7.2
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Yazia exhaled and advanced back to the palace, wandering her way down the same stainless floors she had run down just minutes ago. But this time, she kept her head held high.

No more running, Yazia. You've got this. A queen does not escape from her enemies, she deceives them.

When she reached the room, Yazia stopped and for a few moments, hesitation struck her. The door was left ajar just as she'd left it. She didn't knock, instead she walked right inside and closed the door tight.

She glanced across the chamber in sight of the King, only to find him standing under the arched balcony. Yazia wondered why he hadn't chased after her, or maybe rushed to get  his royal guardsmen to seize her after what she had done to him.

"Apologies, Your Majesty. I didn't mean to intrude. I just...I want to know what happened," she said, her voice wavered at the end, becoming barely a whisper.

Yazia didn't know what she had been expecting; for him to grovel at her feet and beg for her to stay and not leave the way she had tried to again. But he didn't move. Only the wailing of the soft breeze tangling with the silken curtains could be sound.

Yazia glimpsed back towards the closed door for just a moment before deciding to step forward and meet the King's side at the balcony. She followed his gaze, out towards the expanse of trees ahead of them that seemed to be never ending. Large veins of the roots at the trees closest to them spread across the grassy floor. She remembered what it felt like to be outside again, barefoot, the wetness of the dirt crushing against her soles. It had been a happy memory, until it wasn't.

"I expected that you'd find your way back," he said gruffly. The sound emanating from his six foot one inch stature commanded attention. Although it wasn't at its most pronounced she'd heard, Yazia felt the sting of a whip against her dewy skin. She tried to swallow the thick lump trapped inside of her throat.

"I just want to know where we stand," Yazia said with a hushed tone, "I do not want to make an enemy out of you. I just want to know what happened...Whether those...things were real." Yazia grimaced as the vivid imagery of the dark shadows that choked her came flooding back to her. She glanced up, hoping that his expressions told more than his voice was, whether he truly did have to be her enemy or not.

"What exactly is it that you saw and so clearly claim that I did?" He paused for a brief moment, Yazia's mouth left agape as he added, "I am not the monster you should be fearing in this Kingdom, Malya."

Monster...

"Well, then I ought not to think of you as one," she stated with certainty. He was correct, there were worse things out there than corrupt monarchs. She looked down to her pale hands resting on the balcony's edge at the thought.

"You shouldn't," he confirmed, "I had no intention of hurting you, Malya...Actually quite the opposite."

Yazia was relieved to hear that he wouldn't hurt her, to know that what she had done to him had no effect. She turned and briefly made eye contact with him, realising he had been watching her. Her eyes swung up to the dark bruise that formed on the side of his head where she had cracked the candle's stand at him. A tinge of guilt formed deep inside of her stomach, though she also couldn't tell if it was just the nausea talking.

"I saw wisps of shadows. They at first seemed to leak from you...pour from the very pores of your skin." Yazia fought hard to keep her voice steady. "Then.. I don't know what happened, everything became clouded, I was lying on the ground, you... or what looked to be you, had your hands wrapped around my throat." As she told the story out loud, a shudder formed down her spine, and goosebumps formed at the back of her neck.

The King's blue eyes burned into hers, or at least she had thought they were blue. Instead, his eyes were as grey as thick, prowling clouds only seen in thunderstorms. "So my supposition was correct...Malya, do you remember seeing anything suspicious at the suitors ball?"

Yazia's brows furrowed together in confusion. "No..I was just dancing, Your Majesty. I'm not quite sure I follow...What do you mean?"

The King reached into the pocket of his obsidian coloured tunic; more of the golden embroidery that she had found on the silken curtains in the room could be found on his clothing. Pulling out his hand, he now held a piece of parchment. "When you had seized up, I requested for a physician to check you." He handed over the paper, which Yazia took and quickly unfolded to read the contents. "It appears that you were poisoned, with Silverine."

Yazia skimmed through the paper intensely, only to find below the date of the ball, her name, as well as the physician's, the following words:

ᴅɪᴀɢɴᴏꜱɪꜱ : ᴘᴀᴛɪᴇɴᴛ ꜱʜᴏᴡɪɴɢ ᴅᴇᴠᴇʟᴏᴘɪɴɢ ꜱʏᴍᴘᴛᴏᴍꜱ ᴏꜰ ꜱɪʟᴠᴇʀɪɴᴇ ᴘᴏɪꜱᴏɴɪɴɢ.

ᴘʀᴏᴄᴇᴅᴜʀᴇ : ᴜɴᴋɴᴏᴡɴ. ᴘᴏꜱꜱɪʙʟᴇ ᴅᴇᴀᴛʜ ɪꜱ ᴛᴏ ꜰᴏʟʟᴏᴡ ᴡɪᴛʜɪɴ ᴀ ᴍᴀᴛᴛᴇʀ ᴏꜰ ʜᴏᴜʀꜱ.

"I managed to find this also." The King handed over a small vial, the glass stained with a charcoal like substance, despite there being no liquid left inside. "And I swear to you that this was not my doing. I do not see you as a threat, Malya."

Yazia forced herself not to be scornful about it. He had no idea that she'd be his biggest threat. At least it was a good thing that he didn't see her that way, for now. But still, she had doubts about his words.

"Where did you find this?" She held up the glass vial in her hand. "And why did you keep it?"

"I found it in one of the jardinieres in the ballroom. I wasn't sure if you were going to wake up, since it was near impossible to tell how much dosage you'd received, and it seemed quite fatal. I kept it just in case you woke up, since I knew whatever you'd seen was far from the truth."

It was a known fact that silverine gave the victim horrendous hallucinations, visions and nightmares. Fatal symptoms were known to be fainting, seizures and a harrowing death. Nobody makes it out alive.

Yazia was supposed to be dead.

"Whoever did this wants you dead, and dead for good."

"I-I don't understand," Yazia whispered, "it's a lot to take in, I had no idea..." She'd remembered her first encounters with silverine, she'd watched others flare up and die from the disease of the poison that had consumed most of their insides. Some were unfortunate enough to wake up after their attacks, but they'd suffer an agonising death just hours later.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed since her awakening, but she could tell that the poison had left her body. Yazia had somehow managed to survive, despite her near death experience.

"I'd like to be left alone for some time, if that's quite alright with you...," she whispered, the parchment crumpling in her hand.

"Ah, yes. You may need to rest and get back your strength before we talk further. I will see to it that you're well taken care of during your stay here, however long you need. Meanwhile, please make yourself at home," the King informed, with a bit too much formality.

Yazia nodded in agreement and said nothing else. Admittedly, she was very tired. This had been a lot to take in, and she'd need the strength to determine her next steps. It appeared that the King wouldn't be the only person she'd need to take care of on her stay at Abingor.

She watched the King leave the room, and close the door behind, leaving her alone in the room. She dragged herself slowly towards the bed and placed the parchment on the vanity. She then crawled onto the bed and curled up among the silken sheets, her hand still wrapped around the glass vial.

For a few moments, Yazia studied it with curiosity. How something so small could have the ability to wreck a most grisly death to even the most dangerous of foes, could do so much harm within a matter of days. Then, as she drew it closer towards her face, she noticed there was a droplet of the liquid left, sliding across the damp glass.

One drop was more than enough, still.

Yazia debated unscrewing the lid, and allowing for the liquid to soak up her tongue. She'd survived it once, maybe she could do that again. But as she stared at the ampoule, never having a few moments deliberation seemed like less than eternity as she felt her consciousness ebbing away.

Her eyes grew heavy from the strenuous effects of the events, and the grasp that was moments ago wrapped tightly around the glass had loosened as she gave herself away to her pursuer of exhaustion, Yazia slept off.

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