Chapter 38

I stood outside my own chambers in a guard uniform briefly. I heard them talking in hushed tones for a while. It was a short matter before I began to hear the rustling and removal of clothing. I decided then it was time for be to begin patrolling before I heard other things I didn't want to hear.

I wondered the castle in the creaky uniform. Things seemed quiet at night. Opal was fast asleep with a servant. The loyalists had all knocked out from the tough training Johnny had put them through.

Daniel's gear made my body feel like it was drenched in water. Running in it had to be extremely difficult, I thought.

I passed an occasional servant throughout the castle. Fortunately they didn't exchange words from me. I did not face any encounters until the east wing.

Orion was approaching towards his chambers. We passed each other going the opposite ways.

"Good evening, Daniel." He greeted politely. My stomach twitched as I lowered my head. I raised my hand up and waved at him and attempted to continue on my way.

"You seem to be in a hurry, is everything alright?" He stopped.

I turned back to him and nodded. I picked up my pace and continued walking.

I was just about to turn the corner, I thought I was safe from Orion's view.

Bam!

I fell with a loud crash to the ground. Orion had tackled me to the ground. He sat on top of me and pulled out a dagger.

"Who are you? A spy? How did you get in here?" He said. I raised up my hands in defense.

"Tell me. If my father sent you I will kill you." He said, pushing it closer to my neck.

"Orion. Shh! It's me!" I said through the stuffy helmet.

"I don't care who you are. If my father sent you, you are an enemy to me." He said.

I pulled up the shield on the helmet, revealing my face. Orion lowered his dagger.

"Zander?" He said in confusion.

I shushed him. He got off of me and helped me back up. He put his dagger away.

"I apologize. I thought you-."

"I appreciate your caution. But I should continue my rounds. As head guard, it is my duty."I said, clearing my throat.

"Well, Daniel.. I have some strategies I would like to run by you, the head guard. Would you follow me to my chambers?"

My heart flickered a little thinking about going into his chambers alone. Nevertheless, I followed him.

He closed the door behind me. His room was warm. Books and maps were scattered all over his desk. Candles provided light for us. His bed was unmade.

Orion closed the door behind us.

I took off the dense helmet once we were officially alone.

"Why are you in Daniel's clothes? I thought we were being ambushed or spied on." He said.

"Mavis really needed to see Daniel this evening. He is the king tonight, and I am the head guard." I explained.

"That could be dangerous. If anybody finds out it could cause upset among the loyalists."

"Nobody will know. Besides you. You mustn't tell anyone."

"Of course I won't. I'm relieved to see that Daniel is alright, and not naked and killed somewhere."

"He may be naked, but certainly not dead." I said.

"Very well. Glad to hear it. I apologize for the quality of my chambers. I've been meaning to tidy up. I didn't plan on having a guest."

"I lived in a half toasted, abandoned, cottage for several months. I can assure you I can handle a small mess."

"That's reassuring. Well I wasn't lying when I said I had some strategic planning I was doing. Would you like to hear it?" He said.

I nodded. He stood by his desk. A large map of the kingdoms was spread out on it. I took a seat at his desk.

"As we know, Vendov has two allies right now. Salkon and The Mullis Islands. He also has control of Lafayette, but fortunately we have most of the loyalists here. All he has is land. He knows that Lafayette and Belmonte are working against him now. The remaining kingdoms are Naporia, Dewsbury, Darlington, and Solaris." He dragged his finger across the map as he spoke.

"My guess? He's going to try to take Naporia next. It's wedged in between Lafayette and Vendov, and it's just south of Belmonte. It would be a good position for him to either ally them under him or attack them." He said.

"So what do you suggest we do?" I asked.

"We need to get Naporia on our side. Or at least, not on theirs. If they refuse to ally with him he may just take Naporia by force. Everyone knows about his dragon, and everyone fears it." He explained.

"And if we don't get Naporia on our side?" I asked.

"We need to reach out to Dewsbury and Darlington. Solaris is much farther, but we should reach out to them too. Even if they don't provide us soldiers, they may be willing to help us with supplies." He explained.

"We should discuss this with everyone tomorrow. Perhaps send a messenger to Naporia." I said.

"Agreed." He rolled up the map and sealed it shut. His arm scars stuck out of his shirt sleeve, peaking out on his arm.

He looked back at me and looked at his arm.

"You look at my scars a lot. Are they that jarring to you?" He asked.

"No. Not at all. I'm sorry, I don't mean to stare. I just. I just can't believe that your father did that to you.. I mean, I can. It just looks so bad. I mean, not bad on you. Just painful." I babbled, trying to find a stopping point.

"Did you know I wasn't my father's only child?" He said.

"You have siblings?" I asked.

"I had an older sister. Her name was Vesta. My father wanted a son as a first born. He didn't care much for her. But I did. She was soft spoken and so intelligent." He said, resting his hands on the back of a chair.

"He had me after her. He thought he got a son he could manipulate into his perfect prince to carry on his empire dreams. For a long time, he did." He continued. His grip became tighter on the chair as he continued sharing his story.

"I did as he said for a long time. Even if I questioned how right it was, he would convince me it was necessary. I did all the cruel things he wanted me to learn to do, despite my conscience. But he took it too far with Vesta. He wanted to strengthen his relations with Salkon. He sold my sister to the highest bidder. Traded her for support to a Nobleman in Salkon. He had a reputation of abuse and two dead wives behind him. I couldn't just sit there while he shipped my sister off to wed an abuser. So I fought back." He said.

He pulled up his sleeves.

"This was my punishment for fighting for my sister. My punishment for talking back to him. But the fate my sister met was much worse. He shipped her off to him. Only a few months later we received notice that she was dead."

"Orion. I'm so sorry." I said.

"After that, his abuse with me continued. Once he realized I wasn't the perfect prince he wanted, my mother got pregnant again for him. She died during childbirth, giving birth to a girl. My father wasn't too pleased about that. He turned his sights back on me and continued to try to mold me. But the more he hurt my family, the more I fought back."

"What happened to your little sister? Is she still with him?"

"He didn't want to deal with another child, so he shipped her off. I don't know where she is, but I hope she's safe and far, far away from him."

"I knew he had plans to attack Lafayette, but I didn't know about his plan to send Samuel Skyes after you. I'm sorry I couldn't stop it. I tried to stay as long as I could, to get as much information out of it. But I couldn't even pretend to be on his side anymore. I left in the middle of the night, and I plan to never go back. Unless his head is off his body."

"It's not your fault, you didn't know." I hoovered my hand over his shoulder and gently touched it.

"We're grateful to have you here to help us. I'm grateful. We will get revenge for your sisters, and destroy his empire so he can't continue his evil reign."

His head was lowered.

"I hope so. The world would be a terrible place if he ruled it. He has no respect for anyone, not even his own children."

"I'm sorry to drop all this on you. But now you know where my scars come from."

My heart ached for Orion and his family. The Vendov King's children were rarely spoken about. My father never got along with him, but we never knew the extent of his cruelty.

"It's alright. I'm glad you feel comfortable enough with me to tell me." I said.

"I would love to find my little sister after the war, once it's all over. She'd be almost five now, if she's even alive."

"I'll help you find her after the war. You have my word."

He lifted his head and his eyes met mine. His amber eyes shined brightly through the candle flickers.

"Thank you, Zander." He said.

He broke eye contact for a moment.

"I mean, Daniel." He said. For a moment, I almost forgot about the creaky gear I was wearing.

"Right. I should probably finish my patrol before sunrise." I said, standing up.

He made a small, sideways smirk as he watched me stand up.

"Can't wait to squeak like that on the battlefield. Vendov will never hear it coming." He said.

"Maybe we should oil up before battle, then." I said without thinking. His smirk turned into a smile.

"I mean. The suits. Oil up the suits. So they don't make so much noise. Alright. Goodnight." I began to walk towards the door.

"Goodnight, Daniel."