Elemental Thief Part I : Child of Calamity

Rejected Kindness

Treasa lay on the cot she had been given, staring at the ceiling of the room she was in. The cot wasn't much different from the ones they used in the work camps. They were functional and portable, big enough for someone twice her size, but with enough support that she was comfortable.

It was a lot better than sleeping on the ground or the floor of a cell, which Treasa had her fair share of experience doing.

She had expected to be shown to a cell, though if she realistically thought about it, the small stone fortress they had landed in, with its tall walls and thick looking keep and minimal out buildings, may not be large enough to have cells. The window was a small slit, not big enough for her to crawl through, but enough to allow a little bit of light in.

Whatever its limitations, the room was hers for now. The door closed, but otherwise she had a place to sit and a room for bathing all to herself. Even Rulin jails were more luxury than anywhere she'd lived for a very long time.

She wasn't sure if there was a guard outside; she hadn't ventured that far since returning from her scrub down in the cold water bathhouse, getting the sticky black gunk off of her, as well as the sweat and dirt from a day on the run. Food had been waiting for her, simple and functional but more than she ever had in Clairval, and far more bolstering than most of her meals thus far in her life. It was a soldier's meal, she assumed, but it filled her belly and settled her into a doze as the day wore on into evening.

She was exhausted, but couldn't sleep, her mind racing and running through the possibilities of whatever was going to happen. Eventually she would leave this place and have to go in front of another judge, though this one would represent the Rulin King, whose son she had punched in the face.

She could face execution.

People in Clairval did all the time for assaulting a Peer, let alone a member of the Royal family. She could face time in prison, in Rulin prison, or perhaps a longer sentence in the work camps. And she had heard that Rulin sometimes settled their criminal cases through combat, so she could face one of these large, deadly fighters who would kill her with little effort.

She hoped the process would take a while, though, feeling oddly secure at the idea that she was going to be surrounded by walls and bars and armed guards. She felt like she could breathe for the first time in a long while, not having to worry about Kethan and his ability to get to people, not here in a place meant to keep people out. Sure, she was facing more charges, but she was untouchable when it came to the people she really feared. Execution would be nicer than the torture Kethan had in mind for her. She knew that.

When the soft knock sounded at her door, it took her by surprise and she shifted up in her cot to stare at the door, confused. Treasa's life hadn't afforded her many opportunities, where her privacy was guaranteed to her, respected so much that someone would knock before coming in. It was strange to hear it, strange to realise that whomever it was, they were waiting for permission to enter.

The fact that she was still a prisoner made it even odder, but she finally remembered to say. "Come in."

The door opened, and in slipped the two girls from the clearing. Both of them cleaned, wearing clothing that looked well cared for, but nothing indicative of a noble, just clean shirts and pants, their hair braided down their backs, wings wrapped around their shoulders. They weren't much younger looking than her, though Rulin aged differently, so Treasa wasn't sure just how old they really were and how that added up to human years.

"We didn't wake you?" Kaiyal asked softly, glancing around the room, before moving to the side and wrapping her arms around herself, looking timid, withdrawn.

Treasa shook her head, watching as Draisia, Princess Draisia, or so she had been told, glanced around the room. "No. Can't sleep."

She realised belatedly that she should attempt some sort of bow, but lost her chance when Draisia sat down on the cot beside her, offering her a gentle smile.