Missing Royal (21 page)

His eyes fill with tears. A sigh escapes his lips. He covers his face with his hands for only a moment before looking at me. “I’m not Mendina’s son?” he asks.

“No. But Krea truly is your sister.”

He stops breathing. “Is she alive?”

“You escaped Mendina’s clutches, but she did not. She is the one who shot Valentino. She knows that Mendina is controlling her, and she doesn’t want it. She can’t break free, but I know she wants to be. We have to defeat Mendina in order to truly free her. Are you willing to help me end this?”

“I’ve never been more ready.”

In the midst of preparing for battle, I’ve tried to find every advantage over Mendina. So far, there are few. But six royals crowd into one room and there we watch each other, ready to make a plan.

“Six of us are ready to fight. Our strike must be strong and swift. Every ounce of power she uses drains the life from Prince Valentino. He cannot die. I am begging you to help me save him. In order to do that, we must know every advantage we may have.

“Why does Mendina come after me? Why is it my crown she seeks when my kingdom is not hers? We—”

“I may be able to shed some light on those questions,” Jareth speaks up. All eyes are on him. “Sephet was the first kingdom she destroyed. Thus it was named the Ruined Castle. Has no one questioned why that is? Why not start with her own kingdom?”

I listen, giving all my attention to the king. I did not know Sephet was the first place she attacked. That’s something Danica did not mention.

“Sephet is the kingdom her mother was from. And in Mendina’s eyes, by allowing Danica to marry Kajetan, she betrayed Mendina. Thus, it was the first kingdom to go. Shirlyn, Queen of Elna, was best friends with Danica. And thus it too had to be destroyed in her vengeance to bring as much pain as possible upon her sister.”

Jareth continues. “Mendina was best friends with Kathrena, Valentino’s mother. But when she would not help Mendina in her vengeance, Mendina killed her. But it was a mistake, she didn’t mean to kill Kathrena, and thus, Wentsden went untouched. She destroyed Gowell, killing her parents, kidnapping Danica’s family, and taking the kingdom for her own. And that leaves us with Umare.” He looks directly at me.

I never once thought to question why she was destroying places, kingdoms rather than the people she believed ruined her life.

But I wait silently for him to tell me why Umare remains untouched. “Kajetan was not a prince, but he is from Umare. And Mendina always dreamed of living here with the man she thought she would marry. And when Danica was engaged to him, Mendina was betrothed to Roan. Shanice, she does not hate you for any more reason than you are the heir to the throne that should have been hers.”

At the mention of my father’s name I jump. All this time I’ve been wandering, trying to win a battle I know nothing about when my father could have given me answers all along. I take it all in every bit of information, grateful to understand Mendina’s reasoning.

“Jareth, how do you know all this?”

“Mendina isn’t the only one with spies. Most of the people who work for her are in very similar situations to Krea. They are doing it against their will. And if you know just the right questions to ask, they are not going against Mendina by answering. When Krea came to kill Amber, I caught her. I let her go. But I also got answers from her.”

“Your hard work may be the saving grace we need to end this. We cannot draw Mendina to Umare. There are far too many people here who could get hurt. And there is no way we can storm Gowell. So let’s end this where it all began.”

“Agreed. Let’s end this now.”

“We must figure out how to get Mendina to Sephet. She will not come if I simply ask her. What is something she cannot resist?” I ask, looking at each royal in the room.

“Shanice, she has always wanted to end you. This has always been about destroying you and getting your crown. She will come if she knows she has the chance to end you for good,” Javiar says. It does seem obvious. But then, why didn’t she kill me when she had the chance last time?

“I suggest we all prepare. We will leave at first light.” I don’t wait for anyone else to move. I get up and walk away. I am terrified, fearful that Valentino won’t survive through all the pain and torture I have to put him through in order to save him.

I fear we might not walk away. Mendina is strong and she knows it. Will our group of six be strong enough to save everyone?

I don’t realize where my feet are taking me until I’m halfway to Wentsden in the dead of night. But nothing scares me like the thought of what may come tomorrow. I do not stop at the gate or wait for someone to greet me inside the castle.

I tiptoe past everyone I see as to go unnoticed as I slip into the throne room and follow the path Palamides took me to get to the Pool of Tears.

“Speranza.” I run my finger through the tears, hoping the dragon comes. Only a moment goes by before her face appears.

“Your Highness, Mendina grows weary. She is ready to strike. Itching to kill.” Speranza looks worried. I wish I could hug her, could’ve saved her. But now is my chance.

“Speranza, tomorrow I will be Sephet, waiting for her. As soon as she leaves, you get out of there. She won’t be returning.”

“She won’t leave me behind. She will be riding upon my back to end your life.” The dragon frowns, not wanting to be a part of this. Not deserving it.

“Listen to me. We will be far enough inside that you can’t enter. As soon as she is distracted, promise me you’ll leave. Promise me you will take flight and—”

“Shanice, you are protected by dragons. It is my duty to stay and do just that—protect you.”

“Listen to me. It is your job no longer. I may not survive tomorrow, but I can
assure
you Mendina will not. This ends tomorrow, no matter what. Mendina’s reign ends.” I feared my voice would waver when I said those words, but I say it with more conviction than I knew I had.

“You are fearless, Princess. But you are forgetting that the dragon you’ve already called upon before is also royal. If I am not protecting you, call upon him to fight by your side. You do not have to sacrifice yourself to this world’s evils,” she says, her image flickering in the pool.

“I must go.” She looks away, something distracting her.

“Go. Remember what I said,” I say as her image fades.

The ruins are a mess of broken walls, fallen pillars, debris, and brambles. The throne is broken in two pieces. Glass makes the ground sparkle. Cloth, a mixture of clothes and tapestries are strewn throughout the entire castle. Almost everything is left black, charred from the fire that has left its familiar scent in the air.

As the dragon in the pool advised, I called upon Fuentes. But not to fight beside me, only to free Speranza while Mendina is otherwise occupied. Telling Speranza our plans did exactly what we hoped. Only minutes after we’re prepared, I can hear the roar of Speranza outside.

And just as expected, Speranza cannot enter the ruins. Mendina saunters in, not realizing five royals surround her, ready to protect me at a moment’s notice.

She smirks upon walking in. The room was once circular. Now with its fallen pillars and broken walls, it’s more oval, but still plenty big enough for Mendina to stride around, forcing me to the other side of the room. “How poetic, drawing me here. My first kill was in this very room. So fitting that you wish to die here.” Mendina sneers before throwing sparks of magic at me. How little she knows.

I block the sparks easily, which surprises me. She must not be using nearly as much power as last time. “It
is
poetic, knowing you shall die where you first brought death,” I reply, matching her coy tone. I keep my magic to myself, knowing I will only have one shot and I can’t waste it with smaller throws. She glares at me, believing that she holds the upper hand.

“Oh, Princess, I believe we’ve already proven who’s stronger. My powers are unmatched. There is nothing you can do to stop me. You know as well as I do that your prince won’t survive this battle. Of course, neither will you.” She smiles a wicked smile, her eyes a deep black. And to prove her point, she puts both hands up and throws balls of magic at me.

She doesn’t realize that my scurried movements to avoid her are all for show—a shield of magic created by the other royals surround me. Just at the thought of them, they come into view, standing on the outer edges of the pillars – waiting for the perfect moment to strike. “Oh, but don’t you know? You have a price to pay for the magic you’ve used.” I say, wishing I could fight back.

“Oh, so you know the rules of magic?” She cackles. Now looking between me and the other royals. “I rather hoped you did. It only makes it fair. But now you must realize that my price was paid long ago. My power is endless, matchless, and unstoppable.” She plays with a ball of fire in the palm of her hand for dramatic effect. We are still circling each other, like a dance.

“You can’t pay for magic you haven’t used, so how is your magic paid for?”

“Why should I tell you? It doesn’t matter. I know you won’t use magic—you don’t dare risk killing the love of your life. And that is all right because I have already planned his death once you are gone. He has always been the price you will pay for standing against me. Even before you came here, I knew. I knew you two would be together, and I planned every moment. Too bad you won’t be here to see it. Should I tell you in detail how I plan to destroy his life?” She tries to looks happy but as she eyes the others her eyes darken, her movements become more calculated.

More than anything, that breaks my heart. “Mendina, it doesn’t have to be this way. You know that, right? Is all of this simply because your sister got the man you could never have? Are you truly so jealous that you are willing to destroy this entire world, all for one man?”

“Ask yourself that question, Shanice. Are you willing to destroy the world with my wrath all for one man? You know nothing of love. I wasn’t just in love with him—I wanted to be with him more than anyone! And you know who I became betrothed to? Roan.” She spits his name out as if it burns her tongue to say it. “Yes, your father was supposed to be my husband. And when I left after destroying my sister’s life, he got the kingdom without me. Instead he married that Ivy, a peasant. I loathe you, knowing you should have been my daughter had I married that wretched man.” I don’t want her words to hurt me, but they do. This woman wants my crown because she believes I should’ve been her daughter.

“Your time has come, Princess. You must die so I can take the throne. And once you’re gone, I will kill Valentino, followed by his father, your father, your mother, and then everyone else who stands against me.” She has more yellow balls of energy in her fingers than I can muster, ready to end this at last.

“You say you’ve already paid the price. Perhaps you’re right. Your anger, your vengeance, and your search for power cost you the throne, the crown, a husband, and a daughter. What else will it cost you before you realize that you’ve already given up the most important power in the world? You think you have the upper hand because your magic is stronger. But that magic cost you the greatest loss.”

With my words, her flickers of energy die on her fingers. “I paid the day I lost the love of my life. Danica cost me everything, and because of that, my power grows stronger.” She paces on her side of the room, avoiding getting too close to me or anyone else before she is ready to end my life.

“Your price? You gave up everything because you thought you’d already lost it.” I love hearing the words come out of my mouth. Even more, I enjoy watching the shock and then laughter on her face.

“I didn’t give you up—I never wanted you. I want power, riches—I wanted Kajetan, but that was taken from me. This is all I have to wish for.”

“Danica didn’t take him. He chose her. He was never yours to begin with.” At that she sneers, her anger uncontrollable as she throws her rage at me in the form of magic.

“He
would
have chosen me! But I never stood a chance once Danica set her eyes on him. I went my entire life being her shadow. Always getting second-rate everything. I didn’t care that she got him until I found out that she was also getting the kingdom. Why? Why couldn’t I have one bit of joy? It wasn’t going to be given to me. So I took it.” She clenches her fist, angry. Anger, the black magic that is stronger than any potion or spell. The one thing that comes with too high of a cost, no matter the situation or person.

I duck around everything she throws at me, knowing the others are all waiting for the perfect moment before breaking my shield and using their magic towards Mendina. “Danica never meant for you to feel this way. All she wanted was to be happy too, and you never once considered that when taking her family away from her. This anger, this hate—that is the shadow you live in now. And it is a darker black than any shadow Danica could create.

“The second she got her happy ending, you destroyed yours. This is what you have brought us all to, the world’s fate that now rests with this moment. You kill me and the world falls apart at the tip of your anger, or I destroy you and bring this world to what it can be. Now I just want to know one thing, Mendina—was it worth it? Was your revenge worth all of this?”

Never before did I believe Mendina capable of being able to feel anything aside from anger and hate.

Now I know she feels. She feels enough to bring tears to her eyes, a shake to her hands, a tremble in her lip, a quiver in her chin.

“Nothing was worth losing Kajetan. But I had no choice.”

“No, you didn’t. Just as the choice now isn’t yours. We won’t give you the chance.” Javiar steps from the shadows. Mendina turns frantically before smiling.

“Oh, Javiar. So wonderful to see you again. It has been quite a few months since my dear son has visited. So you have chosen sides, I see. Are you happy with your choice?” She smiles in my direction.

“You are not my mother. And after today, you won’t have the chance to
be
a mother.” With only a moment’s notice, Jareth, Romondino, Lancilotto, and Inginio drop my shield and pour their magic into the sword in Javiar’s hands as he runs the blade through Mendina’s middle. The look of disbelief clouds every other emotion on her face.

“How could you? What have you done?” She looks in horror at the magic infused sword protruding from her stomach.

“This world has suffered in the dark long enough—you will not harm another soul.” The power of the sword does more damage than any bit of lonely magic.

“Another soul?” she speaks, her words broken. “Will it hurt your soul if I imprison you to an eternity alone?” Without another word spoken, Javiar falls to his knees, writhing in pain. I rush to his side, grasping his hand. Pain clouds his eyes and my heart falls into my stomach. I want to comfort him, to save him. But I don’t even know what she did to him.

“Perhaps you will learn more about the rules of magic before taking on another battle, Shanice,” In one moment, the darkness leaves her face and all I see is a young princess, longing to find her prince, her kingdom. “I hope you’re happy with the price you have paid.” She manages to speak those words before her body is dust and her soul is forever trapped in the blade of Javiar’s sword.

Javiar is cold as stone. “Please, please do not leave me.” I beg, my tears now dripping onto his cheeks, running down his skin. He raises his arm, touching my face. His fingers feel like ice.

Tears of his own rush down his face. “Shanice, release me from her bond or I will remain imprisoned forever. Please.”

My lip quivers, both of our breathing labored. “How?” I can barely get the question out.

“Kill me.”