The morning brought a rich smell into the room.

The wind was blowing outside despite the seemingly warm and pleasant sun. Leaves had flown into Thomas's room, on his bed and floor. Diane was leaning against the wall next to the open window and, looking at Thomas Hammer, distracted herself by pushing her nails into her palms just to see how long it would take to start bleeding. She had woken up before the sun and had been searching around the house for any sign of irregularity until she heard squeaking in Thomas's mother's room; not in the mood for introductions, she walked into the only room that felt somewhat safe. Now she was standing next to the open window, hoping the thought of Thomas Hammer to distract her until it was too late to explore the woods and find a house.

Look at him. So peaceful. So weak. I could snap his neck in two and he wouldn’t even put up a fight. Maybe I should do him the favor. But She would never forgive twice.

Thomas grunted and pushed the leaves off his blanket, only to meet Diane's eager eyes as he looked towards the window. "King!" he yelled and jumped up. He turned his head away and towards the door to hide the redness of his cheeks and ears.

"Good morning, Thomas Hammer," she replied with a small smile. "You sleep a lot."

Thomas cleared his throat. "Well, I do when I get the chance to."

Diane started snooping around his room and touching the things she found on his shelves and table like she hadn't stood frozen for an hour. She was so meticulous in what she was doing that Thomas felt more than a little uncomfortable. But she was his future queen; he couldn't tell her to stop being noisy. When she picked up a book and started sniffing it, Thomas jumped up and said: "Can I help you?"

"Not at all," Diane replied. “Or actually… Tell me, what do you think Clara Heal got in return?” she asked in order to amuse herself while looking for reasons to abandon her new companion.

“I beg your pardon?” Thomas mumbled, still not completely certain that what he was seeing was reality.

“It’s been on my mind since yesterday: what do you think Clara Heal got in return for ‘trading her life’, as you called it?”

Thomas narrowed his eyebrows, as if slightly offended by her remark. “She was a remarkable person who sacrificed her youth so we could be free. Did she need to get anything in return?”

“Crystalians, you mean,” Diane corrected him, still going through his books.

“What?”

“You said ‘we’,” she replied and closed the book; a cloud of dust surrounded her face for a moment, so Thomas couldn’t be sure if he really saw her mumble something about hypocrites with a cunning smile on her face.

Thomas put his hand on the back of his head and stood up. "Yes, well, either way… I need to get dressed."

Diane nodded, flipping through the pages of the last book on his shelf after having inhaled all the dust that was on its cover. "Go ahead. You won't bother me."

Thomas just stood there, hoping she might take a hint and leave. But she just continued moving his things around and looking behind his furniture.

"Well, get dressed. I am assuming you have work to do," she told him after taking his pillow out of its cover.

"Y-Yes, I do. Can you not move the mattress, please?!" After clearing his throat, he bowed deeply and added: "Your Majesty".

Diane put the mattress down and looked at him with confused seriousness. "What are you hiding?"

"Me? Why would I be hiding anything?"

"I don't know," she said and came closer to him, never once breaking eye contact. "Do you really not know, or are you pretending because you can't recognize me the way I do you? If that is the case, I recommend dropping the act. It would save us a lot of time. And mind you, we don't have time to waste."

Chills ran down Thomas's body; his veins were flooded by a liquid made of unanswered questions, ones he never dared to ask. If he were to accidentally say that he had caught a glimpse of something that could have been a secret, would it be safe to share it? And if it turned out that it truly was strange that a Flamer was living in Crystalia with his weak Crystalian mother, what should he do then? "I-I don't know what you are asking me, Your Majesty.”

“Then why did you look away?”

“Because... you were staring... Your Majesty.” Thomas moved his head to the side, but Diane grabbed it and made him stare right back into her eyes.

“You're incredibly slow and weak. It simply can't be you, can it?” Her eyes were rushing all over his face as if trying to find something that would dissuade her senses.

“Be what?”

“If only I knew for sure,” she replied, her seriousness too raw to be masked by the mocking cheerfulness that followed; she must have been terrified of messing up the flow of destiny. “Come on. Get dressed. I have somewhere I need to be,” she told him. That strange distance appeared in the energy that surrounded Diane Hunster as she let go of him and moved away. She knew things about the world only a few could proudly call their secrets.

“What does that have to do with me?” he replied automatically. His cheeks still burned where she pressed them. “Your Majesty.”

She jumped out the window. “You are coming with me. And hurry up. I don't have all day.”

“Where to? Why?”

“I think you have the order wrong there,” she replied with a smile. “I need to test you, Thomas Hammer. You are suspicious. You could be plotting against me.”

He could see her smile as she disappeared out of his sight. It didn't take Thomas long to get ready, but his mother did give him a bit of an earful about skipping breakfast. Diane was waiting for him outside, still hiding from Mrs. Hammer.

“Do you know where you are going?” Thomas asked her as they walked towards the forest.

“Unfortunately, you can't miss it.”

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

“Unfortunately? Why are you going there, then?”

The air was getting more transparent with each word she spoke. The forest was, conveniently, closer to the house than Diane had thought. “I think I told you yesterday that princesses can't be choosers. We do as we are told. And I was told to save the world.”

Thomas stopped and, wide-eyed, said: “Save the world?! From what?!”

She impulsively grabbed her sword and faked a smile. “Just kidding.” Then she continued walking without turning around once.

Somewhere on the edge of Lewtown, amid a deep forest surrounding such an ordinary town, rose a house so big and glamorous it surely defined the Heavens. Every piece of the perfectly decorated facade illuminated the light that cut through the thick leaves and gave off a holy and untouchable feeling. Diane pushed the door open. The smell of strawberry tea mixed with chocolate cookies led them through the maze of rooms and paintings. But even the warmth and the overall domestic feeling of the furnishing weren't enough to completely camouflage the ominous air. The squeaking of the wood under her shoes broke the silence they had fallen into.

“Get in,” she told Thomas, as she stopped in front of a big wooden door. His eyes found hers, his lips parting in shock.

“But I have to go to work! You promised I would only escort you to the entrance.”

Diane pulled his arm. “I said, get in.”

“But why do I have to go first?” He then came closer and secretively told her: “If dangerous creatures are lurking around, it would be better…”

Diane rolled her eyes and slammed the door open.

The young man didn't look surprised. His golden locks were perfectly lifted above his forehead and his red eyes glowing with more enthusiasm than during the five years he had been away. As he stood up, Thomas noticed his perfect stance and confident moves. One could easily mistake George Brown for a king, not realizing how far from the truth that was. And he wasn't alone.

“Greetings, everyone,” Diane said, not looking at her childhood friend. They hadn't kept in touch ever since he moved out of her castle, but she still saw him sometimes: her dreams were always haunted by those who shared the same bloody eyes.

Next to George Brown sat Diane's guard, Jeremy Blake; she knew she couldn't avoid him, for she needed his help as much as she needed George's. They used to be so close, the master and apprentice. Then the world started crumbling and the kings decided she should be the one to save it. Lila, Diane's Raven subordinate, was there as well. She had a warm and welcoming smile on her face, like always. Her eyes were dark, hair curly, and lips perfectly shaped. Thomas noticed her straight away, for her light filled the room in a most extraordinary way. They all bowed at the sight of their future queen. Their eyes then found their way to the insecure Flamer.

“Who is that?” asked George as he took a sip of his tea.

“Thomas Hammer, my new companion,” Diane answered.

“I didn't know we were recruiting peasants now.”

“As far as I remember, you are not any nobler than him, Jeremy.” George took a few quick steps towards Thomas and shook his hand. “George Brown. It's a pleasure meeting you, Thomas.”

“The pleasure’s mine,” said the confused Flamer. Then he moved towards Diane, leaned to his left, and whispered: “That’s him?”

“Evidently.”

“Then, why am I still here?”

“Because I said so,” she replied without looking at him.

George then took on the role of the perfect host and led them through his house, occasionally pointing to one of the portraits of his distant relatives. His sister and he were orphans as of recently, so Diane wasn't surprised to see him desperately try to fill the void made in his heart.

Thomas felt uneasy. He wondered whether it was only him that felt the heaviness in the air; chilling breaths of long-dead people who stared as he moved deeper into their property. They didn't like his presence, and suddenly neither did he. He wanted to disappear somewhere nobody could find him and spend the rest of his days paying for his sins, that of willful ignorance and silent denial. They hated his light steps and carefree curls.

“Diane,” he called out in a whisper.

“Yes?” She turned around and waited for him. Suddenly, she didn’t seem so cold. “Are you alright?”

“I don’t know. I feel strange.”

She just smiled sympathetically and patted his back. And so, they entered yet another room. In its middle was a big, round table with enough space for six; the wall behind it was covered by a big map of Crystalia. Through the open window to the left came a strong smell of wet dirt and leaves.

“Make yourselves comfortable,” said George Brown as he placed himself opposite the princess. “Diane, would you be so kind as to tell us why we are here today?”

Her eyes moved around the room until they finally landed on his. Thomas's breathing stopped and he moved his chair a couple of centimeters away. Diane smiled.

“Very well,” she said. “You must be wondering why you were the ones chosen to be here today. There is no special reason, really; you are simply the best and the most trustworthy.”

“Even the Flamer?” Jeremy asked sarcastically.

“Yes, even Thomas Hammer. Now, what I would like to tell you all is that I have received a very special mission from my father: I must find The Ancient Grave, the place that holds the body of the one and only Clara Heal.”

“Why would you want that?” Thomas asked quickly. His stomach felt unusually empty and his head started hurting.

Diane looked at him with quiet disapproval. “That is not what you should be concerned with. We have a mission to carry out, and that is all that should matter.”

“Six people to find a grave? I believe it would have been more efficient for His Majesty to do it himself,” Jeremy remarked.

“I believe there is a problem, isn't there, Diane?” George's eyes bore into hers; they were smiling at her naivety. He was not the same person he was when he let her kill his father. There was a gap between them now: one longed to remember, the other refused to forget.

He knows. Cunning indeed.

“After years of research, I have been able to locate The Grave. I honestly wish I hadn't. Everyone doubting their position should leave the room immediately,” Diane continued.

Thomas raised his hand and Diane only gave him a quick, unamused glance. “Anyone other than Thomas Hammer?”

“Cut through the chase, Your Majesty. Where is it?” Jeremy said, and Thomas shyly lowered his hand.

“In Carcer.”

Silence.

Doubt.

Fear.

The holy three appeared once again. Lying was their mission; destroying was their purpose. Where does their mother lie? Deep underground, her body slowly rotting away, or above the clouds, where every truth is the right one?

“What is Carcer?” the poor Flamer asked, more out of curiosity than anything else. He knew it was his last chance to run. So, why didn't he? She wouldn't have chased after him.

“It's a hidden territory located in the sea surrounding Aquarius. It was inhabited sometime after the Crystalian Revolution and the death of Clara Heal. It keeps away things better left undiscovered,” Diane explained and looked at George daringly.

George smiled. “Now, that hurt, Your Majesty. I don't believe your kind to be any... more humane.”

Thomas stared at Lila, or maybe the wall behind her. He felt uncomfortable, itchy, and felt an urgent need to get out of that room, lock himself in his house, and never come out again. The people he shared space with were so unfamiliar he couldn't understand why it didn't occur to him earlier that they were from a completely different world. “I don't think I should be here,” he said, lost.

Diane looked disappointed. Princesses who chase fallen stars dare not be distracted by something as trivial as the hidden truth. And, although she pitied him, the only thing that mattered was the task she was given. “Then leave,” she told him, mockingly, cruelly, knowing it was impossible. “No one will stop you. But remember that there is no turning back.”

Thomas gripped his chair. His vision was blurred by millions of little stars, all connected. It was his first time making a choice that mattered. And he would have run if it wasn’t for those contemptuous stares that waited in the hallway, that filth he felt building up inside him.

It was time for him to lean towards the truth.

“I will stay,” Thomas whispered.

Diane smiled. “Very well, then. I am looking forward to working with you, ladies and gentlemen.”