The Golden Flower -The Gifted

6

Dash gave her the report of our mission and I gave her the flower, still well intact in my gown. She seemed pleased to see we'd returned safely—but she looked more happy for having the flower in her hand. Her eyes distinctly lit up as she saw the golden flowers—as if her dreams had been realized. I cringed a bit; we'd done all the work and all she had to do was take the flower and do god knows what with it.

"The ceremony for the flower's retrieval will be announced soon. Now regain your chambers my children; you must certainly be exhausted. We will see you in the morning to discuss further procedure."

We then proceeded to respectfully bow towards Alison, but I didn't feel right about giving this flower to our her; this was a rare occasion for members of the Sixlogy. The head commander would only present herself on very special occasions and I was guessing this was one. I propped my head slightly, to peak at the woman, my curiosity nibbling away the best of me. I quickly looked away, flushed, as I noticed she had already been looking at me. My eyes had met hers; they were a beady black, empty. She gave me chills; it was as if she had something against me when I had no idea who she was. Alison gracefully turned to walk away with the flower in her hands, her guards following her. Something inside of me ached to see the young lady turn away with such a valuable item between her fingers. What shocked all of us was what I did next.

"Wait!" I'd commanded out loud. I was surprised by the confidence in my voice. I felt Dash's eyes burn on my skull, but I ignored them.

One of the guards frowned in my direction.

"You are not to address to lady Alison like that!" He hissed.

"Peter, it's alright. Alison stopped Peter with lift of her hand. What is it, Gwendolyn?" Alison inquired in what seemed like a cry. Her beauty was astounding, and her features seemed to descent straight from heaven.

"I have a question, if I may ask."

"Go ahead."

I paused for a moment, wondering if there was still a way back from this. The center was quiet as most members had already gone to their chambers to rest. My voice didn't echo against the walls of the room. It was actually quite the opposite; it seemed to be absorbed, muted from deep beneath my throat.

"What are you gonna do with the flower?"

"The flower is going to be kept safely under lock here in the center." Her tone was calm and contained however, I thought I could hear a hint of impatience. Nevertheless, instead of stopping there, I attempted to dig for the answer I was really looking for.

"The royalty of the palace will soon notice the disappearance of the flower, a third of their building destroyed and all heir salt rations burnt to ash. Will the Sixlogy pay for the repair of the palace?"

"Yes, there will be anonymous donations given towards the palace for the reparations and if they notice its disappearance, there will be no reason for them to suspect our center; you were in your advanced disguise suits right?"

"Yes, Lady, I have to say my question wasn't completely answered. What are you gonna do with the flower? Please be specific." I was starting to lose my patience.

She stayed quiet.

"What lives are you saving? The people here don't have any family, they're here to fight their honor, yet do you plan on bringing them back from the dead?" My voice was merely a whisper, but not the soft kind of whisper; it was the one that would burn your throat when you're on the brink of crying.

"My Lady, she's crossing Sixlogy guidelines!" Peter exclaimed.

"My dear Gwendolyn, you are indeed crossing lines. This conversation is to come to an end, as the purpose is empty. You are dismissed to your chambers. This is not to happen again."

Alec and Dash bowed respectively at Alison's dismissal. It was not until I felt Dash's hand press mine firmly that I did the same. A hot tear was already sliding across my jaw. As we left, silence was all that filled the spacious room.

"Stop by my chambers before curfew. I have a few words to share with you." He had bent over my shoulder over to my ear to whisper that. As a response, I glanced up at him. His eyes were impossible to read. I couldn't tell what it was that he wanted to talk about, but I could see that they shone with drive and ambition. I nodded and tried to smile, but I don't think my face really cooperated. He gently smiled back and turned away.