Crimson and Gold

Due to the unexpected meeting in the morning, by the time Saria arrived in Nivelis, it was already past noon.

Climbing the stairs leading to the Temple of Astesis, Saria shielded her eyes from the blinding rays reflected by the alabaster walls.

When she reached the top, she was met with a familiar sight.

“Again? Your Goddess really needs to find herself a hobby,” Saria sighed.

Asteria didn’t seem to mind the slightly rude remark. She smiled gently and welcomed her guest. “My Lady is fond of you. She said you remind her of someone.”

“Is that so? Should I be afraid?” Saria stole a glance at the statue of Astesis in the hallway.

“That depends on your attitude,” Asteria answered. “Have you recovered any new memories?”

Saria took a deep breath. “I’m not sure.”

Asteria invited her to the chamber at the back of the Temple as usual and turned to listen to her explanation.

“I’ve been having those dreams lately. Dark, confusing dreams. I’m not sure if they are real memories or if it’s my mind playing tricks on me.”

“So far, you were able to tell them apart. Are these any different?”

“In a way, yes. Parts of it feel like something that really happened, while the others…” Saria’s voice trailed off as she recalled seeing Lysandra with Icarus and then the joy when she finally killed him.

“You’re afraid of the things you saw,” Asteria said.

“I am,” Saria’s answer was barely audible, but the Oracle caught it and the slight trembling of her voice.

It was the first time she saw this side of her. It made Asteria understand why her Goddess took an interest in this person.

She walked over to the usual spot and knelt on the pillow. “Not every dream is a memory, but that doesn’t mean it’s not important. The only way to find out is to confront your fears.”

Saria took a deep breath and reluctantly lay down on the spot prepared for her.

It was a bright night with a full moon shining in the cloudless sky.

Following the familiar path, Saria was fully absorbed by her thoughts.

It has become a common occurrence in recent times. Especially on quiet nights like this one.

She woke up from the daze only when she was standing in front of the same old tree overlooking the Palace grounds.

It took only a few swift moves for her to find the spot from which she could see Lysandra’s room.

Everything pointed towards it being one of the typical nights that she would spend gazing longingly towards the woman she couldn’t forget. It should have been one of those nights.

But just one glance beyond the Palace walls made it clear that it couldn’t be further from it.

The Princess’ chamber was full of people, with Lysandra herself kneeling on the ground while holding in her arms a woman covered in blood.

Saria recognized the girl immediately. She was one of the personal servants to the Princess.

She had seen them together very often, and it seemed like the relationship between them was that of close friends rather than a master and a servant.

From the conversation she overheard, she learned that during Lysandra’s absence, someone broke into her bedroom and killed the maid.

The Palace guards seemed eager to dismiss it as a robbery gone wrong, but Saria knew better than that.

After all, being a part of Sekaris, she knew this line of work better than anyone. The signs were there, and her keen eye had no trouble recognizing them.

Someone was targeting Lysandra, and the maid was an unfortunate collateral victim.

From the mess left behind, it was clear that it couldn’t be anyone from Sekaris. The people responsible weren’t amateurs since they were able to reach the Princess’ chambers unnoticed, but their skills were lacking nonetheless.

Saria gritted her teeth as her chest tightened.

Seeing Lysandra so heartbroken made her feel torn between the desire to pull her into her arms and the wish to find whoever was responsible and make them pay.

But as things stood at the moment, both of those things were out of her reach.

From that day onwards, the Princess changed visibly.

The chambers, once resonating with carefree laughter, became solemn, enveloped in a suffocating silence.

During that time, Lysandra would often stand on the balcony, absentmindedly gazing towards the horizon.

Her once bright, cheerful eyes turned dull and numb. It was a sight that hurt Saria the most.

She could see how the Princess was losing a part of herself day by day, and there was nothing she could do.

Some time after the ill-fated night, Saria was called to Father’s office.

He had another mission for her. This time, she was supposed to track a runaway member of Sekaris, who was hiding in Shahriz.

Father gave her a very detailed explanation of the situation, but she could hardly focus on anything he was saying.

Her eyes were drawn to the letter on his desk. It was partially covered by other papers, but just the few words she was able to read were enough to get her full attention.

‘…make sure to leave no trace. Don’t leave any loose ends. Their failure to kill Lysandra drew too much attention and made things more difficult.

It was my mistake to trust the wrong people with this, so I hope you are as good as they say.

I’m counting on you.

L.’

When she left the office, the letter was safely stored in her pocket.

She wasn’t exactly sure why she took such a risk to steal from Father right under his nose, but noticing Lysandra’s name in the letter made her act on an impulse.

It was also a direct proof that the Princess’ life was in danger and that there was going to be another attempt eventually.

Saria wished she could run directly to the Palace, but she was still a part of Sekaris, and there were things she had to take care of first.

With a heavy heart, she got into the carriage and left towards Shahriz, resolving her heart to finish this as fast as she could.

It took Saria three days to take care of her mission in Shahriz.

Upon her return to Aervelis, she immediately headed to the Palace.

To her surprise, the Princess’ chambers were unusually quiet, and there was no sight of her nearby.

Saria felt the anxiety welling up in her gut, but she forced herself to calm down and think about any other place Lysandra could have gone to.

The first to come to her mind was a small grove in the further part of the Palace grounds.

There she found Lysandra standing before the statue of Astesis in a private shrine.

She couldn’t see her face, but she could sense the deep sadness in the Princess’ voice as she was confiding her burdens with the Goddess.

“I keep trying to find sense in all of this madness. Keep wishing that maybe there is some meaning to it. But no matter how hard I try, how much effort I put in, nothing is working out the way it should. Isn’t it the definition of insanity?”

Lysandra wiped the tear falling down her cheek with her hand, then tightened her fists around the cold marble of the statue’s podium.

“Goddess, I’m so tired. I’m so tired of this constant struggle and pain. Is this how the rest of my life is going to be? Am I bound to lose every single person I care about?

“If there is no reason to any of this, if this is just a senseless chain of accidents… then what is the point in continuing it?” With every word, a new tear fell from the Princess’ eyes. With every word, her voice was becoming more desperate.

Her final question was quiet, but its weight broke something in Saria.

“Wouldn’t it be better if I died?”

Saria acted before she could register what she was doing.

She grabbed the letter from her pocket and, holding it in her shaking hands, she recited a spell.

“Aith Anis Aer.”

The illusion sigil flashed briefly in the air.

The envelope was consumed by a pale blue light, then shattered into pieces as small as sand before transforming into a beautiful blue butterfly.

It flew from Saria’s hand and found its way towards Lysandra, resting at the foot of the statue next to her.

The faint glow of the butterfly prompted the Princess to raise her head. Surprised by the sight, she reached out her finger towards it.

At the first contact, the butterfly shattered again and reshaped itself into the same envelope Saria was holding a moment ago.

Lysandra looked around, searching for the person who sent the message, but found nothing but the long shadows of the surrounding trees.

She inspected the letter from every side before undoing the thread that was keeping it sealed.

As her eyes scanned its content, her expression changed from suspicion to surprise and eventually to pure shock.

Hidden in the shadows, Saria watched as Lysandra kept reading the letter time and time again as if she couldn’t believe it was true.

Every once in a while, her eyes would dart away from the text and search the area.

Eventually, the Princess finally realized that the letter was, in fact, real. There was a change in her eyes.

There was a new fire burning in them, a new desire to fight.

This caused Saria to make a decision of her own.

She was going to do everything in her power to help Lysandra. She would use everything Sekaris had taught her to make sure of that.

But it wouldn’t be simple. It could easily lead to the death of both of them if Saria weren’t careful.

One of the precautions she made was to never meet Lysandra directly.

The other was to use an alias in all of her messages.

Thus, she became ‘Icarus’.