I do not own Chaotic nor anything related to it. It belongs to TCDigital.

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The Tour

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There are large, six legged lizards that lives in the desert called dexims. They have black scales with yellow stripes, small yellow eyes, and blue tongues. Mipedians sometimes use dexims to pull chariots.

The chariot Isis and I are riding in this morning is being pulled by two dexims. The chariot is made of dark, dense wood with gold trim, and the dexims' harnesses are also gold-plated. Our driver... I actually don't know what he looks like, because he's driving while invisible.

Chaor left early in the morning. Isis and I watched from our bedroom window as his tank-carriage was pulled by. Lilth was sitting beside him, and I could swear I saw a bite mark on her shoulder that wasn't there before. Anyway, now that the Underworlders are gone, it's our turn to be paraded through the streets.

"Hail Prince Osiris and Princess Isis!" a Mipedian walking in front of us calls out. Several Humans who hear it hesitate before applauding with the rest of the audience.

"Hm," Isis hums to herself. "I would wager that all the confused looking Humans are familiar with the Egyptian mythology of Earth's past."

"I sure wouldn't bet against you on that," I mutter.

"You must tell me more about the Egyptian Isis and Osiris one of these days," Isis insists. "I'd like to know what associations our names hold for Humans."

"Maybe later." I plaster a smile on my face and wave at the crowd.

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After maybe an hour or so of being paraded around, I realize I recognize several buildings we're passing. "Excuse me, driver?" I say to the air in front of me. "Could you stop for a moment?"

The chariot gradually comes to a halt, and I hoist myself over the side to the ground.

"Something wrong?" Isis asks as she watches me.

I shake my head. "I just need to thank someone."

I look through the crowd, and there he is. The crowd moves to let me pass as I walk forward.

"Sett!" I call out.

Sett looks like he's not quite sure how to respond. "Prince Osiris?" he finally says.

I close my eyes and sigh. "I think you of all people are allowed to call me Michael." I stop in front of Sett and lower my voice. "You did make all of this possible."

Sett holds his hands behind his back and looks at the ground. "Well, then... Michael, are you saying goodbye?"

I know what he's worried about. "Oh, come on. I don't think that much has changed. It's not like I'll be restricted to the palace, right? We'll see each other."

Sett looks up. "I see." A small grin forms on his face. "Well, be careful."

I blow air out of my lungs and laugh. "Hey, what could happen?"

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Stupid Michael. You never taunt fate like that.

"You expect me to teach him how to handle a weapon?" Mudeenu says with bared teeth.

Theb-sarr glares at his adopted son. "Yes, Mudeenu. Osiris needs to be able to defend himself, to be ready to fight if he needs to. You will be captain of the guard tomorrow, and one of your duties will be training, both the guard and Osiris."

I'm going to have to get used to the name Osiris soon. Theb-sarr doesn't refer to me by Michael anymore.

"Why not Iflar?" Mudeenu growls under his breath.

Theb-sarr must have heard. "Because Iflar needs to prepare for when he rules, and might I add that even though he dislikes his training, he is still following through with his duties?"

Mudeenu clenches his teeth together. "When do I start?" he hisses.

"The actual training will start after your promotion," Theb-sarr says, "but you will give Osiris a tour of the training grounds at the barracks immediately."

"Very well," Mudeenu says, his voice dripping with venom. "Follow me, Osiris."

I make sure to stand far enough away from Mudeenu so that he doesn't "accidentally" hit me with an arm or tail or anything else. It's a little nerve-wracking to be alone with him.

The barracks are behind the palace. I see a few Mipedians relaxing. I recognize a few, including Malvadine. They all stand at attention as Mudeenu and I approach.

"At ease," Mudeenu snorts as he passes. "Just showing Michael around the place."

If Mudeenu thinks he can feel better by not using my new name, he can go right ahead. It's not like I care.

Malvadine gives me a grin and a salute as I pass him. Mudeenu grumbles under his breath when he sees that.

We reach a ring in the sand. Mudeenu turns to me and says, "Tomorrow, I will train you here. You will come every morning, and you will practice until mid-day. If you're late, I will beat the tar out of you. If you slack off, I will beat the s*** out of you." Mudeenu leans in my face and growls, "If you give me any mouth, any smart talk, I will beat the ever living f*** out of you. Twice. Are we clear?"

My body feels like ice. "Crystal clear," I say. It's a miracle that I didn't stammer.

"Since when do you use Human profanities?" a soldier behind me asks.

Mudeenu stands up straight and points at the Mipedian. "Feel very fortunate that I'm not your captain yet. My rules go for everyone, not just Michael."

If Mipedians were capable of paling, the soldier Mudeenu's pointing at would be white as a ghost.

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Theb-sarr clasps his hands together in front of him with interlaced fingers. "Even with a symbolic position, you are bound to have several requests from your tribe. So, when you are finished training with Mudeenu in the mornings, you will return to your room. There will be a list on your table. Complete the items on the list. It doesn't matter how worn out you are from training. I will make sure you only receive requests you can actually do something about, so no excuses if you do not complete them."

Yeah, princedom isn't all it's hyped up to be.

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"You look stressed, Michael," Isis says.

I'm sitting on the bed, pressing my fingers to my temples. My hair is a mess, my teeth are clenched, and my heart is racing. "What was your first clue," I mutter.

"I'm trying to help," Isis says with a frown.

I cringe. "Sorry. Your father just spent the past three hours showing me how to do things. I swear I'm going to see that list on my table tomorrow afternoon and forget all of it."

Isis sits beside me. "Well, I'm here to help you if you do forget."

I sigh and let myself fall backwards on the bed. "It all starts tomorrow... I'm not ready for this..."

"Who would be?" Isis asks.

"Chuck Norris," I mutter.

Isis blinks. "Who?"

And so I spent the rest of the conversation explaining the joke.

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Up next: The Captain of the Guard

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Like I said before, Chaotic belongs to TCDigital.

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