Prologue 2 - Crown Prince

Location: Fort Izemtel, Arkean (Capital City), Arkeatris

Fort Izemtel, a 6-tower hexagon shaped castle marooned on an island in the middle of a river. With the drawbridge, portcullis and main gate to the castle at the base of the south tower, the tower itself was lit up as a lighthouse for those traveling by land and water.

Staring south toward the capital, I stood at the top of the tower. Admiring the night sky and the stars above, no clouds as far as the eye could see, I leaned against the inner wall of the south tower thinking about the girl I saw in town. Adorning jet-black hair and a blue robe with the hood on her shoulders, she looked like a normal commoner. I wouldn't have given her a second look unless I had caught a glint of metal from under the robe, but what caught my attention more were her eyes, powerful yet gentle, being able to convey a sense of discipline and courage while retaining kindness. Knowing these features were of a person trained in a form of discipline, I just wanted to know about her.

As I was trying to visualize her in front of me, a large flash of light suddenly covered half of my vision. Turning in the direction I heard an explosion, I saw trees in the air above the forests west of the castle. From that point, my body began to move on its own and all I could do was think.

What do we do? What do we tell everyone? There can't be anyone in the capitol who didn't see that extravagant phenomena. Who the hell would be stupid enough to put up such a display when the country is mourning the loss of the crown prince? Prince Orion went missing over 43 cycles ago, and after 41 cycles, even the Academy has called off their efforts to find the prince. Since then, the King's court declared Crown Prince Orion dead, and made his sole sister the heir to the throne. Now, after the funeral held at the royal crypts, it seems that someone has decided to celebrate something despite what others think. Who the hell caused an explosion?

Racing down the south tower and making my way through the courtyard in front of the keep, I turned at the marble fountain, which sported the spitting image of King Artente on his chariot, following the cobblestone path to the castle's east gates.

"What do you want now, Zyr?" my brother, Ranik, bellowed from the east drawbridge.

"Didn't you see or hear that giant explosion that just happened in the direction of the main water reservoir?" I yelled back at him as I began to sprint toward the main guard station with Ranik on my tail.

"Do you mean the lightning strike that probably just hit a tree in the area?"

"Lightning? NO! I am talking about the explosion west of the castle, that threw trees into the air before going away without even a trace of smoke. And where did the lightning come from in the first place? There is literally no cloud in the sky for miles around."

"Let me guess, you are going to go talk to the Mage's Guild about the explosion. But don't forget to get permission from the General to go into town." Ranik reminded me as he caught up.

"Where else did you think I would go?"

"Those so-called mages are just play acting using magic tricks that anyone can do if they learned them. Like this." Ranik brought out three small balls made out of pine wood and began to juggle them as we got to the guard station door. Suddenly, I noticed that Ranik was actually juggling four balls instead of the three he had begun to juggle with. Shortly the fourth ball was gone, then back again, then gone again. Ranik stopped juggling and stared at me with a smug look on his face, holding at a static smirk as he brought up his hand to knock on the door.

"Hey Cinci, tell the General I want to go into town and need his approval to open the gates!" I shouted to my older sister as I pushed through the door before Ranik got the chance to knock.

"Sorry, the General left to the castle a while back and left me in charge. What do you want in town so much that you decided to go out this late?" Cinci called back from the armory.

"Late, have you been outside lately? It's dawn. How long have you been in here? And what are you doing in the armory?" I asked walking toward her voice.

"What am I doing? What am I doing?! I am doing my job is what I am doing! And your job!! And Ranik's!!! You haven't shown up to the guard station for the past week. Ranik hasn't shown up for longer than that, and you have the guts to ask me how long I have been here?" She countered as I reached the armory entrance.

"Come on, we're triplets, I'm sure we can figure something out where everyone is satisfied. And Cinci, aren't you just doing everything you are to keep your image as the eldest. Anyway, I want to go see some friends in town to talk about some thin—" I managed to reply before Ranik jumped onto my back.

"First of all, I am just doing what I can to keep the General from being fired. And can you be any vaguer in that request? Like not saying where or why you want to go. I'm sure it would make it a better story for an audience." She said walking away from the workbench. What she meant by 'audience' was beyond me though.

Just as I opened my mouth to ask her what she meant, the main door slammed open causing all three of us to snap our heads toward the now shattered door. Owning a dire look in his eyes and furrowed eyebrows, the General took a heavy foot forward, landing with enough force to make spears in the armory fall from their racks. Reaching us, the General grabbed Ranik's shoulders, brought him close, stared him eye to eye. Holding his gaze, the General said under his breath "the Crown Prince is alive."

The reaction the three of us gave explained what each of us was thinking. The same thing had crossed our minds making our jaws drop. In unison, with slack jaws we managed to ask "the dead Prince is alive?"

"Gather yourselves! Get your gear on and meet me in the courtyard." The General ordered as he stormed out.

I don't know if I should do what the General said or sneak away to clear up my doubts.

After putting on my light armor, I joined Ranik as he exited the armory. Making it out the door, I began to shake my arms and legs to get them loose as I started walking to the courtyard.

"Get in line!" The General ordered when he saw us step through the door's debris. Rushing out of the guard station, we lined up at the east gates.

"Here are you orders: Go to the mainland and keep an eye out for any talk of the Crown Prince's return. If anyone is found to know of the Crown Prince's return, use any means necessary to quiet them. This time, 'any means necessary' means 'any means necessary.' This is an order from the Guardian Knight's Order. If you're wondering why you have been sortied, it is because no one will notice your absence. Now scram!" The General gave us our orders, leaving us wondering why the Guardian Knight's Order, which acts only by the King's orders, would not want the people to know about the Crown Prince's return.

Despite our thoughts, my siblings and I made our way to the dock from the East Gate. Just before I stepped onto the small rowboat, I turned to look back at the castle. Standing proudly in the middle of the East Gate like its guardian, The General stared right back at me. Just as I locked eyes with him in respect, I found that I couldn't move my body to look away.

After what seemed like an eternity, I found my eyes looking at The General's mouth. Even though I was standing over 500 meters from the East Gate, I heard The General whisper: "There is no such thing as zero. Remember this."

Right after I heard this, I was able to move freely again. Looking around, I saw Ranik about to punch me to get my attention. Jumping away from his fist, I quickly got onto the boat.

"You have fun day dreaming sleepy head?" Cinci asked mockingly. I turned to look at her before letting out a deep sigh.

"Yeah, I am done for now." I countered as Ranik and I began rowing toward the mainland.