The Nightingale

Chapter 74: Shadow's Gift

Summer — x493 / August 12

The ankh was everything.

Magic was day and night, it was like drinking the best wine or eating the best food, it was overwhelming, it was strong and it was willful. Taming and dominating it was something that required patience, effort and self-control because the magic also influenced its bearer.

Rukia was engulfed in anger and frustration, in despair and fear, all because she couldn't get the queen to stop laughing at her attempts to control magic. Those feelings that kept her trapped were the same ones that triggered the magic in a wild way.

The prayer that Ichigo had taught her to control her temper was not useful at the moment because every time Rukia recited it, the queen inside her laughed at her and reminded her that if she couldn't handle that initial aspect, which all the children of Vayalat start with, then she couldn't control the rest.

— You are weak. — The queen told her at that moment that, for the sixth day, Rukia had tried to make the power that suffused her skin retreat within her. — You are useless, you are small and weak. You don't deserve what we give you, you don't deserve what you are.

— I am not weak. — Rukia whispered and the queen let out a laugh that echoed in the confines of that darkened throne room. — I am not weak!

The scream echoed through the room, the queen stopped laughing but kept that superior smile on her that made Rukia's anger grow and made the magic go out of control. Rukia hated when the queen said those words because she wasn't weak, she was strong and capable of doing whatever she set her mind to. She had to be.

— Get out of here, girl. — The queen spoke as if she was bored to see her. — You're not good for this. You are not strong enough to control this. When you realize you can't, when your will ends, then I will take control of your body.

— I will not allow it because I am not weak. — Rukia said again, still with the anger in her voice at the queen's words, but the woman on the throne just laughed and closed one of her own eyes.

It was at that moment that Rukia opened her eyes to reality, the queen had expelled her from her own inner world as if she were an invader and Rukia simply fell to the ground in a gesture of exhaustion because her whole body ached. As she controlled her breathing, the cliff hall began to become present, as well as the presence of the other person in that place. Rukia was never alone when she tried to control magic, both Ichigo and Queen Masaki had their concerns regarding the woman on the throne and the influence she might have on her, so Rukia practiced when they had time off from their duties.

— Do not despair, this takes more time than you imagine. — Queen Masaki's voice came to her with that soft, motherly tone that was trying to comfort her. — You're doing it right.

— How do I know I'm doing it right? — Rukia asked from the ground in a voice that bordered on frustration and despair. She still had that feeling on her skin that didn't go to sleep and that always seemed to be stronger when the queen expelled her from her inner world. — I feel like I'm in the same place where I started. I feel lost.

— You haven't gone crazy or indiscriminately attacked someone. — Queen Masaki replied simply. — So, you're doing great.

Rukia didn't know how to interpret that answer. She forced herself off the ground, her entire body protesting the pain but trying not to complain too much. The training exhausted her and was painful.

— My brother Kisuke often says that we are our own enemies, and I think that, in these moments, that phrase can be applied. — Queen Masaki pointed to the stairs that indicated the exit of that room so that they both began to walk. — What goes on inside us is practically a battle of wills.

The two of them left the Hall of the Cliff and, instead of following the usual path to the queen's area, Queen Masaki led her through the gardens to the king's area and beyond.

— Dear mother, where are we headed? — Rukia asked as they were walking out the side doors of the castle.

In front of them were three paths, one encircling the outside of the king's area, one leading to the training grounds, and one leading to the barns, stables, and corrals. The road to the training grounds had its own gate leading out of the castle grounds as well as the road to the barns, because that's where soldiers and supplies entered the castle, and only the path surrounding the king's area led directly to the white path.

— We're going to the chicken pens.

Rukia nodded at what the queen said and started walking beside her. Behind them came Tatsuki and the queen's personal maid, who had been waiting for them outside the Cliff Hall.

The road was as wide as a wagon, and there were even wheel marks on the ground that was still a bit soft from the rain from the day before. Trees lined the path and in the distance Rukia could hear the sound of soldiers training. Ichigo wasn't there, he had gone to the city to attend to some business.

— What do we go to the chicken pens for? — Rukia asked after a long time walking through the forest. The castle grounds were vast, and the chicken pens, along with the stables and barns, seemed to be in another world.

— You're going to train some more. — Queen Masaki replied calmly, as if it were obvious. — You can't touch anything, so there's no better way to train that aspect than to have you touch things.

Rukia stopped walking at that moment and Queen Masaki stopped two steps ahead of her. She remembered that Ichigo had told her that he had killed many sheep when he was learning to control the spider, and the thought of her touching sheep and killing them by touch made her shiver.

— Can I refuse? — Rukia asked with a voice like a thread.

— I don't know, can you? — The queen's question reminded her of the day she had pleaded for mercy for the maiden. — You can say no, but eventually you'll have to try to touch something, and it's better to do it with animals than with people. Or do you want to try it with me?

Queen Masaki extended her arm to Rukia in a clear invitation for her to touch her. Rukia looked at the queen's arm for a moment and shook her head. Queen Masaki was right, she had to start practicing or she would never advance. She had to stop being afraid.

— I prefer animals, dear mother. — Rukia whispered and watched as the queen lowered her arm.

— Well, come on, we have to feed the soldiers and Hisagi waits for the chickens.

—

The news that King Yushiru had fallen ill spread like wildfire and Yoruichi had the suspicion that the parents of the pregnant concubines had been responsible for that news being known, because from one day to the next, several doctors and healers began to arrive at the White Palace, perhaps also some charlatans, with the intention of seeing and "healing" the king.

All those guys were rushed out of the palace as quickly as they showed that they were only there to see the king's injury and feed the rumors.

Yoruichi knew that the White Palace doctors were giving her brother really strong drugs to mitigate some of that pain that refused to go away completely; but they still could not find a cure and the infection began to progress along the king's calf. This was alarming, so the doctors drew a line below Yushiru's knee as a kind of timer that kept them alert in the search for a cure.

If they couldn't find a way to cure that strange infection, then they were going to cut off the king's leg to prevent the infection from spreading throughout his body.

The situation was too complicated because people did not stop talking and the councilors were more concerned about who would occupy the throne than the health of the king.

Yoruichi saw her mother completely stressed about that, because although her younger brother was the next in line to the throne, the parents of the concubines were pressing for the line of inheritance to continue and for the first son to ascend to the throne. And coincidentally, the father of the concubine who was closest to giving birth was the one who was pressing in such a way.

It was at that moment that Yoruichi understood her mother's words about her younger brother's reign. As soon as a male child was born to one of the concubines, the little king would mysteriously die.

And a male child was definitely going to be born as if it were a gift from the Deities.

Yoruichi was worried about her brother, but since the doctors did not know what was affecting the king, they did not allow her to see him because she lived in the harem and they feared that it would be contagious and infect the concubines. She knew that her brother's illness was not contagious because none of the doctors or servants who attended him had been sick, but she also knew that men always believed they knew everything and that their word was law.

That way of thinking seemed ridiculous to her but she couldn't do anything to change it because, in the words of one of the counselors, she was just a silly woman who knew nothing about life and her only obligation was to look pretty and take care of the mothers of her future nephews, which was why she still lived in the harem and was still single.

Yoruichi got angry every time she heard those comments but she reminded herself that she had to maintain a good behavior because with her brother's illness, her destiny was uncertain.

— My princess, the powder is ready. — Sui Feng reported after putting aside the instruments that she had used to create that white powder that was used to put people to sleep.

Both of them were in the private room that had been assigned to Sui Feng since she came to live in the harem.

— Okay, we'll go in the evening, when the doctor gives my brother a final check-up. — Yoruichi explained while contemplating from a distance that powder that Sui Feng was placing inside a small leather bag. — Why doesn't it affect you?

— Jade Witches create resistance to poisons, my princess. — The little witch explained without looking up from her work. — In the jade temples they instruct us since we are children, they poison us and heal us until the substances have no effect on us. Only those of us who survive are worthy of learning the ancient teachings, those who die join in eternity with the Nameless Gods.

Yoruichi kept thinking about the Nameless Gods, how powerful they must be or what form they would have. She had never heard of these gods until she went to the Dawnlands with her brother and saw the Jade, Shadow, and Deities temples, as well as several more dedicated to strange and sometimes simple gods.

— Sui Feng, why are they called Nameless Gods? — Yoruichi realized that she had never really asked that question.

— Because their names are hard to pronounce. The names of the Nameless Gods are written in the Great Jade Temple in the Jade Lands, but almost no one can pronounce them. They say that whoever can pronounce one of their names will receive a blessing from one of them.

— A blessing? Eternal life and things like that?

— They grant us a vision of our own future. — Sui Feng finished collecting the things she had prepared the powder with and focused her vision on Yoruichi. — It's the only way to know our future because among jade witches we don't read each other's bones.

The jade witches were so mysterious that Yoruichi liked them more and more.

Sui Feng placed a dose of this powder inside a bottle of ordinary wine, which she then carefully closed to shake it a bit; with that they were going to put to sleep the guards who guarded the entrance to the king's rooms. Yoruichi didn't want to do it like that, but they wouldn't let her see her brother or let Sui Feng in to check on him. The witch knew a lot and Yoruichi was hopeful that she could help her brother.

When they were near her brother's chambers, she sent a slave to deliver the bottle of wine to the soldiers under the guise that it was a present for their good work caring for the king. The soldiers drank some of that wine because the princess offered it to them and a few moments later, they fell unconscious to the ground.

— I think I got the dosage wrong. — The witch commented as she picked up the metal cups from the floor and handed them over to the slave who was still there.

— It's perfect. — Yoruichi kicked one of the soldiers to make sure he was asleep, maybe he was dead but that didn't matter. — Come on, I want you to check on my brother.

They repeated the action a couple more times until they reached her brother's rooms, where the servants who guarded the door let her enter without much resistance despite the fact that they didn't seem very convinced to let her pass.

Upon entering the room, Yoruichi noticed the atmosphere was tainted with the aroma of herbs and medicine, as well as a subtle scent of death; she also saw that Masayoshi was helping Yushiru with the change of clothes. Both the servant and the king were surprised to see her there in the company of her maid but instead of hearing a complaint or a scolding from the king, Yoruichi only heard the order to close the door.

Yushiru took his time getting dressed before sitting down in a comfortable chair with Masayoshi's help. Yoruichi could see the pain in her brother's expression every time he moved his foot, as well as the way Masayoshi tried to keep him comfortable, and it made her feel anxious. She was worried about her brother's health.

— What are you doing here and how did you get in? I gave the order for them not to let you come because I don't want you to get ill too. — Yushiru spoke without taking his eyes off her seriously.

Yoruichi took a step towards her brother but the king raised his hand to stop her from getting any closer. It was clear that he didn't want her around but Yoruichi didn't know if it was to protect her or to protect his concubines.

— I drugged the soldiers and entered. — Yoruichi answered without giving the matter too much thought. — I wanted to see you and I wanted to ask you to let Sui Feng check your wound. She knows about these things.

— The doctors have examined me. They still haven't found a cure and the drugs they use don't work as well as they think. — Yushiru explained wearily. — I don't know what your maid could do to help this. You better go to your room and rest.

— Noup. — Yushiru looked up the moment Yoruichi said that. She moved a little closer to him. — Please brother. She knows a lot of things. Let her check your wound. She comes from beyond the Dawn Sea and may have seen it before. Please brother.

Yoruichi's voice came out pleading at that last sentence and Yushiru, who couldn't stay angry with her as long as he should, heaved a sigh and waved his hand allowing Sui Feng to approach him. Yoruichi thanked her brother in a whisper for allowing it and listened to Sui Feng ask the king questions about what had happened on the day of the "sting" incident and everything concerning that as she carefully removed the bandages from Yushiru's leg.

The king only held his breath at the pain of the maiden's touch as Masayoshi answered the questions. If there was anyone within that room who knew the details of everything related to the king's injury other than the king himself, it was Masayoshi.

At the moment when the wound was free of the bandages, Yoruichi strongly felt that aroma of death coming from her brother's leg; she was also surprised to see the large wound that ran from the ankle to the middle of the outer calf. Seeing her brother's expression of pain made Yoruichi feel pain and helplessness because the wound was worse than she could have imagined.

Sui Feng gasped in surprise when she saw the wound and it caught the attention of everyone in the room. Yoruichi knew that the witch was prepared to attend to her brother, so she was not surprised to see her take a small bag out of her clothes and leave it on the floor along with a couple of other things.

— I need water and a glass. — Said the witch, who was kneeling in front of the king, and Masayoshi immediately brought her a bowl of clean water along with a glass as she had requested. — I will need more water.

Masayoshi was about to protest but Yushiru, who had begun to sweat from the effort of resisting the pain, waved his hand for him to get more water. Masayoshi had no choice but to obey his king though he seemed annoyed that the girl was making Yushiru suffer again.

Sui Feng filled the glass with clean water and used the rest to carefully wash her hands. From one of the little bags that she had brought, she took out a small wooden container containing a black balm, which she spread on the tips of all her fingers, and little by little she began to touch the wound with an unusual delicacy while reciting something in that jade language.

It was at one point, between prayers and caresses, that Sui Feng moved one of her fingers and something like a black thread stuck to her index finger. She tugged on it gently, pulling it out from the wounded and bleeding flesh, and that thread was visible for a moment before it disappeared like smoke.

The silence inside the room was thick and heavy.

— What did you do to the king, woman?!

Masayoshi's question made everyone realize that the king had never complained about the touch of his wound and that he seemed too focused on the movement of the witch's fingers. Sui Feng realized that the man had the container with the clean water she had asked for, so she got rid of the water she had washed her hands with, took the water container from him, and poured clean water into the bowl.

— Speak me, woman! — The king ordered, his voice vibrating in surprise and fear.

Sui Feng looked up at the king.

— This wound is no ordinary wound, Your Majesty. — Explained the witch, who still had her fingers stained with that black balm and kept pulling those black threads out of the wound with each movement of her fingers. — I have seen this wound before, in the Dawnlands. It is the mark of a dark warlock. A killing curse.

Yoruichi sat up in bed upon hearing that, unable to believe what the witch said. Masayoshi fell silent, and like Yushiru, he had a look of disbelief on his face at the witch's words.

— A killing curse? What the hell are you saying, woman! — The king exclaimed, and his voice vibrating with a very tangible dose of fear.

— Your majesty, allow me to explain. — Sui Feng said trying to make the king not think of killing her at that moment because witches and curses went hand in hand. — In the Dawnlands, there's a type of warlock that nobody wants to mess with. They worship a dark goddess and sell their services to those who visit the Shadow temple. As I toured the cities in the Dawnlands, I often saw such injuries on people who visited the Jade temples seeking help.

Silence again settled in that room for a very long time. Yoruichi just prayed silently that what Sui Feng said wasn't true, her brother couldn't die. The Deities could not be so cruel to them.

— Can you make the pain subside, just like you did now? — The calm voice of the king broke the silence. Sui Feng nodded. — Then do it.

Sui Feng placed some things that she had brought with her into the small glass of water, mixed it all up, and put some of it into the bowl of clean water. She made the king place his foot in the bowl of water and slowly began to wash the wound while praying in that jade language.

Yoruichi noticed that Yushiru did not complain about the pain and let Sui Feng wash the wound while he was lost in a silence that was terrifying. She had heard that her brother was in so much pain from the wound that he had even fainted a couple of times.

Sui Feng finished washing the king's wound and dried it with a towel that Masayoshi had brought her, then she slowly poured what was still in the glass over the wound. This time, she did not wipe the liquid away with the towel, but instead let it dry naturally and did not re-bandage the wound.

— Don't cover it up tonight and let the medicine work, it's not a cure, it will just keep you from having pain. — Sui Feng commented to the king, who remained silent and looked at his injured foot. — I'll prepare the medicine that helps the pain in case you need more, your majesty.

— How did a curse from those shadow warlocks get to me? — Yushiru wondered to himself as Sui Feng gathered up the things she had brought with her. — The last time we were in the Dawnlands was months ago.

— They are really powerful, Your Majesty. They are also ambitious, they charge for cursing and charge for healing. Once, a long time ago, there was a fight between them and us because we learned to control the pain that their curses cause. — The witch explained so that the king could understand. — They enjoy the pain and suffering of their victims, as well as giving them as tribute to their dark goddess from time to time in rituals where only screams are heard coming from those temples.

— Perhaps it was the merchant. He wasn't happy because we didn't grant him the permits he asked for. Maybe he is the one who sent the curse. — Yoruichi commented as she tried to find an explanation for what Sui Feng had said.

Yoruichi had no idea how that curse could have come to Yushiru, but the more she thought about those threads that Sui Feng extracted from her brother's wound, the more a single name came to her mind and it terrified her. She had seen those same threads on Ichigo's hands the afternoon they were talking about their son, when he was completely upset, but Ichigo wasn't a dark warlock.

Yoruichi had seen the way they used magic in Vermist and they didn't use curses, it was more like a direct attack. What they used in Vayalat was not witchcraft, it was a gift for war.

— How much time do I have left? — The king asked without giving much detours to the subject.

Yoruichi immediately fixed her gaze on her brother.

— I have no way of knowing, your majesty. Sometimes it's days, sometimes it's weeks, but no one I've seen survives for very long unless the curse is lifted by the warlock.

Yoruichi saw her brother nod at hearing that and her heart ached. The situation of the kingdom had gone into the background, it was her brother's life that was fading because of a curse that no one knew how it had come to him.

— Do not discuss any of this with anyone. — The king spoke, who had begun to see his wounded foot again. — Now get out, I need to talk to my sister.

Both Masayoshi and Sui Feng left the room after bowing to the king. Yoruichi was scared and wanted to say something, but she didn't know what to say. Her brother had a death sentence on his skin and just thinking about it made her want to cry.

— Yushiru…

— I'm going to die. — Yoruichi felt the sadness and loneliness in her brother's voice mixed with fear, and her heart began to beat too hard. Hearing those words come out of her brother's mouth was too painful. — You know what's going to happen when I die, so you're going to marry Councilman Barragan. He is the only one who will be able to protect you and our mother as well as our little brother when he takes the throne. He will make sure that the rules of inheritance are respected and that my in-laws don't try to get the throne at the expense of my children. I will send the concubines away, make sure they are protected and that my children are too.

— Brother, you will not die. You will see your children and…

— And nothing. The wandering witch was right, I will die as a king but I will not be the last king. — Yushiru got up from his seat and took a couple of steps, immediately Yoruichi came to him to help him to the bed. — Now go to your room, don't mention any of this to anyone. And thank you for bringing your witch with you to check on my wound. Now I know what I have to do.

Yoruichi nodded to what her brother said and left the room after helping him lie down on the bed. She didn't know who to turn to and who to seek help from, she wasn't stupid and she knew she shouldn't talk about her brother's illness/curse with anyone because it would endanger the stability of the kingdom.

She didn't want to cause an internal war in the kingdom or worse, an invasion.

—

Karin was completely exhausted. The training with the Karanq was really demanding and learning to control the gift, to the level that they were supposed to have at that moment, was something that required a lot of effort. She knew the theory, but the practice was completely different. It didn't help her that the workouts were at night either, though the gift worked better at night.

Yuzu, on the other hand, seemed to have a natural knack for learning to master the gift and follow the instructions of the Karanq.

— Training for today is over. — The Karanq returned to the origin of the shadows he had summoned, and Yuzu dropped to the floor intending to lie there. — When you two recover, we'll go back to training.

Karin lay down on the ground with her sister and stared up at the night sky. The coach's words meant that they would possibly sleep for a day or more, and that was perhaps the only good thing they could have during training. They could just learn the basics and let the gift in them "sleep" but neither of them wanted that. That gift was their inheritance, beyond the kingdom or riches, magic was a true gift.

They would not be one of the princesses who stay in the castle, they would go to war if it came knocking on their door.

— Will you miss him? — Yuzu asked after a moment of silence. Karin knew who Yuzu was referring to and that made her slightly nervous.

— I don't know, maybe. — Karin sat up and stretched her back a bit to relax the muscles. — I don't want to think about it. When a few days have passed, I'll tell you.

Karin got up and helped her sister up from the ground. She was excited to know that Toshiro was on his way to speak with her father and formalize the courtship but at the same time she was sad, because with her wedding she would have to travel to Jetaiya and Yuzu would be alone in the castle.

Both of them knew that eventually they would be separated and each of them would go to live in another place, but it felt strange because all their lives they had been together. They ate together, slept together, and traveled together.

— You'll be fine. — Yuzu commented as they walked towards their rooms for the maids to prepare their bath. — Toshiro is very handsome and is willing to not follow the traditions of his kingdom just because he wants to be by your side.

Karin turned completely red hearing that and tried to look away. Yuzu was quite observant.

— Besides, that way I can have an excuse and travel to visit you. — Yuzu added with a smile to try to cheer her up.

— There is still a long time before the wedding, maybe I will regret it. — Karin said that to get Yuzu to drop the subject for peace, but that only made Yuzu laugh a little.

— Or maybe you escape with him on his boat in a romantic idyll full of excesses.

— Yuzu!

— I've seen you kissing him.

— Yuzu!

— And I also saw that you come back very late from those night walks on the beach, were you making me a nephew? — Yuzu asked holding back a laugh before starting to run for her life as fast as she could.

— Yuzu!

Karin was completely red but she still started running after her sister, who had started singing an embarrassing song about her and Toshiro kissing under a tree.

—

Thanks to everyone who reads this story. A huge hug for everyone!

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