There once was a kingdom far to the west, next to the sea. The king's castle was carved into the side of a cliff overlooking the ocean, and the town was built below it, surrounding the castle and the cliff. This kingdom was known as Linhedge, where the royal family by the name Aelham ruled.
It was a beautiful country, filled with marshes, forests and beaches. The winters were cold and the summers were mild. The land was covered is green almost year-round, except in the dead of winter. There were fae in this kingdom, and they were free to do as they pleased without repartition from the king. It was fabled that the first king of Linhedge made a proclamation that none of the fae would ever have to bow down to a human king. In thanks of this proclamation, the fae never did any harm to humans within the kingdom's borders. Some fae even chose to live in villages alongside the humans. Fae and human marriages were commonplace.
It was in the sixth king's rule that the triplet princes were born. The queen died right after childbirth, as the stress of three babies was too much for her. The kingdom mourned the loss of their queen, but celebrated the birth of three healthy heirs. The king doted on his children, never favoring one above the other. Two of the triplets looked exactly alike, golden hair and button noses. The third only shared their button nose, and he was a dark brunette. King Ansem took a month to decide on the names for the boys. He and his wife had made a pact that they were going to name the children together, but that dream had been shattered with the queen's untimely passing. When he had finally named them, a ceremony was held. The names were announced to the entire kingdom: Sora, Roxas, and Ventus.
This is the story of the prince named Roxas, and how he lost everything but gained the world in return.
Roxas Aelham was always a curious boy. When he was but five summers old he learned how to sneak out of the castle to go and play with the geese by the pond in the castle's gardens. As much as they searched, no one could ever find his path to the outdoors, and thus, Roxas was able to escape quite regularly. Each time he went for a walk, he left behind a befuddled nanny and bewildered castle staff. It came to hiring a second nanny, one just for Roxas so that he would not go on escapades by himself any more. It worked for a few months until Roxas wandered away once more and the second nanny was fired for falling asleep on the job.
When Roxas was eight summers old, he and his brothers were sitting in their lesson when they began exploring the topic of nomadic tribes that came and went in the kingdom. Their instructor told them that these people were not to be trusted, that their culture was too strange and that they were thieves and scoundrels. Instead of altering Roxas's mind about the nomadic tribes, it instead sparked an interest that would change the course of his life.
"The Ishikai are one of these tribes. They have made camp just outside of our beloved town, to the north. They have been coming in with their displays and their music, infiltrating our good citizens' minds. They are not to be trusted." The instructor went on.
But Roxas was already not listening. He was too enamored with the idea that there were such different people from him, and within his grasp. He made up his mind right then and there to go and visit them that evening, when he was less likely to be watched. Unfortunately, his father had bestowed upon him a compass, thinking that his child would become a great explorer someday. It only helped the boy to run wild around the town and its outskirts. But the king seemed to take pleasure in his son being so independent at such a young age, and even encouraged the guards to let him explore on his own for a little bit before retrieving him.
When the sun began to set, the boy hunkered down into his bedroom, preparing for the evening's escape. He made sure to wear a shawl, as the wind was blowing and bringing with it an autumn chill. When the coast was clear, he tiptoed across the hallway to a large tapestry of a unicorn surrounded by dancing fae, and pulled the tapestry back just enough for him to sneak behind it and open the secret, hidden door. The knowledge of this door had been lost in the recesses of time, but the young boy had found it and it was his number one escape route. He had many others, but this was his favorite.
He travelled along the dark corridor, his hand placed against the dry, stone wall. He could hear the scuffling of rats and other critters but this did not faze him. He had been down this corridor too many times to become afraid of the rats who called it home. The wall finally came to an end and he felt for the door. He groped about for a few moments until his hand landed on the handle and he was able to push it open.
Roxas stepped onto the beach and gazed out at the ocean, admiring the way the sunset turned the water into a beautiful mixture of red and orange hues. It was his favorite view in the whole world. He loved to look upon the waves and at any time of day. Sometimes the waves were a vibrant green, and sometimes they were dark like the storm that was rolling in. He couldn't imagine a life where he wasn't living next to the ocean, breathing in the salt-flavored air.
The little prince began his journey to the edge of town, his compass leading the way. After mucking through the sand, he finally hit the cobblestone streets of the city. Even at sunset, the town was bustling with activity. Bakers were trying to get rid of the last of their bread and horse-drawn carriages trotted on the streets. A few people stopped to bow to the prince, but for the most part he went unnoticed. He was eager to get to his destination, his heart pounding with excitement. Sure, he had met people, but none as foreign as the Ishikai.
He knew he was getting close when the smell of roasting saffron and sulfur accosted his nose. He could feel his heart pounding in his ears. He saw the glow of a fire and ducked behind a large rock to avoid being seen. He peeked around, and gasped softly at what he saw. There were people sitting around a large fire, passing a bowl made of stone. Each person was taking something out of it, it looked like powder, and smelling it before blowing it into the fire. But what amazed Roxas most, was how they looked. They were draped in clothing he had never seen before; the women were wearing skirts with brightly colored patterns on them, and translucent shirts so that their breasts were slightly showing. The men were wearing pants that puffed out around the ankles, and had the same translucent fabric hanging around their waists. All of the people were littered with tattoos; some very intricate and some very simple. The prince was simply amazed by the sight that he hardly noticed the flamboyantly decorated caravans in the background.
"What'cha doin' there?" Came a heavily accented voice from behind the small boy. He quickly whipped around to become face-to-face with another boy, about five summers older than he was, grinning at him. The boy was dressed in the Ishikai uniform, and the only tattoos he had were small triangles on his cheeks. He had fire-red hair and piercing green eyes. Roxas could feel his heart pounding from being caught.
"I-I was just looking." The blonde stuttered, pressing his back against the rock he had trusted to keep him hidden.
"Don't look so scared. I'm not going to eat you or anything." The Ishikai's grin became wider. "The name's Axel."
"I-I'm Roxas." The prince offered, still trying to disappear into the rock. After his fright had passed, he was left with only embarrassment.
"Come on, Roxas. I'll show you a good time." Axel reached forward and took the boy's hand, dragging him up and pulling him towards the camp. When they appeared in the circle the people immediately gathered around him and began pinching his cheeks and touching his hair and clothes. They talked amongst themselves in a language he did not understand. Axel stood idly by, the same grin on his face. "They think you're cute." He explained to Roxas, just as a woman came and placed a crown made of flowers onto the smaller boy's head.
Finally, Axel parted the waters and pulled the boy out of the circle. "Wanna see our horses?" He asked, and without waiting for the answer, he pulled his compatriot along with him towards the caravans, where the horses were resting quietly. The horses were just as colorful as the people. There were feathers tied in their manes and tails, and their hooves were painted with bright colors. "They're really nice. You can pet 'em."
"I've only been allowed to ride ponies." Roxas said as he began to run his hand over a stallion's nose. The horse snorted into the boy's face, nearly blowing his crown off.
"We don't ride 'em. They pull our caravans and we walk beside them."
Roxas blinked. "How can walk so much if you don't wear shoes?"
The older boy began to laugh. "Because we're tough, unlike you city-folk."
A moment passed in silence while the prince continued to stroke the horse's snout. "Hey, wanna see something cool?" The redhead asked and beckoned for Roxas to come close to him. When the boy was close enough, Axel snapped his fingers and a small fireball appeared in the palm of his hand.
"Wooowww!" Roxas exclaimed, his eyes widening and beginning to sparkle. "How'd you do that?"
"It's just a little talent we Ishikai have. We're fire wielders. It's said, that a long long time ago the gods bestowed this gift on us because they were pleased with us. I don't know if I believe it, but it's a good story." Axel shrugged and began to pass the fire back and forth between his hands.
"That's so cool. Can I touch it?" Roxas asked, reaching his hand forward without permission.
Axel immediately jerked his hands back and cupped them, so that the fire was extinguished. "No! You'll hurt yourself." The redhead frowned at him and the prince returned it with a pout of his own.
"I want to have powers like that." Roxas whined.
"Maybe the fae can teach you." Axel shrugged once more. He would rather the blonde not have any powers, just so that he could show off his own.
"What else can you do with it?" The petite prince asked, his eyes still full of wonder.
"I can do this." Axel snapped his fingers three times, then proceeded to juggle three balls of fire. After he had sufficient "Oohs and Aahs" from Roxas, he pushed his hands together to extinguish the flames. "And I can do this," He made a circle with his thumb and forefinger, then held it up to his lips. He took a deep breath, then unleashed a stream of fire from his mouth.
Roxas was giggling in delight and clapping his hands. "This is so awesome!" He shouted, moving from side to side. Axel was panting when he was finished, but he felt accomplished in astounding his little friend. The two sat down together, Roxas looking up at Axel with his big blue eyes. The sun had already set, and now evening was upon them. The prince couldn't remember a time when he had been left out this late.
"Y'know buddy, I think we're gonna be good friends." Axel said between huffs and puffs.
"Best friends." Roxas corrected him.
They sat for a moment in blissful silence before hearing a commotion coming from the camp. It sounded like a lot of shuffling, and voices were being raised. Through the sound came the piercing call of a woman's voice, "Axel! Axel!"
Axel perked up immediately. "Come on, let's go!" He stood quickly and began running in the direction of camp. Roxas got up as fast as his little legs would let him and followed after his new best friend. When the happened upon camp, the sight they were greeted to was a bit bizarre. There were two knights, dressed in armor, standing in the middle of a circle of Ishikai. The people were poking and prodding their armor and running their fingers over its smooth surface.
"Ah! Axel!" A woman, the one who had yelled for him, came over and began to speak to him in their native tongue. Axel nodded.
"She says they're hear for you." Axel looked down to his small friend, who pouted.
"I don't wanna go." He huffed and crossed his arms in the most defiant stance an eight year old could muster. When the knights saw him, their faces became clouded with recognition.
"Prince Roxas!" One of them shouted and forced his way out of the circle. The second knight followed his lead. "Your majesty, you must come back to the castle at once. Your father is very worried about you." He explained. Roxas's pouted only intensified.
"Please don't make us carry you." The second sighed. Usually the boy was pretty good about coming back, but every now and then they would have to carry him back because he refused to come with them peacefully. It seemed that today was one of those days.
"No! I'm staying here with my best friend." Roxas yelled at them, then gripped Axel's hand. Axel, for one, was stunned into silence. He had no idea he had been playing with royalty, much less a prince! It felt like such an honor, since most royalty hated the Ishikai.
"Prince…" The first knight sighed and reached forward, grabbing the boy and lifting him over his shoulder.
"Put me down, you big brute!" The small boy flailed and pounded on the back of the knight. When that didn't seem to work, he resigned himself to his fate. "Axel, I'll see you tomorrow!" He yelled.
Axel put a hand up to wave, but stopped short. "Tomorrow at dawn, we're leaving." He said so quietly he wasn't sure the boy heard.
The prince then began to cry and wail, and began to pound on the knight's back again. "Don't leave me Axel! Don't leave!" He sobbed out as they walked away.
Axel simply stood there, motionless. He was filled with a sense of loss and longing as he watched his new friend disappear from sight. He had never grown so attached to someone before. He had met many people in his life, but none as special as Roxas had been. As the fire dimmed through the night, so did the flame in Axel's heart. He would never see his best friend again, and the pain would not go away for several years. He sat down, the ache in his heart too much to bear. He missed the boy already. That night, while he was curled up in his lonely tent, thinking about the prince, he muttered to himself, "Em tok eii shi." Which as Ishikai for, "Let's meet again."