The Mysterious Soldier_Part I Page 11

  She quickly got on her feet, spry as after a good night’s sleep. I think fright is a strong energizer, she told herself furtively, analyzing the current situation.

  “Aah! Curse you!” yelled Leido.

  He retrieved his gun from the ground and prepared to shoot at her. Selunia, merely out of instinct, ran immediately to the royal family zone. She drew out from her activated gloves a chain of rings shining like gold. She warned the Bardanians, who were still in a stunned state, “Don’t you dare get close to them! I’ll kill you all if you come here!”

  Her voice sounded hoarse, and her hands, chain, and legs were visibly trembling. She would have liked someone to help her. After experiencing a temporary death, she didn’t feel in control at all. She feared she would lose because she wasn’t in shape anymore; she didn’t even notice the spell had been broken. She found it hard to concentrate. Soris and the king wanted to come to her aid.

  Leido angrily lowered his gun. He knew he couldn’t risk shooting at the royal family. Now he was the one who didn’t know what to do. Should he still shoot and kill them, or should he try to capture them again? Had he killed them, then Waltario’s army couldn’t have been stopped from capturing their group. Trying to regain their domination didn’t seem a better option. His subordinates were dizzy, and the mysterious soldier looked as if he had many other hidden weapons. Leido couldn’t predict his whole capabilities. Moreover, the spell had been broken. Backups were about to come in no time.

  A thought was telling him that he’d lost and should retreat, but his pride couldn’t accept that. Their plan had been going well. Only that soldier’s appearance had turned everything upside down. He was furious. But seeing that General Waltario fiercely barged in with his soldiers, he gave up on the thought of winning. He ran to wake up Vittria and commanded the others to retreat.

  Vittria, like Selunia, woke up invigorated. A simple glance from Leido and she understood what she had to do: avoid getting into battle with those from the palace, and retreat. She got up, rapidly took her scepter, and dashed determinedly towards Waltario and his soldiers. The Bardanians, helping those too injured to walk, followed her hastily.

  The witch grabbed the scepter with both her hands, keeping it vertical. A few meters before the palace guard arrived, she hit the floor with the staff. An air wave threw Waltario and his men aside, clearing their way out. Bardan’s group left the great royal building in a hurry.

  Waltario got himself up, disturbed by what he had just seen: a stick that could blow air with an amazing pressure. He heard the king shouting at him, “Waltario! Quickly, go after them! Try to catch them! I can deal by myself here!”

  Waltario immediately nodded in consent. He went after the enemies, along with his soldiers.

  Selunia, with a late reaction, drew back the chain in her hands, and stopped the bright radiation of the gloves. She let her shoulders fall. Tired, she gave a long sigh. The vigor she had felt after awakening had been temporary. Now she was tired to death. Deafening tinkles were piercing her ears; her hands were numb, as if there was no blood running through them; her legs sat in an uncontrolled tension; and her mind was foggy. She stared into space, without thinking, for a whole minute.

  “Hey! Release me, please!” the prince shouted at her.

  Selunia turned a drowsy face to him. She went with stuttering steps to him. She put her hands on the thick ropes and hopelessly tried to pull at them. Soris looked confusedly at her: Does he think he’ll be able to untie me this way? I think he’s lost his head. I should help him.

  “Take a look over there; there’s a knife on the floor. It fell from the hands of a rascal you’ve fought earlier,” he calmly told her, indicating the knife with his head.

  With mouth half open, as if she didn’t understand anything, Selunia looked at him, then at the knife. She decided to listen to him.

  She went there in a staccato manner. She stared at the knife for a second, then decided to take it. She fell on her knees when she bent.

  She barely got up with it in her hands. The whole building spun with her. She decided to go back to the prince. The dizziness made her wobble, and she was about to fall to one side.

  “Hey! Watch out!” shouted the prince.

  His warning had some effect. Selunia came back to reality, and remained on her feet. She went to him with somewhat more stable steps, then slowly started to cut the ropes on one of his arms.

  Soris watched her lifeless moves. “He must be really tired. Poor man!”

  As soon as she freed his arm, the prince took the knife and told her, “I’ll manage from here on, thanks!” With firm and full dexterous moves, he cut through the rest of the knots.

  Selunia remained in place, balancing like a plant on the bottom of the sea. She was at the edge between dream and reality.

  Happy to be released from any constraint, Soris looked with gratitude at his savior. Noticing her state, he grabbed her by the shoulders and leaned her with her back against the stairs’ wall. “Rest here,” he told her politely.

  She replied with a crooked smile. Soris rushed to untie his parents while she remained there, floating in her state of inertia.

  Tingles went up and down her limbs. A positive thought came timidly to her mind: I did it... I saved the kingdom... This idea repeated itself a few times. Finally, she regained her consciousness for real. She began feeling joy. That’s it! I’ve saved the entire kingdom! I can’t believe! I did it! I simply did it! This discovery made her heartbeats accelerate, animating her better.

  She let herself slide down, with her back rubbing against the wall. She took a seat, bringing her knees to her chest. Oh! Can you believe what I did today? I’ve never felt so good as now! Finally I’ve found my place. Mom was right. Hooray! I’ve finally done something to be proud of! Hooray! She remembered General Waltario. Oh, wait! If I sit here longer, I’ll be questioned. Damn! And the general said I shouldn’t let anyone see my powers here... I have to go. If they think magical weapons are evil, they probably won’t look at me with only gratitude. There was a legend about witches being burnt... Oh! What if they really do that? I’d better leave without anyone noticing me.

  Chapter 2

  Selunia got up, swaying a little. A warm shiver went from the top of her head to her extremities. The helmet had slid way too much on her face. She wanted to get it back into place when, all of a sudden, she felt an object hit the helmet. Flustered, she looked around her.

  She realized that, in fact, it hadn’t been an object, but her numb hand. Oh, that scared me out of my wits! It was just my hand, but how awfully numb it is! I can’t feel it at all! A few minutes ago it wasn’t so bad. Could this be an aftermath of the battle?

  She saw how the fingers of her hand were slightly bent, as if it lacked life. The other hand was in a similar state. I hope they’ll recover quickly. Damn, I risked too much when I put my hands on that scepter. What if my hands remain like this forever? But let’s leave that now. There’s no time for worrying. I have to get myself out of here at once!

  Dragging her legs, she hurried to the exit. In the hall many soldiers, sent by the general, were gathering inside to check the condition left behind him. On the landing, servants and palace clerks were appearing, frightened and worried about what had happened. They hadn’t seen the spell, nor did they know they’d fainted. They just perceived something strange, something that had been going on in a period of time they weren’t aware of. The sight of the wrecked wall terrified them greatly.

  Selunia, in exchange, was terrified of them. So many people have come... I’m afraid I won’t be able to get out. Two guards, as if they wanted to mock her, closed the big entrance doors. The exhaustion and the stress blurred her mind again. Oh, what to do, what to do? Are they already thinking of me as a suspect? Oh, General, what should I do now? What if they start throwing stones at me?

  The people were indeed watching her with suspicion. The murmur of their whispered comments echoed all over
the place. It brought discomfort to her eardrums, stunning her even more. She slowed down. She wobbled again.

  “Stay where you are!” came the king’s strong voice.

  Selunia froze in fear. The people’s discussions dwindled significantly. That’s it! I’ve no way out now! She panicked. The king himself is talking to me! Oh, I hope I won’t do something stupid. So many eyes targeting me...

  “Hey, boy! Come over here!” the king shouted again at her.

  Selunia shut her eyes tightly. She was frightened and embarrassed. She then fixed her eyes on the ground and turned to the king. Everyone was expecting her to go in front of the king. She remained still.

  “Come on, come closer!” the king kindly urged her. “You’re the one who today has done something worthy of all our appreciation. Come here so we can thank you properly.”

  Selunia’s ears tinkled greatly. She felt the sweat pouring on her. She had only one thought in mind: to escape as soon as possible from this awkward situation. Unable to say anything, she nodded a little as a sign that she had understood. Seeing her so reserved, the king resumed, amused, “Come on, don’t be shy. Rest assured, I won’t blame you for the broken wall.”

  Soris chuckled. He didn’t expect his father to bring up that wall in such a moment. Selunia showed no reaction whatsoever. Her mind remained stuck on the idea of getting out. Her reasoning went into fog again. Without saying a word, she made to leave.

  The crowd gasped, surprised by her behavior. She had turned her back on the king himself. It was something condemnable. On top of that, they didn’t understand the jokey remark. They really believed that the soldier was the one who’d broken the wall. Still, what was the king so thankful for?

  This guy is very strange, Soris told himself, starting for her. I understand he’s tired, but he can’t ignore my father’s words. Is he trying to hide something?

  The king raised an eyebrow. He made a few steps towards her, then told her firmly, “Don’t go, boy. We’ll repay you well for what you did.”

  Selunia stopped at once. In her mind, a new thought appeared: This is my chance! I mustn’t lose it. After all, I can’t rely on the general. He wants to keep me in the shadows here, but I... I don’t want that. I want... Grasping some courage, she didn’t ponder any more.

  She turned to the king. He lifted his head, noting to himself: Heh, he’s very brave, but I see the idea of compensation pleases him. He has quite a simple mind.

  Selunia took a deep breath, advanced to him, then said in a hoarse, but firm voice: “Would you allow me to participate in the contest for the prince’s personal guard?”

  The crowd exclaimed, surprised by her request. Even the king was startled for a moment. Soris approached her. This boy wants to be my guard? I don’t have anything against that. His abilities give him the right to do so. But who is he, exactly?

  “Of course. You’ve the full right to participate,” replied the king laughingly.

  “But first, tell us who you are,” interjected Soris.

  Selunia shuddered at the hearing of that. She had a moment of reason: Damn! Why didn’t I think about that? I spoke before thinking!

  “Get your helmet off.” he calmly commanded, stopping in front of her.

  Selunia slowly lifted her hands to the helmet. I still can’t sense with my hands, and, and... how do you take off this helmet?

  Soris, impatient, didn’t wait for her. He faced her, unbuckled the tie under her chin, then took off the helmet. Selunia shrank. Taken by surprise, she warily lowered her eyes to the ground. Her long hair tied into a ponytail, and initially tucked under the helmet, spread in waves down her back. Everyone stared at her.

  Soris let the helmet fall from his hand. He tried to see her face. With her chin stuck on her chest, he couldn’t see but the part in her hair and the wet untidy wisps spread on her forehead.

  “Look at me,” he urged her, resting his hands on her shoulders.

  Selunia shuddered again. I don’t think I have the courage to look at him. I’m too tired. I’m too emotional. Why hadn’t we met earlier? Afraid, she turned her face. Soris, with a doctor’s patience, waited for a few moments. But seeing that she wasn’t a person to talk, he pulled her by the chin and lifted her face.

  Startled, she opened her eyes widely, letting her intense irises’ color clearly be seen. She hadn’t expected him to do that, just like he didn’t expect to discover a girl’s face on such a strong soldier.

  Maybe she indeed wasn’t in her best shape—pale, with untidy wet hair here and there—but her facial features were clearly feminine. It was hard to confuse her with a boy. It was just that Soris’ mind couldn’t accept this so easily.

  He took his hand off her chin. She remained still with her face lifted to him. The prince started investigating each visible physical aspect: The hair—it’s a bit too long; it’s rare to see men with such long hair. The eyebrows—they’re thin, dainty, I would say. Until now, I’ve only seen women with these. The eyes—they seem big to me; the purple color is definitely unique. The way he looks is feminine. The lashes—long and black, they seem to be well taken care of, like the whole complexion, in fact. The lips, though a bit faded in color, they’re still feminine. The voice is deceiving, and he’s a bit too emotional to see me. He sighed. Could he be that kind of effeminate boy? I notice he has no trace of a mustache or beard. But still, he fights so well... Would I insult him if I asked?

  Selunia, like him, was admiring his facial features. Although she was dizzy with exhaustion, she was glad to see her good childhood friend. It was like a dream.

  It’s him! It really is him—Soris! It’s just that he’s a lot taller... and, maybe, a little more handsome. I can’t believe we’re getting to meet again like this. It’s a weird situation... and a bit regretful, too. I’m probably a mess after so much running, fighting, falling... and I’m wearing this ugly soldier costume. Such an important moment, and I look like a disaster. But leave that. He doesn’t look his best either. Poor Soris, he has such dark circles... Could he be sick? Oh no! Is he suffering from an illness after the war?

  While they were busy marveling at each other, the people around set on gossiping, letting the controversial rumor that the savior was a girl reach the queen’s ears. Outraged, she approached the two of them. She scrutinized Selunia from head to foot, then asked bluntly: “Are you a woman?”

  Selunia jumped startled. The queen’s stinging attitude and words made the question sound menacing. Oh my, are they going to sentence me to death if they find out I’m a girl?

  She looked for help in Soris’ eyes. He’s my good friend. He should come to my rescue. He remembers me, right? Doesn’t he? Seeing how attentively he’s looking at me...

  Soris, although he found his mother’s question a bit straightforward and embarrassing, was curious to hear the answer. He was still hoping the soldier was a boy.

  “What are you doing? You dare not answer me?” sharply resumed the queen.

  Seeing that Soris wouldn’t say anything to help her, Selunia hesitantly tried to mumble something just to pass the time. “Well...”

  At that moment, the entrance gates opened widely. Inside came, with a hasty and firm walk, General Waltario. Silence fell. As soon as he saw the back of Selunia’s long hair, he stopped and exclaimed loudly: “Selunia!”

  His shout dropped like a millstone on her head. The tone of his voice sounded like a reproach. Selunia shrank and lowered her eyes, shutting them, feeling that this time she really had gotten into trouble. She was embarrassed and a bit afraid. She daren’t face him. They’d had an agreement: to keep away from the palace people, and to refrain from asking to become the prince’s guard. Luckily, he didn’t know this last part had happened too.

  The people in the hall reached the conclusion that she was a girl. The name was undoubtedly a girl’s. Soris quickly took his hands off her shoulders. He continued to stare at her, even more bewildered.

  The queen was
watching her son’s behavior with much interest. Oh dear! Look at him, how he gazes at her! I knew he’d be like his father: as soon as he saw a pretty girl, he’d fall in love with her! I want to beat the hell out of him! He makes a fool of himself here, with all these people around, by losing his mind to a lassie! What a cursed destiny I have!

  The king, on the contrary, standing a few steps away from them, grinned maliciously. Something was making him happy about this situation. That’s right, my son. Let’s see you now. I notice this girl has got you. Haha! I can’t wait to see how you’ll be able to respect your engagement vow, now that you’ve come across a girl who can steal your mind! Look at him, how he’s standing stock-still... He can’t take his eyes away from her. Had I known such a moment would arrive, I wouldn’t have struggled to make so many traps. Heaven is on my side! That means I’m the one who’s right! Yes, my son! Let’s see if you dare to say something against me again!

  Selunia, just like his parents, thought that Soris was staring way too much at her. She dared to lift her eyes at him to watch the expression on his face; then she rapidly lowered them. She joyfully thought: Oh, I’m so glad! I think he’s recognized me! I think he remembered me and he’s shocked to see us meeting again after such a long time. My name surely has brought him many memories. Oh, I’m so nervous!

  Soris put a hand on his hip, and raised the other to his temple. Unconvinced, he then turned to the general and asked him with naive innocence: “But didn’t you say she was only eight years old?”

  The king, the queen, and Selunia were shocked after hearing this question. It had dismissed all their previous impressions. How could he ask that?

  Waltario jumped back when he met his eyes. His sense of duty towards the royal family was making him feel terribly guilty. With his head bent down, he got close to Selunia, and answered the prince, “It must be a mistake. I’m sorry, Your Highness, for misleading you.”