrace tightened. “I need to breathe...” He let go and viewed Naveen carefully.

“I wished to see you last night after you left the garden but perhaps it was best I did not, I might have been aggressive towards you and certain ‘individuals’,” he paused and nodded curtly at Xylee, “if I had. But after hearing of what had actually occurred and who was responsible for you well being, I... I wished to thank her personally.” He turned to Xylee, who was now more confused than ever, her ears dropped down in fear and suspicion.

“Xylee,” His eyes rimmed themselves with tears, fervent blue iris stared directly into hers but she could not look away, “I thank you from the bottom of my very soul, for protecting what I hold most dear in this world. Thank you.”

Naveens mouth popped open in shock, Xylee remained silent with disbelief. The man who hated her and cursed her name on a regular basis, now bowed his head and thanked her.

“....I.... do not know.... what I would have done if I had lost her.” King Tyres caught his breath, which had been quivering with tears and emotion. He turned and walked towards his throne. Sitting down he coughed loudly, cleared his throat and acted in his regular stately manner. Neither girl said anything, but continued to stare wide eyed at King Tyres.

“Under law of this land I cannot free you Xylee, because of what you appear to be and for that I am sorry, but I can offer you a chance to study alongside my daughter in all forms of scholarship and defence, I will give you the respect that I now see you truly deserve and you will have the same opportunities as every human in this castle and never forget, you will all ways have my gratitude.”

The three men, who had been in the gardens, stepped forward and offered Xylee, who stood frozen, congratulations’. Naveen smiled enthusiastically.

“Xylee without your help yesterday, I swear we’d be done for.”

“Aye, we’d a stood no chance if you hadn’t got him down like that.”

“Thank you so much Xylee.”

She stood before them and shook her head.

“Don’t thank me please, I didn’t... I couldn’t save any of them.”

They looked down sadly at the thought of all their lost comrades.

“But you saved us.”

“and you saved the Princess.”

“You maybe even saved more than we know.”

“Xylee, you did save us from him.” Naveen backed the men up with her own words.

“I just pushed him down Naveen, I didn’t kill him.”

“If you hadn’t a pushed him down we’d a never been able to get him. We weren’t even able to keep up with his speed let alone his strength, you could and you did. So leave it at that Miss.”

Xylee nodded although still in disbelief.

“Father, when will her chain be removed then?” Naveen addressed King Tyres who now spoke quietly with Gelnane.

“I’ve discussed the matter with Gelnane, he recommends that we wait for Master Lemoine to return and use his method of removal, as Gelnane mentioned now to me, his method may not be the safest, as she may have an element of magic with which he is unfamiliar with?” He stated the last part as a question towards Xylee and Gelnane.

“I sensed no magic from her when I encountered her or spelt the necklace, it might be a suppressed element dependant on age and maturity, like most magic found in human hosts.”

King Tyres nodded at Gelnanes explanation.

“I... didn’t remember... I didn’t know....that I had magic.” Xylee addressed the King in a soft voice, at which prompted a loud sigh from Naveen and a quizzical look from his majesty.

“She’s having a few issues with her memory Father, but as far as she or I know, she was unaware of the fact that she had any magic.”

“Ah, would you care to look into that then with Gelnane sometime Xylee?” King Tyres waited for her reply patiently as she stared at Gelnane. His face held no emotion as he stared vaguely to the back of the hall. His face held youth and age at the same time, it was difficult to describe but she believed it might have to do with the fact that he was over a hundred, which she found incredibly hard to believe at times.

She shook her head and said no, she did not want to be near that man. She didn’t trust him.

“That is understandable, but if it worsens please approach Gelnane.”

She doubted she would, but she nodded anyway.

“Have you found anything out Father? What were the reasons behind this attack?” Naveen cast a sombre mood upon the hall with her questions. King Tyres looked at Gelnane to answer.

“We are investigating at the moment Princess, so unfortunately his motives are unclear at this time. I did however wish to ask if you could shed any light on the events of yesterday.”

“I’m not sure if asking my daughter to recall something so traumatic would benefit her right now Gelnane. Perhaps you could arrange something for tomorrow?”

“Your Majesty, I only concern myself with your daughters’ safety and that of your people, and the fact is, right now everything is fresh in her mind, so anything that she can remember about the evening’s events may help with my investigations.”

“I don’t think it wise to ask her-”

“Father,” Naveen spoke up, “Gelnane is right, it would be best to get this over with now. You’ve already questioned these three brave men here correct?” Gelnane nodded and the three men mumbled inaudibly in agreement.

“To be honest Gelnane, I didn’t realise his intentions until Xylee told me to run, perhaps, if it’s ok with Xylee, she could tell you what she saw.” She looked at Xylee who nodded reluctantly at the idea of having to address Gelnane.

“When he slowed down, sir, I noticed something odd about his movements. He was jerking about slightly, and his eyes,” she paused looking unsure of herself, “they had thin blue lines that glowed slightly on the white part, it was spreading and then it took over his whole eye.”

“Are you certain of this, it is of my understanding that it had gotten somewhat dark at the time the attack took place?”

Xylee nodded.

“I’m a hundred percent certain. My eyes,” she pointed at herself, “can see much better than... human eyes.” She smiled shyly at this mini revelation of herself.

“Even though my eyes aren’t as great as Xylees, I did see what she spoke of, except by then the veins around his eyes glowed blue as well and stood out brilliantly in the dark.”

Gelnane frowned in thought.

“Hmmm... Perhaps he was involved in some sort of dark magic. I’ll look into. Thank you for the information Princess,” He dipped his head politely in her direction, “Xylee.”