Chapter Three

They peered through a window in the entrance hall, and stared in horror and shock at the extremely large crowd that was protesting outside.

"Is this because of the execution?" The princess questioned as she stared at the people, who hollered and cried out for justice and an end to her brother's rule.

"I'm sure it's for more than just that, Sye," Walter stared at them before sighing and turning towards the grand staircase. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye and placed a hand on her shoulder. "I'll go see if Logan can be reasoned with before this gets further out of hand. There's also something I have to tell you…"

She nodded and watched him head up the stairs before looking back out at the crowd. 'How much further can this get out of hand?' She asked herself worried. Continuing to gaze at the crowd, she hardly felt Elliot's hands on her shoulders.

"Syeira." He looked into her eyes.

Syeira blinked several times before registering his grasp, she then peered into his determined eyes. She nodded, letting him know she was paying attention to him however she remained silent watching him.

"We have to do something…let's go find out what your brother intends to do."

Unable to deny the fire in his eyes she nodded. "The War Room, that's probably where they'd be."

Elliot nodded and gripped her wrist dragging her up the stairs and around the corner quickly. Once they reached the adjacent room to her brother's favored one he released her and slowly approached the door. He bent down and tried peering through one of the keyholes and was relieved to see that they could be seen through. Silently he indicated with his hand to come over and peer through the second hole. With a brief nod she complied.

"Think about what you're doing, Logan. Think about the people, what this could-" Walter's plea was cut short as a knight grabbed him back from approaching the king.

"I am thinking of the people and their interests. Do not question me again." Logan's tone was stern, his eyes cold as he commanded his knights to kill those who initiated the demonstration, and then to stray to the crowd if that did not settle the matter.

"You can't do this, Logan!" Walter exclaimed through gritted teeth.

Logan gave a small sneer his eyes flickering to a knight as his hand gave a small motion. With this the soldier behind Walter hit the back of his knee causing it to buckle beneath him. Walter fell, with a slight pained gasp, to both knees before Logan.

"Never," he grimaced staring down at the old warrior, "tell me what I can't do."

Both Elliot and Syeira gasped softly at the sight before Elliot turned to her.

"We can't let him do this…killing all those people; it's wrong." He took her shoulders in his hands again. "You're his sister maybe you can make him see reason." His eyes pleaded with her.

The princess bit the inside of her lip; she knew Logan wouldn't listen to her. In fact, he had stopped listening to her for quite some time now. But she still had to do something, anything…and silently she prayed that this would be the moment Logan finally did pay attention to her. Gathering up her courage she gripped the handle of the door and pushed it open. Her eyes met Logan's in an instant and they stared each other down for what seemed like an eternity, when it was only a tenth of a second.

"I don't recall giving you permission to enter. You know the War Room is no place for a child-"

"I'm not a child, brother." Her eyes showed a determination she wasn't sure he was pleased or angered to see. "You can't kill all of those people. They're your subjects; you're supposed to protect them." She took a breath and continued. "How can you justify killing them when you-"

"Enough!" His stare was intense and it bore into her more severely than any gaze before it ever had. "You dare side with those traitors? Or is it," he approached her slowly and circled her before standing before her again, "that you think you should be the one ruling over them?"

"That's not what-"

"I said enough." He raised his hand and his guards seized her and Elliot. "You want to defend them, then so be it! Take the princess and her friend to the throne room." He watched as his guards dragged the two away. Looking over at Walter he indicated with his hand pointing forward slightly telling the guards to take him as well. In the few moments of silence he contemplated what exactly he would have to do to make his sister understand that there was no easy road when it came to governing a nation. The idea came to him quickly and he nodded. "Then so be it…" he repeated softly and headed out after them all.

She stood before her brother in the throne room, her hands clenched tightly at her sides as her brother explained her punishment. She barely listened to what he said but with every moment he opened up his mouth her anger only grew.

"...The sentence will be death." Her brother said with a calm demeanor.

Those words echoed through her body causing her anger to slowly dissipate, she knew what he was commanding her to do, even without recalling any of his words before that statement. Her body trembled slightly at the thought. Walter tried to beseech the king but she didn't hear his pleas, she barely caught Elliot's voice beside her.

"I am giving you power over and life and death, sister. This is what it means to rule." He watched her closely as he made his way over to her.

"No…I can't…that's not what it means to rule…" she looked down then up at him the anger beginning to return. "Just deciding who lives and dies? That's not right!"

"If you can't decide I will, Syeira, and they will all be executed." Logan said ignoring her words

She stared into his eyes. He wasn't lying, he wasn't just saying all of these things to prove some twisted point to her…he meant them and that angered her more, but it also terrified her.

"Choose me." Elliot's voice rang out beside her, breaking her from her thoughts.

Syeira looked at him, then to the side at the rioters. She took several steps back and continued to stare between them. 'Logan…how can you expect me to choose…' she thought looking helplessly between her love and her people. It wasn't hard to tell what her mother would choose, but as her brother and Reaver constantly reminded her of, she wasn't her.

"Can't decide? Then I'll give from the count of five to choose or they all die. Five"

'What?!' She glanced at her brother in anguish.

"Four."

Her hands went to her head as she fought back the urge to cry out.

"Three."

She bit her lip tears brimming in her eyes.

"Two."

"Alright!" She cried out, her chest heaving out of frustration. Her eyes peered over at the rioters and she held out a hand before retracting it to her chest and looking down. "I'm so sorry."

Logan nodded to his guards and they dragged the rioters away to be executed. Syeira watched with horror as they did before turning angrily back to her brother her hand shooting out to slap him. Having expected this, Logan caught her wrist and held onto it as he gazed at her.

"This is but one of many difficult choices a ruler faces."

"I…" she tried to wrench her wrist free, "will never forgive you!"

"Good. Then you will never forget." With this he released her wrist and waved the guards to return her to her room as another guard escorted Elliot to the dungeons.

*X*X*

Syeira paced the length of her room for a good while before finally leaning her hands against the back of the couch in her chambers. She gripped it hard, the fabric beneath her nails threatening to split. Jasper walked over beside her and placed a hand on her shoulder, trying to comfort the angered princess as best he can.

"It's not your fault, my lady; I don't think any one of us could have seen just how far he had fallen into madne-"

"I should have seen it!" Her hands gripped tighter, stretching the fine fabric even more. "After Aurora…when he returned and gave Reaver his permission to use any and all means at his disposal to gain a profit. I…I should've known then. I should've done something," finally the fabric gave way and her nails tore through the cloth. "But I'll do something now. He has to be stopped." She turned and faced her old butler. "However, I can't accomplish anything from my bedroom."

"That's why we're leaving, tonight." Both Jasper and Syeira turned to the doors to see Walter standing there with a grim, yet determined expression on his face. "This land needs a new ruler, but before that it needs a revolution. Syeira, you will lead this revolution."

"Why me? You have more experience fighting than I do, Walter…"

"Yes, but I'm not a Hero."

"I'm no more a Hero than anyone else-"

"Don't forget who your mother was, Sye. Her blood runs through your veins, which means there's a chance you're more like her than you think."

The princess considered this a moment and gazed into the intense flames in the fireplace. She had broken Walter's sword, but that could've just been from her rage towards a certain narcissist. Shaking her head, she let the thought go; whether or not she was a Hero remained to be seen but for now she knew she had to do something.

"Okay Walter," she made her way to him. "I'll play Hero for you if it means stopping Logan."

"Atta girl!" He grinned briefly and winked. "Try not to be too surprised when you find out you are your mother's daughter after all."

"We're leaving then? Very well, I will pack some-" Jasper was cut short by a raise of Walter's hand.

"We need to leave right now. There's no time for packing. Take nothing and let's go." He turned quickly Syeira walking right behind him.

Jasper blinked and gave him an incredulous look.

"Not even…pajamas?"

Walter gave an amused snigger while the princess fought back a small weary grin. Jasper sighed and followed closely behind the young woman. They slowly made their way to the stairs rain beginning to drizzle when Syeira stopped.

"What of Elliot? We can't leave him here, not at Logan's mercy." She looked at Walter worried, however he place a hand on her shoulder and smiled.

"He's safe." He examined her eyes, worry still lingered there. "He'll be just fine; he's a strong lad."

She sighed and nodded looking down. They managed to make it down the stairs without slipping on the wet stone or tripping over Kain as he came bounding down, determined to beat them all to the bottom. As they passed the statue on the way through the garden she glanced up at the face, lightning in the distance illuminated the dark sky and for the first time she noticed a lengthy crack edging from Logan's brow line to the area were his scar was etched in. To keep her mind off of him and her anger, she looked forward then around.

"I thought we were leaving? You're not intending on jumping from the garden railing are you?"

Walter gave a hearty laugh and shook his head. "No, there's something that we must do first." As he said this he stopped before the stairway to the catacombs where her parents laid entombed. "It's time we paid our respects to Albion's last Hero."

Jasper gazed at the door and thought of the day he followed the procession inside, the day they put Sparrow's body to rest. "I never thought I'd enter this place again."

"You should have known better." Walter stated as he looked over at the old butler.

The princess remained silent and stared down at the door. Her stomached lurched and her heart felt as if it was stuck in her throat, she never believed that one day she would have to enter into that place. When she was younger she avoided even going anywhere near it, as much as she loved her mother the idea of seeing the previous Queen's resting place felt far more final then she desired. Both men must have realized her fear for each placed a hand on one of her shoulders. This calmed her somewhat and she took a deep breath before descending downward to the door first and with a hard push, she opened it.

They walked down a second set of stairs and entered a cavernous area; across the way was a small set of stairs that led up to a platform. Her hands clenched at her side, she slowly approached them and ascended before stopping and staring at the two elaborate golden sarcophagi. There they were…her parents, part of her wanted to flee she didn't want to be anywhere near them, but a small part of her was curious and captivated. She found herself wondering if her parent's bodies were well enough preserved that she would be able to recognize her mother's facial scars or finally see if her father was really as short as Walter said. Those thoughts brought her a little peace, though she didn't know why. She even dared to stroke the cold metal of her mother's sarcophagus as she passed to stand in front a large marble statue. She admired the angelic form, how even with its face hooded one could still feel the sorrow that emanated from it. The princess continued to admire the statue as Walter and Jasper stood at her sides; the old butler gazed fondly at Sparrow's gold casing as Walter kneeled down and began feeling along the wall beside the angel.

"The night your mother died I promised her that one day I would bring you here," he continued to feel along it and cursed under his breath before Jasper noticed him, walked over slightly amused, and bent over pressing in a stone. The old soldier gave him a sigh and stood up. "Once you were old enough and strong enough that is."

Syeira barely managed a nod as the hands of the angelic statue fell open revealing a rather curious object.

"What is it?" She gazed at the item not daring to get too close just yet.

"It is your mother's most treasured possession, the Guild Seal. This holds the proof you seek." Walter answered as he watched her. "This holds your legacy." She reached out to touch it but quickly retracted her hand causing Walter to grin and chuckle. "It's not going to bite you; at least I don't think so."

"Ha ha…" she looked at him then sighed, reaching out again and placed a single finger on it. "Nothing happened…well that was anticlimactic." Picking up the object she examined it before it began to glow brightly and energy rapidly coursed through every fiber of her being. The sheer force of it caused her to cry out, but not from pain, it was more of a verbal attempt to keep the energy contained. However, any attempt grew futile and the power the seal had overtook her. The colors bled from her sight and her world turned white in an instant.

*X*X*

The princess could feel herself moving swiftly, though part of her knew her feet never left the ground. It was as though she was running in circles, or was she falling through a spiral? She couldn't tell; all she knew was it was too rapid and so foreign to her that it made her feel ill. When finally the sensation stopped she staggered forward and fell to her knees.

"W-what was that?" She panted softly looking at the ground only to realize that she was not resting on the tomb floor but on a large platform bearing the seal symbol. She peered around and quickly stood when she did not see Jasper and Walter in the cave-like catacombs but rather a vast space of silvery fog and a path stretching out before her beyond a great gate. Her brow furrowed in confusion but before she could take a single step, a hooded figure appeared in front her. "W-who are you?"

"I am Theresa, the Seer of the Spire. I guided your mother in her greatest triumph, but you have an even greater destiny ahead of you." The woman pointed to her. "The seal awoke at your touch, as it would at no one else's." A small faint grin graced the seer's features before it disappeared. "This means the fate of Albion rests on your shoulders."

Syeira took a step back at this, she was shocked and then horrified. She had always wanted to be a hero but never thought she actually possessed her mother's heroic nature. However, after what she had just done finding out she was truly a hero was bittersweet.

"No!" She cried out and went to grab the woman's shoulders only to pass through her and crash against the gate. The princess gripped the bars firmly, her jaw clenching tightly as she shook her head. "I'm not a Hero…I can't be."

"Was it not you who said you wished to stop your brother, even if it meant playing at being one?" Theresa questioned as she turned to face the girl.

"I'm not a Hero I chose…I chose to be selfish, I saved the man I loved rather than the people my family swore to protect. I…I'm-" her eyes widened as a thought struck her, her grip on the bars loosened and she collapsed to her knees. "I'm a hypocrite."

The seer watched the girl for a moment before leaning down placing a hand upon her shoulder, her body suddenly becoming solid. "Do you want to know why your mother did not favor hypocrites, child?" Syeira looked sullenly at the older woman. "It is because she herself was once one. She too was young and spirited, making choices that she only found to be hypocritical and poor once she was older and wiser."

"What?" The teen looked at her, surprised to hear of this. "But Walter and Jasper never said anything like tha-"

"They did not know her for as long as I did." Theresa grasped her hand making her stand. "You two are more alike than you know." She gently moved a loose strand of hair from the royal's face. "I raised her, watched her grow. She too lamented over her choices but when the time came, when she had to make the toughest and perhaps one of the more important decisions of her life...she did what was best for the land. As I know you will."

The princess stared down and fidgeted with the hem of her skirt. "I hope…I can prove to be as strong as she was."

"Do what you must, to be the Hero you wish to be." The teen looked up at her, knowing she would have to try hard and nodded with a reluctant determination. The old seer looked to the pathway ahead, Syeira followed her gaze. "The path before you will not be easy, and it will be paved with good intentions and mistakes, but it is the path you were born to take. And at its end is the kingdom you were born to rule." She returned her gaze to the royal teenager who was resting her hands once again upon the metal rods of the gate. "Like all Heroes, you will face many trials, but you cannot pass through these gates alone. You will need to gather followers and the support of the people. For now you have the support of two friends. Jasper, who will serve you always…" The girl watched as a translucent figure appeared on the other side of the gate before walking slowly through the gateway and herself to stand behind her. She immediately went to stand in front it, smiling gently at the ghostly form of her beloved butler. "And Sir Walter Beck, who will be your greatest ally." A hearty, if somewhat haunting, laugh sounded on her right and princess turned to see a grinning transparent image of her cherished mentor standing with his hands upon his hips. "Together you have already taken the first step in your journey." Theresa stepped aside as the gate began to shift and opened slowly. "Walk through the gate and claim your reward."

Syeira did as commanded and walked hesitantly through the gate. Beyond it, resting in the middle of the pathway was a large chest. Taking a deep breath, she went over and lifted up the lid. Inside a glove laid upon a red velvet cushion. An apparition of flames swirled around the orb that adorned it.

"What is this?" The princess asked.

The Seer appeared beside her, "it is a means to draw out the power from within you." The older woman looked the young monarch over before giving a faint chuckle. "But I don't think you will need the entire object." The glove began to dissolve and disappeared leaving only the orb behind. "Crush it and release your power. Just like your mother."

Again the girl did as she was told and grabbed the orb. It was warm as it laid in the palm of her hand, the apparitional flames licked at her skin. After a moment of admiring the artifact she crushed her fingers around it. It shattered easily, as though made of thin glass, flames erupting around her hand as she felt a surge of will power flood through her veins. Fire burst from her other hand and she peered at them in awe. When the fire finally faded, the princess looked to Theresa.

"Thank you…" She whispered.

The older woman nodded, "your magic is the key. Use it by the tombs in the mausoleum, and the way out of the castle will open for you." Syeira nodded and the Seer sent her away with a wave of her hand.

This time Syeira's vision faded to black, and the sensation of falling returned but was quickly replaced by the feeling of cold hard stone against her back. Opening her eyes, she peered up at the worried faces of Jasper and Walter. "What happened?"

"You fell into some sort of trance…then staggered back and literally fell." Walter said softly, chuckling and helping her to her feet.

"Are you alright, my lady?" Jasper asked, still concerned.

The princess nodded and looked to her hands then down at the Guild plaque she was standing upon. She could almost see a faint glowing around the edges as though it were reacting to her now awakened power. Flexing her hands she held them at her sides before lifting them up quickly, raising a ring of fire at her feet and activating the mechanism to open the way out.

Jasper and Walter watched in amazement, their princess truly was a Hero.

Disclaimer: Fable III belongs to Lionhead Studios and Peter Molyneux respectively.