The sailors rushed across the vessel amidst the wooden barrels, up and down the deck. Yet, the aim of my undisputed attention was set on the quarterdeck where the almighty helm was dexterously managed by the Captain atop the steps.
"Get up here, Princess!" He gave a humorous laugh as he caught sight of my wondering self. I obeyed his command as immediately, swiftly finding myself taking the last step of fine wood - that protested with a crackle under my heels - before meeting the ice blue eyes of the old man as if they were, themselves, a mirror to the untold stories of the sea blended by the hope of the men that here crossed paths.
"The tide is welcoming today," he says, "the ship is under your command if you wish so."
"Consider me honored, Captain, but I wouldn't even know how to hold the helm to begin with."
"The sea can not be tamed, but it might be comprehended by the free souls." He lets go of the wheel in a sudden, shifting his gaze toward me as if an act of encouragement to get my feet to pull me forward. "Do not think much, Your Highness. Leave it to do while inside the walls of those fancy rooms."
I nod, more to myself than to the man facing the horizon and hesitantly grip the wheel tight on my hands, afraid - who knows - that it would move on its own and make the great galleon sink under my command for nevermore to be found. Although, if the Captain noticed the dreadful catastrophe unfolding inside of my head, he offered no sign of it. Instead, he kept his eyes on the waves, swelling beneath our feet through a spyglass - an antiquity plated in gold with thoroughly applied gems as ornaments.
"To Starboard!" The shout hurtles from the top of the mast. The captain mimics a silent nod, enough to make me pull the handles clockwise and watch as the ship shifts in the water like a tamed whale. And so it was true, I was sailing The Deserter!
"Take this, Ms. Captain." He hands me the delicate spyglass. "I believe you would be profoundly sorrowful if I was to cause you to miss the spectacle."
Willingly, I leave the helm to stay under the watch of its rightful commander, keen to find what show he so awed spoke regarding. As soon as I peer through the gilded artifact, silver fins come to sight, leaping along with the waves from the East. Dolphins! The passengers seize the railings to catch a better sight of the approaching pod, pointing and cheering at the warm welcoming into their home that they greeted us with.
A fin slashes through the crystalline blue water from the right side of a ship, only for it to emerge in a graceful arch that splashed all of the prying eyes aboard the Kendriann vessel.
Another one leaps in the air at the front of an imposing ship to whom I adjust the spyglass in my eye to better take a look at the dolphin, from the bottom to the very top of the mast where the obsidian fire mantled the face of a dragon in its fluttering flag. The obsidian boat. Through the spyglass, my eyes get detached from the sea, tracing, instead, their way back to the deck. A man stood at the front of the ship, contemplating the horizon with glassy black eyes. Hairs of the color of coal escaped through the almighty crown shining on his head. A heavy mantle concealed his body, quietly, in spite of the fearless wind that blew across the sea. His bare hands came together to the level of his stomach, resting over the head of the dragon atop of a cane, held straight against the dark plaques coating the floor, with two ominous obsidian gemstones in the place of its eyes.
Merely a step behind, on his right side, stood a man of the size of a mast and the weight of a whale. It was, undisputedly, impossible not to recognize immediately the man who fought Prince Nikolas that morning. Where was the Prince in any case? But I lose track of my own thoughts when I reach his face. A massive scar crossed his left eye, lifeless as if a mere piece of crystal glass occupied its place instead, contrasting heavily with the dark orb on his right eye. I gasp unintentionally when a wicked smile takes a hold of his lips - as thin as the blade of a dagger - as if he could sense my horror form afar.
"We sail close now, Princess." The Captain's voice startles me. "The rocks from this point on might prove themselves rather deceitful for the less observant eyes."
I let out the breath I did not seem to notice I was holding and return the spyglass to the Captain. "We can only hope one does not get hurt."
"None should. This morning, the rote for the caves was handed to the Captains of the eight kingdoms. If it is their desire to defend their title's honor as Captain's of the sea, then they shall be capable of keeping their ship from sinking."
I perish the thought, beaming to the glimpse of light stone towers on the horizon, rising from the dim bottom of the sea and piercing through the sapphire blue sky like the sharp quills of a speeding wheel. The passage for the caves was large enough to invite a hundred feet boat to pry in its depths. That is, of course, if they found their way through the insidious route that protected the Heart of Aurelia, well and unharmed.
Unlike most caves, this one was blessed by an outstanding peculiarity. Instead of meeting the dimness and gloom of a place such as this one, our eyes faced the spectacle of a million gleaming lights. Impassioned light pierces through subtle apertures fixed between the ores of gold climbing the walls to meet at the very top of the cave. As the galleon passes through the uncertain waters, my gaze is drawn upwards toward the natural crafted ceiling secluding us from the broad daylight outside just as we are bathed in reflected gold glimpses of light. As soon as I notice, my neck bends backwards and my mouth is left agape. Through exclamations of awe and gasps of wonder, the echoing sound of streaming water calls from the depths of the Aurelian cave like the enchanted voice of a siren.
"But... it's a cave!" I hear someone from the Dwand boat exclaim in amusement.
But it is not a simple cave.
"How peculiar, indeed," another agrees.
It is deem the Heart of Aurelia for more than what was in sight.
"How marvelous!" The voice of a young woman sounds from the Valant vessel.
My feet take me to the edge of the boat in sudden hasten pace, my fingers close rapidly around the railings while my left hand stretches out in the air. My hair swings when the galleon takes a turn around the centering column embedded in gold and, suddenly, the touch of soft water streams through my fingers like rich silk running down my skin.
"Lydia!" The Queen exclaims but I merely ward off the distasteful tone in her voice with a careless smile before allowing my eyelids to close and carry me away for a mere well treasured instant.
Soon, the Captain guides us through the penumbra of broad golden arches back into the sight of the blue extension of the sea and, in a short moment, it reminded me of one of the paintings hanging on the walls of the Aurelian palace.
"My, my, what more gems hide in the depths of the ocean?" I listen from afar.
"I have never behold a more breathtaking place!"
"And here you are, implying you could not fetch any gold for my wedding ring!"
I giggle at the last remark.
"I believe it is safe to say." Father approaches in heavy footsteps. "The sailing was appreciated by all. It comes as great triumph to all Aurelia."
"I believe it as well." I reassure him.
Not long after, the coast was discerning through our eyes on the horizon. The entire crew worked to dock the ships alongside the margin of the beach and the passengers began to descend from the vessels, amused remarks regarded of the caves still hovering in conversations here and there.
I gaze over at the Garte ship docked next to ours, a cue forming directed at the stairs but before I could get a glimpse at any of them, something else steals my attention from the North side of the vessel. From the air, a graceful figure balances on a rope but it is when he lets go of the thick cord that my heart misses a beat.
As if unconsciously, I take a step forward and peer form the edge, only to find him landed on his feet. His back bends down in exaggerated reverence before his eyes raise to meet me at the end. I curtsy in acknowledgement and an intrigue smile plays on my lips as I follow his pace amidst the people making their way aboard The Deserter.
"I must plead you not to spread what you witnessed." Cinnamon hair sways softly in the sea air across the wooden floor, while the eyes of the perfect blender of brown and forest green became more perceptible at each step. "My credibility as Duke lays now in your hands." He bends over my hand and kisses it.
"I took the Duke of Garte to be of more mature age."
"Your beauty barely surpasses your wit, Princess." I let out an entertained giggle. "That would be yet my Father you must remember. Although, the title shall one day fall on my hands and so will the reputation of a noble family."
I nod. "My lips are sealed, no word of this will be uttered from me, you may rest assure. Yet, I must say, for years I do not visit my Mother's land and still, I believe to recall seeing stairs already at use. An unnecessary invention from the century, I imagine."
"Unnecessary? You wouldn't hear such heartily word gliding from my lips." His lips twist in outrage, merely to give place to a tricksy grin. "Boring, perhaps, is of a more suitable description."
"Consider me intricate, where has the future Duke of such noble family learn these tricks?"
"Here and there. I admit, I made acquaintance of some very talented people all over the world that have taught me what they know."
"You are an adventurer!"
"My Mother deems me as her little dismay, indeed."
I can not contain the laughter. "I can only picture the trouble she must go through to put you in such terms."
"Groundless accusations, of course." He is quick to explain. "But it leaves one to wander. If they were not, where could one slink out at night?"
I choke on the air, glaring at him. "You speak of the Royal Residence, highly secured by the most proficient knights of all Aurelia and its surroundings, sworn to trade their lives for The King's without a blink of doubt. Standing guard, day and night, listening observantly for anything that might present itself as a threat against the crown."
He blinks unruffled. "Well?" He quiets for an answer that never arrives. "Come now, Your Royal Highness, do not tell me you never..." A humorous laughter interrupts the incredulous silence of the Marquess.
"I must attend more important affairs at night!" I defend myself from his misplaced mockery.
"Such as? If you don't mind me prying."
"Such as sleep!"His laugh echoes louder until he makes it cease with a sniff.
"Pardon me, truly." He meets my indignant eyes. "But you must agree it is hilarious."
"I fail to see why. Nights were made to sleep. Only a fool would defy the gloominess of a place when the cozy crackles of a fireplace awaits you in a warm chamber."
"Allow me to disagree then. A Princess who is not aware of the reality of her subjects is doomed to never be a good Queen."
Any word that threatened to roll out of my lips ceased suddenly on my throat when the smallest glimpse of wrath flickered behind my eyes and I take a menacing step toward the Marquess. "I shall await in the penumbra of my chamber's balcony as the clock strikes midnight. And if you think of leaving me to wait for too long, I will be compelled to deem you as a coward."
"Your Highness, you honor me!" His eyes beam lively after he bows. "Your invitation will be conspicuously taken into consideration."
He parts way among the royals, leaving me to contemplate the actions of the past few minutes.
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