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“Sir Guisgard,” said a soft but stern voice.
He turned to a young Nymph who was possibly the most beautiful being in all of the lands he’d traveled.
“I sense your gaze wandering.”
“Never.” Arthur smiled at Princess Mierna who stood before him shyly in sheer iridescent layers that rippled like water over her body. Her fair skin and hair of pearly shimmer, turquoise eyes, and the radiant smile behind her coral lips drew him into her. Like most Nymphs, Princess Mierna loved playing with her appearance, but her features always remained the same, possessing a beauty that none of the others had.
She stepped back, disappearing into the shadows of an archway behind her, and Arthur smirked, following after as quickly as his bare feet allowed. In the dim glow ofthe crystal sconces, he kept up with the soft glimmer of her fabrics through the dim maze until he appeared into a familiar bedroom; one he’d been in endlessly over the years.
Mierna’s hand slid into his from behind, and he swiveled on his heel to grab her by the waist and push her against the now-closed door, capturing her in a kiss. Her chest heaved against his in a deep sigh, and Arthur relished the tenderness of her body under his touch. He missed her softness, although it had only been two days since he last saw her.
He pulled away for a breath, smiling down at her as their noses brushed. “I missed you.”
“I can tell,” she laughed. “It’s ridiculous how you’re not tired of me yet.”
“I couldnever,” he scoffed playfully, but his lighthearted demeanor fell away when he noticed something subdued about her. “Something’s wrong. I can tell.”
Mierna sighed and grabbed his forearms uncertainly, letting her head fall into the crook of his neck. She nuzzled into him for comfort, and he embraced her immediately. “What’s wrong, my lady?”
“My mother’s getting worse,” she sighed. “She’s so sure she won’t recover, and I’m starting to believe her. It’s been weeks.”
“But I’ve brought a new medicine for her, Mierna,” Arthur insisted. “I’m sure it will work.”
“And in case it doesn’t?” she said and pulled away from him, sliding out of his arms to walk away to a window where the sunset was in clear view. “Arthur, the Queendom needs me to step up to my duty, and that’s fast approaching.”
Arthur felt distraught and knew well where the conversation was going. “You can’t be serious, my love. It’s not that simple.”
“It isn’t,” she agreed defeatedly, “but word came only moments ago that King Travus initiated conquest upon the Orcs and has succeeded. They were warned about a full moon ago but called it a bluff.”
“So? Nexis has one of the strongest armies in the realm. There’s nothing to worry about.”
“Right,” she said and turned to him with a serious look in her eyes. “We rival the power that Eldoria possesses. In that case, it makes no sense to go to war, but to form an alliance.”
Arthur’s mouth dropped in disbelief.
“I must protect my people from subjugation, Arthur,” she explained firmly and clasped her hands. “You understand what that means, don’t you? I hope youunderstand that I don’t have a choice. The Elder’s Council leans heavily toward the decision as well.”
“No,” Arthur said, his voice deeper than he knew it to be as the embers of rage began to simmer in his chest. “Mierna, this isnotthe answer.”
“Then what is?”
His head was empty from the shock of it all, unable to stand the thought of Mierna being with anyone else but him. For her to be held, kissed, and bedded by another? It was out of the question.
Mierna drew closer to him with sadness in her eyes, her gentle touch upon his cheek pulling him out of the trance that gripped him. “I do not want this, My Love,” she whispered, “but I could not hide this from you.”
He gazed upon the iridescent glow of her skin in the soft light of the room, overcome with a kind of yearning that he hoped to never feel; a muted version of grief that came with the departing of a loved one. It seized him, guiding his fingers into her hair and pulling her into a desperate and soul-crushing kiss that hoped to confirm she was still before him in flesh. Her mewls, her breath, and her needy fingers around his neck were not enough.
It felt as if he no longer had her.
His fingers followed the neckline of her robes, sliding it off her shoulder so he could kiss her collarbone, memorizing every curve and bone against his lips. Mierna’s small gasp only encouraged his hands to wander, finding her soft bare shoulder.
“Take me, Arthur,” she muttered breathlessly. “This may be our last time. Once negotiations with the King begin, we…”
He silenced her with a kiss, hands working to undo any clasp and ribbon that kept her covered, driven not by lust, but by longing and sadness of the possibility that their last days of love were upon them.
They sunk into their own solitary world where no one else existed besides the two of them, relishing each other one last time.
Without Mierna, Arthur could not believe himself to be complete.
