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Chapter 1, chapter 2, and chapter 3 are, respectively, here, here, and here.
The king wasn’t at the palace.
The king wasn’t in the garden.
He wasn’t anywhere, as far as Lyion could see.
Although, Clem didn’t really care.
“Lyion, why are we looking for him?” she asked, watching the trees.
“Because he’s my father, and he knows about Myra, and I really don’t think it’s a coincidence that when Myra is alone in the forest he just happens to not be here!”
That got Clem’s attention. “He knows about Myra?” she asked, eyebrow cocked. Lyion groaned. Clem had only listened to that part of his mini-rant.
“He knows I meet with her sometimes.” Then he quickly told her about that morning’s conversation with the king. Clem nodded thoughtfully, and then made a very big mistake.
She let the hint of a smirk curl her lips.
Of course, there was still the king. Myra sighed as she climbed another tree. King Albert was very slippery, and clever enough that she would have been very surprised if he hadn’t figured out that she was here and that Lyion was visiting her. He was probably already at the palace by now, although Myra still had to make a sweep of the forest just in case.
She was right, of course.
Myra headed back to the palace, making sure to remain hidden. When she finally reached the palace, Myra noticed the small patch of white on the bottom of the door. She pulled it off and quickly read it, frowning slightly. A whistle later, a bird was flying away, another note attached to its leg.
Myra slipped inside without alerting the palace guards to her presence. Then, she snuck into Lyion’s room, knowing he would be there waiting for her.
When Myra walked in, she immediately noticed that the room was occupied by two guards, as well as Clem and Lyion (who was staring at her in shock). She stopped, and met Clem’s eyes. The younger girl was triumphant, and not trying to hide it. A smirk once more captured Clem’s lips.
There was a clear, simple message in her expression. I win. Myra offered a wry grimace, instead turning to the guards that had trapped her as soon as she had crossed the threshold of the bedroom.
“Do you two think it wise to allow the crown prince to be in the same room as an inevitable fight, with only two guards to protect him?” she asked coolly. Both men glanced simultaneously at each other, to the exasperation of Myra. “Turning your back on me is a great idea,” she muttered.
Lyion opened his mouth, realizing where this was heading. “No, I am not leaving,” he snapped.
The younger of the two guards paused, but the older one just rolled his eyes and gestured for help in getting the boy out of the room. “He’s a stubborn one,” he murmured to his partner.
When all three had left--accompanied by Lyion’s protests--Myra locked the door.
Then she walked over to a sighing Clem.
“A room with a window?” she asked, slightly amused. “A really big and easy to open window? And the window is right over a convenient bed. I’ve never known you to make this many mistakes, Clementine!”
Clem smiled sweetly. “Then go ahead and try getting out. I’m sure you’ll find it very...amusing.” Myra shrugged and opened the window. It was worth a try. She was about to climb out when she heard an unmistakable click. She turned around, her eyebrows rising.
Clem was standing there and in her hand was a gun. Directed at Myra, of course.
“Are you sure you want to climb out of that window?” Clem asked with a smirk.
“Are you sure you want to shoot me?” Myra asked very softly. Then she whistled: one note, very high, very short.
Clem’s stomach sank as she heard Myra’s whistle. Nine people came through the door, eight girls and a boy. Six of the girls were carrying two blindfolded, tied-up guards, who were deposited in a corner. She noticed that one of them was twirling a small lockpick. The last two girls were holding a scared boy. Scared, because one of the girls was holding something to his throat, drawing Clem’s eyes.
It was a knife.
She slowly turned to face Myra, amazement apparent on her face, the gun still cocked, unwavering. Myra was watching her with a kind of detached curiosity.
Clem could barely speak. “Y-you wouldn’t,” she whispered. Myra tilted her head, as if to say, “Wouldn’t I?” Clem turned to face Lyion again, for that was who the boy was.
“C-Clem? M--” he managed, remembering at the last moment that he really shouldn’t say Myra’s name in front of palace guards, although he realized a split second later that they were unconscious. “What’s going on? Why is there a kn-knife at my throat? W-why are you climbing out of a window, Myra? And why do you have a gun, Clem?!”
Myra turned away. “Why don’t you explain?” she asked Clem.
Lyion interrupted. “And while you’re doing that, please clarify how you went from hugging to killing each other.” Some of the girls that surrounded him smiled or snickered.
At that moment, Clem resented Myra, resented her for putting her in such a bad position. She had to give a good reason as the two guards that answered to the king would question her sooner or later, unless the king questioned her himself. She really didn’t have a choice. Clem would be in huge trouble if Lyion, the crown prince, was hurt because of her actions, and so she pretty much had to give up maybe her only chance.
“Well, you see...” Clem debated on how to explain to Lyion. She decided to just state the facts. “Okay, so I was going to, uh, shoot Myra, and then you came in, and now if I, uh, shoot her, she, uh, well, you know...”
Even if she had only just met him, Clem should have known better. She glanced at Lyion’s reaction. Lyion had been turning paler and paler throughout the explanation, and, short as it was, now was as pale as smoke.
“You were actually going to shoot her?!” he asked in anger, and not a small bit of complete and utter befuddlement. Of course, that would be the only thing Lyion focused on.
She felt that she needed to defend herself, so she quickly answered. “No, because she would have ki-hurt you if I did!” She flinched as Lyion froze. Clem immediately backtracked. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that!”
“But it’s true, isn’t it?” Lyion asked in a dead voice.
Clem nodded, as she considered the possibility of escaping the girls on either side of her. But then there was Lyion. She sighed. Clem caught Lyion’s eye, and, when she did, she glanced at her feet, then her captors, her feet, then her captors...it took a while for Lyion to understand, but when he did, his eyes grew wide. He nodded.
“Give your weapon to Mason, Clem,” Myra said. Clem caught her eye and glared at her. Did Myra seriously think she was going to hand over her weapon? “Clem,” Myra added quietly. Glancing at Lyion, Clem handed the gun to a girl who had been behind her, noticing, as she did, that there were were a lot of familiar faces in the room.
After Mason handed Clem’s weapon to yet another girl, she went back to standing near Clem.
Clem mouthed ‘Now!’ at Lyion.
He wasn’t very good at fighting, but he still managed to land a punch or two on the girls holding him, enough time for Clem to get over there and help (she had escaped her captors by simply kicking them in the shins and stomach a couple of times, before snatching her gun back from Mason). She stomped on the foot of the girl to the right of Lyion, wondering once again why on Druwald did they choose her to go this mission? The girl was finicky, quite girly, and just plain silly.
Lyion quickly took advantage of his freedom and started trying to delay the other guards who were coming to help their friends. Another whistle was given. Suddenly, the window was open and the only people in the room were her, Lyion, and Myra.
Clem glared at Myra in suspicion. Why had Myra given the signal? And why had it been so easy to get away from the other girls? They were quite accomplished at fighting as well.
Myra looked back at her calmly. “Are you’re wondering where they all came from?” she asked Clem, who just nodded. “I was warned, by a certain someone--,” Clem’s bad feeling was immediately justified when Myra looked at Lyion, “--that you seemed to be plotting something. So, naturally, I brought back-up.”
“And now I’m sorry that I warned you,” Lyion muttered, loud enough for both girls to hear.
Clem ignored her annoyance. She knew she could still usurp Myra. “It doesn’t matter anymore. What matters is that you’re trapped.”
Myra shook her head sadly. “Oh Clem, you never did learn.”
Then everything turned black.
Lyion jumped, afraid as the darkness descended over the room.
“Myra...” he heard Clem mutter.
Suddenly Lyion heard a voice near his ear. “Skupina Divek. That’s your answer.” A gust of wind, and Lyion didn’t sense anyone next to him anymore.
“Uh, C-Clem?” Lyion asked, trying to make his voice stop shaking. He heard Clem sigh.
“I know, you’re scared of the dark,” she muttered.
Lyion frowned, his fright (and confusion) forgotten for a moment. “I am not!” he argued. He did have some ego.
“Okay, okay, you’re not,” Clem said, to pacify him, “Anyway, the light will turn on soon.”
“How do you know?”
Clem laughed as the light flickered on. Myra was gone.
“I-” and then she stopped. “Never mind.” Lyion’s curiosity was aroused (it got aroused by almost anything). so he repeated his question. Clem gave the same answer she had before, and then walked out of the room, effectively stopping the conversation. Lyion followed, muttering something about stubborn females.
Clem dropped Lyion off in an empty room, that he recognized as one of the many guest rooms in the palace, and told him to stay there until otherwise told, along with a slightly terrifying look. Before Lyion could say anything, she was gone, leaving Lyion really bored and with way too much time to think about what just happened. Skupina Divek? What was that the answer to?
Suddenly he had an idea. Why not go to the forest and just sit there for a while? He always felt calmer in the forest, and, anyway--why listen to Clem? He convinced himself that she had just told him to stay put because she was afraid he would get into trouble, or some other unimportant reason, then snuck out of the room and down to the forest. He broke into a run once he got there, heading for the clearing. It was empty, except for a very dead rabbit. Lyion walked closer, and then turned the rabbit over. wondering where it had come from.
Unfortunately, as soon as he touched it, a bag fell on him and everything went black.
Again.
Chapter 1, chapter 2, and chapter 3 are, respectively, here, here, and here.
The king wasn’t at the palace.
The king wasn’t in the garden.
He wasn’t anywhere, as far as Lyion could see.
Although, Clem didn’t really care.
“Lyion, why are we looking for him?” she asked, watching the trees.
“Because he’s my father, and he knows about Myra, and I really don’t think it’s a coincidence that when Myra is alone in the forest he just happens to not be here!”
That got Clem’s attention. “He knows about Myra?” she asked, eyebrow cocked. Lyion groaned. Clem had only listened to that part of his mini-rant.
“He knows I meet with her sometimes.” Then he quickly told her about that morning’s conversation with the king. Clem nodded thoughtfully, and then made a very big mistake.
She let the hint of a smirk curl her lips.
***
She was right, of course.
Myra headed back to the palace, making sure to remain hidden. When she finally reached the palace, Myra noticed the small patch of white on the bottom of the door. She pulled it off and quickly read it, frowning slightly. A whistle later, a bird was flying away, another note attached to its leg.
Myra slipped inside without alerting the palace guards to her presence. Then, she snuck into Lyion’s room, knowing he would be there waiting for her.
When Myra walked in, she immediately noticed that the room was occupied by two guards, as well as Clem and Lyion (who was staring at her in shock). She stopped, and met Clem’s eyes. The younger girl was triumphant, and not trying to hide it. A smirk once more captured Clem’s lips.
There was a clear, simple message in her expression. I win. Myra offered a wry grimace, instead turning to the guards that had trapped her as soon as she had crossed the threshold of the bedroom.
“Do you two think it wise to allow the crown prince to be in the same room as an inevitable fight, with only two guards to protect him?” she asked coolly. Both men glanced simultaneously at each other, to the exasperation of Myra. “Turning your back on me is a great idea,” she muttered.
Lyion opened his mouth, realizing where this was heading. “No, I am not leaving,” he snapped.
The younger of the two guards paused, but the older one just rolled his eyes and gestured for help in getting the boy out of the room. “He’s a stubborn one,” he murmured to his partner.
When all three had left--accompanied by Lyion’s protests--Myra locked the door.
Then she walked over to a sighing Clem.
“A room with a window?” she asked, slightly amused. “A really big and easy to open window? And the window is right over a convenient bed. I’ve never known you to make this many mistakes, Clementine!”
Clem smiled sweetly. “Then go ahead and try getting out. I’m sure you’ll find it very...amusing.” Myra shrugged and opened the window. It was worth a try. She was about to climb out when she heard an unmistakable click. She turned around, her eyebrows rising.
Clem was standing there and in her hand was a gun. Directed at Myra, of course.
“Are you sure you want to climb out of that window?” Clem asked with a smirk.
“Are you sure you want to shoot me?” Myra asked very softly. Then she whistled: one note, very high, very short.
***
It was a knife.
She slowly turned to face Myra, amazement apparent on her face, the gun still cocked, unwavering. Myra was watching her with a kind of detached curiosity.
Clem could barely speak. “Y-you wouldn’t,” she whispered. Myra tilted her head, as if to say, “Wouldn’t I?” Clem turned to face Lyion again, for that was who the boy was.
“C-Clem? M--” he managed, remembering at the last moment that he really shouldn’t say Myra’s name in front of palace guards, although he realized a split second later that they were unconscious. “What’s going on? Why is there a kn-knife at my throat? W-why are you climbing out of a window, Myra? And why do you have a gun, Clem?!”
Myra turned away. “Why don’t you explain?” she asked Clem.
Lyion interrupted. “And while you’re doing that, please clarify how you went from hugging to killing each other.” Some of the girls that surrounded him smiled or snickered.
At that moment, Clem resented Myra, resented her for putting her in such a bad position. She had to give a good reason as the two guards that answered to the king would question her sooner or later, unless the king questioned her himself. She really didn’t have a choice. Clem would be in huge trouble if Lyion, the crown prince, was hurt because of her actions, and so she pretty much had to give up maybe her only chance.
“Well, you see...” Clem debated on how to explain to Lyion. She decided to just state the facts. “Okay, so I was going to, uh, shoot Myra, and then you came in, and now if I, uh, shoot her, she, uh, well, you know...”
Even if she had only just met him, Clem should have known better. She glanced at Lyion’s reaction. Lyion had been turning paler and paler throughout the explanation, and, short as it was, now was as pale as smoke.
“You were actually going to shoot her?!” he asked in anger, and not a small bit of complete and utter befuddlement. Of course, that would be the only thing Lyion focused on.
She felt that she needed to defend herself, so she quickly answered. “No, because she would have ki-hurt you if I did!” She flinched as Lyion froze. Clem immediately backtracked. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean that!”
“But it’s true, isn’t it?” Lyion asked in a dead voice.
Clem nodded, as she considered the possibility of escaping the girls on either side of her. But then there was Lyion. She sighed. Clem caught Lyion’s eye, and, when she did, she glanced at her feet, then her captors, her feet, then her captors...it took a while for Lyion to understand, but when he did, his eyes grew wide. He nodded.
“Give your weapon to Mason, Clem,” Myra said. Clem caught her eye and glared at her. Did Myra seriously think she was going to hand over her weapon? “Clem,” Myra added quietly. Glancing at Lyion, Clem handed the gun to a girl who had been behind her, noticing, as she did, that there were were a lot of familiar faces in the room.
After Mason handed Clem’s weapon to yet another girl, she went back to standing near Clem.
Clem mouthed ‘Now!’ at Lyion.
He wasn’t very good at fighting, but he still managed to land a punch or two on the girls holding him, enough time for Clem to get over there and help (she had escaped her captors by simply kicking them in the shins and stomach a couple of times, before snatching her gun back from Mason). She stomped on the foot of the girl to the right of Lyion, wondering once again why on Druwald did they choose her to go this mission? The girl was finicky, quite girly, and just plain silly.
Lyion quickly took advantage of his freedom and started trying to delay the other guards who were coming to help their friends. Another whistle was given. Suddenly, the window was open and the only people in the room were her, Lyion, and Myra.
Clem glared at Myra in suspicion. Why had Myra given the signal? And why had it been so easy to get away from the other girls? They were quite accomplished at fighting as well.
Myra looked back at her calmly. “Are you’re wondering where they all came from?” she asked Clem, who just nodded. “I was warned, by a certain someone--,” Clem’s bad feeling was immediately justified when Myra looked at Lyion, “--that you seemed to be plotting something. So, naturally, I brought back-up.”
“And now I’m sorry that I warned you,” Lyion muttered, loud enough for both girls to hear.
Clem ignored her annoyance. She knew she could still usurp Myra. “It doesn’t matter anymore. What matters is that you’re trapped.”
Myra shook her head sadly. “Oh Clem, you never did learn.”
Then everything turned black.
***
“Myra...” he heard Clem mutter.
Suddenly Lyion heard a voice near his ear. “Skupina Divek. That’s your answer.” A gust of wind, and Lyion didn’t sense anyone next to him anymore.
“Uh, C-Clem?” Lyion asked, trying to make his voice stop shaking. He heard Clem sigh.
“I know, you’re scared of the dark,” she muttered.
Lyion frowned, his fright (and confusion) forgotten for a moment. “I am not!” he argued. He did have some ego.
“Okay, okay, you’re not,” Clem said, to pacify him, “Anyway, the light will turn on soon.”
“How do you know?”
Clem laughed as the light flickered on. Myra was gone.
“I-” and then she stopped. “Never mind.” Lyion’s curiosity was aroused (it got aroused by almost anything). so he repeated his question. Clem gave the same answer she had before, and then walked out of the room, effectively stopping the conversation. Lyion followed, muttering something about stubborn females.
Clem dropped Lyion off in an empty room, that he recognized as one of the many guest rooms in the palace, and told him to stay there until otherwise told, along with a slightly terrifying look. Before Lyion could say anything, she was gone, leaving Lyion really bored and with way too much time to think about what just happened. Skupina Divek? What was that the answer to?
Suddenly he had an idea. Why not go to the forest and just sit there for a while? He always felt calmer in the forest, and, anyway--why listen to Clem? He convinced himself that she had just told him to stay put because she was afraid he would get into trouble, or some other unimportant reason, then snuck out of the room and down to the forest. He broke into a run once he got there, heading for the clearing. It was empty, except for a very dead rabbit. Lyion walked closer, and then turned the rabbit over. wondering where it had come from.
Unfortunately, as soon as he touched it, a bag fell on him and everything went black.
Again.
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