Chapter 7

Arya didn't know just how much she could trust the king or why he was making her stay when he should have gotten rid of her as soon as she recovered. She didn't know what was going on right now and she didn't like that.

The small bowl of warm water that Myna provided was filled with water that Arya used to wash her face with.

After washing her face and brushing her teeth, it was time to get ready for the day.

Arya and Myna had gotten into a heated debate over what Arya should wear over a breakfast of scrambled eggs and blueberry pancakes with glasses of orange juice. They ate their breakfast at a small writing desk while they were talking, being careful not to spill anything on the bed or the floor or on any of the clothes. 

Arya had never eaten a pancake or scrambled eggs in her life before. Well, she did eat an egg before that was given to her as a payment for some small errands she did for a shopkeeper but it was boiled and tasted bland by comparison to this well-cooked and seasoned plate of golden egg goodness. The pancakes were thick and fluffy in her mouth and the little berries inside of them added a burst of sweetness to them. She noticed a small porcelain jug of some sort of liquid that looked like honey inside of it except it wasn't as thick as honey would be. Myna said it was called "syrup" and it went well with pancakes and it tasted sweet and delightful to Arya.

Servants normally didn't eat with the people they served but Arya insisted that Myna eat with her. Arya never had a friend before and she felt bad for getting to eat all this good food by herself. Besides, Arya couldn't eat this entire mountain of food all by herself.

Arya didn't have any clothes to call her own and she owned nothing except for the white dress she was still wearing. Myna realized this and she had to do some digging around in her own trunk to find Arya some clothes she could wear.

The dress was made from cotton and it consisted of a tannish-brown off-shoulder blouse top with wide and flowing sleeves that reached Arya's elbows. The skirt was pleated and consisted of green, dark brown and tanny-brown fabrics that were long and were a few inches short of reaching her ankles. A brown leather corset that was laced up from the front of the dress finished off the dress. 

Myna helped Arya lace up into the corset and slipped her into mid-calf brown leather boots.

Arya's hair was far too short to style or arrange into some elaborate hairstyle so Myna simply brushed it until it was silky-soft and hung down gently to her shoulders in loose waves. 

No jewelry or anything fancy looking or expensive either. 

The simple outfit looked rather plain but it suited Arya well and she looked stunning in it. 

It was as if the outfit was allowing Arya's personality and character to shine and take center stage rather than her physical appearance.

She was what you called "a natural beauty" and Myna knew that this girl before her would grow up to become a great beauty once she reaches adulthood.

"You look really nice, Arya."

"Thanks, Myna. This dress looks so pretty and I love it."

Arya did a full body spin as she looked at herself in the mirror. She never wore such nice clothes before. Maybe Myna would let her keep them.

Being an orphan, Arya relied on the kindness and charity of others for survival-something that was really hard to come by. She would often work like a maid, cooking, cleaning, taking care of the kids, for food and a roof over her head. Sometimes, she might have to spend days or even weeks sleeping on the streets if she was unlucky enough to find anyone to take her in or any work to do.

It was just sheer luck she survived that horrible night and she somehow ended up in the royal palace as a guest of the king after she was almost killed by said king when she washed up ashore near the royal capital.

Talk about how crazy and unpredictable life can be sometimes.

…..

Three nobles were sitting on soft red velvet sofas, sipping tea and looking quite nervous and concerned.

They should be as they were summoned to have a private meeting with the king himself in his very own personal office.

There were two men and one woman.

There was a handsome young man. His wild long white hair was silky and soft looking and hung loose down to his waist. His eyes were as red as blood and they seemed to almost glow in the dark. He was dressed simply in a pair of black pants, brown leather boots and an open loose shirt that showed off a bit of his chest. He looked unreal like a divine being that came from the heavens. 

He had the body of a warrior: fit, lean and muscular. He carried two swords around his waist that looked intimidating and deadly. The two swords brushed up against his legs and swayed gently as he paced around, looking bored and impatient. 

The other was a young woman-who was his younger sister- who had long locks of dirty blonde hair that was pulled back into a half-up braided style that was decorated with gold flowers with eyes that were a vivid shade of bright purple that hurt Arya's own eyes that looked cold and harsh. While the white-haired man dressed simply, the woman did not. 

She was dressed in a floor length, off-shoulder and gradient dress that was made from pale pink tulle. The blouse of the dress was a beautiful pale pink that bleeded out onto the white tulle skirt that was achieved with a pale pink veil-like skirt that covered the white skirts underneath it. The dress was sparkling and glittering in light of the morning dawn light that came streaming in from the windows. She wore dangling diamond earrings that sparkled in the glow of the early morning light. But that wasn't all: She also wore long white gloves that reached her elbows and a white lace fan that she used to fan herself with. 

The last person was an old man. He looked old enough to be someone's grandfather with his carrot orange hair streaked with gray with a matching bread with olive green eyes. He was dressed formally in a gray suit with a white ascot cravat necktie with black leather shoes. He carried a brown leather briefcase with him.

Finally, the king arrived, walking into his office with a grave and serious look on his face.

He sat down at a small armchair as if it was a throne. The three nobles quickly got up and paid him respect but he quickly waved them off and indicated for them to sit back down.

"Greetings, your royal highness."

"Good morning, Lady Catalina, Lord Elijah and Baron Pax. I thank you all for taking the time out of your days in order to attend this meeting."

The king poured himself a cup of tea and he raised the cup up to his mouth and took a big sip of the golden-brown liquid.

Lady Catalina smiled and nodded.

"It's no trouble, your highness. It's an honor that you think so highly of us that you would summon us all here for an important meeting of serious matters."

"Charming as ever, my good lady Catalina. Just like your mother."

Elijah set his cup back onto the coffee table and stared straight into the eyes of the king.

"What did you summon us here for, your highness? I'm sure you didn't invite us all here for a tea party."

The king gave off a small smile at this.

"Straight forward as always, Swordmaster Elijah."

"A girl. She's currently staying at the palace as a guest of mine. I have good reason to believe that she could be the daughter of my older brother, the late King Cullen the First."

Baron Pax choked on his tea when he heard that. 

Catalina and Elijah just looked at the king like he grew a second head or something.

"How can you be so sure about that? The late king never married nor did he take on any concubines of his own!!"

The king silenced Elijah with one hand slamming down onto the armrest of his chair.

"Elijah. That doesn't mean that my older brother couldn't have secretly had a child with some unknown woman. I know that my older brother was no playboy or womanizer but…maybe he had a secret lover we didn't know of and they had a child together. I know for sure that the girl is somehow related to him. She didn't just have green eyes just like my late brother, but she also had his power as well. Telekinesis. That girl has his power. I thought I would never see that ability again. He was the only one in the royal family to have that ability. The only one in the entire kingdom to have that ability at all. I thought it died out with him. She could be my niece, a long-lost princess, a daughter of royalty, but we'll need to do a blood test to confirm that."

A collective gasp was heard from all three nobles.

Another carrier of royal blood. A possible long-lost prince or princess. And not just any long-long royal, but someone who could be the daughter of the late King Cullen-and therefore by default the proper heir to the throne since she was his child. 

Baron Pax was the first one to react to the shocking news.

"Your Highness, if that girl really is a long lost royal, then it would cause a storm in this kingdom. Prince Cullen died suddenly without having any children of his own, therefore you had to fight off all your half-siblings for the throne during that succession war. Given the intense political atmosphere among your children and the nobility these days and rumors spreading about your poor health, another possible contender for the throne is the last thing anyone -"

The king raised a hand to pacify the concerned baron.

"Baron Pax, thank you for your concern but I think it's not necessary. That girl is no threat to me. She's just a child. Besides, she could be my kin-my niece that has the blood of my only brother inside of her."

Elijah spoke up next.

"Where is she? That girl?"

"She is in the royal mansion for the queen. I posted guards who will watch her at every minute of the day and make sure she does not leave. If she really is royalty, then the kingdom will have one more princess and one more candidate for the throne."

Catalina was deep in thought as she sipped her tea, her graceful and elegant presence was captivating yet her strength and power was just as captivating as well. 

"Suppose she is a long-long princess. What happens then, your highness? Will you take her in and declare her a princess in front of the whole world? She is supposedly the daughter of the late king, your older brother, and this will cause a big stir among the nobility if she really is his daughter. She has a strong claim to the throne as the late king's only legitimate child."

The king sat in silence for some time before he spoke.

"I'll cross that bridge when I get there, Catalina. But right now, we need to confirm the patrentage of that girl. I'll take you to see the girl right now."

….

Arya explored what could be her new home.

So far, it seemed like the entire place was just as luxurious and beautiful as her bedroom was. She passed by many rooms that looked to be bedrooms, bathrooms, private libraries, a dining hall

She never saw such luxury and riches in her entire life before.

The walls were covered with beautiful green and gold wallpaper while charming and pretty paintings of natural landscapes-fields of flowers, mountain ranges, wild forests-hung on the walls.

A widening and majestic staircase was positioned right in the middle of the first floor that led up to the second floor.

Beautiful gold carpets decorated the floors.

Tall windows let in the sunlight and were framed with lovely silk green curtains.

A gold and diamond chandelier dangled from the ceiling on full display in what looked to be a small living room.

 Pretty flowers with silky soft petals of dark red, pale pink, white and even yellow with sharp thorny stems filled delicate-looking porcelain vases that lined the hallways and perfumed the air. 

Arya has never seen just pretty yet nasty looking flowers before. She stopped to gently remove one from the vase, carefully removing a dark red flower while taking care to avoid its sharp thorns. It smelled sweet and heavenly to her like the perfume she saw being displayed in the front windows of the luxury beauty stores that catered to the wants and tastes of rich girls. 

"It smells so sweet. I have never seen a flower like this before. Myna, you know what it's called?"

Myna raised an eyebrow but she said nothing. 

In all fairness, she didn't know what to expect when the head maid suddenly told her to pack up her things and to move to the mansion of Queens.

Myna knew what this mansion was for: A residence that was home to generations of queens. This place had been left untouched and unoccupied for the last 15 years ever since the queen passed away.

Myna thought she was just coming in here for a routine maintenance cleanup as always but the fact that she was told to pack up her stuff as if she was going to be staying here for a long time told her otherwise.

Myna was a good worker and she was well liked and respected by fellow servants. The head maid must have recommended her to the king for whatever job he had in mind for her.

Her orders from the king were to look after this girl and take care of her. She didn't ask questions. She knew from personal experience that some servants worked as the personnel servants for the royal children: Helping them dress, looking after them and attending to them.

She just didn't think it would be her doing this sort of highly coveted job.

Besides, this girl looked to be someone important if the king himself was allowing her to stay as a guest.

Wasn't she the infamous she-assassin who almost killed off the Crown Prince?

No, the more she watched the girl, the more she realized that this girl couldn't be a killer. She was so sweet and soft that she couldn't possibly try to murder someone.

She looked very young. Maybe only 13 or 14 years old. She came from nowhere and she had a power of her own. Moving things with her mind. She clearly wasn't some commoner or low class like her, that's for sure. But who was she then? Some young miss from some small and obscure household? A secret daughter of the king himself?

Now that Myna thought about it, the king had lots of kids with many different women so maybe this little girl could be his daughter but there was some reason that her existence could not be revealed. But it wasn't her duty to ask too many questions Right now, this girl is her responsibility. King's orders. 

She never showed her powers again after last night when she pulled that stunt with the tray of food. Maybe she didn't want to use them right now? Maybe she was too tired from last night to use it right now?

Who was she? Why was the king showing interest in her?

Arya. That was her name. 

Her green eyes glittered and sparkled when she explored the mansion, taking in every detail of the place from the walls to the carpeted floors to the silk curtains. Her brown hair framed her face in soft waves that fell down to her shoulders. She was barefooted and running around the place like crazy, relishing the soft carpeting underneath her feet.

With her eyes closed, the rose in her hand, she looked like a picture of innocence and beauty. 

She took such simple pleasure in the little things around her. Stuff that the rich and powerful never gave a second look at. Stuff that they took for granted. 

 "That's called a rose. There's some growing in the gardens."

Honestly, she had never seen anyone get excited over a rose before. But the happiness and look of pure delight on the girl's face brought a smile up to her face. 

Arya grabbed Myna's hand and started to drag her to the front doors.

"Myna, let's go see the gardens!"

Arya eagerly dragged Myna down the hallway and out of the front doors and into a beautiful rose garden in the front of the mansion.

Arya didn't actually want to see the garden. She actually wanted to go outside and to see where she was right now. She had to be somewhere on royal grounds right now, but where? Besides, she wanted to get out of the house and see if she could try to leave and run away. Despite the king's promise that he wouldn't kill her or hurt her, she still didn't feel safe here.

She was trapped. Locked up in a golden cage.

She didn't know what was going on right now.

She had a power of her own. She saw for herself how she moved the tray of food towards her without lifting up a finger.

She was so confused about who she was right now.

She thought she was an orphan all her life: nameless, faceless, penniless, unwanted. Her daily life revolving around filling up her belly and putting a roof over her head.

Until today.

Little did she know, her life would soon change forever.

…

In the indoor training courts of the Royal Academy, young masters and lady masters were warming up for their morning training session. Noble households sent their sons and daughters to the Royal Academy each year in hopes of them being able to become royal guards and secure a position in the royal courts after their graduation. That was the main path that most graduates took: Serving the royal households as royal guards. Not everyone got to become a royal guard but almost every young noble who ever set foot in the royal academy went on to serve the royal family one way or another, some as advisors, some as diplomats, some as government officials.

The sound of swords clashing, sparring, training and fighting filled the training court. 

A pretty girl with soft pastel pink hair tied back in a single braid with pretty mint green doe-like eyes and pale skin but she was also very muscular and tough looking. A small scar marred her right cheek but gave her the look of an experienced fighter. Her hands were wrapped up in bandages and she was busy punching and kicking away at a large boulder that towered over her, handing blow after blow on it, her kicks powerful and strong. Cracks and small carters soon appeared on the surface of the boulder and the girl suddenly landed a good hard punch that shattered and broke the large boulder into little tiny pebbles. A loud explosion shook the walls of the training court as the boulder broke and was reduced to dust and pebbles. 

A boy with whitish-blonde hair that was long and flowing down his back with icy blue eyes that shone like diamonds was busy fighting an animated and moving wooden training dummy. His body looked lean and almost petite looking burn the calluses on his hands that indicated his dedication to keeping his sword and skills sharp. The wooden opponent attacked him at once, wooden hand balled into a fist, punching at the boy's head, but in a blink of an eye, he vanished into thin air and appeared behind it, sword in hand ready to cut off its head, but the dummy sensed him and was able to dodge the blade just in time. It launched into a counterattack, throwing punch after punch at the boy, but the boy was too fast for it, a blur of black and white as he teleported quickly to avoid the blows. Finally, the boy managed to get an opening and caught the dummy off guard. He cut off its wooden head with just one swing of his sword. 

A girl with coppery red hair, gray-blue eyes, a splash of freckles across her cheeks and nose with a muscular and built figure was sparring with a tall, muscular boy with tanned skin, shoulder length dirty blonde hair tied back into a ponytail and gold eyes. They were both trading blows with each other, kicks and punches were thrown at each other, but each one continued to duck or dodge the attack before launching a counterattack. The boy had the advantage at first, landing blow after blow on the girl, not letting her get a chance to fight back.. But then the table turned on him. The boy threw a right hook at the girl but the girl ducked and landed an uppercut on his chin. He stumbled back a little and the girl launched her attack on him, forcing him into defensive mode.

 A young boy with long bright red hair that fell down in long locks to his waist with bright blue eyes that were the color of a clear sunny sky set wooden training dummies on fire in a way that was both beautiful and destructive. He stood at a good distance away from the dummies, maybe 10 or 12 ft, but he was focusing on the dummies. The wooden dummies would suddenly burst into flames and get caught up in a burning bonfire. Pillars of fire burst out of nowhere and consumed the training dummies, the smell of burning wood soon filled the air. He threw balls of fire at the dummies, each one of the burning balls of fire hit its target. 

Another boy with black hair tied back in a half-up ponytail that brought out his dark blue eyes was busy training with some thick wooden walls. These walls were propped up in the middle of the training courts. Each wall looked to be at least 4 ft thick but the boy would just turn himself transparent and see-through as if he was a ghost and he walked straight through these thick and sturdy wooden walls as if they never existed in the first place and repaired on the opposite side of them.

Two girls were dueling each other, their swords clashed and they traded blows as they stabbed, blocked and parried. Both girls seemed equally matched and neither one was getting the upper hand on the other. 

A girl sat in the corner, doing some sort of meditation training in a lotus flower position. 

Boys and girls in black training uniforms everywhere were training and honing their abilities. 

Some were running laps around the training courts. One blue- haired girl was using her speed ability to cheat, she was little no than a blur of blue and black zooming around the perimeters of the training court.

Others were busy with exercising. Some bench pressed up to 500 pounds, muscles straining and brows furrowed in concentration. Some were lifting weights and trying to build up muscles and raw strength. Others were doing curl ups, push ups and other such physical exercises.

Others were off to hone their abilities. Shards of ice and iron spears were thrown and speared right through the chest, heart or head of wooden dummies. Moving dummies were brushed aside and sent flying into walls from a strong gust of wind that was blasted at them. Great blobs of water trapped the wooden dummies in a sort of watery cage. Dummies that tried to attack were sent through portals that caused them to suddenly disappear only to reappear moments later falling out of a portal suspended in mid-air at a height that would surely be fatal if not harmful to an actual human being. 

This was power and strength. All these boys and girls were the sons and daughters of powerful households that took pride in their abilities and power. These were the next generation of nobles who would one day go on to either become the new master of their respective households or go on to serve the royal family in some way.

"Wow, I really overdid it this time."

 The girl with dark blue hair was Isolde Eques and she had a speed ability. She was the one who had been running around the training court at inhuman speeds.

Isolde knew that she overused her speed ability when she started getting all wobbly and shaky. She stumbled over to an empty bench on the sidelines and collapsed onto it. A shaky hand brought a flask of water up to her mouth and she relished the icy coldness going down her throat.

"Isolde, you okay? You look a little out of it."

The boy with blue hair was Astraeus Avarti and he had an ability that allowed him to create portals. He was the one that had been sending those poor dummies through those portals every time they tried to attack him.

He sat down next to her and Isolde sighed as she tilted her head back and stared up at the ceiling.

"I'm fine, man. Thanks for asking anyway, bestie. But my mind just keeps wandering to that girl we saw yesterday. You know, the supposed assassin that nearly killed the crown prince. I personally think that that girl was too harmless and innocent to kill a rat, let alone a prince."

Astraeus cocked his head a little to the right.

"Ah, her. Yeah, I keep thinking about her too.I think she may have been innocent and the real assassin is still out there somewhere. But I saw it. She has telekinesis. That's a power that nobody has or had-expect for him. You know that the last user of that ability was late king Cullen who died nearly 15 years ago. How does she have that power? Is she a heiress to some fallen household and it's just a coincidence she has telekinesis?"

Asraeus paused for a moment to take another sip of water while watching a boy send an arrow straight through the heart of a wooden dummy.

Isolde was siping off the sweat from her body with a towel the whole time her friend was talking. She hadn't been paying too much attention to what her friend said but what little she did catch matched her own thoughts. She had been there when that girl revealed her power in front of the whole world. Saw the overflowing power coming out of her. However that girl was, she was for sure no weakling.

Isolde wiped the last of the sweat off her forehead before responding. 

"Beats me man but I heard rumors going around that the king himself invited her to stay as a guest in the royal palace. I heard from a servant girl that she's currently staying in the royal mansion for queens. That begs the question of who is she?"

Astraeus took some time to think about her question but he never got a chance to respond because the instructors had finally arrived to kick start the morning training.

….

Arya slipped out of the garden and raced down the wide stone path. She raced past the trees that lined the path, past numerous bushes of flowers. She ignored the sounds of birds singing and was focused on getting herself out of here.

The king had been bluffing when he said he had posted guards outside of the villa and she soon figured that out.

She told Myna that she was thirsty and Myna went back inside to get her something to drink. That was when she gave Myna the slip. 

Arya felt bad for doing this when Myna was a really nice person but she didn't belong here.

She didn't feel safe here at all.

She didn't know the king's motives or agendas.

Okay, it was a bit stupid of her to run away like this but Arya didn't see anyone so far. 

Until she ran right into the king himself and she was sent tumbling down onto the ground in front of him.

"Oww!!"

Arya looked up and saw the king simself standing right in front of her. But he wasn't alone.

There was a handsome young man. His wild long white hair was silky and soft looking and hung loose down to his waist. His eyes were as red as blood and they seemed to almost glow in the dark. He was dressed simply in a pair of black pants, brown leather boots and an open loose shirt that showed off a bit of his chest. He looked unreal like a divine being that came from the heavens. 

He had the body of a warrior: fit, lean and muscular. He carried two swords around his waist that looked intimidating and deadly. The two swords brushed up against his legs and swayed gently as he paced around, looking bored and impatient. 

The other was a young woman who had long locks of dirty blonde hair that was pulled back into a half-up braided style that was decorated with gold flowers with eyes that were a vivid shade of bright purple that hurt Arya's own eyes that looked cold and harsh. While the white-haired man dressed simply, the woman did not. 

She was dressed in a floor length, off-shoulder and gradient dress that was made from pale pink tulle. The blouse of the dress was a beautiful pale pink that bleeded out onto the white tulle skirt…oh, Arya inspected the dress a little more carefully and saw that it was actually a single pale pink veil-like skirt that covered the white skirts underneath it. The dress was sparkling and glittering in light of the morning dawn and Arya wondered if the dress was covered in jewels.. She wore dangling diamond earrings that sparkled in the glow of the early morning light. But that wasn't all: She also wore long white gloves that reached her elbows and carried a white lace fan to complete her look. 

"I'm not in trouble, am I?"

Arya's mouth forced out those words and her body was shaking and trembling badly.

The king gently knelt down to help her up onto her feet. But Arya was still a bit nervous and jumpy so the king backed off and gave her some space.

"Dear child, you need to come with us. We need to check something out. It's about you. You have a power that people thought no longer existed-tough there's only one real way for you to have it that we need to check out."

Arya didn't like the sound of that. She knew she had a power of her own and she was having a bit of an identity crisis right now that she discovered that she had a power of her own.

But what did that mean for her?

The king stretched out a hand for her and he seemed as if he was waiting for her to take it.

"Come on, dear girl. We don't have all day. Just take my hand and follow me."