Someone Else's Kingdom, BOOK I - Chapter 46

Box, Goola, Julen and the now wide awake Eldskeep found themselves locked, and confused, in one of Queen Aglaia's dungeons. Princess Liofia had been separated and taken elsewhere, for reasons they knew not. The arrest hadn't been especially rough-handed, and the stone-walled cell they found themselves in wasn't overly dingy or despairing. Yet still, it was a strange and uncomfortable experience. They'd accepted their fate peacefully, though Box, Julen and Liofia in particular had protested verbally all the way back to Maiden's Tower. Vociferously questioning the guards as to what was going on, and why they were being taken when they were completely innocent. Answers that weren't forthcoming, with the guards speaking nothing but basic instruction.

As they sat on the cold, hard floor - with the exception of Julen, who, as usual, energetically paced back and forth - they pondered their situation. Box and Goola had little clue whatsoever as to what was going on, but both Julen and Eldskeep were somewhat more suspecting. Though the involvement of the masked woman, who they were still yet to know the identity of, confused things further. Had she been helping the queen's guards to find them?

"You know what all this is about, don't you?" intoned Goola calmly, in the direction of Eldskeep, but also looking over at Julen as she said it. Julen finally sat down and put his face in his hands, as both pretended not to hear the question.

"What exactly happened in Patina?" she pressed. Eldskeep and Julen gave a glancing look at each other.

"The scrape we gotten into wasn't quite as mundane as we first told you," admitted Eldskeep. sheepishly. He then looked again at Julen, who was now staring at the ground.

"Do you want to tell them, or shall I?"

He paused, and then, assuming Julen's silence would continue, began to share the story. Just as he was about to speak, however, Julen broke in.

"I killed someone."

"What?!"

"It wasn't really my fault, ..they attacked us. We were innocent ..though I probably shouldn't have quite stabbed him like that. I should've just maybe tried to injure him, or something."

"They were very violent criminals," stated Eldskeep, authoritatively, but in a hushed tone, aware that the guards could be overhearing, "They would've killed us both had they gained the opportunity. Unfortunately for them they weren't quite the match." He did a little swooshing sword motion with his hand as he said this, unable to resist dramatising the skirmish. "We put them to the sword, quite literally ..you now see why we had to leave."

Neither Box, nor Goola, knew what to say, and their obvious shock only made Julen feel worse. Box got up and walked over to the wall of the cell, running her fingers along the stonework. Trying to process the information. The roughness of the hard stone wall physically cementing her feelings of imprisonment. High above was a small, narrow window in the wall. She looked up at it, then looked down at the rays of sunlight that passed through to illuminate a rectangular patch on the ground. After a moment's more reflection she wandered back over to Julen. "It wasn't your fault, they attacked you," she said sympathetically. Goola nodded in agreement.

"Personally, I think we should all just keep quiet about this," whispered Eldskeep, still speaking with a hush of concern, "Our arrest here could have nothing whatsoever to do with that."

"..But she saw us"

"Who?!"

"Her ..the woman who was just with us. The woman in the mask. She saw it all. That must be why she'd followed us."

"Perhaps," conceded Eldskeep, "..but still, say nothing unless asked. Play it as innocent as possible. Act as though you have no idea why you're in here."

They all nodded in agreement, accepting Eldskeep's advice, though Julen deemed it futile anyway. Deliberately putting the issue to one side they all felt the urge to still keep talking, but there was little to say. So silence slowly overcame the chamber. Box lay down on the floor and tried to position herself so she could get a view through the little window, hoping for some distraction, or outlook on the world, but all she could see was a slither of blue sky. As they sat despondently in the cool dungeon, waiting to discover their destiny, Princess Liofia was high above them, in much more luxurious surroundings. The queen's guards leading her up a long spiralling staircase. After reaching the top the guards led her into a room. They then left, closing the door behind them. As Princess Liofia stood there, unsure what to expect, a tall woman walked in, accompanied by three small dogs.