Chapter 1: The Warning

"Again."

I huffed and picked up another arrow, drawing my bow taut, then fired it. The arrow flew straight into the centre of the target in front of me.

"Father, you know I can do this with my eyes closed. Why are you still training me?" I said, turning to look at him after putting away my bow.

"Practice is important," he said. "I don't want you to forget anything."

"You've taught me how to fight as soon as I learned how to walk, let alone speak. I won't forget, believe me. Mother hasn't forgotten, and she learned how to fight much later than I did."

"Yes, but you forget that she's still training with me. You must maintain your strengths and reflexes, so when an enemy attacks--" Father suddenly struck with his fist, but I blocked it with my hand and twisted his arm behind his back, then let go. He smiled proudly. "--you will not be caught off guard."

Suddenly a group of ten guards walked in and father stepped away to let them surround me with their fists raised.

"Not this again," I groaned, but took my fighting stance nonetheless. Blowing my hair out of my face, I motioned for them to attack me, smiling in slight amusement when I saw them hesitate. We've been through this many times before. "Let's get this over with, shall we?"

In less than three minutes I had all ten of them lying on the floors of the training rooms, groaning in pain.

I smiled sheepishly. "I'm sorry."

"It is all right, Your Highness," one of them said, grimacing as he stood up, clutching his shoulder. He chuckled. "We're glad to see that you can fend for yourself."

"You did well today, Cassia," father said, nodding in approval as he approached me. "Very well." He patted the top of my head.

"Your Highness!" Sophia, my lady in waiting barged into the training rooms. "You must attend your lessons today." When she approached me, she bowed to my father. "Your Majesty." Then she turned back to look at me. "If you miss another lesso --"

"You've been missing your lessons, Cassia?" Father frowned at me.

"What? No!" I lied. "I haven't missed a single one."

"But-- ah!" Sophia yelped when I pinched the back of her arm to keep her quiet.

"Oh Gods, it must be time for my lessons now! I must go, father." I grabbed Sophia's hand and pulled her behind me as I walked to the doors of the training rooms. Walking through a series of hallways of the large palace of Kingdom Soleil, I brought us to my chambers, then let her hand go.

"You know," Sophia said, "they will discover it eventually, Your Highness."

I sighed and sat on my bed. "I know. But until they do, I don't wish to waste the remaining time I still have left." I then stood and clapped my hands once, smiling in sudden excitement. "Now, let us sneak out of the palace."

~~~

"Must we always go through these tunnels?" Sophia whispered, clutching my arm in fear and jumping at every small sound she heard. "They are so...dark. I don't like them. I don't like them one bit."

"There's no other way to sneak past the guards and Nephos. You know that. As for the darkness..." I looked at the small fire in my hand and willed it to grow. I felt the heat rise underneath my skin until more flames burst through it, illuminating the tunnels around us.

Sophia sighed, falling into step beside me, less frightened now that we were in the protective glow of the golden light. "You are going to get caught one of these days, and I will never hear the end of it from Lady Giselle if His and Her Majesty discover you."

"Don't worry, they won't. They hasn't this entire time," I assured her, waving my free hand dismissively.

"But Your Highness, as a crown princess, you are expected to attend all of your lessons. How will you rule Kingdom Soleil without proper schooling? You've missed dozens of lessons already. You are falling behind."

I shook my head. "The lessons are useless to me. All they do is recite the books that I've already read and memorized. I'd much rather do something more...adventurous."

Sophia hung her head in defeat and sighed.

We reached a small opening at the end of the tunnel which led to a cave near a busy market. Moving two large rocks out of the way, we climbed out and stood in the large cave, the other side of which was blocked by a small waterfall. The shimmering water let in some sunlight to illuminate the cave well enough to let us see our surroundings.

I looked at the fire in my hand and willed it to seep back into my skin, then I lifted that same hand to move the water before us. The waterfall slowly moved to one side like a delicate curtain, allowing us to pass through.

As the daughter of Helios, my mother had an ability to draw power from the sun and wield its fire, while my father was a descendant of Poseidon. He could connect with water. Both of their powers had been passed on to me as a present from Hecate, the goddess of magic, on the day of my birth.

My eyes were the result of this mix of powers. Blue with many specs of gold around my pupils, which resembled two suns amid pools of water.

I twirled in one place breathing in the fresh air and the faint smell of roasting potatoes from my favourite merchant in the distance. "Freedom. No guards. No rules. No --"

"Y-Your Highness," Sophia interrupted me, biting her nails and looking behind me.

That's when I felt it. The hot air blowing on my back. I knew who it was without having to look behind me. When I did turn around, there he was -- Nephos, my mother's giant white dragon. His golden eyes regarded me with disappointment as he shook his big head.

I groaned. "Must you always be watching me? How did you find me? No matter. I will go to the market and come back before dinner. Please let me?" I looked up at him with pleading eyes.

Nephos didn't move nor make any sounds of protest, aside from releasing a light puff of air which resembled a long sigh.

I took that as a good sign and started running away before he changed his mind.

"Your Highness, wait for me!" Sophia squeaked and sprinted away from the large, fire-breathing creature, her eyes full of fear.

I clutched her hand in mine and pulled her with me. When I turned my head to check if Nephos was following us, I sighed in relief. He was simply lying down near the waterfall and watching us.

I stopped running. "It's all right. He let us go."

Sophia halted, panting. She looked back at Nephos. "You better stay where you are!" When the dragon lifted his head, she squealed and hid behind me.

I chuckled. "You do know that he would never harm you?"

"I...do, but he still terrifies me. Have you seen his sharp teeth?" She shuddered. "I don't want to be anywhere near them."

We entered the merchants market where anything and everything could be bought, from food and clothing to weapons and potions. No one around us recognized that we were from the palace. The simple clothing we wore blended in with the rest of the people at the market.

Like a child in a bakery full of delicious pastry, Sophia's eyes lit up as soon as we walked up to the rows of stalls that sold foods from all over Asterin. Merchants from every kingdom came to share their famous creations. Sunflower bread from Kingdom Soleil, apple cakes from Kingdom Poseidon, roasted silver potatoes from Kingdom Gora, honey corn from Kingdom Pesok, and smoked rice from Kingdom Typhon.

We stopped at the silver potatoes stall and smiled at the merchant. He smiled back and immediately offered us each a roasted potato. "You two always come around this time, so I had a fresh batch made for you."

"That's very kind of you," I said and gave him a few gold coins, which was much too big of a payment for these treats, but he deserved them for his skills.

"Hey! You need to pay for those!" the merchant suddenly shouted at someone.

I turned my head to see a tall man with a bow and arrow hanging from his back walk away, biting into two roasted potatoes.

"Thief!" the merchant screamed.

"I will pay for those." I put another gold coin into his hand and walked away from the stall to follow the thief with my hands in angry fists. How dare he steal from others?

The thief threw the half eaten potatoes to the ground before approaching a stall that sold apple cakes from Kingdom Poseidon. Looking around at the baked treats before him, he took one and bit into it, tilting his head to one side as he chewed. Seeming satisfied with the taste, he picked up two more and was about to leave without paying once again.

"You forgot to pay." I gripped one of his wrists and pulled him back to the stall.

Surprised, the thief stumbled as he turned to face me, his honey coloured eyes wide as he met my furious gaze.

I raised one brow when he said nothing in return. He simply stared into my eyes with curiosity. "Well? I don't see you reaching for your money. The merchants work hard to make a living and feed their families. You have to pay for what you just took."

He looked at the old merchant who stood on the other side of the stall, waiting for his payment. "I don't have any money," the thief finally said.

His voice was as smooth as warm honey, making me forget about everything for a moment. In less than a second, I was back to my own senses, but I frowned slightly at the odd feeling I'd just felt. It hasn't ever happened to me before.

Clearing my throat, I said, "If you don't have any money, why are you at the market?"

"To taste the foods of Asterin of course," he responded as if I should have already known the answer. "Will you let go of my wrist now, please? Your grip is quite strong. I don't wish to have bruises later."

I shook my head. "Not until you pay."

"Pay with what?" He raised his eyebrows and shook his empty pockets to show me that he indeed had no coins. Then he stepped closer to me, until our faces were inches apart. Putting one hand on my waist, he slowly slid it to my hip while keeping our eyes connected. I knew exactly where his hand was going, but I chose to play along and pretend that his tactic was working on me.

His hand slowly moved closer to the bag of coins hanging by my hip. When he finally snatched it off, I twisted the wrist I still held captive in my hand and pushed it into his back before kicking him to the ground.

He groaned in pain and lifted the bag of coins. "Here. Take it."

I rolled my eyes and snatched it away. Keeping the thief down with my foot, I pulled out three gold coins and gave it to the merchant who widened his eyes and thanked me repeatedly. I gave the old man a quick smile before picking up the thief and pulling him behind me by his hand.

"My apple cakes are on the ground," he protested, looking back at them as they grew smaller with the distance.

"So are the potatoes you willingly threw away after stealing," I said.

He shrugged. "They didn't taste as good as they smelled."

I groaned in frustration and pulled him harder, picking up my pace. The sooner I got rid of him, the better. I've already wasted too much time on him and my time to return to the palace was fast approaching, but I couldn't simply leave the thief in the market to steal as he pleased.

"Where are we going?" he asked curiously.

"You'll see."

As we approached an old weaponry shop, I slowed down. The familiar giant bearded man was sitting down on an empty barrel and making arrows outside. His lifted his head when we stood before him. "Another one?"

I nodded and pushed the thief forward. "Take care of him for me please, Gregory."

Gregory stood up to his full height, but surprisingly didn't tower over the thief who was equally as tall. "Ya know how to make weapons?"

The thief looked at the shop and chuckled. "My father would love this place."

"I'll take that as a yes," Gregory said. "The pay here depends on your abilities. The more weapons ya make, the more ya get paid. Today, ya can start by making me some arrows. Here," he motioned to the pile of wooden shafts on the table beside him, "I'll leave the rest to ya."

The thief shook his head with a small laugh and looked at me with amusement. "I like you, human. You've made my stay here much more interesting."

I frowned at his words, but didn't get a chance to ask him anything when Sophia suddenly ran into me. "There you are, Your Highness," she panted. "We must go back now. Dinner will be served soon." Then she looked at Gregory and gave him a quick embrace. "I will be back tomorrow, father."

"Ya won't take your mother's pies with ya?" he asked. "She baked them fresh this morning."

"Tomorrow!" Sophia yelled over her shoulder as she dragged me with her back to the palace.

~~~

"How were your lessons today, Cassia?" mother asked me at the dinner table as she picked up her goblet of wine.

I shrugged as I chewed on my food. "Same as usual."

"As in you've skipped them as usual?" she raised one brow.

I choked, hitting my chest repeatedly with the palm of my hand to calm my coughing fit. "Of course not," I said, not meeting her golden eyes.

"Mhm. Your father here told me that he heard Sophia tell you not to miss another lesson. Isn't that right, Alexios?"

Father nodded and looked at me. "And I've checked with Lady Giselle after you left the training rooms. She told me you've missed many of them. You must attend your lessons, Cassia."

"You are going tomorrow, all right?" mother said.

I sighed and put down my fork, but nodded. It couldn't be helped. They already knew. Today was possibly my last day at the market and I couldn't even enjoy it fully because of that thief.

"Oh let her be, you two. Even I know that my niece knows everything there is to know. She's had her nose in a book for as long as I could remember when she wasn't training. She's got the entire royal library in that head of hers." A woman with eyes as blue as my father's walked into the dining hall.

"Aunt Athena!" I grinned and stood up. She had last visited Kingdom Soleil an entire month ago and I missed her dearly. As a queen of Kingdom Poseidon, she had a lot of responsibilities, but she visited us whenever she could. Mother and father never took me with them when they visited her in Poseidon, so I saw her less than they did.

Aunt Athena opened her arms as I ran into them for an embrace. She chuckled and tilted us side to side before letting go. "Guess who I brought with me?"

I froze, containing my excitement. "Is it who I think it is?"

"If you're imagining me in your head, then you are right." Lena skipped into the room excitedly. "Mother let me tag along this time."

I couldn't hold it in. Not when my cousin and closest friend stood before me after months apart. I let out the loudest squeal before throwing myself at her. After a long embrace, we took each other's hands and danced around in a circle, jumping up and down.

"It's going to be loud at the palace again," father chuckled.

After having dinner together, Lena and I parted with our parents to walk around the palace gardens and catch up on the past months of each other's lives.

"Have you seen any more ghosts yet?" Lena asked.

I shook my head no. "Not since that one time when we were both nine years old. Remember how scared I was?"

She put one hand on her chest. "Not as scared as I was. I couldn't even see her! You're the one with the Sight. I was terrified when I saw you talking to air."

I laughed. "Ten years have passed and I still remember the look on your face."

Lena elbowed me.

"Ow!"

"Sorry," she snickered.

I elbowed her back and ran away screaming with laughter as she chased me around the garden, then inside the palace. Whenever we were together, we were back to being carefree children. Father was right when he said that it would be loud at the palace again.

When it was time to go to sleep, Lena and I went to my chambers after washing up. We stayed awake in my bed, chattering away until we both fell asleep to the soft sound of swaying leaves of an apple tree outside my window.

A woman stood before me, dressed in a ripped white tunic. I recognized the tall black tree trunks around me. We were standing in the middle of a clearing in the Dark Forest of Kingdom Typhon.

Wordlessly, the woman walked up to one of the trees and pointed to its roots, while looking back at me. Curious, I approached it and looked down to where she was pointing. There was a thick black piece of metal wedged deep between the roots of the tree.

"What is it?" I asked.

"You must retrieve it. You must find every piece. He is coming. He is coming for every soul. He will take everyone to the Underworld, dead or alive. You must stop him. You must --"

"Cassia?" Lena's sleepy voice woke me from my dream. "Where are you going?"

I frowned and looked at the door I stood in front of. When did I get up? I stumbled backwards when I saw the woman from my dream standing beside me.

"You must stop him. You must retrieve it. You must stop him. You must retrieve it!" she kept saying over and over until she started screaming those words as her body was being dragged into the ground.

I rushed to help her, but my hands went through her as if she was made of thin air. A quick burst of an image flashed before my eyes. It was an image of a sunflower. But it was gone before I saw any more and with one last shrill scream, so was the woman.

A ghost. She was a ghost. And my dream wasn't a dream at all, but a vision she'd shared with me.

I stood still, looking at the ground as I processed everything that had just happened. Why had she shown me that clearing? What was that piece of metal? What did the sunflower signify? What happened to the ghost? Was what she said true?

I had many questions that I had no answers to.

"Cassia?" Lena said, sitting up, her voice laced with concern now. "What is it?"

I slowly raised my head. With the ghost gone, there was only one way to find some answers. "We need go to Typhon."