The view from above was breathtaking.
So much so that she didn't mind the sharp gusts of wind that cut across her face and billowed her tunic spreading out goosebumps across her body. All Mica could do was stare at the vast expanse of woods that stretched beyond the horizon endlessly.
Here and there between the canopy of dark trees was a dot of light, a sign of life. Strands of smoke that rose and guttered with the wind.
Mica stared for a long time in a daze of wonder.
Never had she seen the world from this point. Back in her kingdom they were never allowed to reach the walls, and she had been far too comfortable to consider otherwise.
Not until now.
With the whole world expanding before her and the night sky blanketed with bejewelled stars, she almost considered sitting on the edge and just gazing.
But then reality crashed over her.
Over her shoulder the garden was lit with a myriad of colors and the King sat at the head of the table with his back to her, arms resting casually on the armrests. His spine was tall and the breadth of his shoulders had been layered with gold that took the shape of a waterfall frozen mid-fall.
She could see the queen as well and the air around her was undisturbed.
Curiosity.
That was the only reason why she remained standing at the top of the wall, hidden behind a pillar, with her eyes glued to the procession below.
You should be escaping, she reasoned yet her eyes refused to lift from the King and the angle of his jaw hardened by the shadows cast by moonlight.
One of the princesses arose from her seat then.
She was draped in a sage green lush dress and her hair had been braided in a single rope down her spine. It was hard to make out her face but Micah knew that she was beautiful from the way heads turned as she walked past towards the center of the garden.
Now was the perfect time to leave, when everyone, including the guards on the wall, were captivated by the beauty of the woman.
"What's happening?" Her whisper was stolen by the wind.
The princess turned in a slow circle, parading herself and dipped low before the court and the King. When her eyes lifted there was a glint of something far from innocent, the curl of her mouth wickedly sharp.
From her fingertips came a cloth which she tied over her eyes and straightened with arms on both sides.
… do you see…
The voice came so sudden and pervading that Mica whirled around, searching for the King's presence. But he was still sitting below.
So why was his voice suddenly in her head?
"Okay, time to go." Weary that he would sense her thoughts or feelings, she began to turn away when the voice returned, halting her mid-step.
… Mica… yield…
Her right eye pulsed and everything went dark.
She was no longer on the wall with the cold wind roaring in her ears but in the dark cave staring at the princess wearing the blindfold. A light shone from above and fell on her, like a spotlight.
"What the–" A dull twisting was happening in her gut, threatening to spark like flint, but was tampered down just as fast leaving her… peaceful.
"I am your chosen." The princess echoed like a thousand voices through the cave.
There was a deep throbbing silence.
And then His voice resonated back from all corners of the darkness, glinting in amusement. "Are you?"
"Yes."
"Do you see what I see?"
Mica stared at the spotlight wondering where it came from and why it was on the lady alone.
Something stirred in the dark behind her.
"What do you see?"
There was a moment of stillness in which the princess took a deep breath then reached up with steady hands to remove her blind. Mica leaned forward.
The blind fell away and she blinked once, the start of a smile growing across her painted mouth. A dreamy glaze came over her eyes and she said; "I see you."
Mica looked around, specifically lingering in the direction of the woman's gaze.
There was nothing but darkness.
"I see your father… there's this shadow behind him that's growing… it's… powerful… deadly… you."
Huh. Her eyes kept darting between the woman and the spot of pitch black.
Back and forth.
Back and forth.
Still nothing.
"... you have the power in your hands, and what you have taken is yours to keep. I see it," the praise rose from her so confidently Mica could almost perceive what she was saying yet the cave was hollow and empty, a juxtaposed image to the woman's own image.
She finished and the smile remained unwavering on her lips. The silence stretched long enough for her to feel her own heartbeat thudding.
Long enough for the smile to break just slightly, a miniscule wavering at the corner.
… wrong…
Her finely carved brows furrowed and she broke character; that perfectly uplifted face in worship crumpled in disbelief and… fear. It was all so sudden, one moment the spotlight had been shining down on her in favor but now it looked like… judgment.
A cry left her sharp and wild and her hands rose to her eyes which had grown white, pupils swallowed in the color. Blood ran down her eyes and out of her mouth staining her dress.
She was crumpling to the ground like a wilted flower. Whatever voice she spoke with completely choked off as only gurgling sounds left with bubbles of blood.
Mica reeled back in horror and hit a wall.
Not a wall.
It was too solid, too warm. A hand alighted on her shoulder light as a feather but heavy enough to still her movements.
… be still… The King commanded.