Her parents had already left when she returned to the meeting room. Sighing, she turned around and almost walked into Eclaire and Robert.

“I … Is … How?” Rudehair stammered. Lia understood. She had been steamrolled. First when she learned that Lia was an omni-donar and now again as Orphelia has proven to be a princess. And yet she didn’t even know half of it.

“I guess what Eclaire is trying to ask is: Did you know?”

Lia sighed and closed her eyes. “Will it change anything, if I did?”

“I guess it doesn’t.” Robert shook his head. “We’re just stumped. First there was your little big secret, and now Orphelia turns out to be a princess.”

“How? Why?” Eclaire stuttered.

“Why has she kept this a secret?” Robert helpfully translated.

The questions were getting on her nerves, but she took a deep breath and still answered with asw sweet a smile she could muster: “Maybe it was because she wanted to make some real friends and not just ones that would be nice to her because of her status?”

“Ouch.” Robert winked at her, while Eclaire stared. It seemed like the impera was outraged and stunned at the same time. “How are you holding up in all of this? I guess, if not the surprise, then all the changes must be pretty jarring.”

“To be honest,” Lia sighed and looked down, “having to keep secrets all the time isn’t fun. Especially if you need some advice regarding those.”

“There are still things we don’t know?” Eclair’s voice was so high-pitched that her shout cam out as a whisper.

Pressing her lips together, Lia considered whether she could trust these two enough to tell them about her problems, and about the tenth color. Especially with Eclaire she had gotten off of the wrong foot.

“Is it on the same magnitude as you having all the colors?” Robert asked in a whisper.

Lia shook her head. “It’s much worse.”

“Then it’s better if you don’t tell us.” Robert shook his head. “Personally, I don’t want to get involved into these political games.”

Eclaire sighed. Her complexion had visibly cooled. “I guess … I …” she mumbled something, then balled her fists. “I’m sorry for my past behavior! You can come to me, if you need help!” The impera almost shouted at her, the head beet red once more, turned, and ran. Stunned, Lia watched as the impera retreated.

“Well, I guess we’ll see you in class after everything has calmed down.” Robert made a gesture similar to a salute and walked away himself.

Lia kept standing a while longer in front of the visitor room, then walked slowly back, contemplating the two imperi. Could they help her? Part of her still thought that they wouldn’t be interested in the fate of the station’s donar, but then again … maybe it was another case of someone having a perspective different from hers. And Eclaire had offered.

When she was back at the central well, she decided to take Eclaire’s offer. She didn’t want to have any regrets, if the future they were headed to came to pass.

The imperi’s dormitory wasn’t much larger than that of the donar, but it looked fancier. When she stepped inside to find Eclaire, some imperi looked at her strangely. Some even whispered that she now thought of herself as being better than them. She tried to ignore them, but had to ask someone for directions. It took her several tries before someone told her where to knock.

Eclaire stared at her when she opened the door. “I didn’t think you’d come,” she whispered. Then she stepped aside. “Please come in.”

Lia nodded and followed her invitation. Eclaire’s room wasn’t bigger than her old one, in facht it was the same size. It was just that Eclaire had the room to herself.

“Please, sit,” Eclaire offered, and Lia took one of the chairs near Eclair’s desk. The red-haired girl took the other seat and waited.

Lia sighed, and opened her mouth to ask Eclaire whether she knew of the tenth color, but then thought better of it. Eclaire deserved to know what she was getting into. “What I am about to tell you is top secret. I don’t know how far the royal family will go to enforce it, but … I guess, if I tell you, you have to promise me not to tell anyone else.” There was a moment of silence while Eclaire thought about what she said. “Will you still help me?”

Eclaire took a moment longer to answer. “I offered to help you. I am not going back on my word. And I will keep quiet about it.”

“It won’t be easy,” Lia said, then smiled at Eclaire. “Thank you.” After that she launched into her explanation, told Eclaire about the tenth color and the visions of the future she had seen and heard of. The impera’s eyes widened with every revelation, and she even held her hands in front of her mouth, after she heard of what would happen to every donar that was left on the station.

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

“So far it seems that the vaccination is to blame.”

Eclaire was silent. Then, in a low voice, she asked: “Is that true?”

“I wouldn’t be this desperate, if it wasn’t.” Sighing, Lia leaned back in the chair and looked at the ceiling. “Ludwig is at wit’s end, and I don’t know what to do, either.”

Eclaire raised her fist to her lips and closed her eyes. “The vaccination alone can’t be the reason,” she finally said. “Ludwig had said that they all turn into zombies at the same time. Considering that they couldn’t have gotten the vaccination at the same time, and that there have to be slight variations between each donar – especially taking into account the varying sizes of their mana pools, that doesn’t make sense. There has to be something that will trigger all of it.”

That made Lia look at the impera. “Are you sure?”

Eclaire shook her head. “I can’t be sure of anything. But that would make sense. If the king is really the culprit behind all of this, then he might be the one triggering it when he comes to the station. The only question remains: To what end? There are aspects of the station’s operation that won’t work without donar.”

“Then … it’s an accident. Something he didn’t take into account.”

“Or someone,” Eclaire countered. “I can imagine that the former queen isn’t happy that she had to abdicate.”

“No.” Lia shook her head. “She’s been working on preventing this for far longer than Ludwig has.”

“So you met her?”

Lia sighed. “It’s another one of those secrets, but she’s also a member of the pirates …”

“The pirates who have been terrorizing the empire for years now. Can you really trust her?”

“She has shared a vision with me.” Her voice became weak.

“Let me guess: Using spirit magic. Since she is controlling the magic, she could influence what you see. Maybe part of it was true, while others were manipulated. As the queen she’s probably got a lot of experience using those magics.” Eclaire’s gaze bored into her, and Lia gulped. The impera was right: All of this could’ve been an elaborate plot by the former queen.

“Then … what should I do? What should we do?”

Eclaire lowered her fist and sighed. “I don’t know. I’m as stumped as you are.” She grabbed her fist with her other hand. “I’m sorry that I can’t help you, even though I promised, I would.”

Lia felt a bit disappointed. “Don’t worry. It was a long shot anyway.” She rose from her seat and walked to the door. There she stopped. “And thank you. For listening.”

When she walked out of Eclaire’s room, it felt as if they had formed a bond of some kind. Not yet friendship, but they surely had overcome their former hostilities.

***

The bodyguards let her in without a fuss. The principal and Doctor Deimos had both left. Orphelia was still in the armchair, eyes closed, breathing peacefully. Her arms were wrapped in bandages, but whatever Miss Joy had done brought her friend some relief.

Lia contemplated bringing Orphelia upstairs, but she probably wouldn’t be able to carry her friend without reduced gravity. She carefully walked up the stairs and into Orphelia’s room, grabbed a blanket and brought it back down to cover the girl’s sleeping form.

Orphelia stirred and opened her eyes. “Oh. You’re back,” she mumbled sleepily.

“Yes. I know it’s late. Let’s go to bed.”

Orphelia looked away shortly, then back into her eyes. “Can I sleep next to you?”

“I …” Lia faltered, gulped and nodded. “Sure? Why not?” She was still concerned about her friend. Whatever the former queen had told her in private, it had changed her. She needed to ask what had happened, but it felt wrong doing it at this moment.

“Lia,” Orphelia mumbled and stood, then hugged her. “I … I’m afraid.”

“Why are you afraid?” She reciprocated the hug and waited for Orphelia to answer.

“The future.” The girl shivered and held her tighter. “Lillian told me that I have a choice to make. A terrible choice.”

“What kind of choice?” Lia tried to keep her voice calm, but she was sure her anxiety, fear, and anger were audible.

Her friend didn’t answer, so she asked again, even less able to stay calm. “What choice?”

“I’m sorry.” Orphelia sobbed. “I can’t tell you.”

“Why not?” Lia almost screamed. Her friend was suffering before her – in her very arms – and she was unable to do anything.

Orphelia hugged her even tighter, clearly distressed. Lia’s anger abated slightly. “Why not?” she asked again, in a calmer voice.

“If you know, you’ll act on it,” she started, confusing her. “And then, he’ll win.” Orphelia interrupted her thoughts.

“What?” She gulped, and a shiver ran down her spine. Who was ‘he’? Amir?

“I won’t let him win!” Orphelia declared in a whisper. “I won’t let him get you.”

“Who is he?” she tried again, but her friend kept quiet. The only reaction to her repeated question was a tight squeeze. Several minutes after that, Orphelia was grabbed by exhaustion and fell asleep. Lia pulled her over to the couch and laid down on it, with her. She didn’t want to leave her friend alone, not at this time, not like this.

It took her some time to wrap them in the blanket, Orphelia sleeping half on her. Lia couldn’t find sleep. She stared at the ceiling, her thoughts circling around what had been said, like birds of prey. But they didn’t find any prey. She only noticed that she had fallen asleep when she stood at the gate once more.

Right next to her was Orphelia, her body caught in black mist that reached up to her neck. She looked around frantically and shouted for help, but didn’t seem to see her. Lia wanted to reach out but there was an invisible wall between them, like a glass pane that had no end.

Then she saw something move in the sea of dark mist that was cut off by the glass. She followed the disturbances of the darkness with her eyes. Swirling clouds of black circled around her friend.

Then she looked back up. The desperation on her face was heart-wrenching. “Orphelia,” she said and touched the glass. “I’m here. Tell me how to help you.”

The movements in the mist stopped. Lia’s eyes darted to the floor and looked around. What was that? Something crashed against the glass, mouth open, showing sharp teeth. A black snake stumbled to the floor, and curled up. Then it raised its head and hissed at her strangely. Almost as if it wanted to communicate with her, but she couldn’t understand anything.

When Lia didn’t react, the snake crashed into the glass again, pushing her out of the dream. Just when she awoke, a thought struck her. “Is that … him?” she asked herself, but didn’t get an answer.