Ileus: The Dark Prince

Iona's excitement was palpable. Her eyes sparkled and gleamed. There was lightness in her chest and an unexpected adrenalin rush. In an impatient voice she said, "I want to visit the tombs of the previous rulers of Vilinski… especially that of the first king Faelar Aramaer." 

The woman in front of her tilted her head and the silvery line of her delineation rippled slightly. "Why?" she asked her the outline of her hair curled with the movement of her head. 

Taking a deep breath in, Iona went to her bed and picked up the books that she had been devouring from so long. She had two books opened on the bed in front of them. Almost bouncing on her feet, she sat next to one of them and pointed to the family tree on History of Fae. "Look here," she said pointing at the names of Ian Lachlan and his wife Áine. She traced her hand above their names to his parents' and said, "King Ian's name is here, but where is the name of his sister Etaya?" 

Silvery white lines formed on the woman's forehead as she looked at the family tree. "This is strange," she replied. 

Then Iona pulled her attention to the next book on the book she had lifted from Etaya's room. "This one here is the family tree of ancient demons, whose first king was Estelar Aramaer. He had fourteen sons and one daughter called Etayalar Aramaer. The girl never married, fought battles with her father and eventually died soon after her father died vowing to the Lore that she would take her father's revenge." Iona was breathless. She flipped through more pages until she came to the family tree of the winged demons. She pointed to the names at the end. "Etaya's name can be seen here, but not in that book. Why? Why do the records of these books don't match? How can there be such a huge discrepancy?" 

Quickly, Iona sifted through her notes that were scattered over the bed, crawled to the ones on the far end and picked up the one she was looking for in a triumphant manner. "This!" she said, waving it in her hand high in the air. "This one here." She brought it to the woman and spread it in front of her. "I went to the record keeping section. There was a book on Estelar Aramaer and this is what I found about him and his daughter." 

The woman sat on the bed and stared at the paper to read it. For a long time, she continued to read, re-read it as if trying to piece things together. "So, you are implying that Etayalar Aramaer is the same as Etaya?" 

"I have strong reasons to believe it, but I may be wrong. That's why I want to visit the tombs of the ancient ones in order to verify my doubts." 

"What are you going to find there, Iona?" the woman asked with a voice laced with irritation. "That place is sacred and you can't just enter there at will." 

"Please, I just want to go there," Iona persisted. 

The woman shook her head. "I am sorry, but this is impossible. You can't go there…" She stared at the papers and books again. "The tombs are guarded with strong spells and I wouldn't want you to get toasted by them."

Iona pouted. "I feel that the conspiracy runs deeper than what we see. Etaya is hiding a lot of information. It's like getting her son to the throne is Vilinski is not where her agenda ends. There is more…" 

An icy sensation cruised through skin when the woman touched her. "Iona, I understand your worries. And I would say that you focus on what is at hand rather than getting yourself in grave trouble." 

Iona pursed her lips. She got out of the bed, agitated as hell, and walked to the window. The layer of snow had thickened because of the blizzard that was swirling on the outside. Very few days were left for the attack on Draoidh. This was her chance, and this chance was slipping… She truly was the black knight… of Etaya. With an exasperated sigh, she turned to look at the woman and the air out of her lungs whooshed out. She wasn't there. "Fuck!" she cursed. Scared as hell that others might see her, Iona grabbed a black fur cloak over her and pulled its hood over her head. She had to go and find her. She gritted her teeth for allowing herself this one time to be not careful. The woman slipped out. Where the hell did she go? 

Iona got out of her bedchamber. The Diumbe saw her and slithered to reach her, to be with her, to feel her. She patted them one by one and then ordered them to stand by the door and not allow anyone inside. Then she rushed to the spiral staircase and descended to the ground floor. Once there, she darted out into the darkness. "Where are you?" she muttered as she scanned the grounds in front of her that were covered with yet another layer of snow. Her eye caught a movement of something shiny rippling through the snow, rounding the corner where the south wing ended. Boots crunching the snow, Iona ran towards the woman. She came across two royal guards who were flying over the tall boundaries of the palace, their large wings beating majestically even through this blizzard. 

--- 

She reached the snow forest. Snow was falling heavily and it obscured the heavy door in front of her. Not that it mattered to her in this form. She pressed her hand on the door. The wood seemed to melt and become gel-like under her touch. It rippled and she walked through it. Inside it was dimly lit. A solitary torch burned… perhaps it burned eternally… Shadows of steps started forming as she glided below into the tunnel. She wished she had come here to feel the place's energy in her corporeal form… After descending the narrow steps, she reached a landing. The torch threw dim light inside and she could make out the low ceiling of the narrow space in front of her. 

As she walked further, the light of the torch only became dimmer. But the light wasn't needed, because now the place was lit with… glowing blossoms. Flowers blanketed the moss covered walls. It was as if the effect of winter never existed here. The petals of the blossoms swayed in the occasional cool wind that came from the outside, and as they moved, they bathed the place in purple and blue and red haze. 

The pathway opened into a chamber with high ceilings and the sight in front of her was… mesmerizing. From every tomb, there grew flowers that glowed. Hundreds of them twined around the tombs. And amidst them were the most ethereal creatures she had ever seen—blue butterflies… so azure, so turquoise… beating their gossamer wings, softly. She felt she would burst into crying if she continued to gaze at them. 

She was in the tomb of the royal faes. 

She walked further towards the tombs that were located further on the inside.