"Ahhh…shit…– no, no, no–"
I repeated the words ripped from my throat, when–
FWOOSH.
Air tore at my body.
Then came the pain, yet again. I gulped, trying my best not to bite my tongue in the attempt to swallow some air into my lungs. General Varley sat still, like nothing really bothered him, and the fact that for the fifth consecutive time I fell from the training beam was more of an inconvenience. This routine repeated itself for over a week, until a day before my birthday I finally conquered the damn obstacle. There was a proud smirk on General Varley's face, when for the first time I descended on the other side of the beam graciously and slowly, contrastingly to my daily descents.
"Better late than never," General Varley addressed the trainees, yet it was a clear dig at me. "Tomorrow we'll start combat swimming, one of the last training sessions before your graduation," He looked around, giving each and one of the hundred trainees his cold glare. "You should be proud of yourself. Rasfalia is proud of you. And soon you'll serve in your designated missions and will make your nation proud,"
"Since when he's so into speeches?" I whispered to Daniel, who like a true future heir stood tall, and rolled his eyes at my comment. "I think he's getting old, so he's becoming so sentimental." Daniel replied with a smile. I knew he agreed with it.
"Some of you we'll serve at the forefront of the war, the other's will be serving inside of the Kingdom, but each mission is crucial for Rasfalia's success in the war and you guys are the future we hope to have." General Varley straightened his shoulders, without hesitation he unsheathed his sword and saluted it into the air proudly. In unison the sound of shifting boots and clanging swords surged into the air like thunder. I could see everyone's eyes gleaming with purpose and dedication, yet what I was about to do that night would've hanged me by my neck.
That night I couldn't sleep. Stayed awake until four in the morning. When the clock struck four, I rose from my bed, took a last look around my room, grabbed a small leather backpack and marched out into the woods. I had one hour to leave unnoticed. I wasn't fully confident of where I was going, but first I needed to cross Thams Bay, reach the port of Tolun Dei and from there, grab the first available ship going Gods know where.
The Royal Military Camp was still cloaked in darkness when I tiptoed by the doors of the trainee rooms praying that the floor would not creak. The minute I was out I ran as fast as I could. Trying to avoid the light pulsed out of the Watchtower. It circled around the camp in continuous bursts. One light, two light, three no light. I repeated to myself, when on the third light I sprinted across the damp ground before finally reaching a spot where the light of the Watchtower wasn't stretching. Shit, the footsteps imprinted deeply inside of the morning frost would cause a problem. They'll know before I'll even be halfway to Tolun Dei.
Then, I felt a drop going down my face. And another drop. Somewhere far a crackling sound of lightning illuminated the sky. Maybe Xelin was giving me luck. I looked up to the sky, before heavy rain slammed down my face. I laughed when yet another flash tore the sky open and the rain heavied even more.
Each tree and the position of the branch, each root sticking out of the ground, each bush growing in the shade was memorised by me a long time ago. I could've walked it with my eyes closed. Knowing the shift of the guards was on the other hand more challenging. They switched positions, sometimes changing time of the patrol and occasionally patrolling in small groups, in no particular pattern. Until recently, I came across the schedule of the patrol movements. "Came across" was more of an understatement, I sneaked in at night, ravaged through thousands of chaotic papers laying on the lacquered wood top and left before one of them even realised there was someone inside of the Watchtower.
Now, I knew every shift, every position and a timeslot where each guard was stationed. And I knew there was nobody to stop me. Tired of waiting for Roe to come to the camp one day and bring me back to the Summer Palace, I decided to take my destiny into my own hands. He wanted me to stay in Xaleon, serve one of his Lords, while the Continent was being ravaged by the war. There were millions of people dying from famine and Erdonal attacks, children were being raised without their parents, handicaps forever glued to the bed, territories lost – all of this was from the hand of King Aslan. I didn't know how, but I had to stop him and make him pay for what he did to my parents.
Small wooden boat docked at the camp's harbour was rocking hard side to side with the hull slamming against the waves. Rain lashed even harder, blurring my vision and soaking wet everything I was wearing. The boat would be hard to navigate in these conditions. The sea roared loudly. But I had no other option. I won't go back and I won't travel to Xaleon. Everything around me surged in chaos –wind, water, sand and fear of abandoning a place I used to call home.
There was no sound when I stepped onto the floor of the old wooden harbour, the crashing waves roared loudly muting every movement. I was about to untie the knot of the boat, when a shadow behind me approached closer. Immediately, my hand slipped down the handle of my sword. Unsheathing slowly without any rapid movements. If it's a guard I would need to kill him. I spun around, instinctively drawing my sword. The metal sliced through the air, drenched hands barely holding the hilt. I froze. Eyes locked.
Daniel stood in front of me.
Rain was pouring down his face, and I couldn't tell if he was mad, disappointed or scared.
"You got very lucky with the rain," He shouted through the chaos around us.
"I thought so too." I paused. Not knowing why he was here, not what shall I do now. "Are you here to stop me or help me?" I said in a low voice. "Cause if it's the first, I'm sorry but I won't come back." I lowered my sword and put it back into the leather holder.
"Where were you planning to go?" He asked, approaching slowly, as if I was an animal he was trying not to scare. Nothing came out of my mouth. Looking around I calculated my odds of the guard number five showing up here in the next two minutes.
"You won't find what you're looking for Lyra. You're better off in Xaleon, not fighting somewhere where nobody will even send your body back." I realised then that nobody would have cared anyways, they would not send it to Daniel, as he was not a family, Roe seemed like he didn't care anymore, so why did it even matter.
"How did you know that I'll be here?" I asked, rainwater slipping to my mouth. Daniel would not stop me. The decision was taken and there was no turning back.
"Lyra," He said in a soft voice extending his arm. "The seer won't answer your questions. And what's your plan overall? You'll just cross the Great Gates and enter Erdonal? March into the Grey Castle and kill King Aslan? Is that your plan?" He shook his head. "You never even been outside of the camp's walls, let alone Rasfalia," He paused, taking a step forward. Holding the rope of the boat in my other hand and walking backwards, one step away from the boat. "Have you even thought about me?"
"Daniel…you don't understand…" I shook my head. That was low. I stared at him in disbelief.
He took another step forward. I stepped back, now almost at the boat.
I could feel my heart clenching in pain. He would never understand. I was a curse and a demon in people's eyes if only they knew who I really was. Daniel will always be led by the responsibility, honour for his people, he'll be the best lord with the most beautiful fair maiden they'll find for him. Not a daughter of God knows who, from God knows where. But I didn't answer his question. He came closer just a couple of inches separating us, as he took my face in between his palms.
"Lyra, whatever revenge or answers you're seeking, you won't find it there. But, here in Rasfalia, serving your Lord Commander and staying at this camp is the best opportunity for you." For a second, I did believe him. I really wanted to. The perfect life, the ideal house and calm of nature and family – somewhere in Xaleon. But he didn't know me, he still didn't know so much about me. And I just couldn't.
"Hey! Hey you! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Guard number five appeared out of nowhere striding towards us. I saw panic in Daniel's eyes. The closer the guard was coming, the more I was realising that he knew who we were exactly. One glance. It was all it took. We both knew how it would end. Treason.
"What are you doing here?!" The guard was pointing his sword at us. Without a second though, Daniel lunged at him catching the man off guard. Instantly, the man recognised the son of the Lord Lochstar. His eyes gleamed, as he smirked thinking of the hefty sum Daniel's father will pay for his only son. Yet, the guard kept his sword steady pointed at Daniel's chest. "You better step away young boy, she knows what is coming for her." We both heard stories of how Rasfalia dealt with traitors. The war brought out the worst in people, and in a world where trust could've been betrayed every second, the consequences had to be deadly. Tribunal, what would wait for us. I gulped. Daniel, being a son of Lord Lochstar, would probably escape the punishment, but me, I wasn't so sure Roe would come to my saving, not after what I did. The irony was that how a daughter of two royal officers of Rasfalia, would be hanged for treason.
Daniel's grip tightened around the hilt of the sword. In a heartbeat, he drew it out of the sheath and pointed back at the guard. The guard's eyes widened. Still holding a piece of rope in my hand, unsure what to do, I yanked my dagger free, but Daniel moved first.
It all happened too fast for me to make sense of it all. He lunged at the guard tackling him to the mud. Then struck him again with his sword and with the full force knocking the man off the balance as he tried to recover and block the swing of the blade. But it was too late. The guard's eyes panicked, he reeled, feet trembling trying to gain control in the pouring rain and the slippery mud. Daniel was about to surge forward again, when the guard gasped…My dagger flew right before Daniel was able to have the final blow. It cut through the rain and buried deeply in his chest. The guard fell hard. The breathing stopped, only blood and mud around. His eyes closed slowly, sluggishly attempting to move his hand and say something, but thick, red and bubbling foam spilled from his mouth, while he choked on his last breaths.
Like by order, the rain stopped. So did everything around us.
"We need to get rid of the body now," Daniel snapped me out of the horror of what I just did. "They'll start looking for you and for him." Ruthlessly, he removed my dagger from the guard's chest and gently wrapped in the cloth, he ripped from his shirt. Then, hid it inside of his vest. Terror laced my whole body. I was a murderer. My lips parted just slightly, unable to say anything.
"I killed him…" I whispered. Daniel lunged at me and grabbed me by my shoulders.
"Lyra, you protected yourself and me. I would've done it if not you." But it did not convince me. Blood on Daniel's hand made me feel nauseous. Heart hammered against my chest.
"I can't…I'm a murderer…I need to leave now," I turned around before Daniel yanked me back.
"If they find the guard and find you gone, do you know the first thought that will cross their mind?" I just stood there, words barely escaping my tongue. "They'll connect two and two together, Lyra," The silence stood. I tried getting away from his grip as tears poured down my face. Daniel stared back at me coldly. "You won't just go to jail Lyra, you'll be hanged, this I can promise you." He released my hand before descending from the wooden harbour to the shore, lifting the heavy body of the guard and pushing it into the water.
"Don't just stand there Lyra. Help me!" I could not unsee the guard's face when my dagger landed in his chest. He was an old man, I thought, maybe close to the retirement age, so it would mean he lived a life already. Or maybe he had a family…And I took it all away. The rules I broke to get away and the danger I've put Daniel into, all led to this.
I held my gaze on the moving body. "Lyra! NOW!" I quickly launched at the body, helping Daniel to push it right into the water so cold, that it wrapped around my ankles in a tight grip. We went deeper to push the body further into the water. The blobs of air rose from the body descending deeper and deeper to the bottom of the sea.
The beauty of an early dawn broke over the North Sea, and the sky metamorphosed from cobalt to a tapestry of scarlet and gold. It gleaned with intensity getting larger and larger each time, almost pushing away the horror of the night like the waves pushing the sand back into the water. The foam of the water was catching the colour of the blood and between us stood rigid silence, trying to soften our faces with the morning warmth light. But the only feeling I had right now was my bare feet sinking into the glacial cold damp sand. The freezing breeze had the strange feeling of familiarity, but then it drifted away. Daniel squinted into the light and looked back at the footsteps he covered alongside the imprint of the body in the sand. Was it as blurry for him as for me? There was the flash of the guards' face in my mind, and it was not fading away, like a shadow it stood creeping up more and more each time. Daniel looked calm, strangely calm. We were always trained to fight back, to spy, to deceive, to betray the enemies, but never to kill.
"So how did you know that I will be here?"I asked abruptly.
"I guessed, when I didn't find you in your room." He stood looking at the bubbles of water swallowing the body, crossing his hands.
"Why did you come looking for me at four in the morning?" I asked.
"Roe is here. And he wants to see you. "
After all these years. He was finally here.