Kastali Dun

Saffra peered around the corner into the guard room. A wall of keys stretched up to the ceiling. Numerous prisoners were housed within the dungeons. Some would never again see the light of day.

Four guards sat around a table of crates playing cards. They taunted each other, tossing coins onto a growing stack. With the activity taking place in the streets, their watch was relaxed. She smiled at their carelessness. All the better for her.

She pulled away and rested her back against the cold stones of the wall, breathing quietly. Her ears pricked at the sound of coins clinking.

"Loser o' this hand does the next rounds."

She tensed, side-stepping further away from the doorway.

"I already know it's goin' ta be Eddy, eh lad?"

"You ain't be knowin' what I gots in my hand, Derrell. So shut your hole." Eddy had a higher voice, and must have been much younger than the others.

She continued to lurk, listening.

"Well, let's see 'em cards then." There was a pause, followed by a roar of laughter. "Ha! Told 'e so, Eddy! Told 'e so! To the rounds, boy!"

"Curse you, Derrell. Everyone be knowin' you's a cheat!"

The scrape of a stool sounded. She concealed herself within the shadows. Moments later, Eddy emerged with a glowing lantern. He made his way down the hallway away from her. She watched his yellow glow until he was swallowed up by the darkness.

Long minutes ticked by.

Eddy returned and the guards went back to their cards, swearing and laughing, having a grand time. She crept past the open doorway and began down the same hallway Eddy had used. When she was far enough from the guard room, she created her own light.

"Eflae dagar," she muttered. A small white orb, bluish on the edges, materialized, floating above her open palm. She thrust her hand forward, releasing her hold upon it. Floating along, it followed her progression.

The torches were extinguished in these corridors for good reason. Intruders would have a difficult time navigating the blackness of the hallways. Escapees would find themselves lost. The dungeons were made to be confusing. Their tunnels were purposefully built like a maze, but she knew which way to go, thanks to a large scroll she'd purloined from the keep's royal library. Had the king known it was there, it would have been removed from the shelves. Now it was safely hidden within her chambers.

Taking the first left turn, she made her way down a narrow tunnel. Prisoners awaiting trial were placed in the cells nearest to the guard room and farthest from the torture chambers. Perhaps it was to save them from the screams of those poor souls residing within the depths of the vast dungeon. She sniffed. The air was rancid.

Heavy doors lined both walls with small, barred windows. She looked through them one at a time. With each glance, her heart quickened. She feared the depths of the cells and what she might see within. Most of the occupants were male. Plenty were deranged and aggressive. At one door, just as she peered in, a toothless face loomed before her, laughing. A hand shot out between the bars. She yelped and jumped back, heart pounding.

She reached the wall at the end, but no Claire. She should have been here. Chewing on the inside of her cheek, she proceeded to the second tunnel, and then the third. Unease crept into her stomach the deeper she went.

Soon, she found herself in the very back of the dungeons. It heated her blood and set her teeth on edge. The guards had locked Claire in the same tunnel as convicts serving life sentences. Her shoulders shook with anger. Taking a deep, calming breath, she placed her palms flat against Claire's door. She had no keys. If the wood was impervious to magic, her mission would fail.

Clearing her mind, she focused on her words. "Hinga laesa," she commanded. Her voice was no more than a whisper, but magic always knew. A click split the silence, and then another. The light pressure from her palms pushed the door open revealing a yawning darkness beyond.

Her light orb shot in and bathed the room in brightness. She blinked. Claire stood backed against the wall, eyes wide. Their gazes locked.

She breathed a sigh. Claire looked exactly as she expected—exactly the way she had appeared in visions and dreams. She entered the cell and closed the door.

"Have...have you come to kill me?" Claire's voice rasped.

She shook her head. "I always wondered what meeting you would be like. And no, I have not come to kill you. Quite the contrary. I have come to help you." She held her basket forward. Claire eyed it but made no move to take it. So instead, she moved across the cell. "May I?" she asked, pointing at the blanket spread over the dirt floor. Claire nodded, but still watched her.

"I didn't think anyone would want to help me." Claire hesitated. "Is that...is that for me?"

Saffra was already removing contents from the basket. She placed them upon the blanket, spread out as if they were merely having a picnic.

"Aye." She smiled. "I thought you might be hungry."

Claire's face crumbled. She could not have been much older than her. A few years perhaps. A moment later, Claire plopped down beside her.

"I've seen that before." Claire pointed at the small orb of light, still looming about her. "You can do magic," she stated matter-of-factly. "Reyr used one when the Vodar attacked us."

Saffra froze. "The Vodar attacked you?"

She merely nodded.

"Does the king know?"

Claire tensed. Her face hardened. "I don't think it matters. I don't think he cares."

"Surely he does," she said.

Claire snorted. "Not likely. All he cares about is ruining my life." She hesitated. "Sorry, but who are you?"

"Oh. I'm Saffra."

"Saffra..." Claire's eyes grew wide. "You're Saffra? You're the reason I wasn't killed!"

"Killed?"

"A vote was taken. You were the only one who disagreed with my immediate death."

"I...yes." Her eyes narrowed. How did Claire know? She cleared her throat. "I highly doubt the king would have killed you had I ruled with the majority."

"He absolutely would have. I know he would have."

She sighed. "Here. Try these. They're my favorite," she said, lifting the honey cakes from the parchment. She popped one into her mouth.

Claire eyed her a moment, hesitating, before she did the same. Her eyes closed in delight as she savored the treat. "Thank you for coming," she said at last. "I thought I was going to starve in here."

"Please, it is the least I could do."

"Does this mean that you don't think I'm guilty? Everyone else thinks I am."

"Because they have not seen what I have."

"You saw me standing over Cyrus covered in his blood."

"I...How do you know that?"

Claire shrugged. "The king told Reyr about it."

"And Reyr told you?" She frowned.

Claire froze, mid-bite. "I...I overheard Reyr tell Koldis and Jovari."

Saffra hummed. "I see..."

"Wait." Claire's brows drew together. "If you saw me, does that mean you can see—"

"I can see things that others cannot," she said. "I am a seer. The king's prophetess. Furthermore, I am the reason Cyrus is dead."

Claire's mouth fell open. "You don't...you don't honestly believe that, do you?"

"Of course I do. It was my vision that sent him away." A heaviness settled in the pit of her stomach. She set down the rest of the honey cakes, no longer interested.

Cyrus's death was her fault. Had she stayed quiet about her vision, Cyrus would have remained within the keep. Her seeing the thief in the forest had become his death sentence.

"Is that why you aren't at his funeral?" Claire asked. "You blame yourself so you don't feel deserving?"

Heat flooded her face. Thank the gods it was shadowed. "I came here for another reason," she said. "But...I do admit that avoiding his funeral was easier because of the hand I played in his death."

"No! Just... just stop. You can't..." Claire hesitated, exhaling. "Look, I saw what killed Cyrus. I know what he was up against. You have nothing to do with any of it. If anything, blame the king, but don't be unfair to yourself."

The back of her neck prickled. "You saw what killed him?"

"Of course I did. I was there."

Her voice was low. "Does the king know?"

Claire shook her head. "I'd tell him if the asshat would let me." Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened at the blatant insult. "Anyways, I can't tell him now, can I? The stubborn ballbag won't speak with me. He insists upon a trial."

"But..." Saffra opened and closed her mouth.

"You're probably wondering the same thing everyone else is. Why didn't I simply tell Reyr? Why not tell the king's Drengr and save myself from all this hassle?"

She nodded.

"Well, I couldn't tell Reyr. Not exactly. I wanted to, but I couldn't. I came here because I can't tell anyone until I tell the king. Cyrus made me promise."

"Oh..." Saffra frowned. "But surely you are not so honorable that you would rather remain true to your word and risk your life over it. Why suffer the king's wrath? Why go through any of this?"

"Don't you see? I can't break my promise! I swore to Cyrus. I made an Unbreakable Promise."

She blinked. "An Unbreakable...but...I never would have imagined—"

"Neither would the king. Which is why he thinks I'm bluffing about everything."

"So whatever you must tell him—it is important?"

"Extremely."

She picked at her bottom lip with her teeth. What could be so important? What information could Claire harbor that Cyrus felt this need?

Claire cleared her throat. "You said there was another reason you came here tonight. Why?"

"Oh. I..." She glanced down at the basket before taking in Claire's face, her features. "I came here to figure out who you are."

"That's it?" Claire picked up a bread roll and pulled a chunk off, tossing it into her mouth.

"This is going to sound mad, but I've seen you before."

"I know," Claire said through a mouthful. "You saw me standing over Cyrus, covered in his blood. You said that like two minutes ago."

"No, I mean..." She sighed. "Claire, your face was the first face I ever saw in a vision. I was eight."

"You..." Claire swallowed the remainder of her roll. "You're joking right?"

She rubbed her palms on her gown. "I wish I was."

Claire's eyebrows drew together. "But, what did you see? Like...like private stuff? You didn't see..." she trailed off.

"No. No private stuff. You need not worry about your personal business. I only saw bits and pieces."

"Why?"

"I wish I could say. I was hoping you would know."

Maybe this was a waste of time. She'd come here believing Claire would solve the mystery of her visions, but Claire seemed to know as little as she did. All this risk and she was no closer to answers.

Claire slumped back against the cell wall. "You didn't happen to see the king agreeing to speak with me in any of these visions, did you?"

"Unfortunately, no."

She'd never seen enough of Claire to know if she had. Her visions and dreams were always difficult to interpret, and Cyrus never felt the need to help with the ones about Claire.

"Well, it was worth a shot I suppose."

"You need to speak with him alone to break the Promise?"

"Yes. Not in a court full of people. If he knows what's good for his kingdom, then he will allow it. I need to tell him...I need to tell him everything Cyrus said."

"Well, that's cheery, isn't it?" She tried to muster a smile.

"You don't even know the half of it," Claire darkly muttered.

"Perhaps I no longer wish to," she admitted. "The kingdom is in danger?"

"Pretty much. Danger might be an understatement."

"I see. Then I suppose your coming here is as important as I predicted. I admit, I thought perhaps I would discover more about you from this visit. And I have. But not as much as I wished to."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, to start, I thought you might know why I have visions of you," she said.

Claire shrugged. "You're guess is as good as mine. It's creepy though, don't you think?"

"Creepy...yes, that is perhaps an adequate word for it."

Footsteps sounded down the tunnel. Her blood turned cold. "Quick, put everything in here. The guards cannot know that I am here."

Together they piled everything back into the basket. She extinguished her orb and went to the opposite side of the room so that Eddy would fail to see her if he happened to look in. Holding her breath, she waited until his footsteps passed and then retreated. Then she waited a few moments longer just to be sure.

Silence returned.

"I'm afraid I must leave you now," she whispered, lighting the room once more. "Is there anything else I can do before I depart?"

"I doubt you can convince the king to set me free?"

She gave a quick shake of her head.

"Right. I didn't think so. Well then, a bath might be nice. I smell like shit."

A smile tugged at her lips. "Now that, I can do."

"Wait...really?"

She grinned, moving to the other side of the cell. Speaking words that summoned up the dirt from the floor, she formed a clay-like bowl. Claire gasped as it took shape. As soon as it hardened, she finished her incant. Then, taking a water skin from the basket, she poured it into the bowl. Alone, it was hardly enough. But she knew the words for multiplying water.

"Aukae vaten." The water rose to fill the bowl.

Claire gasped. "I...I don't believe it. I was only...I didn't think..."

"Your wish is my command, Lady Claire." She winked at her. "But now I must leave you. Do not let the guards see the bowl or the basket."

Hugging Claire, they said their goodbyes. "I suppose the next time I shall see you is in the throne room."

"Great. I can hardly wait." Claire did not hide her lack of excitement.

"You are braver than I could ever be," she admitted before departing. And it was true. Claire had already displayed great fortitude despite her circumstances.

At last, she retreated from the room, back through the tunnels, and past the guards. As she went, she heard Eddy swearing. He'd lost another hand of cards, but remained none the wiser that he had missed her on his rounds. Smiling to herself, she made her way from the dungeons.

Yes, Claire was the best thing that had come of this situation. What was more, if anyone could stand up to the king, it would be this outsider from another world. And wouldn't that be something! 

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