About an hour before Iris's explosive display,
Duchess Lauretta paced anxiously in the living room, her fingernail caught between her teeth as dire scenarios ran frantic in her mind,
Meanwhile, Duke Sylvester had headed to the mage tower to track down a match for the magic traces left in Iris's bedroom.
Lauretta stayed behind, her senses on high alert, prepared for any sign of her daughter's return...
(If she could use her magic, I'd feel it. But what if it's been suppressed?, What if she's too far away? Would I even recognize her influence... after all these years?)
Just as doubt began to creep in, a gentle, airy sensation washed over her, like the warmth of a candle's soft light,
It was a feeling she'd known before, one that sparked a mix of nostalgia and hope,there was no mistaking it – that was Iris, without a doubt, Lauretta let out a relieved breath and hurried out of the room.
.><><><.
"She really came" Mother's long strides devoured the distance between us. She wore an all-black trouser-shirt and cloak, her brown hair pulled back into a tight ponytail, her pale hazel eyes blazed with concern. I'd never seen her like this before.
My chest tightened, and suddenly, it became too hard to breathe. I dropped to my knees, and Mother's arms closed around me like a vice.
"My baby!" she cried out, her voice trembling on the edge of tears. She held me closely, but pulled away quickly, her eyes scanning me frantically.
"Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?"
As her gaze landed on my immobilized arm, her eyes widened in horror. She gently grasped my arm, her voice trembling with a mix of fear and fury. "What happened?"
"I'm fine, we need to get out of here," I urged, trying to keep my voice steady. "They're mages, I don't know how many."
Mother's expression turned to something I'd never seen before – a cold, firm glare. "Take her, don't stop till you reach the Duchy," she commanded, as she covered me with her cloak, her voice low and deadly.
That's when I noticed the four armed knights standing behind her, their breastplates bearing the golden falcon crest of our family. (When did they...?) One of them stepped forward, his voice firm.
"Yes, Your Grace."
Before I could react, the knight swept me into his arms, carrying me like a child on his back, as he ran ahead, Mother and the other knights disappeared into the darkness of the forest, leaving me with a sense of unease
"Wait, wait... Mother can't possibly be..." I panicked, struggling against the knight's grip.
The knight's voice was calm and reassuring, but I detected a hint of tension beneath the surface. "No need to worry, milady. Her Grace can easily stand her own against even the Duke. She'll be alright with our knights backing her."
As he spoke, his voice trembled ever so slightly, and I caught the faintest glimmer of concern in his eyes.
I looked back, watching as Mother and the other knights descended into the forest. The knight carrying me ran with a relentless pace, through the meadow, we'd now reached another forest, nothing like the last, the trees were further apart, the air was warmer, we'd covered a great distance in a short time, but my mind was still racing. "But where's Father?!" I asked suddenly, my voice alarmed.
"The Duke is—" the knight began, but his words were cut short as he leaned sharply onto a tree, his eyes fixed on something below us. I followed his gaze and saw a black, round shadow spreading across the ground, like a dark stain spreading through water. and the sound of its presence was like water gurgling down a drain.
(What the hell...)
The shadow vanished as suddenly as it appeared, leaving behind an unsettling silence, the knight's gaze darted subtly to the sides, his eyes scanning the surroundings. The forest seemed to come alive around us – birds chirped, leaves rustled, and the wind whispered through the trees. "Milady," he said gently, pulling out his sword, "hold on tight."
I grasped my one good arm around his shoulder, squeezing as hard as I could,the uneasy wait felt like forever, before I could even catch my breath, a black figure began to flit around us, its movements so swift it seemed to teleport, I strained to get a glimpse of it, but my eyes couldn't keep up, my heart pounding in my ears.
The knight stood still, a picture of calm, until a blast shot towards us – a black spear hurtling through the air.
With a barely perceptible movement, the knight sprang into action, leaping clear of the tree as it disintegrated into ash behind us, he landed hard, feet digging into the dirt, bracing us against the impact. My eyes widened in shock, fear crept into my heart.
"It's fast, really fast" the knight's calm voice cut through the tension. "Can't fight what I can't see-" before he could finish, our own dark shadow beneath us lashed out, ensnaring his leg with long, shadowy straps. He sliced through them like cloth, but it was too late, more straps emerged, binding his hands in place. The straps grew thicker, and everything went dark.
For a few seconds, I was disoriented.
"Where am I?" I called out,
my voice barely above a whisper, though my eyes were definitely open, I was plunged into darkness. I couldn't see anything, but I felt my body aching, and still heard my heart racing, but I was immobile, floating in an endless void,
The cold darkness enveloped me like an empty embrace, both soothing and terrifying,
Then, a pull, like an insidious undertow, tugged at my body, drawing me towards a distant point of light in the darkness,
As I plunged out, the blinding sun struck me like a physical blow, and I stumbled, crashing to my knees with a jolt.-Dizzy, I rested on my one good arm, gasping for breath as the world spun around me.
A shadow loomed over me, casting a dark shape on the ground, alarmed, I jerked my head up pulling away, my heart racing, and that's when I saw him -the male from my memories, the one I'd knocked out with the light sphere, the Shadow mage who had the swift movements, his demeanor was far from friendly, his eyes gleamed like dark jewels, their depths both fascinating and repulsive. His gaze seemed almost... predatory, and it made my skin crawl, -I felt like prey, vulnerable and trapped,
I turned away sharply, but what I saw, was something even more horrible, my face twisted in a grimace, and I wondered what colors my eyes were now, as a chilling thought crept in
-(was I finally... scared?.)