"Shadows of Karath-Sel ~Chapter Three~" by Ly M. Frick

Chapter Three : The Road to Happiness...

1. ‘...Eslarta has continued to nag me about the importance of courtly ways. They bore me, terribly. I envy your freedom, Ashe. My father’s second wife is an intolerable witch who I swear is plotting my brother's and my own demise to put her own children in succession. She’s far too daft to pull off anything spectacularly successful. I realize this really isn’t surprising news to you, I’ve written about this before. Still, Eslarta is difficult to live with.

I’m sure your sister has been speaking non-stop about the upcoming ball. I understand your father’s thoughts on such occasions, but it would be pleasant to see you again. I’m sure you’ve grown since my brother’s Coronation. Please consider accompanying your sibling, even if she’s about as tolerable as Eslarta.

Your devoted friend,

Vekar’

Ashenoko’s pale eyes darted across the flowing script a few more times before she folded the letter and shoved it into the space beneath her floorboard. Sitting in the middle of her bedroom floor, skirts fanned out around herself, the little girl rested her head on her hand, elbow propped onto her knee. The small cubby was becoming rather full of letters and she smiled because of it. If only Rhordinin knew she was in correspondence with Prince Vekar. She wasn’t sure who had initiated the friendship, but she was sure it had something to do with their talk at Lildian’s funeral.

The youngest son of the king’s first wife had been exchanging friendly letters with the peculiar child for approximately two years, after they re-met at the Crown Prince coronation of Vekar’s elder brother two years after Lildian’s death. Even after only two years, Ashen had noticed a significant change in Vekar. She could only image what he might look like now, nearly a man at seventeen.

For the first time, Ashen started to feel excited about a social function. Would she be able to convince Rhordinin to take her along? For some reason, Ashen doubted that she would have much trouble talking her sister into the idea. All the child had to do was flutter her eyelashes and claim she just wanted to become a proper lady so she could woo a prince just like Rhordinin. In short, Ashenoko had to butter the young woman up and flatter her without shame. It was no secret that the Crown Prince had his eye on the eldest Darcsha sister. It was a fact that played a lot on Rhordinin’s demanding ego. Ashenoko could use that fact to win her sister over, saying she wanted to learn from someone so skilled in courtly manners.

The biggest hurtle would be Selvis. Yet, Ashenoko could find no real reason why he would object. He hardly paid any attention to his female offspring since Lildian’s death. He had left their care to Mildar, becoming more reclusive than he had previously been. Quiston was the only offspring he seemed to care for, the boy being his heir. So long as Ashen remained in the care of her eldest sister, the Lord could make no real objection except perhaps based on the child’s age. She was, after all, only ten.

Replacing the creaky board and smoothing the carpet over it, Ashen mulled over her course of action. She would have to go about it carefully and completely convince Rhordinin that she wanted to be a proper lady. It was far from the truth, however, and Ashen baulked at the idea that her ruse would include actually acting like a proper lady. She weighed that against her desire to see her friend and decided that Vekar would be worth it. She had a month to worm her way into Rhordinin’s Court-bound carriage. Standing, the child brushed off her skirts and checked her reflection in her full length mirror before heading out of her chamber. There was no better time to start than the present.

* * *

“You’ve never shown interest before. Why the sudden change of heart?” The auburn haired beauty sat before her mirrored armoire, preening her lovely reddish-brown tresses. She didn’t look down at her young sibling but was acutely aware of the odd child’s presence.

“I’m getting older,” Ashen replied stubbornly. “I’ll have to learn eventually if I want to leave here and get a good husband. I only have six years until I’m a Lady like you!” she was laying on the childish naïveté more heavily than she would have liked, but Ashen noted the small smile forming on Rhordinin’s lips and hoped it was working.

“You are still really young, Ashenoko. There is no need for you to be worried about such matters yet.” Rhordinin noticed the little girl visibly deflate out of the corner of her eye and wondered why it was such a big deal to the girl. Perhaps she was starting to become normal. It was about time, if that was the case. “But,” the young woman added, noticing the instant look of hope on her sister’s features, “We can start having lessons on Ladyship, if you want. If you do really well, I will see if I can’t take you with me.”

It was a bit of a compromise and wasn’t what Ashen had been looking for, but it was better than nothing. She readily agreed and, with Rhordinin’s dismissal, walked solemnly out of the room in her best impression of a young lady. She wanted to race from her sister’s presence, excited by the prospect of going to see her only friend, but decided that would be a bad impression if she was supposed to want to be a lady.

Rhordinin watched the retreating back of her sister with a smile on her lips. She had hoped the little girl would stop being so odd and come to her senses. The gods knew Rowan wasn’t going to turn out to be more than a lonely old maid. That girl spent too much time in the dusty libraries for Rhordinin’s liking. She was almost a woman and refused to show any interest in the proper behavior of a young lady. It irked Rhordinin. At least one of her siblings was starting to take after her excellent example.

* * *

Ashenoko locked herself in the basement and pulled her pale purple orb from a fold in her dress with one hand. The stone flared, casting a lovely light around the old storeroom the child called her own. Another thought caused the ball to flash and the numerous candelabra, which used to take a long time to light, flickered to life. The girl walked to a desk cluttered in papers and inkwells with frayed quills sprouting from them. She refused to write anything to Vekar in her own room. She was not allowed to use ink in her bedroom after she had spilled an entire well over her best white dress.

Setting the orb on top of a stack of papers, the young girl shuffled through some parchments to find a blank sheet and cleaned herself a space on the dark wooden surface to write. She ignored the other papers strewn about; they were in a language she did not understand. She had once stared at them for hours, trying to decipher something that she felt she should be able to read, but her efforts were to no avail and, since then, she had made no attempt to muddle out the odd symbols scrawled on the scrolls.

Ashenoko rummaged in one of the drawers, pulling out her own quill and ink well. The ones left on the desk had long sense dried up, but the girl saw them as part of the treasure of the room and refused to do more than move them out of her way. Throwing them out was not an option to her anymore than was showing Rhordinin her purple sphere. It was out of the question.

She sharpened her quill with a penknife then dipped her quill into the well and started her letter to Vekar.

‘I’m happy to hear you’re in good health, even with Her Majesty’s nagging.

I have some news of sorts, though it’s not a sure thing yet. I’ve convinced Rhordinin to start training me in the arts of ladyship. She’s told me that if I do well she will bring me with her to court next month for the ball. I look forward to it.

It sounds as though your swordsmanship has continued to improve. Some of the servants who go into town to obtain goods we don’t produce have come back gossiping about your ability. You show off too much, Vek. Be careful that you don’t get yourself hurt.

Maybe you could come visit me sometime, though it may be “improper” to do so. There are a lot of interesting swords in my basement. You would like them, I believe.’

Ashenoko paused and cocked her ear upward, frowning. She thought she’d heard something from above. Shaking her head, the child cast a look around, securing in her mind that she was still safely alone in the storeroom. Shrugging to herself, Ashen turned back to her letter.

‘Rowan has started to teach me to read Mesagaven. It’s a difficult language and the book she‘s using is impossibly dull. I don’t know how you can keep up with all you’re expected to learn from all those dusty priests. No wonder you prefer fighting arts. At times, I wish I were born a boy.’

Again, she paused. There was definitely a commotion going on above her. Setting down her quill, the girl pushed back from the desk and hurried to the door. She crept quickly along the servants’ passages, frowning. As she come closer to the dining room, she could hear raised voices, one of which was Rowan’s. That was odd. Rowan never raised her voice.

Pausing at the doorway into the dining room, Ashen opening it a crack and peeked through. Rhordinin and Rowan stood facing each other. The elder looked furious, the younger indignant.

“I cannot believe you would go behind my back like this! You know how much this match means to me!” Rhordinin was pacing, face darkened by rage. “How dare you be so underhanded, so sneaky, so... vile!”

“You’re just upset because the rumors were false.” Rowan held a letter clutched in her white fingers. “You need to face it, Sister-mine. He favors me, not you. And as soon as I turn sixteen, I plan on taking up his offer.”

Ashenoko’s brow furrowed in puzzlement before it dawned on her what they were talking about. Prince Elazar wanted Rowan? Not Rhordinin? Not the elder daughter?

“You will not accept it. I will accept it. He is mine, not yours. I will be Queen, not you. You will marry no one and sit in your dust covered libraries until you’re as dust covered as the tomes you study!” To Ashen’s surprise, Rhordinin struck their sister. Rowan stumbled backwards, obviously surprised by the sudden physical threat. “Do you understand me?” Rhordinin hit the younger girl again, backing her into a corner. There was fear shining in Rowan’s eyes at her sister’s sudden attack. Holding up her arms to deflect the blows, the young woman stammered incoherently, utterly in shock.

Abruptly, Rhordinin stopped her assault and looked coldly down at her younger sibling. “You cannot stop me from having him, Rowan. You hardly know him. You are a girl still, not a woman. In fact... you will never be a woman.” There was a strange light in Rhordinin’s eyes, a frightening glow Ashen had never seen in anyone’s eyes before. For a long moment, the eldest sister merely stared at Rowan with her unnerving gaze. Then, with a tiny smile, Rhordinin pulled a thin, concealed blade from behind the belt at her waist. Hideously sharp, the weapon was meant for the self defense of a lady who was taken by surprise. Rhordinin believed in carrying one at all times incase one of the lowly farmhands decided she was an easy go. Now, however, she was gazing at her sister with a predatory smile, toying with the sliver of metal.

“Rhordinin,” Rowan murmured, hesitation halting her voice. “What are you doing? Put that away.” The younger girl tried to inch along the wall toward the servant’s door.

“Hm. Mother once told me when I was little that I could achieve anything I wanted to if I tried hard enough. I’ve tried too hard to have you get in the way.” Rowan visibly paled and glanced toward the servant’s entrance. For an instant, she thought she saw something there. Ashen?

“If you kill me, they’ll find out,” she hazarded at Rhordinin, speaking with more bravery than she actually felt. She prayed Ashen really was behind the door. If she could just make it there, Rhordinin would have to kill both of them and that would be harder to claim as an accident.

Rhordinin chuckled lightly, still fingering the blade. “Oh, I don’t think that they will. I’m too gentle, too proper. Who would expect a murderer of me?”

Rowan swallowed hard, sweat starting to trickle down her neck, soaking the high collar of her dress. “So you do intend to kill me, then?” She refused to let her eyes leave those of her sister’s now that she was positive it really was their youngest sister watching in secret.

“You’re very quick to catch on, Sister Dear.”

“You will be found out,” the younger warned, licking dry lips. Her voice was starting to falter, a panic gripping at the back of her mind. “I am your sister, you can’t just kill me.” There was no response of Rhordinin, only a malicious grin. “You’re crazy!” Launching herself away from the wall, Rowan ran past her sister toward the servant’s door. Before Ashen could blink, however, Rowan stumbled to the ground and lay there, face a mixture of surprise and pain. Protruding from her back was the thin, silvery blade Rhordinin had been playing with. The middle daughter looked toward the door, lips parting slowly. “M’evay te me neech...neechanak, mi-tee...ka....ni-o...o...”

For a long moment, Ashenoko stared back at eyes that were quickly clouding over before the meaning of the words struck her. It was Mesagaven. ‘Tell them, sister, run away,“ was about the gist of the words, though Ashenoko could not quite make out the exact meaning. She was not good at Mesagaven, but it was a language that she and Rowan shared, and one that Rhordinin did not know. Scrambling away from the door, the child bolted. She didn’t care that her feet were pounding against the floor as she ran. Somewhere behind her she heard the servant’s door slam against the wall. Darting into the passage way to her storage room, Ashenoko gasped for air, the race pulling her breath from her. She could hear pursuit behind her and, reaching the stairway, stumbled down them in the dark. She landed at the bottom in a heap, stifling a cry as she felt pain shoot through her ankle.

The child attempted to stand and, with shock taking over, hobbled toward the storeroom. She could hear a curse uttered somewhere back up the corridor as the Rhordinin reached the inky darkness of the barely used passage. Ashen slipped through the doorway and yanked it closed, fear adding strength to her arms. Looking around for something to keep the door closed, the girl noticed a large locking mechanism attacked to the wooden slab. She was too scared to note that she had never noticed it before and quickly threw the lock into place. Breathing hard, the girl hobbled over to her desk and sank into the chair. Her body shook from the effort of moving with an injured ankle and from the memory of seeing her much loved sister stabbed in cold blood. She could hear someone yanking at the door and felt a strong urge to cry in despair. She had locked herself in.

Yet, tears did not spring from Ashenoko’s eyes. Instead, a clear thought broke into her panic. Rowan had told her to ‘tell them.’ Though Ashen didn’t know who ‘them’ was, she had a good idea of who she could tell. She had to find a way out of her current prison and get word to Vekar. He would know what to do. Turning to the desk, Ashen snagged up her quill and grabbed the first grubby piece of parchment that came to hand. She scratched out a note to her friend, ignoring good penmanship for speed. Folding the letter, she sealed it with wax from a nearby candle and pressed her stamp to it then tucked it, and her orb, into a pocket created by a few folds in her dress. Limping around the ancient room, Ashen held her breath and listened at the door. It didn’t sound like anyone was there, but she wouldn’t trust that route yet. There had to be some other way out. The room was large, after all.

Using the wall for support, the child started to make her way around the perimeter of the chamber, hoping to find some sort of answer. As she passed a wall adorned with weapons, the girl paused. She had seen the murder, she was in danger. Perhaps she should grab a blade just in case. In her horror induced state, it did not occur to Ashen that she did not know how to wield a blade but that did not matter. All that mattered was her immediate survival.

Reaching for the wall, the girl grabbed the hilt of a dagger and tried to pull it downward. The blade slide down the wall a few inches, but stopped abruptly. Frowning, the young girl held her breath and listened. Did she hear wind? Looking more closely at the blade, the child’s eye’s widened. The weapon she had grabbed was attached to the wall by a thin bar of metal that retreated into a small hole hidden by the blade. Curiously, the child pushed the dagger upward and the wind sound ceased. Thanking whatever gods were looking out for her, Ashenoko pulled the lever back down and snagged a similar dagger from the wall next to it. Holding it firmly in one hand, the child continued her limping exploration of the room, hoping to find the passage that was opened by her lucky pick of blades. As she passed a large bookcase, the child felt a slight breeze. A closer examination proved that there was a passage opened behind the shelves. Ashen now faced another obstacle: moving the bookshelf.

Exploring around the edges proved that the unit was not on wheels. A shove satisfied the child that the shelf was extremely heavy. Looking dejectedly at the bookshelf, Ashen ran her fingers along the spines of several heavy tomes idly. Her fingers halted themselves over a blue bound volume written in, to her surprise, Mesagaven. Dusting off the spine, she peered closer to read the title. “The Road to Happiness Begins with Wind?” The title was intriguing, despite her situation, and Ashen found herself moving to pull the book out from it’s resting spot. It, like the sword, would not budge further than a few inches. With a creak, the heavy shelving slid to one side, allowing Ashenoko passage.

The corridor beyond the bookshelf was dark. Thinking it best to proceed without Rhordinin having any chance of following, Ashen pulled out her orb and willed the candles to go out and the ball to turn on. It happened almost instantaneously and Ashen was happy that all her work with her toy was paying off. She did not question her good fortune to have found this way out with so little trouble. Rowan had always told her that if odd things happened in her favor that it was the work of the gods and one did not ask the gods their motives. A few feet down the corridor, the bookshelf rolled back into place. Looking back over her shoulder, Ashen spotted a lever high on the wall and, reaching up, pulled it. A slab of rock emerged from the wall, shutting off the entrance effectively. Ashenoko smiled her relief, though the grin was a lacking sanity.

As the girl progressed along the passageway she moved as quickly as she dared on her right ankle. The wind continually blew gently at her face and the air was fresh, hinting that this would lead her outside the manor. For what seemed hours she traversed the chilly escape route, struggling to remain conscious through the stabbing pains of her injury. Shock was starting to wear off and the hurt was obvious. Shaking her head to clear away red spots that floated in her vision, the child pressed on, hoping to make it out of the tunnel soon.

It had been evening when she originally headed for the basement to write her letter to Vekar. Moonlight now shone down to the earth and, consequently, through the cracks above the chimney of stone at the end of the Ashenoko’s new secret passage. A narrow stairway was cut into the side of the circular shaft, following the curve of the wall the entire length. Ashenoko climbed it laboriously, stopping every few steps to pant heavily and take the weight off her right foot. It was difficult going, one hand holding her orb, the other clutching at the dagger. She leaned her right shoulder against the wall, bracing herself as she went. After a painstaking climb, the child wiggled out of the natural-looking pile of rocks that topped off the chimney.

She dropped the dagger so as not to stab herself as she climbed down the rock pile to the ground. Snatching up the blade, the child crouched, ignoring the pain for the time being. Looking around in the night, Ashenoko recognized that she was at the very edge of her father’s lands. To her back was the forest. To her left was wheat, to her right, the road. Far in front of the pile she hid behind was the manor. It loomed darkly in the night, cold and foreboding as ever to the young girl.

Turning, the girl sat on a rock at the base of the pile and stared into the pitchy forest before her. She had to somehow get to Vekar. Steeling herself, the girl stood and started her way toward to road. The sudden sound of hooves hammering along the path caused the child to dive behind the safety of the rubble once more. For an instant, Ashenoko considered emerging and hailing her father’s riders, but for some reason she felt that it would be best if she didn’t. Some intuition of hers told her to stay hidden. Once the riders passed, Ashenoko decided that the road wasn’t going to be her path and turned for the forest instead.

It only took her a couple feet to realize she would not make it very far in her condition. In the darkness of the woodlands, snags and exposed roots were difficult to see, even for someone with a natural night vision. After the umpteenth time of jamming her injured ankle by tripping over some concealed root, the child collapsed to the forest floor, face buried in the loam. It was then that she cried. Small shoulders shaking as sobs burst from her lips, the little girl curled into a ball, hugging her orb, dagger beside her. Her ankle hurt, her sister was dead, and some instinct told Ashen that, even if she were physically able, returning to the manor would end in her own demise. Exhausted, the child cried herself into a fitful sleep, unaware of the silent watchers of the forest and of one particular inhabitant’s intentions.

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AN: Fin chapter 3. Hope it was okay. I went back through and hopefully fixed all the buggy little errors. If not, ah well. I’ll catch them some other time.