A KISS OF RAGE AND FIRE

TWENTY-FIVE

KATHARINE ARATHORNE

Outskirts of Baylorcliffe

Ilang oras na rin silang naglalakad and all she could see were trees. It was actually good, dahil natatakpam ang daanan ng mga dahon ng kahoy kaya hindi masyadong mainit. But then she could still feel the stickyness of her sweet against the cloak. Kaya naman napagpasyahan niyang tanggalin iyon.

But she took a piece of clothe at iyon ang itinakip niya sa bibig at sa ulo niya leaving only her eyes uncovered.

Maya-maya pa, ay napahinto si Killian sa paglalakad. She looked around and they were in some kind of clearing. Ngunit naririnig niya ang pagragasa ng tubig, senyales na malapit na sila sa isang ilog. But when she walked to find the source of the sound, she found out it wasn't just a river but a waterfall!

She could feel the mist of the water on her face and it was cool and refreshing—perfect for her dahil kanina pa siya naiinitan.

The waters were of the lightest blue and she could see the fishes swimming underneath. And the tiny pebbles that have rooted themselves on the ground looked like tiny gems as they were of varying colors. She could also see clearly the water plants that have grown in between the pebbles and swayed with the flow of the water. She couldn't remember what plant it was but it was familiar.

The waterfall was majestic. It was the first time she's seen one. At hindi niya maiwasang mamangha rito. She couldn't help but wonder what would it be like if she jumps from the top of the waterfall down the bottom. She couldn't see the top of the waterfall clearly because of the fog ngunit nang ilibot pa niya ang paningin niya ay labis na lamang ang tuwa niya when she saw water horses at the farthest end, almost covered by the bushes.

Majestic as ever, the horses just stood, grazing and she could their watery body rippling with the droplets from the splashes of the waterfall. And looking at them made her remember Marceline. Wala na siyang balita sa babae. The last time they saw each other was when she shot her leg as she was escaping, taking the Assassins scroll with her.

The village of Tranmere is where she came from. And Marceline has told her about how her village was dying. Kaya nito nagawang nakawin ang bagay na hindi dapat nito kinuha. She couldn't understand why no one in Lancaster has taken action. There are people of Terrasen dying because of some unknown virus and the Royal Capital seemed oblivious about it. Or perhaps they just wanted to be oblivious about it.

She wanted to ask her father about it so bad. Perhaps her father had a reason why he did what he did. But she will never know. Not when her father's already dead. Hot tears threatened to fall ngunit agad niyang pinahid iyon. She shouldn't be crying in this majestic place. She took a deep breath and looked at the sky before she sat on the bank and submerged her feet in the cool waters.

She moaned as she felt the cool water touch her skin. Naramdaman naman niya si Killian na nakatayo katabi niya.

"Do you want to swim?" tanong nito sa kanya.

"Can we stay a little longer?" Tiningnan niya ang lalake.

Tumango naman ito habang nakatingin sa paligid, eyes alert. Still searching for any possible signs of trouble. And when he found none, he looked at her.

"Yes. We can stay for an hour or so. We're near Fliore where we can stay for the night," saad nito.

She planned on swimming later but she figured she wants to enjoy the cool water on her feet first. In her periphery, she saw Killian remove his clothes dahilan para tingnan niya ito.

Killian has a body that has been honed by countless battles be it practice or the real thing. He has a nice build just how the Captain of the Kingsguard is expected to be. Tiningnan siya ng lalake ba para bang nagtatanong ito kung ano ang tinitingin-tingin niya.

She snorted. "You're going to wear that clothes? What are you going to wear once you're done swimming?"

But Killian just smirked before he said, "If you want to see me buck naked just ask." Tumawa ito nang makita ang reaksyon niya. But then he said, "I have lots of spare clothes. I have some of yours too if you want to take a swim."

Hindi na niya ito natanong kung bakit ito may mga damit niya at kung saan nito nilagay ang sinasabing damit dahil wala naman siyang nakikitang bag na bitbit nito. Killian ran off to the cliff and jumped straight to the water. The water horses looked at where he jumped for a moment and then continued what they were doing.

Umahon naman si Killian at maya-maya pa ay tumingin ito sa kanya, urging her to jump to. But she just shook her head. Mas maganda na magtampisaw nalang siya. The water was cold. Everything in the surrounding was refreshing to the eyes.    Hindi niya nalang pinansin si Killian sa gilid but she focused on the coldness of the water against her skin.

She closed her eyes and savored the feeling. It was the same feeling she feels whenever she's in her bath at home. She thought of the feeling of the cold water soothing her pores and relieving her sore body.

But then she suddenly remembered the feeling she thought she had forgotten. When she was in between life and death. When there were blinding flashes of light and then of nothingness. Then she felt the extreme coldness that seems to have wrapped her body, cocooning her.

Gusto niyang idilat ang mga mata ngunit ayaw bumukas ng mga ito. Nagsimula siyang kabahan. Hindi niya alam kung anong nangyayari—why she was suddenly remembering that dreadful feeling of dying.

Ngunit napadilat siya nang marinig ang mura ni Killian. She was panting for breath as she woke up. When she looked around, she almost couldn't see the surroundings clearly because of the fog. Nagtatakang napatingin siya sa paligid.

"Katharine, are you okay?" rinig niyang  sigaw ni Killian mula sa di kalayuan.

"Yeah," she said but then gasped when she saw the whole water and the waterfall freeze. Napatingin siya sa paa niyang nakalubog sa tubig na ngayon ay naging yelo na.

"Killian!" she screamed. Hindi niya alam kung anong nangyari. But the whole water around them just froze.

Was she the one who did it?

Maya-maya pa ay naramdaman niya si Killian na nasa tabi niya. He crouched down and touched her ngunit agad rin nitong binawi ang kamay. Nagtatakang napatingin siya sa lalake.

"You're too cold," saad nito.

"Is this Ansley's?" tanong niya ay tumango naman ang lalake.

"That's hers. Control it, Princess. Weild it like it's yours. Just like how you did with the Dragon's Breath."

Mahina naman siyang napamura. "The last time I did that, I was almost choked by that brooch. Who knows what this power could do?"

He crouched down beside her. "That power inside you is foreign. That's why you need to control it. Learn to control it. We can't go around freezing random things"

"I know! But how on earth am I supposed to undo this?"

"What were you thinking before this happened?" he asked her.

"I was thinking of home. Of the cold baths during the hot days. And then..." she paused. Afraid to voice it out loud. The next thing her mind remembered. "And then I remembered the feeling that time when I was in between life and death. It was cold. And endless cold. And I felt I was being cocooned by darkness and coldness together."

"Now think of breaking out from that cocoon. Take it nice and slow," he said kaya naman ipinikit niya ulit ang mga mata and she was once again back inside the cocoon. It was dark and she's starting to panic. But she took a deep breath and reached out to the darkness. To the coldness.

The only way to control it is to accept it.

Naririnig niya sabi ni Killian but his voice sounds so far away. Sinunod niya iyon. She closed her eyes and reached for the coldness, letting it embrace her. And then she felt it—the coldness seeping inside as if trying to hide or perhaps trying to look for comfort. And she accepted with open arms.

And the moment she did, she opened her eyes she could hear the water flowing again and its coldness on her skin was comforting. The fog has dispersed and she could see the water horses wriggling their body as if they felt something happened but just shrugged it off.

Narinig naman niya si Killian na napabuntong-hininga sa gilid niya. "We really need to be more cautious now that the power from the Kingstone is slowly waking up inside of you."

But Killian seemed to want to say something ngunit hindi nito itinuloy. She doesn't know what could it be and she doesn't have the faintest idea. What she could think at the moment is the fact that aside from fire, she also has ice. And then she now has the ability to heal. She still has five more powers to discover and she couldn't help but feel anxious about it.

Akmang magsasalita siya nang may marinig silang pagkaluskos sa gilid. Killian instantly took a cloak out of nowhere and gave it to her. Agad naman niya itont sinuot. Nang tingnan niya si Killian, tendrils of darkness swirled around him, and in an instant, he's already clothed. Long black tunic suit that basically matches what his power looks like. Elegant, dark, and powerful.

Napatayo na rin siya, wearing the cloak and its hood, covering her face.

They waited for any trouble but then Killian's hand went up, catching an arrow that was aimed at him. They looked up, searching for the source and that's when they saw the band of Royal Guards on the cliff just. She doesn't know how many of them are there but one thing is certain: they're going to kill Killian Archeron. And her too, along with him.

"Killian—"

"Stay here, Princess," he said and before she could even protest, Killian disappeared. Moments later, she could hear the grunts and screams of the royal guard up ahead and when she turned to look, she could see Killain graciously fighting against the Royal Guards. And she couldn't help but gasp at what she saw when Killian's hand found one of the guard's necks and did not hesitate to snap it. She turned to look at the other side ngunit ang tanging nakikita niya ay mga Royal Guards na hindi makagalaw. Whatever Killian did, they have no match for it.

She stared at how brutal and how bloody it was. It was that part of her life that her father has shielded her from. The bloodshed. It was something inevitable, her father would say. And she never paid attention because she thought she didn't need to. Because bloodshed wouldn't be something that would be done by her own hands.

But now everything has changed. She is branded a criminal. A murderer. A queen without a throne. And she has to fight to regain what was taken from her. And to do that, bloodshed is inevitable only this time, it would be by her own hands.

When Killiam met her gaze as he had the last remaining Royal Guard around his fingers, he looked at her. His clothes remained clean yet his hands were bloody. Either from the guards or his,  she's certain most of it was from the guards.

She met his gaze, cold and unmoving. And she did not avert her eyes from him as Killian snapped the guard's neck with his sheer strength.

And that's when she realized how Killian would fight for her. How the rest of them would fight alongside her. Dahil siya ang kinikilala nilang reyna. Ang nararapat na umupo sa trono. And she couldn't help but feel bad about being a brat. She couldn't help but regret those times she wasted inside her castle. She couldn't help it.

If she had known that this would happen, she should have spent every single day of her life training vigorously. But it's already done. She couldn't turn back the time.

All she has now is the present and the future.

Killian was instantly in front of her and she stared at him. His hands bloody, and his eyes still glinted with the sheer coldness he had in the fight.

She stepped closer towards him without breaking eye contact and said, "Teach me how to fight."

* * *