Tonight is the D-day.
As we were approaching the tavern, I couldn't seem to stay calm. It was almost midnight, and the night was in silent mode.
"You came." a rough voice derived from the shadow behind the tree not far from the tavern. Kirai covered her mouth, suppressing her voice from shouting. But, as he showed up himself, he appeared to be the leader's brother, Tarai. "Come in. Darak is expecting you two."
We watched him cautiously from the beginning and took a few steps back, allowing him to enter the tavern. Kirai was already hiding behind me as he continuously stared at Kirai dangerously until the front entrance.
We entered the tavern.
It was amazing to see the real tavern in business at night. It was more or less like a modern bar combined with a Bed & Breakfast Motel. Several customers were eating and chatting. At the end of the tavern hall, a huge man was seated in shrouded and secluded. That was not it. The thing that intrigued me was the big black lump beside the table. It has the same crimson eyes as it stares straight at me. Is that the same man I saw at the auction? Maybe it was just some creature or else why he sat on the floor. We followed Tarai and passed through the Tavern Hall into another secret room at the end of the corridor.
It appeared larger than I expected through the narrow and tiny door—the same hall as before. Despite the large size, the hall was poorly illuminated. Part of the room was dark. I turned to the familiar hall and recalled the shocking finding inside the room. I wonder who she was. And why was she locked inside it? It reminded me of those people in the asylum being locked when they went insane.
"Let's get to the job I assigned you to find. What information are you able to get?" I asked. Direct to the point. I risked my life coming here. It shouldn't take long to leave here after they provide the information I need. But, my heart can't seem to calm down at all. As if something is telling me that something else will happen tonight.
Kirai is still hiding behind me. She begins to annoy me with her actions. I told her to stay inside the palace tonight, but she won't listen. She also has a bad premonition about tonight's meeting that she will protect me. How will she? With what?
I can't say that I won't be prepared to act tonight if they were to hurt or kill me, but inside my hooded cloak, a strap of leather case for my daggers are set in place. Last minute's request, I asked the blacksmith to make a leather case for some hidden weapon. These daggers were not as perfect as modern small knives, but this should suffice just for tonight. He doesn't even inquire nor show any emotions to my request. He rather nodded, and in just a day, he made it into perfection as I sketched the design.
"Of course," Darak replied nonchalantly, and he appeared relaxed as he continued. "But, before I gave out the priceless information," he revealed a scroll of parchment to me. " I should have run a test on the artefact, don't you think so? I really want to know if this jewel is, in fact, a genuine piece of artefacts."
"How dare you question the authenticity of the piece. As I told you before, it was High Priest Romou himself who passed it to me, and he commanded me to give it to Lady Coriane as a wedding gift," Kirai appeared from my back and stood tall with her claim.
I didn't say anything to support either one of their suspicions or claims. I was not even sure what that artefact was worth or used for, maybe as a necklace, no less. I frown at them as they are still not buying Kirai words at all. It makes Kirai frustrated.
"Well, I'm still not sure without testing it, right?"
"What do you want to do?" I glared at him. He was not that easy to fool, after all. I gulped down my saliva, restless at his claim. What will happen if the jewel turns out to be fake after all? My hope is shattered into pieces. Damn! I clench my palm hard.
"I want the priestess to take it into her hand and..,"
"No." Kirai cuts off his words. It turns out Kirai was more nervous than I was. I stare at her profile. She was not the same priestess who appeared timid and scaredy-cat glued to me for the last seven days. "You can't instruct a priestess arbitrarily. I will not obey you, less than the High Priest Romou himself ever did."
Darak smirked at us dangerously. He looked pissed. What is wrong with her? The tension is unbearable. We might as well be dead if one of the men catches us.
"Kirai?" I whispered to her. But she ignored me. "What are you doing? Common, go there." I urged her. He placed the jewellery box not far from where we were standing. From the corner of my eyes, I swear I saw moving shadows. The creature and his master have returned. I was surprised to see the big paws of that beast. We urgently need to leave here.
"No, I refused to, Your Grace."
'Oh my god. What a headache!' "Why are you so stubborn!" I strode up to get the box in frustration with the delay and took out the artefact into my palm, about to pass it to her.
It was so sudden, and it happened swiftly. I heard the bellowing voice of Kirai in panic. "Your Highness!" The wind was blowing hard, and the loud booming sound of the ground echoed throughout the mountains. The ground under our feet shook hard, and after that fifteen seconds of commotion, the ground stopped shaking. No wind. It was totally silent.
The artefact in my palm slipped into my flesh and disappeared. A weird feeling surround my body gives me the feeling of want to cry. I blinked. The unfamiliar feeling dispersed, and I felt normal again. Then, a cold feeling appeared on my neck. The teardrop pendant re-appeared on my chest, and the string around it hardened to become a necklace.
'What just happened?'
Everyone inside the hall was left stupefied. They just witnessed the strong power of the gift of god to a normal human. Not a priestess but a mundane at that.
"How can this be?" Kirai was the first to speak. Her disbelief showed on her face as she strode closer to me. "So, this is the meaning of the gift. Your highness!" She laughed in excitement
I stared at her in puzzlement. I don't know what is going on. And why this thing stuck with me. How am I going to pay them? I tried to remove it, but it stuck hard onto my skin. I panicked. Kirai looked worried at my behaviour.
"It's you, it wants. It chose you to be its handler." a deep male voice interrupted my attempt to remove it. I turned to the voice as he emerged from the shadows with his creature. He was large, twice my size, and the hump on his back appeared taller than his height. I stepped back away from him. It was him, the man with crimson eyes that I saw and made eye contact at the auction night!
"Are you sure?" Darak looked doubtful at me. But his eyes were focused on the pendant strapped on my neck. The crimson eyes man didn't say anything anymore but observed me closely. The creature beside him began to approach me cautiously. It was trying to sniff me like a dog. As it stood tall beside me, my chest levelled to the height. Its' master silently watched his beast sniff me and circling me a few times, and while he was at it, it separated Kirai and me. Kirai gladly moved away from it hurriedly.
"What is it doing to me?" I went stiff at it. I can't contain my beating heart at his endless sniffing. Looking at him up close, he appeared to be a lion with his long fur on its head. But it doesn't look like a lion. It is more like a wolf. But do wolves have a pair of wings at their back? It looks intimidating to be with. "Please make it stop what it's doing."
"He," he said. He narrowed his eyes as he watched his beast making himself familiar with the outsider.
"What?" I was surprised. What is he talking about? He makes it like he was a human turned into an animal. Is this beast originally a human or cursed to be a beast at night and human by day?
"He is not 'it'. He is Ulan."
"Enough of the pleasantries," Darak impatiently cut into our conversation. Ulan growling out at him. Darak ignored the beast and got back to me. "Since the artefact is genuine after all, now let's get back to the important part. Can you use your newly acquired power or not?" he crossed his arms to his chest.
"What do you mean?" I can't understand what he was trying to get from this artefact. He seemed to know what he was doing from the look of him. Darak was already on his feet. His brother, Tarai, joined him, and he was standing close with a fierce look. Ulan didn't leave my side as he continued purring and acting as a pet, and he kept nudging his head to my hand and demanded that I stroke his furry head. Ulan's master watches on in silence.
"It doesn't work like that," Ulan's master said.
"I don't care!" Darak's voice is irritating. "I want you to go to that room. The same room you and your priestess trespassed in before. I want you to touch her with your power." He demanded. He sounded emotionally unstable to me.
Ulan's master shook his head disapprovingly but didn't say anything.
I'm not sure what's going on with the leader and why he asked me to do that. I don't even know what kind of power I had with me. What kind of relationship he has with the woman inside the room is. It led me to think of Lady Coriane. Maybe I can help the other woman with this power.
"I am still not familiar with this power. What it does or its limitation. Do you still want to proceed?" I asked carefully, more like verbal consent. I won't want him to blame me if this unknown ability is used on the woman. Darak nodded. Tarai was behind him the whole time about to protest, but he gave in with his twin's signal.
Ulan's master called out to Ulan to return, but Ulan ignored him as he followed me closely as I walked towards the familiar room.
Kirai stayed back worriedly. She can't come closer to me with this beast beside me. That's good enough.
My heart now beating hard. Not because of this unknown ability but what will be awaiting me on the other side of the room. As if Ulan was able to sense my fear, he moved closer to me.