Crimson Snow

by D A Rice

  He moved away, heading for the stream instead, staying in sight of the campgrounds. Once there, he knelt close to the edge, staring into the water’s depths. Reaching down, he dipped his hand in the cool liquid and brought it up to his lips for a drink, finding himself too thirsty to care if it made him sick or not. When he swallowed, it was probably the most refreshing drink of water he’d ever tasted. He drank a bit more and debated, for a moment, if he should dunk his head under to clear his mind. He was still feeling the effects of that song. His debate didn’t last long. Dunking his head under, he let the cold water clear his thoughts with a jolt. As he lifted his head back out, water dripped from his hair to his face as he shook his head like a dog.

  He wiped his face with his hand, flicking the water off his fingers and staring at his reflection. Did he look more pale than normal or was that just him? He made a face and stood up. He needed answers, and even as intimidating as Princess Brielle was, he was determined to get them. Feeling confident, he headed back to where the princess was now competently organizing different-sized sticks, setting some up like a teepee.

  "I have questions," he started as he paused near the pile she’d built up. "I want answers and... you’ll give them to me." He was proud that there was only a slight waver to his voice. Eason crossed his arms in front of his chest as he watched her. Brielle didn't pause as she walked off again to find more wood. Feeling a bit embarrassed and annoyed, Eason followed her. "Listen, I'm clearly not from here and I’ve no idea how to get back," he stated as he paused behind her when she stopped, flicking long locks of long brown hair over a shoulder.

  She scooped up some sticks and turned to him. Her hazel eyes piercing as she stared at him without blinking for a long moment. He lifted his brows, waiting for her to say something. Instead, she shoved the sticks into his arms and walked off again. "Help gather wood for the fire. Make yourself useful, kid," was her only reply.

  Once the fire began to crackle, they sat next to it in an awkward silence. Eason was annoyed that she wasn’t giving him the answers that he needed. She had caught two rabbits and was now skinning them nearby. He wasn’t sure whether to be impressed or disgusted with how deftly she worked. He opted for impressed. "Where did you learn to hunt?" he asked, trying for a normal conversation. May as well try to get on her good side, he thought. She was silent for so long Eason wasn't convinced he’d succeeded in breaching that stony silence.

  Staring moodily into the fire, he was surprised when she finally spoke. "I was taught by the huntsman," she answered in a low voice, keeping her eyes on the rabbit she was skinning. Eason waited to see if she would say more but it was apparent she’d decided it was enough information to give him.

  "So, the huntsman taught you how to hunt. Aren't you a princess? I didn't know princesses hunted or anything like that." Eason picked up a stick and idly poked at the fire as he spoke, gently trying to encourage the woman to speak. He knew so little, yet he could tell that conversation was hard for her. Almost as much as patience was difficult for him in this moment. The night air was silent and a bit chilly. He found himself grateful for the fire before them. This girl knew what she was doing, he had to give her that. There was a soft snort from the other side and Eason lifted his head, realizing that Brielle was laughing.

  "Where you come from, your princesses must be very prim and proper," she said with a tone of mockery. She finished with the rabbit and proceeded to put it on a large stick before wiping her hands on a towel Eason hadn’t noticed in her lap. "Here, there is little time for all the fuss of being a proper princess. Especially when there is evil in this land that needs to be kept hidden," she shot him a pointed look.

  Eason flinched, remembering how he had awakened said evil. "Where is here? Who was that girl? Why is she evil?" he fired at her. Now that he’d gotten her talking, the floodgate of questions had broken. His patience was no more; now, he needed answers.

  Brielle gave him a look, clearly unamused. She sighed heavily and rolled her eyes, settling them on the cooking rabbit before them. "This is Enchantra, land of magic and curses." She muttered the last part, setting down her hunting knife before meeting his gaze in her cool way. "You really want to know what you woke up?" she asked, as if wanting to make sure Eason was ready for the truth.

  "Well, since I clearly somehow came to this world and did the worst thing possible without even realizing it... Yeah, I kinda want to know," he said, his voice touching sarcasm. This woman intimidated him, but he wasn’t afraid of her enough to beat around the bush anymore. Brie sighed again as she watched him, a debate clear in her gaze. The fire illuminated the hazel in them as they moved back and forth, reading him like a book.

  “Snow is her name,” she began softly. The fire crackled and popped as it slowly cooked the rabbit between them. Her voice seemed to come out lightly and a bit deeper as if she was about to tell a haunting tale. “She is the daughter of the king and stepdaughter of the queen. Long ago, she was considered the most beautiful woman in the land and many sought her hand in marriage. Only, they were unaware of the evil that lurked underneath that innocent mask.” She paused as if to brood over the story. Eason shifted to get more comfortable. This sounded like the Snow White from the fairy tales he knew. He was about to encourage her to continue when she did. “The princess was not innocent at all. She was a murderer,” her voice cracked on that last statement, grief overcoming her for a moment as her words sunk in.

  Eason furrowed his brows and raised his hand. “Hold up. This sounds like Snow White. The Snow White with the dwarves and singing to animals-- she’s a murderer? I thought she was supposed to be the good guy!” he said, doubt tingeing his voice. “She’s probably the most innocent of the princesses in our tales back home.”

  Brie frowned as she stared at him. “I do not know about these other ‘princesses,’ but Snow is by far one of the most evil. She seduces men with her voice and tears out their hearts to control them.” She clenched her fists and glared into the fire. “She killed Prince Florian, who she tricked into believing the queen was abusive and cruel. In one day, he was her puppet.”

  “Wait a minute. You’re telling me that this Snow is not only a killer, but her voice is basically akin to a siren’s, which she uses to rip out men’s hearts? I’ve heard of a heart-breaker, but not quite so literally,” he tried for a joke, but judging by the look Brielle gave him, this was not a time for joking. He sobered quickly. “The Snow White story I know, she was hunted down by the huntsman and treated cruelly by the evil queen. She was spared by the huntsman and befriended the dwarves and stuff.” He lifted a brow.

  Brielle looked so incredulous by his words that Eason felt he’d struck a blow he hadn’t meant to. “The queen was nothing but kind to her. The huntsman would never have spared her wretched life after everything she’s done! And the dwarves were tricked by her. She almost killed them, just as she may now.” She seethed.

  “Okay. So she isn’t like how everyone thinks. She actually killed people and the evil queen isn’t really evil at all. Got it.” Eason found his hands coming up in mock surrender, trying to pacify the princess’ temper. He didn’t bring up the dwarves again. He could tell it was a sore spot for her, and he didn’t blame her. He’d seen the way they’d tried to protect her in the forest.

  Brielle snorted. “Your world clearly has their story twisted.”

  “Well, it’s definitely not very kid-friendly, but then again, neither is this,” Eason muttered under his breath. He cleared his throat. “So, she’s a murdering psycho. That doesn’t really explain how she ended up in the forest in a glass coffin. Did the queen actually poison her with an apple because she was jealous of Snow’s beauty?”

  Brielle gave a shake of her head. “Not even close. She crossed the queen one too many times. Snow killed someone close to her, which enraged her. She cursed Snow to eternal sleep and banished her to the enchanted forest.” Brielle looked intently down at the rabbit and paused as the fire crackling became the only noise betwee
n them. Eason had a suspicion that whoever Snow had killed hadn’t only been close to the queen. He cleared his throat and shifted on his log as he waited for her to compose herself.

  “Were you also close with this person?” He asked softly, his curiosity getting the best of him. His tone lightened as he made the shape of an apple in his hand and aimed it at his mouth teasingly, adding “and the apple thing? Definitely true?” Brielle looked at him like he’d lost some apples of his own. He couldn’t decide if she was right to worry or not.

  “It’s not important,” she said in regard to his first question, then raised an eyebrow as she tried not to smile. “Also, you are an idiot.”

  “Agreed,” a disembodied voice said, male in nature, and a bit perky.

  Eason jumped to his feet and looked around, startled. “What the hell?” He said as he looked back at Brielle, noticing her sheepish expression. She was looking down near her bag, which sat next to the log she was sitting on. In fact, she seemed to be telling it to shut up, with a kick for good measure. He realized then that a voice was speaking back to her from inside the bag itself. He glanced around, then pointed, “please tell me you don’t have a talking squirrel in there.”

  “Who are you calling a squirrel, idiot boy?”

  Chapter 4

  Eason’s mouth dropped open. He was prepared for weirdness in epic proportions after everything he’d been through. He’d even been willing to admit that this wasn’t a dream. But a talking bag? He shook his head in shock before meeting Brielle’s gaze, who was biting her lip in awkward resignation. Finally, she rolled her eyes up to the stars, mouthing a silent prayer, before digging around in her bag and pulling out a silver, hand-held mirror. “You just couldn’t keep your mouth shut, could you?” she asked it contemptuously.

  Eason’s eyebrows shot up as he edged around the fire to look at the mirror over her shoulder. A face appeared, lacking in specific features, who’s eyes looked more like holes then actual eyes. In fact, the face was like a mask, sculpted to fit someone with high cheekbones and a wide smile. To Eason’s shock, the mirror spoke. “How could I? This conversation was derailing fast. You clearly need all the help you can get.” The eyeless face winked at Eason. “Hello, handsome! Interesting hair...”

  Eason started jerking back and away from them both, “Ok…” He turned away from them, running a hand down his face before glancing back. “Ok,” he said again, taking a deep breath to calm his overwhelmed nerves.

  “Stimulating conversation tactics from that one, no?” the mirror asked in amusement.

  “Will, do us a favor, and shut up,” Brielle addressed the mirror before turning to Eason. “Did your stories speak of a magic mirror, Eason? If not, then you really should have a talk with the historians wherever you’re from.”

  “He should have a talk with them anyway,” Will smirked from in the mirror, “it sounds as if they left quite a lot out. Snow-- innocent,” he scoffed in amusement.

  “Yeah, well, in my world, Snow White is also just a bedtime story,” Eason mumbled, combing a shaking hand through his hair. He straddled the log next to the princess, far enough away to not be in her personal space, but close enough to see the mirror. “Did you just call me handsome?” he asked with an eyebrow raised.

  “And he’s quick! Princess, this is quite the companion you have here. It’s no wonder Snow hasn’t cut out his heart and had it for a snack!”

  Ignoring the mirror for the moment, Eason met Brielle’s gaze. She returned his as she rolled her eyes at her disembodied companion.

  “Yeah, backtracking a little bit, why does she eat the hearts of men, exactly?” he inquired.

  Brielle lay the hand with Will in her lap so that he faced up, his eyeless holes twitching as if looking between the two of them above him. She took a moment to compose herself again. “It’s the song. When she gets inside your head, it’s like a poison, but she doesn’t have full control over you yet. It’s more like a compulsion, so you still have free will, that need to survive. When she takes a man’s heart into herself, it gives her complete control and increases her power over the forest in which she resides.”

  She paused for a moment before she spoke again. “She has this area where her power is strongest. The closer you are to her, the more control she has over you. The dwarves are prime examples of this.” Her eyes turned cold as they met Eason’s again making him flinch away from her. There was blame there. “Their sacrifice was their minds.”

  “But not their hearts?” Eason asked, confused.

  “No, she has chosen you for that honor,” piped in Will.

  “Which is why we must get you to my home as fast as my horse can ride tomorrow. If she gets you, her power will likely be unstoppable. You are different from the others she’s chosen in the past, and something new is always to be feared.” Brielle stretched out, pulling the rabbit free from the fire before divvying up the spoils between them. “For now, eat and rest. We have a long way to go tomorrow before we are done.”

  ~

  Eason, my love, why did you leave me?

  Eason woke with a start. Someone was shaking him violently and he moaned, then startled again. He was standing on the edge of camp with Princess Brielle beside him, her grip fierce on his upper arm. She was glaring, but not at him; she was glaring into the forest. Eason followed her look and found motionless eyes, shining in the darkness as they watched him. The eyes stayed at the edge, never wandering further, but Eason shivered anyway. Brielle met his gaze, a finger to her lips, and nodded backwards. He nodded in understanding and they edged back towards where the fire was only embers behind them. He glanced at her again, but she shook her head, quietly cleaning camp as quickly as she could. Eason followed her example, kicking dirt over the last of the dying fire’s glow.

  In his head, he heard the haunting voice from his dreams. She sounded so sad, as if him leaving her had broken her heart.

  He shook it off, remembering the apathy that came with Snow. Everything that the princess told him flooded his mind. He grimaced. They needed to get away from that forest as fast as they could. Brielle thought they would be safe where they were, but she must not have known for how long. Their time was up. The creatures, whose eyes shined in the darkness, watched them, but did nothing to interfere.

  It seemed Snow’s reach ended at the edge of the forest. This simultaneously gave him comfort and unnerved him. If her reach ended there, then why could he still hear her? Had he really been about to waltz right back into that nightmare in a dream-induced stupor? It occurred to him that Brielle had saved his life. Again.

  Tugging on his shirt to get his attention, Brielle nodded to her freshly-saddled horse and he nodded back to her in acknowledgement. He threw himself over, holding out his arm to her. She didn’t need it, but she didn’t refuse it either, pulling herself onto the horse behind him again. She whispered into his ear, “hold on,” and they took off, galloping as fast and as far as they could get.

  A couple hours later, the sight of the forest behind them shrank and the sun came out in force showing off the green plains they were now surrounded with. The grass was long and flowed in the breeze like an ocean. They slowed as Eason took it all in, a smile touching his lips. He could see wildflowers in varying colors peeking out here and there and the air was so much sweeter. He took a deep breath. “Wow!”

  He could feel the princess nod behind him. She hadn’t said anything about his dream-walking, hadn’t really said anything at all, but the silence this time had not been awkward. He supposed that was an improvement over the last ride they‘d had together. “These are the Plains of Silence,” she said quietly, “many come here for meditation purposes, hiding in the grass for solitude.”

  “It’s beautiful,” he replied, then glanced back at her. “Brie--” he started then backtracked, “I mean, Princess Brielle… look, I’m sorry about this morning. I’m sorry about everything.” His voice had grown quiet as he spoke, his thoughts internal.

  She sighed behind h
im, but kept her voice quiet as well. “Brie is fine, Eason Grey. As for the rest, I don’t think this was really your fault. I believe you when you say you come from another world. It’s the only thing that, ironically, makes sense. We’ve kept our men hidden from her voice. Her only other option was to capture the mind of someone not of this world. But why you? What makes you able to hear her voice from so far away?” Eason heard in her voice that she asked the last question of herself, not of him.

  He answered anyway. “When you figure that out, I would love to know. All I know is that I’ve been having these dreams for a while now. About that forest,” he nodded behind them as Brie’s hands loosened on the reins, giving her horse its lead. “I’ve never sleep-walked before, though. Granted, I did think I was asleep when I came into this world. It was the weirdest experience ever.” He shivered.

  “Her hold on you will only grow stronger,” Brie said after a moment, “my mother may have something in her books that can help us break this curse she has thrown over you. It would have been easier had you not kissed her. The kiss seals her hold on you, marks your heart as her own.”

  Eason scoffed, “well, she can’t have my heart. I kind of need it.”

  “I’m glad you still feel this way, because there will come a time when you’ll give it to her willingly, if we don’t do something to stop her infection from spreading,” Brie replied matter-of-factly. Eason twisted in his seat to look at her and frowned slightly. She stared straight ahead, face troubled. “There it is. The Old Kingdom, Cylentra.”

  Eason followed her gaze and his mouth dropped. He could see the coast in front of them, bordering a glittering ocean beyond. In the distance, a cliff jutted out over the sea. On it was a massive city, walled in on three sides by the ocean with a bridge leading into it. The brick-looking walls surrounding the city were massive, but he could still see the castle bordering the cliff side behind them. He could also see gray, flat-topped towers coming out in a triangular formation and a rectangular building that filled out the rest. He nodded in appreciation, “nice digs you got there.”