I sat by the window, watching the wind carry tiny petals across the garden behind Mira's cottage. It had rained the night before, and everything smelled fresh like wet grass, rich soil, and the faint sweetness of blooming herbs.
Eric sat across the room, sharpening a dagger on a flat stone. The scrape of metal was the only sound for a while, but I could tell he was deep in thought. His shoulders were tense, his jaw tight. Something was on his mind.
"You've been quiet all morning," I said.
He looked up. "I've been thinking."
"About what?"
He put the dagger down and sat straighter. "About going back. To my country."
I blinked. "You're leaving?"
"Not yet. But soon." He glanced at the window. "I can't hide forever. I have a duty. My country is suffering under the rule of greedy nobles who care only for power. If I don't return, they win."
I nodded slowly. "You want to take back your throne."
He gave a small, tired smile. "That was always the plan. I was just waiting for the right moment."
Silence fell between us again. I felt something tighten in my chest. We had only just found each other again. The thought of him leaving made me uneasy.
"You should go," I said after a moment. "Your people need you."
He looked at me, eyes soft. "And what about you?"
I took a deep breath. "I don't know. I'm not ready to reveal myself. Not yet. If Landre finds out I'm alive, he'll do everything to kill me again."
Eric nodded. "That's why I need to leave carefully. Before anyone suspects where I am."
He stood and walked toward the door, then turned back. "There's something else I need to tell you."
"What is it?"
"There's a resistance."
My eyes widened. "A resistance?"
He nodded. "Small. Hidden. But real. They're made up of people who still believe in the old ways. Some served your family. Others hate what Asdrel has become."
My heart skipped. "Do they know I'm alive?"
"No. And it's better that way for now. But if the time comes… if you choose to reveal yourself, they will follow you."
I turned my gaze back to the garden. The petals danced in the breeze like memories.
"We need to be careful," I whispered.
Eric sat down beside me. "We will be. I won't let anything happen to you."
The door creaked open, and Mira stepped in, holding a basket of herbs.
"The market is busy today," she said. "People are talking about something."
Eric and I both looked up.
"What is it?" I asked.
Mira set the basket down. "There's going to be a public execution in the town square. The guards brought in a noble family yesterday. Said they were traitors."
I stood quickly. "Do you know who?"
She nodded slowly. "The Velliers."
My heart dropped. Lady Vellier had been one of my mother's ladies-in-waiting. Kind. Loyal. She used to sneak sweet cakes into my room when I was a child.
"When?" I asked.
"Two days from now," Mira replied. "At noon."
Eric's face was hard. "Landre wants to make an example."
I clenched my fists. "He's doing more than ruling. He's wiping away every memory of what came before him."
Mira looked between us. "You can't do anything reckless. If he finds out who you are…"
"I know," I said. But my heart burned. Lady Vellier didn't deserve this. None of them did.
Eric placed a hand on my arm. "We need to think. If we move too fast, we lose everything."
I nodded slowly. "I just hate feeling helpless."
"You're not helpless," Mira said. "You're alive. That alone is dangerous to Landre. That alone is power."
That night, I couldn't sleep. I lay in the small bed Mira had given me, staring at the ceiling. Lady Vellier's kind face haunted me. So many had died. So many forgotten.
I closed my eyes and made a promise.
One day, I would make Landre pay. Not just for me, but for everyone he had destroyed.
But first, I had to wait.
Wait, and prepare.
The room faded away as sleep took me, pulling me into a dream that felt too real, too sharp around the edges.
I stood in the old palace courtyard. The stone walls were bright with sunlight, the banners of Gorisimo hanging proudly. I heard laughter....children running past, knights sparring in the training yard, my mother's voice calling out to me from the balcony.
I turned, smiling, only to find the sky darkening. Thick smoke rolled in, swallowing the blue. Screams tore through the air. I saw the soldiers, Landre's soldiers, storming through the gates, their blades wet with blood.
I ran, heart pounding, calling for my parents, for my people. But everyone I loved fell one by one, fading into the smoke like shadows.
In the center of it all, Landre stood, his sword dripping crimson, his eyes cold and empty. He reached for me. I tried to run, but my feet wouldn't move.
"You cannot escape," he said, voice like gravel. "You will always belong to the dead."
I screamed.
I jolted awake, gasping, the scream caught in my throat. My body was drenched in cold sweat, and the thin blanket tangled around my legs. My heart thudded painfully against my ribs, and the room spun when I tried to sit up.
I pressed a trembling hand to my forehead. I was burning. And yet, my skin felt clammy, my clothes soaked.
Footsteps rushed to my door. It creaked open, and Mira appeared, holding a candle. Her face tightened with worry when she saw me.
"Aeris!" She hurried to my side. "You're burning up."
I tried to speak, but my throat felt raw, like I had swallowed fire.
"Don't move," Mira said firmly. She pressed a cool cloth against my forehead and pulled the blanket up over me.
Eric appeared behind her, his face pale in the candlelight. "What happened?"
"She's sick," Mira said grimly. "Fever's high. We need to bring it down."
Eric cursed under his breath and knelt by the bed. I felt his hand wrap gently around mine. His touch was warm, steady.
"Stay with me, Aeris," he said softly. "Stay awake."
I tried, but my eyelids were heavy, my body weak. The dream clung to me like mist, whispering promises of death and defeat.
I gripped his hand tighter. I wasn't ready to fall yet. I wasn't ready to be swallowed by the past again.
I had survived once, and I would definitely survive again.