Phoenix was glad she wasn’t the only one who lost their composure at that announcement. She and Rayna both just yelled, “What?!” While Uriel said, “That’s insane,” and Saiya finished off the train of thought by asking, “How?! He’s not exactly able to agree to something like that right now!”

  Dazien raised both hands defensively before gesturing to the pillowed meditation area, “If you want to sit and talk we can, or we can do Uriel’s rituals. I’m not exactly happy about Paul’s idea either.”

  “I still don’t understand how this was his idea,” Phoenix said with a frown, but took Uriel’s gloved hand to lead him toward the back to do the rituals. She wanted to keep her hands busy while thinking through all of this.

  Her brother actually chuckled as he followed and said, “Unlike you, Paul and I actually plan for things. Even if those plans may need to change and adapt to a situation, we’ve both been working on making them for a while. He didn’t reveal this particular one to me before he was cursed, but I read a copy of the letter myself. He planned this long ago… probably as soon as he realized we would need to go to Serenydi’s library for more information on the artifacts.”

  “Why would he do that, though?” Rayna asked as Phoenix pulled out her [Guide Book] to look up the Sapphire Spirit Bonding Ritual diagram that could do ten at once.

  She had fed a lot of Sapphire rituals into her book since they weren’t magically seared into her mind like the Crystal versions were. She idly wondered if she could find a shop with more options for Knowledge Tomes here than what Tulimeir had to offer.

  “Paul had been exiled from Serenydi about two decades ago,” Dazien explained as he and Saiya went to lean against the back wall to watch.

  “We heard about that from some of the noble scions here,” Phoenix replied, recalling the rumors. “They said it was because he spoke out against the Queen.”

  Her brother chuckled, “Well, that’s one way to put it, I guess. What Paul’s letter implied and Patricia corroborated, however, was that Queen Emilia had first proposed marriage to Paul, and he turned her down.”

  Rayna snorted a laugh, “Bet she didn’t like that. Was she already Ruby by then?”

  “Yes, and getting turned down by an Emerald Caster from a landless noble house who was offered legitimate kingship… well, exile was probably getting off lightly if this had been any other monarchy.”

  “But why is he changing his mind now?” Phoenix pressed, still trying to understand why this was part of the plan at all.

  “Serenydi’s Royal Library is a very well known collection of ancient and rare texts. However, it is equally well known that access to that library is exceptionally difficult. Some visiting nobles may be granted permission and sometimes others who have accomplished exceptional deeds for the monarchy or its pantheon. I think that Paul believed the only way to guarantee we would be granted that access as well was to become part of the royal family that controls it.”

  She blinked at him, her current ritual completely forgotten. Incredulously she asked, “He was going to marry the Queen just to gain a potential clue for my quest?!”

  Dazien helplessly shrugged, and she ended up glaring, “You better burn that letter. There’s no way I’m going to let him do something that insane just for a library card.”

  Her brother sighed and gestured to the ritual diagram, “Don’t stop while we talk, and as I said, I’m not going to disregard Paul’s wishes just because you don’t like them.”

  “But he—”

  “Obviously didn’t share everything with me, so there may have been another reason for this that I don’t know about,” Dazien interjected, “I know he believed one of the artifacts actually resided here, but the library was the only clue he offered me during our discussions.”

  “Which artifact? And do you think the royals have it hidden away somewhere?” Rayna curiously asked as she moved to lean beside him, opposite of Saiya.

  “We weren’t exactly sure which one, and I have no idea if the Queen would rather hide it away or prominently put it on display.”

  “I probably should have asked much earlier… but what exactly are the artifacts? Like, I know you mentioned they were a set called the Monarch’s Authority but what are all the pieces?” she asked, turning back to the ritual and writing down the runes that matched each Spirit Gem Uriel handed to her.

  She still noticed Dazien’s amused smirk as he said, “I was wondering how long it might take before you actually asked about that. I apparently owe Paul a few Bits when he wakes up.”

  Rayna chuckled, “Did you bet after we actually got the first one?”

  He nodded with a heavy sigh, and then added, “I did win the bet about when she would ask about where we were heading to next, though. He guessed the day after the blood moon ended, and I guessed it wouldn’t happen till we already told her.”

  Phoenix huffed in mild annoyance, “I get it, I’m terrible about thinking ahead and planning anything.”

  Dazien chuckled, “It’s fine. It was frustrating for me at first, but Paul helped me learn to work around it and I’ve gotten used to it now. I’ve got enough tendency to plan for the both of us anyways.”

  “I’m not sure if that’s better or worse,” she muttered before standing and asking Uriel, “You ready for this?”

  “Not really,” he murmured, shifting slightly and rubbing his left forearm where she knew his Soul Mark lay without the bracer under his sleeve to hide it away. “I’m honestly terrified this is going to go horribly wrong,” he added, glancing between Dazien and her.

  Phoenix paused to look at Daze who said, “We don’t have to do this then. If you want time—”

  “No,” Uriel interrupted, “I know I need to get stronger still… I don’t want to fall even further behind all of you. I just—I’m not…” he trailed off, looking back down at the floor where the ritual circle awaited.

  “It’s okay to be afraid,” Saiya whispered, “We’re all here for you no matter what happens. We haven’t abandoned you yet.”

  “And we’re never going to,” Phoenix added, moving forward to gently squeeze his arm, “You’re stuck with us forever, remember?”

  This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

  He huffed a subtle laugh and silently nodded as he stepped forward into the center of the diagram. “I guess we should just get this over with then and see what new curse I get this time.”

  “Quit jinxing it,” Phoenix chided as she moved to her spot, “Better to think happy thoughts and hope your powers listen to those wishes instead.”

  Uriel nodded but still looked nervous as she began the incantation, “From the essence of the Primordials and the desires of the People, the spirit of the world echoes through the soul of the Caster to cultivate the gifts of magic made reality.”

  Phoenix had done some follow-up research after getting chewed out by Pati for not doing all ten of hers at once, and she had found a book that helped her understand what Paul had originally talked about before. Aspects and Spirit Gems, in general, were a method of guiding a soul, of telling it what you wanted to become rather than who you were or had been.

  The analogies that made most sense to her about this particular method, however, was that doing one Spirit Gem at a time was like speaking a single word to convey your intentions, versus saying a complete sentence with ten of them. The other was the idea of giving a new direction at each intersection, and instead just handing over a map. All together they formed a more complete picture of the direction the person wanted to guide their soul in.

  Uriel’s message included reinforcing his current elements while also emphasizing his desire for control and allies. She hoped it would be enough to direct his soul in the direction he hoped for instead of the direction he feared.

  As the swarm of glittering shattered Spirit Gems finished swirling around him like a miniature version of his [Eye of the Storm], Uriel dropped to a knee and looked like he was battling dizziness as his arms stretched out as if to catch himself.

  The longer he didn’t speak though, the more her own anxiety started creeping up on her and she asked the obvious question, “Are you okay?”

  He slowly nodded, then gave her a warm smile that relaxed her entire being, “Yeah, we’re good. I—It’s all good.” He glanced down at his hands for a long moment and seemed in a state of disbelief as he added, “I even got a way to heal and buff others.”

  “That’s fantastic, Senesh,” Dazien said, moving to his side and gently squeezing his shoulder, “See? Things can get better, no matter how awful our fears tell us it can be. We might not be able to force a plan to come together, but we can still hope for the best and get rewarded for those efforts.”

  “Oh! Right! Plans,” Phoenix suddenly said, suddenly remembering her forgotten unanswered question, “What were those artifact pieces and where’s that letter for me to burn?”

  Uriel and Dazien both laughed at her that time, and her brother explained as he helped Uriel stand again, “You’re not getting that letter, but if it helps there’s a good chance Queen Emilia will decline the offer and simply throw us out of the city too when she realizes who we are and what we want.”

  She scrunched her nose, “Again, I’m not sure if that’s better or worse. We’ll be back at square one with my quest, but at least Paul won’t be doomed to some weird arranged marriage. Is divorce a thing here?”

  “It is,” Dazien said with a nod, “But I’m sure there will be heavy consequences for it in this particular case. There usually are with high-ranking political marriages that join Houses to avoid one side getting taken advantage of. They don’t want one side getting the one thing they’re after and then divorcing without fulfilling their own side of things.”

  “So like us gaining that library card and finding the artifact and splitting?”

  “Exactly,” he confirmed, “The Queen—and by extension the entire nation—won’t want to lose the benefits they get for agreeing to the union.”

  “What exactly will that even be in this case?” Rayna piped up, “Like our version of nobility in Epa Toivo is way different with our more non-hierarchical clan structures,” she pointed out, before asking, “What does the Queen gain from marrying Paul?”

  “Access to the new World Tree for one,” Uriel pointed out as they all headed toward the meditation area, “I’m not quite sure why she proposed before though?” he asked, turning to Dazien for an answer.

  He shrugged in response, “I don’t know either, but I’m hoping whatever it was still holds true. We may very well find out tomorrow from Queen Emilia herself.” As they all sat and got comfortable on the pillows, Daze turned to her and added, “As you already know, The Monarch’s Authority is a set of three ancient magical artifacts. A sword, an orb, and a crown, specifically. I don’t know their exact capabilities, but they were said to represent the three things a good monarch required to rule.”

  “Represent?” she repeated in confusion, “What do those three objects represent exactly? Killing for the sword, arrogance for the crown, and, um, actually I have no idea what the orb is for…”

  Her friends chuckled but Dazien said, “I’m not exactly sure either, but the representation was in their actual names. The Sword of Power, the Orb of Wisdom, and the Crown of Courage. It was said that with those three things, the ruler of Tyrand could lead their nation to safety and prosperity. At least that’s according to the scrap of legend Paul had found in his own family’s library.”

  “Where did his family get something like that?” Rayna asked, obviously wondering the same thing Phoenix was.

  Dazien shrugged again, “He didn’t know either when I asked. Unfortunately, knowing what they are doesn’t really help us know where they are.” He turned back to Phoenix, “That’s why we need help and a lot of information.” He hesitated for a moment before quietly adding, “Which someone seems to be more than willing to assist us with…”

  Phoenix’s eyes went wide as she realized who he was talking about, “You want Emrys to help us?”

  “He seemed knowledgeable and well connected. I’m not sure if that’s normal for a prince, but if Queen Emilia refuses Paul’s offer, he may be our only option for an appeal to gain the information we need.”

  She scrunched her nose in annoyance at the idea, and Uriel surprised her by saying, “I don’t understand why you seem to dislike him so much. His actions have done nothing but help us… you mentioned dreaming about him?”

  He looked oddly impassive as he asked her that question but she wasn’t exactly sure how to answer, “I’m not sure. I mean, he says it was a dream and it actually makes more sense if it was, but he was there.” She turned towards the others to ask all of them, “How is something like that possible? I know magic does a lot of weird things, but how was he in my dream?”

  They all glanced between one another with a spattering of shrugs and head shaking, “If that’s true, it must be part of his powers,” Dazien finally speculated, “There was surprisingly very little about Prince Emrys written in Paul’s notes about the current royal family. Queen Emilia is well known as a Pleasure Enchantress, having dedicated herself to the Lover before ever acquiring an Aspect. Her oldest son died about a decade ago, but her oldest daughter, Princess Emina, is known as a Toy General dedicated to the Gamer. I had nothing on Emrys, though, her youngest son.”

  “Is Dream Hacker a thing?” she grumbled, “‘Cause that’s definitely what it felt like.”

  They all gave her a curious look but Rayna was the one to ask, “What exactly did he do in your dream?” Her expression turned dark as she asked, “Did he hurt you?”

  “No,” Phoenix replied in a huff, “He just talked while we watched the sunset on the docks, and then made us fall through a sea of stars.”

  It was silent for long enough that she had to check on her friends. Uriel looked oddly conflicted, Rayna was actually facepalming, and both Dazien and Saiya just looked amused.

  “What?!” she asked, “He totally hacked it!”

  “I could be wrong…” Saiya began slowly, “But I think he—”

  Dazien raised a hand to forestall her, “No, no. Don’t make her overthink it and become paranoid. Plus, the prince of all people should respect the torcs. We’re probably misunderstanding”

  “Misunderstanding what?” she replied in confusion.

  Rayna groaned, “Great, now she’s just going to be paranoid about the question.”

  It was Uriel that softly said, “It appears as though Prince Emrys is interested in courting you… but like Daze said, the white torc is a pretty clear sign that you’re not interested in that. You probably shouldn’t be too concerned though, he seemed to like teasing you.”

  Phoenix huffed again, but Uriel added before she could complain about it, “You also seemed to like teasing him, too.”

  She met his gaze for a moment, thinking about if that was actually true or not, but he looked away towards Daze and asked, “So we’re going to go see the royals tomorrow and hope the Queen agrees to a delayed marriage with Paul in exchange for access to the royal library, and if she says no, ask Emrys for help with finding the information we need instead?”

  Dazien sighed, “That’s the plan.”

  “We all know how well those go for us,” Rayna grumbled before adjusting more to begin their meditation session.