Glimpse of Horror

Alexa stuck rags in the keyhole, and only after that, she undressed and entered the tub filled with warm water and petal of flowers. Perhaps during the bath, she could relax a little in the face of new facts.

Her birth gift was a curse in a hostile world, and her entire family had been wiped out because of it. And those who did not die from carrying the gift died because of Alexa.

With a sigh meant to dismiss the lethargy, the maiden dipped her face in the water. Holding her breath for a moment and another and other, she intended to experience one of the three petite morts, or 'small deaths,' as she was taught, wishing to seek the oracle in transcendence.

How many times had she died like this?

But not tonight. Alexa felt weak, in fact, exhausted, and backed away before she stepped on the brink of death, as brief it was. She must have the strength to return from there.

The damsel threw her head back, filling her lungs with air again and clutching at the edges of the tub. Her hurt palms ached as if the skin and tendrils were tensioning again.

"Ahhh!" The relief of being alive. Even the pain was a good sign. Alexa enjoyed living, even if she lived on the run.

She coughed, gasping for air, and reached for the towel to dry her face when she saw that there was something on the bed. Filled with curiosity, she got up because there was nothing there before.

Was nothing there before she entered the tub?

A wary feeling took her heart by storm.

Or was nothing there before she left the room to see Cordelia?

It was a huge difference, she knew.

Drying herself, she approached the bed and saw a white dress and a matching veil about her size. Although made from the finest fabrics, it was a pretty and rather prudish dress with tiny embroidered flowers in relief. They were daffodils, a detailed inspection proved. Alexa, however, had a somber feeling about this. Where she came from, the white daffodils had meaning.

Was it a message, somehow?

But mundane thoughts came to her mind, and Alexa wondered if this noble dress had been the Prince's doing. A magnificent dress, suitable for court mourning. Had he really listened and considered her words while riding?

It had to be that. Either that or some lady in the house had heard rumors about the unusual company of Prince Klaus' bride.

With a huff, Alexa began to dress. 'Now, I have no excuse as not having proper clothes to attend the young Prince's funeral.'

One, two knocks on the door.

"Yes?" The maiden asked, still wary.

A young female voice said,

"You are expected in the main hall, where the court meets for the evening wake."

"I will come soon," it was her reply. 'What is this custom? Well, whatever it is, I better be there and discover.'

Rushing to share the candlelight that the servant probably carried, Alexa took the veil and opened the door. But only found the corridor empty and lit by a few widely spaced candlesticks and occasional lightning from the windows.

'Don't tell me she's so quick.' She just hoped it wasn't a prank of spirits, but after the events less than half an hour ago, the maiden wouldn't doubt if it was.

Still, her heart was racing. The encounter with anything otherworldly was not a light thing.

"Right, now where should I go?" It wasn't as if Alexa remembered the paths out this wing, and she was sure she hadn't passed the Great Hall before. As she hesitantly turned back to her room and locked herself for the night, still tempted to try perhaps to venture into the castle, Alexa saw one of the nearest candlesticks in the hallway flaring with a brighter glow, the flames fluttering violently from the surge of instant combustion.

The first words of a forgotten prayer came to her lips; the hair at the nape of her neck bristled with tension. What was that?! A signal? A friendly or a mocking Shade? Taking a deep breath and remembering that she was not unarmed, Alexa closed the bedroom door and approached the blazing candlestick with a distinctly unearthly halo.

Her heart was pounding with uneasiness and dread. Another candlestick ahead flared similarly, standing out in the dimness of the corridor. After the third of them blazed forth, Alexa realized that the candlesticks guided her to the opposite end from where she had arrived earlier with the entourage.

Whether it was a mistake to follow the supernatural tracks that called her somewhere, Alexa would only know if she followed the eerie invitation.

"Where are you going, Lady Saskia?"

The unfamiliar male voice reverberated in the empty hallway, and Alexa suppressed a startled scream, turning around,

"Me? I don't know. I don't know where to go, actually," she was relieved this was an average human, approaching with a candle that lit almost nothing. Alexa actually couldn't see much of his face. She didn't know if she had met him before, but apparently, he knew her and her name. The man's arrival seemed to dismiss the dark mood. The air again seemed fresh and breathable. The maiden felt relief in her chest. Catching her breath, she approached the man. "Please, I need to join Lady Cordelia."

"Yes, Prince Klaus figured she would need you," were his words, which made room for her to follow him.

After rounds and rounds of places she was sure she couldn't make out the next morning, they finally began to hear the murmur of the court and the cry of the mourners. The lighting was better here, but the shadows of the arcades and columns still drowned out the light from a great many candles. They arrived at the massive doors of the Great Hall, and the man helped her navigate through the court to the bride's party with her family and attendance. As soon as the maiden stood beside Cordelia, the bride squeezed her arm briefly in thanks.

Alexa turned to thank the man who had brought her, but he was no longer there.

On a luxurious bier, right in the middle of the Hall, surrounded by a mountain of flowers, stood the youngest Prince's body.

However, Alexa was too far from the bier and could not see any details. She could only see murmuring court figures in discreet conversations or prayers from under her diaphanous veil. She listened to the mourners in the galleries, wailing, and even heard the rhythmic cracking of rosaries in the hands of the most faithful ones.

Then Alexa craned her neck to look where she knew she would see the Prince who had sent a dress and also someone to pick her up. She looked up at the platform where the royal family should be.

She saw an older woman, already gray-haired and slightly burly. And next to her, a handsome-looking young man with brown hair and a fair complexion. She saw Prince Klaus, sitting next to the throne, looking somber and brooding. In contrast, the maiden saw the Sovereign Prince, and although his figure was striking, Alexa also saw them in a glimpse. Each on one side of him.

The Ghost Queens.