Chapter 4

Chapter 4

 

 

I was really fascinated by Portia. Portia was a port town located south of Rancour. It was very different from the pictures I saw inside books.

 

Well of course it had changed. More than a hundred years had passed after all.

 

Currently we were waiting for the ship to get ready to sail. The three of us had to wait here, inside the inn, with the presence of the Princess of Windia. Wow?

 

Princess Maylind Crostque Farenis Windia, or Princess Mea for short, was like a life-sized doll. She had long curled blonde hair and dark green eyes. She wore a white gown – your typical dress of a princess. She seemed very fragile as well. But hey, we’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover.

 

I felt rather uneasy. How was I supposed to behave in presence of a royal? I’ve never been near a royal before. Oh, Prince Edmund didn’t count. He’s too much annoying and aggravating that I forgot he’s a royal as well. He totally got on my nerve during the way to Portia.

 

“Your Highness, can we ask a question?” Luke asked.

 

Mea smiled at him. “No need to be so formal. Just call me Mea, please. Of course you may, how can I help you with?”

 

“Uh, okay . . . Do you have any idea of what’ll happen to us? I mean, care to fill us in with what’s been happening in the world?” Luke asked.

 

“Sure,” Mea said, “A big war has been waging amongst the five kingdoms for almost two years now. Firenze started the war by attacking Undine two years ago. Upon hearing that, the other kingdoms strengthened their defense. Lumina aided Undine, but still . . . Firenze was far too strong. Soon enough, Undine lost the battle. Firenze raided us next. My father, King Glasgow, offered to surrender peacefully since he didn’t want to cause too much suffering to the people. That brings us to our current situation.”

 

“We’ll be brought to Firenze and have our Archeic polished. As you all know, it’s not like we have any other choice, right?” she said and smiled sadly.

 

“So four of us are the only Archeics left?”

 

“That is correct. The number of people possessing Archeic has decreased dramatically over the years. I heard there are not more than twenty Archeics left in this world,” she explained.

 

Not more than twenty? Wow . . .

 

“Princess Mea, is there any way to hide your Archeic?” I asked her.

 

“Up until now, nobody has ever figured out how to do that, except Prince Edmund. I have no idea how he manage to do that though,” she replied.

 

“I see . . .” That was really weird.

 

“My apologies for the long wait,” Edmund said as he entered the in. Speak of the devil and he shall appear.

“The ship is ready to sail. Follow me,” he said politely. We got up from our seat and took our bags. He took mine and Rachel’s from our hands. I gave him a quizzical look.

 

“It is rude to let a woman carry heavy things,” he explained as if he understood why I gave him a quizzical look. Very charming, I thought sarcastically. Luke snorted from behind me. Rachel seemed amazed by his gentlemanly character.

 

“You are such a gentleman, Your Highness,” Mea complimented.

 

“I am not worthy of such praise,” he chuckled. Why did I feel like he’s an entirely different person? Did he have a double personality disorder?

 

He led us out of the inn and towards the dock. The sky was dark already, I didn’t notice it earlier. A magnificent white ship was docked at the dock. Never in my life had I ever seen a ship before – except in books. I was excited to board it, I felt like a five-year-old getting a new toy.

 

“Excited, are we?” he smirked at me.

 

“That is none of your business, Your Highness Prince Edmund,” I said, feeling a bit irritated. He could be polite at times but I still couldn’t bring myself to like him. I felt like it was a natural thing to do for me to hate him.

 

“Very well. Let us proceed,” Edmund said politely and led the way into the ship. He gave us a quick tour of the ship and led us to our respective rooms after that.

 

“Meet me in the briefing room first thing in the morning,” he said as he left the room.

 

I was very tired by now. It felt like a very long day. He had put my bag on the mahogany table. I glanced over the room. It was a simply decorated room. A mahogany table was placed at the center of the room and a small bed was located at the northern side of the room. Only two other wooden chairs were present near the table.

 

I sat on the bed. It was pretty comfortable and fluffy, not bad. Soon enough, I found myself drifting off to sleep.

-- o --

Rustle, rustle.

 

 

Huh? What’s that sound? I opened my eyes just to be greeted by the dark cabin. Oh yeah, I fell asleep, I thought. Who in the world was so noisy at this hour of the night? Well, technically it’s not that noisy. I just happened to have a sharp ear.

 

Rustle, rustle.

 

 

I decided to get up and check the source of the noise. I crept slowly towards the door. At times like this, my photographic memory really came in handy; I needn’t worry about stumbling upon things since I remembered the picture very clearly.

 

I opened the door as quietly as possible. The hallway was dark as well. I stopped for a brief second, listening to the hollow sound of the wind passing through a water pipe. The sound gave goose bumps all over me. The rustling sound had gone away completely.

 

Could it be just my imagination? Nah, how could I imagine the same sound two times? Maybe I was just being too paranoid over things . . .

 

I pondered on what to do next. Should I just come back inside? Or should I explore around a little longer? My instinct told me that it would be much safer to stay inside. This was that ‘high and mighty’ Prince’s ship after all. Who knew what kind of trap he got set up around here? Just as I was about to go back inside . . .

 

Rustle, rustle.

 

 

What the heck? I decided to be brave and try to search for the origin of the sound. I let my eyes roamed all over the place. Ah, there it is! The room at the hallway had its light lit up. Let’s just try my luck.

 

I crept towards it silently, trying to make as little noise as possible. The door was slightly opened. I peeked through the small opening.

 

Edmund was there, staring at a piece of paper. It seemed it was a photo of someone. He crinkled the paper with his right palm. When he opened his right palm again, the only thing left was the ashes. He heaved a deep sigh and closed his eyelid. His hand pinched the bridge of his nose, as if trying to calm himself down.

 

I moved slightly, causing the door to make a creaking sound. His head snapped up to my direction immediately.

 

“Who’s there?” he asked sharply.

 

I held my breath, too stunned to move. I didn’t know what to say or do. He stood up and walked quickly towards the door.

 

“Lyrene?” He seemed a bit surprised to find me there.

 

“I’m very sorry. I heard a strange noise and decided to check it out. I didn’t know it was you, Your Highness,” I apologized instantly.

 

His face softened up a little. “That is quite all right. Though I don’t feel that I was making strange noise,” he chuckled.

 

“Huh? But –“

 

Rustle, rustle.

 

 

“That’s the weird sound!” I exclaimed.

 

He frowned. “I didn’t hear anything. We may as well check. Do you know where it comes from?”

 

I shook my head. “I don’t know the exact place. It’s supposed to be somewhere around here, since the sound is cleared here than from my cabin,” I told him.

 

“Very well. You should go back to your cabin for now. I shall do a thorough examination of the area,” he said calmly.

 

“That is not necessary,” a woman’s cold voice answered. I turned around to see the owner of the voice.

A woman with short black hair and dark eyes stood there, with a sword clutched in her hands. She wore red long-sleeved shirt with a black vest over it and black trousers. She was tall and skinny. It looked like she was about twenty five years old or so.

 

“Let go of the princess,” the woman said angrily.

 

“Ah, Melanie Ruthford, the head of Windia’s royal guard, I presume? Your swordsmanship is very remarkable, I heard. I would really hate to waste such talent,” Edmund said calmly, rather persuasive.

 

“Your Highness, I am not going to fall for your tricks. Let go of the Princess or I shall use force,” she threatened.

 

“’I shall use force’?” he quoted her and laughed. “Do you realize who you’re talking to, Miss Ruthford?”

 

“I know very well about your monstrous ability, but I have a backup plan, Your Highness. I can’t hurt you, but surely I can kill this girl quite easily,” Melanie said as she pulled me and positioned her sword in front of my throat. Uh-oh. What had I gotten myself into?

 

“Just play along, I won’t hurt you,” Melanie whispered softly to me. Her whispers were barely audible.

 

Edmund’s penetrating crimson eyes looked very fierce by now. He clutched his hands tightly. “That is a very dirty trick,” he said. His calm voice never ceased to astonish me.

 

“Well? What are you waiting for? Just kill me with this girl along. Or had you developed a heart, Your Highness? The last time I saw you, you never hesitated to kill even a single bug,” she spat angrily.

 

“Don’t test my patience, Miss Ruthford. Let her go otherwise I can’t ensure the safety of your Princess,” he said rather menacingly.

 

I couldn’t move even a single inch. Spare my throat, I still valued my life. And I didn’t really want to break free from her imprisonment; I didn’t even know whom to side with.

 

“So this girl is far more important to you? It’s easier then. Let the Princess go and I’ll let this girl here go,” she said. Then she whispered again to me, “Just play along a little while longer. You want to go out of this place as well, right?”

 

Did I want to get out of this place? No way. How could I abandon Luke and Rachel? Well, the latter was okay to abandon, but not Luke. I began to panic but nevertheless I tried to remain as calm as possible.

 

“You asked for it,” Edmund said. He fixed his eyes at Melanie, but then he sighed. “Lyrene, you are not making this easy for me,” he said. I could detect a hint of frustration in his tone. Wow, the Edmund Archroze, frustrated? That’s new.

 

What did he mean by that anyway? Oh yeah, my Archeic, I almost forgot about it. If he tried to use his Archiec and did it wrongly, he might kill himself instead. What was his Archeic again? The ability to visualize Hell? Luke didn’t explain it clearly, it’s not like I had the heart to force him to explain anyway. One thing I was sure now, his Archeic had become a double-edged sword, thanks to me.

 

I was somewhat proud by this newfound bit of information. Roughly translated, I could bring Luke and Rachel away if I developed my Archeic anymore – Edmund wouldn’t be able to follow us. Oh wait, scratch the Rachel part. Maybe I could even kill him now? No way, I didn’t want to become a murderer. Though literally, I wouldn’t be one; he’s the one who killed himself, right?

 

“Do you know where Princess Mea’s room is? If yes, just nod your head slightly,” Melanie whispered and moved her swords slightly farther from my throat. I nodded my head slightly.

 

“Lyrene, you are not going to oblige to whatever she says,” Edmund said angrily. He had lost control of his emotion. His voice was scary and a bit husky, not his usual velvety voice of persuasion. Once again, he fixed his eyes at Melanie and clenched his jaw tightly.

 

All of a sudden, an ear-piercing scream could be heard coming from Melanie. She dropped her sword onto the wooden floor and I was freed in a second. Edmund yanked me away from her. Melanie lay sprawled on the floor, writhing and screaming.

 

It was a very horrifying sight. She kept on screaming, begging to be killed. I couldn’t hold myself any longer. I pushed Edmund away and approached Melanie quickly. I concentrated on applying my Archeic on her, but Edmund’s Archeic didn’t wear out.

 

I got frustrated and tried to use my body as a shield. I blocked her away from his vision and held her tightly against my chest. Her screams died out as soon as I did that. I knew she would be okay if I stayed very close to her.

 

Her face was pale and her eyes were white. She got bruises all over her body. A blue mark could be seen clearly on her left knee. She started coughing up blood soon. Her breath was hitched and her whole body trembled. Her condition was a lot worse than Luke whn Edmund used his Archeic against Luke.

 

Soon enough, people began to crowd the hallway. It seemed they were alarmed by Melanie’s scream. I noticed Luke and Mea amongst them. They came to my side instantly.

 

“Melanie? What happened? Why are you here?” Mea asked in a panicky voice when she was Melanie’s condition. She kneeled on her knees and took Melanie’s hand.

 

“Lynn? You okay?” Luke asked. I nodded meekly.

 

“I apologize for waking you all up in this hour. Nothing is wrong here. Retreat to your respective cabin now. I can handle the situation in here,” Edmund said. His usual persuasive voice had come back by now.

 

“Your Highness –“ Mea tried to say, but was cut off.

 

“I understand. You shall remain here,” Edmund said.

 

The crowds dispersed soon, leaving us alone in the deserted hallway. We followed Edmund into his cabin, which wasn’t too different from ours. The only addition in his room was a black leather sofa, the rest was pretty much the same.

 

Melanie had regained her consciousness by now though she still looked terrified. I remembered perfectly how brave she was when she first encountered Edmund and me. She was very brave and confident. What kind of Archeic did that man possess? More importantly, why hadn’t his Archeic backfired to himself? I was very sure that my Archeic was not nullification or neutralization, I knew it was reflection. Did he remove his Archeic as soon as I pushed him?

 

“Your Highness, I am terribly sorry for the inconvenience Melanie had caused you. I beg of you, sir, please don’t give her any punishment again,” Mea pleaded. It occurred to me that perhaps she and Melanie were very close.

 

“What’s going on actually?” Luke asked. I ignored him.

 

“Miss Melanie, are you okay?” I asked. She nodded meekly. I really pitied her now. Edmund had gone too far.

 

“Your Highness . . .” Mea pleaded.

 

“Do you realize that what you have done is a capital crime, Miss Ruthford? You can accidentally kill Lyrene as well,” Edmund stated calmly.

 

“I know it’s a crime, yet I would never kill an innocent people. I’m not like you, Your Highness. I will only kill murderers and sinners such as you,” Melanie said. She had regained her composure back.

 

“You talk big for someone who begged to be killed just now,” he said.

 

“Then kill me. I am not scared of death!”

 

Edmund’s piercing gaze was fixed at her again. “You asked for it.”

 

“Your Highness!” I snapped up. “That is enough!”

 

He gave me an exasperated look. Oh how I loved my Archeic. “Lyrene . . .” he said with a warning tone.

I remained by Melanie’s side. What he did was truly unforgivable. How could he treat people like that, as if they were trashes? Was what Melanie said earlier true? That he would kill people without a second thought? That he was a monster? If yes, he was truly a beast.

 

“Your Highness, please don’t,” Mea pleaded again.

 

“Hey, I don’t really understand what’s going on in here, but I think you shouldn’t judge people that easily. That’s so unfair,” Luke said.

 

I didn’t say anything. I looked at Edmund: his face was as calm as ever. His emotions didn’t betray his face at all. His eyes danced slightly and then were fixed at me. I could see deep into that deep shade of crimson, it looked so emotionless. Even so, I could sense some doubt in it.

 

“Very well. Just for this time. I shall pretend that I see nothing, for only thirty minutes. Now, leave!” he said with authority ringing in his voice.

 

“What do you mean?” Luke asked.

 

Edmund didn’t say anything. He just sat down on the black leather couch and pretended as if we weren’t there.

 

“To the deck,” Mea murmured. We nodded and helped Melanie to stand on her own feet. I was glad to know that she had felt better. Her face had regained her color by now. Mea led the way to the deck although I knew perfectly where it was.

 

“What did he mean by that?” Luke asked again.

 

“I think he’ll only give us thirty minutes to get Melanie out of here,” Mea concluded.

 

“To where? How?” I asked.

 

“What about using that small boat?” Luke said and pointed at some small boats on the side of the ship. It was used for emergency purpose only actually, but this was an emergency right?

 

“But Princess, I can’t leave you here, knowing that you’ll be trained to kill people,” Melanie said.

 

“Don’t worry, Miss Melanie. We’ll take care of the Princess,” I assured her.

 

“I can’t do that. I swear my allegiance to Windia and my first priority is to protect the Princess. I have failed my duty as the head of the Royal Guard by letting him took the Princess,” Melanie said dejectedly.

 

“Melanie, I will be all right. There are good people as well here. Lyrene and Luke will help me through this all,” Mea said.

 

“But . . .”

 

“No buts anymore. Take the boat and escape to Lumina. Tell Aunt Sara about the situation here. Something must be done soon and we have to consult the High Priest about this. We’re counting on you, Melanie,” Mea said. “And this is an order.”

 

Melanie fell silent for a second. “I shall abide to your order, Princess,” she finally said. Then she turned to face me, “Miss Lyrene, I owe my life to you, thank you very much. Please take care of the Princess for me. You too, Mr. Luke. I shall take my leave now.”

 

Mea hugged her for a brief second. We bid each other goodbye and then helped Melanie with the boat. Slowly but surely, the boat drifted off to the vast ocean.

 

Mea soon asked me to tell her the whole story. I told her everything I witnessed. Mea gasped in surprise when I had finished telling her the whole story. Luke seemed pissed off as well.

 

We escorted Mea to her cabin and tried our best to make her at ease, though it did her no good, she was very worried of Melanie’s well being.

 

“That guy is unbelievable,” Luke said.

 

“I know. How could he do such thing? I don’t understand anything, I never thought life could be this complicated,” I murmured.

 

Luke smiled sadly. “Don’t say that, Lynn. If you keep frowning, you’ll be an old woman in no time,” he mocked.

 

“Hey! I thought I told you not to call me that,” I scowled.

 

He grinned. “That’s a proof that I am the closest person to you since nobody else gives you a nickname.”

 

“Dream on, Luke.” I rolled my eyes. He laughed. “You’re much too cocky sometimes. Anyway, where’s that dearest sister of mine?”

 

He shrugged. “How should I know? Perhaps she’s enjoying her beauty sleep right now. She would never care about other people.”

 

There’s no use asking any more about her.

 

I took a quick glance at the door to Edmund’s cabin. The light was still on. Did he even regret what he had done? Was what I did – protecting Melanie – right? Many questions whirled inside my mind: why did he do that?

 

I didn’t know what he was truly like. All I knew was that I held a lot of resentment towards him. To say that I pitied him now would be the best expression to describe what I felt.

 

“Lyrene?” Luke snapped me out of my trance. “Aren’t you going to go to sleep? We won’t reach our destination till tomorrow morning.”

 

“Oh yeah, sure,” I said hurriedly as I averted my gaze from Edmund’s room. “Goodnight, Luke,” I said as I entered my cabin.

 

It had been a long day. I reflected on everything that had happened today. What would happen when we reached Firenze tomorrow? I hated this feeling . . . This feeling of being so helpless. I wanted to be strong, I desired to be strong. If I was strong, then I could protect those dearest to me, and I wouldn’t need to see another Melanie . . . Right?