Elyas- Present Day

I took decisive steps towards the royal hall of the castle. That’s where all the important decisions for the kingdom were made, and I was determined to have my say, If I was going to be king one day, it was high time I made my mark on this kingdom.

Upon seeing me, the guards immediately bowed, before opening the doors. Queen Nesryn’s head shot up where she sat at the end of the round table.

“Eli! I wasn’t expecting a visit from you today. We were just discussing some matters related to the kingdom,” she said with a smile, gesturing to the several members of the royal court sitting with her.

I nodded, smiling back. “That’s great! Are we going forward with the plans for a transit system between the different tiers?”

It was an idea I had posed myself, considering the fact that right now the only transportation were the wings, and only the most expensive ones could go between tiers.

Queen Nesryn nodded. “Of course. Mr. Watson, why don’t you show him the plans?”

I quickly came to the side of the kingdom planner of Arcelia. He slid a paper out of an envelope, before handing it to me. I smiled gleefully at first at what I saw. It looked like a train, but it was built like a magnet. It would use the buildings to move between tiers.

“How would we keep it from just sticking to the buildings?” I asked, still looking.

“We’d add inhibitors, of course.”

“Won’t it take a lot to get this up and going? It’s pretty ambitious to essentially build a giant controllable moving magnet.” I asked, glancing down at him.

“Well, we are raising funding through several wealthy organizations that have shown interest in this idea. The financial side to the plan is there as well, including the proposed rates for tickets. Which, I’m sure you’ll find will be plenty to cover the costs of maintaining such a venture.”

I furrowed my brows, moving my attention to that side. My eyes widened at the suggested ticket prices. I coughed, putting the plans back down on the table. “No one but the wealthiest in our kingdom will be able to afford such outrageous prices! There must be a mistake.”

Mr. Watson opened his mouth to reply, but my mother cut in, one of her perfect brows arched. “As you’ve realized yourself, this is going to be an expensive idea. That is the price that is mandatory,” she affirmed.

“Will the price go down as time goes by?”

She outright scoffed. “Why would it go down?”

“Then what is the point of doing it at all, Mother? The wealthy can already go wherever they want. They don’t need this. This was supposed to help the lower tiers,” I argued, my veins starting to pop with frustration.

She shook her head. “What you propose would completely dismantle the hierarchy of our kingdom, Elyas. Think.”

It was my turn to scoff. “I’m not the one not thinking, Mother. Dismantling a hierarchy is a good thing. Right now, you sound much more like a dictator than a monarch.”

With that one line, the energy in the room shifted.

My mother’s head tilted, a dangerous tell I’ve known since I was a kid. “Guards. Will you be so kind as to take the prince back to his quarters? He’s feeling a bit out of sorts,” she said, her voice controlled and calculated.

I clenched my fists, looking towards the guards that were hesitantly stepping towards me. “I feel just fine, leave me be,” I said firmly, daring them with my eyes to lay a hand on me.

“I insist. Take him. That’s an order,” her voice repeated, now slightly less controlled as her temper flared.

The guards no longer hesitated, taking my arms and dragging me out. I ground my feet, trying to resist, but was unable to against the two of them. I broke an arm free as we walked away, but as I attempted to go back, they grabbed my torso and yanked me. Realistically, I could’ve taken them both if I wanted to. Thing is, I didn’t. They were just doing their job.

As we passed a window, I faked a gasp. “What was that?! I just saw someone climbing our walls!” I yelled, pointing at the window.

Momentarily distracted, they unhanded me, I immediately took off sprinting. They shouted at me, starting after me. We sprinted down the long halls at breakneck speed. I took the turn sharply, eyeing the janitorial closet. They didn’t have access to that unless they sought it out.

But I did.

I sped up, knowing I had to get in before they turned the corner. I started fighting with the key, hearing their footsteps near the corner. My heart was racing, and my hands were trembling too much to work the knob. Just as they rounded the corner, the door suddenly opened wide, and I fell in. The door got closed and I looked up, my eyes wide.

Because I was definitely not the one who had opened that door.

Standing just a foot away from me was a woman I had never seen before. Her green eyes were narrowed like I was the odd one.

“Who the hell are you and why are you in the janitorial closet of the royal palace?” I asked.

She swiftly palmed my mouth, moving even closer. “Can you shut up? Your babysitters are walking by right now,” she whispered with a husky voice I could get used to.

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Was that lavender I smelled? My intrusive thought was to lick her hand, but instead I simply grabbed her wrist and removed it.

“Not my babysitters,” I couldn’t help but whisper back as I heard their footsteps near us.

She rolled her eyes as they walked by the door.

“That prince is such a pest, this is the fifth time we’ve had to do this,” one of the guards could be heard saying through the door.

A myriad of emotions flashed over the girl’s face at the guard’s words. As the footsteps faded, I slowly smiled. “So, I can explain, but what I’d REALLY love is to hear yours. So please, be my guest, ladies first.”

She outright laughed. “Seeing as you’re the one using my hiding place, I think you’re the one who should be explaining to me.”

I laughed back. “Your hiding place? It’s my palace, and therefore, my hiding place.”

She scoffed. “Finders keepers, losers weepers.”

I narrowed my eyes, not believing my ears. “What? Are we 12?”

She sighed. “Fine. I may have snuck in here to see if I could hear what’s going on in the meeting.”

My brows furrowed. “How do you know about that?”

“I’m part of a group that protests the monarchy. We make it our business to know what’s going on.”

I nodded slowly, still sensing something fishy. “Why would you tell me all that so easily? Don’t you know I could get you severely punished for such an act?”

She shrugged, shifting her gaze away. “Something tells me you won’t snitch.”

I only hummed in response, slightly annoyed she was right.

Seemingly realizing I wasn’t going to push the issue anymore, she looked at me, her golden locks bouncing as she turned her head. “So, you’re the prince, huh? Why is the prince hiding in the closet of his own palace from his own guards?”

I crossed my arms over my chest. “You don’t seem too impressed. But I suppose you wouldn’t, considering you’re against the monarchy.”

Her lips twitched slightly, like she was holding back a smile. “Well, and it doesn’t help that again, you are hiding in a closet in your own palace.”

I smiled back sheepishly. “I had some things to say myself at the meeting that they weren’t thrilled to hear.”

She quirked her head, which looked a lot less intimidating on her in comparison to my mom. “What? They find a way to make wings less expensive, and you weren’t having it? Doubtful.”

I frowned slowly. “I understand protesting the monarchy, but you would really be as naïve as to think that all of us are of the same mind? I was trying to make things better for the low tiers in our kingdom. And there are many in the royal court fighting to do the same.”

She shook her head. “Then you guys aren’t doing a very great job. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some matters to attend to,” she said, starting to exit the closet.

Before I knew what was happening, my hand shot out, grabbing her elbow. “Will you be spying again anytime soon?” What was coming out of my mouth?

She looked over her shoulder, an incredulous look on her face. “Why? Will you miss me?” she asked mockingly, holding back a laugh.

I cleared my throat, straightening a little and releasing her. I looked her in the eyes, deciding to embrace it. “Yes, actually. I will. I will look forward to our next rendezvous in a closet.”

Her tan skin flushed a deep red as she swiftly left me. I followed, shouting to her retreating form. “I didn’t get your name!”

She looked over her shoulder and shouted back. “May!”

I smiled, waving. “Elyas!”

She laughed, sprinting away. “I’m aware!”

I watched her run, delighting in the way the cute golden curls bounced. As they did, I could’ve sworn I saw something peek out from under it, but it was too brief to make out.

Turning on my heel, I whistled as I walked.

***

I gave a tired, relieved sigh as I replaced my wings and entered the dorm I shared with Kalon. She was already home from her mission, sitting cross legged on the bed, waiting for me.

“Well, how’d it go?” Your first mission at the palace?”

“It was alright, I guess. Just a general mission, gathering intel and a lay of the land.” I chewed my lip, collapsing onto my bed. The prince’s warning echoed in my head. Were we being ignorant?

Kalon suddenly snickered, breaking my troubling line of thought. “You’ve gone quiet, weirdo. Aren’t you going to take off that ridiculous wig?”

I let out a short laugh, removing the wig and tossing it onto my desk. I wanted to tell her about my closet rendezvous, but it didn’t seem likely she’d be too keen that I was practically flirting with our enemy.

“Does it ever frustrate you that they don’t tell us more about our targets?” I asked instead.

Kalon, like myself, was hard to read. She might’ve been my closest friend, but we were private to a ridiculous amount. It was in our nature. As a result, it was hard to ever know what was going on in her head or where she stood on things.

Kalon coughed, throwing her pillow into the air and catching it. “Yeah, I guess. But I just figure that they don’t have the time to constantly give everyone long ass explanations… And where it really matters, I would like to believe they would tell us.”

I frowned. “You would like to believe?”

Kalon was silent an uncomfortable amount of time again. “What’s got you so held up about it so suddenly?”

I shrugged. “We don’t even see the effects of our actions. Are we helping or hurting? We’re against the monarchy, sure, but what is actually the plan here? The goal?”

Kalon finally looked at me, but she didn’t say anything. Just stared.

But that shared look said all it needed to.

***

I went through the rest of the day with that girl plaguing my mind. I know I should’ve been worried about the atrocities happening in that meeting, but thoughts of her were like a pest I couldn’t get rid of. Her name was May and she was part of a protesting group.

But who was she truly?

As I stewed on my thoughts on my balcony that night, I played a melancholy singing tune on the violin. The strings echoed across the vast palace land, as I looked out at the clouds in front of me. Dense darkness hung around me, wet and cold. A knock came at the door, and I stalled, frowning.

“I’m practicing and my door clearly says, ‘do not disturb.”

“I’m sorry, Your Highness, but it’s a serious matter. You’ll want to hear this.”

I recognized the voice as belonging to one of my most trusted guards. Immediately, I came to the door, opening it and allowing him inside. He closed it behind him, before giving me a grave look.

“Sit down, Your Highness.”

I grit my teeth, but did as he said. “What is it?”

The guard averted his eyes as he answered. “Your friend, Malachi, has been found dead today. It could’ve been foul play.”

My eyes shot open, my heart rate picking up. “How? Where? Why?” My eyes narrowed as I came to terms with his last words. “…Who?”

“He was found in a nook of the palace, one well hidden to most people. He was here to see you to go to the meeting. We are still investigating who killed him.”

I frowned. “Why isn’t there more attention? Our palace should be in a bloody panic trying to solve this!”

The guard scratched his neck. “That’s exactly why there’s not more attention. A murder of a major politician within our own palace walls? It would create mass hysteria. It’s being investigated but it has to be quietly. I hope you understand.”

I nodded slowly, ignoring the voice that insisted something wasn’t right. “Keep me updated?” I asked, my eyes starting to tear up as the shock faded and the despair replaced it.

The guard nodded solemnly. “Of course, Your Highness. I’m sorry for your loss.”

The guard left and I fell back as the tears flowed freely now from my eyes. When I had told May there were some who fought to make the kingdom better, Malachi had been at the front of my mind. He was fighting the horrors of Veralis Ruins, undoubtedly the worst sin of Arcelia.

His heart was softer than any. And his absence would create a void that was devastating.

At the thought of May, a disturbing thought had entered my mind.

She managed to, and was willing to, break into the palace. Not only that, but she was also part of a group protesting the monarchy.

Could it be…