Vincent scanned the dimly lit chamber, a solitary window lighting the stone floor of the basement. He stepped up to the tiny kettle pot and began to stir the contents inside. I better check on them. They have been out for a while.
"Hey. Hey, are you awake?" Vincent placed the handkerchief on Kyla's head with care as he glanced at her.
"So, where are we?" Kyla attempted to move, but her body felt as if it weighed a thousand oxen.
"We are in the town of Haven's Ville," Vincent said solemnly.
Kyla leans in gently, trying not to strain herself too much. "Wasn't Haven's Ville destroyed by the invasion?"
"Most of the town is burned down. I was able to find a home with an underground shelter with beds. A woman waved me down and then went to rescue more people. I think she may be a healer."
Kyla grabbed her back, screaming in pain. "Ow! Natalie!"
"Honestly, she is not doing so well. She is going to need some time to recover. Don't push it so hard. You took a beating from that wicked man we fought. He was some sort of freak. His blows left you wounded."
Across the room, Kyla saw her sister, who was immobile in bed. She rose up and went over to her bed, kissing the top of her head.
"The healer said that she would need at least two to three days or more to recover. Natalie lacks your strength and endurance." Vincent crossed his fingers and stared down at the ground.
"Natalie has more heart than I could ever hope to have. She is the most considerate of all of us." Kyla placed her hand on her sisters' shoulders, seeking to rouse her by physical contact.
"How many sisters do you have?" Vincent looked over at her with concern.
The merchant's eyes were red with exhaustion when Kyla turned around to face him. "Have you slept at all since bringing us here?"
"First the sisters," Vincent said jokily, putting up his index finger.
Kyla tried her best to resist, but she was exhausted and succumbed to the question. She sat in a rocking chair to the right after taking a few steps to the left. "Do you not spend time in the markets all across the continent studying the royal text?"
"I am a merchant, not a scholar. I must spend more of my time making money rather than studying up on royals. But I do know who the king is, so I'm not completely without knowledge. Royals don't pay the bills." Vincent laughed slightly, shrugging his shoulders.
Kyla sighed heavily. "After overindulging in sugary treats, Natalie was unable to maintain her figure. However, she has a passion for serving the people. She has the potential to be an outstanding representative of the kingdom in the future. We need to regain our kingdom, so I may watch her realize her dream. I respect her for her ability to see the best in others."
Kyla looked over at her sister who was still lying there, breathing softly from the fight they barely survived the other day.
"She's a sweetheart." When Vincent looked at the ground, he sighed and groaned. "Even though you undoubtedly intended to let me perish on that tree, she was the one who wanted to rescue my life instead of letting me die."
Kyla traced her foot in a circle on the cobblestone floor. "You must understand my priority is my family. You were an unknown entity coming into our circle. I'm thankful I didn't have to kill you."
Vincent rubbed the back of his neck, trying not to think about the traumatic experience. "I don't want to die just yet; there is so much I must do. I want to have my own ship to sail across the ocean and fill my pockets with money."
"That's it… That's the only thing you want to do?" Kyla said, looking at the merchant, her head slightly leaning to the right.
"Yeah, I want money. That's why I went into the merchant hood. Tell me more about your family." Vincent leaned forward, wanting to hear more from the wounded princess.
"If you insist, my second sister, her name is Priscilla. She's a bit of a prick and really doesn't care for training or helping people. She only enjoys the riches of being a princess. To me she's the most beautiful of us all."
"She sounds beautiful. So, if Natalie is the kind one and Priscilla is the fancy one, that would make you the tomboy?" He winked at her.
"I don't like that word," Kyla insisted. "I adore the outdoors, and I have a strong sense of justice. I don't really fit into kingdoms or princesses with royal balls. I want to help the people, and that is why I'm on a journey to the ocean kingdom to seek their assistance."
"It looks like the only thing you need assistance with is getting better or maybe some training." Looking at Kyla, the merchant struggled not to smirk.
"Can't you just be serious for one minute?" Kyla's brows were slanted, as if she didn't want anything to do with the merchant's smart banter.
"You know what those kings of old say. Those with a heavy heart need to cheer it up with glee." Vincent looks over at Kyla winking.
"All joking aside, thank you for saving us. We would have died if you didn't bring us here. You didn't do anything unsavory, did you?" Kyla crossed her arms, wanting the step forward to the merchant to question him intently.
Vincent's lips quivered as his fingers started to tap his knee. "I wouldn't dare think to take advantage of a woman as she is healing. Much less princesses of a fallen kingdom. Imagine what would happen if it got out. My head will be on a platter by the end of the day. What would the gods say about me?"
Kyla sat there tapping her foot on the floor. I guess that's good enough. It's funny to see you squeal a little bit. You really are a weak man.
"Please choose your words wisely next time, princess. I am the man that saved you, so maybe you can make me a knight?" The merchant then puffed out his chest as if he was waiting for Kyla to touch a shoulder with a sword.
"I don't have that power," Kyla insisted. "I do have a question though. What happened to that man that attacked us? When I looked up, I saw a torso, and I heard screaming. I was drifting in and out of consciousness, but I saw you standing there trembling as if something horrific had happened. Can you fill in the blanks for me?"
Vincent reached inside his pocket, and a little blue crystal rolled around in his palm. Every time he touched it, it reminded him of his mother. "I guess I could tell you that I come from a magical family." Vincent then pulled out the crystal and showed it to the princess. "One half of my family, my father's family, were powerful mages back in my kingdom. We held land and were respected by many people. But my mother's side of the family came from farmers, and there was fighting amongst the two families."
"That stone... What precisely is it?" Kyla tapped her finger on the chair's armrest.
The door at the top of the stairs opened before Vincent could finish his sentence.
"Oh dear, you're awake," the woman said. "I was hoping you would get a little bit more rest, but he did say you are a spunky one." The woman emerged from the steps, her blue tunic flapping in front of her slim figure. Her hair was short and light, and her eyes were amber. "Have you had anything to eat?"
"I guess I kind of forgot to serve her food." Vincent scratched his head. "We were just talking about the events that led up to where you helped us."
"I don't think I helped too much. The chubby woman is still asleep. Where are my manners? My name is Claudia. I am one of the apprentice healers that worked at the church here. My magic is still quite basic as the form of healing the priest taught me is quite advanced. Unfortunately, he died while defending the inhabitants of the town, but the books he left behind will be a tremendous aid in perhaps healing those in need."
Kyla perked up. "That's Princess Natalie. Where are your manners?" Kyla felt her knees buckle as she stepped over to her bed and took a seat.
"See, you cannot argue on an empty stomach," Claudia said. "You need to eat something, so let me make you a bowl. After that, I'm going to scold the merchant for not taking care of your physical needs first."
As he glanced across at the fiery healer and Kyla, his shoulders sank to the ground. Oh man, I am in for it now. These two could take me out and end me at any time.
Claudia walked over to the kettle, pulling out a small bowl, and scooped some of the porridge, and handed it to the princess. "Make sure you eat up. They didn't burn all the livestock, but our food is limited, so praise the goddess for giving us this food to survive after such a tragic event."
Kyla nodded, taking a tiny spoon and softly spooning the porridge. It was a touch spicy, but it led to a small smile.
"And for you, Vincent, I've got to give you some, but I hope that the first bite is a little hot." Claudia seemed to enjoy teasing him more than he would like.
"Do you think that's a tad harsh for a priestess in training?" Vincent raised his head; his shoulders still sagged to the ground.
"I call it how I see it," Claudia said, slightly shoving him the bowl in his chest.
Vincent took a small bite, looking up at the priestess who was treating him as a second-class citizen.
Claudia took a seat near the kettle and grabbed a bowl for herself while glancing down at Natalie.
"Will she make it through?" Kyla asked, her eyes welling up with tears.
"I don't know… If the head priest was here, he could discern her condition better. I did everything I could to give her comfort. Honestly, it's a waiting game at this point."
Kyla's brow furrowed. "I hope you did all you could."
"I think you should be more grateful to her," Vincent said quietly. "Calm your anger. Direct it towards those who caused you pain."
Kyla's eyes widened as she let go of her spoon in front of Vincent.
"It's okay," Claudia said. "Her response is normal when trauma happens. Vincent gave me a short explanation of what happened earlier, but I want to hear what information you have, Kyla."
Kyla looked at Claudia, and her breath slowed. "Everything that I loved was taken from me this week. My life was flipped upside down."
"I feel the same. We had no time to send any messengers to the kingdom. Your anger is justified." Claudia took another bite of her food.
"Most of my family is either dead or missing. I had no power to stop them. There are many powers at play. My brother betrayed us all." Kyla sank to her knees, her head bowed.
"Which one?" Claudia inquired.
"Darius was the culprit. He's our kingdom's finest wizard. I also saw people from another kingdom."
"It was the Country of Samir," the merchant spoke up. "Don't push yourself too hard, Kyla."
Kyla nodded, stirring her food, her eyes radiating a comforting glow.
Claudia struggled to recall the monsters that appeared in the middle of the night. The invasion hit us first. I am struggling with rebuilding. There are only a handful of us who survived."
"Trying to rebuild would be a fool's errand." Vincent looked over at Claudia, his eyes narrowed. "They destroyed the whole town. If they wanted to capture all of you, they wouldn't have burned everything to the ground. Would they not come back and burn it down again. If I were you, I would flee."
Claudia's hand was clenched. "What do you know?"
Vincent sighed deeply and leaned back. "We've all experienced agony."
"You're right… I mean it's all gone. In a perfect world, I would kill them all. I can't do anything. I healed everyone I could." Claudia's eyes glistened, tears forming in her eyes. Children burned to death, mothers raped, and fathers killed by the sword. I want to make them pay!"
"Why not join us?" Kyla said quietly. "There is nothing for you here. They wiped it out as you said. We are heading to the ocean kingdom of Elcid. I'm hoping to get an audience with Queen Belle."
Claudia sat her bowl down, clicking her teeth. "You speak the truth. I will join you on your journey to restore our kingdom. You will have all of my healing power at your disposal."
Kyla was overcome with emotion as she gazed at the priestess. "I appreciate your kind words!"
Vincent nodded, looking at Claudia with reverence.
"Moving forward, we need to get you out of those clothes. You can't go around looking like a princess." Standing up, Claudia walked over the corner of the large room, grabbing a bag that was purple in color. "When you are ready, you can put this on."
Kyla looked at the black leggings and purple tunic. "Thank you. This will work perfectly. I agree we need to blend in as much as possible."
"Kyla…" a voice squeaked from the other bed in the room.
"Natalie!" Kyla rushed over, almost stumbling over her sister on the bed. "Are you okay? How is your breathing?"
"Give her a moment," Claudia said patiently. The priestess walked over. She retrieved a little book from her robe's lining.
Kyla steeped back and nodded at her sister, who was attempting to get up.
"Don't move," Claudia said, putting her hand on Natalie's head. Claudia closed her eyes and said a small prayer as the book hovered over her. Natalie's whole body was bathed in a vivid blue glow. A language unknown to the other two in the room was spoken over the chubby princess.
Natalie's eyes were clenched in agony as Vincent approached Claudia.
Opening her eyes, Claudia caught the book in her hands. "Based on what I saw in her body, I was able to do another small repair on her bones. While I cannot recreate human matter, I can use mana to soothe the pain and create a new connection. In no way will it be strong as actual bone. Based on this text, we are spiritual creatures, and mana is part of our structure. Some individuals have more mana than others."
"How quickly can we get going?" Vincent looked at the trio in front of him.
"I would rather not be here if there is another raid. With what I saw and the information you gave me, those creatures leave no prisoners." Claudia slumped down with her head in her hands, perspiration flowing down her face. "It's exhausting to go through that kind of healing."
"Can Natalie travel in the condition she is in?" Kyla walked back over to her sister who was breathing more consistently. "Natalie, can you hear me?" She squeezed her beloved sister's hand.
Natalie squeaked, opening her eyes. "It hurts a bit. Yeah, I can hear you. That guy was pretty bad stuff." She shifted slightly to the left and coughed a little. "I don't want to be a burden. Claudia can take care of me."
"If you haven't heard, Claudia is coming with us, and so are you." Vincent's gaze was tender as he glanced at Claudia.
Claudia pounded her feet on the ground as she paced back and forth, her teeth snapping violently. "Even though I'm concerned about everyone's health, we may be able to go tonight. But what if we go into trouble? I know several back routes to the next town. The problem is that we do not know who we are fighting or what their abilities are.
"You know, if your teeth chatter any harder, they may fall out of your mouth," Vincent said.
Claudia looked over at Vincent, wanting to punch him in the face but knew the merchant was still healing up from his wounds. "So, moving forward, Kyla is doing Okay, Natalie is in pain, and Vincent, you're the most mobile of them all. I can do some healing to help, but the truth is it's just going to take time for everyone to heal up. As a part of your team now, I can't agree to moving everybody in the state they're in. Those forces who wiped out our village may return and murder us all if we don't leave."
"We can leave at night if you would like." Kyla looked over to Claudia for affirmation of her decision. "There's not one person in charge of this group. I believe the best way moving forward is for all of us to have a say. So, let's do a vote. All who are in favor of leaving tonight say aye."
"Aye", Natalie managed a squeak, trying not to groan in agony.
"Aye as well,'' Vincent said, putting his right hand up.
"Aye," Kyla said, putting her hand up.
"Aye as well," Claudia said, raising her right hand reluctantly. "I'm going to attempt to figure out how to move Natalie in a way that doesn't give her too much discomfort."
"Thank you," Kyla said, smiling at Claudia.
Claudia walked over towards the stairs, looking back at everyone. "I'm going to get some more supplies and put them in the wagon, if that's feasible." She asked, "Do you want to come with me, Vincent?"
"Yes, that sounds great. Hopefully we can find something of merit amongst the burnt rubble." Vincent waved to the two princesses as he followed Claudia up the stairs.
"Hey, Natalie, everything is going to be okay. We found some kind hearted people to join us on our journey to the southern kingdom."
"My throat is feeling a lot better after that last healing session. I've seen the wonders of what priestesses can do with their healing powers, but to feel it go through my bones is quite amazing. How did we not die?" Natalie asked.
Kyla tried to appear optimistic. "I would say it would be to Goddess Emelia and her grace. If Vincent had not been there, I believe we surely would have died. Father never took us on long-term expeditions to fight bandits, so all of our training has been against others in the kingdom. So, to take a human life, it's something I haven't even had time to reflect on. Killing monsters is one thing, but killing a human is another."
"To see the light leave their eyes after they die, I understand that as well." Natalie sat up slowly, leaning on the pillow that was on her neck. "Can we really make it to the southern kingdom? We have so far to go, and honestly, I feel like we have no way to defend ourselves. The path ahead is going to be much more difficult than the one we've already traveled since it's uncharted territory." Natalie let out a slight cough, covering her mouth as she squeaked slightly looking at her sister. "I'm glad you're with me."
"I am as well, dear sister. The goddess does have great plans for us. Once we get to the Southern Kingdom, hopefully we can persuade them to mount an offensive to take out these beasts."
"That would also imply the assassination of Darius, our brother. Hopefully, this will not be the case." Natalie leaned against the bedpost, her eyes welling up with tears as she gazed at her sister. "I'm not sure whether I could murder him. All those flashbacks. He adored us."
"Whatever affection was in our brothers' hearts has now vanished. I saw the kind of man he was at his core. It was as dark as night. He is unconcerned about his family. All that fills his heart is evil and power, and he has betrayed everything to realize his sinful desires. I, for one, want to hit him across the face, and if that means killing him, then so be it." Kyla stared down at the ground, her knee quivering frantically as her foot came to a halt.
"I, for one, know that you love your family deeply, sister. You talk a big game, but when push comes to shove, I don't think you could do it either. Thank you for putting on a strong front for me though." Natalie's cheeks flash red, and her head tilted to the side as she smiled sincerely at her sister.
You are too kind, Natalie. I know that one day my path will cross with Darius. I pray that I don't have to kill him. As the strongest child left in our royal family, I have to right this wrong. Kyla stared out the window at the late afternoon light, hoping for the strength to keep on.