"What?!" Kiya twitched upon hearing my raised voice.
"Unfortunately, you heard right. And it happened last night, so practically at the same moment you fled the castle. The king's son was supposedly kidnapped, so they are searching for him, the murderer and the young maid, who is suspected of taking part in the conspiracy."
"Well then..." I tried to take on a joking tone, "I suppose Kiya and Ethia should get a sentence of at least a month of cleaning at the tavern for that..."
My parents laughed silently, not really noticing anything. But there was an unpleasant storm starting to rise in my mind. "And where did that other criminal go, by the way?"
"If you mean Ethia, she went to help with the feast."
"Right... Well, I hope Kiya is safe here from now on. When people check something once, they usually don't feel the need to do it again..."
I fell silent and got lost in thought again. I couldn't get rid of the image of that black-clad figure in the royal gardens, the hole in the fence... What were the odds of Ethia sneaking into the castle the exact same night, that someone planned the king's assassination for? What was my role in all this? Why did someone, who was powerful enough to command the king himself, feel the need to kill me, a simple boy from a forest village? And why didn't the king obey, even though he must have been aware of the consequences...?
I didn't find a single answer until evening.
We left the house when the trees were already glistening with carmine and gold. What I saw in the small open space between the cottages, went beyond my imagination. The pile of wood and dry leaves gathered at the center was so big, as if it was meant to burn until dawn. Around it was a wreath of little tables, chairs, rocking chairs and benches. It looked almost like everyone in the village brought their furniture outside just to be able to see and hear me well, when I will be telling the tale. A bit further from the center, bigger tables were practically bending under the weight of platters, bowls, baskets and jugs.
I didn't recover from my bewilderment yet, when Ethia appeared. She grabbed my hand and pulled me to the bonfire. Soon I found myself sitting in the biggest chair of all. "Don't move from here," she winked, and soon disappeared again among the other villagers.
I was joined by my parents and Kiya. She sat down to my left.
"You will help me right?" I asked.
"With what?" she raised her eyebrows.
"To tell this crazy story. I'm not sure if I remember everything correctly with all that chaos in my head."
"Oh, of course," she laughed silently.
"Thanks. I'm not sure if my throat will be functional for the next few days after this..."
Shortly after everyone gathered and suddenly I was lifted up by the four strongest lads in the village and thrown up into the air a few times, to the accompaniment of cheers way to inappropriate for a time of mourning. When I thankfully sat down again, massaging my heart, there was a joyful toast and I was asked to tell everything I remembered.
At first Ethia helped me a little, when I described our escapade to the forest on the day of my kidnapping. After that Kiya took over. We told them about everything: the everyday life in the castle, it's appearance from the outside, as well as the inside, about its inhabitants, about what I did when I was free to decide about it, and about the days planned for me by the king.
When the sun disappeared completely behind the forest, and shadows started sneaking into the village, the bonfire was lit. The wood cracked like branches breaking under the pressure of heavy wind, and I kept talking. So when finally an applause echoed throughout the village, I thankfully accepted a cup of herb tea from my mother.
I was starving, so together with Ethia we made our way between the villagers to the nearby table.
For some time we just silently enjoyed the meal. It was very calming to just sit there like that, delighting in the warmth of the fire.
I was just about to finish the pear, that I helped myself to at the end, when Ethia spoke silently: "What are you going to do now?"
"I need to get rid of this core..."
"You know that's not what I mean."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm talking about this whole situation. I don't believe you will just return to your old life and pretend nothing has happened."
I kept quiet for a few moments. "Of course not," I tried to carefully pick my words. "The two years in captivity won't disappear just because I'm free again, but on the other hand, what can I do? I can't go back to the castle and start asking questions. Not after what just happened there... But maybe I should visit someone else."
"Who?"
I made a delicate gesture with my head, towards somewhere behind her left shoulder. She followed my gaze. A little distance away from the others, where the fire's blaze sank into the darkness, stood a tall figure. It's eyes gleamed with the flame's reflection, when it turned to us, as if sensing our stares.
"I have a feeling, that Tavs knows more about this whole situation, that may seem..." the silent words didn't leave my lips completely yet, when the young prophet turned around and headed towards his little house.
I stood up and, avoiding the other villagers, followed him silently. Ethia hopped down from the table and did the same. Tavs' house stood a bit out of the way, hugging the forest at the south-eastern border of the village.
I went up to the door and gave it a soft knock.
"Come in," came the clear voice from the other side.
We entered the small house. Among the slight disorder of the interior we spotted Tavs, sitting at a small table by the hearth. "Come on, don't be shy."
We made our way to the hearth between dozens of strange items. "I assume you know, why we're here," I started.
"Indeed," the smile didn't vanish from his face. "But I assure you, that I don't know as much about it, as you might think."
"I will be satisfied with any information," I sat on the floor by the fire. Ethia did the same behind my back. "Most of all though, I want to know why I was kidnapped two years ago. I already know, that I was supposed to be killed on behalf of someone, but who? And why?"
"It's probably because Yanka Gofdel sees a serious threat to her power in you."
"This Yanka is the one, who ordered to kill me then?"
"Yes."
"But why would I be a threat to her? And who is this in the first place?"
Tavs straightened his back a little and leaned his hand upon the armrest. "Did you ever hear about the high sovereign, who is feared by every king in this world even though she doesn't rule any land? The empress of life on earth?"
"Oh right, I know that legend... are you telling me you actually believe in that?"
"And weren't you abducted?"
I winced a little. "Well... assuming, it is true, what danger can I be to her?"
"You see, Yanka was ruling over the order of life in our world. Was, because that power was taken from her by Shaeth Cadreesh, and fairly recently. Judging from what she wanted to do, you could stand in her way of regaining that power."
"Me? And hang on, who's Shaeth?"
"The descendant of the man, who rid our world of dragons many years ago. But Shaeth's views are different. He wants to bring the dragons back to life."
"How?"
"That I don't know. Yanka wants to stop him at all costs, but for that, she needs her powers. Unfortunately for her, Shaeth used a rather perfidious method, when he robbed them from her. He sealed the magic in an amulet, that originally belonged to her, and stole it. Yanka has been forced to retreat to the Sevren Forest. Only there, in the oldest wood of this land, is she able to use a reduced amount of her powers, and is currently plotting against him. And you seem to be someone, who is able to definitively bury her hopes."
"Even if I'm someone who's capable of doing something like that, who said I would declare myself for Shaeth? It's not like I hate dragons, but Edron has been so peaceful without them for so many years. I don't think that bringing them back to life is going to do us much good..."
"On the contrary," Tavs opposed with an unusually lively tone. "We could benefit from their return. Dragons were extremely intelligent creatures, we could learn so much from them. And recreating their race would earn us their eternal gratitude..." He fell silent suddenly, as if a bit ashamed about the emotion, that suddenly burst out of him.
"This is absurd... why would I care about some conflict between mages and someone's dreams, that sound like taken straight from a fairytale? And how would I be able to influence any of them, when they could both probably kill me on the spot with the flick of a finger?"
"Well, Yanka will probably kill you anyway, once she finds you. She will do the same with Shaeth and anyone, who will dare to stand in her path to you both. And the prophecy says, that the one, who shall stop her, will bear the name Sian..."
"What prophecy?"
"Mine," he smiled charmingly.
"But there could be dozens of people bearing that name in our country and beyond... besides... no, no that's enough. All of this doesn't make sense." I got up, shaking my head. "Thank you for your time, we will be leaving now."
When we were at the door, I recalled one last question I had on my mind. "One more thing though..."
"Yial was assassinated by Yanka's emissary. You were supposed to die that night as well."
For a moment I just stood there, surprised by an answer to a question, I didn't even ask. Then I gave him a grateful nod, and left the house.
"I swear, he's fanatical..."
"Well, he is a prophet," commented Ethia, glancing over her shoulder one last time.
"Even so..."
"You don't believe him?"
"I don't know... it all seems like a strange and beautiful fairytale. But after what I've been through..."
Ethia looked at me with concern. "You look tired... maybe you should go to sleep and think about it tomorrow?"
"No, this whole party has been prepared mostly for me. It would be inappropriate, if I just left like that.
For some reason, a hint of sadness danced on her features, together with the flame's glow. "You've changed..."
"Sorry?"
"You've changed. Ever since I saw you there, in Ioth, I had a feeling that your behavior, your presence was so much different from what I remembered. You've become more revered, dignified... and your eyes show so much nobility now..." She cast her eyes down, as if feeling, that she unintentionally went far beyond what she intended to say.
"Ethia... I know that the two years in the castle have probably left their mark on me, but that doesn't change who you are to me. Nothing has changed between us, I promise you."
Relief melted the worry in her eyes and she smiled beautifully. "Well then... you want to celebrate you say? I think the others are at the stage, where they would start dancing."
"Then maybe we should join, if you would give me the honor."
She happily locked arms with me and led me back to the center of the gathering.
A few hours later the bonfire was reduced to warm embers, and the village fell silent.
I returned home with my parents completely exhausted, but happier than ever in my entire life. I wanted to immediately flop onto my bed, when I noticed a small bulge under the blanket on one side. I came closer and poked it carefully. It moved a lovely mewl reached my ears. I lifted the blanket a little, revealing Sha.
"Oh right..." my mother said, peeking into the room. "This cat snuck in when I was changing the sheets, and I couldn't scare it away..."
I laughed heartily. "It's alright mom, that's my cat," I explained, stroking my spoiled friend. "I got her a year ago at the castle."
"I thought she was some stray from the forest," she smiled. "In that case, she can stay. We can afford to drink less milk ourselves."
I yawned and laid down comfortably, forcing Sha to shift a bit more to the side. I closed my eyes contently. Sleep quickly started to tug on my consciousness, but I still felt it, when my mother made sure I was covered properly and gave me a feather light kiss on the cheek.
"I love you mom..." I whispered.
"I love you too, sweetheart."
The last thing I heard was the silent crackling of the hearth and the muffled mumbling of Suha in the opposite room, before I fell into a very deep and very calm sleep...