Crimson and Gold

Beu Perius kept his word, and as soon as the fight ended, he gave the pass to Lysandra.

Saria was helped out of the arena, and her injuries were immediately treated by the physicians arranged by the organizers.

It didn’t heal all of them right away, but it was enough for her to at least make it back to the Palace, where she would get proper treatment from a healer.

This whole time, Lysandra was unusually quiet.

She made sure that Saria had everything she needed and paid extra attention to her on the way back, but aside from exchanging a few words, they didn’t talk at all.

As soon as they arrived at the side entrance, Lysandra helped her get out of the carriage and led her straight to her room in the servants’ lodge. There, the healer was already waiting for them.

Once Saria was back to the fully unharmed state, the Princess briefly told her to rest and returned to her quarters.

The next day, Lysandra called for Saria first thing in the morning.

Led by the maid to the underground, she tried questioning the girl for the reason why they were heading to such an unexpected place, but all of her efforts proved futile.

“Her Highness only told me to bring you here, I don’t know anything else,” she said, speeding up her step.

The girl was clearly not enjoying the ambiance of the century-old tunnels two stories beneath the ground that spread across the vast land belonging to the Palace.

Saria read about this place once when she hid in the Palace library from Dolores.

The tunnels were used by the previous Emperor, who was rather unpopular among his subordinates.

During his rule, the Royal Palace burned to the ground twice, and it was stormed by rebels three consecutive years. Sometime between the first and the second burning, the Emperor had ordered to build the tunnels.

They were purposefully designed like a labyrinth to make it impossible to use by any nefarious actors.

As an extra layer of security, once the construction was done, everyone participating in the process had their memories erased, making the Emperor the only person who knew the path.

The Emperor managed to live to an old age and eventually died in his own bed from natural causes.

Once he was gone, it took many years to study the tunnels and find the right path.

Some people lost their lives to that cause, getting lost in the dark, never-ending corridors. While others fell victim to numerous traps the Emperor had installed to fend off unwanted guests.

There were also parts that were never explored fully, remaining a mystery till this very day.

After a proper fifteen minutes of walking, they finally arrived at a small chamber in the eastern section of the Palace.

It was one of the parts of the underground that were repurposed to serve as additional storage during the current Emperor’s reign. Meaning, it looked less like a final resting place of a legendary pharaoh and more like an average dungeon so often sought by adventurers.

“Is this where you’re going to kill me?” Saria asked, sweeping her gaze around the place.

The room was mostly empty, with the exception of a simple chair placed in the middle and a few ropes hanging on the wall. “Or are we going to have a different kind of fun?” she added with a smirk.

Lysandra narrowed her eyes. “Don’t push it,” she said plainly, but Saria still noticed the slight reddening of her cheeks.

The Princess gestured at the chair in the middle of the room. “Take a seat.”

“Alright. But can you tell me what we are doing here?”

“Everything will be clear in a moment. First, I need you to focus and tell me how many people are in the chamber behind you.”

Saria was surprised by the unexpected question, but since it came from Lysandra, she obliged nonetheless. “Three.”

“What about now?”

“Five.”

“Again.”

“One.”

“Again.”

“Two… and a half.”

Lysandra raised her eyebrows.

“A man, a woman, and a dog,” Saria clarified.

For the next ten minutes, Lysandra kept asking all sorts of questions about the people in the room behind them.

What age they were, gender, height. Whether they had weapons or not, were they moving around or standing in place?

Saria was able to answer most of those questions. The only ones that gave her trouble were those about what they were wearing and if they were armed.

Once the Princess exhausted all the questions she had prepared beforehand, her golden eyes flashed with satisfaction.

She walked over to Saria and leaned over, staring into the deep crimson as if trying to spot something.

“You are Saya Yalān,” she said eventually.

“A what now?”

“The one who commands blood,” she explained. “A blood mystic.”

“Alright? Does it have any other use except for being a very good life detector?” Not that Saria minded even this small perk, but she was hoping for something a bit more… proactive to her repertoire of skills.

“As you know, being born with magic is extremely rare already. Being born with the ability to control blood is even more rare,” Lysandra began explaining.

“So much so that there still isn’t a comprehensive description of what abilities blood mystics have. Of all the known ones, there’s: life detection, body and healing enhancement, and the ability to control the blood of any living organism.”

“You’ve been talking about mystics, but then what about wizards?”

Lysandra shook her head. “There aren’t any.”

“You’re telling me that none of those guys locked in towers tried harnessing this power for themselves?” Saria couldn’t believe her ears.

“Oh, no, they tried. So many have tried, even resorting to pretty heinous acts to do so. So far, nobody succeeded,” Lysandra explained and walked over to Saria.

Her finger traced the path from her dark eyebrow to her cheek and eventually stopped under her chin, and lifted it.

“That means you are very special,” she said, looking deeply into Saria’s eyes. “Don’t talk about this to others freely.

“Blood mystics are watched even more closely by the Council, and you are already operating as a Heretic. We don’t want to have Justiciars going after you.”

Lysandra’s thumb gently caressed Saria’s cheek. “I’ll protect you from them as much as I can, but you’ll have to be extra careful from now on. Don’t attract any unwanted attention.”

Saria took the Princess’ hand in her own. “Don’t worry. I’ll be careful,” she said softly.

“I will find you a teacher,” Lysandra continued, this time slightly flushed, “but it will take some time. In the meantime, you can train with Olios. He used to assist Ignari in controlling their abilities, so he has some experience.”

When she said that, a man entered the room and joined them. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, My Lady,” he greeted.

“Saria. Just Saria,” she corrected.

The man looked at her and blinked twice, then, when the meaning of her words finally reached him, he bowed deeply. “Yes, My La— Saria,” he corrected himself.

“I have something to attend to, so I will leave first,” Lysandra said. “And be careful. Don’t overdo it.”

“What about Mormo?” Saria ran after her, catching up right before the door. “When are we going to pay him a visit?”

“In three days. There is something I have to take care of first,” Lysandra admitted. Her voice hesitated a little. “Once it’s done, we’ll move on with our plan.”

Saria noticed the slight hesitation in her voice. “Is it something dangerous? Do you need my help?”

Lysandra shook her head. “No. It’s something I have to take care of myself.”

She reached out her hand and caressed Saria’s cheek almost absentmindedly. She blinked, and the vulnerability in her eyes disappeared. “Be careful. Don’t do anything risky. For now, try to get the feel for your abilities. The proper training will start once I find you a teacher.”

Lysandra left, making Saria and Olios the only people in the room.

“Should we go somewhere more… spacious?” she asked, looking around.

“Her Highness warned me that we should stay out of sight. She doesn’t want anyone to know about your abilities,” Olios answered awkwardly.

“She said that she’ll have my head if anyone learns about them,” he gulped, tracing his hand over his neck as if checking if it’s still there.

“Alright. Then what do we do?”

For the next couple of hours, Olios guided Saria through a series of breathing techniques, meditation, and something he called “reaching inwards”, which was supposed to help her connect with her inner power.

To Saria’s disappointment, none of the things they practiced involved using her blood magic offensively.

Despite that, once the dusk had befallen Aervelis, Saria barely had the strength to drag her fatigued body to bed. Once she did, she fell asleep in a matter of seconds.

The night, however, didn’t bring her the peaceful rest she was hoping for.

Her dreams were haunted by fragmented memories flashing before her eyes.

She was standing with other disciples in the line, watching as the helpers brought in and put a cage before each child.

Each was covered with a thick black sheet, preventing them from taking a glimpse inside.

They could still hear the noises, however. Low, growling noises of the beasts hiding inside.

Suddenly, one of the cages shook violently as it was being dragged to the right spot, making everyone jump anxiously.

Once everything was arranged, Father came before them.

“Today, we will test what you have learned so far. Don’t disappoint me.” He gestured with his head at the helpers.

Following his order, one by one, they raised the covers off the cages.

Inside, various animals were being kept. Terrified, helpless, they retreated towards the furthest corners of their imprisonment, helplessly shaking and glancing around.

“Begin,” Father commanded.

One by one, from each cage came a pitiful whine followed immediately by dead silence.

Eventually, it was Saria’s turn.

Her heart pounded in her chest, muffling all the sounds surrounding her. She stared into the eyes of the wolf cub, saw the fear mirroring her own.

“Enough stalling. Kill it.” She heard Father’s voice.

But she couldn’t. Her heart wouldn’t let her, even at the cost of being punished, even at the cost of disappointing him.

His disappointment was obvious, even with the mask covering his face.

“Arven,” he called out. The moment the name resounded, a wave of searing pain exploded all over her body, bringing her to her knees. Her veins bulged under her skin, and the muscles spasmed.

Pained scream escaped her lungs.

Father raised his arm, stopping the pain. He came over and squatted next to her. “Are you still going to disobey me? Kill the animal, or face the pain.”

“NO! I won’t do it!” Saria protested.

“So be it.” He gestured at others. They encircled her. “If you care about the wolf so much, I will set it free,” he said.

Saria raised her head to look at him.

“The life of the wolf, and yours, in exchange for the life of others,” he said. “Your choice.”

With the next gesture of his head, the pain she felt before came again. This time, stronger tenfold.

It was mind-numbing, soul-crushing. But the pained howls of the wolf cut even harder than their torture.

The wolf was innocent. It didn’t deserve it. It didn’t know why it was happening to it.

Its only fault was not being fast enough to escape the poachers.

Unlike her, the wolf was innocent.

Innocent, unlike the others, who caused them so much pain.

The anger stirred inside Saria. The disgust and rage boiled within like a river of molten lava.

It freed itself from under her control, lashing out at those who hurt her.

In a matter of seconds, all of the others surrounding them were dead. Their bodies were lifeless in the pools of their own blood.

The only ones left alive were her, the wolf, and Father.

He came to kneel in front of her and gently raised her chin to look her in the eyes. “I knew you wouldn’t disappoint me. Father is proud,” he said, wiping a single tear of blood from her face.