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A dull thud sounded. “You ninny. If they’d killed the king, why are we still fighting? Honestly, it’s like I’m the only man here with any brains at all.”

  I gasped as my heart crunched in on itself, feeling like my soul briefly left my body and stabbed its way back through my skin one shard at a time. Was my father dead?

  The soldier spoke. “Whatever, mate, I’m sure some of the king’s whores are still somewhere lurking around the castle. You hear that, ladies?” he called. “Your king is dead! I’m your king now.” They laughed.

  The other chortled, “Don’t be shy!”

  Trapped like a thief in my childhood home, the walls caved in around me. My father's sudden departure. Something dark tore through me.

  "This kingdom belongs to us now.” His voice lowered, “But I'm telling you, I'm not going to live here," the soldier said, his voice just on the other side of the door.

  My body shook with rage until an alarming calm took over. I walked over to the fireplace and pulled a fire-iron from the dying embers.

  "Wh-what are you doing?" Milly whispered. "You can't go out there."

  "Stay hidden," I said.

  "You can't go out there," she said, squeezing my arm.

  I shook her off and walked over to the door, unlocking it with a click.

  "Yes, I can."

  Chapter 8

  Prince Young

  I RAN TO MINSEO, WHO was fighting back a large Drethen soldier. With the two Viran guards covering his sides, I clashed swords with the enemy, freeing Minseo’s sword. He thrust his sword forward, stabbing into the enemy. Minseo pulled his sword free and stumbled back, bewildered. Several Besmium guards rushed over to us. In the confusion of the castle guards colliding with the Drethen soldiers, Phillip crawled toward the castle, but I never looked back to see if he made it.

  I held my sword horizontally as a bearded soldier in front of me attempted to slice me in two. The clang of every weapon in the mass of soldiers and guards set my nerves on high alert. My life hung by a thread between inches of fatal attacks. Though we’d made it to the Besmian guards, it still felt like we were outnumbered. Drethen soldiers poured through the fallen walls. The red banners waved on either side of the castle entrance, but the Drethen soldiers continued to push forward and blue banners inched forward as one Besmian soldier fell after the other.

  "We need to get back to the castle!" Minseo yelled. His gaze glued to the bloody tip of his sword.

  He was right. Our movements were slowing. My limbs were shaking.

  "Together," I called.

  He nodded as we slowly inched backward, blocking the incoming attacks.

  My father taught my brothers and me to wield a sword from a very young age. Sumin and Minseo started when they were nine and eight and I was only six at the time. However, my father knew once their training began, I'd never be able to sit idly by and watch. My mother protested but was overruled. I'd taken to it faster than my brothers. I loved the weight of the blade and the momentum that built every time I swung it. Over the years, my brothers and I got quite good, and we sparred as often as our studies allowed. I often wondered if I would ever have a need for my sword—other than the art form it had become. I believed the thrill of battle was my purpose.

  An enemy soldier on horseback approached us as Minseo and I fought off a fresh wave of blue-adorned men. The soldier on the horse yelled, the soldiers in the vicinity halted and turned, all as one, to Minseo. My stomach dropped. They’re after Minseo! A group of soldiers swarmed him. My focus intensified. Not my brother. I lunged at the closest soldier, my sword more determined than ever. My blade plunged into a soldier in blue. He looked me in the eyes, the paleness of them screaming the word why, the shock in his furrowed brow reflecting my own. My gaze darted back to Minseo, whose sword was wrenched from his hands. Desperate, I tried to pull my blood-stained sword from the soldier’s limp body, but his essence suctioned onto it. “Minseo!” I screamed. Tears sprang to my eyes as adrenaline pulsed through my arms. I put my foot against the bloodstained armor and wrenched my blade from his flesh.

  I snapped my attention back to Minseo. A group of Drethen soldiers dragged him, several men restraining each of his limbs, pulling him further from reach. His gaze met mine with a soft and relaxed expression that whispered, “I surrender.” My stomach tightened. “No, brother.” I sobbed. Don’t give up.

  Crazed, I swung my sword wildly. I’ll save you. A Viran soldier grabbed my shoulder but I shrugged him off, leaping toward the enemy. Several more allied soldiers pulled me back. I searched the crowded field for Minseo but he was gone and there was an army between us. My body weakened. I'm going to die here. I glanced back at the castle. Behind the rows of red-suited soldiers was a line of blue flags. Are they coming from the castle? We're surrounded. Dazed with grief and exhaustion, I felt myself resign. I fell to my knees and let out an agonizing scream that drained me. If the castle was overrun, this battle was over.

  My mind jumped to Charlotte. She was inside the castle and all her soldiers were out here. Before my mind could contemplate any of the worst-case-scenarios, my body moved. I couldn't save my brother, I couldn't save myself, but maybe I could save her.

  As I approached the castle, I readied my mind and blade for another fatality. A cry of pain rang out and my gaze snapped to a youthful-looking Besmium guard, with several Drethen corpses strewn in front of him. I slipped through a cloud of smoke and felt the heat of a withering fire beneath my boots. I raced toward the guard, avoiding another fight if I could help it. The guard’s eyes flickered with confusion as I approached him.

  "Where's the princess?" he asked as he cleared a path for me.

  Out of breath, I huffed, "The castle." I glared at the blue banners. "I think the enemy is getting in the castle some other way. She's in danger." I eyed the bodies around us. “Who are you?”

  “Leon.”

  I nodded, "Leon, get a group, as many as you can, and concentrate on reclaiming the castle. We can cut off their way in if we can drive them out. Once inside, I'll get the princess."

  "Yes, sir," he said, turning back towards his unit.

  "Leon!" I called.

  He turned back to me, but the words stuck to the roof of my mouth before they finally emerged. "They took my brother."

  Leon nodded understandingly and returned to gather his troops. Several minutes later he had gathered four soldiers to cut through the last line of Drethens. It didn’t seem like it would be enough. Surrounded by the enemy, fighting for their lives, Leon and the other Besmium soldiers rallied, pushing their way back to their castle. With each man they cut down, they freed a Besmian soldier to help them get me to the castle. Beside Leon, I fell into a rhythm, cutting through row after row of hostile enemies. I slammed my sword down, clashing it into the helmet of a Drethen. I leaped over him and hustled into the castle, knowing there would be more danger inside. I dashed through the hallway toward Charlotte's room. I didn't know where she would go, but it was one of the few places in the castle that I even knew.

  I heard her voice in the corridor ahead. "Please don't hurt me."

  My mouth dried as her fear rang through the halls.

  A gravelly voice replied, "You hurt my friend, it's only fair."

  I sprinted toward the voices when a metallic clang sounded. I clenched my jaw, dread seeping into me. A dull thud reverberated off the walls. She was dead. I was too late. Out of breath, I turned the corner to see two piles of flesh and blood on the floor.

  The princess stood above them, unscathed, holding a blood-spattered iron rod still glowing red.

  Chapter 9

  Princess Charlotte

  THE MOMENT I SAW YOUNG, all the power I'd felt moments ago melted away. I was a blood-spattered princess standing amidst a murder scene, one I'd starred in. My gaze met his, and I searched for the horror I felt, in his dark eyes, but couldn’t find it. I glanced over the gentle lines of his expression and drank in the easiness of his parted lips. He exhaled relief and I felt the sudden
pull of my body towards him as I breathed it in. I couldn’t discern how he could look upon me, with such reprieve, then I took a step forward. And another. He was my cage, my captor, the death of my freedom, but in one kind glance, in my darkest hour, he granted me a modicum of comfort. I ran to him and threw myself into his arms. I didn't care that he didn't embrace me. I didn't care that his body tightened with discomfort. He was alive and, to me, that meant that my father could be too.

  "Milly's over here," I sniffed as I motioned to the door. I felt the pulse of my hand as I released the fire poker from my finger-numbing grip. It fell to the floor with a clang and I stared at my hands as they shook. Blood was everywhere. It dripped from my fingertips and pooled on the stone floor. As the adrenaline waned, the horror of what I’d just done sunk in. I bit back the urge to scream. I backed away.

  “Hey,” Young called, dragging my attention back to him. He shook his head. “Look at me.”

  My heart pounded as my mind slipped back towards the lifeless heaps on the floor, dragging my gaze to them.

  “Charlotte,” Young called, but he was a distant voice floating negligibly through the back of my mind. Young stepped in front of me, blocking my view of the corpses. He took a firm grip of my wrist as if to hold me to the earth. I felt the warmth of his breath on my forehead, and the steady beat of his heart as his chest pressed against mine. My body numbed. My gaze crept up to his chin and stopped at his lips. My breath synchronized with his. I lifted my chin, my gaze meeting his. His dark eyes peered down at me, black as a moonless night with just as many stars. I searched them for clues, but if he felt something, he showed nothing at all.

  Feeling rushed back to my body all at once. I reached for my wrist and pried it out of his hand just in time to feel the bile rise from my stomach. I doubled over and vomited an acid more bitter than the emotions that caused it.

  When I caught my breath, I stood, feeling a sense of frailty in my legs that wasn’t there before. I looked up at Young. "Where's—"

  "He's still out there," Young replied, his voice so even and smooth it sounded like a lie.

  A voice shot out from behind Young. "Prince Young, you found the princess." A brown-haired boy in a soldier's uniform approached. He couldn't have been older than me. He had a baby face, softly curved features, and not a bit of hair on his chin. He looked more like a boy in costume than a warrior.

  "Leon," Young said as he walked over to shake his hand. "Yeah, thanks to you."

  Young turned to me. “Charlotte, grab Milly. I’m going to... uh,” he tucked his dark hair behind his ear, “clean up.”

  I nodded and returned to the dining room where I knew Milly was hidden.

  "Milly, it's me," I looked around. "It's safe." I said the words, but I wasn't sure how true they were.

  Milly crawled out from behind a sofa. Her eyes widened. "You're covered in blood." She lifted her arms in front of her body and clutched the hand-carved cross hanging from her neck.

  "No, it's okay. I'm fine," I said, moving toward her.

  She backed away, terror still in her eyes. "You killed them?"

  I shook my head. "N-no. I saved us. If I hadn't done that, they would have—" Blood. So much blood. I shivered.

  "Passed by," she whispered.

  "Milly..." Guilt seared my skin. It was the last emotion in the world I could stomach in this situation. I clenched my jaw with rage. They'd invaded my home, they might have killed my father, they could have killed us. I'd acted in the way that I thought was right, but looking into Milly's eyes, it was obvious she felt different. Doubt started to creep in. The guilt slithered down my spine as Milly backed away. She thought I was a monster and maybe she was right.

  The door swung open and Leon and Young hustled in.

  "Leon has a plan," Young said. He paused, noticing the tension in the room. His gaze moved from Milly to me. His eyebrow raised and he spoke, "That was a brave thing you did to save your friend, Charlotte." He turned to Milly, his jaw clenched. "Let's go."

  I felt a warm vibration of gratitude pulse inside me. Before I could give it another thought, Young and Leon ushered Milly and myself out of the room and down the hallway. They carefully checked each corner before moving us along. I stared at Milly’s back and bit down hard on my bottom lip. I wanted to reach out to Milly to tell her it was okay—to let her know we were in this together—but she wouldn't look at me. I saw the queasy look on her face when she'd seen the bodies of the two Drethen soldiers slumped into the corner in the hallway. It could take a while, but I'd get her back somehow—she was all I had left.

  We rounded the corner to the staircase in the east tower. The stone platforms wrapped around the tower led up to several bedrooms, one of which I had used to shoot an arrow at the prince when he arrived, and another down to a tunnel below the castle that exited a mile in the opposite direction. If we could make it out, we'd have a decent chance of escaping.

  I whispered, "I think they're getting in this way." Leon nodded and took the lead, followed by Milly, me, and Young just behind me. We descended the stairs into the poorly torch-lit tunnel. We paused at the entrance to listen for the enemy, but all we heard was the occasional drip of something leaking and the distant sounds of battle.

  We hustled through, still on our guard. The darkness reminded me of the fear I’d felt as a child. My mind always twisted the shadows into monsters. Now, as I trudged along, the monsters took a new form. Did my mother make it out? Was my father really dead? I reached out for Milly’s hair for comfort as it shone in the torchlight as we passed, but I stopped myself as I remembered Young was behind me. We walked single-file in a tense, uninterrupted silence the entire mile, expecting to hear someone shout. As we shuffled through the darkness, I picked at my hands, trying to focus on the faint light at the end as it grew nearer.

  We stepped out into the sunshine. My eyes locked onto two men in blue standing nearby.

  "Eh! Who the hell is that?" a scruffy Drethen soldier called.

  Leon sighed with relief. "Only two."

  His confidence put me at ease as the two soldiers approached us.

  Young turned back to me. "Charlotte, you want to get this one or..." he trailed off.

  I shook my head in disbelief. I would have missed it if I wasn't looking so closely, but unmistakably, the corners of his mouth tilted up just a smidge before he turned and readied himself for a fight. Was that a joke? Now? I felt something flutter inside me and quickly shook it off. I turned to Milly and pulled her into me, burying her face in my shoulder so she couldn't see. "Cover your ears," I whispered.

  Chapter 10

  Prince Young

  EVERY STEP AWAY FROM the castle, I felt a little safer and a little more panicked about leaving my brother behind. There I was guiding the princess of “Oh, I’m marrying you?” to safety, while my brother was being dragged into enemy territory, or worse. I glanced over at Charlotte, her arm wrapped tightly around Milly’s shoulder. My gaze lingered on her blood-spattered dress. I had to admit, she wasn’t exactly like my first impression of her. Even now as the glisten of fresh tears streaked her face, her strength was evident. She followed Leon and I with sure, decisive steps as she moved away from the only home she knew. Her gaze met mine. I flinched and snapped my attention forward.

  We arrived at the forest's edge. The warm green of the trees and the lush fern-covered ground was untouched by war. The crevices of the wood teemed with life, unlike the death-stained castle we’d escaped. The sounds of war could no longer be heard, giving us the illusion of safety, but I knew that with two dead guards outside the castle, the enemy wouldn’t be far behind. The birds chirped playfully unperturbed, and for a moment I felt myself yield to the serene environment. Minseo. A lump lurched to the back of my throat. My knees weakened. I clenched my jaw, hoping to bite back my tears until it was sore and I had to release. We came to a slow-flowing river, its bank littered with wide trees that stretched high above us, impeding strands of the setting sun.

  Sti
ll battling my urge to cry, I knelt beside the river, dipped my hands in, and washed my face. I scrubbed at the dried bits of blood on my hands and drank until I was certain I’d suffocate. Leon slumped against a large tree. I could see the exhaustion in his movements but he continued to smile, a trait that perplexed me. The girls exchanged solemn looks by the river and whispered, but I was happy to not be a part of the conversation.

  After a few short minutes, Leon rose. "Follow this river," he said. "It should take you about five days on foot.” He ran a bloodstained hand through his brown hair. “You can see the southern castle from this river."

  I leaped up. "You're leaving?"

  He smiled widely. "Yeah. Did you think I forgot about my other mission? Prince Minseo." He rested his hand on my shoulder. A rush of emotions hit me in waves. Relief, gratitude, hope. I shook his hand and he turned to leave. I wasn't sure if he was too late to help Minseo or what difference one soldier could make, but having someone like him looking for my brother gave me hope. I’d seen firsthand what he could do.

  "Be careful." I shook his hand, suppressing my urge to bow—my kingdom’s custom.

  He huffed. "You be careful." A devious smile flickered across his face. Confused, I followed his gaze to Milly and Charlotte. Leon smirked and headed back towards the direction of the castle. I felt a pang of embarrassment. That kind of sexual joke reminded me of Minseo, though it wasn’t a social norm in Vires. If Leon did rescue Minseo, they might just get along. I waited for the warmth to dispel from my cheeks before turning back to the girls.

  "Is he coming back?" Milly asked as she instinctively reached for her cross.

  I shook my head. I didn't want to tell her that Leon was going to try to find Minseo. "We are going to the southern castle without him." Her eyes bulged. Milly was right to worry. She and the princess would be safer if Leon stayed with us for the journey. I chose to let him go for Minseo. "It'll be fine," I added. "I'll keep you both safe."