They were sitting at the cafe. Sasha played the last hours in her mind. Amber looking up at Elias. Elias turning his gaze towards the closet, the guilt in his eyes.

She stirred her tea, what she had seen could not be unseen. He had not touched his tea, and by the lost look in his eyes he wouldn't either. He was looking worn out, there was still a gentle golden glow around him, a reminder of what he had to do. She touched his arm.

“I am sorry. I was wrong.” Had she known why he was needed back in the castle she hadn’t tried to force the list upon him. The list could wait, the girl could not.

“I can't help wonder if I really help them, or if I am just adding to the violation?” Elias said. His eyes darted towards the entrance. “Am I worse than them?”

“Want to go back and check on her?”

“No”, Elias said. “Not yet at least.”

“You are a healer. What you did was the right thing. Sometimes the right thing is still stained in sordid sin.”

“I could have taken advantage of her”, Elias said. “I have taken advantage of others.”

“And she tried to take advantage of you”, Sasha joked awkwardly. She patted his arm, looking at the gold dust and still not sure what she thought about it. “Who knows about this?”

“Isaak, and the guard. Plenty of women. Not something I am especially proud of”, Elias said. He sighed, taking a sip of his now cold tea and looked towards the entrance again. “I wanted you to know.”

Sasha felt guilt burning in through her stomach. He shouldn’t trust her, she would betray him.

“How long has this been going on?”

“For years. Since I encountered the first girl. At first I didn’t want to believe her, but then I started to see the pattern.”

Sasha nodded. She was well aware of the king's tastes. She could only imagine what it would have taken for him to accept this specific truth, about his father.

“The king has something alien living inside him. It eats him from within, carving away all compassion leaving only this ugly evil”, Elias said. “For the best healer there are, one would think he should have been able to heal himself.”

That was a pity answer to her thoughts but he seemed to believe it.

“Maybe he can't because that is who he is?” Sasha said.

“No”, Elias said firmly, there was a hint of anger in his voice. “I am a healer, I have sensed his aura. He is sick Sasha.”

Sasha didn’t argue. After all, the king was his father and Elias was just another brick in the sick game his mother and father played. She had the perfect cure for the king, and she started to think the same would be applicable for the queen. She couldn’t put Ivy in charge soon enough.

“I never had a girlfriend”, Elias spat out.

He was stiff, his need to talk obvious. Sasha could only guess what had happened all the other times. His guilt obviously ate at him.

“That’s why the queen arranges this ball isn’t it?”

“She thinks I am shy. Still a virgin”, Elias laughed bitterly. “Nothing could be less true.” He lowered his voice. They were almost alone at the cafe at this hour, still, he bent closer, the whisper so low that she was almost not able to hear it. “I have always wondered if what I do is the last straw of humiliation? The queen takes away their essence, the magic, their work. Then the king breaks them. Over and over again. What do I do? I take away their free will. I have them to relieve the crimes, again, willingly.”

Sasha wanted to hug him, to comfort him. What he had done was none of the above. She was sure of it. She took away her bracelet, letting her sword grow big.

“See, this pulsates in purest white Elias. It could not be true.”

“It recognizes the foulest of crimes”, Elias stated, “if they are committed and chosen to be done when they could have been avoided. I have not murdered anyone and I have never enjoyed killing. It proves nothing.”

“Have you ever asked the girls? Do they blame you?” Sasha tried.

“Would they answer honestly?” Elias said.

“You asking yourself the questions are proof in itself Elias, but honestly I think you should talk to them. It might be good for you both. If I was in the situation, I would have felt I took advantage of you.”

“Thanks, Sasha”, Elias said. “I think it is time to pass by Amber.”

“You do that”, Sasha said, “And I will talk with Ivy.”

Elias hesitated and looked at her. Sasha sighed.

“I promise. See you in the stable. I will not run away. I just need to talk with them, alone.”

“Don’t disappoint me”, Elias said.

He rose from his chair and laid a hefty sum on the table. Sasha looked at his back, she needed some moments by herself, finishing the tea and collecting her thoughts. Elias turned away, never looking back at her. He took his horse by the halter and disappeared.

Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

Ivy was sitting in the kitchen, on the kitchen floor, meditating. Her blond curly hair laid all around her, her spine straight and her fingers relaxed in her knee. Sasha did her best not to make noise.

“Hello sister”, Ivy said, not breaking the lotus pose, and not opening her eyes. “That stunt you made really took a toll on me.”

“I am sorry”, Sasha said. She knew the connection they had must have hurt like hell when Alan stabbed her.

“Denise took care of me. What happened?”

Ivy opened her eyes, patted on the floor, inviting Sasha to sit beside her. Sasha sighed and took her sister's hands in hers. The gift Ivy had was a hard one to live with.

“The dragon queen helped me”, Sasha said. “I got stabbed.”

“So I thought, so I thought.”

Ivy was silent for a long while. Sasha almost thought she had gone back to her meditation, but her eyes were opened and focused on her. The blue light in them were soft as a rainy day.

“Where is Isaak? I couldn’t find him?” Sasha asked, trying to change the subject.

“I think he is out looking for you”, Ivy said and let out a breath. “Did you learn to master the elements?”

“Kind of. I found Elias, he helped a bit. Had to do the rest myself. Some things have to be learned, not listened to”, Sasha said.

“They do”, Ivy agreed. “I am hoping Isaak will do a bit of listening though.”

Sasha hoped too, but not until they had the opportunity to clean the list of names. Then she would vote for him as the new king. The thought of what lay ahead made her feel uneasy.

“It's been a bit messy lately”, Sasha said. “I feel lost. I need to use the orb soon Ivy, before I get regrets.”

“Elias?”

“Yes”, Sasha sighed. “He is too likable.”

“And you do like him?”

Sasha sighed again, heavier this time. She knew where her sister was heading.

“I met a guard when I was in the castle, Nils. I think he would be the perfect mentor for our werewolf”, Sasha said.

“So you do like him”, Ivy grinned. “I have been thinking, and I foresee that after the ball would be a perfect occasion to disarm the king. I will talk with the queen at the dinner tomorrow.”

The dinner was tomorrow night. It didn’t surprise her that her sister already knew why she was here. She was too used to Ivy's ways. What she didn’t like was the foresight. It meant that it had importance.

“Yeah, about that. I had thought of asking you to come along. I can't stand being in the same room as them and I am afraid I will mess up things, again.”

“I knew you were coming, and I will come to the dinner as well. I have missed you lately”, Ivy said. She rose from her yoga position, giving her sister a tight hug. “I think we could need some time together, just as sisters.”

“We do”, Sasha said. She let herself rest in her sister's tight embrace, feeling as if the world was exactly as it should again. “Your influence might change the queen's opinion about me as well. The queen scared Elias enough that he didn’t want me to meet her alone”, Sasha said.

Ivy smiled and loosened her grip around Sasha. She looked at her sister as if searching for some clues.

“That lady has two faces, which is why Denise will come along tonight as well”, Ivy said.

“Denise”, Sasha said. “Where is she? Didn’t think the dragon would leave you here on your own.”

“She had some businesses finding Isaak”, Ivy said with a worried brow.

Sasha said nothing, she just looked outside the window. Some things were best left unsaid, and with a sister that could foresee the future, sliding on the truth always took great care.

Sasha had left her sister at Isaak's place with a promise of seeing her tonight at the dinner. And with another promise that she would let Ivy dress her for the evening. She didn’t want to, but it made her sister happy. Then she had taken the fastest horse she knew. Now she was standing, looking at a familiar door, too afraid to knock. It opened anyway. The man on the other side looked at her.

“I am sorry, I should never have come back”, Sasha said. She had run to Greg, panicking at her failure at growing strong enough. She had been so sure of their victory. Now, she didn’t know.

“What do you want?”

He didn’t look pleased. Greg looked tired. Behind him, everything was a mess. It looked like he had been working for days, not taking the time to clean.

“The king”, Sasha twisted her hands, feeling the swirling orb inside her, the darkness as a warm soft cocoon. “I have been waiting for the right moment. It never comes. He is too strong.”

“The king?”

“Yes. I need something more, something that lets me throw the orb behind his safety net.”

“I knew he was a strong healer. We all knew. I thought you would be able.” Greg hesitated, stepping aside and welcoming her inside to the mess.

“I have the magic of the elements, but I am still not certain.”

Sasha sat down at his table. Greg would find a way out of this. He always did.

“Have you talked with any of the others?”

“No”, Sasha had not. “I don’t want anyone to know of the orb, the fewer that do.”

Greg nodded. They had agreed upon this. The king might be strong and thought he was untouchable, but he was not stupid. He had his spies.

“We could gather, all of us. Your team, my colleagues, and you. If we use your body as a vessel, we could multiply the elements. Not even he could withstand that for a longer period. I will have to talk with the others.”

“Without mentioning the orb?”

Greg smiled faintly at her.

“So you got the elements?”

“Yeah”, Sasha said, “and it hurts.”

Greg laid one of his hands on top of hers. Sasha relaxed, feeling a tiny string of hope for the first time in a very long time.

“Leave it to me.”

Sasha left the mare to the equerry. She had been gone for a long time. A string of bad consciousness ate at her. She patted the horse and took a deep breath. Elias was laying spread out in the grass outside the stable and seemed to have been waiting for her.

“Looking forward to the dinner tomorrow”, Sasha said.

She slided on the truth. She was not looking forward, she was terrified. She continued sliding on the truth, not mentioning the extra tour she had taken in the city looking for Isaak or the very long extra tour that had involved Greg.

“Ivy will come as well to the dinner tomorrow night”, Sasha said. “I thought it might make the queen happy.”

“It most certainly will”, Elias said. “And it will make me happy having you both attending. Anything that keeps her occupied hindering her from terrorizing me is a win.”

“Is she that awful?” Sasha asked.

“You should be lucky not growing up here”, Elias said. “The king wants soldiers, and she wanted a strong heir. No one ever asked what I wanted.”

“Which is why you became the most sought out of bachelors, and one of the strongest warriors and magician seen.”

“Yeah, pity me”, Elias said with irony. “The spoiled prince.”

Sasha buffed at his arm, smiling towards him. Elias didn’t want her to pity him, and she would play along. She already knew she had won the lottery at their birth. She had just not known exactly how fucked up he was.

“So, pity you. When will we break into the tower?”

“Not today. I want to ensure the queen is occupied.”

“Tonight?”

“No”, Elias sighed. “She often slips up in the middle of the night, working in there for hours. We will have to adopt, but I might have an idea.”

“In that case, there might be time for me to finish off that list”, Sasha said.

“No”, Elias said. “There won't.”

“You don’t get to decide that”, Sasha countered.

“I do”, Elias said. “And I have already done.”

He rose from the grass, giving her a hand.

She snorted and looked at his outstretched hands, ignoring his help. Elias just smiled as if he by succeeding in irritating her felt more at ease.

“Have you ever visited the training center for the kingdom's young boys?”

“I thought that was highly off-limits”, Sasha said.

“It is”, Elias confirmed, “but you do not play by the rules. Do you?”

She and Ivy played by a completely other set of rules.

“No”, Sasha said. “I work for a crime lord.”