In the morning leillan and I were awoken by three maids who had burst into our room. They threw open our blinds so that the bright sun filled the room. I heard Leillan groan before she hid her face in my hair that was spread out around me resembling a lion's mane. The blast of light did not seem to bother me since I didn't fall to sleep last night. I was engulfed in a black hole of possible outcomes of my soon to be spy mission. It didn't help that Leillan kept stealing the blankets from me every two seconds.

The maids here were much different than the ones in Recline. Instead of wearing a long black dress, an apron, and bonnets they dressed in blue colored jeans and basic colored shirts. Much less outrageous than most of the people here but the sight of women in pants had still shocked me. One of the maids who seemed the smallest and softest of the three was carrying a stack of clothing I assumed was for us to wear. She turned to look at the two of us, and her dark eyes grew wide with surprise. 

"Oh, I didn't expect Lady Tolon to be in here, If you would like us to give you both a moment," a light blush spread across her cheeks. 

"Oh no we are fine," I said quickly before shaking Leillan awake, even against her growls of protest for me to stop. 

"Well, we will need to go back to her room to grab her clothing. His Highness has picked out for her." The maid laid my pile of clothing on the bed. "He also requested that you both join him for breakfast," said one of the other maids who had striking blue eyes and short blonde hair. They quickly left the room. Leillan and I were drawn into silence. I slowly slid out of bed when I felt she had finally let go of my arm to look at the clothing Harmony had picked out for me. Part of me feared it would be something like what I saw people in the council wear. I laughed at the thought of me in the marshmallow dress. 

"What did his royal highness graciously pick out for you?" Leillan attempted to make her voice sound dramatic and majestic. I picked up the first thing in the pile, and it was a dress. It was a light blue dress with beautiful intricate floral lace on top. The dress seemed as if it would reach just below my knees. The fabric was the softest thing I may have ever felt. I could see Leillan's eyes in the mirror as she stared at the dress. I quickly slipped the dress on. I turned to look at the Leillan to witness a deep blush appearing on her cheeks. 

"You okay?" I asked with a hand on my hip. She simply nodded in response. We didn't need to cover our hair, so I was very lost on what to do with my long hair. So I attempted to tame the frizzy curls and hope for the best. I left Leillan when the maids came in again with her pile of clothing. One of them was kind enough to show me where the dining hallways so I wouldn't have to wander around like an idiot. When I walked in to see an unnecessarily long table. A table cloth ran down the middle of the table and was yellow with silver strikes with the symbol of the kingdom on the very end; it was a crane flying out of a rose. I quickly walked over to where Harmony was sitting. He smiled up at me when I sat next to him.

"You look lovely Cyra." He almost seemed proud of himself for picking out my clothing

"Thank you, Harmony and thank you for the clothing. You really didn't need to. I would've been happy wearing my old dress." In Recline, I only had two dressed. One I would wear to work and one I would wear on special occasions. They looked the same, but one didn't have random cloth patches stitched on.

"You are good with clothing though. My brothers could barely pick an outfit without the assistance of my mother," I laughed gently at the memories of my brother when they attempted to choose their outfits only to look like fools.

"My mother really wanted a daughter, but sadly, I was her only child, so my mother decided to teach me everything she knew about art and clothing while my father trained me to fight," he gave me a shrug as if all those skills weren't a big deal. I suddenly envied Harmony. How cultured he was in so many areas was fantastic. 

"Well if you ever wanna share some of that beautiful art knowledge with me, I would gladly accept" I gave him a wide cheesy smile. He was about to say more when the doors to the room opened and Leillan stepped in.

"Hey losers, miss me?" she gave me a small wink. Leillan was wearing a loose grey top that had a black belt around the middle, and her hair was tied up in a long ponytail. Leillan was also wearing a pair of those blue jeans like the maids were before, but they were a bit tighter, they flattered her body nicely. As she walked closer, I felt my cheeks get hot. 

"You good Cy?" Leillan asked 

"Umm y-yeah...yeah it's just you are" I took a breath "you look stunning." Leillan gave me a low fake curtsy.  

Harmony turned his attention back to me "So Cyra there is lots I need to teach you about Vinick and about your identity I had made up for you before you head off on your mission." I could tell Harmony hated the thought of me leaving to the way he clenched his jaw. Unlike Leillan he would pretend to be supportive of my decision, but his body language showed me something completely different. I leaned my elbows on the table and noticed Leillan mirrored my action. 

"What is there to teach me? I am a maid and Vinick is evil. Boom, I am a genius," I said as I dropped my golden fork onto the table. Harmony rubbed his forehead and sighed. 

"There is so much to tell you that I do not know where to start," he mumbled to himself. "The prince that is getting crowned king is Arksel Blais; he is the second oldest child of Pyro Blais." 

"The second? I thought the first child got the crown?" Leillan asked as she pulled her feet onto the table. Harmony pushed her shoes off the table with a butter knife.

"The first usually does but Pyro's first child just..vanished" Harmony wiggled his fingers around as his he was casting a spell on the cup of water that sat in front of him. "Prince Arksel has the ability to suck the life out of someone just by a simple touch of their skin. His right-hand man is a soldier named Zydan Burket; he can control shadows. I have decided that it will be the easiest thing for you if you did not have to lie too much, that is when the most mistakes can happen." Harmony got up and walked over the tall window behind me "Your name will stay how it is. You have been a maid since you were younger, you have one older sister and one younger sister. You chose to start working for the king because you have a passionate need to serve your kingdom even if it means sweeping the floors for the king. Nothing is more important to Prince Arksel than loyalty to the crown. He is known to be a ruthless man when someone in his kingdom is not fully devoted to him. You are absolutely not part of a rebellion and the word Majiey means absolutely nothing to you." Harmony's eyebrows started to furrow together as he concentrated on something in the distance. The room stayed hushed except for the occasional scrap of Leillan's fork against the plate as she ate. 

I got up from my chair and walked over to the window. I tried to look into the distance like Harmony had been. I saw nothing but clouds of red sand blocking something from our view like a curtain. 

"I have to go; you two stay here." Harmony demanded before he stormed out of the room. The door hadn't even closed before Leillan was out of her seat and running to follow him. 

"What are you doing?!" I demanded as I chased after her. 

"What does it look like I'm doing Cy? Something is going on, and I'm not gonna let some little boy with a crown boss me around." 

"Have you ever considered the option of following the rules?" I said when I finally caught up to her.

"Rules are for chumps and people who are afraid of the dark," she smirked as she glanced down at me from the corner of her eye. I pushed her gently. 

"When will you stop using that against me! I was 14!" Leillan laughed at my reaction to her tease. We followed Harmony until he was outside. The red cloud seemed to have gotten much closer to the kingdom. I was able to make out some blurry figured out by now. It was not just one object, but many. Many large blurry objects were making their way toward us and fast. We made our way to the middle of the town. Many others had begun to gather around. Leillan and I followed behind Harmony as he made his way through the growing crowd. People knew exactly who he was so they parted for him without any hesitation. The smoke began the clear around the blobs but before I could clearly see what was coming for us a ball of bright light had been hurled at us. 

"FIRE!" yelled a man nearby. Instantly people scattered like mice. The orb of fire hitting a nearby tree and it burst into flames. I heard Harmony swear and grip mine and Leillan's hand before dragging us back up the street. 

"Did I not say not to follow me!" His voice seemed as hot and deadly as the fire that was continuously being thrown at us. I turned to look back now the objects that had been coming at us was clear; five huge Vinick transports were racing towards us. I was even able to see the girl with unnaturally red hair was hanging off the sides of the most significant transport. The girl who had burned down my home, helped destroy my colony, and worst of all made me believe my brother was dead; she was here. I felt a wave of anger like I've never felt before. Her arm became trapped in a mass of flames as she directed it towards the kingdom. This time it hit a group of people. Harmony covered my eyes but their blood curtailing screams would haunt me forever. I pried Harmony's fingers off my eyes when he dragged us into an alley. 

"Stay here! Or I will get a guard to lock you in your rooms! Do I make myself clear" This time even Leillan agreed to his demand. Harmony vanished into the chaos that occupied the once tranquil town. He was soon out of sight except for his shield of throned veins and thick bark he attempted to cover the border of the town. It seemed to have worked for a while! Bullets reflexed off the lush plants as if the shots were made out of soft rubber. Soon the other magic casters began to join Harmony. A water bender used the water from a nearby fountain to launch a deadly wave upon those who were attempting the climb Harmony's wall. The light manipulator blinded one of the transport drivers causing him to spin out and crash into the next one that drove closest to him. Someone was even able to heal those who were more affected by the first attack! My eyes traveled the bodies of those who were not able to be saved. Blacked and crackling skin that exposed bright red underneath, there was even smoke still coming off the bodies. It wasn't until my eyes landed on one with their eyes open. Grey like mine, they died with their arm reaching out. It was their last attempt of a call for help. Nausea overcame me so fast I had to sit down against a brick wall to steady myself.

I began to hear screaming again as Harmony's wall began to melt. This time it wasn't flame, but acid. A hole in the middle of the wall had been burned through, and a wave of Vinick began to pour through. More of the Majiey joined in the fight. More using every ability to attack. Leillan and I held onto each other. I didn't even notice I was shaking like a leaf until she pulled me tightly against her. I witnessed the red-haired girl drag another girl by the hair and throw her into the back of one of the transports right before the acid man set a sea of acid down the street. More people were reaching out for help and not enough healers to help. There was an open rescue shelter near us, but a fallen tree and house rubble hid it. If I could get to it, I could help. 

"Tell Harmony I'm sorry!" I said before sprinting across the town over to the rescue shelter. I tried my best to ignore the cries in agony or the screams that would make the most hardened man cry, but tears had escaped my eyes and traveled down my face that was now packed with dirt from the dust and smoke that now filled the air. I began to pull on the thick branches. I tried to gain momentum since the tree was too massive for me to move. I was able to move most of the tree; some people even began to run inside as fast as they could. 

A sharp cry pierced the air, and this one was different. I turned around to see a small girl was pulling at what I assumed was her mother's shirt who was face down against the pavement. Without thinking, I darted over to her. My arms encased her the moment I got to her. I tried to bring her to the shelter, but she kept kicking and screaming. 

"Where is my mommy!" she screamed then a laugh echoed behind me.

"Tell her where her mommy is, little raven." My heart plummeted to the ground, and my blood ran cold. I turned around to see a ghost of a man with a Cheshire grin leaning over me. His skin was so pale all his bright blue veins were clearly visible, and his eyes were bloodshot red. I guarded the little girl behind my back as if I was her shield. 

"Unless you are a liar" he had a tsking sound with his tongue. He began to lower a hand behind his back. I could see the shiny reflection of a knife. I tried to back up as much as fast as I could but soon my back was against a wall, and I swore he moved more quickly than the speed of light. I closed my eyes and held the small girl behind me. If I was going to get hurt, I didn't need her seeing or getting injured herself. So I accepted what was coming to me. 

What I didn't expect was Leillan launching herself at the man. Their bodies landing to the ground with a loud slamming sound that shook the ground. Leillan got on top of him and landed a blow to his right cheek. 

"You don't touch her!" She screamed into his face. She was about to attempt her second punch when she grabbed her wrist and threw her to the ground. I could hear her breath leave her lung. Now she laid on the ground motionless, her chest moving quickly as she attempted to catch her breath.

"Leillan!" I tried to run over to her but the frightened girl refused to let go, she gripped me with such unnatural strength that it was almost crippling. "Leillan!" was all I could do. All I could do was scream my heart out and pray to every god that has ever existed that the man would leave Leillan alone. The man kneeled to her and whispered something I couldn't hear before removing the blade from his back pocket. I pried the girl off my leg and ran as quickly as I could to get over to her. I felt like I was moving in slow motion, but the world around me was moving quicker than ever before. I witnessed the man rise the blade, the sun shining off the metal before driving it into Leillan's side. I screamed, but I didn't hear a noise come out. The man listened to a box that was giving him orders on his shoulder before he ran off. All the Vinicks ran off quicker than they had come. Leaving nothing but destruction and death in their way

{Hello, beautiful people! here is the question of this chapter: What you believe Arksel will be like??? will he be as evil as the rumors say?}