FSE

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Chapter One

Screams and wails filled the night as panicked masked attendees poured out of the ballroom. Blood splattered on their clothes, some on their feet or faces.

In the center of the room, beneath a smashed chandelier, laid a corpse of a large owl. Large shards of glass protruded out from the body, as well as a large knife. Tables and plates had been turned over, creating a sprinkling of food and ceramic. Behind one of the overturned tables laid the mangled body of a mouse

Standing over the owl, a young lop pulled the knife out, before looking over her shoulder.

A pair of bears knelt down, cradling a young cub between them. Her face had a small scratch below her eye. Her eyes looked glazed over, as if she was in shock. Her chest moved up and down rapidly as she panted hard. Her fine gown had a spattering of blood on it.

"Your majesties.... I'm so sorry." She knelt down and bowed her head, placing the sword flat next to her. "Forgive me."

***

Light footsteps tapped on the stone floor as she ran down the spiraling stairs. She held a book in her arms, staring right ahead. Pushing open the door, she ran past the slow moving staff. Everyone was dressed in black, veils covering their faces as they walked, facing the ground. She had dressed in a simple black dress herself, but had kept her face uncovered.

She spun around, stopping at the large pair of doors in front of her. They were easily twice her height, with swirling patterns and trees on the edges. It showed a path of animals walking from the trees, walking on all fours. As they got closer to the edge of the door's center, they began to walk on two legs and wear clothing.

Pulling a rope next to the door, she listened to a bell chime. It echoed through the hall, making some staff members pause in their shuffling, to see the young raccoon standing at the door. Her ears flicked up as the door opened inward. A veiled man greeted her, his hooves clopping loudly on the floor.

"Thank you."

She looked around the room, seeing all the table cloths, curtains, and wall decorations had replaced the colors of red and silver with black. The two thrones at the end of the room still had red and silver tapestries hanging behind them. The veils they wore rested under their crowns, but their faces were still visible. Between the thrones sat a smaller one, empty. A row of guards stood in front of them, their armor and species varying.A large stag wore the plate armor of those native to Fairsky, a fox wore more furred armor from Twigsplit, and a rabbit wore more brightly colored robes from Shinesun, even a wolf wore quilted armor that bore the crest of the neighboring kingdom, Rockfall, two felines shielding a younger feline from a large boulder;

The Queen's face sagged with a frown, the King's face was tight as his jaw seemed to clench. The Queen laid back, defeated. The King sat neutrally. Both leaned away from one another in their thrones.

"Hello!" She gave a nervous wave, before walking up to a small podium they had placed in front of the thrones.

"My name is Celia. I have been living in the library in the astronomy tower for nearly two decades." She placed the book on the podium. It groaned under the weight of the book.

"I have heard about the condition of Princess Valerie, and I believe I may have found a solution." Opening the book, she smoothed out the pages as the guards seemed to visually relax. The King leaned forward slightly as the Queen remained still.

"We have had our healers pawing over books for weeks now. Nothing in the medical documents we've found has even alluded to this sickness. We are supposed to believe that you simply found it in the massive library we have? Unassisted?" The King tapped a digit impatiently.

Celia cleared her throat, finding the words underneath a picture of a peach tree growing in a snowstorm. The words were still black.

"I have looked at older documents to see if this illness existed in Fairsky previously." She could see the words on the page glowing cyan, and rearranging themselves to something more legible. They fell gently back into place, turning black again. "My Master, Minstrel, specifically sought me and my adopted sister, Ophelia, out, because of our ability to read the old language." She braced herself on the podium as she felt a twinging in her stomach. Her nails dug into the wood of the podium, joining the other scuff and scratch marks.

The King sat back, the wood of his throne straining from the force. He tapped impatiently.

"In the Arctic Grove, about two months travel from here, there is said to be a Pillar of Ice. Inside the pillar, contains the Heaven's Peach. This peach is said to cure any ailment of anyone who consumes it."

"Many of us have read faerie tales at one point in our lives." The Queen snapped, "You are wasting our time that we could be using to consult with our physicians... You come in here, acting as if you are able to deceive us. You are dismissed." She turned away.

"But there are real world maps!" Celia protested as the doorman walked over to her. He gently took her arm. She picked up the book, flipping through it.

"We're going to have to do a better screening of the citizens we let in here." The Queen said to her husband as Celia walked with the man. "Do not come back here!"

"Do not take it personally," The doorman whispered to Celia, "They are just... Worried for their daughter. But they cannot send an army based on a faerie tale." He stopped at the door, releasing her arm. "I apologize." He gave a hasty retreatt

The doors slammed shut behind her. She held the book to her chest, sighing loudly as she leaned against the wall. The workers continued to shuffle around, weaving through the halls. Pulling herself off the wall, she walked down the hall.

She opened the door leading up to the astronomy tower. She climbed up it, and looked at the door to the library. Pushing it open, she set the book down on one of the tables next to the door, and climbed up in a loft next to the window. Books were spread out over the loft. She picked a few up, setting them in order.

It had been happening for years. The history books showed it happening to those who got stranded in the woods, with those infected succumbing nearly instantly.

More drawings showed infectees screaming, or wide eyed and howling. Close ups of teeth and mouths. Lips curled back, eyes narrowed, ears back, ruffs raised.

A sickness of the mind. The infected would start off normal, with an open wound that wouldn't seem to heal, often resulting it having to be stitched up. There were close ups of detailed stitching, some thought sewing in certain patterns would result in a protection from the infection.

Within weeks, they would be snarling, snapping, biting, walking on all fours. The body would not contort to accompany the strange instincts, bodily injury would ensue. The injury would likely result in death.

The next page showed piles of corpses, sketched out and crosshatched.

She closed the books, setting them on the floor. She jumped down from the loft, landing on all fours. Standing up, she shelved the books solemnly. She kept the Maps book on the table. She looked at her notes, scribbled out in haphazard patterns all over the paper around the tables.

A knock startled her. Walking over to the door, she cracked it up, and peeked out.

A pair of blue eyes stared back at her.

"Yes?"

"I heard what you said to the Royals. I want to talk to you more about it."

She stepped back, opening the door further. A dark blue lop rabbit walked in. Her hair was a midnight blue, almost black, and tied loosely at her back. Her ears were tucked into the ribbon.

"You were one of the body guards in the room."

"Yes. Unfortunately I am not allowed to speak unless the room is empty." She sat down at one of the tables, crossing her legs. "My name is Donna XI."

"I'm Celia."

"You said that the Heaven's Peach existed. You said it's on real world maps? May I see them?"

"Sure." Celia opened the book, showing a map of the region. She pointed to Fairsky, which had been made the center of the map. "Fairsky is here." She pointed to the Arctic Grove. "I estimated it's about a two month travel time, with about four months total travel. Maybe four and a half if I get lost."

"You'd have to travel through Rockfall to make the fastest route." Donna pointed at the kingdom to the East, "King Cecil rules there. It's a Kingdom where a lot of money changes hands. Not corrupt, but no one has roots there." She scratched her chin, then pointed to a desert right behind it, "The desert would be dangerous as well. The sickness isn't as strong there, but hallucinations are common." She paused at some mountains behind the desert. "These will be tough to get through. At this point it would be... about a month and a half."

"Yes. Without a proper guide, we'll get lost for sure... Fall will be ending around that point." She looked at the Arctic. "The citizens of the Arctic may or may not be around... I don't think anyone has heard from them in years."

"Well, that may or may not work out in our favor then." Celia blew some hair out of her face.

Donna nodded, then looked over her shoulder. "Look, I've got a proposition for you."

"Yes?"

"If you can lead me to this... Heaven's Peach, and we can bring it back, you'll save the Princess, and maybe stop the sickness for good." Donna tapped her foot in thought, "I want to possibly take this journey with you."

"Really!" Celia squeaked, grinning widely. "You mean it?"

"Of course," Donna paused as she tucked a stray hair behind her ears. "It gets me out of here for a minute." She smiled warmly, then picked up a book, "I'm not sure how you can read it, but I hope you're right."

Celia responded with a nod, before picking up a bag, "So... When do we leave?"