A black Mercedes Benz speeded through the city, heading for the palace. Inside the car's front were the fish twins, while in the back was the chief, who was in the middle of Vanilla and Zoork; she broke Zoork's handcuffs and didn't bother putting new ones on them because she was confident in her ability.

"Dear, calm down," the chief said, wiping Vanilla's tears with a napkin. She tried her best to be gentle, but that didn't change the fact that she murdered Vanilla's friend. Her sincerity changed nothing.

"What do we do once we get into the palace?" a fish twin asked.

"Let me ask." She placed her hand against her temple, signaling to the general. She nodded her head as she received instructions telepathically; abruptly, she let go of her temple. "We need to hand the trespassers to the general, then we have to support security." She didn't care about Zoork or Vanilla listening to their plan; after all, they couldn't do anything with the information.

It didn't take them long to arrive at the palace's entrance, an area filled with screaming citizens, but their voices weren't out of happiness; they were out of anger and protest. The fish-headed citizens held protest signs, bashing them and their fists against the car, but the fish-twin slowly drove forward in an attempt to try to force them out of the way, but it didn't work, so the guards pushed back the citizens — paving a path for them to advance. The car drove through a road towards the palace's gate, but still, as they did, citizens threw various objects at their vehicle — the soldiers couldn't do much against this behavior.

"What the fuck?" a twin said as a protestor slipped through the guards and jumped forward, his head landing under the car's tire, mangling it to bits. Others saw this as an opportunity and began pressing forward through the opening. However, the guards commenced shooting, forcing the crowd back. He speeded the car and drove through the palace's gate, away from the crazy and unrestful citizens.

At least the car made it through without injury...

Stopping the vehicle, the twins got out and opened the rear doors; they held Zoork and Vanilla, bringing them to the palace's entrance. The chief felt frigid, a chill going down her spine, but she ignored it and walked out of the car towards the general, who waited at the entrance with around twenty guards standing at the palace's door.

The general stood tall and pointed at the Zoork. "You." He stopped speaking and shook his head, looking at the chief. "I'll take care of them. You can leave."

"Sir, your hand," the chief said, looking at his left arm.

"Oh, no way. When did that happen?" The general sarcastically said, shaking his head and ushering the intruders to walk inside, but before he went in, he turned around. "Help the security out at the gate."

The fish twins and the chief saluted the general before marching towards security.

"Your friend..." the general said, looking back at Zoork and Vanilla. "He made my life so much harder. You best believe you two will have to suffer as well."

Zoork cared little for threats. He looked directly into the general's face. "What happened to Arthur?"

The general bit his lip as he smiled and shook his head. "You wouldn't even believe me if I said it. You wouldn't even understand the amount of shit I've been through. What that man has caused me..."

"I didn't ask about your feelings. I asked what happened to him, so tell me."

The general gritted his teeth and smiled. "I'll show you. No need to get so angry. But before I do, you ought to get ready." The general pointed to a few housemaids, and ten of them rushed towards him, waiting for orders. He examined Zoork and Vanilla and pointed to them. "Get them prepared for the inauguration."

"Yes, sir."

They forced Zoork and Vanilla to dress more formally. They both wore plain white silk clothing; Zoork wore a basic shirt and pants, while Vanilla donned a white skirt and a long shirt.

Once they finished getting ready — with the help of the maids; the general walked with them towards the banquet. He placed his arm around Zoork and Vanilla. "My friends, not a word comes out of your mouths. When everyone claps, you clap. If people are eating, so do you. Just act normal and copy the crowd because today, you folk are proud guests of a glorious shift in history." He let go of them, and they stood in front of the door to the banquet.

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Vanilla tapped her eye and then quickly shook her head, trying to morse code that she couldn't use her powers. Zoork blinked three times. She had absolutely no clue what that meant. If it meant anything at all...

Two maids opened the doors to the banquet, revealing a fuzzy red-carpeted room with white painted walls and two long tables arranged in a parallel manner; at the front of the hall was the main table placed where it would face the side ends of both parallel long tables. It was a room with gold decorations on the walls, light shining down but not too bright, and tables embellished with the finest materials. A clean white fabric covered the tables, and on them were gold silverware, as well as golden pots with large colorful flowers that released a vibrant smell of jasmine.

The general and the two intruders walked down the middle of the parallel tables. All the royalty and affluent individuals stared at them as they walked to their seats, and they sat at the end of the table, near the one and only dining area — the king's sitting space.

The general was only afforded the time to show them where to sit before he was bombarded with greetings. On the other hand, Vanilla and Zoork sat quietly. Zoork was adequately positioned, but Vanilla couldn't handle her jitters. She was more than hurt, beyond devastated, but she had to act normal; she tried, though inside, she couldn't. It didn't help that the hundreds of eyes on her and Zoork disturbed her even more. The wide eyes of fish-head people were scary enough, but there were also many normal-looking humans with only a slight difference — webbed fingers and gills on their necks.

Numerous guards and maids surrounded the banquet, standing next to the walls. Once the general stopped speaking to the royalty and guests, he approached the head soldier and whispered into his ears. The man saluted and signaled his men to move; the guards repositioned themselves, and around twenty stood on the left side of the wall, twenty on the right; in the front, close to the king's table, three guards defended.

The general waited for everyone to arrange themselves, and once they finished, he grabbed a microphone and stood in front of the audience. He smiled and cleared his throat in the microphone, forcing the crowd to go silent. "I hope you all are having an amazing day. After all, today is for us, for the people of Atlantis. Today is our independence, so rejoice, my brothers and sisters. Rejoice!"

The gathering clapped, and some even shouted in excitement, much different from the cries outside the palace's border. Lavish guests asserted their royalty through their smiling faces and drunkenness. They were carefree — foolishly happy. They were the rich and regal. Zoork and Vanilla duplicated the expressions of the others, and their facade was spot on — mostly because it wasn't hard to act oblivious.

"Ahem." The general cleared his throat again, but this time it was louder and more assertive. His tone switched to a more weighty and genuine manner as he spoke, "My dear enthusiasts of Atlantis; givers and peacekeepers; you all are the backbone of this city." He shook his head. "No, we're more than a city. The people on the outside refer to us as a mere metropolis at best, but we all know that we're more. Aren't we?"

The crowd acted more like a mob, throwing their hands up in the air and screaming.

"We are, damn it!"

"YEAHHH!"

"LONG LIVE ATLANTIS!"

Multiple people shouted their profound love for Atlantis, and all looked excited as if they were anticipating something greater. Grander than what they were currently "suffering."

"Settle down, my brothers and sisters." The general stopped his smile, closing his eyes. "As momentous as today is..." Tears ran down the general's cheeks. "I have something so unfortunate to express. I wish I didn't have to. I'm sorry to inform you that our beloved king, Fishman, has passed away due to illness."

The crowd reacted in two distinct ways: some were teary, while the rest hid their sinister smiles and thought about the new future they wanted because, with the useless king dead, they could now complete their objectives.

"Is that true?" Elli said, walking into the hall with five people next to her. To her right was Arthur, carrying Elli's crown. And to her left were four muscular maids, struggling to hold the royal weapon — the trident.

The general blinked, looking at Elli as he stiffly chortled. He tried to reduce the awkwardness. "My king, I thought I told you to come when-"

Upon hearing the general's label of Elli, everyone was shocked. Most were baffled, but some were even angry. Outraged.

Elli put her fingers on her lips and hushed the general. She neared him and whispered into his ear. "These identical fish and a tall woman told me about intruders being in the inauguration and that you were planning to announce that my father's death was natural. I can't have you ruining my day. You'll pay for that after this." She patted the general's shoulder, taking the microphone from him.

Arthur and the four maids stood behind Elli without making a single noise, even though the maids barely held the trident — they didn't dare grunt once.

"I'm afraid to disclose heartbreaking but vital information," Elli said, her face displaying sorrow as it lowered into a frown. She turned around and looked at Arthur, sniffling as she did. "This man, Arthur Penfish, must pay. He will for what he has done."

The crowd was bewildered. The guards got ready to intervene, but the general shook his head and singled his hand in dread, telling them not to act.

"I will kill him." Elli plunged her hand towards Arthur's neck.

"My king," the general shouted as he extended his arm towards her.