Father had made me a guard when he sent me to the Sunny Kingdom. I understood it was some type responsibility as the future King of the Moon Kingdom, but I never understood why my training had to be in the Sunny Kingdom. From what I learnt, the Sunny Kingdom are full of snobs because they're more superior than the rest of the Kingdoms. The Sunny Kingdom is a kingdom floating in the sky. It never rains, snows, or any natural disaster. You could say it's the perfect kingdom.
As for my kingdom, it always snows. It's always cold but we've learnt to adjust to the environment. We have a greenhouse for our fruits and vegetables with a simulated sun since the sun is always blocked by the clouds. I already knew the struggles on trying to keep the kingdom running and trying to keep your citizens happy and fulfilled. It's a huge responsibility, but my father said I wasn't "ready." I needed to train mentally and physically. I'm not gonna lie, I was a pretty scrawny and short kid. A part of me thought my father sent me away because he couldn't stand looking at me, but he assured me what he was doing is for my own wellbeing.
The journey was a little nerve wrecking. My palms kept getting sweaty and I kept straightening my coat and fixing my cape. Eventually father just chuckled. "Quit flustering. The King of the Sunny Kingdom doesn't care about appearance." He told me. So I stopped and waited impatiently as we approached the Kingdom. As we were slowly approached the clouds, I couldn't help but wonder how the King of the Sunny Kingdom looked like. I was told he was a fearsome man and very strict. That he was some kind of demon... Of course it's just a rumor.
When our hot air balloon passed the clouds, I looked up out of fascination. I only ever saw the sky once a year so this was an exciting moment. The Sunny Kingdom looked more beautiful than it seemed. I've only read books about it so you could imagine how giddy I was. But on the other side of the Kingdom I saw another hot air balloon shaped like a diamond.
"Of course he'll invite him as well... Hold on tightly Shade, there's no way I'm letting this guy beat me!" Father said. I sat back on my seat and held for dear life. There was a glimmer in my father's eyes that I didn't recognize. Excitement? Rivalry? Or was it...competitive?
Father pulled on the steering and we go faster. I glance at the other balloon and saw they had the same idea in mind. In the end it was a tie. We landed on the landing zone safely. I didn't realize how tightly I was holding onto my seat till I finally released my grip. Father and I exit the balloon. Across from us was the King of the Diamond Kingdom and his son, Bright.
The king had neatly combed brown hair that was separated on the center. His blue eyes sparkled with childlike mischievous. Meanwhile his son barely looked like him. Bright had dirty blond hair that was brushed to left and his eyes were a warm orange-red color. Like me, he had no clue what was going on.
"Aaron, old friend, what a pleasant surprise! I didn't expect to see you here!" Father spoke in pure sarcasm.
King Aaron gave a force laugh. "Likewise old friend! You surely never lost your spark!" He spoke back in sarcasm.
For a quick second I could've sworn there was a spark between the two. Well, being the mature ones there, Bright and I walk towards each other and bow. "Hello Prince Bright. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." I said.
"I feel the same way, Prince Shade." He said. When we straightened our backs I noticed how tall he was. I felt a little envious, but I didn't let it get in the way to meeting the prince. "I apologize for father's behavior. He's not always like this."
"How funny, mine is the same. Father is usually more calm and collected. But I'll be honest, I didn't expect to see another prince here?"
"Maybe the King of the Sunny Kingdom has something in mind? Surely he wouldn't invite both of us without reason."
Father scoffs. "I doubt that! That guy goes in blind!" He said.
Aaron nods in agreement. "He's irresponsible, unorganized, and has the tendency to do things blindly." He said.
Wow... I was actually speechless he was talking badly about the King of all Kings.
"I've heard he was a scary man. Filled with scars." Bright spoke up. This time I nodded in agreement. I added, "I heard he was like some demon and buff looking." Bright nods.
At this our fathers laugh. "S-Scary?!" Aaron choked.
"Buff?!" Father choked.
"FAR FROM IT!" The two laughed. We turned to our fathers as they were dying of laughter. Is this the man I grew to admire? Or was that all an act? It seems Bright shared the same look. At this I knew we were going to get along just fine.
A shadow looms over us. "How rude. Here I thought you two changed." The voice said. "Even talking bad about me if front of your sons." Bright and I stiffly turned to the King. Terrified if he looked like the rumors have said. When we saw him, it was far from what we expected?
The King of the Sunny Kingdom was the same height as my father and had a light tan complexion. His short blue hair was separated on the center and his aqua eyes looked at us curiously. He was a bit scrawny, but you can tell he had muscle. Instead of giving out a scary presence, he gave out a kind one. It was warm and it made me feel oddly safe.
"Hello you two. I'm King Truth of the Sunny Kingdom. It's finally nice to meet you." The king greeted and gave us a pat on the head. It was hard to pull away when his hand gave me a sense of comfort.
"Oi! Quit trying to take my son away!" Father snapped and pulled me away. Aaron did the same with Bright. Bright and I blinked a couple times in confusion.
"I was just greeting them." King Truth said in a sad tone. Now that I got a better view, I can see his dark circles. When was the last time he went to sleep? "You two never let me visit so I don't go out anymore."
"It can't be help. You're King of the Sunny Kingdom. Also ruler of all Kings. You don't get a break." Aaron said pitifully.
Truth sighed and crossed his arms. "I know that. If I didn't know that then I wouldn't be King in the first place." He turned halfway. "Follow me."
We all followed him inside the castle. "So why did you invite the both of us? I thought you were going to train my son." Father asked bluntly.
"I am. I'm training both of your sons." Truth said casually.
"What?! What about your kingdom?" Aaron questioned.
"Did you really think I didn't make up of a plan?"
"Yes."
Truth looked a little hurt, but shook his head. "I've changed too..." The doors open. "Anyway I'd love to answer your question later, but right now I have a few questions for your sons." We straightened our backs. "What makes a good king? Are you prepared for the challenges that you will face? My final question, what are you willing to sacrifice to make your goals a reality?"
"A good king is a king who doesn't ignore his responsibilities and listens. As for the challenges, I'm fully prepared." I answered.
"A good king should give his all and protect his kingdom. And I'm prepared for whatever challenge I come across." Bright answered.
Truth hummed unamused. "What about the third question?" He asked curiously.
Sacrifice... "I'm willing to sacrifice my freedom I guess?" Bright answered unsurely.
"I suppose I'm willing to sacrifice my time?" I answered.
This time Truth shakes his head. "Sounds to me you haven't thought about your answers. You were just answering what you've been told instead of answering from your heart. Looks like I'll need to do extra training before you rule your kingdoms." Truth lead us to a room that resembled a living room. It wasn't like ours. Ours was bigger and more spacious. Meanwhile this living room was smaller and everything fit perfectly. Maybe the rumors were right? The Sunny Kingdom is perfect? "Take a seat. I would like to discuss about your training." Father and Aaron stood behind the couch while Bright and I sat down. Truth sat across from us. "Most of the time I'll be in the castle doing paperwork, helping my kingdom, and etc. During those time periods I'll be giving you two assignments on what needs to be done. Like helping out other kingdoms and such. Half the time you'll just be doing favors and the other half you'll be fighting. When you're done with your assignment, you go report to Omendo. I'll introduce you to him. Omendo is the one that's going to give you the assignments and training your knowledge. When you have no assignments then you'll be training with the soldiers. I'm free I'll be teaching you combat."
"Question?" Bright said.
"Yes?"
"When do we start training?"
"By the end of the week. You two need to settle in the castle before training."
My head snapped up. "Wait we're going to stay in the castle?! What about-" Truth cut me off.
"Well I'm not having you leave then coming back everyday. So I figured it'll be easier if you just stayed in the castle. It'll also let me keep an eye on you."
I notice Bright was looking at something so I looked too. There was a small photo of a very beautiful woman with two girls by her side. They all looked alike. The woman had mid-long red hair with gentle pink ruby eyes. The first little girl had long blue hair and aqua eyes like the king. The other little girl had the queens genes, but her red hair was shorter. The twins looked about 3 years younger than me and maybe Bright too.
"That's my lovely wife and two adorable daughters." Truth said proudly. The serious expression on his face turned warm. "They're all my motivation and my heart. I love each of them and would do anything to make sure they're safe." Truth chuckles. "Right now all you know about love is love for you family, but maybe one day you'll love someone who isn't family. Like love for a friend or maybe love for your significant other."
Bright and I glance at each other. We came to a silent agreement. "King Truth? What did you sacrifice?" I asked.
Truth just smiles and says, "It's a secret."
The doors slammed open. "PAPA!" Squealed two voices. Truth's face lightens and his smile turns more joyful. At the door was the two little girls.
"Rein! Fine!" Truth called back happily and opened his arms. They twins threw themselves onto him. "What're you two doing in here?"
"Well mama said you were meeting old friends!" The blue head said.
"So we decided to see them for ourselves!" The red head added.
Just on cue, the beautiful woman from the photo comes in. She was a little breathless. "Fine! Rein! I thought I told you to give papa some privacy!" She pouts when she sees Truth unfazed. "Really, Truth, you can try being a little strict! If you keep doting them then they'll think it's okay to disturb every single meeting!"
"I can't help it Elsa!" Truth said a little childishly. He rubs his cheeks against his daughters cheeks. Making them laugh. "They're too adorable and it's hard to say no!"
Elsa sighs, but smiles anyways. She turns to our fathers and bows. "It's been a while King Solar, King Aaron. How are you Malia and Camelia?"
"Camelia is doing well. Sadly I couldn't bring her." Aaron said.
When father didn't answer, I turned to him to see what's wrong. His expression was blank. He averted his eyes. "Malia is in excellent health. And it has been a while, hasn't it?" He said. That's weird? Why is father acting like this? I turned my attention back to the twins. Both oblivious to anything around them. Come to think of it... Truth said Rein and Fine, but who's who?
Like he was reading my mind, Truth whispers in their ears and they nodded. They turned to us and greeted themselves. "I'm Princess Rein." The blue head introduced herself and bowed.
"I'm Princess Fine!" The red read introduced more enthusiastically and bowed.
From behind my father cleared his throat and I knew I had to greet myself. Bright and I stood up and bowed. "Greetings princess. I'm Prince Bright from the Diamond Kingdom." Bright introduced.
"I'm Prince Shade from the Moon Kingdom." I said.
In a flash, Fine was in front of me. Her eyes sparkled. I nearly fell back out of surprise, but caught me balance. "The Moon Kingdom! I always wanted to go there!" She spoke a bit quickly.
I smile nervously. "Surely you wouldn't want to. It's always cold there and only get to see the sun once a year."
"So?" Fine tilts her head innocently. "I find it exciting! The Moon Kingdom has ancient ruins, lovely agriculture, and tasty looking food!"
Is this girl for real? Is this how a princess should behave? "Maybe you might like the Diamond Kingdom? They have really tasty dessert and it's a little cold there too because of the diamonds." Bright said as he cuts in. Fine smiles happily.
"Eh~ That sounds like a nice catch!"
Rein cuts in too. "I would like to go! I heard they have amazing jewelry there!" Rein squealed. She turns to me. "I heard the Moon Kingdom are creating a device to allow them to see the stars easier! I wish you the best of luck!" She smiles encouragingly.
My heart flutters at her smile and I felt my face burning a little. "Th-Thank you."
It was like this for a while. I'd try to speak to Rein, but she would be talking to Bright. Bright would try to talk to Fine, but she would be talking to me.
Out of nowhere Elsa giggles. "Oh my! Looks like it's going to be a square this time!" She said.
Square? At this the four of us were utterly confuse. But our parents understood completely.
"Don't start Elsa! I want my girls to be babies forever!" Truth whined. He suddenly growls at Bright and me. "When we train in combat I won't go easy on you!"
"Huh?!" We said in sync.
Hours later we went back to our balloons. Truth, Elsa, and the twins watched us enter our balloons. "Come back tomorrow with your belongings! I'll have a room ready for you two!" Truth yelled as we set off.
Little did I know... this was going to be hell.