One month later, the basalt colossus cast its daunting shadow across the scorched Vittle fields. A frightening harbinger of things to come. My mother chose my room adjacent to hers. It was vast and airy. She decorated it with a variety of furniture and two stone gargoyles she commissioned from the mason. Father slept in a vaulted room below ground with no windows. Amolot joined him there.

Umbra employed the keepers in the village to tend the Spire under Savis' supervision. This was the first establishment of an actual servant caste. In this memory, they were busy readying the Spire for an event. A procession, not a celebration.

I ran through the kitchens dipping my hands in pots and bowls with many a growl or grumble in my wake. Covered from head to toe in flour, I ruined the robes mother made for me. She wouldn't mind. And that's the thought that kept me running until powerful arms swept me from the floor and held me aloft.

"My goodness, what a mess you are, Night Prince."

I fumed at the beautiful woman that dared interrupt my fun. She spiked her hair up and shaded it with the entire spectrum of colors. Muscle braided her arms and sectioned her exposed stomach. Leather covered the rest of her. She looked so foreign to me, and she spoke with a deep voice, "Now, withdraw your ire. I encourage your rebellious play, but your father will expect you soon."

I stopped fuming and try as I might, I couldn't hide the fear from her.

She stared at me a long time with her split green and black eyes before setting me down. Holding out her hand, she said, "I am your ally, Karter. Your mother sent me to fetch you while she readies the King. If we hurry, we can clean this mess, including yourself."

I accepted Karter's kindness. After we cleaned the kitchens, she waited in my chambers for me to dress. She kept her back to me while perusing my books. "I like this one. I bet your mother made you memorize it already."

In my second-best robes, I checked the shelf with her. She pointed to uncle Vinco's Verse. As a Coalition member, Li swallowed him with the others. His verse was my favorite, as well.

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In my inability to communicate in the face of kindness, I expressed myself the way that worked with mother. I reached my arms out for a hug, and Karter lifted me into one. I stopped trying this on father after the third rebuff, so tears sprung to my eyes when she accepted me.

Our future interactions were brief and usually in light of some catastrophe, but I will never forget this singularity.

After some fuss with my mother and Karter over the mess I made, the evening's events commenced. Most of the Coalition's descendants attended. When I asked my mother why so few of my cousins came, she stated, "They do not agree and, therefore, do not have to appear."

I knew of the disgruntled Icari only because they shouted under the castle alongside the moat throughout the day. My father threatened them with molten gold once, and they stilled for a week. More of them returned with cries of starvation and divergence.

"I propose a solution," Umbra announced to the barely occupied hall.

Only twenty Icari attended, presenting in the Elden fashion of minimalism. As did my mother.

My father wore a black wrap around his hips and a studded leather band around his ribs. He swept an arm encased in a silver gauntlet to the side. "The Valkyrie."

Amolot, Karter, and ten other robust female warriors emerged from the dark in a dramatic entrance. They each dressed aggressively in various colors and styles of leather cut to display their honed bodies. My father and Amolot looked pleased. My mother kept her eyes low. The descendants burst into an uproar once the shock wore off.

Uncle Vinco's grandson erupted first, "We will not incite violence on our people."

Another aggravated soul reasoned, "In the history of Cinder--as you call it--this level of aggression was never necessary. What happened to us?"

And so they argued at my father, who watched with that steel in his eyes that made me shy away. When they finished, he stood and walked to uncle Vinco's grandson until a breath separated them. "Your complaints are noted. I find it imperative to protect my home from potential assassins. I wonder why my concerns seem more valid now than before?"

He turned his back on the Icarus and claimed the center of the room. "The Valkyrie are my garrison. They will not meddle with any affairs other than my own until such time as I deem necessary. I am to remind you that although your lineage carries status, you still serve me." The next he boomed, "I AM YOUR KING!" He held up his adorned hand, and the crowd flinched. "Or do you require another demonstration?"

The next day, two Icari with wings attempted to kill my father in the Spire. They failed. The garrison expanded to include soldiers that were offered upgrades into the newly established "warrior" caste. Five hundred thousand joined over a week. A new Cinder evolved.