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As they continued on, during the middle of the day Solum suddenly stopped. "We're staying here tonight" he informed her, despite the obvious fact that they could make it quite a bit further before needing to rest, and not to mention, there was nothing here! It was sand as far as the eye could see, but the coldness to the King's voice had immediately disappeared despite the last couple of days they had spent in silence.
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At the abrupt stop, Asima was jerked out of her thoughts. Frowning, the princess surveyed the area and opened her mouth. Before her questions could tumble out, however, Asima snapped her mouth closed and nodde. She then moved away a bit and settled down in the sand, pushing a hand under her mask to rub her face. She'd learned quick enough with his brother: Just because someone was acting kind at the moment didn't mean they could switch quickly. Best not to start questioning the male again. |
As they settled down and broke out a bit of food to eat, Solum finally turned to her, "I'm sorry" he told her, "I probably shouldn't have been so cross with you."
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Something she hated about the mask: Eating. Barely lifting the item up, just in case, Asima ate slowly. As Solum apoligized, Asima's eyes flickered to him and back to her food. After taking another bite, the princess shrugged. "It's fine, you have a lot on your shoulders. I'll just make sure to remember my place and you won't have a reason to be so cross." Her words were clipped, though Asima hadn't meant to sound that way. |
"Still, I shouldn't be using that as an excuse. Malum never did... although I kind of always forgave him for everything he did without him even asking for it. Maybe that's why he never apologized..." his eyes strayed over the empty sands
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The princess didn't respond for a bit, unsure of what to say. Finally, she sighed. "I'm hoping Lakar may have found something out about that thing. Maybe a weakness. If it could be killed, would you open the door?" She was pushing, she knew, and yes, she was asking questions again...It was impossible to help in this situation. |
"I already told you, I'm not opening it." Solum replied with a sigh, "Do I have to give my word to it as well?"
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Asima didn't respond, pushing away the rest of her food and flipping over in the sand. She'd thought of it, and thought of it, but had yet to think of a way to make Solum open the door. Other than killing him, that is. And if she could bring herself to do it, Malum would hate her. But, if Lakar gave her a weakness, and the possibility was there, could Asima resist the temptation? she wasn't so sure. Soon, Asima was sleeping soundly. |
It began with distant screaming. So many people running and calling out for help as their homes burned down around them in a horrific blaze and Asima was in the center of it. There was no where to run, nowhere to hide, only sand in every direction outside the large ring of fire that had once been a village. The smoke choked and the evening stars were blackened from the sky by it.
A single child stood still amongst it all, his young wide eyes shadowed by pure white hair as he turned towards the princess. Despite the screaming his whispered voice carried across to Asima's ears as those mismatched eyes locked onto her, fearful and unblinking. "Save me" And then the dream ended, in the dead of the night with a sky lit by wondrous stars and not an unnatural sound to be heard. |
Asima woke with a start, and automatically burst into tears, crying into her knees. What had that dream been about? The tie, whatever had made her see into Malum's dream when she'd touched him...could it have something to do with this? Was Malum hurting, in trouble? Or was she being paranoid, simply wanting to believe he was alive? Finally, Asima pressed her palms into her eyes, lifting the mask to do so. She was being silly, she just missed Malum was all. It wasn't possible for him to talk to her anymore...When the tears subsided, the princess tugged the mask back over her face, glancing around the sands quickly, and looking for Solum. |
Solum was up still, he was standing a bit of a ways awhile, looking down at a bit of sand he was letting flow from one hand to the other. He seemed almost memorized by the motion of it slipping through his fingers.
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debating a bit, Asima finally decided to keep this to herself, at least until she could talk to Lakar. Malum had had his magic back in the tunnel, correct? He'd created that flame... Perhaps he was trying to reach out...But, why not reach out to Solum? Maybe the strange connection made it easier to connect with her... Asima frowned, then shook her head. There was no use contemplating it now. Deciding to ask one more question before attempting to go back to sleep, she stood and moved to Solum's side. "Are we waiting on someone? Should I stay away?" Okay, two questions. |
Solum's eyes stayed downcast at the falling sand, his voice was so quiet it could only be heard thanks to the intense silence elsewhere, "no... we're just visiting this spot." he replied.
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Asima frowned, glancing around, before understanding took her. "Is this..where your village was?" She spoke quietly, guilt sweeping over her. Her father had done this, had taken Solum and Malum's parents from them. And, though she felt bad about it, she was relieved as well. Maybe she'd sensed that deep in her mind, and that was the cause of her dream... |
Solum gave a slight nod of his head to confirm her suspicions before lifting his gaze to the horizon as he continued to play with the sand, "We'd come back here just once a year around now. It's strange to be here without him..."
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Asima was silent for a few moments, finally nodding. "I am sorry, Solum. I know it's hard for you...Can I do anything to ease you?" |
"Not unless you have a pretty awesome time spell" Solum replied with a mild shrug and then sighed, "Thanks Asima. Just... keep helping the way you are. I don't think I'd have been able to do this alone." he turned back to where their things were, "we should probably get some sleep for tomorrow. We have a lot of ground to cover"
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She nodded her consent, returning to her spot and laying down with a sigh. Hopefully no more bad dreams. "Good night." She muttered after a moment, curling in the robe. |
Solum let the last of the sand drift away from his grip, he watched it twirl and spin and slip away into the night before settling down himself to finally rest. "Goodnight Asima" he replied softly before turning to his side and whispering something else to the still air. It barely registered before the pair of them drifted off to rest. "Goodnight mom and dad."
The morning came swiftly with an affront of bright light to their eyes, and soon enough it was time to move on once again. |
Though it was hard, Asima kept herself silent. She was unsure of what to say to Solum anyway, knowing what happened here. It felt like it was wrong for her just to stand here. As they continued, she quickly became lost in her thoughts once more. |
After what seemed like ages of endless sand, they finally approached upon a very familiar city. With the palace in the distance, suddenly everything seemed much more cheerful, and it was Solum's turn to hide beneath his hood again.
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Happy to be out of the mask and robe, Asima hummed softly, smiling. After a bit, she glanced to Solum, "Are we going there now? Are you coming with? I'm sure Nemiah won't mind..." |
"You can go if you like. I'm not too sure I'd be allowed in." Solum replied with his disguised voice. He really didn't seem to want to be bothered by any unexpected guests at the moment.
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Asima nodded and turned towards the palace, though she hesiatated, glancing at him and frowning. "You could come. I'm sure Nemiah would welcome you. He said if you ever needed help, he'd provide it. Why wouldn't he welcome you?" |
Solum chuckled, "Perhaps he would, but something tells me I still can't just walk through the front gate. He has as much an image to uphold as I do."
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