I.

The harsh glare of the enchanted flame made Amy's eyes burn for a moment as they adjusted to the darkness. She could still feel the rawness of the tears that slid down her cheeks, and her whole body shook involuntarily. Although technically it wasn't her fault that the Unseelie fairies were able to stop the Protection Spell, she still felt hurt and used, like a dirty rag.

Stupid, stupid, stupid. You shouldn't have answered all those questions, moron!

The Councilwoman took her granddaughter into her arms and hugged the sobbing frame. "You shouldn't blame yourself for what those nasty Unseelies have done," Grace spoke, her voice calm and soothing. "We should've known better that they'd violate the Treaty rules in the first place. I'm very sorry for letting you suffer this deteriorating remorse."

Amy sobbed even louder. Sobbed because she was letting dear old Grace take all the blame, sobbing for the act of disgrace the Unseelie Court had done to them, sobbing because she had not asked the boy's name in the first place. Everyone knew that Ian was the Prince of the Unseelie Court, and if she had only asked earlier, she wouldn't have given him the information he needed.

"Now is not the time to pity ourselves, Amy," Grace said gently, rocking the girl's head in her arms. "He would've lied to you anyways, dear. After all, he is the Prince of that horrid kingdom."

Amy just rested her head on her grandmother's chest, wishing the whole situation away like it was some bad nightmare.

King Alistair's old face then came out from the shadows, with Councilwoman Corinia's flame leading his way. He walked unsteadily with his cane of vines and mahogany. "My dear Fey," he spoke, standing erect as he steadied himself on his cane. "We are indeed in a time of crisis at this moment. The Unseelie Court has captured all our resources aboveground, driving us underneath to these mole-caves. They've presumably discovered some of our ancient manuscripts, and will no doubt use it to destroy us once and for all."

Everyone present either gasped, bit their lips or cried at that moment. The Ancient Manuscripts contained the most powerful of Seelie spells handed down from the first Seelie Folk to the future generations to aid in achieving harmony with the humans and to protect them from the ill-intentioned Unseelie Folk. With that kind of power in their hands, it would not only be the Seelie Folk who will suffer—even humanity would suffer in the long term.

The King frowned. "Yes, it seems that dark times are ahead of us if we do not act. The Unseelie Folk would probably discover our hiding places and destroy these too, as well. Therefore, in lieu of these dark times, I announce a new decree."

Everyone looked at each other in astonishment. Even Amy raised her head at the mention of a new decree.

King Alistair continued, with his face sullen and grave. "I hereby decree that at least one man from each fairy family, not younger than ten, will join a new army against the Unseelie Court."

The Seelie Court went into hysterics, with families clutching each other protectively. Wives wailed and begged their husbands not to go. Widowers from the previous wars pleaded that their youngsters were too young to know of the terrors of war. Even Grace spoke out, outraged by the unanimous decision of her own cousin.

"Alistair! This is madness!" she wailed. "Younger than ten? Going against those Unseelie brutes? You're waging a massacre, you madman!"

"Silence, sister," came a dark voice from the shadows. Everyone gasped as they looked at the figure emerging into the light, and unlike the colorful ensembles the others were wearing, the figure wore black and black alone. Grace was stunned.

"Fiske!" she spoke aghast. "I thought you were—"

"Nonsense," he spoke, his eyes as hard as steel. "I have never died in that unnecessary war. I only hid underground because I knew that history would repeat itself."

General Fiske—or Fiske, as he was called by some relatives—used to be one of the commanders commandeering the battalions used against the first Fairy Wars. He presumably died after going up against some rogue Unseelies, yet in reality, he was able to retreat before they had a hold of him and his men. Looking at King Alistair, the two exchanged meaningful nods before the old General talked to his sister again. "I and our dear cousin have talked about this fair and well. I've seen the carnage the first war produced, the fatality of men's weakness when they are worn with age. We need a new generation of soldiers."

"But these are children, for Oberon's sake! Titania knows what would happen to them if you let them battle!"

"Nothing bad will happen to them," Fiske spoke, looking at Alistair. "Cousin, show them the orb."

The King nodded, struggling to get something out of his cape. It was a round object wrapped with old sack cloth, and as he quickly unraveled it, a misty blue light filled the cave. A chorus of "oohs" and "aahs" echoed, and Alistair held it up for all to see.

"This is the Orb of Oberon, something my men and I fashioned after witnessing the destruction of the first Fairy War," Alistair spoke, and every eye was glued onto it. "While General Fiske and I were busy scavenging the dead bodies to give a proper burial, we discovered that although dead, they still contained an essence of life that can potentially restore those who were badly hurt. At first, we used them on the remaining casualties, and we then used the leftover essence to create this orb. This will serve as a protection for our younger soldiers, since the source is limited and not enough to accommodate all casualties."

Grace then closed her mouth, sitting back down next to Amy. Yet even so, there was a smoldering conviction behind her eyes that sensed a grave foreboding about the decision. The King then continued, his eyes a bright as steel. "Now, aside from Councilwoman Gratiana, the rest of the Council has agreed to this proposition. Time is short, and we'll need to evacuate towards the Country Plains in order to begin training and to build a new community against the Unseelie Court. Whoever is willing to fight for the Seelie Kingdom, say 'Aye'."

There was a tense silence within the Folk, and a few braved some glances at each other. Some bore the scars of the First Fairy War, barely making it alive from the Unseelie King's fresh brutishness. Some carried traumatic memories of ambush and blood. The decision wasn't an easy one.

After a considerable period of time, one brave soul from the Malarchy Family stood up from his place. "My brother died because of that brute," he spoke in a deep Scottish accent. "Aye."

Another one stood up from the Ruslanova Family. The fairy's pregnant wife looked concerned as the man's eyes beamed with determination, as if she was saying a silent prayer. "I wouldn't want my child to suffer such insolence at birth," he spoke, with the same conviction as the first fairy. "Aye."

More brave souls stood up more frequently, each with a deep determination budded out from a past memory. A chorus of "Ayes" resounded through the cave like a bubbling spring, and after a while, even the younger ones braved themselves to stand up—much to their parents' despair. Amy wanted to yell "NO!" as she saw her brother stand up, yet he was too far into the crowd to be stopped by her.

"Aye!" came Joséf of the De la Vuega Family.

"Aye!" came Jonah, son of Councilwoman Corinia.

"Aye!" came Antonio, son of Councilwoman Maria.

Amy watched silently as she saw the cacophony of male voices yell out their loyalties to the Seelie Court, muted by the hypnotic cries of the crowd as if in a trance. A million emotions seemed to hit her rapid-fire, creating a wall of nonchalance within her. As the cries grew louder and angrier, the crowd got into such a frenzy that they began to act like primates: jumping around and hooting out of bloodlust. Even Dan joined into the wild dance, acting like a savage who made his first kill.

"Very well, then!" Alistair yelled amidst the many voices. "At midday, we will make our preparation for the fall of the Unseelies!"

And just like that, the cave slowly returned to its dark clamor.

II.

Under the spell of silence as they had always been, the group nervously made its way towards the Country Plains. It was the safest place around, since no fairy ever bothered to set up civilization there. It was merely an endless field of grass, which sometimes shot up ever so wildly out of neglect—but unfortunately, were a weak foundation for their buildings. Fairies who sometimes camped there had no choice but to settle on the ground, which was quite a discomfort since the campsites were often trampled on by some unaware human or were often washed away by raging storms. Living in the Country Plains truly entailed a Spartan lifestyle, yet nonetheless, was virtually secure from any Unseelie fiends.

After a traumatic evacuation under fear of being discovered, they finally reached the end of the tunnel—squinting their eyes as the first rays of sunlight momentarily blinded them. The King was quick to be on the lead as he continued to lead them into a very grassy part of the field, finally letting the group rest after a while. "Get your shelters ready," he spoke as he magicked some blades of grass into a make-shift tent. "We'll begin training when the sun is high."

As the community worked into building their grass-tents, the soldiers-to-be camped together to get to training earlier and more efficiently. Reagan shot a contemplative look at them, as if she longed to join them even if she was a girl. It had been her dream, after all, to do something great for the Kingdom. Not that she'd ever show it, though.

"Marian!" came the voice of Councilwoman Maria—or Mary-Todd, as some people called her—Lieutenant Eisenhower's kind widow. She was also the mother of Antonio, Marian and Madison—yet even with her Council duties, she was still able to take care of them as a single mother. "Come to the tent! It's going to drizzle!"

Taking one last yearning glance, she ran to the tent right before the rain dropped.

The rain, to say the least, was the first part of the soldiers-to-be's training; if not informally. The cold and dampness was more than enough to toughen up their resistance, and when it finally cleared up, they seemed like they were ambushed by a gang of ogres. Amy and Grace had tried their best to get Dan out of the group, yet he continually insisted that he'd stay with them. "Dad died for the Court," he'd reason hastely. "I'll be okay!"

After the wear of the storm, the recruits then lined up into the blaze of the burning sun to register their names. An elderly scribe wrote them on a magic piece of parchment, touching some areas in which the names would magically etch themselves upon it. When the last of the names were recorded, the group then mingled around to get familiar with the ground—free to go exploring for a period of time.

Dan, who was interested in some of the wilder insect varieties, crept along the tall blades of grass with the gusto of a hungry leopard. Each specimen he came across emanated with a bright, lively appearance—tempting him to learn more about the others found in the wild. A soft shuffle in one of the bladed areas caught his attention, and he readied himself to pounce on it lest it be a large beetle [which, to say the least, was something he was eager to ride for a long time.]. As the area shuffled again, he slowly crept to it and pounced—not landing on a beetle, but instead, a person.

"Ouch!" came a familiar voice. After recovering from the initial burst of pain that he got from the fall, the tone of voice instantly caught his attention and drove him to look the person in the face.

"Um… do I know you?" Dan spoke, cocking an eyebrow. It was one of those new recruits, he was sure—the weird-looking guy with the short pixie hair and the funny-looking cap. But for a minute, the guy didn't sound like a guy to him…

Instantly, the fairy got up on his wings and straightened his military tunic. "Uh, oh… of course not!" he reasoned hurriedly, looking at the boy in disorientation. "Uh… maybe we met at the Fairy Academy. Maybe that's the reason why you think you… must've saw me! Haha!"

The weird dude was certainly acting weird. "Riight," he said, looking at him suspiciously. "What'd you say your name was at the registration?"

"Um…" the boy looked around nervously. "Martin."

Dan leaned in closer to study the boy's face. "Martin, ey?" he spoke questioningly, analyzing his features. The boy seemed to turn nervous at that, with his discomfort increasing when Dan grasped him by the collar as if to hoist him up.

"H-Hey! Hey! STOP THAT!" the boy yelled in irritation as Dan pulled him up, scratching at the boy's hands. Dan looked at him suspiciously.

"Dude, you are so not good at disguising yourself. Cool haircut, by the way," Dan spoke, putting the boy down. "Marian."

Snatching off her cap as she fell to the ground, Dan received a cold glare of death as he had anticipated. Standing up indignantly, the girl snatched it back with a sour note. "Haha. Fine, you got me," she spoke, adjusting the hat on her head. "But you should know that I put up the wimp act just because I didn't want to get caught."

"What the heck are you doing here, anyway?" Dan spoke, with his hands on his hips. "You're a girl. And only guys can join the army."

"So what if I'm a girl?" Reagan spoke, stating it as a-matter-or-factly. "There's no point in going back now. Mom's probably gonna marry me off to someone when I turn fourteen anyway. I'd rather do something worth my time other than preparing for marriage. Yuck," she continued, kicking the ground. "Plus, I'd like to help. Maybe if I fought in the war and survived, Mom won't be so worried about us anymore. I mean, ever since Dad died…"

Reagan let her words trail off, and the two fell into a heavy silence for a moment. She then gave him a hard look right before she broke the silence. "Promise me you won't tell anyone," she spoke sternly, giving him a piercing gaze.

Dan thought for a moment. She still was a girl, and there would be a heavy price to pay if anyone found out about her little secret. But for a moment, Dan felt sympathy for her. Trying to prove yourself, living in a dead parent's memory… people didn't know how hard it felt to be in that situation. They didn't know how… lonely, it could be.

Sighing, Dan held up his hand in an oath gesture. "Fine, fine… I promise. But don't come crying to me when you realize how tough training is."

III.

"Amy, could you bring these cookies to Daniel?" came Grace's kind inquiry as the old woman brought up a batch of cookies she baked at the grass tent. "I'm afraid that the storm weathered the poor rookies—Daniel, especially. Perhaps some fresh fairy cookies could keep them in shape. You could also give some to Antonio, if you wish."

Amy looked up from the tiny shoot of grass she was nurturing, an ebb of surprise on her face. "Oh—sure Grace," she spoke pleasantly, smiling as she received the batch. As Grace greeted her farewell, Amy slowly walked towards the camp awkwardly, since flying was prohibited during those times. Flying often emitted a certain degree of magical aura, something that would surely grab the Unseelie Court's attention.

Finally arriving at the camp, she paced unsteadily as she navigated herself through the crowd of men. She wasn't too keen on being around the guys, and she was certainly not comfortable being in a crowd of them. One of the fairy men wolf-whistled at her, something which garnered her attention.

"Hey Amy!" came the robust voice of Kurtis—nicknamed Kurt, by some of his relatives—from the crowd. Amy smiled and waved back, then continued to walk through the crowd. Back at the Kingdom, Kurt was part of the choir that sometimes came to perform during festivities. She didn't meet him until she was eleven, and ever since then, they'd been on friendly terms—although not close enough as to be friends with him.

Still looking for Dan, Amy passed by a few of the worn rookie tents, not noticing the familiar face peeking out at her.

"Yo, Amy!" came Hamilton's voice, with the boy running out of one of the poorly-constructed shelters. Amy whipped around and beamed a smile, always glad to see her childhood friend—when he wasn't being a big version of Dan.

"Hey! Um, have you seen Dan?" Amy spoke, resting her arms from the heavy load for a bit. Grace's cookies never weighed less than a pound, and that was something she learned when Grace sent her on an errand at five years old.

Hamilton scratched his head. "Nope, haven't seen the little guy since noon. Heard he was busy looking out for some wild Preying Mantis."

Amy groaned. "That's Dan for you."

"Hey, I wouldn't blame him," the boy said with a smile. "Ever rode on one of those? Wait, no… I forgot, you're Amy. Change topic. It's like riding a flying beetle, but ten times cooler!"

The girl rolled her eyes. "Uh-huh. That sounds soooo fun."

Hamilton snorted. "Whatever. Hey, what's that you got there?"

Amy then looked at the basket in surprise, temporarily forgetting its existence. "Oh, yeah! Grace made these and wanted me to give them to Dan. You want some?"

He looked at the batch with a raised eyebrow. "You sure?"

"Sure I'm sure," she spoke, laughing at the gesture. "You're practically family now."

Then, like a secret queue, the boy then grabbed a handful of cookies and gorged them all at once—a manner that could be likened to that of a dead-starving hobo. Amelia turned beet-red in embarrassment, her intuition telling her that he'd be in full Dan stage any minute. "Would you stop that? I said you could have some cookies… not that you could just hog them like you always do with food!"

Hamilton spoke through the millions of cookie crumbs in his mouth at that moment. "I canf helf fit if yow gwanmoffer's koees aw affiftiv!"

"Hamilton! Manners, please!"

The boy gulped down the whole big pulp of cookies. "I can't help it if your grandmother's cookies are addictive! Seriously Amy, I'm hurt. You should've known that."

Amy laughed as she playfully shoved the boy. It was true, anyway. When they were kids, there were times when he'd come over to their house not to play, but to spend the mid-morning feasting on Grace's cookies. Smiling as she thought about it, the memory was then replaced by that moment at the ball, when she'd danced with the Prince of the Unseelie Court…

"Hey, it's not your fault," he spoke, hands crossed. "I mean, that would've happened to any other girl. You were just in the right situation for him to strike, and it's all because I…" his eyes shifted to a different direction. "I've got a bigger fault."

The sound of a booming trumpet echoed through the plains, and the two looked at the source of the sound. General Fiske looked as solemn as a mountain as he put down the enchanted horn, looking at the troops with a look that could kill. "Um, training's starting. Gotta go," Hamilton spoke in haste, yet nevertheless having enough time to ruffle her locks—a childish habit he never outgrew. Amy scowled at this, yet smiled as she greeted him a farewell. Still, a deep, empty well seemed to have found solace within her—a well of a degree of regret she couldn't quite shake off.

I still think it's my fault, she thought, watching the others gather in an attempt to locate her rambunctious brother.

IV.

The structures were tall, serene, pristine, airy and cheerful—something with the likes of a nice, sunny day.

"How I loathe sunny days," came the disgusted voice of Natalie, Princess of the Unseelie Court, as she concealed her face with an enchanted fan. "They're ever so… unstylish. Could've we have chosen a more sophisticated place to rule over?"

"I've heard that the Earthworm Kingdom has its fair amount of lovely mud spas," Ian spoke sarcastically, an impish smirk on his face. An ugly scowl contorted the devilishly pretty Princess's features.

"Don't be cute brother. Remember, I was the one who did all the work while you kept that loathsome party under some Distraction Spell."

"Children, there is no time to quarrel," came the piercing voice of King Vikram. Temporarily diverting himself from viewing the Kingdom from the balcony where they stood, he gave the two a solemn look that told them to stop talking. "This is a day of triumph for the Unseelie Court. You should be ashamed to quarrel at such a day."

The two them bowed their heads at that, the usual effect of their father's words. Vikram smiled.

"Now that's more like it. Ian," he spoke, beckoning his son to come forward. The boy walked up to the man at that, expecting some boring lecture on the way he treated his sister or whatnot. He paced sluggishly like some bored soul, yet it seemed like his father didn't mind.

"You're already fourteen, my son. Fourteen is usually a year of prosperity, of ambition, and of great opportunities. You'll rule over this Kingdom one day, and when that time comes, you will have great power that none can imagine—and being fourteen is the first milestone to that future. But, my boy, do you know what else happens at fourteen?"

Ian rolled his eyes. He didn't know, of course—that kind of knowledge was usually restricted from them—and he had no intention of knowing such. "I have no idea, Father," he spoke, trying to keep his voice as polite as possible.

"Fourteen is the year of matrimony, my son. I've arranged you to marry."

Ian backed away as far as possible. What did he just say? "F-Father, please! Can't you reconsider? The thought of such commitment…"

"Now, don't be such a chap, Ian. We need to keep the bloodline going, my dear boy. You can't expect a Kingdom to thrive without any good leaders."

"But fourteen, Father. I just can't…"

"I was married at fourteen myself, boy." Vikram turned a steely eye at his son, which sent some involuntary shivers down his spine. It was not a pleasant feeling. "Also, your fiancé is from a highly respected Unseelie Family. She's also very pretty, if you get what I mean."

The boy didn't respond.

"Well then, silence means yes, so I will contact the family as soon as possible," Vikram continued, looking out into the now-corrupting Kingdom. A vampiric smile marked his features. "Although you're too immature to understand it now, my boy, we are on the brink of great power. It is ours to hold and own, and ours alone."


Author's note: Well, I might get disqualified soon if I don't put this up as complete, so up as complete will I do. Thanks for all those who liked this story! You've given me hope that I could probably make a decent fantasy story. XD Though with all the big-name authors out there to compete with, my chance of winning is as slim as a bone. And I'm not even done with it yet. D: But anyway, hopefully this made your day... in any way! :-)

Oh, and I've changed Reagan's name to Marian, if you were wondering. Thanks Jade! :D