I am so confused.
I still have yet to tell anyone that it was Cwealm who helped me defeat Vexacion and stab him with a mistletoe arrow. Right now, all the resistance thinks I am the true hero.
If only they knew.
As much as I want to deny it, I'm intrigued at Cwealm. We are mortal enemies, life and death that must fight each other eventually, but when we worked together, it seemed as if nothing could stop us.
I have ordered a few days of rest and recovery, so that way the others may celebrate our victory and so that I may think over everything that has happened.
Adkin has somehow managed to convince me to sneak into Camelot today and go to the marketplace, which Morgana surprisingly still lets stand.
I haven't been to a marketplace before, not since I could remember.
I hope and pray that I will not face Cwealm, should he arrive. I do not want to have that discussion with Cwealm or Adkin.
I pulled the hood on my cape lower and kept my head down, only peering through my eyelashes. Though all the women were dressed in black and the men in dull colors, the marketplace was ablaze with reds, blues, greens, and yellows. Men shouted out sales while women laughed with each other, complimenting each other's outfits, as if they weren't the same.
It was beautiful.
Adkin grabbed my hand and pulled me towards a vendor. I shifted the velvet half-face mask on my face as we greeted the man behind the vendor.
"Might I interest the lady in this beautiful necklace?" the man inquired, holding out a beautiful silver-bronze necklace. I cradled it in my palms as I took a closer look at it.
It was a teal stone, wrapped around in silver. A golden dragon stood proudly above the stone. Below the dragon, on the two sides of the main stone, were two smaller, bright blue stones. I gaped at it and ran a finger over the main stone. It shimmered, and it looked almost like a dragon's eye.
"It is very beautiful," I agreed with him, nodding. I reached for my purse and was astonished to find it wasn't there. "One moment." I sat the necklace back down on the vendor and reached all around my black skirt I was forced to wear. I couldn't find my money pouch anywhere. "I-I don't seem to have any money..."
"Well, then scram! Only paying customers!" the man ordered, immediately switching from his once friendly persona to that of an angry merchant. He narrowed his eyes at me and a dangerous look came over them. "Unless I need to force you!"
I looked around helplessly, hoping to find Adkin, but he had disappeared, probably flirting with some maiden.
"I don't think that will be necessary."
A shiver ran down my spine and I saw the merchant's face pale drastically. I felt a gentle, yet firm hand on my shoulder and instantly knew who it was.
"M-Master Assassin!" gulped the merchant, shaking. "I-I didn't know y-you were in the marketplace t-today."
Cwealm cocked his head, and his raven-black hair fell into his eyes. He glanced at me and a dash of recognition flitted through his beautiful, blue eyes before he turned back to the merchant.
"Do you know this woman?" Cwealm asked, jerking his head to me. The merchant shook his head. "She is the Queen's Royal Handmaiden, sent specifically to this vendor for that necklace." He pointed roughly at the necklace that still laid on the vendor. "Do you wish to deny the Queen her jewelry?"
"O-Of course not!" the man stuttered. "B-But, Master Assassin, she does n-not have a-any money on her!"
Cwealm looked back to me and raised an eyebrow and I realized he wanted me to follow along with his story.
"I apologize, Master Assassin," I lied, curtsying for him. "Some petty thief must have stolen the money from my person."
"That will not do," he said, clicking his tongue. "Here." He tossed a couple of golden coins onto the vendor and grabbed the necklace. "That should be more than sufficient." The merchant nodded shakily before Cwealm grabbed my arm roughly and began to pull me into the crowd. We were jostled around, until we came to a secluded part of the town.
He stopped and turned to me, folding his arms across his chest. "What are you doing in the market?"
"Ever heard of celebrating?" I retorted, putting my hand on my hips.
"In your enemy's territory?" Cwealm shot back, raising an eyebrow. "Sounds like the resistance is getting cocky."
"Sounds like our enemy is getting annoying," I grumbled under my breath. Cwealm gave me a look again before he ran a hand through his hair. "Why are you in the market?"
"Decided I needed a day off," Cwealm stated, staring right at my eyes. I knew what this was. He was having a small-power-fight. Adkin and I did them all the time. Two people would stare at each other until one of them looked away. Whoever gazed the longest would be considered the victor and have more power than the other.
I held his gaze and we stood there, staring at each other. It was only when I heard someone shout, "Wynn!" that I looked away. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Cwealm's eyes flash brightly in victory, but my attention was turned to the end of the street. Adkin was rushing towards us, a concerned look in his eyes. He didn't seem to recognize Cwealm at all.
"Wynn!" Adkin yelled again, skidding to a halt right in front of me and Cwealm. "I was so worried! I turned around for a second and you weren't at the vendor anymore!"
"I'm fine," I said, nodding my head to confirm it. "This lovely man helped me through a bargaining problem with the merchant at the vendor. He also helped me escape when the merchant tried to rush us."
"Thank you, sir," said Adkin, nodding to Cwealm. Either Adkin still didn't recognize Cwealm or he was a really good actor and was concealing his anger. "Might I ask what your name is?"
"I've had very many names," Cwealm began. "But you can call me Alm."
"Thank you, Alm," said Adkin, nodding to him. "Shouldn't we be getting back, Wynn?" I nodded, and looked back to Cwealm.
"Thank you," I said, nodding my head to him. He smirked before replying, "Of course. Now, you might not want to forget this." He handed me the necklace and a velvet pouch. As I grabbed the velvet pouch, I instantly recognized the weight and gaped at Cwealm as he sauntered down the street and back into the crowd.
"What was that about?" Adkin asked me once Cwealm had disappeared.
"I-I don't know..." I whispered, feeling many different emotions raging inside of me. "But I intend to find out."
I looked at myself in the mirror, reaching up and hooking the necklace up properly. Once I did, I let it hang and gauged how it looked on me. It was stunning, to say the least. Whoever crafted it was a true master of jewelry.
There was a knock on my chamber doors and I headed over, peeking through one of the cracks. I groaned as quietly as I could, as to not upset the man outside my door.
It was Pierre, a French revolutionary who came to join the resistance as soon as he had heard about it. He was also our delivery boy who had an insufferable crush on me.
I opened the door and plastered on a fake smile. "Pierre! What brings you to my door?"
"Besides to see your beautiful face?" Pierre flirted, grinning widely. I had to admit, Pierre wasn't bad-looking. He had this ashy-red hair that most girls would, and did, swoon at. Except, his personality left things to be desired. He was a flirt, much like Vexacion, and I knew he had a new maiden every week. "You have a package."
That made me pause. No one ever sent me package. Love notes, sure, but never actual stuff.
"T-Thank you?" I stuttered, trying to regain my bearings. He handed me the package and as I grabbed it, he deliberately made our hands brush. I knew he was hoping that I would feel some spark, but it didn't come. "I will see you later, Pierre."
"Hopefully sooner than that," he said, wiggling his eyebrows. I tried my best not to gag as I smiled and shut the door.
Once he was out of my sight, I shivered in disgust before walking over to my bed. I sat down and unlaced the string around the brown, paper package. After unfolding it, I pulled out the contents.
It was a worn out leather book, similar to the one I used as my journal. I ran my hands over the leather and tried my best to memorize the grooves and dents. Whoever sent this must have known how much I loved to journal and write. I flipped over the front cover to the front page and dropped it in surprise and disgust.
Dearest Lifwynn,
You must be wondering how I knew where your base of operations was. It was easy, really. Before you captured Tremaine, you must remember the night that you tried to attack Ebony. You lost a man by the name of William. Guess where he ended up?
No, I am not going to tell Morgana. Though she is the Queen of Camelot, she should try and figure things out for herself for once in her life.
If this information I am about to give you is at all shared, it could mean the destruction of the resistance and everything you hold dear, Lifwynn.
I am willing to help give information that the resistance desperately needs in order to defeat the other council members: Ebony and Sabre. But in order to do so, you must trust me.
Write back as soon as you have made your decision,
Alm
I felt an unintentional blush race through my cheeks and I couldn't help but pump my fists into the air.
We had an ally on the inside.
Cwealm set down his quill and leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest. Now, all that was left to do was wait patiently for Lifwynn to pen a message back.
He shivered when he thought of Lifwynn. Her dirty, ratted blond hair, with her intense eyes that revealed every emotion she felt.
Cwealm shook his head. If Morgana knew what Cwealm was doing, she would have him killed on the spot. He needed to keep it a secret; one that he held close to the chest.
Nadir raised an eyebrow at Cwealm and nudged him with his elbow. "Are you alright, my Lord?"
Cwealm shrugged and responded, "We shall see, Nadir. This plan is foolhardy and seems like one of those I used in my youth." Nadir cracked a grin and chuckled.
"If that is another one of your ploys to try and convince me that you are still a young, sprite of a man, you have failed once again, my Lord," Nadir laughed, and Cwealm let out a small, rare smile. "If you do not mind me saying so, my Lord, I noticed you went to the marketplace today."
"That I did, Nadir. What of it?" Cwealm questioned, running his hand over his mouth. Nadir was the only person with whom Cwealm was comfortable enough to have his mask off. Not even Morgana was allowed to view him without the mask.
"Nothing, my Lord," Nadir chuckled, grabbing two empty goblets from the table. Smoothly and with precision, Nadir's eyes flashed gold and the wine jug from across the room floated towards the table. He gestured with his hand, and it began to pour steadily into the two cups. "It just seems to me that my Lord is developing...how do you say... a crush on a certain rebel?" He raised an eyebrow at Cwealm, and Cwealm knew he was looking for any sort of emotion to show he was right.
Cwealm kept his face steady and refused to let any sort of emotion arise. It was easier said than done. After all, Nadir was the only one who Cwealm told about what actually had happened the night of Vexacion's defeat.
"Your magic is getting stronger," Cwealm commented, gesturing to the wine jug. Nadir set down the jug and manually handed the golden cup to Cwealm, who drank heartily from it. "Soon, you may be stronger than me."
"Nonsense!" Nadir laughed, shaking his head. "You, my dear friend, are much stronger than I will ever be." He looked down and suddenly, the mood in the air shifted. "You realize that this plan is a gamble, correct?"
Cwealm knew he wasn't talking about the plan Cwealm had for Lifwynn. He was discussing something much greater than that. "I do."
"What will history think of us?" Nadir asked sadly, shaking his head. He turned to look out of the window and onto the rolling hills of Camelot. "Are we to be written as cowards of a dying cause, or heroes who sacrificed everything in order to protect the one person we all cared about?"
"Neither," Cwealm said, standing up. He walked over to his friend's side and placed a firm, but steady hand on his shoulder. "We shall be remembered as legends."