Bird in the Golden Cage

Chapter eight

Aislinn sat in the shade of the trees at the edge of the gardens of Prince Nathaniel's mansion. She had been in Feria for several months, she would have expected winter to be slowly coming. In the mortal world, autumn has already colored the leaves for sure. The flowers have lost their crowns. And here in Feria reigned a never-ending spring. The flowers were in full bloom. The crowns of the trees glowed green. The birds sang beautifully. The sun was warm. It was more beautiful there than she was willing to admit.

A lost prince emerged from the shadows of the forest. He didn't even have a scratch. He got out of the labyrinth alive. A mischievous smile still adorned his lips. He sat down next to Aislinn lying in the grass, looking up at the canopy of treetops arching over her head. Fragments of light filtered through the tangle of branches. They cast flickering shadows.

"So you survived," Aislinn said.

"Did you doubt?" said Prince Malachy.

"I was waiting for you, but you didn't show up. You said you would come for me." she gave him a look.

"But I'm here now," he replied.

"That doesn't count," Aislinn argued. "What happened there?" she asked him. "Nathaniel said he saw fire."

"The little problems were bigger than they first seemed," he recalled the day they were found by the faun puppets in the faun's labyrinth. "My precious brother and I met there. I told him where to find you. And while he, like a knight in shining armor, went to save you, I tried to hold back the undead." he said.

"If Nathaniel knew you were helping me, then why did he ask me?" Aislinn thought aloud.

"Maybe he wanted to know if you would lie to him," he said.

"I wasn't lying," she said. "I'm not lying. At least most of the time." she finally added.

Malachy laughed. He stood up and offered Aislinn his hand, which she declined. "Are we going out?" he asked her.

"I'm sorry, but I have a lesson with Senan soon," Aislinn said.

"I heard Senan took a liking to you. They say you are his best student. He didn't like me that much either, and I was an exemplary student," he said to tempt her on a little trip. "He certainly won't mind if you're a few minutes late."

"Even if so, there is a second problem. Here Ward," she pointed to the raven perched on a branch above them, his black eyes fixed on them. "He's like a fire alarm. If I cross the boundaries of this property, Nathaniel will call the entire army to find me. Especially if he finds out that I'm with you," she emphasized.

"I hate that raven of his," said Malachy. His fingers sparkled brightly and then Ward burst into flames. The flames engulfed his tiny body. His pained screeching echoed around. Ward fell to the ground and died.

"What did you do?!" Aislinn shouted in shock as she looked at the burnt feathers. "You killed him." The smell of rotting flesh and feathers made her stomach churn.

"He was following you. Wherever you went, he was always on your heels. Nathaniel is keeping you here as a prisoner." Malachy defended his actions. "I'm offering you at least what little freedom you have left, Aislinn."

Aislinn was very easy to seduce. All her life she was looking for freedom. Even now she fought for it. All three tasks she agreed to and swore to go through were all about freeing herself from what drew her to Feria. She longed to be free from Prince Nathaniel. Something strongly drew her to him, but at the same time, she wanted to run away.

"You said you wanted to show me the forest, so let's go," Aislinn said, stepping into the shadows of the forest. The first step was shaky, but each step became easier. No one came to stop her. They couldn't.