She raised her hand in a crisp military salute. "Estelle Thálassa. Astrological sign: Cancer. Born in 2098”

The office of her faction's superior was modestly furnished, almost sterile. The walls were a muted cream, offering no warmth, and a desk stood in the centre, weighed down by files and framed by towering bookshelves. Bintley’s gloved right hand clenched tightly at his side, the black leather stretching taut over his knuckles. Estelle knew exactly what lay beneath it, his zodiac mark. Even he concealed his existence. His stern gaze bore into her, unyielding and cold.

Monto were meant to stand together, to support one another against the isolation of their existence. But when it came to her, that unspoken bond frayed and faltered. Somehow, she had always been an outsider, someone no one wanted to associate with. And when you came to the stark realisation that no one else shared your zodiac sign, Cancer, the world seemed even grimmer and lonelier than it already was.

Why?

At some point, she had stopped asking herself that question. What was the point? No one would give her a real answer, and the truth, if it existed, was bound to be anything but comforting. The other Monto looked at her as if willing her to vanish into thin air. Disgust. Betrayal. Contempt. Those stares were as familiar to her now as the multiplication tables she’d learned as a child.

After her elementary training, she had been shunned by the other children. Mealtimes in the canteen always played out the same way. Her alone at a large, empty table while laughter and conversation filled the room around her. But Propin? He didn’t care about that. He had grown used to eating his breakfast alone during breaks after training, much like her. She would sit there, her eyes fixed on the pale, yellowed surface of the table in front of her, willing herself to shrink into invisibility. If she didn’t meet their eyes, if she didn’t acknowledge their stares, maybe she could escape their judgment, if only for a moment.

"Hey, you're Estelle, right? You can use more than one element! That’s so cool! We're in the same training group! Oh, and my name is Propin!"

For a moment, she just sat there, blinking twice to make sure it wasn’t some cruel joke or a trick her mind was playing. But no, the young ram meant every word. His enthusiasm was genuine, and from that day on, he hadn’t left her side.

Most Monto would consider it a great honour to stand before Bintley. For Estelle, however, unease coiled tightly in her chest, refusing to let go. Bintley sat behind his desk, his gloved hands clasped together, his expression unreadable as his piercing gaze bore into her. "You have been given the honour of welcoming the new Prime Minister and expressing gratitude on behalf of everyone" he said. The formal welcome was a deeply ingrained tradition, the seal of a Monto, repeated with each inauguration to create an illusion of fairness. A different person was chosen each time to carry out the task.

But to Estelle, it didn’t feel like an honour. It felt like a test.

"Me?" she asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

Bintley clenched his fist, his gaze never meeting hers. He had never once looked her in the eye, but now, frustration and impatience seemed to take over. "Do you have a problem with that?"

His narrowed eyes and the angry lines of his face fixed on her for only a few seconds before he quickly looked away again, a reaction Estelle knew all too well. It was a response she had come to expect, and without hesitation, she slowly shook her head. "I accept this honour”

A sigh escaped her lips. How was it that she always ended up in situations like this?

Propin and Simon had very different reactions. Propin was overjoyed, convinced that her work had finally been recognised. Simon, on the other hand, was silent, his eyes filled with suspicion, as though he were reading a thousand words in the tense stillness.

With another heavy sigh, Estelle raised her hand and gently tapped the door in front of her with her index finger before stepping inside.

Her deep blue eyes scanned the room. Estelle wasn’t sure what she had expected a prime minister’s office to look like, but this certainly wasn’t it. It was so... simple. Nothing in this room seemed out of place or special. The walls were the same dull shade as the lab, and the desk and shelves surrounding her looked almost identical to Bintley’s.

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

She took a few tentative steps forward, her gaze dropping as she bowed her head. "On behalf of all Monto, I would like to welcome you to your position. It is our honour and duty to serve Britannica under your leadership". Two sentences. Estelle had to force the words out, and she barely managed those. Better two than three, she supposed.

"Please, sit down”

She looked up, and there was Gunner Fox, smiling kindly at her. He gestured towards the chair, and, though she had little choice, she found herself accepting his offer. It felt strange to see him so close, so human, not through a lens or in front of a camera.

"I've heard a lot about you, Estelle”

Her eyes widened, and she looked at him in surprise. Most people avoided addressing her by her first name. But the fact that he knew it at all took her off guard. It was rare for anyone to show any interest in her as a person. He seemed to notice her reaction, because he kept smiling at her, calm and unruffled.

"You can use four elements. No one has ever managed that before. You must be incredibly proud of it".

Was she? The question lingered in her mind, unanswered.

"Especially when you consider that one of them isn't even a primary element. Tell me, what's your favourite element?"

"Favourite element?" she echoed, unsure, and he nodded. It was another of those taboos no one had ever dared bring up.

"I... I think my strength lies more in taming air and water" she said slowly. "I'm not so good with flames, and... I find it very difficult to use my other element."

"That's not really surprising" he mused. "After all, Cancer is not only the ruler of the moon, but also of the deep".

Estelle's fingers curled into the edge of her seat. People in Britannica rarely spoke of the gods. Especially not the moon goddess.

Fox stood up and moved to one of his shelves, his back to her. "Tell me, Estelle, did you know that Gemini and Cancer are very good friends?"

Estelle knew he wasn’t talking about just any Monto, but about the star gods themselves.

"That could be one of the reasons why you have such a strong connection to your airbending".

"I’m sorry" she replied, her voice barely above a whisper, "my knowledge of the gods is very limited". Talking about them felt like crossing an unforgivable line.

"That’s a pity" he said, a note of disappointment creeping into his voice. "As a Monto, you should know where you come from, and what your heritage truly is".

There was probably no other being in the world who knew so little about their own existence as she did. In the past, curiosity had burned inside her, desperate to know more. But every time she asked, her questions were either met with a polite smile or dismissed altogether.

"Your grades at school aren’t that good, are they?" Fox added, his tone shifting slightly, as if probing.

Once again, the question hit her like a sudden avalanche. Smiling, Fox turned towards her. "Don't you enjoy studying?"

"It’s not much use to me, really, if there’s only one career option in front of me, and I don’t even need grades for that".

It wasn’t until the words left her mouth that Estelle fully realised what she had just said. But to her surprise, her new Prime Minister didn’t seem the least bit annoyed.

"And that’s exactly what I want to change" he said, his voice calm but resolute. "You should have the freedom to choose your own future, and you should know something about the gods".

Was this a test? Was he trying to gauge her thoughts, or perhaps measure her reaction to something so important?

"Did I promise too much? Or too little?" he asked, his gaze fixed on her as she remained silent. "What do you want in life?"

Estelle froze. No one had ever asked her that question before. Probably no Monto had ever been asked by a superior. They didn’t even have the right to vote. She could feel the weight of the question pressing down on her chest, the ache of unspoken desires she’d long buried.

And yet, there was one thing she wanted more than anything else, but... "I can’t be granted that wish".

When he smiled warmly at her once more, she understood why many people found him so charming. He took a book from an old, weathered envelope and pressed it gently into her hand.

"This book contains the most important information about the gods. Consider it my promise to you that I will change something”

Estelle was about to leave when Gunner Fox called her back, his voice firm but gentle. "The book will remain our little secret, understood?"

For the first time in a long while, Estelle’s lips curled into an automatic smile, though it barely reached her eyes.