Royal Affliction (The Anti-Princess Saga) (32 page)

Chapter Thirteen

My father was standing in the center of the room looking furious.  My men and Violet went to kneel before him, leaving Clifton and me alone.  Quino seemed to be fully healed.  He walked like he hadn’t been injured at all.  I was glad to see it.

“My King, the job is done.  The princess is whole once more,” Kafkus announced.  He looked back at me with a satisfied smile across his mouth, and then turned back to my father.  “She single handedly took down the entire Boru race.”

“Quartessa?” my father asked sounding unsure.  He seemed to want to hear it from me that what Kafkus had just told him was true.

I helped Clifton to his feet and put his arm around my shoulder so that I could support him as we walked over to join the rest of them.  I was extremely grateful for my newly recovered strength, he would have toppled me otherwise.  Violet and Kafkus moved aside so that we could stand in front of my father.

“The ring is off, father, and I am fine.  I promise.”

“The Boru is dead I presume?”

I pointed to the heap of body parts lying on the ground.  “Yes, Lynth is dead.  His plan was to kill you, but I assume that Gader already told you that.”

He looked like he was about to say something that he didn’t want to say.  “I knew of the plan before Gader told me.”

“That was the plan that you wouldn’t tell me about in Kortis.  And the reason you wanted me to stay so badly.”  I guess that I couldn’t be mad at him for not telling me about the plan when it seemed as though he hadn’t told anyone.

“Yes, Quartessa, that was the plan I spoke of.”

“Have you informed Reyka about Loach?”

“Yes.  You never should have trusted him, Quartessa.  I thought that you knew better than that.”

Resentment filled me at his words.  So I was just supposed to know that Loach would turn on me was I?  I stared daggers at him, angry from what he had expected of me and angry with myself for being so trusting.

“Quartessa found a way to kill the entire Boru race,” Violet said, eagerly trying to change the subject.

“Yes, Kafkus did mention something along those lines.  Did you manage to kill every last one?”  I nodded.  “Even the ones not in this building?”  I nodded again.  “How did you manage that?”

“I acquired a new power the night that I was attacked, an electric one.”

“Ah.  You have acquired the gift of Foundres.”  He seemed rather amused.

“The gift of what?”

“The gift of Foundres.  It is a rare ability, one that I have not seen in many centuries.  I am not surprised that you have not heard of it.”  He placed a comforting hand on the shoulder in which Clifton wasn’t leaning.  “It is a gift only given to those the heavens deem worthy.  Though, I have never heard of it being strong enough to kill an entire species before.”

“Violet helped with that,” I said trying to give her some well-deserved praise.  “She bound them together for me.”

He looked at Violet with delighted admiration.  “I am impressed, but not surprised.”

“Thank you, my King.”

His eyes fell upon Clifton.  I was still holding him up as he was too weak to stand on his own.  “How are you feeling, my son?”

“Like I was hit by lightning.  I think that I’ll be ok though.”

“His Boru half is dead,” Violet blurted out.  “It will take his body a while to heal and adjust to the change.”

“Just what you always wanted father.  He’s full-blooded Zolera now.”

My father gave an amused chuckle.

“Father?”

“Yes, daughter?”

“Pram is dead.  He was killed, along with the other guards that you sent to keep an eye on me.”

“I am sorry to hear that.  Pram was a good man, and I know that he really cared for you.”

A noise in the distance attracted my attention.  It was Kyle.  He stood alone in the doorway across the room.  I motioned for him to come and stand by me and he cautiously walked over to us, standing at my other side.

“Father, this is Kyle.  He courageously tried to fight alongside us.  Kyle this is my father, King Dobbin, ruler of the Zolera.”

“It is a pleasure to meet you, your highness.”  Kyle’s voice came out high and squeaky.  He was obviously nervous at meeting my father, I’m sure it didn’t help that my father happened to be a King.

My father nodded at Kyle, acknowledging him.  Then he looked back at me with an uncomfortable smile.  “A human, Quartessa?  You seem to find new ways to test my patience.”

I couldn’t help but grin.  Then, my conscious caught up with me.  It sounded remarkably like Gader’s voice.  “Could we please talk in private, father?”

“Of course.”

He held out his arm, I wrapped mine around it, and together we walked outside.

As we stepped out into the night a cool and welcoming breeze swept across my face.  Comprehension sank in: it was all over, and I was alive.  It felt awesome to feel like myself again but the extra power that I could feel running through me was a little unnerving.

“What is it that you wish to speak to me about?  It must be important for you to not want to talk about it in front of the others.”  He sat down on the curb and patiently waited for me to speak.

I paced in front of him, not sure how to start.  I knew that I must be the one to tell him.  There was no way that this would stay a secret for long.

After contemplation, I stopped in front of him.  “Father, do you remember when I told you the story about Drina being killed by a Boru?”

He looked shocked.  Obviously, of all the things that I could have said, that wasn’t what he’d been expecting.  “Yes?”

I began pacing again as I spoke.  “Well, I want you to know that I never lied to you.  I believed her dead, but…”

He stood up and grabbed me by the arm, stopping my pacing.  He looked deep into me, understanding in his eyes.  “She…is alive?”

“She faked her death to give Clifton a better life.”

He still looked unsure.  “You, you have seen her?”

“Yes.”

He began pacing back and forth, as I had done before.  The look in his face was unreadable.  Was it despair, anger, need?  I couldn’t tell.  “I wish to see her,” he said finally.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, Quartessa.  I must see her one last time.”

I sighed.  “Ok, I will go tell the others.”

********************

Since there were too many of us to fit in my car—and there was no sight of Bruce’s Explorer—I sent Quino, Violet and Kafkus back to my house in a cab that I had called from a somewhat nearby payphone.  I cleaned myself up the best I could from a water faucet that I’d found outside.  It didn’t help very much.  My clothes were splattered with blood, as were Clifton’s, but I didn’t feel much like going home to change so they would have to do.

My father didn’t seem to care much for the drive, and by the time we got to the hotel he was looking a little green in the face.

Violet had left me with a concealment ring which I gave to my father.  She’d taken the metal from a corpse who’d no longer need it.  Though his skin appeared pale, and his hair and beard white.  He still looked a little out of place here.  His golden robes didn’t help that fact.  But we could always pass him off as a foreigner if need be.

“Clifton, can you conceal your appearance?” I asked.

I saw him try.  He scrunched his face in concentration, but his skin stayed the same.  “No, I can’t.”  It seemed that he had lost that ability when his Boru-half had died.

I didn’t feel much like seeing my father interacting with his lost love.  “I think I will wait in the car.”  I pulled off my own concealment and handed it to Clifton.  “Go with him please.”

Clifton gave me a weird look.  “What?”

“Are you wearing another concealment charm?”

I looked down at my body.  Though I wore no items to hide my inhuman skin-tone, my skin still looked white, though a bit tanner than I remembered.  I glanced up at my father as if expecting an answer.

“I think that there might be more to the Ring of Eccus than what we know, or that Reyka has told me about.  Shifting your appearance like that is a Boru trait.”

“Violet can do it too.  I couldn’t be part Boru now.  I had killed them all.  If my body had absorbed Lynth, then my spell would have came after me as well. 
Wouldn’t it?

He sighed with understanding.  “You are not a witch, Quartessa, but I do not think that you have become Boru either.  I think that you have merely absorbed some of Lynth’s capabilities, kind of a reversal of power caused by the ring.”

That didn’t make me feel any better.  I didn’t like the fact that I may have taken a part of Lynth with me.  I wanted to be free of him for good but it seemed that wasn’t what had happened.  I was stuck with him, a constant reminder of what I’d been through.

I looked back at Clifton.  With my ring on, he looked a little different than he normally did with his own mask.  His skin was the pasty white color that mine used to be.  His hair was slightly darker, more of a soft brown color.  As I stared at him, I saw his mask begin to melt away, leaving behind his real self.  I gasped.  “Clifton, the charm isn’t working.”

Clifton looked bewildered.  He glanced down at his skin and then back at me.  Suddenly, a look of understanding came over him.  “The charm is working fine.  You are just able to look past it.”

Great, so this was just even more proof that Lynth was inside of me.  How could I get him out?  I didn’t want his power.  I wanted to be myself.

“Is this a common Boru thing?”

“No, Quartessa.  The ability to see through concealment spells is not a skill that many Boru possess.”

“
Great!”

Well, I looked human now.  I guess I was going inside.

Clifton was limping, but at least he was walking on his own.  My father led the way once we stepped into the hotel.  He walked purposefully up the stairs and through the hallways.  It was as though he could sense her, and he must have been able to because soon we stood, once again, in front of room 513.

“Dobbin?  Is it really you?” a small voice asked from behind the door, before I could even knock.

“Yes, Drina, it is I.”

The door flung open.  Drina stood behind it wearing a red, satin nightgown.  She looked shocked, but not displeased at the late night visit.

“Please, come in.”

My father stepped through the doorway, as did Clifton, but I stayed where I was.  I loved my mother, and I couldn’t bear the thought of seeing my father interacting with Drina.  Though I knew that they weren’t going to do anything, the way that they looked at each other was enough to cause me distress.

“I think that Kyle and I will wait for you two downstairs.”

“Do you want me to come?”

“No, Clifton.  I want someone to stay.”  I looked past him and into the room.  My father and Drina were sitting on the couch talking and looking very comfortable together.  “Make sure that he doesn’t do anything he’ll regret please?”

Clifton nodded and then closed the door.

“Why don’t you want to go in?” Kyle asked.

“Personal reasons.  Let’s go downstairs.”

Kyle looked like he wanted to ask something else but he held his tongue, and I was thankful for that.  I didn’t feel much like answering any uncomfortable questions at the moment.

We made our way down to the lobby and stopped off in the lounge.  I sat at the bar and ordered myself a glass of wine.  The bartender eyed my bloody clothes, but he didn’t comment.  I was about to order another one for Kyle when I stopped myself.  “How old are you Kyle?”

“I’m 21.”  I gave him an appraising glance that made him laugh.  “I know I look younger.  I get that all the time.  But I’m 21, I swear.”

“Well what do you want to drink then?”

“I’ll just have a soda.”

I signaled to the bartender and he brought Kyle his drink.

“Kyle?”

“Yes?”

“How are you feeling?”  I felt guilty for his injuries.

“Oh I’m ok, Tess, really.  I’m a little sore, but that will go away in a couple of days or so.”

“I’m sorry that you got dragged into this mess.”

“I wanted to help.  Please don’t apologize to me.”

I didn’t want him to misunderstand me, so I chose my next words carefully.  “Do you have a place to stay?  I don’t know if I am going to keep my apartment, not after the horrible memories I’ve accumulated there in the last few days.”

“I can’t stay with you?” he asked, breaking my heart with his tone.

“Kyle, I am just trying to figure things out.  I’m not trying to get rid of you.  I promise.”  I didn’t want him to think I was trying to walk out on him like his father had.

He looked sad, maybe even a little ill.  “My father was all I had.  Now, I have no one, and nowhere to live.”  The tears began to form.  He was taking my simple question way worse than I thought he would.

“Kyle, you’ve still got me, please don’t cry.  I just haven’t decided if I’m staying here or going home.  If I choose to return to Kortis you can’t go with me.”  I just had to make him understand.