Two weeks had passed since the battle to reclaim the city and Cassian had come to visit Luna every day with flowers and sweets. This morning, like all the others, she wore a thick bandage wrapped around her shoulder. Luna spent most of the night before lying-in bed, debating whether she should pick an outfit that would hide the ugly cloth wrap. Normally she didn’t care much about how she looked, but she wanted to dress up for Cassian’s big day.

In the end, she decided not to hide the wrap and picked a striped shoulderless dress that showed the bandages off. Luna felt proud of the effort that she and her fellow citizens of the Undercity put forth to save their home. As absurd as it felt, the bandages symbolized that effort to her.

After she finished getting ready Luna went downstairs for breakfast. Coming down the uneven stairs, the sight of her brother and friends playing cards on the floor made her heart sing. Before this ordeal started—a time that felt like ages ago—she took these familiar things for granted. The creak of the stairs. Lane’s donkey-like laugh. Mariska always losing at cards.

I won’t ever let everyday moments slip into unappreciated familiarity again.

“Help! My sister floated away into dreamland!” Lane hollered.

Mouse glanced down at the plate of food he was guarding, then back up at Luna. “Hurry up! I saved you some bacon.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice!” Luna said, skipping down the stairs and plopping down on the floor next to her brother. Without another word, she shoveled her mouth full of more bacon than it seemed physically possible to fit. Bloody stars, I had gotten so sick of smoked salmon on that trip. I missed you my sweet. Sweet. Bacon.

“Look at you! You sure got dressed up for Cassian!” Mariska said.

Luna turned red as a tomato and hit her friend playfully in the arm. “Please don’t give me a hard time. Oh, and shouldn’t you be focused on losing at cards against my ten-year-old brother?”

“He only wins because he cheats!”

“Likely story.” Luna laughed. “I just kind of wanted to look nice for Cassian’s big day.”

“You look way more than kind of nice. He’s not going to be able to give his speech, because he’s going to be mesmerized by you.” Mariska said, brushing her pink hair behind her ear.

“Oh, shut up,” Luna said. “By the way Lane, you need to change right now. You’re not wearing that ratty tunic, it’s got holes all over it. Go put on your new one.”

Rolling his eyes, Lane stomped his feet all the way to his room before looking back and slamming the door.

Luna looked at Mariska and sighed, “That kid, am I right?”

“Reminds me of someone else at that age.”

“Any word of Cyrus yet?” Luna asked, expression shifting from playful to stoic. “Has he turned up?”

Mouse chimed in, “I’m afraid not. Ever since he disappeared at the battle, no one’s heard a peep from him.”

Luna’s hands balled into fists, and she stared off out the window.

“Hey now, it’ll all work out. We’re going to find him eventually and lock him back up so he can’t hurt anyone again.” Mariska said.

With a nod, Luna acknowledged her friend, but inside she felt the weight of the disappearance of the man who taught her so much. I won’t give up. I’ll find him and make sure he can’t cause any more harm.

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Standing in the crowded plaza near the palace, Luna considered how strange it felt that life appeared to be going back to normal in the capital. Ever since the army returned to Cloudreach, order found its way back to the city. Trumpets sounded. The public square filled with beautiful melodies. The crowd cooed after a flock of doves was released from the stage. As they flew off into the clouds, Luna looked over at Lane and her friends. Lane bounced up and down like a rabbit, trying but failing to get a glimpse of the stage.

A sharp whistle from Luna pulled their attention. “Mouse.” Luna called out with a finger pointed down at Lane. With a quick nod, he scooped the boy up and hoisted him onto his shoulders.

Lane grinned. “I can see everything now! Hey sis, what do you think’s under that huge cloth?”

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

Pressing her palm to her cheek, Luna inspected the giant wrapped up object in the corner of the plaza. “Honestly? No clue. I bet we’re about to find out though.”

Preceded by a rhythmic drum roll, King Denethor and Cassian strode to the center of the stage. A gentle breeze rustled the flowing green banners and the royal guard stood with halberds in hand. The king and prince, each in their gleaming ceremonial armor were received with sweeping applause.

Once the roar of the crowd died down, Denethor began, “Good morning noble people of Enthamere. It’s with great appreciation that I welcome you here today for the coronation of your Prince, Cassian Aveline.”

Cheers cascaded through the crowd again.

Waiting for the applause to quiet, Denethor put his arm around his son. “It goes without saying that the past month has been a difficult one for all of us. We’ve all lost friends and loved ones. But today isn’t a day of mourning—it’s a day to celebrate their lives. A day to stand proudly together and honor them, by building a better tomorrow. You may not know this, but my son fought bravely to save this city from the destructive claws of the Bohlkovians. He has shown me in the past weeks that he’s not only strong, courageous, and smart, but wise as well. I know in my heart, it’s only a matter of time until he shows that to all of you as well.”

Cassian kneeled before his father. With a grand sweeping gesture Denethor took the crown from his head and placed it atop Cassian’s. Applause from the plaza found a way to get even louder. After a dramatic pause, Cassian rose to his feet and stood tall in the center of the stage. In the blink of an eye, the giant horned snow leopard jumped out from behind the curtain and was at Cassian’s side.

The guards looked genuinely unsettled by the arrival. Cassian wrapped his arms around Light and hugged him tightly. The crowd was in awe staring up at Light. Some had seen a snow leopard, but none had ever seen a snow leopard with purple crystalline horns.

Eventually Cassian stood back up and turned back towards the crowd. “Thank you, my friends for being here.” Cassian found Luna in the crowd and smirked at her. “I vow to always act in the best interest of our kingdom. I vow to do everything in my power to protect our kingdom. Most importantly, I vow to see that our kingdom becomes a model to the world of opportunity and equality.”

The last line caused a bit of an uproar in the crowd. Well dressed nobles and guild members in the front of the crowd whispered uneasily while the denizens of the Undercity and peasants in the back roared.

“The first thing I wanted to do as king, was honor those who gave their lives so that we might overcome.” Cassian pointed to the towering covered mass in the center of the town square.

A group of royal guards pulled a rope. With a woosh the cloth draping the object fell away revealing a gigantic statue of Tyriel. The artistry was incredible and the crowd was captivated by the statue of the handsome armored elf.

Bringing his arms up proudly, Cassian continued, “I commissioned the stonemasons guild to craft this statue of a man I barely knew.” He laughed nervously and shrugged. “That probably sounds crazy. But the truth is, this man was a hero who sacrificed himself to ensure a better future for all of us. I guess, if that’s not worthy of being remembered then I don’t know what is.”

Misty eyed Luna blinked back and forth between the statue and Cassian. She remembered the brief time she spent with Tyriel. It felt a bit like a dream now. As if the details were too ethereal and fantastic to possibly be real.

On the stage Cassian paused to kneel down and pet Light. “Rebuilding is going to be hard, but I know if we work together we can do incredible things. Today, let’s feast and celebrate the lives of those we’ve lost. Tomorrow we start phase one of the rebuild.”

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Luna stood in a circle with Lane and the gang waiting to see Cassian. At that moment he was being swarmed by Topside social climbers. People he didn’t even know, they all wanted to compliment him and plant the seeds for future ventures. He looked over at Luna and mouthed the words, “I’m trying.” They both laughed.

Eventually Cassian was able to push his way through the crowd to Luna. The sunlight trickled through between the spires and rooftops, glimmering off Cassian’s armor. “How’d I do? Did I sound like a fool?” He asked, smiling with his eyes.

Luna rubbed her sore bandaged shoulder. “Actually, I thought you did so well. How come you didn’t tell me about the statue?”

“I guess I just wanted it to be a surprise. Pretty amazing, right?”

“It really is. You’re exactly .”

Cassian blushed and stepped in closer to her. “I won’t be able to do it alone, you know. Can I ask something of you?”

“Anything.”

“It’s not fair for me to ask so much of you. But to be honest, I feel a little bit in over my head. There’s been a lot of pushback already from the noble houses and guilds about my plans to revitalize the Undercity.”

“Of course they’re going to be resistant to change, they benefited greatly from the old ways.”

“It’ll take some time, but they’ll see. The Undercity and small villages throughout Enthamere are the backbone of the nation. If we can build them up, all of Enthamere will benefit.” Cassian said. “I want to name you Mayor of Cloudreach, Luna. I’m going to need your help fixing the infrastructure of not only The Undercity, but all of Enthamere.”

Luna put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes at him. “You better not be playing some sick joke on me, your highness.”

Rolling his eyes and laughing Cassian replied, “Luna, it’s time to fix this fractured city. We’re going to solve the sting problem. If you accept my offer — then tomorrow morning I’ve arranged for you to meet with the head of the engineering guild. I’d like for you to build an academy in the Gateway. What do you think?”

For a split second Luna was stunned, then she jumped forward and hugged Cassian tightly. Luna wondered how to reply when presented with all of her dreams on a silver platter. Overwhelmed by emotion, she nodded and couldn’t stop herself from smiling.