Kaija: Queen of Stone

4.5

"Tara!" an authoritative male voice called.

I veered around, my body weightless and head light and hazy. I was stuck in an unfamiliar place yet again. I was just with Qia and Tiroa, but now, I felt like I was far away from Udan.

It seemed I was in a throne room, but it was not the same one that belonged to Baria.

A man and woman stood in front of me with their backs turned. The color of their hair was wintry like mine. The walls were not walls, they were instead crimson fabric. The strange place was held up by two posts, yet, it appeared magic was present in the room with me for the walls would not move with the light wind surrounding me.

I looked down. The brown dress I was found in was no longer there, instead, I was dressed in a silver gown fit for royalty. I looked down at my hand, noticing something was in my grip. With a raised brow, I opened it, revealing a dagger with a black hilt and silver vines. I felt like I had seen it before somewhere but couldn't remember where.

"He can't be," I argued, moving back. "He wouldn't be."

"Tara, I know this is not the news you hoped for, but—"

"No!" I shouted, my face burned. "He is going to come home." My voice fell from the room.

He was going to come home. I didn't know who he was.

"Tara..."

"No!" I shouted, the hot tears leaking down my face. "He will be home tomorrow. He promised. He said so. I know it!"

"This is a lot to process," a woman said from her throne. "I know you must be enduring a lot of pain but know we are here for you."

"What happened?" I gasped over the sobs.

The man grimaced. The truth was hidden in the silence. "From the North."

My mouth moved but I couldn't hear what I was saying.

"Tara..."

"I will find him myself," I spat. "I will bring him back alive and well."

"My sweet girl, please, stop burdening yourself with lies," the woman whispered. "Please."

I didn't know who they were speaking of and who they were but the words I said next made it seem like I knew them.

"I speak a truth only my heart would know."

I awoke with sweat beading down my face. Morning came without a sunrise; similar to the lantern in the corner glowing. My back ached from the cot. I groaned as I adjusted, blinking as the dream came hurling back to me.

I remembered a part of myself, but not the man or woman I was speaking to. I wasn't sure who Tara was, and I wondered if this was a piece of the person I had lost in the river. Even though it felt like it could have been a memory, it still felt so distant, so far, like an actual dream.

"Good morning," a voice sounded from beside me. Qia escaped from behind the crate, adjusting her black servant dress. She smiled, fixing her hair into braids. She had a ball of string in her hand, using it to weave her ebony hair together.

"Good morning," I replied.

"I hope you slept well," she answered. "Today is going to be a long day."

I nodded. "I did, thank you." The dream of the faceless man and woman remained in the back of my head but I wasn't going to tell these strangers about it. It was probably nothing important. I imagined it was my mind struggling to fill in the pieces of who I was.