A shrill scream echoed through the palace. Birds yelped, flying from the previously peaceful branches. A burst of wind seemed to respond to the noise, blowing off even the green summer leaves.
"SHE WHAT?!"
"She escaped, Your Highness."
Crown Prince Alexander was hyperventilating in his bed, his eyes flaring with rage.
"ALEXEI! GO AND GET HER, THEN!"
"I don't know where she went!" Alexei lied.
"USELESS, USELESS, ALL OF YOU!"
Alexander slammed his fist onto the nightstand next to his bed.
"Alex, I know you're mad, but-"
The door flew open and a butler peeked in. He avoided the Crown Prince's gaze. "Uh… Y-your Highness. The Selected are waiting for your-"
"I DON'T CARE ABOUT THE SELECTED!" Alexander snapped. Alexei flinched. "GET ME JULIA RIGHT NOW AND MAKE HER MARRY ME!"
The butler squeaked, then closed the door. His frantic footsteps faded out of earshot.
Alexei sighed. "It's part of your duties, Alex. You have to-"
"UGHH!" Alexander sat up, the covers folding underneath his chest submissively. "The Selected?! I don't care about them! They've wasted enough of my time, anyway! All of this was a cover-up to marry Julia, and now-"
"Alex, you can't-"
"SHUT UP!" Alexander ordered. Alexei obeyed. "I've had enough! Alexei, kill them all!"
Alexei blinked. "The… Selected?"
"Yes! Kill them all! They're annoying… leeches without a shred of royal blood!"
"Well, if they did have royal blood, it would be a bit awk-"
"ALEXEI! THAT WAS AN ORDER! KILL THEM ALL!"
Alexei bit his lip.
"Fine. You want a cover-up? It's midnight, kill them all in their rooms and throw their bodies out into the lake. No one will know. They'll think they'd run away."
"I think you underestimate-"
"How many times must I say it, Alexei?! Kill them!"
Now even Alexei whimpered. He gulped. "All… eight?"
"Yes, all eight! How stupid are you?!"
"Alex, I'm fine with executing commoners who've wronged you, but these girls didn't do anything, they-"
"They're ANNOYING!" Alexander snapped. Alexei bowed his head.
"... Yes, Your Highness."
Just as Alexei turned towards the door, George Domanshee rushed in, his eyebrows arched in worry.
"What happened? I heard His Highness was hurt!"
"Oh, look who's here!" Alexander said mockingly. Alexei gave him a side glance.
"George, now's not the time-"
"Might as well kill him, too, Alexei," Alexander said. George blinked. "After all, his mom has been giving me trouble."
A beat.
"Oh, alright, you coward," Alexander snapped, ripping away his covers, and standing up. He stumbled a bit, surprised that his wound still hurt even after the best doctors in Ethica had treated him. "I'll kill him myself."
He walked towards Alexei and snatched his sword, grimacing slightly, his other hand clutching his shoulder.
George drew his sword, though it wavered in his grasp. Alexei looked at him, then looked at Alexander.
"Give me back my sword, Alex," Alexei said quietly.
"I don't have to listen to you!"
"You don't know how to use one. You'll hurt yourself."
"Nonsense. George, if you know what's best for you, bow down to me."
George looked at Alexei and Alexander, his brother and his friend, conflicted.
"Alex. I'm being serious. That was my father's sword. And my father's father." Alexei stood tall, staring right into Alexander's eyes.
Alexander scoffed. "What makes you think-"
"It's the sword of Lord Ares, Alexander."
George gasped slightly.
"I. Don't. Care. Now stop stalling me-"
Alexei narrowed his eyes. "You may have all the power in the world, Your Highness, but have no right to hold that sword in your hands."
"Just-"
"You've read the history books, have you not? Then you know that even the Royal Family has its limits." Alexei held out a hand, waiting. "Whatever. You can kill him. But you can't use that sword. You know that."
They stared at each other. The Prince's eyebrows furrowed.
Finally, Alexander threw the sword onto the ground and stumbled back to his elegant golden bed. "Fine. You win."
"And the Selected?"
Alexander climbed back under his covers. "I haven't changed my mind."
A beat.
"Fine. Kill them all, but Giavanna and Eva. It'll be too suspicious if they all die in one night. We'll just have to finish off the remaining two later."
A beat. Alexei's eyes seemed to bore into Alexander's, enough so that the Crown Prince sighed.
He had watched him. He knew what Alexander had gone through. He knew who his heart lied with.
"Alright, alright! Kill all but Giavanna, Eva, and Mercedes. To kill all of the commoners would be too cruel…"
More staring. Alexander groaned.
"That is my final order, Alexei. Do it. Now."
"Yes, yes!" Alexei said, holding up his hands in surrender. He picked up his sword from the floor. "As you wish, Your Highness. Come on, George."
Alexei slammed the door and immediately slid down to the floor, letting go of his confident facade. He buried his head in his lap.
"Alexei? What happened?"
"Sorry… His Highness isn't exactly in the right headspace right now," Alexei said, trying to catch his breath. "Julia stabbed him and ran away earlier."
"What?" George gasped, kneeling next to him. "What happened?"
"I don't know, she just-"
"She what?"
Alexei grimaced. "Mom!"
Heather Ares loomed over him, her stony features turning into a frown. "I was going to tell you that your coronation date has been set to next week, but Julia did what?"
"She… uh, stabbed Alex."
Lady Ares sighed. "I should have expected this. She is a feisty one."
"But… where is Julia, now? I can't find her-"
"She's no longer part of our family, Alexei."
Alexei froze. "What?"
"You know what I mean. I'm afraid you'll never see her again."
George and Alexei shared a glance.
"But…" Alexei looked up at his mother, then down to the floor. "Yes, mom."
It was alright. Alexei told himself. It was going to be over soon. He wouldn't have to keep bowing, keep submitting to Alexander, and keep listening to his mother. He wouldn't have to kill anyone. He wouldn't have to wield a sword anymore.
Soon. It will all be over soon.
In terms of near-death experiences, Natasha thought she was pretty seasoned.
She had her fair share of violence in her home before her mother married Johnson Kim. Her parents had shattered more dishes than she could count, and Natasha had been quite worried that she'd slip and slam her head on a shard one day. Bullies were quite literally everywhere, too. Natasha remembered having to bash some guy's head against a tree for fear of getting thrown off a bridge. Which is actually what happened to Charlie, one of Natasha's best friends, when Natasha had helped him.
But, in terms of assassins sneaking into her room at night, Natasha would say that she was completely unfamiliar.
What saved her life, probably, was what Giavanna had said to her that day. How she would track her family down and ruin their lives if Natasha didn't obey her wishes. It wasn't an empty threat, either—Giavanna had shown her proof of what she did to another family who had crossed her… and Natasha would rather not describe what she had seen. Of course, Natasha had known pain and suffering, but Giavanna's sadistic tendencies that were most certainly against the law gave even her a shiver down the spine. So Natasha had laid on her bed all night, wondering how to deal with such an entitled woman, when the shadows moved.
At first, Natasha thought it was probably just her imagination. She was probably sleep-deprived, and there was no reason for anyone to be in her room.
But that was enough to make her suspicious.
She didn't move until she heard the swish of a sword above her head.
Instincts kicked in and she jumped out of bed, stumbling backward. A hooded figure stood above where she was just seconds before, a sword embedded in the bed, where her heart should have been. They tried quite comically to pull it back out.
To her surprise, they succeeded, yanking the sword back into their grasp. They threw a knife at her face and Natasha turned so that it sailed right past her. She yelped, turning around and running.
"Get back here!"
Yeah. Like that would work.
Natasha swung open her door and bolted towards the hallway. Then she stopped, an idea forming in her mind. It was far-fetched, but…
Natasha hid behind the wall, waiting for the footsteps of the assassin to arrive. They did, and Natasha stuck out her leg, sending the assassin flying forwards, their sword ricocheting from the wall and straight into Natasha's hand. Huh.
"Who sent you?!" Natasha demanded, pointing the sword at the assassin. They held their arms up, trying to scoot away.
"Prince Alexander!" a man's voice begged. "I was just acting on his orders! Don't hurt me!"
"Prince Alexander?" Natasha froze. Her hand wavered. "Why?"
"I don't know! Please, let me go!"
Natasha ignored him. If Prince Alexander had ordered her execution… Was Mercedes…
"Is my sister okay?"
"Who's your sister?"
"Mercedes Lopez-Kim," she replied.
"I don't know! I was just sent to kill you!"
Her blood froze. What if…
"You're useless to me," she spat.
"Please!" the man pleaded. "Spare me! I-I won't fight you!"
Jeez, this guy was so unnecessarily dramatic. Natasha shrugged, heading back into the Selected Quarters, trying not to make a sound.
She passed each room with stealth, her breath melting into the night, the silence blaring into her ears.
"WE'RE ALL GONNA D-"
Thump
Natasha stopped short as she passed yet another room. Was that... Thalia's voice? Did she... Was she...
Natasha's heart dropped to the floor.
Turns out Thalia was right, after all. They all did die.
She ran, beelining straight into Mercedes' room, her heart pounding. There was no way... He wouldn't...
She swung open the door and sprung into the room.
Her room was very organized, but barely any of it was visible in the dark. Natasha crept towards her sister's bed, bracing herself for the worst…
She let out a sigh of relief.
Mercedes slept soundly in her bed, her arms against one of her pillows, her legs sprawled eighty thousand feet apart from each other.
Why had Alexander ordered her death, but not Mary's? No. Nevertheless, what Natasha had gone through just proved her point. It was dangerous here, and it was a matter of time before that little assassin ran off to get reinforcements. Natasha just had to wake her sister and get the hell out of here.
She reached out to grab her shoulders, ready to shake her awake, but Mercedes turned in her sleep, a loud snore emerging from her throat. Natasha grimaced.
But then again…
"Do you like him?" she demanded. Mary opened her mouth.
"I…"
Natasha couldn't fathom how Mercedes ever found anything worth liking about Prince Alexander, who had literally just tried to kill her. But Mary was someone of a different breed, able to find the good in anything. And it wasn't a secret that Natasha tended to be pessimistic.
Maybe there was good in him, no matter how many atrocities Natasha had witnessed him commit (which was a grand total of three, now). Though Natasha didn't exactly trust Mercedes to be alone with a tyrannical sociopath, she wanted her to be happy most of all. And if that meant continuing on in this little game, so be it. Besides, it wasn't like Mercedes couldn't take care of herself. She had gone through so much, probably just as much as Natasha had, yet still emerged from it as such a kind and loving person. Like… Cinderella, almost. Her strength didn't lie in her ability to fight back, but to bite her tongue and keep going.
It was beautiful, how Mercedes never seemed to want to give up on anything. That wasn't something Natasha could ever change.
And, if they were to leave, where would they even go? They'd both be outlaws. Making her run like this would effectively ruin her life. Natasha wouldn't ever want that.
She heard a door open somewhere in the distance. They were coming, and she had to leave soon.
She leaned over her sister, brushing aside a hair from her face. Mary shifted a little, her eyelids fluttering.
"Shh," she said softly, sneaking back into the shadows. She eyed the window and rushed towards it, heaving it open. A soft, cold breeze wafted in.
Natasha had never jumped out of a window before. That was a lie. But she had never jumped out of a window more than one story high.
Well, it was time to take a leap of faith.
She took a deep breath, climbed over the windowsill, and leaped into the night.
Mary woke up to only two other girls in the main room.
"Where did they all go?" Eva frowned.
"Looks like the Prince eliminated them all overnight," Giavanna chuckled, clearly enjoying the space. "Oh! Julia's not here. A pity."
"Julia isn't here?" Mary looked around. "No way."
Giavanna eyed her and scoffed. "Oh. Right. You're still here. I thought it was only me and Eva left."
Mary coughed. "Okaaay. So, uh-"
"I honestly can't believe you are still here, anyway," Giavanna continued. Mary could help but bite her lip. "You clearly rigged the whole thing. How is it possible that you and your sister were Selected, and you are still here? You probably bribed them all."
Eva's eyes widened. Mary gave her a sideways glance.
"I mean, think about it! I didn't even spend a dime on this whole charade, and I'm the rich one."
Mary was about to reply before the door flung open and the three girls flinched, expecting Lady Domanshee to barge in and demand something unreasonable from them…
But Prince Alexander walked in, a deep frown etched on his face.
"Hello, girls," he said. Was it just Mary, or did he sound upset? "As you can see, I have… narrowed down the Selected."
A beat.
"So, well… I'm going to have final dates with you three. A final decider, if you may. I'll do Giavanna first, then Eva, and Mary last."
Both Eva and Giavanna glared at her. Mary grimaced. Of course… Having her date last was a huge advantage, especially at the final stretch. She would have the last impression.
"And then after I date all three of you, we're having the proposal… Which was a very stupid idea, by the way, by Lady Domanshee. I guess the dates are supposed to hype us up for it, but I really think we're all just going to be tired afterward."
She glanced back at Alexander, who sighed, about to close the door.
"Wait!"
He stopped, looking straight at her.
"Are you okay?"
His eyes flickered through various emotions, finally arriving on stoic.
"I'm fine."
Then he closed the door.
"Tomorrow?!" Eva said as soon as he left. "Three dates and the proposals right after?! How are we supposed to prepare for that?!"
"Oh?" Giavanna giggled. "I've prepared my ring already. It's going to be-"
"Let's just get to work, alright?" Mary said through clenched teeth.
She let out a breath, closed the door to her room behind her, and slowly fell to the floor, closing her eyes. This entire Selection had been so… exhausting. Fun, of course, but… Oh. She was probably never going to see all of the friends she had made ever again, huh?
No… but maybe if she won the Selection she could ask Alexander, and they could host a whole fancy ball! And Nat and Betty and Jack and Jane could all come and she could introduce them all, maybe make some lifetime friends along the way.
That was only possible if she won the Selection, of course. And what were her chances compared to Giavanna or Eva? All she had done with Alexander was a few picnics and a few blushes here and there. At least he hadn't called her an idiot?
Why did Alex have to eliminate Natasha? Mary sighed. She needed her, now more than ever. She needed Natasha to comfort her and tell her that the silly little thoughts in her head were just useless, self-deprecating trash and that it wasn't true at all.
"Miss Lopez-Kim?" her maid said, walking up to her. "Are you alright?"
"Oh!" Mary stood, dusting off her dress. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks."
"It's going to be a big day," her maid said, holding out a hand for her to stand. Mary took it. "I think you'd want to prepare before the chaos comes in!"
Mary laughed. "Yes?"
"First, we're going to have to choose an outfit..."