The Chaotic Kingdom - Chapter 2

<-Chapter 1

(Aluria)

The battle raged on for days with neither Starlight nor Cashlin able to get the upper hand. Sunlight got dragged away to help fight another breech of the castle, and Moonlight stayed busy trying to protect the wounded. Starlight visibly reached the limits of her skills and magic alike and would either run out entirely of the latter, or be forced to burn her Seed and destroy herself. Cashlin could almost taste the triumph at hand. 

One of his generals had been standing by for quite a while as he waited for a cue. Cashlin did not actually want to kill Starlight; killing the current Activated Ruler Cultivator of Aluria would do nothing except cause Moonlight to become Activated instead. His preference, really, would be to get all three removed from Aluria in a way that would prevent them from coming back, or break one of them down enough in some fashion that he could take her as his wife and ensure his own succession.

"Give it up, Starlight, and come to heel," he told her coolly. "If you had just accepted my suit, then this would not be happening." He stared at her with some distaste. It bothered him that even with her armor in tatters and her Mask cracked, dirt and blood streaking her, he could still desire her. So terribly annoying.

"Screw you," she retorted, borrowing one of her sister's favorite insults. "Neither I nor my sisters will ever give in to you!" She managed to smile mockingly even though she was in pain from her head to heels and so tired it made its own agony. "It must sting to know all three of us rejected you."

Enraged, he turned and gestured to his general who held up the odd colored globe on his hand and activated it. The light inside washed out and over Starlight with enough power to illuminate the entire area. She could not even scream as her feet left the ground for her voice had been frozen. Her eyes met Cashlin's, and he smiled at her nastily. "Enjoy your long life elsewhere for Aluria is mine now."

The light sucked her away from Aluria, and as the light faded, the kingdom realized their queen had disappeared. The army was forced to lower their weapons. Sunlight and Moonlight would have fought on, but they got kidnapped from the field by their own Defenders and carried swiftly away to safety. They had to survive for if the worst happened and Starlight was lost, one of the other triplets would have to Activate instead to ensure Aluria's survival.

When Cashlin received word that neither princess could be found, he thought about his many options. It really would be better if perhaps he did kill Starlight and force Moonlight to become Activated. Finding her would be quite easy if that happened, and then he could turn his attention to trying to corrupt her Seed. She might well be the easier target of the sisters, in fact, for while she had great defensive magic, she had no physical skills to back that up. Burn out her magic brutally and then move in for the final strike. It appealed.

He glanced at his general. "Glacia, send some soldiers after Starlight."

Glacia lifted a chocolate colored brow. "You want her dead after all?"

"Indeed. I have other plans."

"Alright. As you command."

 

* * * * *

 

(Protea)

Tasia slowly rode her horse across the hilly but open plains that circled the city of Vericity on one of Protea's landmasses as she made her way toward the next city in the distance to check in with the mayor and see how things went. Certainly, she could have transported there via her magic as a Cultivator, but she had absolutely no hurry and the ride would only take a few hours anyway. One of the duties her entire generation held was to be an ambassador of sorts to visit the completed and near completed cities of their mother worlds, and Tasia also did the same for Protea while Raine Fujisawa—Reagan's twin soul and the Daffodil Dual Cultivator of their generation—did the same for Delphinium. Being an ambassador basically meant checking in with city leaders and making sure everything went smoothly and that there were no issues to be reported back to the queens. Once their entire generation got crowned, all would find new ambassadors until they had children grown enough to do it themselves, and then the cycle would repeat.

Tasia had gotten halfway to her destination when a power swept across her skin that she did not recognize. Her baby dragon, Anira, sleeping in a little basket hanging from the saddle, opened her eyes and gave a curious squeaking noise as if to imply she had felt it too. Anira's parents, Haeth and Striker, flew back from where they had been flying ahead and they circled Tasia as she dismounted. "Any idea?" she asked them as she gently put Anira on her shoulder.

It's not power from Protea, Striker told her mentally. He could only speak to the minds of telepaths, so only Tasia, Racine, Allister, and Rodi heard him. Luckily, he could use a fair bit of semaphore for the others to understand him. His ears suddenly flattened and his entire body vibrated with multi-elemental magic as he prepared to defend his family and mistress. To the East!

 Tasia turned sharply and saw the light opening. Her hand moved toward the Mask hanging from her bracelet as she watched. She then ignored her Mask as she saw a bloody and battle-worn woman expelled from the light. She rushed across the field and slid to her knees beside the prone figure. "Hey!" she said softly, pitching her mystical voice to a soothing cadence. "Can you hear me?"

The woman looked not at all familiar with ivory skin, short silver hair, and lovely features. Very short but leaning to the plump side, implying more magic than strength—and she definitely had magic! Tasia could very plainly feel the Seed and Illusion Flower Element inside the other woman and knew that she was not just a Defender Cultivator but a Dual. Not from Blossom Field—not when she smelled like an edelweiss flower—but definitely still one. Curiously, however, for all Tasia's knowledge of the flowers of the worlds in the universe, she had no knowledge of any being the edelweiss.

She also looked to be in terrible condition, and her armor had probably once resembled the edelweiss but now had been nearly destroyed. Her Mask, too, had been cracked terribly. Tasia gently removed the Mask and shrank it down, which would allow it to restore itself. She winced as the armor disappeared to reveal casual royal wear of an unfamiliar sort that had been just as ruined. Unfortunately, once damage affected a Defender's armor enough, it started transferring to the clothes it had replaced. Every tear and cut showed another bloody wound, and it also revealed the Flower Mark over her heart that named her a Ruler and the one on her upper left arm that named her a Defender. Two blossoms to the latter, implying she was in her second tier, and all were indeed the edelweiss. Interestingly, the blossom on her chest had a sparkling edge to imply she was the only Activated Ruler of her world, but her Defender Mark did not. Her world had more than one Defender.

The woman's lashes flickered slightly and then lifted. Her green eyes the same color as her edelweiss looked up at Tasia dazedly. She tried to ask something, but it came out in a language Tasia unexpectedly did not know either. The sorceress cast a quick spell and then said, "Can you try again? I gave you our languages."

"Where . . . am I?" It came out painfully, but in Blossom.

"Protea." Tasia took her hand and brought it to the covered Flower Mark on her shoulder that named her as a Defender of Iris and Aria alike, and she smiled softly. "Just relax, you're safe now." Her voice became soft and melodic and promised safety and peace. It felt the same as her arcanistry flowing into the woman's body to gently coax her mind into shutting down so she could rest.

"Defender?" Starlight managed to ask drowsily. She had drained her magic so much that she could not actually tell if she felt a Seed inside the other woman, and cloth covered her Marks, but that gesture of bringing her hand to the left shoulder was one used by Defenders only. From a Defender to a lover, it was an intimate gesture asking for support. From a Defender to a Ruler, it became a sign of respect and an indication of protection. She did, however, feel something. Something incredibly powerful just pouring into her soul with a surge so hot she felt a bit as if she had been punched—but not hurt. It felt . . . beautiful. Safe.

"Dual," Tasia promised softly. "I am the Dual Cultivator of Iris, and the Defender Cultivator of Aria. I am the Lead Defender for my generation here in Blossom Field. Rest, my friend." She pushed a little harder on the spell.

Starlight inexplicably felt so tired suddenly that she could not keep her eyes open. At least she was safe. She knew she was. She could trust this beautiful Cultivator; something glowed from inside her soul to the outside and just made her wonderful to behold. Starlight let herself go and slipped deeply asleep without protest.

Tasia was about to grab her communications mask from the bracelet to call for another healer when the light that had continued to linger suddenly expelled four armed and uniformed—unfamiliarly uniformed—soldiers. All carried weapons, wore bad attitudes, and very did not look like a rescue party of any sort. Tasia held Starlight a little closer and snapped, "Trespassing without invitation on Protea is a bad idea. Go back to where you belong!"

"We're here to kill that woman," one snapped back. "It's our duty."

"It's my duty to protect people, so you've got a problem, boyo!" She laid Starlight down gently and got to her feet. She knew full well that Rodi would sense her in danger and grab LeAnn to come rushing to her aid. All Caretakers to Defenders usually came equipped with the needed skills and strength to support their soul mate in battle, and she more than most had an exceptionally powerful Caretaker. She just also happened to have one who had enough common sense to grab additional Defenders before rushing in. She grabbed her Mask and got to her feet as her dragons began to circle her. "Don't press your luck."

The soldiers edged back slightly with sudden unease. They had thought she was just a human, but she had a Mask. Moreover, she had begun to radiate a different power entirely that they could not name. Something in her eyes promised she would be deadly. A swirl of a shadowy galaxy across her pupils looked like a glimpse of infinity. "Who are you?" the leader managed to ask.

She smiled. "Some of my friends think I'm Karma itself. I don't know where they got that idea. I'm just a sorceress with arcane power." She pulled on her Mask and her armor came to cover her protectively. It resembled the purple iris of her Mother world, but parts of the armor had turned gray to show her connection to Aria, her adopted Mother world. She got the satisfaction of watching the men stumble back and trip over themselves as they tried not to be the first in her line of fire. "Now," she asked calmly as she held out a hand and called for her sword, "do we do this the easy way, or the fun way?" The sword looked no less impressive than its owner and felt ancient and powerful alike.

Judging from the way the warriors kept trying to hide behind each other, Tasia had to guess they would want to do things the easy way. She saw one move suddenly and casually stepped aside as he shot an arrow at her. The projectile went off harmlessly into the distance. She lifted a brow. "That was almost insulting." She held up a hand where Ice magic began to gather.

Fog rolled into the plains and cut off nearly all visibility. It felt bitterly cold and uncomfortable as well. The enemy could not see anymore, but Tasia saw through it perfectly. She knelt to check Starlight one more time before moving in for the attack, and two figures materialized out of the fog. "Good timing," she told them in a voice that literally carried no further than Rodi or LeAnn's ears. The former carried his sword as well, and the latter had on her Mask and armor.

Go have fun, Rodi told her telepathically. LeAnn and I will keep an eye on our visitor.

Tasia grinned and then got to her feet to move silently through the fog; she and her allies alike could see through it as if it wasn't there, and they felt no change in temperature. She could hear the soldiers mumbling something about 'Jeo' and his similar power, and she filed the knowledge away for later use. She moved forward and appeared from the fog right in front of the four soldiers. "Surprise, kids."

It took her less than a minute to disarm all four and plant them on the ground. No doubt they were good enough for their normal jobs, but they could not compare to a fully trained Lead Defender. Frankly, there was no one who had ever defeated her. She knew two people who could push her to work for a win, but she had never been defeated.

She stepped closer and looked down at the man near her feet. "Go back to where you came from," she ordered softly, "and tell your leader that this woman is now under the protection of the Resurrection Cultivators of the Blossom Field galaxy. I then want you do something else."

He couldn't look away from her eyes no matter how hard he tried. It was as if he had been bound where he was, too terrified to move. A sorceress. He wished he had believed her. "What?"

"Hide." She stepped back and watched as all four soldiers scrambled into the light and it closed behind them. She would have borrowed Yvette's Personal Communication Assistant—PCA for short—if she had known this would happen. It had a scanning feature that could have been useful. She needed to have it put on her own as soon as she could get to Robert. With a wry shrug, she put it behind her as she walked over to where the other two were with the woman. "How is she?"

"Exhausted," LeAnn said succinctly. "She's been run ragged for far too long. She's damn near burned herself out on her magic, and her Seed is partially wilted from it. She needs someone to patch her back together physically and then a long time of not using magic in order to let it recover. It's a pretty glaring reminder that no Cultivator—except you and the two Apexes—have infinite power or magic." She lifted her head and looked at her twin with grave pink eyes. "Our peace is shattered, isn't it? This is the start of the next war."

"Yeah. Yeah, I'd say so." Tasia watched as Rodi lifted Starlight gently and then put her arm around LeAnn's waist. "Let's hold off calling Theo as long as possible. Maybe this will be easily handled."

"Fat chance," LeAnn sighed. "When has anything ever been easy for us?"

 

* * * * *

 

Cashlin settled on the throne more comfortably and considered the man standing in front of him. He had every confidence in General Glacia's battle ability as well as his majik. Cashlin had never heard of such a thing before Glacia had arrived little less than three decades earlier, but he had proven his skill in manipulating ice as part of his Ice Flower Element—for which he had been named—and his Nature Flower Element alike. The king only felt concern for Glacia returning to Protea after so long; Cashlin had not intended to send Starlight there at all, but it had happened anyway. "Can you do this?" he asked. "Or might it be too much for you?"

"I can handle it. With your leave, I intend to touch bases with my family as well. I expect them to have written me off, but I would like to see if I can get back into good graces with my daughter. I can handle them while handling the Resurrection Cultivators, I am sure."

"You have permission to contact your family as it would make a decent cover. Are you sure about the Resurrection Cultivators, though? Their sorceress Lead sent my four strongest soldiers running home like whelps. I know you are not without your own powerful majik, but you are still just a witch."

The man smiled. "I don't know how I'll do against her, but I'd like to try. She sounds fascinating at the least, don't you think? Leave everything to me, Your Majesty. I'll kill Starlight and make sure the Resurrection Cultivators don't bother us at all."

 

* * * * *

 

Shanae took one look at the party trooping into the castle with an unconscious woman and just sighed. "Of course." She swung around and headed back up the stairs to grab a few servants and prepare a guest suite.

Rodi followed her upstairs and went to the second floor medical room where Lower Queen Kacey Daffodil waited with Raine. As soon as Starlight was settled on a bed, the two healers got to work. Rodi rejoined Tasia and LeAnn in the hall, and all three of them shared a long look.

Emily Hyacinth and Ryan Orchid came down the stairs, with Devin perched on Emily's back, and both Dual Cultivators looked just as annoyed as LeAnn had sounded earlier. "Okay, so what's going on now?" Emily asked.

"A refugee Dual Cultivator of some sort from a world I didn't recognize—which is saying something," Tasia told her. "I kicked the asses of the men who followed her." She didn't bat a lash at the sight of the small cornflower-haired boy clinging onto Emily any more than her friends did when they saw Anira. Devin had a powerful attachment to all of the Resurrection Cultivators, though he had a clear preference for Raine as his elder sister and Tasia.

"Of course you did." Emily started to say more when a loud chirping came from Tasia's PCA. "Isn't that your tone for Beth?" She watched with lifted brows as her leader answered and then winced slightly as her face darkened in a way that was not good. "Great. Now what?"

"That was indeed Beth. There's a monster rampaging near the port on this landmass and all other communications are down. Only our PCAs work right now because of the recent upgrade Robert made to the system." She put the phone away and then took Devin and put him on the ground. "Go find your dad, kid," she told him.

"Aww . . ." He grumbled as he ran off, and he sounded so much like his father that the Resurrection Cultivators grinned.

Since neither Tasia nor LeAnn had removed their Masks, Emily and Ryan pulled theirs on as well. Communications may be down, but transport magic still seemed to be working fine, so they took themselves directly to the scene and found Racine, Beth, Reagan, and Storm all in Masks and armor as well and trying to keep the damage to a minimum physically.

It took Tasia only a second to realize they had not used magic because they couldn't. A blocking spell had sealed the area. Her eyes narrowed sharply. She probed at the spell, found it impressive but not up to her standard, and also not capable of stopping anything beyond the common Flower Elements. A little smirk touched her lips and she fired off a blast of Light magic that seared the monster's sagging flesh. It whirled toward her on a roar. "Come and get it!" she taunted.

It charged toward her . . . and skewered itself as her sword appeared in her hand at the last moment. She did not lower the weapon as the monster fell to the ground and melted away to nothing. "Someone else is here," she said in a low voice.

Storm turned suddenly and fired an arrow up into a tree. A man cursed angrily and then leapt out of the tree and landed on the ground. Glacia pressed a hand to the wound on his arm and scowled. He hadn't known the Gladiolus Defender had found him until he had been hit. If he had wanted him dead, there would be an arrow in his chest. Glacia evaluated everyone in front of him and clearly sensed their majik as strong as their magic. "All of you are witches? Interesting. I've never seen a hybrid." He spoke Protean with utter fluency, which seemed a little surprising.

"We're a special generation," Racine agreed. She smiled and pointed at Tasia. "Especially her. She's a little higher on the hierarchy."

"So you're the Lead Defender of your generation?" He slowly walked toward Tasia and watched in bemusement as she pushed LeAnn back a bit more in the telling gesture of a twin soul. Interesting that she be Iris for either role, really. "I understand you're a sorceress."

"I am. I possess what we call arcanistry, which is a combination of magic, majik, and arcane power. I have infinite reach and no limitations." Her voice sounded as chilly as her power. "It would do you well to remember that." She studied him intently but he wore an all-covering mask of his own, and he was using his majik to disguise his voice and presence alike. She could have punched through and figured his identity out in a second flat, but a little warning shiver of premonition told her not to just yet. "What are you here for?"

"I'm here on King Cashlin's orders to kill Queen Starlight Aluria." His own voice cooled. "I wouldn't suggest getting in my way again or I'll block more than your communications."

"Oh please!" Emily smirked. "Iris, I'll help you."

Both Defenders' eyes flashed with the color of their majik and the sound of the spell shattering echoed in all ears. Glacia felt his first real nerves and paled a bit as he realized that even the witches were no ordinary ones either. The Resurrection Cultivators could merge powers and spells without physical contact or words. He took a slight step back. "Well, this ought to be interesting."

"Who are you?" LeAnn demanded.

"My name is Glacia, and I'll be the force that destroys you all." He turned and disappeared into a similar light to the one Tasia had seen before.

"Who was he?" Reagan demanded of Tasia. "You know. You have to know! You know all witches because you're High Priestess!"

"I actually don't know," Tasia admitted. "He's blocking himself. Something tells me not to press for now, so I won't. It will come to light soon enough. In the meanwhile, we have a clear issue. Starlight Aluria must be the Dual Cultivator I saved, which means her world is called Aluria, but damned if I know where that is. Cashlin is probably the reason she ended up here, and Glacia is one of his right hand generals. Pleasant."

"It hurts to see majik used for bad or evil," Ryan said in a low voice.

"Just because nearly all witches do good does not mean all do, for majik has spread far from where it started. That will never change, not even if we eradicate all evil. Removing evil merely removes the most terrible of events and ensures there can always be a happy ending, that there will always be a way to push through the hard times. That the risk of the annihilation of all existence has disappeared and we Defenders will no longer be needed. Even with that, however, humans will still find ways of hurting each other. We could not enjoy good without bad. That's balance." Tasia crossed her arms. "He's strong, but not really comparing to any of us. My biggest concern is his presence overall. We don't want him finding out who we are lest there be problems."

"How do we manage that?" LeAnn asked. "Everyone in Blossom knows that the Lower and High Rulers are Dual Cultivators across both generations. That hasn't been a secret in millennia. How do we just block that from spreading?"

A little smirk touched Tasia's lips. "The same way Glacia hides himself. A little blocking spell of my own on Blossom will handle it, if Racine and Aunt Claret help me."

Pause, and then, "Is this one of those times where we really don't want to ask how you do things?"

"Definitely. Beth, call Theo. He's off his honeymoon and on active duty. We're also returning to Protea Castle to check in and see how Starlight is doing." Tasia cast the transport for all of them, and they landed in the grand entry. Everyone pulled off Masks and returned them to jewelry, and Beth got out her PCA. As much as they did not want to call in Theo, they had no choice.

This promised to be a much bigger deal than they had anticipated originally.

 

©Stacy J. Garrett. Do not reprint or redistribute without permission.

Chapter 3->

The Chaotic Kingdom - Chapter 1

(Aluria Castle, Aluria; Resurrection Year 32)

The room was so cold that it felt like an iceberg floating on a frozen sea, yet, the chill had nothing to do with temperature. The woman walking through it could not see her breath, and she was actually sweating in the heat. The cold she felt was inside her soul and not her skin. She pulled her cloak tighter around her shoulders as she crossed to the crystal coffin sitting at the other end of the room. Perhaps her sister's Sight had been wrong for once. It had never happened before, but there was a first time for everything. There was no danger here and nothing had changed from the last time she had visited.

The coffin reached little over seven feet in length, and sleeping within its crystal body was a man. She had known him all of her life, yet they had not spoken in five years, six months, and three days. Every second had engraved itself into her soul where he had been torn away from her. He lived, but he was beyond her reach.

Only a friend's emergency healing had saved him, and even now he wasn't entirely recovered. The coffin could only prolong his life while he healed slowly. It could not work miracles. Tears slid down her cheeks as she pressed her hands against the face of the coffin. "I'm sorry," she whispered softly. "I did not mean for this to happen to you. If only I had been there, maybe I could have done something."

There was no answer, but she had not expected one. There were no more miracles to be had for her. She heard a sound behind her and turned her head to see her two sisters waiting for her at the base of the stairs. Both of them watched sadly. Rubbing her eyes briskly, the woman took a deep breath and crossed the room to join them. There was no time for regrets, no time to worry. There was a war to fight.

As the three left the room, only the pink haired one looked back to see a long jagged crack running along the face of the coffin. She smiled. They weren't out of miracles, not yet.

 

An encampment not far away prepared to make war against the castle. It wouldn't be easy to do for every possible entrance to the kingdom was tightly guarded, and the kingdom's defenses itself would be difficult to breach as well. Their only hope, the encroaching king thought to himself, was to take out the queen and her two sisters. A feat easier said than done, he acknowledged wryly.

Though only the queen was an Activated Ruler Cultivator, and her two sisters were Deactivated, none of them could be discounted for they were all Defender Cultivators as well. They had been made part of Aluria's chosen Cultivators, and the Seeds inside their souls gave them immense magic. The queen held the Illusion Flower Element and her skills crossed both Ruler and Defender, and she held offensively oriented magic on the latter. The middle sister held the Time Flower Element and she had defensively oriented magic as a Defender Cultivator. The youngest sister had the Nature Flower Element, and defensive magic as well, but she also possessed incredible skill with a sword that meant she nearly did not need her magic at all. The three together made a formidable set without adding in the seven other Defender Cultivators of Aluria who crossed the seven other common Flower Elements of existence and had vowed to protect their queen and princesses with their lives. Already during this war, one had done exactly that. The Defender possessing the Glass Flower Element had fallen in the first wave. The invading king could not call it a victory, though. Not when her own daughter had immediately Activated as a Defender in her place. A child she may be, but no one who wore a Mask could be discounted.

Still, an advantage lay on the enemy side. The king glanced to where soldiers prepared a catapult. He had reached for magic he did not have naturally, and now he would use it brutally as he liked. Magically enhanced attacks would pierce the defense just enough to get his soldiers in before the kingdom's army of knights or Defenders could stop him.

He gestured for his brother to join him, and they walked across the field to where he would give his speech to the soldiers. They made dissimilar brothers, despite sharing fair hair and appealing features. Such a discrepancy in their personalities existed that most did not think they were related at all.

The king had a handsome face but his narrowed, cruel, blue eyes could not be disguised. His brother had features more beautiful than handsome, but his blue eyes always looked slightly vacant and deeply mad. The moments of sharp intelligence amid the madness only made him more terrifying.

He wore the oddest hat on his head at all times. A stocking cap, like a court minstrel may wear. It looked very out of place with his soldier's uniform, but it was his prized possession and almost his most identifying feature. Most called him merely 'Minstrel' though his name by birth had been Durante. He bore a third name as well, though no one ever spoke it to his face.

Five years before, Minstrel and his rival had engaged in a fierce battle that had ended with Minstrel mortally wounding his enemy. He had not walked away himself, however, as the middle sister of the kingdom had struck him down with her blade. He bore a scar across his back from the ordeal and had no idea what had happened to his rival. To that day, people still whispered about the Raven and Dove locking blades.

But only in whispers, for the dark-haired Raven was the bringer of peace, and the Dove the bringer of war.

 

* * * * *

 

(Delphinium Palace, Delphinium)

The entirety of the Blossom Field galaxy and beyond buzzed happily with excitement and energy. Another royal wedding was about to happen! This marriage belonged to the kingdom of Aster from the world of the same, and would unite Crown Prince Theodore Mallory with his fiancée, Kimber Richards. They had been betrothed for many years, and now they would finally permanently seal their lives together, and someday very soon, they would become the Lower King and Queen of Aster. A fitting role when Theo happened to be the Dual Cultivator—both Ruler and Defender—of Aster for the first generation of the Resurrection Era.

It was early October of RN Year 32. It had been over a year since the last war against evil had ended, and no one took the peace for granted. The groom, in particular, felt happy with the quiet of the galaxy. He quite looked forward to a long honeymoon where he and Kimber could be entirely alone.

Bubbling with happiness, he twirled in front of the mirror and watched his wedding clothes shimmer against his fair skin. It was a far more elaborate version of his Ruler suit as a Cultivator, and it had been made of brocades and silks and the agate stones of his world. His own adopted mother as well as one of his best friends had made it for him, and he loved how it looked. He had more than a little bit of an addiction to style and looking good, but he didn't see that so bad a thing. A coronet of orange asters and agates sat atop his coiled and curled cardinal red hair, and he had a matching bouquet waiting. Tradition said that whoever walked down the aisle—which was always the highest ranking half of the couple—would carry a bouquet to be tossed out at the single folks to see who may get married next. He already knew who would catch his.

Crown Rulers getting married could select a personal attendant and three companions to accompany them down the aisle as well as help them get ready before. Theo had picked Bethany Jackson as his attendant, and Storm Peacer, Raine Fujisawa, and Reagan Delphinium as his companions. The dressing room had been filled as much with laughing as it had work. The four had been friends for what felt like a lifetime—and almost had for some of them.

"Who is babysitting the tiny terrors?" he asked as he let Beth fuss a bit more over his hair. "It would normally be Tasia, but she's kinda busy marrying me off."

"And enjoying it wholly," Reagan giggled. "The terrors are being babysat by Olivia. She has the best time of it, really."

The tiny terrors were few in number but many in quirks and power. Anna Aria was eight years old and a rather powerful witch already; Relisha and Percival Statice were both five, with Relisha being a Ruler Cultivator and both sharing some special skills as well as majik; Devin Daffodil was also five, and though not a Cultivator, had some as-yet undefined power as well as too much charm and sass; and the youngest was Daelan Aria, Anna's little brother, who had turned a year old in June of that year and already showed great majikal promise. Anastasia Aria—Tasia to her friends—was Anna and Daelan's mother as well as the Lead Defender of her generation, a sorceress, and the High Priestess of the Protea Kingdom, so she by far had the best luck at taming the horde of sass and energy. Olivia Martine, however, was Tasia's mother and therefore a fair hand herself at handling powerful troublemakers. She had raised not just Tasia, but also Storm and Raine since their widower father was her dearest friend; he had helped raised Tasia in turn.

There came a light knock on the door, and Storm went to peek around the edge to see who was there. He pulled his head back in and said blandly, "Help me think of excuses to get Kari into a ball gown more often, please. I mean, seriously. Beth, can I make a request for her future wedding dress?"

Amid the laughter from even Kari, Beth walked over and peeked around Storm's shoulder at the woman in the hall. Kari's fair skin, rust hair, and auburn eyes had been well-complimented by someone putting her into blue tones. "Wow, you're right, Storm. She really wears that well! Aunt Ashe and I are totally taking requests."

Kari Anohue did not bat a lash for she had well gotten used to her lover's friends; they happened to be hers as well, really. There was nothing sacred in the circle of Resurrection Cultivators and their soul mate Caretakers alike, and no one would have it any other way. "Thanks, I think. I'm just a messenger to let you know that we're about ready to go." She heard a step and looked over to see Asheria and Jayden Aster approaching. "Make it quick," she warned them. "Tasia said five to places."

"Thank you five," Theo told her on a grin.

"Theatrical junkie," Reagan teased.

The current Lower Queen and King of the Aster Kingdom stepped into the room and then stopped short as they saw their son. He was theirs only by adoption, but he was still no less theirs. "Oh," Asheria breathed. "Oh, Theodore! You look so wonderful! Damn it!" She snatched her husband's handkerchief to wipe her eyes. "No crying! I told myself I wouldn't cry!"

Theo smiled and stepped closer to hug her tight. He had been given two wonderful mothers in his life, and he was honored by the gift. He loved Asheria and Jayden no less than his birth parents. "I'm so glad I found you both." He looked at Jayden with a tremulous smile. "You've been a wonderful dad."

"Don't do that," he complained. "You'll make me cry too." He stepped over and hugged them both tightly and he knew he held his entire world right there.

"Places!" Kari called through the door.

Asheria and Jayden left the room again and went to the space where the ceremony was being held. They joined Maria Mallory on the right side of the room where the family of the groom was to stand, and the three parents shared a smile. "Thank you," Asheria told her softly, "for sharing him with us. Did you see him?"

"Earlier when he was first getting ready. Reagan shooed me out because I kept crying!" She swiped at her eyes and smiled as her other, elder, son joined them. "You're next."

Terrence Mallory grinned at her. He and Theo showed clear resemblance in their identical coloring, but could not actually pass for twins, much to their relief. "No, I'm not. Beth and I are only betrothed right now, and there's someone else around here that is long overdue to take a trip down the aisle to wedded bliss."

The three parents exchanged a look of lifted brows. That sounded like the Resurrection generation, both Cultivator and Caretaker alike, planned something rather specific. Jayden thought about what he knew and suspected, and suddenly snorted softly as he realized where things may he headed. "Oh, gods. This will be good."

The music started up, and the procession began. The attendant led the groom while the other three flanked him. They escorted him down the aisle to where a visibly dazed Kimber stood, looking equally beautiful in her gown as a future Aster princess by marriage, and they passed him into her care. The couple then turned and walked the rest of the way to the altar where the High Priestess of Protea waited to marry them. The sacred duty of marrying off the princes and princesses of the Lower worlds in Blossom Field lay only in her hands—and since she happened to be one of them herself, from Iris, she took particular humor and enjoyment in such a thing.

Caramel eyes sparkling, Tasia Aria began, "Once upon a time, not so long ago . . ."

 

* * * * *

 

(Aluria)

The catapult had worked. Soldiers had gotten over the walls before the army of knights could do anything, and now they had a chance of being able to breach the castle itself. The Alurian Defenders had scattered across the world to protect other very critical locations, and Starlight knew it came down to her and her sisters to handle everything.

Sunlight was sharpening her blade, and Moonlight was polishing the scapolite gem on the end of her magic rod. They both looked at their sister as she took up her sword and both fell into step beside her as she went down the stairs. It was their kingdom, damn it. No one could take it away from them!

"I'll take Cashlin on solo," Starlight decided grimly.

"Whoa, back up there. Let me do it," Sunlight protested. "You're not as good as I am."

"It's my duty," Starlight argued. "I am the queen of Aluria, and one of her Defenders as much as you. I need to do this."

"Screw that!" Moonlight said in annoyance. "The last thing we need is a repeat of Raven! At least let us go along and cover your back!"

Starlight hesitated and then nodded slowly. "Alright." All three pulled on their Masks to call their armor as Defenders, and then she threw open the doors of the castle and let the three of them run out into the streaked sunset that promised to turn everything to red.

Blood would spill, and not all of it would be the enemy. Sunlight did not need her Sight to know it.

 

* * * * *

 

(Delphinium)

The reception acted more like a party than anything else, and everyone laughed and danced and had a wonderful time. Dane Iris, the Lower King of the world of the same, kept the music going and occasionally managed to coax his daughter into singing along. Tasia had the most beautiful voice in the entire universe, and it was also the most powerful for she was a Mystic. Lovers were forced to sway together when her drugging contralto voice sang of immortal love.

High Princess LeAnn Protea bided her time until the Mystic sang a particularly romantic tune before slowly making her way across the room to where the Captain of the Royal Knights for Protea had hidden himself in a corner. It had been more than a year since she had confirmed him to be her soul mate and future Caretaker, and as she had suspected, her age of twenty-seven—reached just days before—had begun to make people lift their brows in wondering why she had not paid much attention to her suitor list. Two others of her generation, Emily Hyacinth and Ryan Orchid, had begun to get the same look. More, perhaps, since Emily would turn thirty-one at the end of the month and Ryan would be thirty in December. But they, like LeAnn, had no need for a suitor list. They already knew who they wanted. While the dissimilar siblings waited for their soul mates to return, LeAnn instead moved toward claiming her own. She had never wanted anything more than she wanted Captain Rubeo Chance. And she would have him one way or another. If she had to pull out the big guns and seduce him into being forced to marry her, so be it. He was her soul mate, and it was about damned time he realized it.

Chance sensed her long before she got close. His head lifted quickly and his eyes found her where she crossed the room toward him. The look in her eyes made him instantly wary. He knew that look. It was the look she got when she was after something and didn't give a damn for the consequences. It had been amusing in a child and slightly vexing in a teenager. It felt downright terrifying inside a grown woman capable of finding any way to get what she wanted.

She made no effort to shine in the room, and yet she was effortlessly one of the most beautiful women present. Her Ruler gown of course resembled the black protea of her world, and the petals clung to every lush curve of her body while seductively revealing the powerful muscles in her arms. Normally her equally strong legs could have been seen under the lower petals of the skirt, but a full black hoop skirt had been added underneath to make the dress more formal for the occasion. A single black pendant rested on top of her bodice, guaranteed to draw eyes that direction, and matching earrings dripped to her shoulders.

Her protea pink eyes had been enhanced by pale green eyeshadow, and her thick black hair fell to her waist in loose waves with white streaks striated across the surface. One did not need to look at her gown or the coronet of proteas and amber atop her head to know she was a High Princess. She walked, breathed, and embodied grace and power. She was breathtaking. Beautiful. Enticing. Desirable. And one hundred percent off limits.

Damn her.

She stopped in front of him and linked her hands behind her back. Her dress tugged across her chest, revealing that the highest petals climbing to her neck were not completely opaque and that the Flower Mark over her heart as well as the top curves of her breasts could be seen from close enough. He told himself he did not feel tempted by the sight at all.

He lied.

An innocent smile touched her kissable lips, and her luminous eyes looked guileless as she leaned back just a bit to see his face better. He stood only four inches taller than her five-ten height. "Hello, Chance."

It was the bane of his existence that her voice had changed slightly over the years. It had started from the moment she and her twin soul mate had met and bonded. Her twin's Mystic soul always overlapped her own and one could not be in constant contact with a Mystic and not gain musical gifts of their own. Tasia's soul-brother, Logan Fujisawa, had been born relative normal but over thirty years had become a Virtuoso. Her soul mate and husband, Rodi Aria, had been born a Shaman but evolved within a few short years to Virtuoso. LeAnn had also been born relatively normal, but the last few years had evolved her to a Shaman herself. The shift to her power to give it a musical application had resulted in changing her naturally lovely voice to something unforgettably beautiful.

Every time she talked to Chance, that beautiful voice sounded richer, breathier, and entirely seductive. He tried to convince himself everyone heard her voice that way, but he lacked the nerve to ask. "Hello."

The innocent smile curved at the end knowingly. "I'm surprised you're even here. I thought you were allergic to crowds."

"Your mother twisted my arm. The entirety of the two kingdoms are required to be present for a royal wedding, and that includes me as Captain of the Royal Knights. Artois of Delphinium's Royal Knights is here as well." He kept his voice calm and without emotion by sheer willpower. She was wearing perfume. It smelled like majik and mystery and lush nature. The urge to find where she had applied it was consuming and hard to fight. "What do you want?"

"A dance." She grinned when his brows lifted. "You heard me. I want a dance with you."

"You haven't been dancing at all." As soon as he said it, he cursed himself. He didn't want her to know he had been watching her.

She ignored the slip up though it delighted her. "I was saving myself for you." She held up her wrist where a small card dangled. The names of her few suitors were written on it. She had been deflecting dozens since her twentieth birthday, and only five had made the cut. Unknown to Chance, she had only accepted those five at all as a cover. "I decided that I would not dance with any of these people until I danced with someone I actually care about." She took his hand and began pulling him out onto the dance floor.

She stopped them in the very middle, and he felt brows lifting across the room as people stared at him on the floor. "LeAnn," he started, only to stop as she stepped forward into his arms. Her hands slid up to link behind his neck without any effort. She fit perfectly in his arms as if their bodies had been made to become one. He found his hands settling on her waist without his will, and his fingers felt burned by the heat of her body. She smoldered like the sun that powered her Nature Flower Element. Even then, in the sunlight coming through the glass ceiling of the grand ballroom, she literally exuded more sunlight from her body as a soft glow around her.

"Just one dance," she coaxed softly, her voice an intimacy that swept across his body and soul. Her lashes lowered slightly, and she kept her triumphant smile hidden as he stepped forward and smoothly guided her into the dance. He carried the romantic three-note dance perfectly, of course. He had always deigned any skill, but she knew otherwise. One of her gifts as a Shaman was to pinpoint musical talent, vocal or physical, in others. Though it had taken seven years for her gift to come in wholly, it had been worth the wait. It was another weapon to be used in this most important battle.

He did not know what was inside her mind, nor did he realize they made a spectacle for everyone else. The graceful and beautiful High Princess of Protea, and the handsome, but quiet, Captain of the Royal Knights. Chance may have been surprised to discover he carried a lot of respect, and happened to be quite liked despite his distance from people. Whispers started to flow, but all of them were as delighted as they were surprised as people began to wonder.

He had not noticed the whispers at all. A blend of a mystical voice and his princess' presence had taken him away. His eyes riveted to her face, and he desperately struggled to ignore how she felt in his arms. That damned pendant was a lodestone that constantly drew his gaze to her tempting body. He had given it to her in the past because he had seen it and thought she would like it. She never took it off now, and seeing it always around her neck made his heart ache painfully.

The ache was unfamiliar and frightening, and it became alarm as she suddenly shot a flirty look up at him from under her lashes. A very distinctly flirty look that could not be misinterpreted, even by him. "I think you might want to explain," he said as mildly as he could.

She didn't pretend to misunderstand. "I decided it was time to make my intentions plain." She smiled as he twirled her expertly and then, when she went back into his arms, she stepped closer than before. "You're a smart man, Rubeo Chance. I imagine you can guess what's going on."

He stopped dancing and lifted his hands sharply. He was in much deeper water than he had realized; he had started sinking before he had known he needed to tread. "LeAnn," he said swiftly, "you're looking for trouble."

"Oh, I'm not looking for trouble." She smiled. "I'm looking for a husband." She curtsied deeply and elegantly, and her royal upbringing was so vividly obvious that even a fool could notice. He wasn't a fool, and he felt incredibly large and clumsy next to her. "I waited for you for three years to notice me," she told him, "but that has not happened. Therefore I will simply have to take matters into my own hands." She calmly removed the card around her wrist and dropped it on the floor. "As by right of my royal blood, I remove myself from eligibility in order to pursue the one I want." She turned away with her hands linked behind her back and then looked back over her shoulder to purr, "And the one I want is you." Without another word, she walked across the floor toward where Lower Queen Veronica Carnation and her husband, Maxim, stood talking with Kami Jackson, Beth's birth mother.

Shock held Chance immobile for a moment and then he cursed violently and stalked off the floor. People cleared his path quickly but he barely noticed. All those who watched him go began to smile to themselves. LeAnn's parents were also watching from across the room, and Shanae and Robert exchanged a smug look. "Let the games begin," the High Queen murmured in satisfaction. She leaned over to a Royal Knight nearby and said, "Would you tell the Captain that he better get his ass back in this ballroom? He knows he's not allowed to leave until the married couple departs. And, yes, quote me." She smirked a bit as the snickering Knight hurried off.

Her action played right into the other plans already in motion. Theo had already had quite a discussion with Crown Princess Racine Statice as well as Storm before the wedding even began. Both Dual Cultivators possessed the skill of Telekinesis which meant they did not need to touch something to move it; they could move it with their mind. Both had come onboard with the plan immediately. After all, the eight Dual Cultivators of the Lower worlds considered it a sacred duty to help their High Princesses get what they wanted.

Theo climbed up onto a chair to give him better aim with his bouquet and watched with a tiny smile as most of the single people gathered. Even Emily and Ryan joined the ground with LeAnn—but only as a cover. Several people eyed LeAnn with clear hope as they waited to make a grab for the flowers, and Chance, once more leaning against a wall not far away, nearly bared his teeth at the idiots clamoring for his princess' attention.

"Alright, everyone!" Theo turned his back and hoped his friends and wife moved fast. He didn't want to be sporting bruises and broken bones on his honeymoon. He started to lob the bouquet over his shoulder, but the chair suddenly toppled and sent him flying. The bouquet went heavily off course, and he gave a shout as Allister Statice, Rodi Aria, and Kimber shot forward to catch him safely. All four looked at each other and then slowly looked to where the bouquet had landed.

As everyone followed their gaze, the entire room began to laugh. Chance stared at the flowers in his hands and then narrowed a fierce glare at Storm. He simply arched a brow back, as if to dare Chance to accuse him of anything. Chance looked at LeAnn instead, and she sent him a distinctly saucy wink. At his wit's end, he turned on his heel and left the room entirely before he got in even more trouble.

Tasia stepped over to LeAnn and held out a hand that her twin soul slapped lightly with her own. "Stage one, complete," she said in satisfaction.

 

©Stacy J. Garrett. Do not reprint or redistribute without permission.

Chapter 2 (January 27th, 2023)->