Simpler times

The meeting ended a few minutes after the queen's shocking announcement. Thia was expecting many things, but she had not expected what the queen said. 

"Me, the princess? How will that even work?" She thought. 

"Princess Thia" she muttered, trying to hear how it would sound. 

Thia walked out of the room and immediately started making her way back to her room.

"Hey Thia," a voice called out to her.

"What?" Thia asked Thena 

"Calm down your royal shortness, I heard Hansi and the others were visiting today, I wanted to tag along".

"Royal shortness? Thia said. You…" Thia said in anger.

"Oh, I'm sorry. You can't expect a shorty like you to be called a royal highness right? There's nothing high about you."

"Oh Thena, why don't you come closer? I have something I want to show you" Thia said.

"What is that?" Thena asked as the tension was building up between the two of them. Those passing by had stopped as both girls faced each other.

"I want to show you what it means to be small. By dicing you into smaller pieces" Thia said and summoned her scythe. Immediately the weapon manifested itself, every mundane human with weak spirits all fainted on the spot.

This drew the attention of one of the Pillars

"What do you think you're doing?" Hazel asked seeing the commotion

"Oh, nothing," Thia said and quickly put her weapon away. This was the first time she had summoned in it the mist of normal people, so Thia wasn't expecting such a result 

"Do you think that weapon of yours is a toy?" Hazel asked.

"I'm sorry" Thia replied in embracement to Thena's delight.

After more scolding from Hazel, Thia and Thena left the scene and returned to Thia's room where the others would be meeting them.

"You know one of these days, I'm going to slice you up," Thia said.

"Whatever you say. Your shortness". Thena replied

The two girls finally got to Thia's room and saw that the others were already waiting for them. 

"Hey guys" Thia greeted immediately she saw her friends.

"Hey, Thia and Thena?" Cage was the first to respond, he turned to Thena and was surprised with the way she was dressed.

"You look…," 

"Like a princess?" Thena asked.

"Like a girl" Cage replied.

Thena frowned at his response

"You mean I didn't look like a girl before?" Thena asked.

"No, Yes" 

Thia laughed loudly from beside Thena, "I thought I was the only one that sees you as the gorilla you are. "

Thena got irritated as Thia laughed at her expense.

"What do you mean by I look like a girl?"

"Do I look like a boy?"

"Yes, No, I mean, sometimes" Cage struggled to reply

"You really should stop talking" Hansi whispered to his friend.

"I should uhn?"

"So Hansi, how are your injuries?" Thia asked after laughing to her heart's content.

"They are getting better, as you can see. I can now walk on my own, instead of staying in bed all day" Hansi said.

Thai turned to Miriam who was still very quiet. 

The girl was still shaken from the incident. It was even a miracle she came out today. She had isolated herself since they returned to Eru and she was worried. 

"Have you finally spoken to your brother?" Thia asked.

"Yes," Miriam replied. I sent him a letter a few days ago and I received a reply yesterday. Turns out, he's in Wize in a city called Bintan" Miriam said.

When Thia heard the name, she recognized it as the city they were planning to attack in Wize. She wanted to say something but Thena stopped her. 

'It might be better if Miriam didn't know the kind of danger her brother would be facing in the coming days'. 

"So, I believe you have a reason for bringing us here?" Hansi said.

"Yes," Thia replied. "I have two reasons".

"The first is what the queen told me when I first met her and the other is about what just happened today".

When they first got back to the capital. Hansi was taken to the hospital with Miriam, cage went to see his family while Thena and Thia had gone to the palace. Thia finally met the queen in a rather unexpected manner. She recalled their conversation a few days ago as she began to narrate the details to her friends.

The night they got to the capital, Mystos had brought Thena and Thia to the palace. Thia wanted to see the queen immediately, but Mystos said she should wait till the next day.

"I understand your impatience Lady Thia, but you need to rest. Tomorrow you will see the queen."

"I'm not tired, I can see her tonight". Thia said.

"You should wait till tomorrow Mystos, That way you can also appear appropriately," Mystos said pointing at Thia's dress which was in terrible shape.

She had not gotten a chance to change of take her bath, or change throughout their two day Journey to Eru. 

"Alright I'll wait till tomorrow, but not a day after" Thia said.

"Of course, you are the first person the queen will grant an audience". Mystos said.

He immediately ordered the available maids to tend to the girls as left immediately.

Thena and Thia were shown to their room where they slept for the night.

When Thia was finally alone in her room Iku's voice suddenly resounded in her head.

"There is something strange in this place," Iku said.

"What do you mean strange?" Thia asked.

"This whole place, there's some kind of powerful curse manifesting itself in the very walls of this palace".

"What does that mean, is this palace cursed?"

"Yes, I'm not sure my lady but there seems to be a curse attached to this palace".

"Is that even possible? For a curse to attach itself to a place?"

"Depends on the Curse and the demon. Only a few demons are powerful enough to do this" Iku explained.

"Can Plutonia do it?" Thia asked

"She can, but, she's not the one. Probably an ancient demon that died. I can tell the curse has been for a long time" Iku said.

"A curse like this will probably need a core like a living being, maybe a human to keep it going for long."

"What? A core?" 

"Yes. Curses can't be attached to a place without something corporeal keeping them in that place. Many people don't know this, but curses can only latch themselves to a soul, and that soul can influence the thing it touches. I think the curse I'm sensing has a living core and that core was what spread it to this whole palace, making it part of its curse. I won't be sure unless I see the core."

"Can you guide me to the core?" Thia asked

"Yes my lady" Iku replied.

"Then let's go," Thia said.

With Iku's guidance, Thia moved quietly through the halls of the palace.

The palace was divided into five smaller palaces. Thia and Thena were currently at the Northern palace, Iku directed her out of the northern palace into the central part of the palace. With the stealth skills she learned at happyLand, she easily avoided being spotted. Iku led her to a large door shielded by two guards.

"Whatever it is that's acting as the core of the curse, is behind that door," iku said.

"I doubt those guys are just going to just allow us to go inside," Thia said.