The Shadow Wanderers

Chapter 9

Slipping the dress on, Calista looked at herself in the mirror. Letting the breeze from the balcony dry her ginger hair, she french-braided on both sides and let the braids dangle on her shoulders. Her dress was anything but uncomfortable; its fabric so soft and light, she felt like floating. It was a baby-pink gown, with blue laces on the bodice and the waistline, the skirt flowing effortlessly down to her feet. She'd never worn anything of the sort before, so the feeling of being far from home intensified.

Feeling presentable enough, she picked up the sphere gadget and pressed the gem on it. It changed into a yellow speck of light and floated in the air. It oddly reminded her of the speck of light Zayden had snapped into existence in the Pit of Gloom.

"Hey, little thing, do you have a name?" she asked, expecting no response. It kept floating purposelessly. "You look like a star. You shine bright. May I call you Twinkle?"

To her surprise, it started to move in circles in the air as if excited about its new name. She told it to take her to the dining room, while she leapt onto the hoverboard. Passing through twisted trails and the enormous ballroom, Twinkle led her to more complicated passageways, and they finally stopped outside a golden gate. At their arrival, the door swung open, revealing a spacious and well-lit room. The fancy royal chairs aligned neatly with a huge dining table in the middle of the room.

Aurora sat on one end of the table, Claudia and the maiden standing behind her. As Twinkle transformed back into the sphere, and the hoverboard into the cube, Calista walked over to Aurora's side of the table and took a seat.

"You look lovely," Aurora commented.

"Thank you. I didn't think this would look good on me. I haven't worn a gown ever," Calista replied nervously.

"My mother, the former Queen, used to say; gowns usually hide a woman's truest self. They make her appear delicate, as though something to protect. That gives her an advantage. A woman in a long dress can surprise people with more than they can assume."

Calista looked at her with awe. "I'll definitely fill my wardrobe with dozens of gowns when I get home." If, she reminded herself.

Two men in red hooded cloaks appeared, one pushing a trolley as he walked and the other one striding urgently ahead of him. They walked up to the dining table, and the latter one placed gold plates in front of both the ladies. Calista watched their moves absently and noticed it was the first time she was seeing Vakenian men other than the king himself.

Picking up a huge platter with a round lid, the man placed it in the middle. Calista felt a pang of curiosity about the food, however, all of her expectations died down once the man lifted the dome to reveal raw chicken resting on the platter. Her stomach churned and she wondered if they had yet to discover fire.

Aurora seemed satisfied with the glinting pink chicken, and Calista watched in despair as the man started to cut it into pieces to serve them. He was about to put a piece on her plate when Claudia interfered, and the man stopped. "Perhaps the king's special guest would like to eat a special dish rather than chicken."

Calista sighed in relief.

Aurora beamed and flushed. "How rude of me to not offer our guest the special dish. Calista, I sincerely apologize." She turned to the man ordained to serve them the meals. "It would be very kind of you to bring the special dish."

The man nodded, smiling, and disappeared from their sight. Only a few seconds later, he reappeared, pushing a smaller trolley this time. He came directly over to Calista's chair and removed the dome from the plate on the trolley. He placed it in front of her and moved to the larger trolley.