10 years ago
It was dark. Lightning flashed in the window outside, winds blowing the drapes around the room. Each flash illuminated the area, shadows finding their way along the walls and floor. In the room, a bed sat along the wall, white curtains hanging along each side, hiding the bed from sight.
Inside, a young child huddled under the white covers, peering over the edge, flashes illuminating their face. Their eyes showed signs of fright, darting around the room after each burst of lightning lit the room.
At the corner of her eye, the child kept thinking they were seeing figures in the shadows, creeping up closer to the bed after each flash. Please let this be a dream.
The figures were pure darkness, silhouettes that didn't have a form. They made no noise, floating in and out of view. Darkness shed from them, leaking to the ground, dissipating on impact. They had formless claws, thin as razors, extending out towards the curtains.
Just as the shadows seemed to disappear for good, the curtain moved, brushing aside as one of the figures came into view. The child screamed, holding up their hands to block the monster, a futile task at that point. Right when the shadow loomed over, ready to strike, white energy burst from the child's hand, drowning the room in a brilliant white light.
The shadow let out a pained scream, like nails on chalkboard, pushing back through the curtains, fleeing through the open window, out into the stormy night. The others in the room fled the same way, letting out their own wails, filling the room with more pained screams.
The child watched as they all dispersed, realizing this was never a dream. The surroundings were never fuzzy, they also felt the shadow looming over them, a feeling they knew could never be replicated in a dream.
Taking a quick look around, the child did not see any other shadows, though she kept wary. As she kept watching, the walls started to swirl around, moving around when she wasn't. The curtains scrunched up, moving in that same way, though the child did not move with it.
The sounds from the room drowned out, a persistent ringing filling her ear. She heard faint footsteps in the distance, getting closer by the second, but then all noise stopped. She looked around, terrified to not hear anything, when in front of her, the wall opened.
A man floated through, adorned in a robe of black, inlaid with gold trim, designs with letters that she did not understand. He had brown hair, pulled back into a bun, strands hanging on each side of his face. He had a closely shaved beard, framing his sleek jaw. He had black boots, set with gold buckles. His arms were crossed as he floated his way over to her. He had a grin on his face, in a joking manner.
The man reached out, pushed aside the curtains, and tilted down, facing the child. "I know you won't remember this, but I am Jekha, and you have been blessed too soon." The steps from outside grew ever closer, the man saying one last thing. "You will see me again another time, this is for your own good." As he said that, he reached out, placing his right thumb on her forehead, and in the next instant the child felt something pull from her, a light radiating from Jekha's finger. He brought his thumb back, pressing it against his robe, one of the symbols lighting up, one of many that did so.
Satisfied, he motioned downwards, the child's head dropping, losing consciousness. Jekha blinked out of existence as the light from the door opening entered the bedroom, guards and the current king of Plohara entering. They made their way to the child, the king jostling her shoulder.
"Minara, are you okay?" the king said as he jostled her, Minara opening her eyes, looking up at him, "We heard screams coming from this way, we wanted to make sure you were okay."
"I think so, I had a bad dream, there were monsters trying to come get me, and I was so scared," Minara said as her eyes welled up with tears.
The king embraced her, Minara burying her head into his shoulder, her crying filling the silent room, "I will always be here for you, and will be by your side when you need me most, honey."
A few minutes went by, the guards filtering their way out of the room, till it was only Minara and the king left, sitting on the edge of the bed.
The king placed his hand on her cheek, Minara nestling her cheek into his palm. "I think it is time for you to get back to sleep, I will have some guards outside the room, ready to come in if anything else happens, okay?" The king said as he stood, pushing back through the curtains.
"Wait, can you tuck me back in, Dad?" Minara said, peeking her head over the blankets, eyeing him with begging eyes.
"I guess I can this time, honey," the king said as he moved back over, reaching around, pushing the blankets around and under Minara, giving her a small kiss on her forehead, "Now, I will head back to my study. If anything happens, I'm just next door."
The king made his way to the door, pushing through into the dimly lit hallway, shadows dancing on the stone hallway as the king passed. He looked back, watching Minara slide further underneath, closing her eyes as she felt safe once more. He turned, exiting into the corridor, being met by one of his attendants.
"Astaros, we have heard communications fr…" Their voices drowned out as the door closed behind them.
Minara felt calm at last, nestling into the covers, the warmth leading to a sleep full of wonderful dreams, ones drowning out the one that was or wasn't.
________
Minara walked up to the mirror, looking herself up and down. It was the day she had been dreading for years. It was the day of her crowning as Princess of Plohara.
She wore a blue dress, from her neck down to her calves. It flowed out, coming down in tiers, each one representing a milestone she has passed in life. Each one was a slightly different shade, blue fabrics almost impossible to make the same color twice.
On her left wrist was a thin golden band, etched with diagonal crossing lines. Her middle finger had a ring, clear jewels lining the top, a large emerald cut in the middle.
On her right wrist was a red and yellow band weaved with feathers from the national bird, the teak sprout.
She wore sandals, leather bands crossing the full length of her foot, connecting at the ankle
Her black hair went down to the middle of her back, the front hair pulled back and pinned in place, a few strands left in front to frame her face.
Morning light passed through her drapes, glinting in her dark brown eyes. One strand of hair fell in front of her eye, so she pushed it away, her birthmark under her right eye coming into view.
"Okay, time to go, I can do this, for everyone else," Minara muttered as she looked over one last time, before making her way to the door.
She pushed through, out into the hallway of the castle, home of her family and many attendants. She started down to the left, making her way to the main courtyard where everyone was to gather.
She passed her fathers study, empty at the moment but usually bustling with activity, before making it to the end of the hall. Minara chose to go the long way, turning right and heading down the sloped floor.
In the castle, every other turn led down a sloped runway, so instead of flat floors, the castle was tiered. The floors circled around a central alcove, from which you could see down to the hidden courtyard, one Minara revered and loved, a place she could relax and tend to her studies.
As she descended, she looked over the edge, peering downwards to see if anyone was still in the silent place, but it was deserted. As she continued, she passed the kitchen, full of action. She heard the clanging of metal on metal, felt the emanating warmth and the sensuous aromas, she could already tell what they had prepared, one of her favorites.
Finally she arrived at the bottom floor, the railings opening up to reveal the garden courtyard, in the center sitting a small wooden bench, worn from constant use.
She walked up, took a seat, and looked around, the midmorning sun sending rays of light down into the courtyard, making her feel more comfortable. The scent of the plants wafted around her, a mixture of greenery and aromaticity.
In the distance, horns blared, breaking the silence, signaling the approach of the ceremony. Minara looked around, knowing that was her signal, walking back through the opening back into the castle. She kept going straight, through the main hallway entrance, her steps echoing in the spacious hallway. It was adorned with many art pieces, ones depicting different events in history, and others stylized portraits of kings and queens of the past. In the future, here might be up there as well.
At the main door, Minara stopped and took in a quick deep breath. She felt herself losing tension, her heart slowing down, relief washing over her whole body. She pushed forward through the massive wooden doors, out into the sunlight, atop the main courtyard in front of the castle.