In the room where Caelan left Lyra, Lyra thought monsters and magical creatures with talking tongues were only found in books, but when she opened her sleepy eyes, she nearly fell over. She ran to the bedside with emerald-green eyes watching her, her heart in her throat, and an unbelievable headache.
"You human beings are so dramatic!" Eryss,the black mamba Caelan had given Lyra for protection, hissed sarcastically, unwinding and descending the bed as Lyra struggled against her heart that was erratically beating. "My apologies for not being able to handle being locked in a magic castle by a strange man in a room with a talking snake!" Even when scared, Lyra's tone was sarcastic.
The snake snorted, not in the least affected by Lyra's sarcastic tone, it wrapped itself around the candlestick in front of the window. The red drapers on them were a stark contrast to the darkness outside, Lyra was stunned and her breath tangled in her throat when she realized that even after a few hours of sleep, it was still dark outside.
"Do you know, you insolent little creature, how long this castle has been dead like this?" Eryss's tone was more lost, distant, as if the snake had wandered somewhere far away. Lyra only now sees how magnificent this magical creation really is. She was large and long, black, but her scales shone green whenever she was caught by the light of the flickering candles in the room.
Lyra didn't say anything, she just curled up in the fetal position on the silk, black bedding. The white dress that Caelan gave her was surprisingly comfortable on her skin. Her long black hair, which even Rapunzel would have envied, spread over the large black pillows. She was like a child listening to a fairy tale at bedtime.
"Once upon a time, 114 years ago, there was a plot of land long and large that occupied half a village and only red, wild roses grew on it." Eryss squirmed, as if she was adjusting herself to be more comfortable.
"A king named Reas decided that, for his wife, that adored flowers and especially red roses, he should build her a castle on that very clearing above the wild garden. But, like every king, he had people who did not love him, and a lone witch whose son died on the battlefield because of the King's wrong decision,was one of them, dedicated to destroying his life and taking away all that was sacred to him." Eryss said, every time the snake spoke, there was sadness, worry, and something else in her voice that Lyra couldn't interpret.
For some reason, a cool breeze came from somewhere, as if someone had sighed with melancholy, the black silk sheet rose and fell over Lyra's bare shoulders, and she felt a chill run through her spine, but enchanted by the story she assumed it was a castle that obviously had a soul and continued to listen intently to Eryss.
"The witch heard that the king was happy and that he and the queen were expecting a boy. She is devastated by this news, because how can a king have a son and she lost her own because of his pride. Carried away by rage, one evening, under a full moon at the passage between the garden and the castle, she cast a curse. That all that comes to them will be death and darkness, and that the little prince survive but disfigured all his life, and that his life in the castle may be forever shrouded in darkness."
Lyra's eyes widened when she realized what Eryss was really talking about, Calean. She used one arm as a support as she lifted herself up in bed, and any trace of drowsiness disappeared in her.
"A prince was born, and what should have been celebrated by the whole kingdom as the most beautiful day, was soon covered with a black veil of darkness. The Queen, who was previously a strong and healthy woman, began bleeding uncontrollably after giving birth to her son. A bleeding that no royal doctor could stop. Uncontrollable screams and laughter burst through the castle wall's, it was the witch who was pleased with the success of her plan. Suddenly, all the roses in the garden turned black and closed their buds. The massive, beautiful golden-white castle began to turn black from stone to stone until it and everything around it turned black. The king, driven by the incredible grief of losing the woman he loved so much, handed the little prince over to the midwives and disappeared into the night to find the witch who did it and kill her, never to be seen again.
In a second, Lyra was overwhelmed with sadness when she saw that the snake had gathered even tighter around the candlestick, as if it wanted to disappear from grief for memories that would make even the strongest cry. "But there was no end to the tragedy," Eryss continued, "The midwives realized at the same moment when they wanted to clean the prince and send his mother to her funeral. When he was laid on Queen Larissa's chest to feel his mother for the last time, the prince's face was dotted with catastrophic scars on both his body and face. Terrified, they left the baby in the arms of their dead Queen and disappeared without a voice. A few days later, a white sorceress who lived nearby, heard the unbearable screams of the hungry child and came to his aid, buried the mother and took the baby in her own care, staying at this black castle, making it enchanted so that only those who could get rid of the curse could enter. "
"You know,she made me for the greater protection of the prince Caelan, and he gave me over to you for protection!"
Eryss snorted, sounding a little offended for a moment, but when she saw that Lyra was really struggling with sleep and listening to her story, that feeling in her disappeared.
"Stupid little angry creature, I see you're going to be a sweet trouble!" Wth that, he left the bedroom leavin Lyra to her dreams.
Caelan stood in the shadows of a crumbling chamber, his cold gaze fixed on a worn, rune-carved table. The air was thick with the scent of damp stone and old magic, but his expression betrayed nothing. Footsteps—or rather, the soft slither of scales—broke the silence as Eryss slid into the room, her emerland-green eyes glinting mischievously in the dim light.
"Didn't take you long to brood," she quipped, coiling herself onto the edge of the table. "I barely had time to tuck the girl in."
Caelan didn't look up. "What do you want, Eryss?"
Eryss let out a mock gasp, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "What do I want? Oh, I don't know, maybe to discuss the fact that you've just saddled me with a girl who practically oozes raw power. You didn't think that was worth a little... debrief?"
"She's none of your concern," Caelan said flatly, his voice as sharp and cold as steel.
Eryss tilted her head, her tongue flicking out briefly. "Oh, please. You can't fool me. You wouldn't have dumped her on me if you thought she was harmless. Admit it, Caelan—she terrifies you."
His jaw tightened, but his tone remained emotionless. "She's a liability. If she stays, she could unravel everything I've built to keep this curse contained."
The snake chuckled dryly. "Contain it? Darling, the castle's already alive with her touch. The roses in the garden? Flourishing. The dead magic in these walls? Thrumming with energy. She's not unraveling anything—she's restoring it. Whether you like it or not."
Caelan's icy eyes finally snapped to hers, the faintest flicker of frustration in their depths. "And that restoration will bring chaos. It will bring them back."
Eryss's humor faltered for a moment, but she quickly recovered, her voice softer, yet no less cutting. "Ah, so it's not the girl you fear. It's the ghosts she'll awaken."
Caelan turned away, his posture rigid. "She doesn't know what she is. If she did, she'd run, and we'd all be worse off."
"Or," Eryss countered slyly, "she'd stay and fix what you're too afraid to confront."
"I'm not afraid," Caelan said, his tone sharper now, his mask of indifference cracking just slightly.
Eryss let out a low, sardonic laugh. "Oh, Caelan, you're many things—cold, ruthless, perpetually unpleasant—but you're also a liar. You are afraid. You're afraid she's the only chance you have left to end this curse, and that letting her try might cost you what little humanity you're still clinging to."
Silence hung between them, heavy and unyielding.
Finally, Caelan spoke, his voice a whisper, almost to himself. "Humanity is a weakness. And she's too dangerous."
Eryss uncoiled and slithered closer, her tone quieter but no less sharp. "She's not dangerous, Caelan. You are. And unless you figure out how to work with her, you'll doom her—and yourself—before she even has a chance to try."
Without waiting for a reply, Eryss turned and slipped back into the shadows, leaving Caelan alone with the weight of her words and the faint hum of life pulsing through the castle walls.