Young Writers Society

Author's Note: Hey, guys! I'm not sure how many of this novel's readers actually read through this author's note, but I'd really appreciate if you did this time. There's two really important thing that I'd like to talk about.

The first is a mistake on my part. Last chapter, I intended to include something in the author's note about worldbuilding. I completely forgot to. Now that I'm including here instead of there, it seems like I'm trying to get you to jump to a certain conclusion by the end of the chapter. I won't say whether that conclusion is right or not, but it does influence the way you'll like analyze what happens in this chapter.

Here's the important piece of changed information, which you can see over on the club wall as well.

There's a disease in Partex that's very similar to the Black Plague in terms of being widespread and it being fatal. It's the disease that killed Lira's mom when she was little. Cass would have likely encountered at least one person with it back in Rey, or, at the very least, would have talked with Lira about it. It's mainly a respiratory thing. It starts as an innocent, occasional cough, but quickly manifests into violent coughing fits. Victims are also generally tired when it first begins, due to their body already trying to fight it off. Those with poor immune systems - whether it be from age, lack of sleep, or other factors - are especially suspect to it.

The second thing is a request. All of your reviews and comments have been incredibly helpful, but one of the things that I love hearing the most from people are their theories. I've been sneaking hints about future plot points into the chapters so far, and I'd love to see what your guesses are. I know it's been hard to notice them - this story has far too many flaws, and I'm sure that's been distracting you from some. But I really want to see if I'm weaving them in as well as I hope I've been, so, please let me know if you notice anything...odd about Telorum and its people. I obviously won't be able to confirm or deny it, but it would really make my day whenever I post to see you trying to figure out what's going on alongside Cass.

Thanks for reading through that long author's note, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Words: 1,755

Last Line(s): Dari's frown deepened, and his green eyes filled with concern. “Is it because of your future contract? I know you're scared-”

“It's not that,” he interrupted, shaking his head in denial. “I'm just...tired. I've been king for far too long, Dari. I can't remember what it was like not to be. I just wish I could...”

He hesitated, unsure if he should continue or not.

Dari's gaze softened. “You don't have to play king with me.”

“...I just wish I could return to that day and do something different,” he finished.

“I wish you could too, Karti,” Dari said. “I wish you could too.”

Chapter 16

Cass struggled to pay attention during the rest of the tour, her mind continuing to wander back to the prospect of getting home soon. She barely registered the sight of the long table in the dining room that put the one in Lira's home to shame, and barely registered how the array of plant life in the gardens was nothing like it had been in the first memory she clearly remembered. She couldn't recall where the kitchen was, despite Orpheus insisting that it was one of the best places to go if she liked late night snacks. She didn't voice her awe at the room set aside for practicing magic. Histories of portraits and other decorations were forgotten. And it was only when they had concluded their tour that Cass finally noticed something incredibly odd about the castle. 

There weren't any guards.

The mayoral palace had been filled with them in Rey. She ha remembered seeing them posted outside of every room that someone was inside, and had practically followed her everywhere. The castle did have servants, but they were all there for other tasks—to cook, to clean, and to tend to the garden. As they lingered by a window that looked out onto the town below, Cass glanced over at Orpheus. Kartiel still hadn't returned yet, and she needed something to distract her while they waited for him.

“Why aren't there any guards?” she asked.

Orpheus abruptly turned away from the window. He didn't say anything for a moment, almost like he was mulling over what answer he should give. “...I asked Kartiel the same question when I first came here,” he admitted. “He said it's because the last king was killed by his adviser. The guards weren't able to stop an internal threat like that.”

He went back to looking out the window.

Cass fingered her locket. “But what about external ones?” 

“Kartiel can handle himself,” Orpheus said. He continued to stare at an indeterminable point in the town. 

Cass frowned. It didn't make any sense, regardless of if Kartiel could fight or not. Kartiel didn't have a wife or children. Orpheus was the closest to a family he had, and his dilemma with his appearance likely didn't make him a good candidate for ruling the country at this point in time. Besides, Kartiel had that policy before Orpheus fell–why would the kingdom risk something like that when he didn't have any heirs?

She stared at the back of Orpheus's hood.

Was Orpheus lying to her?

He suddenly turned around. Cass quickly stopped frowning, not wanting him to realize that she wasn't satisfied with his answer. Her soul was trying to lure her into a false sense of safety again, but now she was beginning to wonder just how safe this castle really was.

“The council just finished their session,” Orpheus said. “I can see them leaving the meeting house. If we go downstairs now, we should be able to meet Kartiel when he arrives.”

She glanced at the window, then gave a small nod.

His gaze lingered on her for another moment, but Orpheus didn't say anything else as he headed for the nearby staircase.

xXx

They only had to wait a handful of minutes for the wooden front doors of the castle to open. A creak resounded through the hall as Kartiel stepped inside, his clothes just as regal as they had been the night before. She looked down at her own clothes and immediately felt embarrassed when she realized she was still wearing the clothes from the previous day. At least her hair looked relatively decent; she could take solace in that much.

“What was the verdict?” Orpheus asked.

“Cass can stay in the castle,” Kartiel replied. A ghost of a small smile danced across his lips, but it was gone as quickly as it appeared. “Have you given her a tour yet?”

Orpheus nodded. “We finished it right before you arrived.”

“Good,” Kartiel said. He looked her over, and she quickly looked down at the ground when she realized he was staring at her clothes. She studied the purple carpet rolled across the stone floor, observing all the little imperfections. “Do you have any other clothes with you besides those ones?”

“...I have a set from Rey.”

She raised her head when she heard the flutter of his cape. He had turned to face Orpheus instead of her, violet eyes focused solely on him. The intense moment of silence was interrupted by Kartiel quietly coughing. “Were you going to show her the town next?”

“I was.” Orpheus glanced over at her. She ducked her head back down, still more than a little embarrassed at the state of her outfit. She had completely forgotten to change before leaving her room that morning. “Do you want us to stop at the tailor's while we're out?”

“Yes.” 

He started to walk past them, his footsteps echoing through the mostly empty hallway. Cass took a deep breath. This was her chance. She spun around and stepped towards him with a confidence she didn't fully feel. She held out her hand and grabbed onto his. It was only now that she realized just how big it was compared to her own, and how perfect it looked. There were no scars and no callouses. 

He stopped.

“I need help,” she said.

He looked over his shoulder at her. “Orpheus can help you.”

“He can't,” she protested. Her resolution wavered, and she withdrew her hand. It hung loosely at her side as she tried to hold his gaze. “I need to learn how to use the locket.”

His eyes widened for the briefest of moments before he turned away. “Why do you need to know that?” he asked. His voice was surprisingly cold. When Cass glanced over at Orpheus for an explanation, the other teenager gave none. He just keep watching Kartiel from underneath his hood.

“...It's what brought me and my best friend here,” Cass said. She raised a hand up and grasped her locket, almost in synchronicity with Kartiel as he raised his own hand and presumably did the same.

She went to take another step forward, only to pause before her foot could touch the ground. “I...I don't know any other way to get back home. I didn't want to be here. I just want to be back on my world. Orpheus said that I need to...to master my own magic.” 

Orpheus finally spoke. “I can't teach her that and you know it.”

Kartiel let out a sigh.

“I suppose you're right,” he admitted. “I'll teach you how to use your magic, and how to use that locket.”

She immediately perked up.

“We'll start tomorrow,” he said. A smile began to spread across her face at the comment, but he began to walk around a nearby corner before she had a chance to thank him. The only sounds that penetrated the silence were a quiet cough and his footsteps fading away.

She looked back at Orpheus. 

“Thank you,” she said.

“You're welcome,” he absentmindedly answered, his gaze lingering on the corner. The silence returned in full force. Unsure of why he was so distracted, she awkwardly waited for him to say something else. It thankfully didn't take long for him to turn his attention back to her. “Are you ready to go on the tour now?”

She hesitated. “There's...There's something I need to do first.”

“What is it?” Orpheus asked.

She glanced in the direction of the stairs. “Before I left, Lira gave me and my best friend mirrors to communicate with her. I haven't talked with her since I left Rey...” She gave him a small smile. “I just want her to know that I'm alright.”

Orpheus studied her from the cowls of his cloak. “Will you tell her the truth?” he asked.

“What do you mean?”

He twirled a strand of hair around his finger. “Will you tell her the truth?” he repeated. When she continued to give him a blank look, he let out a sigh much like Kartiel's. “...She doesn't know about what Telorum is really like, and doesn't know that Aldonius is actually the king. It's normally something that would be kept secret, but there's nothing anyone can do to prevent you from telling her.”

“I guess...” she slowly said. She had been planning on telling Aspen everything that had happened since she arrived, but it was hard to tell who was listening. Was it really her place to be revealing something as important as Kartiel's secret? “I'll...I'll see what happens and go from there.”

Orpheus kept watching her. “You could always avoid talking to her—maybe just put it off until we get back from the tour of the capital-”

“I couldn't do that to Aspen,” she interrupted.

“But you can lie to her?”

She fiddled with her locket. “...No.” When Orpheus continued to stared at her, she hurriedly looked away. “I'm not sure what I'll say, but I can't make her wait for me, either. That's not fair to her. She has to be really worried about me, like I am about her...” Her grip on her locket tightened. “And if I keep putting it off, I don't think I'll ever talk to her about what's happened.”

He walked past her, his cloak swishing as he approached the staircase. Cass hurried on after him; when she finally reached his side, she glanced up at his face. It was unsurprisingly still hidden in shadows. “I'm guessing the mirror is in your room?”

She nodded.

“I have something I need to do in my room while you talk to her,” he said. “When you're done, just wait in front of my room. Don't...Don't come in unless I say you can.” 

She gave another nod. 

It was only when they went their separate ways that she realized she had absolutely no idea what that something could be, or why he was insistent on her not entering. She looked at his closed door before heading inside her own room. It didn't take long to find where she had left the mirror the night before. Pulling it out from the recesses of her bag, she sat down on the edge of her bed.

She closed her eyes and thought of Aspen.

And when she opened them, Aspen was looking back at her in the mirror, an enormous grin spreading across her face—the sight made Cass's heart flutter with joy. “Cassie!”

Cass gave her a smile just as large. 

“Hi, Aspen.”