Forbidden (The Secret World Of Atlantis 2)

Chapter 6 - Tearing Walls Down

As the ship begins to move, I get an unpleasant feeling in the pit of my stomach. At first I think it’s fear. I am after all risking my freedom by travelling to Dairelis. There’s still a prize on my head.

But after a few minutes I soon realize that this isn’t about fear at all. It’s my sea sickness. I forgot to consider it, when I was planning my journey. How could I let this out? Maybe it won’t be so bad. I have no other choice, than to endure it. It’s not like I can help myself with anything.

After we reach the open sea, I soon realize I won’t be able to put up with the swaying for much longer. My stomach is making protesting noises and I feel like I’m running out of air in my hiding place. If only I could get out of here for a moment without getting spotted. It’s even worse, being locked down here.

I am so occupied with my sickness, that I don’t even hear footsteps echoing above me. I only realize, that someone’s coming, when the flap begins to open up. I bolt up and stumble behind a rack, but it’s already too late. “Who is this? Show your face!” a man calls out to me. Bollocks. I’m done now.

I slowly come out of my hiding place, trying hard not to think about my swirling stomach. The sailor is young, maybe a bit over my age, but he can’t be out of school for a long time. His face softens in the light of flames, that are dancing on his face. “Please don’t tell anyone about me,” I beg him, barely forcing the words out of my mouth without throwing up.

“Why did you sneak onto this ship?” he asks. I part my lips to answer, but suddenly the contents of my stomach begin rushing up and I quickly cover my mouth. “Are you seasick?” he continues in awe, probably surprised at my stupidity. I know right, I even surprised myself with this. I just nod, as I don’t dare to open my mouth and he raises his eyebrows. Suddenly, he disappears up the stairs, closing the flap behind him.

Wonderful. Now I’m in deep trouble. He’s surely going to tell the other sailors about me and they’re going to take me back to the Academy. This is sure not how I wanted things to go. I stiffen as the flap open once again and the same sailor comes through it. Alone. What surprises me most, is that he’s holding a cup in his hand. “Here you go. Drink this concoction and you’ll feel good in no time,” he promises, offering the cup to me. I take it without any hesitation, getting ready for the horrible taste.

I have to force myself to gulp it down. It’s a bit harder without Eros covering my nose and mouth. But the thought of him gives me strength to finish the cup and after taking a few deep breaths, I am good as new. “Thank you so much for this. I will forever be in your debt,” I tell the sailor gratefully. He just waves his hand.

“Tell me who you are and why you’ve decided to sneak away. Then you can consider your debt paid,” he suggests, making me sigh. Does this mean, that he didn’t tell me on? I truly hope so.

“I’m Arya Io. And I need to get to Dairelis, so I can save Eros Callisto from being condemned to a death sentence,” I explain shortly. The young sailor stares at me with wide eyes, before bowing deeply.

“I am so sorry, Princess, I didn’t mean to order you around. Please accept my apology, I meant no harm,” he begins to babble. I just smile at him awkwardly.

“There’s no need for apologies. I’m not like my sister,” I imply, making him let out a nervous chuckle. He shakes his head then.

“I just can’t believe the honor. And don’t worry, I haven’t told anyone about you. If you wish to get to Dairelis safely, then this is what is going to happen,” he assures me and I breathe out a sigh of relief.

“Thank you. You have no idea, how important this is to me …” I end in a questioning tone, as I realize, that I don’t know the sailor’s name.

“Oh, it’s Faramond. But everyone calls me Fara,” he informs me. I give him a short nod, then smile politely.

“Thank you then, Fara,” I tell him gratefully. He smiles bashfully, suddenly not knowing where to look.

“Like I said, it’s no problem at all. I’m going to bring you some food, when I find the chance. I can’t leave you hungry, now that I know you’re here,” he respond in a bit more serious matter. I express my gratitude once again and he’s about to leave, when he turns back to me. “By the way, I was rooting for you and Eros since the beginning,” he points out, making me blush a deep burgundy.

After he leaves, I am left all alone with my thoughts for quite an amount of time. It gives me the opportunity to think through everything. What I’m going to say to Eros, how to convince him, that he shouldn’t be so hard on himself, because I’m okay … I even think of what I would say, if I would get the chance to defend him at court.

Somewhere between those thoughts, I hear the flap opening again. I still hide behind the rack, just in case, but it’s only Fara. He’s bringing food, just as he promised. “It’s not much, but at least you won’t be starving,” he states with a hint of embarrassment in his voice, as he offers me a piece of bread with cheese and some cherries.

“It’s more than enough. Thank you,” I assure him gratefully. He nods shortly, then leaves to let me finish my dinner in peace. I need to go to the Temple to thank the Gods for sending him my way as soon as I get the chance.

I try to make myself comfortable in a corner of the space, by using my bag with clothes as a pillow and pulling another cloak around my body. It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing. I know it must be dark outside because there’s not a single ray of sunlight shining through the flap, like it was, when we left. Somewhere in the middle of all those thoughts, I find myself getting really tired. Doing magic in a state like this, took its toll on me. Before I know it, I’m already sound asleep.

When I wake up, I know it’s already way past the sunrise. The sunlight isn’t golden, like I’m used to see it early in the morning. It looks very much like it’s already noon. I bolt up a bit too quickly, my neck stinging from the rapid movement. I place my cold hand on it, letting my fingers brush across two small bumps, the only proof, that Eros sank his teeth into me. My neck is still sporting a whole rainbow of colours of course, but if those wounds weren’t there, no one could tell, that I got bitten.

I rub the sleep from my eyes, while letting out a big yawn. Who am I trying to fool? The whole school knows what happened. It’s a wonder, that the word didn’t get to the Atlas’s Herald yet. Or was my father too ashamed to have a vampire w***e, as I get called, for a daughter and was trying to prevent them from publishing anything? I believe I’m going to find out about that soon enough.

As I stand up and stretch my limbs, I am surprised to find a glass of water in the middle of the stairs. Maybe Fara provided this for me, when he woke up. So sweet of him. I drink up, hoping that I won’t have to use the bathroom anytime soon. Because this could get very awkward. It’s not like I can just barge out of here.

Luckily Fara comes bearing some good news, before this happens. He informs me, that we’re going to be landing in Dairelis soon. “I’m going to help you get off the ship, without anyone noticing. I’ll come get you as soon as the pixies are let out,” he explains. I can feel something fluttering at the pit of my stomach, when he tells me this. Call it nerves, hope or fear, I don’t really know what it is. Maybe all three combined.

I get changed into the simplest clothes that I own, wrapping a big linen scarf around my head, like I’ve seen a lot of citizen women do. With the way it’s covering every strand of my dark hair, there’s no way anyone will be able to recognize me easily. I’ll blend right in.

As soon as I hear the flap opening, I put the bag around my shoulder and rise up the stairs. Fara is checking the hallway for any other sailors to come, but all of them seem to be outside already. I expect him to lead me to the deck, but he doesn’t. Instead, we walk to a window and he opens it up, gesturing me to get outside. I raise my eyebrows at him. Does he really think I’ll be able to fit through there? There’s no way, it’s too narrow. He seems to be reading my thoughts, as he chuckles at my reaction.

“Don’t worry, I’ve used this trick many times. You’ll make it through. There’s a net on the right side. Just grab onto it and climb down,” he instructs me. I bite my lip nervously. There’s one really big flaw to this plan.

“Won’t the people in the Port see me?” I ask. I truly don’t want to attract unwanted attention. The plan is to get down and reach the Court’s prison as quickly as possible. Fara shakes his head.

“A lot of sailors climb down like this. You might only get odd looks, because you’re a woman,” he explains. Now that’s comforting. “Go now, before anyone notices, that I’m taking too long,” he urges me. Alright then, it’s now or never.

“Thank you, Fara. And there’s nothing odd with a woman, choosing to be a sailor,” I tell him, before turning my back towards the window and grabbing its edge with my arms above my head. “Farewell.” With that I pull myself through carefully and stop in a sitting position. When I notice, how far away the net is, I get a sick feeling at the pit of my stomach. Have I ever mentioned, that I’m afraid of heights?

I force myself to not look down and lean towards my salvation slowly. I breathe out in relief, as I’m able to grab onto the net. I pull it a bit closer and put my other hand on it, before pulling myself out completely. My legs slip down, making my heart skip a beat, but I’m able to hold myself with my arms, until I finally find something to place my feet onto. From there on it’s an easy way to climb down and I jump towards the pier in a casual matter, dusting off my clothes like a professional.

I soon realize, that Fara was right. The people that look at me oddly, don’t recognize their Princess. They’re not comfortable with seeing a woman, climbing down a ship like that. If I didn’t have a prize written on my head, I would teach them some twenty-first century lessons. But I’m not in the place to do changes now.

Walking down the streets of Dairelis feels so dangerous in times like this. I have to hide between buildings many times, because so many Guardians are patrolling the streets. I haven’t seen anything like that happen before. Did they know, that I was coming?

Because of this small matter, it takes me a bit longer to reach the Court’s prison. And when I do, I am met with two ordinary guards, that look at me like I was a stray cat. They avert their gazes past me, pretending like I don’t exist, even if I’m standing right in front of them.

“I need you to tell me something. Is Eros Callisto locked in there?” I ask directly. They share a panicked look, that answers the question perfectly. I knew it.

“Who wants to know?” one of the guards interrogates me angrily. I thought this would happen. But I came ready. I look around, to see if anyone’s around, but citizens are almost scared to look at the prison. I straighten up, pulling the scarf backwards, so it reveals my face and some of my dark hair.

“The Princess,” I answer calmly, making their eyes widen, before smirking at me. Of course. They must be going crazy, thinking about the prize they’ll get, when they turn me in. I pull the scarf back up, as to not risk anyone else seeing me. Then I take two identical diamond bracelets out of my bag, offering one to each of the guards. I can see their eyes gleaming at sight of it and they’re both already extending their hands, but I pull the jewelry back. “You can only get this, if you let me in, make sure that no one else sees me and then let me out safely without telling a single soul, that I’m in Dairelis. And also, I want to know about the date and time of Prince Callisto’s hearing,” I command. They both nod in agreement, their eyes hungry as they gaze at the bracelets.

“Of course, Princess. We can do that. And the hearing takes places at two o’clock this day. At the Court,” one of the guards tells me, while the other one is just nodding in confirmation. I smile in satisfaction.

“Good,” I remark, finally letting them take the bracelets. It’s not like I’m going to miss them. I have plenty of those. “Where can I find him?” I ask, referring to Eros once again.

“Straight down the first hallway, the last cell on the left,” the other guard explains and moves aside, so I can pass through.

“Thank you,” I say, before marching past them, through the big wooden door. My heart is thumping against my chest like a hundred horses, running into battle. I can’t believe I’m going to see him. Alive. That’s what matters the most. I need to know, that no one hurt him, or else I’ll go mad.

There are worse things to make one go mad, I hear a voice in my head. A voice that sounds exactly like Eros’s. I shake my head, I must be imagining things. My nerves must be getting the best of me. But as I walk towards the last cell on the left, another sentence crosses my mind.

There’s no way she would come. This time it’s there, clear and loud. It makes me freeze in my tracks, not knowing what to do. How am I able to hear his voice in my head? Is this a side effect of his bite? Only one way to find out.

I take hesitant steps forward, until I can finally take a glimpse of his familiar silhouette, sitting on a bench in the cell, that the guards told me about. Seeing him makes my heart beat even faster and I feel like a wreck once again. “Eros?” I call him quietly. He stiffens as soon as he hears my voice. Come on, just look at me. It’s all I need. But as his eyes bolt up to meet mine, I feel like collapsing. Because I know it then at there, that this icy blue gaze belongs to my bonded.