Page 63 of Vanish

Lucien’s eyes widened with comprehension, but though the potential solution should have added a glimmer of color to an otherwise grey and discouraging situation, I sensed his unspoken worry—this would be the ultimate test to see if he could live up to his role of crown prince that he’d spent his entire life striving for. Rather than looking hopeful with the promise by the possibility, he seemed almost overcome with the vast responsibility.

“I don’t personally know all of the afflicted people throughout my vast kingdom. How can I accomplish a task when I don’t possess the love necessary to save them?”

I caressed his cheek, beckoning him to look at me. “Our second courtship not only provided us with a second chance to create a lasting relationship, but it granted me the opportunity to better know you. The hours I witnessed of you engaged in your royal duties and research into the curse, as well as your deep concern for your subjects is only a small drop in the dedication you’ve rendered throughout your life. As the future king of Brimoire, you truly love your land and its people, leaving me no doubt you have the right to phanite’s magic to heal them.”

His glassy gaze seeped into mine as my words sank deep into his heart. His hand draped over my touch against his cheek. “You’ve always been the one I most want to be worthy for. If you can see my value, I will do my best to view myself as you do. Thank you, Lisette.” With a wavering breath he folded his hand over my hold around the mineral and turned to Mother. “What must we do?”

The miner demonstrated how to crush the phanite into a fine powder then watched in admiration as Lucien and I engaged in the strenuous process ourselves, seeming awed that royals weren’t afraid to get their hands dirty. Despite the gravity of the situation, I couldn’t help marveling at the feel of truly touching and feeling…though my body still looked translucent, now that I was fully part of the vanished world the ability to grip the pestle and grind it forcefully against the hard stones brought me delight. The frequent brushes of Lucien’s sleeve as I worked sent tremors through me; I couldn’t tell whether the heat in my cheeks was from the exertion I was unaccustomed to, or the proximity of the man who loved me.

At first the mineral resembled a simple refined powder of broken stone, but the longer we worked, the more shimmery it became—as if our efforts gradually extracted the curse-breaking magic. Tendrils of sparkling dust swirled up and settled back down as we continued the process.

But the source to overcome the vanishing force was more than the enchanted properties of the mineral from the old tale—it was the act of sacrificial love that made unseen things seen again. Lucien had already rendered the required sacrificed by risking not just his position but his life when he purposefully subjected himself to the curse in order to access the place where his lost subjects dwelled, but I had yet to pay the necessary cost.

My doubts as to my ability and rightfulness to rule had slowly faded during my time of invisibility, as I’d discovered my purpose as not simply Lucien’s companion but Brimoire’s queen. Now the full intent of my purpose weighed upon me, reminding me that I was not a passive bystander in Lucien’s effort to save our people. I, too, was tasked with rescuing them through whatever sacrifice would be necessary.

My pendant suddenly warmed against my chest, reminding me of its presence. My fingers enfolded the familiar stone, a movement that drew Mother’s notice. “I gave you that necklace just before the king took you away from me.” She smiled wistfully at the memory as she cradled it in her palm. “My great-grandmother told me when I was a child that it was charmed long ago by a powerful and benevolent witch to protect her young daughter. Perhaps that was true, or perhaps it was simply my love as I watched over you that enhanced the phanite embedded in your necklace to protect you when the curse befell you, giving power to your purpose that anchored you to the seen world.”

If this pendant had prevented me from fully vanishing, would its power also work for the kingdom we yearned to protect? I currently had little to give our people, but perhaps I could at least give this token—not only my most prized position but a symbol of the past that through Lucien’s help I’d healed from in order to create a brighter future.

I unclasped it from my neck, and after glancing at Mother for her nod of permission, held it out to Lucien, but he hesitated to accept it. “It’s alright,” I insisted. “I will do all within my power to become the queen Brimoire needs in order to safeguard the beloved kingdom we will rule together, beginning with showing my love through this sacrifice.”

Meaning filled my declaration beyond my hopes of breaking the curse—it was my promise for the future Lucien and I hoped to create together. A smile of admiration crossed Lucien’s face as he took the necklace from me with careful fingers. Painstakingly he pried apart the tiny prongs that held the stone in place and slipped the metal pendant into his pocket.

“Someday I will recreate this for you,” he said. “As I recall, it was the first thing you mentioned when you listed your favorite things.”

With care he laid the freed stone before me and handed me the heavy marble pestle. I softly touched it, running my fingers over its familiar facets one last time before lifting the pestle. With my first strike, a bright flash of light shone outward, slowly fading but maintaining a glow as I worked, as though the imbued power of love and magic was freed from its restraints and ready for use. As I crushed the mineral and added the shining pile of dust to the rest of the processed phanite, I felt the last reservations holding me back finally sever.

The powder glistened in an otherworldly manner that testified of enchantment and promise. Lucien and I brought it to the nearest villager standing in the small crowd that had gathered to watch us a short distance away, the miner who’d brought us to the phanite reserve.

Lucien clasped his hand, calloused from many years of labor. “Tell me your name and story.”

The miner shifted, seeming embarrassed by the attention. “I’m nobody, Your Highness. Just a simple man who has done my best to fulfill the task entrusted to me.”

He embodied the image of a common man—even with his translucent body, I could see the patches in his worn clothing and the smudges of dirt marring his skin from his labor in the mines, untouched by the curse that had brought him here.

Lucien studied each wrinkle lining the man’s hands, as if trying to excavate every last detail about his subject’s story similar to how the miner had unearthed raw material from the nearby mine. His grasp tightened as he evenly met the elderly man’s gaze. “Tell me your name and story. Please.”

The miner stared at him for a long, disbelieving moment before tentatively responding. “My name is Shale, Your Highness.” His voice emerged quiet and uncertain, but gained strength at Lucien’s encouraging nod. “I was born in this village on a winter evening sixty-three years ago…” He wove a short tale of his childhood, the family he had raised, and the service he’d rendered in the community—a simple life by many standards, but one that held infinite meaning to the one who’d lived it.

Lucien listened with rapt attention and smiled warmly when the man finished. “Thank you for sharing your story, Shale. You are one of my beloved subjects whom I’ve dedicated my life to serving. I will do all within my power to rescue you so that you may continue living your wonderful life.”

He took a deep breath as he turned towards the phanite we’d crushed, now carefully swept into a large basin. I could see his uneasiness when he met my eyes as he wondered exactly how to work the cure. He reached a careful finger into the basin, but before he could make contact, the powder pulsed with light and a trace of mineral rose, swirling upward to rest on his fingertip.

Lucien stared in awe, then extended a tentative hand towards Shale…but before he could reach him, the light began to fade.

He drew his hand back. “What am I supposed to do?” Whether his uncertain whisper was directed to the phanite or to me I wasn’t sure. Another trace of powder lifted into the air, whirling in the shape of anSbefore settling back. Lucien’s eyes lit up.

“Your name!” He turned to Shale. “Recording your name with this magical substance will reaffirm your identity in the seen world, I’m almost sure of it.” He glanced around, as though wondering where to write it.

I stepped forward and patted his pocket that always housed his precious notebook and he snatched it out eagerly.

“What better way to serve my people than to record their suffering…and their triumph. I will create a ledger with the name of every affected person, and it will become a national treasure that proves to coming generations that Brimoire is resilient, resourceful, and above all unified as we work together to erase the curse that tried to erase us.”

Reverently Lucien took a pinch of the processed phanite, which glowed brightly on his fingertip. Flipping past his notes and sketches, he used it to write Shale’s name across a blank page in shining letters. At first nothing happened, but then the air surrounding him quivered with magical energy and the miner’s body gradually grew solid—the color and details of his features filling out like shades of a watercolor until he’d fully emerged.

He lifted his hands in wonder, gaping in disbelief as he examined them front to back before he slowly ran his touch along his body, as if to determine it was entirely intact. Tears filled his dark eyes as he collapsed on his knees before us. “Thank you, Your Highnesses.”

His gratitude was nothing to the joy that filled my heart to see him healed. Joy likewise filled Lucien’s expression and seemed to have seized his voice, rendering him incapable of speaking. He rested a comforting hand on Shale’s quivering shoulder and remained with him until his emotions had passed.

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