When Marigold and I made it into the palace, we were beset by mages and knights alike, weapons drawn. Mages and knights arguing over where to take us.

  “Hold!” Marigold commanded, her entire presence suddenly filling the room, silencing everyone around us. “Queen Elincia has requested us be sent to her, yes?”

  “Yes, Captain Marigold,” a mousy-looking knight piped up from the side, her brown eyes bright and her shoulders set, betraying her fierceness. “Lord Silvo has also sent for you both, but they’ve been arguing over who to send you to.”

  “Thank you,” Marigold said before addressing the mob. “Our queen outranks Lord Silvo, no?”

  Mumbling broke out among the mages which she silenced with a glance as she placed her hand on her sword hilt.

  “I thought so, lead the way to the queen, then.”

  “Wait…” I looked around as I felt a massive influx of mana being used. Mana so strong it felt like it was coming from many mages within the palace. Differing feelings flooded the hall, the warmth of bread baking, the chill of winter air. Others flooded the hall, but I couldn’t pick it out before it all morphed into one stream of mana. I took off at a sprint, headed towards the dungeons, horrified by the influx of mana. It didn’t feel right at all, it felt like it was being forcefully pulled from someone. I heard Marigold call after me, but I only ran faster.

  I charged down the many flights of stairs, the mana growing thicker in the air. I had no idea where I was headed, but I followed the flow of mana straight into the depths of the dungeons.

  I ran even though my lungs were burning for me to stop, but I pushed on, barging through a door that had once been covered by thick iron chains and runes. I froze at the sight before me. The feeling of the mana changed just as suddenly into the feeling of death.

  7 mages were spread around the massive chamber in front of me, surrounding a massive, twisted black dragon, oozing purple and green poison if I had to guess by the popping and sizzling of the goo as it dripped onto the floor. The mana in the air disappeared as I watched as the mages before me all faded, leaving in their place massive chains of pure magic locking the dragon in place.

  I leaned against the wall beside the door, my knees shaking as I realized the mages had given their very life force to create the chains. The dragon made eye contact with me before it shuddered once, falling into a deep slumber, the dark tendrils of magic fading.

  I slid to the floor wiping tears from my face as I looked on. I hadn’t noticed Lord Silvo or Queen Elincia in the room until Lord Silvo roughly pulled me back to my feet.

  “What have you done?” I snarled without thinking, my voice sounding far away.

  “Like I owe you an answer,” he responded, slapping one of the accursed bracelets on my arm, draining my mana instantly.

  “Maybe not, but you owe me one,” Queen Elincia stepped forward, placing her sword at his throat. “I’ve had enough of your games, mage.”

  “You sacrificed them all…” I whispered, barely able to find my voice. “Unwilling sacrifices… the spell won’t last long. Is that why…”

  “What do you mean, Rivienne?”

  “Large spells can be cast using sacrifices to make them stronger, but if the sacrifices are unwilling, even the tiniest bit, weakens the spell.

  Queen Elincia snapped her gaze back to him, digging her sword blade into his skin, drawing blood. “Answer me,” she commanded, the room suddenly filling with her terrifying power.

  “You outlawed magic and arrested mages to do this… Are you keeping the others as a back-up plan? Are you going to sacrifice them too when these chains inevitably fail?” I stepped around him and placed my hand on one of the black chains. “A spell like this should be gold, but because they were unwilling sacrifices… Why?” I choked back a sob, horrified by his audacity.

  “How do you know this?” Lord Silvo sneered.”

  “That doesn’t matter. Is she right?” Queen Elincia asked, digging the sword deeper.

  “Of course, she is,” he shrugged, unphased by her. “The question is, how. Or wait, let me guess. One of the fool Teodoroic’s upstarts?”

  “You take that back,” I snarled. “Captain Teodoric isn’t a fool.”

  “It figures,” he sighed. “You’re missing the point here, dear,” he pushed her sword away from him and stepped around her. “What I’ve done is saved us from a few years of torment by this beast. My duty as head of the Astral Order, protecting your kingdom,” he glanced back at Elincia.

  “By sacrificing the lives of my mages? Mages that once had the best interests of our people at heart? Mages that rose above your rabble to become the mage knights of this kingdom? Surely there was another way.”

  “Of course not. If there was, wouldn’t you think I’d have done it already?” he snapped. “It’s too strong to be killed by anyone other than the sages. Who, I’d like to remind you, you were supposed to be finding?”

  Queen Elincia lowered her sword, her green eyes glowing with mana, the mana in the room swirling in deep-seated anger.

  “Now, if you’re done throwing a temper tantrum-”

  Without thinking, I snatched my halberd and launched myself at him. I had no right, but I’d had enough of him taunting my queen.

  He shielded my attacks with practiced ease, amused by my attempts. Once he started attacking with his magic, all I could do was dodge the silver balls of magic. I used my halberd like a bat, sending it back to him as I drew my rapier. I hurled my halberd away from me and lunged at him, stabbing with quick strikes, desperately trying to land even a single hit.

  Bored, he frowned and flicked his hand, locking me in place with silver chain magic. I struggled against them, but all they did was tighten.

  “A good effort, but it will avail you naught,” he walked away from me, striding back towards Queen Elincia behind me.

  “Your Majesty, I suggest you control your mutt before she gets herself killed,” he sighed, his footsteps echoing as he left the chamber, heading back to the palace above.

  “Rivienne… what on this god’s forsaken earth were you thinking?” Elincia stepped around in front of me. She sheathed her sword and held her hand out, but then dropped it.

  “As Shalana lovingly put it… I don’t think,” I tried to shrug, but the chains tightened again, my shoulders now raised in an uncomfortable position.

  Elincia snorted and sighed, her shoulders drooping. “I thank you though. He holds more power than I care to admit. As queen, I only hold political power over him. As a mage…” she shook her head before glancing back down at me. “Anyway, Riv, I do need you to be more careful. He could have easily killed you, but he chose not to.”

  “For now, I need you and Serenity to continue your training and what we discussed earlier this morning. The threat has passed, for now, but as you said earlier, it’s temporary. I don’t know how long we have, but we need to move as quickly as we can under the assumption that we only have a few months to a year. I’ll have someone else keep an eye on the chains. Forget what I said about the Captain of the Guard. Go home and do what you need to, get what you need to. I’ll give you a royal pardon and a different position if need be. I know you wanted to join the army and become a knight like everyone else, but Captain Teodoric chose to teach you for a reason. I have to trust in my old friend and trust in you too.”

  “Is he still around the capital anywhere?” I asked, hoping against all odds that I’d get to see him again.

  “Last I heard, he’d retired in the underground, but with the gates closed, it’s hard to say where he is,” she waved her arm and the chains disappeared, making me stumble.

  “Oh, there you are,” Captain Marigold stepped into the room, out of breath. “I got turned around and- what happened here?”

  “Our plans have changed once again,” Elincia sighed, walking towards Marigold. “I’ll explain on the way back up to the palace. Riv, run along and see Igraine. No doubt she’d be happy to see you’re alright.”

  “Yes, Your Majesty,” I saluted before scurrying to grab my halberd, following them out at a distance.

  I stopped at the door, looking back at the twisted sleeping dragon, no longer spewing poison. I wondered what happened for such a creature to become malformed in such a way. I felt horrible about the mages that lost their lives, but I was equally grateful for their sacrifice, even if it were unwilling. I didn’t want to see what the dragon would’ve been like had it gotten free. I turned away and made my way back up to the palace.

  I ducked behind a tapestry in the hall outside the stairs to the dungeons and opened the door. I waited a moment to make sure I wasn’t followed before I ducked through and hurried up the familiar passageway to Igraine’s room. I shivered in the cold, dark passageway feeling like I was being watched.

  I ducked into another doorway and stopped, waiting to see if anyone was following me, but I only heard my own breathing. I wasn’t sure why I was so paranoid, but I sat on the stones and crossed my legs under me, waiting for my heart to stop racing. I couldn’t remember the last time I had some time alone to myself like this, and I knew I needed to find Igraine and Serenity, but I leaned against the wall and closed my eyes. Allowing myself to relax in the silence for now.

  The silence didn’t last long however. The sound of thick, heavy boots echoed up the passageway towards me, and I scrunched into the corner, hoping whoever it was didn’t decide to come to this door. I held my breath and scrunched up as small as I could make myself, waiting for them to pass.

  My eyes widened as I recognized the hagard face of King Edvard. I watched as he slowly trailed passed my hiding spot, eyes downcast, hair disheveled, looking like he hadn’t slept in days.

  I slowly shifted to stand and followed him at a distance, keeping far enough away that he wouldn’t hear me. Not that I was sure he was even paying attention enough anyway, but I didn’t want to risk it.

  I stopped, expecting him to go to the throne room, but he kept going, towards the door at the top. The door that Igraine and I had never been able to go through as it had been sealed by powerful magic.

  He took his crown off and held it up to the door, unlocking the seal before he stepped through, leaving the door ajar behind him.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  I followed him and stopped, not looking in, torn between giving him privacy and being nosy, but curiosity got the better of me and I took a peek. I inhaled sharply and stepped closer, not believing my eyes. In the center of the room stood a statue of a woman holding a sword, surrounded by 7 others, a giant circle of runes surrounding them on the floor.

  I peered around the door, looking for details on the statues to see if I could tell who they were, but all I could see were strange symbols on their robes and the different instruments they were holding.

  “Oh gods of eld,” he said tiredly as he sat before an altar behind the statues. “If you love us yet as you say, I would beg of you your guidance. I’m an old man and I can feel it in my bones, the demon king has taken a lot out of me and I ask that you lead the next generation. Give them what they need to keep your beloved world free.”

  He sighed and fell silent, his head still bowed. I felt tears forming in the corner of my eyes seeing him like this. The warmth he once could fill a room with had diminished and I yearned for that warmth once more, not just for me, but for himself. He loved his family and he’d always done what he thought was best for his people, even at the detriment of his own health. In the last few months however, that had all changed. I could yet see a part of his old self there, buried beneath the darkness and tiredness.

  I made up my mind and stepped forward, my bootsteps echoing in the hall as I walked passed the statues towards him. As I stepped in front of the statue holding a lyre, the statue started to glow blue. I froze, looking up at it.

  “Who- Rivienne?” King Edvard turned towards me.

  “I’m sorry Your Majesty, I-”

  “No, no,” he shook his head, standing. “You owe me no apology. In fact, I believe I owe you one, and a thank you,” he held his hands out palms up and I reached out and placed my hands in his.

  “You have ever been a friend to my daughter and as another daughter to me all these years and I hurt you like it was nothing,” he squeezed my hands with his warm callused hands from years of swordfighting. “Can you ever find it in your heart to forgive me?”

  I didn’t stop the tears from falling, of course I would forgive him for hurting me. Of course. There were things I could never forgive him for, however. “This country needs their king, Your Majesty. Of course, I’ll forgive you for hurting me. However, you have hurt your family and your other people too. I can’t imagine the weight your crown bears, however, you are the one wearing it. You are the only person within this kingdom that can stop the war to the south to begin mending the trade routes and relations with the southern kingdom, the Deepwood Forest, and your own sister, Queen Eleanora, to the west. I think it’s high time you stopped feeling sorry for yourself and take up the mantle of king again. I’ve loved you as another father all these years, but you have a duty to uphold.”

  He closed his eyes and his shoulders drooped. “You are right, of course. I’d always taken you for a meek little thing, but I see there is a fire within you when it is needed. I suppose it is needed now more than ever,” he squared his shoulders. “I will go to Elincia and Igraine, however, the rest are requests I cannot fulfill. The war to the south started simply based on a rumor, a rumor that happened to prove true in the long run. However, I cannot simply surrender.”

  “You, you can, Your Majesty, you-”

  “Enough!” He barked at me. “You meddle in things you don’t understand. I assume Elincia has sent you on an errand? You’d best run along now before she grows impatient. Never set foot back in here again,” he said, glancing at the still-glowing statue beside us. “There are things you’re better of not knowing,” he abruptly dropped my hands, the warmth fading from his face. “Now go, before I have you arrested,” he turned away.

  I glanced back up at the statue beside us before I ran from the room. Crying silently, now angry with myself for not pushing the subject further. He was our king. He had a job to do and refused to do it. I wasn’t sure his reasoning, I didn’t really care. People were dying and scared and he refused to end their suffering by stopping the war.

  I ran down the stairs and veered down the passage that led to Igraine’s suite and shoved the door open without bothering to check and see if anyone was in the room. Luckily for me, it was just Opal who peered at me with her pale eyes. I wrapped my arms around her massive neck and hugged her tight and listened to her hum. She shifted and nudged me with her nose.

  I backed away and wiped my face, looking up at her. “Sorry,” I mumbled.

  “Rivi? You okay?” Igraine stepped into the room from her study, a book in her hands.

  “Yeah, I just-” I sighed, leaning against Opal. “I’m fine, just frustrated. How are you feeling?”

  “Much better, thank you,” she walked over and sat on the dais steps, her back to me. “There’s something we need to talk about, actually.”

  I scratched Opal on the nose and sat next to Igraine. “Yeah, there’s a lot going on.”

  “Do you remember how I used to talk about the oracles?”

  “Yeah, they give a prophecy every year to the ruling family to decipher and sometimes it’s about how the year will go and sometimes it’s about a person, or sometimes it’s been about several years. Sometimes the prophecy repeats from year to year.”

  “This year’s was given after the winter festival, as it always has been. The problem lies with what the prophecy stated. It’s the exact same prophecy as from the year before the Astral and Umbral war started,” she flipped the book open to a page she’d been reading.

  “I was curious, so I started researching it after it was given, and I only just now found it. See here, they’re the same exact ones,” she pointed to the prophecy written in the book and the prophecy written on another piece of paper. “I snuck it out of the oracle’s desk when she wasn’t in there.”

  “No one’s put two and two together yet?” I asked, looking at the words, but not reading them.

  “No, it’s Electra’s job to decipher it for the royal family, but she’s been too caught up with… other things,” Igraine rolled her eyes. “For whatever reason, no one’s seemed to be too concerned with it. Granted, they never are. My parents have always decided to take it with a grain of salt, but I can’t help but worry.”

  “I can understand their viewpoint, prophecies never happen in the way they’re predicted to be,” I shrugged.

  “Riv, seriously?” She kicked me in the shin.

  “What? It’s true,” I stuck my tongue out at her.

  “Water’s fall, knights call. The sky burns, dragons call. Demons fall,” she pointed to the last phrase in the book. “The last line here is scratched out, but on the paper it says “Demons fall, bells toll.”

  “Shalana was alive at that time, so maybe she’ll know,” I took the book from her and flipped back a page, reading the one before it. Notes had been scribbled in the margins about the crops doing well as the year progressed, so I flipped to the page after it. It was badly scratched through, hastily scribbled notes in the margins that were pretty much illegible.

  “I wonder why there’s no notes for the other prophecy,” I squinted, trying to read the horrible handwriting.

  “I don’t know, I’ve tried asking the priests if they know, but they just wave me off, citing scriptures,” she shrugged. “Anyway, that’s not all I wanted to talk to you about. I know my mother has asked you to help her with something, and you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to, but…” she sighed. “Can I help you with it? Silvo and I are in agreement. Our fathers have to be stopped. He also said to tell you how proud he was of you for attacking him like you did,” she grinned.

  “As much as I hate him, Lord Silvo isn’t… wrong, per se. He did what he could to stop the demon king, but the demon king needs to be killed, not stopped. Though, I’m not really certain it is the demon king… it was just a dark, twisted dragon.”

  “Mana can be corrupted and twisted into a dark creature. It isn’t unlikely that that being is the demon king, but I am much younger than the war, so I couldn’t say anything for certain,” Opal stood and stretched before curling up again. “I hatched when the fell beast was already in the palace, so I grew accustomed to its power emanating through the walls. However, within the last few months, it has grown to a terrifying degree. The stronger the mana is within a beast, the stronger of a monster it can become. I have heard my family’s mournful song to the northeast, I beg you, go to them in my stead. They can tell you more of the beast that slumbers beneath us.”

  “I see…” Mana being twisted to form… that. A horrifying thought. “Would you like to come with me?” I turned to Opal. “Your family would be glad to see you, I’m sure. Tiamat-”

  “I am a wingless dragon,” she blinked slowly at me. “I am no longer considered a member of their brood.”

  “Tiamat mourned for y-”

  “She mourned for my lost brothers and sisters, not I,” she tucked her head beneath her leg and would speak no more.

  “Oh, Opal,” Igraine sighed. “Getting out would do you some good, you know,” she shook her head and turned to me. “Let’s go find Serenity, ask Shalana about the prophecy, and let my mother know I’m helping, whether she wants me to or not. There’s too much at stake.”

  “If my luck works out like it has been recently, she’ll find us first,” I lay back on the floor, staring at the ceiling.

  “What’s happened?” Igraine asked, laying next to me like we used to when we were kids pretending the outside world didn’t exist.

  “Where do I start?” I laughed dryly. “Though, I suppose it could be worse.” I held my arm up, glaring at the bracelet. As much as I hated it, I had to admit this one was really pretty. The silver intricately woven around several gemstones.

  “I followed your dad earlier, he’s a little more himself, but not quite,” I lay my arm back on my stomach. “There’s a room at the top of the throne room, the one that was always locked?”

  “I remember it. He showed it to me during the winter solstice, apparently they’re statues of the sages and the oracle, my great-great grandmother. I asked him about the sword, but he said it was a relic lost to time, not worth mentioning. There are hundreds of famous weapons buried somewhere around the country, but they’re left from the first mage war and have been sealed away for good reasons.”

  “Captain Teodoric always said that only the weilder of the weapon gives it a bad name. Maybe one of them can help defeat the demon king,” I shrugged.

  “Maybe so…”

  “You said the statues are the sages, right?”

  “Yeah, one for each element, holding a different instrument, why?”

  “It’s just… the demon king called me sage the other day… yesterday? This morning? Definitely this morning,” I shook my head and snorted. It’s been a long day already. “And when I went into the room, the statue started glowing, but I don’t have the mana potential to even be remotely close to being a sage. I’ve got the hair and soul color apparently, so maybe it’s just a coincidence,” I shrugged.

  “I wouldn’t be so sure, it’s been said that hair colors change based on the mana of a person, so maybe… I don’t know, Riv. I wish I had an answer for you.”

  “There’s too much we don’t know…” I repeated, thinking of Shalana’s words. “There’s too much we don’t know and it scares me, Riv.” “I know libraries were burned during the Astral and Umbral war, but did no one keep a record of our history?”

  “Not really, no. I imagine one of the other kingdoms has history written down, but it’s hard to say. Relations have been rocky between the three kingdoms since before we were even born. Aunt Eleanora and my father have always had a rocky relationship, even as kids apparently, so that didn’t help matters at all. I bet if we were to ask her, she’d have something.”

  “Maybe once I go home, I can talk to the dragons. Demand answers from them, even if they don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Just don’t get yourself killed. They may consider you a friend among humans, but they’re still dragons,” Igraine sighed. “I miss when times were simpler. Right about now, we’d be sparring in the courtyard or down by the lake.”

  “That reminds me,” I said, sitting up, pulling my knees to my chest. “Do you know of anyone who has mana like the lake? Dark blue in color?”

  “Mmm… There’s a few people I could think of… Dark blue…” she trailed off, lost in thought. “No, I can’t think of anyone that would remind me of a lake… except my brother, but he’s gone…”

  “It’s been almost 9 years… it’s hard to believe. I’m sorry for reminding you,” I picked at one of the buckles on my boots.

  “It’s fine, I just wish I knew what happened to him, just to know if he’s alive or not. The not knowing anything hurts worse I think. I can’t grieve him, there isn’t a grave I can visit, he’s just… gone,” she sat up and started braiding her long brown hair.

  “While we’re looking for the lost city, let’s see if we can find information on any potential whereabouts of your brother,” I looked over at her, leaning my head on my arms.

  “No, it’s a waste of time, if he was alive still, he’d have been found by now,” she shook her head.

  I didn’t respond, only nodding to myself. I wanted to at least give it a good attempt at finding him myself. Elincia and Edvard had told me to stop years ago, but his disappearance had always been at the back of my mind. I couldn’t just let him go. I slowly stood, stretching my arms over my head and shifted my halberd so it sat more comfortably.

  “Y’know, I just noticed you’re not wearing the kingdom’s armor yet,” Igraine said in amusement.

  “We didn’t have time to put it on this morning, but I’ll wear it later,” I shrugged.

  “It’ll clash with your hair,” she smirked as she stood. “I can’t say I’ve ever seen you in anything other than green.”

  “It’s the only color that looks good with my hair,” I rolled my eyes. “Pink does too, but it washes me out sometimes.”

  “Hm,” she hummed. “Well, come on. Mother’s not going to wait forever and I think we all need to sit down and have a proper conversation about everything. Compile what we all do know and go from there.”

  “Agreed,” I nodded, following her from the room.