Shining Armor

by Halle Dean

  It's my fault, Warner thought. If I had waited to make sure that everyone was out. If I had given Mason fifteen minutes instead of ten. If I hadn't suggested the others go in and clear everyone out in the first place.

  "No," Melody whimpered, curling up on the floor of the saucer. "No. No."

  "Melody, I—" Warner said. "I'm sorry."

  She didn't respond. Layla knelt down by her side and helped her sit up. Melody's face was shining with tears and she leaned into Layla's shoulder, weeping. Warner didn't know what to do. He looked to James.

  "Is there any way he's not…"

  James shook his head. "He—the whole place—it's gone." he said. "That's the point of the sphere, isn't it?"

  Warner looked down at Melody. "I'm sorry," he said again. "It's my fault. I shouldn't have—"

  "I shouldn't have let him run off," she interrupted. She took in a shaky breath before continuing. "I should have insisted he leave with me."

  "Shh, shh," Layla said, brushing her fingers through Melody's hair comfortingly. "It isn't your fault."

  "Everything is... is my fault!" Melody argued, trying to speak clearly through her sobbing. "None of this... would have happened... if I never cast that spell. It would have been better... if I had died when I was a baby."

  "Don't say that," Warner said. "No one believes that. Besides, I would never have made it to Coriander if you had died then."

  "And then Mason would have died that time when he was younger," James pointed out.

  "Then... I should have stayed dead when Warner killed me," she said miserably. With that, she pushed Layla away and vanished herself into The Void.

  "Melody!" It was pointless to call for her, but Warner couldn't help it. He didn't want to leave her on her own when she was so distraught.

  She may be off to kill herself, other Warner said.

  "No," Warner said helplessly. "What do I do now?"

  "She could be anywhere," James remarked.

  "She—perhaps she simply needs time alone," Layla said shakily. "Perhaps she'll find us again when she's calmed down."

  "I hope that's true," Warner said. "I don't know what I'll do if she—"

  "Don't think about that," James said. "You need to keep up positive thoughts at a time like this. You don't want evil Warner taking over."

  Stop calling me that, other Warner grumbled.

  "We should continue with the plan for now," James went on. "I know it will be different without Mason to help explain, but we cannot give up. Sophie should be nearly there by now."

  "Yes. Sophie still needs help." Warner took a deep breath and refocused his mind. "We must hurry."

  Thirty Seven

  Home Again

  Sophie had the strangest sense that something was wrong. She wanted to turn back and create a new plan, but they had already reached the speed port. She looked around for the man Warner had described to her. There was a dark-haired man near the front of a long line of people, but he seemed too old. Aaron Marks was supposed to be eighteen.

  There were so many people that it was hard to know where to start looking. Sophie was feeling very stressed. She already had a bad feeling and not being able to find Warner's contact only made her more uneasy. Someone tapped her on the shoulder and she jumped in surprise. She spun around to see a black-haired, green-eyed, young man.

  "Princess?" he asked. "I did not realize it was you that Warner was sending. I am Aaron."

  Though he was Deyinfian, his accent wasn't quite as strong as Petunia's. Sophie sighed in relief and gave a small smile. Aaron didn't smile back, but turned and beckoned for them to follow.

  "It is a pleasure to meet you," she said, taking Ella and Jace's hands and following. "Warner said you would show us the way?"

  Aaron nodded, leading them away from the long lines and big crowds.

  "There are two of you also," Ella said as they came upon a plain door.

  Aaron looked down at her, eyes narrowed suspiciously. She narrowed her eyes back at him.

  "It's all right, Ella," Sophie assured her before giving an apologetic smile to Aaron.

  He said nothing, simply opening the door. Sophie hesitated for a moment before entering. She was still feeling uneasy. The room was empty except for a large, stone sphere covered in Magic Speak symbols.

  "I know you are in a hurry," Aaron said, rapping his knuckles on the side of the sphere. A door opened in the side of it. "I will explain quickly. Go inside and tie yourself down tight. When the door closes, you may wish to close your eyes until the spinning stops."

  "I no want this," Jace mumbled as he closed his eyes very tightly.

  Aaron let out a short laugh as he closed the door. Sophie closed her eyes and tried to mentally prepare for the trip. A moment later, she realized that she could not possibly have prepared enough. It was similar to being in The Void, but with more spinning. There was air to breathe, she could tell, but her lungs were being compressed too much to take advantage of it.

  She tried not to think about how the trip would take ten minutes. It did not seem possible to survive that long, but many other people had made much longer trips via speed ports. Sophie wondered how Ella and Jace were faring. She opened her eyes and immediately regretted it.

  It seemed as if everything was spinning independently from everything else. She couldn't even tell what was what in the dim light. The only sound she could hear was a roaring, like the sound of a whirlwind. Shutting her eyes again, she hoped the time would pass quickly. She silently vowed to never use a speed port again, as long as she lived.

  * * *

  "No," Ella said as they finally climbed out of the sphere. "No. No."

  "I know, sweetheart."

  "No."

  "She upset," Jace said. "No like speed port. Very dizzy."

  "We won't go again," Sophie promised.

  "Nap time," Ella said, starting to lie down.

  "Not now, Ella," Sophie sighed, holding onto her daughter's arm to keep her upright. "We must hurry."

  "I carry princess again," Jace suggested, kneeling and allowing Ella to climb onto his back. She yawned and rested her head on his shoulder as he stood up.

  "You are very sweet, Jace," Sophie said.

  "I like sweets," he remarked wistfully.

  She smiled. "We'll have to have some when this is done."

  "No." He shook his head sadly. "Father say no sweets."

  "Why?"

  "I not know," Jace shrugged.

  "Well, we'll see later." She turned and saw the castle, up on the hill across the village. "For the moment, we should keep moving."

  She kept her face hidden with her hood until they made it inside. Edric had never placed guards at the doors. It seemed he enjoyed trespassers, as they gave him an opportunity to show off his power by killing them. At least it made it easier for Sophie and the children to make their way through the castle.

  "It's been too long," a voice said from around the next corner. Sophie panicked and looked around for a place to hide, but found nothing. "He should have returned by now."

  "What lead was he following anyway?" It was Alex's voice. Sophie breathed a sigh of relief.

  "He was chasing Melody," Patrick said, leading the way around the corner and into view. "What else?"

  "But why did he go alone?" a young man with dark hair and blue eyes asked. Sophie was fairly certain that his name was Lion. His younger brother, Blue, was walking with him, Alex, and Patrick. "I'm sure he could have used some help."

  Sophie knew they would see her at any moment. Instead of trying to get away, she steeled herself for the confrontation she had come so far to make. She took a deep breath and answered Lion's question.

  "He wished to go undetected." The four knights looked up in surprise. Alex and Patrick drew their swords. "Wait, please." Sophie raised her hands in surrender. "I'm here to explain."

  "You're the impostor of the princess," Alex accused.

  "You impost?" Jace asked her, eyes wide.

  "No,"
she said. "I'm not an impostor. I am Sophie Cameron."

  Patrick scoffed. "Princess Sophie died five years ago."

  "No," she said again. "I nearly did, but Warner… came to his senses."

  "Is Warner here?" Alex asked, peering around Sophie at Jace and Ella. "Who are these children?"

  "Warner will be here soon," she said. "Mason and Melody are with him. And James Paisley."

  "James?" Alex repeated, his apprehension seeming to lessen somewhat. "Why is he involved in this?"

  "Warner made friends with him after he fled the kingdom," Sophie explained. "They're in the Magics Society."

  "So, I suppose that Mason ended up believing whatever story Warner told him?" Patrick said. "If he's with him now?"

  "Mason is gone now," Ella said sleepily. Everyone looked at her.

  "What?" Sophie asked.

  "He went in the little ball and didn't come back," Ella said matter-of-factly.

  "Ella, what do you mean?" Sophie asked, confused and a little bit worried.

  "Ask Daddy," Ella said, climbing down from Jace's back. "Don't ask Melody though. She is sad."

  "Ella—"

  "Who are these children?" Alex asked again.

  "The boy is Jace," Sophie said a little shakily. "He's from Notatsu and uses healing magic." Jace bowed his head toward the knights. Sophie put her hand on Ella's head. "This is Ella. She's my daughter. I'm not sure what she is talking about, though."

  "Yours and Warner's?" Patrick asked, scrutinizing Ella. "She looks very much like him."

  Sophie nodded. "Yes," she said. "You can ask Jane and Caroline. They need not worry about keeping the secret any longer."

  "The maidservants?" Alex exchanged a wary look with Patrick. "You're saying they knew you were alive?"

  Sophie nodded. "We could go speak to them now."

  Patrick looked down. "They're dead."

  Sophie felt the blood drain from her face. "What?"

  "Edric killed them," Alex said quietly. "A few weeks ago."

  "Are—are you sure?"

  Alex nodded. "He did it in front of everyone. He said it was what happened to those who did not follow orders."

  Sophie covered her mouth with her hands and tried to keep herself from crying. It's my fault, she thought. They let me escape and he killed them for it. "I'm sorry," she said, her voice breaking as a few tears slid down her cheeks.

  Alex sheathed his sword. Patrick was still staring at the floor.

  "This must be the real reason then," Lion said. "They knew she was alive."

  "Then, you really are Princess Sophie, aren't you?" Alex said, looking hopeful.

  Sophie nodded, wiping her tears on her sleeve. Ella reached up and held her hand. Sophie felt a strange sensation spread through her and then she felt much calmer.

  "That son of a bitch," Patrick mumbled. "I'll kill him."

  "He's dead already," Sophie said. "Mason killed him."

  "Mason did?" Alex asked. "After all these years of holding back?"

  "He can explain more when he arrives," Sophie said. "They should be here soon."

  "I can't say I'm too put out by that news," Lion said. "Although, the king's personal guard will not be pleased."

  "No, we are not," a man said as he stepped around the corner. Seven other men, all dressed in the same black and red robes, followed behind him. They all glared at Sophie. "These three will be taken into our custody now," the front man said. "We shall deal with them."

  "We shall deal with them, Marcus," Alex said, side-stepping in front of Sophie. "We are the knights."

  "No," another of the men said coldly. "As of now, the royal knights have been disbanded."

  There was silence for a moment as all the knights looked at him in shock.

  "You can't do that," Sophie said firmly. "Coriander law clearly states that the knights—"

  "Silence, woman," Marcus said, holding his palm up to her.

  "Be respectful," Patrick said, raising his sword. "That's the princess of Coriander you're speaking to."

  "She is no longer necessary except to bait Warner Munday."

  "He's not someone it would be wise to try and trap," Sophie said.

  "You most likely won't live to regret it," Alex added.

  "The next person to speak out of turn will be executed," Marcus said, narrowing his eyes.

  Blue looked like he was about to say something, but his brother put a hand on his shoulder. "Don't," Lion said.

  Marcus raised his arm and swiped it down towards Lion.

  "No!" Patrick shouted as Lion collapsed.

  Marcus made the same gesture towards Patrick. He fell to the ground and the clattering of his sword echoed through the hall.

  "I can do this indefinitely," Marcus said, emotionless. "Does anyone else have any remarks?" Sophie looked on in horror. Alex and Blue tried, silently, to rouse the other two, but they didn't move. Ella began to cry and Sophie quickly covered her daughter's mouth. "We won't kill the little girl," Marcus assured her. "We need her for now."

  He marched past the distressed knights and grabbed Ella by the arm. Sophie tried to stop him, but he shoved her away. Ella screamed and struggled, but Marcus magically made ropes appear to tie her up.

  "Momma!" Ella cried. "Momma, help!"

  Sophie got to her feet, but the robed men had surrounded her.

  "We will take the others to the lower dungeon."

  Sophie could hear Ella's screaming and wailing as they were dragged away from each other. Things were not going as planned. Warner and the others should have been there already. Why had Ella said that Mason was dead? Sophie prayed that things would begin to improve, but she was quickly losing hope for a happy outcome.

  Thirty Eight

  A Dangerous Choice

  Layla was still in shock. In the space of only a few days, her life had turned extremely dangerous and potentially fatal. She looked to James and Warner. They seemed so calm, compared to how she was feeling. Their friend had just died and Melody, the person who was supposed to get them to the castle, had vanished. She supposed they were trained to keep a level head in times of trial.

  "Is it safe to touch it now?" James asked, eyebrows raised in apprehension.

  Warner nodded and took hold of the glowing sphere that had been hanging in midair. "It needs to recharge its magic before it can do anything," he explained. "That will take about a century, so we should be safe."

  He pulled a pack out of midair and gently set the sphere inside.

  "Why don't you put it in The Void?" James asked.

  "It won't let me."

  "Speaking of which," Layla spoke up. "How will we get to Coriander without Melody?"

  "Oh," James said, eyes widening. "Warner how—Warner?"

  Layla looked at Warner to see he had an angry expression on his face.

  "No," he said. Layla guessed he wasn't talking to her or to James. "That's not going to happen."

  "What is he—" Layla started.

  "Last time was an accident," Warner said through gritted teeth. His eyes were shut tight. "I'll find another way... There has to be... I know that!"

  "Warner," James said.

  "What?" Warner snapped, opening his eyes to look at James.

  "What is he saying?"

  Warner scowled. "He wants me to let him take over so we can use The Void."

  "Uh, no," James said. "That's a no, from me."

  "Why?" Layla asked. "We don't have another way to travel quickly. Nothing happened last time, right?"

  "Layla, last time was a special case," Warner said.

  "This is a special case," she pointed out. "Sophie will have reached the castle by now. What if they don't believe her story? What if they kill her on sight, as they are ordered to do?"

  "But, evil Warner is... evil," James protested. "What if he doesn't let our Warner take over again when we get there?"

  "I'm not suggesting that this is an ideal situation," Layla said. "I'm only saying that it's very likely that Sophie will di
e if we don't get there soon. And that goes for Ella and Jace as well."

  Warner looked terribly conflicted. Layla felt bad for him. She also felt scared, but she was slowly becoming desensitized to being in danger. Crossing her arms, she looked between the two men. Warner was staring at his feet and muttering to himself and James was looking unsettled.

  "Don't let him kill me though, if you don't mind," James said.

  "He has no say in what I do." Warner's unhappy expression had morphed into a smirk. Layla took a step back as she saw a strange, dark look in his eyes. "You'll be glad to know that I'm not in the mood to kill you just now."

  "Ah, evil Warner," James said with an uneasy smile.

  "If you refer to me as such again, I may change my mind," Warner said coolly. "And we don't have the time for that at the moment." He held out his hands to both James and Layla. "Let's storm the castle."

  Thirty Nine

  The Lower Dungeon

  Jace was tired and scared. He did not like to be alone and he was very alone in his cell. Sophie was in one of the other cells, but he could only barely hear her sobs through the thick walls. He found himself wishing he had stayed home where it was safer. Even if he had to deal with his father, he was less likely to die at home.

  "Princess," he called through the barred door of his cell. "It all right. Mister Warner save us. He on way?"

  "I don't know, Jace." Sophie's sniffling voice drifted over to him. "He sh-should be here already."

  "Princess Ella all right," Jace said, trying to be comforting. "They not hurt her."

  Sophie began sobbing again and Jace felt lost. He did not know what to do. The princess was reminding him of his mother. He could heal physical injuries, but he had no magic that could make people happy again. There was no way for him to help.

  After awhile, Sophie spoke again, her voice shaky. "I'm sorry you got pulled into this. I wish I could apologize to your parents too."

  "It all right," he said. "Mother know and Father not care."

  "I'm sure he cares," Sophie said.

  Jace shook his head, then remembered that she could not see him. "No," he said. "He not love me."