The Nightingale

Chapter 71: Second move

Summer — x493 / July 25

As the bedroom door closed behind her and silence settled in the room, Yuki spared a look at all the girls who were still standing in line and who were trying to understand what had happened a few moments before. Prince Kaien had not given her the title of Inamorata and with that speech, more than protecting her, he had put her in the sights of all those girls who wanted to be the crown princess.

They might not hurt her directly, but they could bond with each other and cover each other; they could also ignore her to the point of making her appear invisible.

Yuki had endured the teasing of the previous generation, Senna, Loly and Riruka had been her personal demons, so she didn't care too much if the girls she shared a room with ignored her or not, she had the prince's attention and it was all she needed at that moment. With Rukia protecting her and supporting her to become the crown princess, Yuki knew that she was practically untouchable and if someone harmed her, the prince was sure to punish the culprit.

With that thought in mind, she began to walk slowly to her bed, which was at the end of the room, and thought about how uncomfortable it would be to share this room with the other ladies of the court. Maybe when Rukia came back she would ask him to assign her a private room.

— If Prince Kaien knows who is to blame for your injuries, why did he make that threat to all of us?

Mila's question made her stop and turn on her heel only to realize that the other girls were gathered in small groups, as if they were about to talk about something that shouldn't be said beyond a whisper. Lord Stark's daughter looked at her with that kind of calm that experience gives, as if she had lived that scene before or as if she knew something that everyone there did not know.

Yuki looked at Mila for a moment, looked at the other girls who seemed to be waiting for an answer to that question, and quickly thought of something to say to them. She could lie to them, but sustaining a lie was too much work and she couldn't complicate her existence right now; so she decided to tell them what she believed to be true.

— Because when the prince first asked who had hurt me, none of you said anything about the culprit even though you all knew who it was. — Yuki responded with that anger that still remained in her voice for that event and showed them the hand where she had the ring and the black bracelet that the prince gave her. — The year before, Princess Nelliel broke my hand for being friends with the prince. This year I have injuries on my back from being friends with the prince. Both injuries occurred in this room, and all of you feel offended by a couple of words? None of you would have endured what I have endured, just for being friends with the prince. None of you will bear what it is to be a crown princess if you let a couple of words offend you.

Yuki stared at all of them, especially the ones who really wanted to be the next crown princess, and sighed with an expression of defeat that was as false as her desire not to be a princess.

— One of you said, the night we were introduced to the prince, that a game had been "started" but this is not a game, it is a hunt, and you are not the hunters. — Yuki sat on her bed with that same defeated expression. — They're evaluating you girls. It is not the queen that you have to convince that you are the perfect mate, it is Prince Kaien.

— And you, coincidentally, are friends with the prince. — Mila commented with that calmness that Yuki didn't like.

— And I could be your wild card if you stopped seeing me as a rival. — Those words were directed especially at the Cifer girls. — You all can think what you want, I really don't care.

After those words, Yuki lay down on the bed to rest with her back to the room, ignoring the other girls and the murmurs surely included her name.

Yuki closed her eyes and remembered when the prince kissed her back and asked her again who had given her those wounds. She couldn't even think straight at that moment for all the pleasure the prince was giving her, but her mouth dropped the name of the culprit and the prince told her that he would send the girl home if she wanted.

The idea was tempting, but Yuki asked him not to because the Cifer girl had already been punished and Yuki didn't want to be looked at with more hate inside that room.

— If I become your friend, will I become the crown princess?

Mila's question puzzled Yuki, who immediately widened her eyes and sat up on the bed causing Mila to take a small step back as a reflex action.

— What?

Mila gave her a smile and walked over to her, sitting uninvited on the bed and nonchalantly resting her hands on the mattress. Mila had never treated Yuki badly, they weren't exactly friends, but they weren't rivals.

— There was a girl who became the "best friend" of a prince's Inamorata, that Inamorata died after a while and the "best friend" married the prince. They lived happily and had many children. — Mila replied without taking her eyes off her. — I'm going to give you a girl-on-girl warning, don't have best friends and don't fall for Prince Kaien.

Yuki had a bad feeling about Mila at the time, but didn't say anything.

— Come with us tomorrow for lunch in the marble garden, the Cifer girls won't be there. — Mila got up from the bed with grace and elegance. — The queen is waiting for you for tea.

Mila went about her own business and Yuki quickly got out of bed to go to her date with the queen, passing Mila who seemed to be busy reading an old book.

The queen's servant served her tea in a cup with a blue flower in bud, which opened with the hot water. Yuki had never seen that type of tea and was amazed by that blue flower. She waited for the queen to sip her own tea before doing the same herself, and waited patiently for the queen to speak.

— Do you know why you are here? — The queen asked calmly after placing her cup of tea on the table.

Yuki nodded.

— Because I spent the night in Prince Kaien's bed, Your Majesty.

The queen nodded and took another sip of her tea.

— Prince Kaien spoke with me, and although he did not give you the title of Inamorata, he grants you all the privileges that Inamoratas have, so it is my duty to remind you of a few things. The rules of inheritance dictate that the crown prince's children must be born first, so if you get pregnant by Prince Kaien, you will be able to have your child.

That possibility made Yuki blush because a son could secure her place within the castle and brought her closer to the possibility of marrying the prince. Rukia had told her, "make the prince fall in love with you, get into his bed and give him a child, then you will be the crown princess", and that was what Yuki intended to do.

— From now on, whenever they see you, they will see Prince Kaien, so new clothes will be made for you. — The queen continued speaking. — It also means that if you are seen with another man, alone or in a compromising situation, and then you break the news of a pregnancy, the prince might not recognize it and you will be tried for treason and for trying to deceive the crown.

That part was not to Yuki's liking and she mentally thanked she hadn't been with anyone else before the prince. She also assumed that the warning was for the soldier who was her "boyfriend".

— I understand your majesty, I will be careful with my personal relationships.

— Now all your stuff is being moved to a private room on the first floor, away from the Court Ladies' bedroom to prevent further accidents to your person. You can't sleep in the king's area, but the prince can visit you in your new room. — The queen took another sip of her tea cup before smiling in a way that Yuki didn't like either. She was too nice. — Enjoy this, Miss Kuchiki, because you could become queen but also the wife of a simple lord or a corpse in the graveyard of the grove.

Summer — x493 / July 27

Masaki watched Isshin get dressed, or at least put on his sleeping robe and fasten it with the ribbon at the waist. The night before they had slept together and the plans were to have breakfast and spend the whole day together doing some activity as a couple, like walking or horseback riding in the forest on the cliff.

They had a long time without doing any of those activities that they both liked so much, but evidently the kingdom does not wait, because Isshin's presence was required in the Dome by the three main councilors to attend to an urgent matter.

— My queen, excuse this man for leaving you this way. — Isshin approached her, who was still sitting on the bed covered by the sheets, and took her hand to kiss it. There were only two people before whom a king bowed: before his mother and before his wife.

— The kingdom before life. — Masaki whispered despondently because she couldn't do anything to stop Isshin from leaving the room. That motto had been in the family for more generations than she would like.

— Until the day I die. — Isshin replied and kissed Masaki's hand again. — I promise I will make up for this, my queen. When Ichigo returns we will go to Visnia to spend a couple of days. We'll go to the cabin and the spring.

That promise made a small dose of emotion and happiness shine in the queen's eyes. A few days of rest in the mountains would do them both good, they also needed to rest from so much conspiracy that was being woven in the castle, because although there was peace, eventually it would end and the war between them would be unleashed again.

— If so, go do your job my king. — Masaki got up a bit and kissed her husband at that moment.

She liked that Isshin didn't want to break the kiss so quickly and she liked feeling that he was too willing to stay in bed with her because of the way he was giving in to that kiss. However, the door rang with a couple of knocks and that little happiness was broken.

— Promise you'll think about it my queen. Maybe it's a selfish wish, but we're still young... maybe this time I'll do better.

Guilt echoed in Isshin's voice and fear activated in Masaki. What if Isshin doesn't do better this time? She didn't want to expose another son to what Ichigo suffered as a child, she didn't want Kala's curse to come back to haunt them. And she didn't want to have another loss.

— Let it be at the will of the Deities. — Masaki answered and that made the king smile, who gave her one more kiss before leaving that room.

She stayed in bed, thinking about the king's proposal to have one more child, and came to the conclusion that the king only wanted to have another child to wash away his guilt. She was young and could still give children to the king because the magic in her kept her in the prime of her life, but for one reason or another, she lost the last pregnancies she had.

No pregnancy had been announced except to the king himself, and all had been left unfinished long before her body had undergone any significant change. All those times the king was happy for the news, a long offspring is what every king seeks, and all those times the king was depressed with her for the loss.

The queen spent part of the morning thinking about it, so when she got fed up with her mind going over and over the same thing, she decided to leave her room to try and clear her head.

She did not enter the court girls' room, she did not feel the desire to listen and be revered by all those girls who were really waiting for a dream; nor did she want to see Yuki, who did not hesitate for a moment to take advantage of the fact that she was under Kaien's protection to join a select group of friends who accompanied her everywhere.

Internally Masaki was waiting for the way Yuki would die in that generation, because it seemed that the girls Kaien slept with had some girl from the Cifer family as a rival, although seeing Mila together with Yuki was not something she expected. Mila had been in court with Miyako, she had seen what happened, and for a moment, Masaki had the impression that Mila would do the same as Nelliel.

Mila was the best choice for a wife, she was the daughter of one of the 13 great families of the kingdom and daughter of Lord Stark, who was the owner of the largest naval fleet in the kingdom, and her family was filthy rich; almost as rich as the Kuchiki family or Councilor Kyoraku's family. Mila was the one the queen had thought of as Ichigo's wife when he was still the heir to the kingdom.

As she walked through the hall leading to the exit of the queen's area, she met Kisuke's cat who was walking with his tail raised and that attitude of being the owner of the castle; which must be so because it seemed that no one had noticed the presence of that big cat. That made Masaki smile, and she stood in her place waiting for the cat to come to her.

— Hello, are you tired, big brother? — The queen asked the cat as he rubbed against her legs with a quite audible and very pleasant purr.

That cat was a mustachioed killer machine that purred when it was petted on the head, just like Kisuke.

The queen picked up the cat, who hugged her like a small child, and carried it back to her room, stroking its head. She ordered one of her maids to fetch some meat and water for the newcomer, and she sat on the bed to give the animal a rest from the long journey it must have made.

She took the metal container from the cat's neck, took out a letter that she opened carefully and prepared to read. Kisuke was sending her a complete and detailed report of everything, absolutely everything, that had happened in Vermist. From the arrival of the children to the exile of Kirio.

Surely in the following days the messengers that she sent with her daughters will arrive, and possibly a similar message will reach Isshin; maybe not as complete as the one she had, but it would include the punch Ichigo gave the king of Gardelia for hitting Rukia, and that wasn't good.

Ichigo had gotten into so much trouble at Vermist, that for a moment she thought her son was a boy and not a man, but what really angered the queen was the fact that there was only one culprit in the whole situation:

— Damn Kyrio! You are going to pay me for this! Exile is too light a punishment for you! — The queen yelled completely angry.

Her beloved sister-in-law had contributed to Ichigo's misfortune and that just couldn't go unpunished.

Summer — x493 / July 29

Rukia felt as if she came back from a very, very dark place, a place where there was only silence and nothing else, it was hard to describe but it was sure that she had been in a place like that. It wasn't the throne room where that yellow-eyed queen had tricked her, it was a different place.

When she regained consciousness, the first sense that came to her was hearing because the first thing she heard was the sound of crickets just outside wherever she was and she guessed it was night. She tried to move and as she did, her whole body ached in an inexplicable and at the same time familiar way.

Everything was so strange and so new that more than scaring her, it made her curious because in front of her there was a world that she did not know and to which she could access.

She opened her eyes and realized that she was in a dark place, lying on something soft and there was something warm covering her body.

Little by little she recognized her surroundings and discovered that she was inside the carriage, on that seat that turned into a bed and covered with a thick sheet to protect her from the fresh air that could enter through the window.

She moved again, her whole body aching at the slightest movement, but she sat up and tried to adjust her eyes to the gloom.

In front of her, in the other seat that turned into a bed, someone was lying down, completely still.

— My Sun…

Her voice was rough and her throat ached, as if she hadn't used it in days. At that moment she remembered that she had possibly slept for many days just like Ichigo did when he used the ankh, and was curious to know how many days it had taken to her body to recover from that encounter with the dark queen.

Just thinking about that queen sent a shiver down Rukia's spine.

That woman was inside her, she was part of her and she was the one she had to tame in order to handle the ankh. When all the threads are broken the queen would be free; when all the threads are broken, she should already know how to dominate that woman.

Ichigo had mentioned to her that there were doors in his mind, but she had imagined nothing more than a hallway full of doors; she never thought about what could be behind those doors or if behind that "great final door" there was a man or creature that asked to be released. At that moment Rukia felt a huge sadness inside her because she imagined that little boy, the one who was once Ichigo, dealing with something as terrifying as that queen.

A child.

— My Ichigo…

Her voice broke on that murmur and she ignored the fact that her whole body ached as she got up only to sit on the floor so she could caress the sleeping man. How much had Ichigo really suffered? Rukia could never blame him for letting the gift influence him like that when he had come back from the war because the power was incredible and overwhelming.

A child can't deal with that power no matter if he was a prodigy; she wouldn't be able to deal with it without Ichigo's help.

It wasn't dawn yet, but in the dark she found Ichigo's face and caressed him gently, his beard was beginning to grow and she pushed those sad thoughts aside as she remembered the way he used to play tricks on her when his beard was just beginning to grow. Ichigo used to scratch her face with his stubble before kissing her.

— What are you thinking about?

Ichigo's voice came out in a whisper that Rukia had been subconsciously expecting. Ichigo was a light sleeper on trips, it was part of everything he had ever lived through that he couldn't get rid of. Sleeping soundly was a luxury Ichigo only had when they were in the castle and he was sleeping in her arms.

— I think I'm hungry. — Rukia whispered before moving slightly to allow Ichigo to sit down. — How many days was I unconscious?

— Many days. — Ichigo answered and hugged her in a soft and comforting way. Rukia guessed he was holding her like this because he knew the pain she might be feeling right now. She snuggled into those arms with her eyes closed just to enjoy the sound of Ichigo's heart. — One more day and I was going to start to worry.

Rukia gave him a small tap on the shoulder in response, but she didn't break away from him, instead she breathed in Ichigo's scent of wood and citrus. The trips weren't clean, they went days without bathing, but that didn't matter to her because even so, Ichigo smelled clean and that was something she enjoyed. Perhaps he had bathed that day.

— How many days? — She asked again before breaking that hug.

— Almost a week. You slept for 6 days. — Ichigo's response, even though she couldn't see his face in the dark, let her know that he was worried and anxious. — What did you see? What happened in there? Don't answer me now, you must eat something first or you'll faint.

It was not yet dawn when she finished telling Ichigo everything that had happened when she was in meditation. He had listened to her attentively, they were both sitting on the outskirts of the carriage with a small lantern with a candle that gave them enough light to see each other, and she had a piece of bread stuffed with some salt meat left over from dinner.

— I think I do not have to explain much, you have understood well. — Ichigo commented calmly. — I will teach you and help with the training but it will be different than how they teach us.

— Why?

The question was genuine. Ichigo made her take another bite of the stuffed bread so she could keep eating.

— Because your body is new. — That answer puzzled Rukia and before she could swallow what was in her mouth and ask another question, Ichigo continued speaking. — We, as children of Vayalat, are born this way, with magic being a part of us. You weren't born that way, you made a deal and it's wisest to start as slowly as possible so your body adjusts to the magic.

Rukia nodded, conceding that Ichigo was right in his words. She had made a deal and, although she said she was the Queen's Favorite, she had not been born with those gifts. As she took the last bite of her bread, she remembered something important that Ichigo had told her when the gift first controlled him.

— My Sun… I lost control, right?

That question came out with a small dose of fear mixed with the curiosity to know. Ichigo looked at her and, since they had woken up, she saw him smile a little.

He handed her a cup of coffee and it was at that moment that he told her what she had done.

Summer — x493 / July 31

Sui Feng was washing Yoruichi's hair as the warm afternoon air streamed in through the open windows and the curtains moved gently. Yoruichi had missed the tub baths and had missed her little maid's diligent hands, so she was enjoying this bath as much as she deserved.

The journey back to the White City had been long and exhausting, not to mention the fact that her brother was angry with her and it was very likely that Yushiru would not speak to her until the anger wore off from him. Yushiru loved his own nose, so it was lucky that it had healed so well that no one would notice that Ichigo punched it.

The memory of Ichigo playing with her, with her feelings, made her sink into the tub for a moment only to let out a cry that was drowned out by the water. Her anger was so great that she swore to herself that, if she had the chance, she would make him pay for everything he did to her.

Yoruichi got up from the tub and let the water run down her body before getting out of it. Sui Feng was waiting outside with a towel to dry the excess water on her skin and help her dress in a beautiful outfit full of jewels and precious stones that clearly demonstrated her status within the harem.

Sui Feng untangled her hair, let it hang down her back to dry, and handed her a cup of tea for her to drink. Yoruichi closed her eyes and drank the liquid, which had cooled down while she was bathing, as fast as humanly possible. The only children that could be born within the harem were her brother's children, and unless she chose to sleep with him, she would not be able to get pregnant while living in the White Palace.

Yoruichi hadn't slept with Ichigo, but she had definitely slept with a prince in Vermist. A good time between the sheets was all she needed to think clearly again and Kisuke's eldest son was very willing to take her to bed.

The door to her bedchamber opened, taking her by surprise, and the slaves at the door announced the Malthai of the kingdom. Her mother entered the room, looking angry and imposing, her eyebrows drawn together, her mouth in a straight line and her gaze fixed on her, and made all the girls who were there, including Sui Feng, leave.

The Malthai of the kingdom, the mother of the king; a woman so incredibly beautiful that only she was worthy to be called Malthai. A woman who killed the other princes of the kingdom so that her eldest son would not have competition on his way to the throne. A dangerous and cunning woman.

— Your brother already told me everything that happened in Vermist. — Her mother spoke when she was in front of her. Yoruichi looked down immediately. — And well? Will you say something?

— Your Majesty, this was not my fault. It was because of that girl who…

— I'm not interested in knowing whose fault it was. — She was interrupted by her mother before she started to make an excuse. — Have you ever thought what would have happened if you returned to the kingdom with the body of your brother? Did you think about what situation that would put us in?

Those questions made Yoruichi look up only to meet her mother's furious expression.

— Mother, I don't...

— Of course you didn't think about it! — The Malthai seemed about to hit her, but Yoruichi thanked the Deities that her mother didn't.

— Nothing would have happened, mother. My younger brother is still alive, he would have risen to the throne if Yushiru had died in Vermist.

— Yoruichi, my little girl. — The Malthai approached Yoruichi and grabbed her cheeks like when she was a little girl, only this time there was a bit of violence and anger in that grip. — If Yushiru died in Vermist, your younger brother's reign would only last as long as it takes for one of Yushiru's concubines' children to be born. You know that one of the concubines is the daughter of the Grand Councilor and the other concubine is the daughter of the Commander of the Kingdom, you know that both girls are pregnant and it is very probable that a prince will be born from one of them. Do you have any idea what it means?

— But if girls are born...

— You don't get it? They won't be girls! If Yushiru dies before his children are born, I assure you they won't be girls. The father of the concubine who gives birth first will present a boy, regardless of whether he is of Yushiru's blood or not. This is how it works, my little girl. No one is going to miss out on a kingdom without a king.

The Malthai released Yoruichi and went to the exit of that room. Yoruichi's cheeks felt sore from that grip, but she didn't do anything to lessen the pain, she just stared at her mother's back as she headed out of the room.

— All your wishes and whims have been fulfilled, but it is time for you to serve your brother's kingdom. — Her mother gave her one last look before leaving the place. — I will find a husband for you, and you will marry as soon as possible and leave the White Palace. I will not allow Yushiru to be hurt again because of your whims. I will not allow that because of you we lose the kingdom that with so much effort I managed to obtain for your brother, for us.

The Malthai left that room and Yoruichi was silent, looking at the closed door and thinking about what her mother had said. They were going to exile her from the White Palace with a marriage and she was not willing to allow it, the only way they were going to get her out of there would be dead.

After dinner, when candles and torches lit up the room, Sui Feng began braiding her hair to help her get ready for bed. Yoruichi hadn't stopped thinking about her mother's words, and the more she thought about it, the more despair she felt.

She had rejected all the suitors her father had presented for her, all young and rich, sons of councilors or merchants who made their fortunes one way or another. All the suitors presented her with beautiful and valuable jewelry, as well as fabrics not made on the mainland, but no matter what they promised her, she had turned them down just to wait for Ichigo.

Ichigo. Ichigo. Ichigo.

Sui Feng had promised her that Ichigo would be hers if he drank the green liquid in the wine, but Ichigo didn't even taste it because Yushiru had emptied the glasses in a fit of desperation at believing that girl's stupid words.

— Come out everyone, I want to be alone. — Yoruichi ordered for all the slaves to leave her room. — Not you, Sui Feng.

The girls bowed to her and left the room.

Sui Feng finished braiding Yoruichi's hair and helped her put on her sleeping clothes in that silence that showed the girl's adoration for her. Sui Feng was the only maid within the harem who was not a slave; she was completely free and she could come and go as she pleased.

— Your dead lied to me. — Yoruichi said looking at Sui Feng, who was looking down out of respect. — They promised me my prince of eagles, but now I have nothing.

— My princess, the dead do not lie. If they promised you a prince, they will give you a prince. — The girl's voice came out with so much respect that it was overwhelming. — Let me go back to consulting the dead. If your future has changed, if your destiny is not what they whispered, then you can have my life. A witch who cannot correctly interpret the voices of the dead doesn't deserve to be a witch.

Yoruichi looked at Sui Feng in silence, considering the girl's words for a moment before allowing her to go get her things so she could consult the dead about her fate again.

Sui Feng was, as the locals of the Dawnlands said, a jade witch from the Jade Lands. She prayed to the Nameless Gods, consulted fortune cards, created potions and poisons to bend life and will, and among many other things, she could speak with the dead through the bones.

The first time Sui Feng read Yoruichi's destiny through the cards, Yoruichi was impressed by everything the girl told her, because she spoke of things that no one knew, as well as the disease that would kill the king.

When she returned to the ship, which was anchored at one of the docks in that city in the Dawnlands, and told Yushiru everything the girl had told her, her brother assured her that they were lies.

"They are charlatans who only say what you want to hear, they know how to read the expressions on people's faces. When I was a child, a wandering witch from the North once told me that if I became king I would die from a black snake bite. There are snakes in Gardelia, some of the most poisonous on the continent, I could die from putting on a boot and not realizing that there is a snake there, regardless of whether I am a king or not. Don't believe those women, they just say what they have to say to earn a few coins."

After those words, Yushiru began to talk about what had happened at the meeting with the merchant, for whom they had made the journey to the Dawnlands, but the girl's words stayed in Yoruichi's mind.

She didn't look for the witch again until a day before they started the trip back to Gardelia, and that day, when she entered the witch's stall, Yoruichi saw that everything was packed, as if the girl was about to leave the city. That day, Sui Feng read Yoruichi's future through the bones of the dead, and at the end, the witch swore loyalty and service to Yoruichi because her Nameless Gods told her that she must serve the flower of the desert.

That was how Sui Feng came to Gardelia and entered Yushiru's harem.

Sui Feng returned to the room with an old wooden box, with black stains where it had been frequently touched, and carefully opened it on the table. Yoruichi walked over to the table and sat on the chair, not taking her eyes off what Sui Feng was doing at the time. The witch took out of the wooden box a black candle mounted on an old metal stand, a small censer and several colored stones. Inside the box was also a black bag.

The witch took a piece of charcoal with a metal tong and brought it close to a lit torch, held it there until it turned red and then placed it in the censer, repeated the procedure with three more pieces of charcoal, and then carefully lit the candle. Sui Feng said a prayer in the language of the Jade Lands, passing her hand over the flame of the black candle and then over the reddening embers inside the censer; she took the small colored stones and placed them on the embers.

Smoke and the smell of incense filled the room as quickly as the breeze, and Yoruichi felt herself back at that stall in the Dawnlands.

The smell of incense induced a kind of trance, filling her senses and giving her the sensation that everything became clearer even though the night covered everything.

Sui Feng placed her hands on the table with the palms facing up, without interrupting the prayer she said in that strange language, and the smoke from the incense began to form small figures in the air which moved slowly and hypnotically. The witch took the black cloth bag and Yoruichi recognized the sound of bones inside it.

— Three times, my princess. — Sui Feng said with a slightly soft tone of voice, becoming one with the atmosphere that had formed between them at that time. — Tap the bones three times. One to wake them up, one to appease their fury, and one so they can talk.

Yoruichi felt her hands sweat at that moment, although she had already touched those bones one time before, the idea was somewhat terrifying because they were human bones; bones of men, women and children. Bones that were cleaned, broken and carved between prayers to the Nameless Gods to keep the souls held in the world as a magical bond of knowledge until they fulfilled their mission with their master.

Yoruichi did as Sui Feng asked; she put her hand inside the bag, touched the bones of the dead three times and when she took her hand out, the sensation that something had touched her made her shiver.

The witch continued with the prayer and emptied the bag on the table revealing its contents.

The bones were no bigger than a domino piece and were carved with those symbols that forced the dead to speak the truth or condemn their soul to an eternity of agony within that censer. With her right hand, the witch made the smoke from the censer cover the bones, moved it in a circle three times, and then picked up one of the bones at random to place it on the hot embers of the censer.

A cold wind entered through the window and Yoruichi felt her skin goosebumps at that moment. The witch moved her head a little, as if someone had stood next to her and was beginning to whisper things to her, and she began to move her hands so that the smoke from the censer began to take shape in front of Yoruichi while the witch asked questions in that foreign language.

It was really magical.

— The dead whisper in my ear, they say that your prince of eagles is still in your destiny. The dead say that you and your prince will meet between blood and death, but the moment you and your prince are together, nothing will separate you. — Sui Feng said as she waved her hands in the air and the smoke went from a crowned man turning into an eagle to a small figure moving around chasing a flower. — The dead whisper, they say in my ear, in your destiny there is a little flower that will make up for the one you lost. — The little flower turned into a man with a scar on his face. — The dead say that there is a condition for you to reach your prince of eagles, they say that you must first touch hell before you can fly with him. The dead are silent.

Yoruichi's future had changed, it had become better.

—

First it was an eye, small and yellow, with a vertical pupil like some reptiles have in daylight, and then the other.

Slowly the shadow took shape, coming out of the darkness as if it were coming out of water, with the calm and silence that is part of the shadow's own nature.

The shadow serpent sought out its target, whom its summoner had marked as a tribute to the Original Mother and the Shadow itself, and crawled on its own abdomen until it reached the bed where the man slept.

If the room were not in darkness, one could admire the beauty of death in those tar-black scales that seemed to glow and in those yellow eyes that indicated how deadly and dangerous this creature was.

The order was simple: bite him.

And so did the shadow serpent.

The bite was on the sleeping man's ankle, and it was as quick and as true as a well-delivered whiplash. The poison was cold, like spring water in winter, painful as a needle inside the skin, and burned whatever it touched. That poison was a slow and painful death sentence.

The man on the bed screamed and at the same moment the candles were lit, that shadow hid because its mission had been left unfinished and it could not return to the origin until it had completed the summoner's will. The shadow serpent hid in the same place it had been hiding since the night it was called, in the man's shadow.

— Your Majesty! What's going on?

— Check the room! — The king yelled. — There is an animal here that bit me. Find the damn animal and wake up the doctor!

As the slaves searched the room for that animal, among the shadows, first one eye closed and then the other, just like when the shadow woke up.

Special regards to jobananasan, diah77, Guest and Nikkiebelles.

Thanks also to everyone who reads and follows this story.

See you as soon as I finish writing the next chapter.

XOXOX

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