The Last Queen of Lemuria (17 page)

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"She loves me... at least, she did love me..." hope flashed in Aleur's eyes.

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"Come to my place, Aleur, we'll figure it all out calmly. We need to figure out how to get to Groix," offered Tamil, and turned his vimana towards home.

Aleur walked after him.

An alarmed Greta met them at the doorstep.

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"Aleur! My God!" Your face is blank! Can it be true?"

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"Yes, Greta, it is true," Tamil answered for his friend. And turning to Aleur, he said, "you should tell her about it, buddy."

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"Yes, what happened?!" Burst out Greta.  "Where is Yuma? Why did they cancel your engagement? The neighbors are saying some nonsense about Yuma being in Groix..."

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"It is not nonsense," sighed Aleur heavily, "she got engaged to Grino."

Greta, at a loss, looked at him.

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"Let's go inside. We'll tell you everything."

And the friends hid themselves behind the door of the festival-decorated home.

Yuma looked at the flüg with caution. Everything around trembled and groaned, it smelled of fire and burning metal. Inside there were comfortable seats for the passengers, covered with animal skins.  In the center was a console, behind which a servant was standing. He flipped some levers and the ball easily followed his command, turning whichever way he asked. The walls of the flüg turned  but the seats remained motionless. The difference in movement made her head spin.

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"Well then Yuma, now you're a member of our family!" shouted Gorr, patting her on the shoulder.

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"Praise Lucifer we'll not be flying to Lemuria again. That Chintamani took all my power away!"  Complained one of the Queens, drying her face with a handkerchief.  "Yeah, are we gonna land soon? My dress is covered in soot!"

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"We'll be landing shortly," answered a servant, lowering a lever.

The vehicle fell quickly to the ground. Yuma's soul seized. She dug her nails into her armrest.

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"Come now! Watch yourself!"  Noted Grino.  "Queen Yuma is not accustomed to such flights," explained the Prince, leaning his head toward his fiancée. Grino had bad breath. Yuma screwed up her lips into a smile in response.

There was a clap, then they fell gently to the ground. The doors flew open. The Queen of Lemuria came out onto a stone square before the palace. Before them opened a panorama of the land of the sorcerers. Grino handed the Queen a telescope to assist her.

She quickly noticed that there wasn't enough light there.  Perhaps the reason for it was the dark walls of the Groix castle that looked like cliff walls. And also maybe the mountains here are just a lot higher than in Lemuria. There were almost no plants on the cliff walls. Maybe, the sensation of darkness became stronger in this wicked city. The island that the capital, Groix, was on was five times larger than Lemuria, and seemed to her uncomfortable and cold. The walls extended almost all the way down the sea shore. There were guards on the towers, protected by metal armor, and armed with what looked like bows. Below, by the gate of the castle, the poor and vagrants milled about, trying to get into the city. The homes of the Groisillions were huddled by the sea- each hut looked the same, made of black stones and divided from one another by high fences. The residents were swarthy, short people with frowning faces who were only concerned with their own business. Someone was driving a herd of small pale-blue sheep from the meadow- they were the one thing that was the same as Lemuria. Someone was dragging a net from the sea, and others were coming back from work in the mines. Yuma  noticed the last of them by the black dust on their faces. Far away, near the horizon, she saw smokestacks, puffing away. It seemed that the Groisillions had come quite a bit further than the Lemurians in terms of production development. The residents of Olmolungring were able to pearl, sew rugs, and create masterful pieces of woodworking. But all the same, their most basic occupation was gathering- everything they needed could be found in the forest.

- "Do you like our Kingdom, my newly-crowned sister?"  Asked Guria.

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"I prefer Lemuria," answered the Queen, cowering.

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"Nothing to worry about, you'll get used to it! Grino will help you with your longing..." answered the Princess.

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"Guria, leave her alone!"  Cried Yala, approaching with tears in her eyes. Meeting and parting with Doro had truly upset her.  "Leave her alone, daughter! She doesn't feel well."

Guria snorted and left the room, watching as her mother hugged Yuma.

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"Let's go, Yuma! I'll show you to your room," said Yala.

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"We're waiting for you at dinner," said Gorr, reminding Yala. - "I'm dying from hunger, that cursed Chintamani has left me completely drained!"  Adding to a servant, "Dinner! Now!"

The table was bursting with food. The smells of excellently prepared food tickled her nostrils. The servants brought all new plates and pots. There were chops, and a whole baked lamb- roasted birds, and amazing sausages- huge fish and a myriad of delicacies she had never even heard of. There were ten saucers of each type of sauce.  Yuma suddenly remembered that she hadn't eaten anything since the day before. She looked at a servant. He placed a dish before her of nuts and whipped cream, decorated with berries. "Really now? Since she'd become Grino's fiancée?" Yuma asked for a clean plate, and having cut off a piece of fatty sausage and lamb herself, she covered it all in sauce and joined the table. Everyone sitting around the table ceased to chew. A deadly silence set in.

- "Yuma!"  Came Yala, breaking the silence, "daughter, what are you doing?!"

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"Eating," answered Yuma, continuing to eat, paying no attention to the general confusion.

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"For a Lemurian girl, you're full of surprises!" Admired Grino, "You eat meat!"

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"Well, I am only half Lemurian, after all," answered Yuma with a mouth full of sausage.

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"Atta girl!"  Came Gorr, looking victoriously at Yala, "what do you say to that, my bird-food-eating beloved? That's my blood!" Yala blinked her eyes in confusion.

Guria frowned. “That gentle-giant cow wasn't as simple as she seemed. Maybe she could even do magic.”  Thought the Princess, looking intermittently at the center of Yuma's forehead. “She thinks in a different language!? Ancient Lemurian maybe?” Guria was confused. “What could she mean by 'this  dish reminds me of pot roast?' Who was Margo? Samir? Boris? Marina? Andrei? What kind of names were these? Lemurian? And Shambhala, what is that?...” Guria became lost in confusion while reading Yuma's thoughts. It was the first time she'd ever had this problem in her life. She could read Yuma's thoughts, even in a strange language. But the Black Princess was not able to understand the thoughts she was reading. And this made her even more wary. She would have to bring her plan into action as quickly as possible.

After dinner, Yuma was locked in her room. It was a huge room with a high vaulted ceiling.  The gray, cold walls were completely bare. Footsteps rang off the walls. Only one thing was there, a beautiful rug, obviously from Lemuria. The bed was small for Yuma's large frame.

That was it, she'd become his fiancée. The fiancée of that horrible man who raised a lump in her throat every time he came close. One month from now, he'd be her husband. For how long had the Teacher sent them here? And what would happen... if she were to live her whole life here? She'd have to live here, knowing that Aleur lived practically next-door in Lemuria. When she remembered the young engineer, tears welled in her eyes. How could he have betrayed her like that?! He'd even talked with Guria today in the throne hall. She saw how the Black Princess had embraced him.

At the same time, Tamil,  Greta and Aleur were working out a plan to sneak into Groix. It was quite the scheme. It seemed almost impossible! Though the sorcerers had nowhere to hide from the flood, Groix was defended on all sides both day and night- Gorr was too cowardly and suspicious. His servants, armed with iron bows, and arrows, were always keeping watch on the castle walls. It was impossible to get through those defenses. There was only one way left- bribery.

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"Sorcerers crave jewels and gold," said Greta, "maybe we should try to bribe them.”

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“I have a pearl necklace!"  Called out Aleur.  "A wedding gift."

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"Very well. We should be able to cross the channel on our vimanas," recommended Tamil.

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"Too dangerous," interrupted Greta.  "One nervous thought and you end up in the hands of the inter-island current. Aleur could swim against it maybe, but you... No. We need a boat.”

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“We can get a boat from my father," said Tamil, "I'll ask him. We should think about where to get a blueprint of the castle. Someone in the palace should know."

The friends thought.

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"I know where to get the blueprints!"  Realized Greta. "Lourin, the Council messenger goes to Groix quite a lot. And he seems quite... fond of me," she smiled, "I'm sure he'll agree to draw up a blueprint."

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"Fine,  if it'll make my friend happy, I'll turn a blind eye to whatever you want to do," sighed Tamil, raising an eyebrow to show he was joking.

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"The day after tomorrow, I'll be in the palace at Doro's lessons. I'll try to find Lourin.”

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“The day after tomorrow in the evening, we'll have the blueprints.  Come then," said Tamil. - "We'll decide where to go from there.

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“Until we meet again," came Aleur, smiling with reinvigorated hope.

Chapter 19. The Black Princess's Plan

There was one day left until Grino was to meet at Guria's.  “I must refuse the meeting- it will tell father about the Stone. That cannot be allowed.” The Princess called for a servant. She gave her  a sheet of paper with something inscribed on it and ordered:

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"Sheila! Create this very recipe. But secretly, got it? If not, it's your head. You'll bring it tomorrow morning."

The servant bowed and disappeared. Guria chuckled to herself. Everything is going as I planned. Yesterday she had suggested to Grino that it would be good to invite Yuma to dinner to speak, and get better  acquainted.  Grino jumped at the idea. He was probably hoping to charm his fiancée before the wedding. Guria's black eyes narrowed. A shade of hatred ran across her face.

Greta flew into the room where Tamil and Aleur were waiting.

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“My beloved! You shouldn't run so fast!”

Greta  sat down at the table, breathing heavily.

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"Did you manage to get the blueprint?" Asked Aleur.

Greta  fell silent, shifting her eyes from one to the other.

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"Did something happen? Do you feel unwell?"  Worried the friends.

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"I have bad news," she finally let out.

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"What?” Tamil paled. "Something with the child? Have you been to the doctor?"

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"No," she paused, "news from Groix."

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"From Groix?"  Inquired Tamil and Aleur at once.

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"Prince Grino is dead," exhaled Greta.

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"Dead?  The Prince of Groix is dead?!"  Guffawed Aleur.  "Greta! You sweet woman!" He jumped, kissed her and began running circles around the room, "Greta! I've never heard better news in my life!”

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"Aleur! Taking joy in another's death is a sin," drawled Tamil, smiling.  "But I understand! Yuma is free!"

Greta  lowered her eyes and sighed:

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"That's not all."

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"What else is there, Greta?  That cursed sorcerer died and Yuma will return home!"  Exclaimed Aleur, still smiling.

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"Yuma won't be coming back."

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"What? And why might that be?"  Aleur stopped.