Chapter 15
Pink-White had not mentioned whether the visiting families were to engage in the search for the princess so Silver came forward to confront him about it. He was not going to sit back and watch other men fight for the woman he loved while he stayed back enjoying guest privileges at the palace. He was determined to come with the search team.
"Please king tell me where I and my horsemen are going to pass. Thank you."
"If you are willing, join me. All the visitors that would like to do so will use the same path that I will take. After all this, I want everybody back to the castle in one piece, safe and sound. Do I make myself clear?" Pink-White announced. Silver was pleased with the king's decision.
"Yes, your majesty, we give you our word," they all said. Everyone set on his journey after the king's command.
Pink-White commanded Bolton to open the gateway to the road under the Green kingdom. It was hidden amongst the shrubs behind the door leading out of the servants quarters. He avoided using the passageways. He did not want anyone apart from himself using them.
Shinja had gone past the last path that led straight to where her grandmother lived. Because she was riding at a high speed, her satchel fell off the horse's back. She commanded Flower bender to stop.
"Wooo Flower-bender wooo..."
If she had not held on tight, she would have fallen off. She got off horseback and ran back to pick her satchel off the ground. When she was done, she mounted the horse once more and out of nowhere huge hands held her neck and mouth. She could not recognize who it was because it was dark now, mist covered the place getting in the way of her vision. The mysterious man pulled her off her horse and dragged her until she could only see her horse from afar.
She bit his hand so hard and a coppery taste hit her tongue. It was her assailant's disgusting blood in her mouth. He let her go at once, and she started screaming. For an instant he glitched fading in and out until he disappeared.
It was a ghost and a man all at once. Ghost-man? What had she gotten herself into? All in the name of seeking clarity and space. Stuck in wonder, Shinja could not tell what the creature wanted from her. This did not stop her from running towards her horse to continue with her journey. She had to get to her safe place as soon as possible. Darkness brought with its own demons and her heart palpitations did nothing to help her condition.
She ran to where her horse had been tied, checked her satchel in search for the charm book. She wanted to look for a protective charm that would keep her through the entire journey. But... THE BOOK WAS GONE! Her eyes opened wide in disbelief. When had this happened? When had she lost the dear book? Damn it all to hell! She was stuck.
She dug her fingers deep into the pockets of the flimsy thing she called a satchel and still found nothing. Her mind was running wild of all possibilities of when and where she had dropped the book. She got it off Flower-Bender's back and shook it upside down like a woman at the verge of insanity. How has she lost it? When?
As she did this, she felt something cold creep on her feet. She looked down slowly trying to calm herself from freaking out. When she saw the odd creature on her foot, she couldn't help but scream. Shaking her leg to throw it off of her. What in the world was happening to her?
She used the end of her veil of wipe off the slimy residue from the odd creature that had stuck to her foot. It looked like a frog but then again it had a tail attached to its rainbow colored back. She felt like giving up. Regret flooded her mind as she turned to leave. You should have stayed back at the palace. She started thinking that maybe facing the prince was not that bad as she had initially thought. God she was such a mess! She had been in a hurry to even consider using a more secure bag choice than the one she had carried, look where that got her.
Shinja realized that she was in more trouble than she had thought initially. She neared close to the border crossing to the Black Forest. It was not called black for nothing, her grandmother had warned her against using it. 'If ever caught between using it and choosing another path, use another path my child.' Terese had warned her.
The king and the rest were now getting closer to the Green Lake. As soon as they got close, they heard a crying voice of a young woman. It sounded far off from where they were. Had it been Shinja? No one could tell. The places they were approaching were spookier than those they had initially gone through.
Prince Silver quickly branched into the forest because he of all the princes had heard Shinja cry. He was sure it was her. The king stopped and nearly laughed at the young lad's inability to think straight. He had no idea what they were in for. It was his kingdom, his daughter they were searching for.
"Many things in this forest tend to disguise themselves as people we know, more so those we love. Don't fall for them." He stopped the prince by placing his sword in front of his chest. Silver stared down at the sword then lifted his eyes to watch the king. He did not understand why he was being halted from seeking Shinja out.
Wasn't the king concerned about his daughter? He was not even trying hard enough.
That is where he was wrong, the king worried more than anyone but he masked it with false confidence feigning hope. Despite his doubts, Silver listened to the king and followed silently waiting for the right moment to strike.