Chapter 2: Dreams Aren't Real

The night sky was aglow with Palace lights and winds blowing through the windows dry and cold that hinted the end of rains. Every section of the Royal Palace was bustling but not the Palace of the Prince. 

The symptoms started at twilight, the whole Prince's Palace was in a panic, all the maids and Eldiera worked along them brimming with trepidation and despair. This was the second time Eldiera had seen the effects of the disease of the Royalty they served.

The Prince was lying on the bed. His face was dry, full of wrinkles, his eyes seemed to be bulging out of his head and his limbs were thin and as dry as sticks while his body was lifeless as it seemed.

The mere sight of the Prince made Eldiera's spine chill with fear. She always thought that there was a demon in Prince Richard's soul. The tales of demonic possession that her mother used to tell her always came into her mind whenever she sees him.

She remembered that demons were cruel beings that eat human souls and devour them into madness and those who were possessed started to eat human flesh. She also recalled that her mother always told her that those demonic people consorted with animals and stole girls at midnight.

But the Prince was anything but a man-eating demon. He couldn't even lift a single finger to even hold a single spoon. He never left the room, lying over the bed throughout the day. He was always dressed in night clothes with sweat all over his face and dry scars over his skin from where sometimes blood came out.

Prince Richard's room was all ominous, the floor was wet with water and was quite dark with barely any light and even the light that was coming was the natural light from the moon or the almost burnout candles. The cold wind was blowing through the windows with the curtains flowing.

The old maid Anesa was dripping a cloth into a bowl of water and placing it on the forehead of the Prince while the new maid Isabella does the same with his hands and feet.

Lord Izenwood, Elsa and Priest Grephan entered the room and slammed the door, as they arrived. As they entered Eldiera and the other maids slightly spread their skirts and bowed while saying in sync, "Greetings Your Holiness and Lord Izenwood".

"There is no time for greetings, how much time has passed since the symptoms started occurring?" Lord Izenwood asked.

"About two hours," Anesa replied.

Eldiera was standing at the corner of the room trying to keep her composure.

Lord Izenwood took out his gloves and handed them to Anesa who placed them on the hand on Prince Richard's forehead.

"Lord Izenwood, are you here? Cough..." Prince asked in a crumbling voice. 

"Yes, I am here your highness. You don't have to worry about anything," Izenwood reassured him.

"Let's start the ritual," Priest Grephan said, interrupting Lord Izanwood and leaving a distressing remark on Lord Izenwood's face...

Eldiera knew that Lord Izenwood cared deeply about Prince and he would never approve of this Ritual in tens of lives but seeing a person trapped between life and death... he thought it would be worth it as it would help the prince to either escape from life or escape from death not trapped in the prison of lifelessness.

"But who would volunteer as the third person?" Lord Izenwood asked, leaving a confusing remark on everyone else's face.

"Yes as you can see there are only two people. Me and Lord Izenwood but the Holy ritual would require three people to be able to perform. I think it would be a work for the divine if anyone would volunteer us " Priest Grephan added.

"If both the lord and the priest are going to be a part of the ritual and prince is not the third person that means, they want one of us maids to volunteer as a third," Eldiera said to herself 

There was an unending silence in the darkroom and through the window, the pale crescent moon shone like a silvery claw in the night sky.

"Please, give us some time to think about this, Your Holiness," Anesa asserted.

"Oh yes... yes... It's an important matter you all can take your time, but I must say this time also that whoever maybe volunteering is doing work of divine", Priest Grephan replied. As he spoke, every maid gathered in the corner of the room.

"I don't want my life to be taken away by some stupid curse or disease. I am only twenty," Eldiera told herself. All those desperate attempts of maids were just to find the scapegoat.

" Those two are senior to me, so I think they won't do anything to help me but if I try to use my seniority over Isabella she might listen to me hence it would save me," Eldiera told herself.

"Let's push Isabella to do the ritual," Elsa whispered to Eldiera.

"I also thought the same. Let's tell Anesa" Eldiera whispered to Elsa.

"Ma'am I think we should push Isabella to do the ritual," Elsa whispered to Anesa.

"I also think so," Anesa whispered to Elsa.

"I think Isabella would be the best option as a volunteer." Eldiera declared loudly while looking at Isabella.

" But..." Isabella tried to become a part of the discussion that had already ended.

"Yeah I think as a devotee of Goddess she wouldn't leave an ill person., Don't you agree with me Isabella," Elsa said while smiling at Isabella.

Isabella was the youngest of all and was new to these 'political games'.For her, the world still had light.

"yeah but..." Isabella finally accepts the judgement.

"Yes, I also think so," Anesa added.

"Okay... I will do it," Isabella replied.

"Will you be fine?" Lord Izenwood asked.

"Guess I have no choice." Isabella finally accepts the judgement.

"Everybody else please leave the room," Priest Grephan said. 

"Yes Priest Grephan" all the other maids answered back in sync. 

"Shall we start?" Lord Izenwood asked. 

With a " Yes," Priest Grephan replied.

All other maids left the room except Isabella and the door was closed. As they were outside Eldiera felt as if she did something that something was not right. As soon as she came outside, bend her knees and tried to peep inside through a hole in the door.

"What are you trying to do?" Elsa asked Eldiera crossing her arms.

"Nothing," Eldiera replied.

"Just don't try to do anything funny or you might become blind. Ha..." Anesa laughed as she sat on the floor.

"I am just trying to see what's going on," Eldiera said.

"At least you are not a complete moron like Isabella," Elsa laughed and sat on the floor stretching her hands and legs while yawning.

"Let's start the ritual," Lord Izenwood said.

"But let me first explain to you two how to perform the ritual," Grephan said, interrupting Lord Izenwood.

"Do it quickly,?" Lord Izenwood said.

"Yes, firstly we will place his highness' head in the direction of the Great tree and legs in the direction of the endless sea. Then you two will stand on either side of his highness holding his hand. I will make this divine altar from, the holy land on his chest. Pour this potion in his mouth, out before placing this divine sword in his mouth too while chanting the words of our Goddess," Priest Grephan explained.

"Please wait. Let me process all this," Isabella spoke with some hesitation.

"You don't have to worry about anything, my child. , just drink this holy water and stand at one side of his highness and hold his hand," Priest Grephan said with a smile on his face.

"Enough discussion." Let's do it quickly," Lord Izenwood said.

"Yes, let's begin," priest Grephan declared.

"This won't take long, your highness," Lord Izenwood said while moving his hand over the Prince's head.

Firstly, Lord Izenwood picked up Prince Richard to hold him in his arms while Isabella made the bed by smoothing the sheets and placing the pillow at the opposite end of the bed.

Then, Lord Izenwood placed the Prince beside the pillow and opened the button's of his shirts to apply medicinal oil over his chest.

After that, both Lord Izenwood and Isabella drank the holy water and stood on either side of the prince, holding his hand.

"What? What is happening?" the prince asked with a surprised look on his face.?

" It won't take long, your highness, it won't take long..." Priest Grephan soothed.

"But..." The prince said as he was trying to assess the situation.

"Let's get it done Grephan," Lord Izenwood said angrily, staring at Priest Grephan.

"As you command your lord," Priest Grephan said, starting to chant the holy words.

The priest took out a silver needle and pierced through Prince's hand that put him to sleep.

" What happened to his highness?" Isabella asked with a bewildered expression.

"Please be quiet!" Lord Izenwood whispered, stretching his eyebrows.

"Now let's move on to the next phase, " Priest Grephan declared. 

He took out the needle, dipping it in the mysterious liquid kept in a jar wrapped in a red cloth. After coating it finely, he drew the holy altar with it over the Prince's chest by piercing it with the needle dragging it across the prince's chest, in the process the Prince's blood came out simultaneously.

After the altar was drawn a sharp and bright light came out of the lines that he had drawn over Prince's chest. This broke the sleep of the Royal and he woke up in a flash.

"What... What's happening!" the Prince screamed as he woke up and the light was coming out of his chest.

"Aaaaahhh...." as he screamed with all his inner strength.

"What is this?" Isabella asked as all this was new to her while trying to hold the prince in his position.

"I don't know!" Lord Izenwood replied.

"This won't take long your highness," Priest Grephan said as he took out his silver sword and placed it in Prince's mouth and started the chant. 

As he chanted, blazing like a sun, the Prince's eyes and the altar over his chest started to give out even more light.

And then suddenly, the light stopped with a loud sound, like thunder after lighting that left all the windows in the room shattered.

"Wait what happened?" Eldiera screamed, plugging her ears as all the glasses of the palace smashed into tiny fragments resulting in her falling on her back.

"It worked!, " Priest Grephan exclaimed as he took out the sword from Prince's mouth.