With that thought in mind, I spread my wings and jumped into the air. A moment later, I found myself perched on the edge of the roof, which overlooked the balconyI’djust been sitting on.
Valenia and I had come to theHeartshire’sNeokellEstate right after visiting Mother. Istill hadyet to tell Valenia whyI’dneeded space from the encampments—or more specifically, whoI’dfound to be there—butshe’dquietly obeyed, following me to the Estate.
TheHeartshireroyal family had an estate in each city in the North.Apparently, thoseof my lineage used to travel between the different cities quite often. For what, Iwasn’tsure.Father had simply selected different advisors to oversee each Northern city instead, obtaining the majority of his intel from them.He rarely left Hollis, and when he did, it was purely for business.
At the thought of Father, I felt a void in my chest.I ran a hand through my hair, pushing each strand out of my face in an effort to distract myself.
The estate we were currently at was crafted mostly of a desaturated, dark wood blend, along with onyx accents scattered throughout where necessary, such as to make up certain floors or staircases or supports.Stained glass windowslinedthe walls,made up of hues of blue, gray, black, and some purples. Those had become my favorite part of theNeokellEstate, especially with how the moonlight lit them up at night.
As the sun finallydisappeared from sight, and the sky began to rapidly darken, I lifted the hood of my black cloak over my head. I secured it in place the best I could, though it was oversized enough that Iwasn’texactly worried.
Before the sun had begun its final stretch below the horizon,I’dtaken ground-up charcoal and smeared it all over my feathers, making sure to thoroughly cover up the white and gray-silver colorsI’dbeen born with.I’dgiven myself a small scarewhenI’dwalked past a mirror inside; the charcoal had made my wings resemble myfather’sexactly.
The idea of disguising my wing color was, unfortunately, not one that I could take credit for.
Before I could finish that thought, I noticed a shadow stretching across the balcony, approaching from insidethe estate.
I tugged my hoodforwarda final time, mostly to reassure myself it was still whereI’dplaced it. With my features obscured, I then bent my knees slightly as I prepared to jump from whereI’dplaced myself above the balcony.
I held my breath as I waited for my target.
And the moment she was directly beneathme,I stepped off the edge of the roof.
Landing directly behind my Right Hand, I allowed myself to continue my descent as I dropped into a crouch. Though Ihadn’tmade a sound, Val was good—she’dfeltsomethingshift. But despite how quickly she turned on her heels to face me, it only worked in my favor as I kicked out her legs from under her.
To my surprise, instead of falling, shearched. Stretching herself backwards, she got her feet back under herself swiftly and pushed, flipping herself over and farther away from me.
It was a smart move, I had to admit.
Unfortunately for her, I’d prepared for everything.
It only took a few long strides to reach her before she could fully gather her bearings. Before she could orient herself, I threw a solid hit to her stomach, causing her to double overandgasp for breath. I made sure to use a flat hand and not a fist, though. Icouldn’thave her in toohorrible of acondition.
Pathetic, I thought as I looked down at her.
I took a step back,somewhat disappointed. I had thoughtshe’dput up more of a fight than that.
It wasn’t until I gained a different perspective that I noticed her hands weren’t clutching her stomach like I thought they were.
She was working through a series of movements I wasn’t sure I had seen previously.
Before I could stop her or let her know Iwasn’ta true threat, I heard a cup from the table not too far off clatter to the ground.
My head snapped up just in time to see what Valenia had been focusing on.
An attack.
The spear of water hit me square in the chest, causing me to stumble backwards. I grunted at the pain, slowly standing straight again.
Valenia had gotten to her feet and was standing a healthy distance from me now. She began to move her hands again, this time in a sort of tugging motion—like she was pulling one end of a rope towards herself.
With that motion, I noticed the water at my feet—and the water that soaked me—wascollecting togetherand rolling back towards her in large droplets. I watched in subtle awe as she did so, though envy nipped at me.
Wielding abilities like that were supposed to bemine.
Instead, I had beencursed.
But if Iwascursed, I would make it mylife’smission to ensure that the Stars regretted even thinking of punishing me.
