Ezran rubbed his eyes. It was getting late and Opeli was still talking, giving him figures and rules and names and dates that his brain processed more and more slowly.
"Opeli", he finally said, interrupting her, "We should take a break. I'm not getting what you're saying."
She nodded and smiled. "Very well Majesty. We have been at it for quite some time", she noticed how dry her mouth had gotten and grabbed her cup from the mantle, "I know this must be difficult for you and I would be more than willing to relieve you of some of the burdens taking up your day. You only have to say the word.
Ezran gave her a distrustful look. "I'm happy for your help, but I don't think it would be fair for me to hand things off. That's why I am here, to make those choices."
Bait croaked his assent.
She smiled, saying, "Of course".
Her hands clasped pensively, she asked, "May I be excused for today?"
Ezran got up and opened the door for her, wordlessly.
As he watched her exit, he came to a realization.
She did that a lot. Smiling. It used to put Ezran at ease around her. Now, there was a fake air about her that he had a hard time placing in her expression. Maybe he was just being paranoid, but he felt that nobody here, safe for maybe Corvus, was being genuine with him.
The young king sat on his bed, taking off his boots. He hadn't felt much of anything from Zym these past few days either, which made sleeping difficult. Ever so often, he had felt a nondescript cold breeze and a wet sensation on his feet. Yesterday night, there had been a sequence of images of a massive man felling a tree.
Ezran stretched over the bed meant for two adults and sighed deeply. The scent of his parents was still here, in a way. The maids still used the same detergents to wash the sheets and his clothes as they had back when his life had been so much simpler. Bait flopped on his stomach and the boy pet his toad for a bit.
Suddenly, he was jerked into a vision. There were armored feet throwing dirt every which way. Between them, he could see bodies on the ground, a giant roaring in the background.
Then, his vision turned and there was Callum, scooping him up from the ground and running away from the calamity.
Rayla came into view, leaning against a tree. Her eyes stared skyward, unblinking. Her nose was bleeding. Callum's free arm wrapped around her and the vision ended as Zym's face was pressed against her.
Ezran's heart hammered.
She had still been alive, right?