Fire and Disease

Cathlinn wheezed as she sat up in the bed, stumbling from under the blankets to make her escape. The floors were cold as her bare feet padded on it towards the bathroom before she stopped. It took a moment for her mind to realize she wasn't in her barracks room, to remember everything that was happening. This wasn't a dream and she was hating it even more in the dark. The constantly open terrace door let the breeze in and outside smelled sickening.

She coughed as she walked to the door, glaring around as she leaned over the rail. She let out a cry as she was wrenched backwards, Carmichael in nothing but a shirt and loose trousers as he held her tight by her waist. "What the fuck is going on," she snapped. He let her struggle for a moment as he walked her back behind the wall, glancing outside.

"They're burning bodies outside the castle walls," he informed her. Her eyes widened as she stilled, the smell close to making her gag or even puke.

"Who are," she asked. She peeled around the wall and he moved to pull her back. She held her hand up, staring past the rail of the terrace and through the posts. There was definitely a fire just outside and people were dancing about it. She finally heard the yelling and chanting. She stared at Carmichael, quickly looking to the curtains and grabbing ahold of them. "Help me," she instructed quickly.

If they were burning bodies, they were most likely the sick that had died. It could lead to a pandemic within the walls. Carmichael didn't ask any questions as he helped her, the entire curtain rod falling down on the two. "Cut strips thick enough to fold over and put slits in them for the ears," she snapped.

"Cathlinn, I don't think-"

"We need as many as possible. People are probably already panicking and running around. Get the guards first and tell them to do the same thing," Cathlinn struggled to find anything sharp enough, coming up with a pair of scissors too dainty to be of much use. She was cutting out masks. "Do we have charcoal?"

"Why do we need that," Carmichael watched her before pulling a knife from his boot and doing the same, laying each make shift mask in a pile.

"Because it acts as a filter for disease," she placed one over her face when she was done, the door opening to the king dragging the queen under his arm. He seemed calm but his eyes were storming as he took in What the two were doing. Cathlinn hesitates, her heart rate picking up before she walked over and hooked masks over the two's ears. "Get a line of charcoal in the mask."

"What is this infernal thing," the king snapped.

"If they're burning bodies of the dead, those bodies were most likely the ill that didn't make it. Disease spreads by air faster than by contact," Cathlinn stated. She hurried back and picked up a pile, staring at Carmichael as he nodded.

Carmichael panted a bit, pulling at the mask and sitting down as Cathlinn motioned people farther from the fires. They somehow managed to get everyone in the masks, a few complaining until they realized Cathlinn had said to do it. Cathlinn glanced over at him reaching and patting his shoulder. "They're okay now," she muttered.

"How do you know this stuff," he stared up at her, his eyes a bit wide and teary. She moved away a bit, hugging herself and looking around.

"Call it a hunch," she shrugged.

"Did someone teach you these things where you're from," he asked.

"Well, yes," she nodded and sat down next to him, leaning back against the wall behind them. "It's called history. We had our own and they taught everyone."

"Why everyone," Carmichael gave a small laugh before shaking his head. "Never mind, don't answer that."

"Carmichael," Cathlinn closes her eyes and rubbed at her face. "We need to figure out who did this." He frowned a bit before looking to the guards who were helping the staff and nobles.

"We might have," he sighed. She frowned and looked over at him lazily, shifting her glasses a bit so they didn't mess with her vision. "We took into consideration what you said. The stuff about religion being a pretext? And some of the guards that were there when it reached its peak said they saw emblems of a foreign nation."

"Have you questioned them yet," Cathlinn stated back up at the sky, noting how it was slowly changing color.

"Not just yet. We will as soon as everything is in order," Carmichael replied.

"Okay. May I be there," she slowly stood up and stretched, her back cracking in the process. A reply didn't come and she turned to face the man, blinking as he stared at her in some sort of awe.

"Your highness, you acted quickly," he started.

"Monique," Cathlinn flinched and turned, arms wrapping around her and squeezing her tightly. "You've never been so decisive and who knew you excelled in medicine! What has gotten into you?" Cathlinn stared at the queen, a small smile forming on her lips even as her mind told her warning after warning. It felt good to finally be praised instead of reprimanded or talked down to, even if this wasn't her real mother.

"I just," she stared over at Carmichael, silently begging for words as a nervous laugh escaped her. "I don't know, I just wanted to know things?"

Her face suddenly darkened and she pulled Cathlinn closer to her face, kissing her nose and whispering so only the other could hear, "You've stopped judgement. The all mighty will smite you." Cathlinn's face paled, her eyes widening a bit. The woman pulled away and smiled, walking straight for the king. Cathlinn's chest squeezed and she rubbed her face, her thoughts racing.

Carmichael stood up and carefully patted her shoulder, a smile on his face, "Looks like everything's good now, your highness. How about we actually go inside and rest now?" He leaned down to Cathlinn's height and paused as she shoved his hand away. Words weren't coming out of her mouth, instead her lips were a straight line and her eyes had begun to water.

"Cathlinn, you need to come out," Carmichael called. Cathlinn curled up tighter under the blankets, her mind running in circles since earlier in the morning. She wanted to sleep off the exhaustion of walking around through a panic attack. She wanted to sleep off the thought that her mother -the mother- here had blatantly threatened her. There was no other way to look at it.

It hurt because this version was even more twisted than her's. Slimy, grotesque beasts crawled around in her stomach and chest at the words that were hissed at her. There was too much running amuck in her mind and she struggled to keep it in check. It made her feel like a coward, like a weak willed little worker ant with no other purpose than to feed everyone else in its' colony. She closed her eyes and tried to breath slowly, counting inside her head while tapping against the blankets.

She winced when something touched her from outside the blanket and she pulled it from over her head. Carmichael stared down at her, a worried smile on his face, "There you are. A few people have been looking for you, you know."

Cathlinn stared before sitting up slowly, hugging herself as she glanced out to the terrace, "Oh."

"Many of them wanted to thank you," he continued slowly. "You saved a lot of people's lives."

"Yeah," she rubbed at her face, looking down at her hands and mindlessly twitching her fingers about. It was quiet for a while, Carmichael trying to decide what to do now that she had actually responded. He was confused to say the least; the woman in front of him had taken charge but was now secluding herself away from the praise. It was mind boggling and it was beginning to get frustrated. Cathlinn should have been basking in the praise and yet she was in her bed, struggling with her own existence and the darkest, scariest thoughts her mind could bring forth.

"Do you want to tell me what it is," he asked quietly.

"No," she responded. He scowled and rubbed his head before leaning forward and holding it. Cathlinn watched him, pulling in as much air as she could so maybe she could pull in the confidence from the outside world and make it her own. "Yes-Yeah. I'm not crazy though, okay?"

"Why would I think you're crazy," he asked and leaned closer to her. "I'm your guard, what you say goes."

Cathlinn stared at him for a long while, squeezing her eyes shut as she tried to think of a process, "Get me as much information on the queen as possible."

Carmichael stood up quickly, a frown on his face before his eyes slowly widened, "You don't think-"

"She said something very incriminating and while I fucking hate burning those close, sometimes it's a damn necessity," she snapped. He flinched and in turn she curled up and covered her mouth. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be mean about it."

"It's fine, Cathlinn," he knelt next to her and took her hand, kissing her knuckles. Her face turned a bit red as he stood up, "Your training was rescheduled as the king thought you deserved a day of rest." Cathlinn stared and nodded slowly as she laid back and pulled the covers up.

"Do you mind staying in here," she asked quietly.

"Of course not, your highness," he smiled softly and sat at the edge of the bed once more.