XXX– The Promise of the Past       ‘The twilight darkens, the curlew calls Along the sea-sands damp and brown Then traveler hastens toward the town And the tide rises, the tide falls Darkness settles on roofs and walls But the sea, the sea in darkness calls’       “Say, Aria?”   “Hm?” the Princess hummed, not raising her eyes from the poem she was reading. In her defense, at least she’s listening.   “Do you remember the time when we celebrated my birthday at the gardens?” Jin asked, turning away from the falling snow outside to look at his friend.   “Yes, what about it?” she asked without looking up, flipping the page to another, eyes dancing on the lines, “Do you want to go outside, Jin? It’s freezing out there, you said s

XXXII– the Queen’s Gambit       Jin Sanscroft opened his eyes.   He had fallen asleep… in the midst of doing paperwork in his study it seems–again. Sighing, the knight raised a hand to rub the drowsiness from his eyes but stopped short as he slowly moved his hand away, startled at the dampness of his own face.   Tears were still rolling on his cheeks.   That’s… odd.     He had been crying in his sleep…?       * * * * *       “Sir Sanscroft! Sir Sanscroft, milord please we need your help!” Miss Eden Brighton’s loud and panicking voice rang out across the quiet halls of Sanscroft manor–it was loud enough to wake the dead.   Frowning as he glance

XXXIV – Consequences       “We need to rendezvous as soon as possible and meet up with Miss Brighton outside. Hopefully we will find Sir Brighton in the Princess’ private wing or meet up with him there on the way…” Sir Snow Ainsworth was saying beside them while Sir Jackson Celestine began leading their party out of the dungeon–most of it was reduced to rubble now and if that didn’t alert the guards then Jin has no idea what will.   Hopefully the false-Queen’s men aren’t smart enough to trace their way out of… wherever they are heading now.   Jin had to shake his head a bit before the ringing in his ears can truly fade to listen better, where Sir Jackson managed to procure such dangerous explosives, he didn’t really want to know… are knights even allowed to stash such precarious equipment inside the safety of their own homes–he doubted that was even legal.  

XXXVI – Unveiled       “What is the meaning of this?!”     The mirror watched on in glee as Queen Ysabel with her usually fashioned dark blonde hair now completely messed up and her gown wrinkled as she frantically paced back and forth in front of her distorted reflection, her hands running through her tangled locks as she continued to panic.   News of the kingdom being invaded in the middle of the night by demonic beasts that simply won’t die had finally reached her ears in the midst of her supposedly victorious celebration, the people being hunted and devoured like livestock as they speak, the land pillaged and stained with blood and the only thing protecting her right now from them are the palace gates and very few of her men armed by mere swords and bows, becoming less and less–   “Why is this happening? Wh

XXXVIII – A Prophecy to fulfill       Ysabel all but stumbled forward clumsily in her heels with Sir Quentin leading her with a firm grip by the arm, “Are you sure you know where we are going, you fool?”   He didn’t answer.   She scowled, “We’re lost, aren’t we?!”   “No, no milady I was just… I truly apologize for the inconvenience, but this is the safest route we can take in the palace wall, out of sight from everyone,” the knight replied, looking around a bit too frantically for her tastes, “…and safe from those creatures,”   She bit her lip, opting to keep her mouth shut, cradling the sack she brought with her containing all the jewelries and gold she managed to steal and gather from her vault and the King’s chambers–it was fortunate they had not decided to clean her deceased husband’s chambers just y