Amara's POV

I had a very vivid dream to the point where I could feel and even taste the wind and in my dream was Tela.

The wind was smoky and thick as if something had been burning for a long while.

The clouds blocked the suns brilliance with darkness as rain began to sprinkle the land I called home.

Unidentifiable faces were either burned to the point where their skin was melted off their bones or faces that were torn from animal like claws.

Tela I knew was amongst them...and by the dress one of the corpses wore...I could barely stand.

"I'm so sorry Tela...I wish I could have protected you."

My vision blurred from the nightmare to the complete opposite.

"Tela!" I was young, yelling my new found friend's name as we frolicked about in the royal gardens on a hot summer's day.

Just her and I playing a chase of tag barefoot.

The simple days.

The warmer times of youth.

Then my eyes widened as blood dripped from her heart and tears ran down her face once I caught up to her turning into a nightmare once more.

"My Princess, Queen Lily has betrayed us all with Seth by her side. In time your mother will find you. Be ready. Ian isn't to be trusted for he too had taken Seth to his side. Do not fall into his hands my dear Princess."

I was bewildered by what Tela was telling me.

Lily and Seth an enemy of the crown?

Enemies to Aster.

And what of my mother? What role did she play that would be so vital to me?

And to still be alive at that.

Why was Tela given this information being that she wasn't the actual Princess of Aster?

Unless my mother anticipated this would eventually happen and set her pawns in place for the day they'd be needed.

Even if it had to be Tela, a girl my own blood mother saw as a daughter as well...I'm sure my mother was well prepared for this...predicting that even the closest of allies would possibly be killed.

But to be slaughtered like livestock...was a nightmare I wasn't ready for.

———

After the boat docked Ian pulled me aside with a rough yank of my arm.

"I'm curious to know why you even tried so hard to hide your identity as a woman when I first fought you."

I could feel my heart skip a beat but kept my composure as if it didn't bother me one bit.

"You seriously waited all this time to ask me such a question?"

He glared at me, wanting a true answer.

So I gave him one.

"The General of the Royal Knights made me an exception seeing my potential in becoming one of the best. Normally women don't become royal knights, just the men."

He gave me a suspicious look, lingering his dark gaze on me as if trying to read me.

To my advantage, he couldn't.

"You're not the best of them seeing that you managed to get yourself caught. Like a fly to a web."

"Think what you want. You know nothing."

With that I turned away following the rest of the people off the ship with Ian walking ahead.

"Don't get ahead of yourself Princess. I know more than you'll ever know."

I doubt it.

Arrogant man as he was I wanting to kick him in the shin for his proudness.

For his arrogance...for his cruelness.  

A shot to the heart seemed better fitting than just a small kick.

But one day I'll show him.

I'll show him that I could fight him in a fair fight and beat him.

The reason I got caught was because he played dirty and caught me off guard.

And I swear to it the next time that comes around where we have to cross blades, I'll be sure to win.

My next victory was a given.

———

As we travelled to and fro, squeezing past a sea of people throughout the sea port we finally arrived at our destination.

An Inn called the Crocked Rattail.

"People at the Crocked Rattail are not to be taken lightly. So keep your mouth shut and let me do the talking."

"Gladly. I had no intention of doing anything anyway." I retorted resulting in him just ignoring me as if I didn't say a word back to him while he covered half his face up with a black cloth that was wrapped around his neck.

"Well~ Well~ Look what the cat dragged in, if it isn't Black Phantom. At it again~ Lookie here~ A girl and alive at that." A black-haired barmaid flirted with Ian as if they were quite familiar with one another.

Her eyes shimmered purple as her eyes laid upon me like I was a mouse and she was the cat.

I wanted to vomit because I knew what their relationship possibly was and I wish I didn't.

"Move. We go upstairs, first door on the left."

I led this time as he followed like white on rice.

It made me uncomfortable.

"Stay here. I'll be back. Let no one in."

"I'm no fool."

"You've said a lot of things."

I glared at him.

"Leave, your very presence is like a thorn in my side."

He left not saying a word.

If he wants me to play the 'Princess', I'll play the role to perfection even if he was fully unaware that I was indeed the real Princess of Aster.

After a while nightfall came like a thief in the knight.

Before I could even attempt sleep I saw a stretched out shadow peaking from behind the door of the room I stayed in.

It lurked and stepped not until it seemed sure it found what it was looking for.

The figure formed much bigger and emerged from behind the door as a bear.

Being almost scared out of my socks, I quickly scattered to my feet.

When I looked into the bear's eyes...they seemed familiar.

Where have I seen those brown golden eyes before.

Eyes that always reminded me of a mid-morning walk in the field of wheat.

Those eyes...it could only be Seth.

He's alive for one. Just the thought made my face heat but I did not let it.

Seth was an enemy.

But how did a shifter manage to break into Aster's royal knight's ranks?

Speaking of, back then...I never asked if Seth died by Ian's hand.

Was Ian more aware of Aster's secrets than I realized?

Seth...a double backstabbing traitor who will see his head on a pike once I'm through with him.

All I could do was rage. Rage that burned out my fear. Rage that burned out any affections that ever laid dormant for him.

"Seth!!!" I yelled with all my might and for a moment I had lost myself.

I can only describe such sensation is that of a complete understanding of peace to my goal...fight no matter what.

Win no matter what.

A flow of energy coursed through me as if it knew me. As if it was becoming one with me.

Whatever it was it made me stronger and faster.

When I came to .... blood was everywhere and Seth looked at me with fear as his arm had been detached from his very body like a wooden doll.

But with a lot more blood and gore.

My hand felt heavy as if I had a sword in hand.

I glanced...and when I looked at what laid in my very hand...it was indeed a sword. A sword made of magic.

Before I could ask myself anything the sword disappeared.

I turned back to Seth.

His eyes just as wide as mine.

"You have a gift." He muttered with me glaring at him.

"You're a coward for even thinking of crossing the land of Aster."

I'm guessing from my fighting stance alone this man in front of me knew actually who I was.

Well what my guise was but not that I was the Princess.

"You..." His eyes widened.

"Yes. I am the knight that had won battles beside you. I took you as my brother Seth...but now...you are nothing more than tainted soil beneath my boot. Leave before I kill you where you stand."

"Wait-Wait! I know of Mercella! She is alive!"

My eyes thinned in anger.

"Do not speak of the last Queen with your lying tongue."

"She had saved me in the past when my life was in shambles."

"And yet you take arms against the kingdom, conspiring with the enemies. Besides, I couldn't care less about your sob story right now."

"I heard a few years after Marcella had left the castle that she had been building a secret kingdom in the land of the Shifters- the wilds of Aster! There's more than meets the eye Royal Knight. Please you must know that!"

I slapped him across that beautiful and handsome face of his.

I loved him but I could not allow myself those feelings anymore.

Loving was not emotion I wanted to be capable of having toward him.

Loving him was nothing of my concern anymore.

He was nothing to me now.

Rage hit me again as the sword appeared like magic.

I pointed it at his throat ready to kill.

"Tell me what does this useless information have to do with me?"

"You know exactly what I mean." He gave me a look of pity.

I hated him for it.

Before he could speak I slit his throat once Ian stepped foot into the room.

How dare he pity me with that look.

But his life had to end anyway even if it was more out of anger from me.

If Ian was in cahoots with Seth...they were both dangerous together so even if Seth was no longer alive at least I had one less threat to worry about.

One less distraction.

One less weakness.

Before Ian could lay eyes on me the sword was gone.

That...right there is what I needed answers on.

How could I use magic all of a sudden?

But maybe my mother was my answer to this and maybe to many others things.

So for now I needed a lead on the Shifters.

And to do that I had a feeling that barmaid was my answer.

But before that I needed to distract my problem.

Ian.

"You killed him. How?"

"Pure instinct and skill. Like I said I'm no fool. So believe what you want."

Before I could go he snatched my arm.

"Where do you think you're going."

"Can't a princess relieve herself? Plus I think you should really have this room cleaned. It reeks of betrayal."

He released me from his grip, having me free from his hand.

———

As I stood away from the world for a bit tears rolled over and down my face.

Seth.

A man I had a crush on when I was only ten that eventually grew into something more when I started working even harder as a knight.

Back when I had the leisure time of even thinking about boys.

Seth was the one who secretly gave me bread on the other side of the door not even knowing who I truly was.

He was always so kind even as we were children...he was five years older than me so I never made much of a move to express my feelings toward him...especially since I'd be mixing royal blood with common blood...something the royal family never allowed.

Just as I was about to leave to go back to where Ian was a note slipped under the door to the room I was in.

In the letter I found very familiar handwriting...none other than Mercella herself.

It revealed the real truth of her leaving and that the dead king killed by Lily Aster wasn't my real father, General Thane was.

My mother had secretly married Thane as a commoner while he was a royal knight at the time. Before my mother was handed off to marry the soon to be king.

Something I thought wasn't allowed was for common and royal blood to mix.

I read further along learning of how the King had chosen my mother.

Marcella's father, because of my mother's fair beauty sold her off to the King. A man she was forced to marry out of convenience.

My mother was unaware that she was pregnant with me but even so, I happened to have perfect timing on being born that the King himself didn't suspect a thing.

My true father was said to have always left roses for Mercella but stayed away in battle as to not rise suspicion.

Why she had to leave was because while she was unloved by the King she also had a call of the wild, a need of help from her true people who needed their missing ruler back.

Her parents had passed from disease and old age leaving her as the only heir left to take their place.

As much as she loved her true husband and children...her people needed her.

Her duty was to her people as heir Queen even if she never wanted that life.

To live a simple commoner human life with General Thane...with her little twins was all she ever wanted.

But... life was never easy and called for a rougher and more torturous path of leaving all she held dear.

As I turned through the very extensive letter I found a piece of information most interesting.

Lily was plotting revenge against the King (from his fathers sins of slaughtering Lily's family along with half the other shifters long buried history which was never mentioned in the common books...Marcella made sure nothing got out about her kind as the Queen by burning any evidence except the fairy tale book she read to me.

Having Seth take part in it as well being that he was not only to Lily but to Ian.

A traitor to the throne of both the Shifters and the Aster Kingdom.

Seth was given orders to look for the princess but also orders from Queen Lily to kill the true princess and prince.

The last words of the letter read as such.

My dear daughter...your brother, my son...is dead along with the king by Lily's hands. And I call for vengeance. Will you stand with me?

———

I froze unable to breathe.

My brother...dead?

How cruel was Lily to have practically been our second mother...to kill my brother...and for what?

I couldn't stand by and do nothing.

I had to escape this place.

Escape Ian.

Return home and finish what my enemies started.

—————