Hello, everyone! I forgot to update on Sunday, so here I am now with the next installment of ATIS!

I just want to extend a heartfelt thank-you to VampireNinja1706 for reviewing. As authors, we deeply appreciate support, especially in the form of reviews. It means a lot to us when people give us feedback. If there's anyone else out there, please, by all means, review to your heart's content!

Previously on ATIS…

"Priestess," Sharzad stammered, then bowed slightly. "I'm honored to meet you."

Atete smiled, and her face was warm and friendly. "I assume you have a good reason for staying in disguise," she said.

"I do," said Sharzad. Suddenly, she had a thought.

"Um, I was thinking – you're really good at magic, and I think you might be able to help us. I just wanted to ask – do you know a spell to find someone's location?"

Priestess Atete tipped her head. "Tracking spells are very difficult to complete. I only know of one person who has mastered this, and that is the former High Priestess of Rêve. But even she did not have complete control over it – the spell was too strong, and she died using it. Might I ask whom you are looking for?"

"We're on a mission to bring a criminal to justice," Sharzad explained. "We're looking to bring back A" –

"Stop!" yelped Daewon, turning towards the priestess. "We really need to get going."

"Of course," Atete said politely, her face carefully concealing any hint of surprise. "Good day to you both." She turned around and headed away.

"Why did you have to do that?" Sharzad hissed. "Did you have to be so rude? She could have helped us! And you just shut me up while I was" –

"You told her what we were doing!" Daewon snapped. "Now she definitely knows who we're looking for."

"So?" said Sharzad, stung. "She would've helped us. She's wise and powerful. Why couldn't we have just taken her along with us?"

"Because she would've had the exact same reaction as your parents if they knew what we were doing!" Daewon snarled. "You complete idiot. Now we won't be able to find the shard."

"Don't you dare call me an idiot," Sharzad yelled back. "I thought you were my friend."

Daewon shook his head. "Let's just go."

CHAPTER 9: AGAINST ORDERS

8 days until…

The temple wafted with smoke, filling the air with the sweet scent of burnt sage. Because of its dark walls, no one would have guessed that it was broad daylight outside. A brown-skinned woman sat cross-legged on the floor, closing her eyes as she held her hands over the burning torch.

"Three-quarters of the lunar cycle have passed," she murmured. "The waxing gibbous now rises, as we emerge into the second half of this fateful fortnight. Speak to me, Hekate, and let me partake of your knowledge in what Fate shall unfold."

Those words were merely ceremonial and ritualistic; only the most learned could even hope to communicate with the gods. Although the gods had created the universe, they did not contact mortals, nor did they have a say in fate; it was a person's free will, and decisions, that defined his or her path. Although many would have called her one of the wisest women in the world, she knew that she had so much more to learn, in the ever-waning time before she departed to the afterlife. But witches were a superstitious lot, and some of the traditions she had learned, however foolish, had stuck with her throughout her long life.

This was her time to think. Time which she could use to process the ins and outs, and to consider problems she'd been made privy to. Currently, the problem of Aria and the spell of transfigural possession.

She had not yet found the solution. She'd spoken with psychologists, sorcerers, and powerful warlocks, but she still had not found the answer. Every day that passed was a day closer to Aria's inevitable doom. Yet she knew she had to be patient. She was not like young Maire; she knew that frustration and worry only made a situation harder. And yet, there were days when she came close to that brink of panic, panic which she thought she had well-conquered, for Aria was depending on her, and if she failed, there would be no one to blame but she.

As she was engaged in thought, someone suddenly burst into the room, interrupting her thoughts.

"Mater Saraswati," she cried, using the word for 'mother' in Runica, an ancient language of Magix that outdated the vernacular language of Magixian. "I must tell you something."

"Yes, filia?" Priestess Saraswati asked, turning her attention from the fire to the woman who'd entered the room. Soror Atete was the newest and youngest member of the group. She had been there for only twenty-three years, a mere blink in Saraswati's long lifespan of five-hundred and two years. It was not a coincidence that thinkers lived much longer than those who didn't question; five-hundred years was abnormal for a fairy, let alone a witch. Her longevity was one of the rather undue reasons why people gave her so much respect.

"I was in Fulgur yesterday," she said breathlessly. "The planet of Iris. While I was there, I came across Princess Sharzad and a friend of hers. They seem to be involved in some vigilante-justice work."

"Is that so?" Saraswati could not say that this statement surprised her. Although Sharzad had never been in her class, she made it her job to know the character of every student at Alfea. Her assessment had been that Sharzad was rather naïve, and filled with fierce notions of justice and fairness. Notions that, unfortunately, were not so feasible in the real world.

"I believe they are making a big mistake," Atete said worriedly. "They seem to believe they can take on Cacciatore – the woman who killed a guardian fairy not even two days ago! Mater, please tell me – what do I do? Do you think I should alert the Fulgur authorities, so that they inform the princess's parents? Or do you believe that would be interference? Please, tell me! I can't" –

"Hush, filia," Saraswati said. Her firm, calm tone immediately silenced the younger priestess. The high priestess stood up, walked towards the fairy, and laid a hand on her shoulder. "I cannot tell you what to do. It is your decision to make, and I will not interfere with it. But I will give you my advice. Have you ever made mistakes in your life, Atete?"

Atete stared at her, confusion in her eyes. "Mistakes? Y-yes, I have made mistakes. Lots, when I was younger. But what does that have to do with anything?"

"I do not ask you this to make you feel lowly, or have you list all of your mistakes," Saraswati answered. "That is not the point. The point is: what happened as a result of those mistakes?"

Atete frowned. "I often felt miserable afterwards, and extremely guilty. But I also learned from those mistakes, and they helped me grow as a person. If it was a big mistake, I would work not to make it again."

"Then I would advise you to let the young fairy grow as well," Saraswati said. "Let them fall; whatever happens shall happen. It is not your burden to keep them from making mistakes – and it is not theirs, either. It is the only way they shall learn."

Atete was silent for a moment, then swallowed. "All right," she said. "I shall do as you say. Thank you, Mater."

"Of course, filia," Saraswati answered. "Do not feel sad about letting Fate take its course."

The priestess disappeared, closing the door. Saraswati resumed her vigil in front of the fire, allowing herself to process the current problem – along with the new information that had just been thrown her way.

Sharzad sat in her room. She was dressed in her usual brown suit, ready for the big day. However, the excitement at the final stage of their mission, combined with her elation at finding the key, was not enough to block out the negativity brewing in her heart.

What gave Daewon the right to be so rude to her? Even after she got the shard, he never even congratulated her or told her that she'd done a good job. All he did was turn away and make some snide comment about how she didn't want to sleep or something.

And he wasn't even going to consider letting the witches go. He and Arishtat were so convinced that the Trix deserved to stay behind bars. They helped us find the shards! They're without powers, and their sister is dead! How is it fair to keep them behind bars after that?

She was going to have to convince them. She was going to find them that morning and stop them from calling the Interrealm Justice Department. It just wasn't fair. They may have had horrible attitudes on the past three trips, but the witches deserved to go free after all they'd done.

It was just then that someone knocked on the door, alerting her from her thoughts. "Yes?" she said. "Come on in."

"Your Highness," Yadira said, as she entered Sharzad's room. "I have a message for you from your mother."

Sharzad sat up; this was news. Her mother never sent a servant to send her a message; she almost always came herself to talk to her daughter. This has got to be something important.

"A riot is occurring thirty kilometers from here, in the city of Parsua. It is not clear who has been injured, though the cause has been linked to unrest, due to anger at the UR and the government of Fulgur for failing to make a strong decision regarding Cacciatore.

"Therefore, your mother has decreed that no one shall leave the palace. You and Lord Daewon cannot continue your research project today. You may not leave until she had dealt with the rioters and placated everyone from causing more harm."

Sharzad sprang to her feet. "What?"

"It is Her Majesty's orders," Yadira said simply. "I am only following what she has said." She narrowed her eyes at Sharzad. "And don't you be breaking any rules."

Sharzad could hardly breathe. But today – we're going to be going to Glacia today. They had planned this – today was supposed to be the big day.

"Okay," she said. "Thanks, Yadira. I – do you mind leaving me alone?"

Yadira looked at her in surprise, obviously expecting more resistance, but she nodded. "Of course, Your Highness. Call me if you need anything. I will be outside." She left the room.

Sharzad slumped down in her chair and picked up her phone. She began to dial Darcy's disposable phone number. The phone rang, and then the witch picked up.

"Akane," she said, using the false name, "we have a problem."

Angéle closed her eyes, sitting cross-legged on the floor of the boxroom. Normally she'd be in her room, but she needed a different place to practice, a different environment. She focused on the energy within her and concentrated, focusing on getting a speck of power into her veins.

She had done this every day for the past six months. It had now become more of a ritual, something she forced herself to do, even though there was absolutely no meaning. She tried to create a speck of energy, just one speck, in her hands.

She focused on her heart, the internal source of every fairy's energy. Come on, please… She tried to push energy from her heart through her veins, into her hands, into her palms. She opened her eyes.

Nothing. No ball of energy sat in her hands, nor did she feel a speck of power. If anything, her body was weaker. It was almost as if nothing was there, as if she'd lost her energy for good.

Which didn't bode well for her current mission: to gain access to a transformation higher than even Sirenix.

A month before Angéle had been captured, she had decided to embark on a quest for Dreamix, a transformation that would allow her to delve into the subconscious mind and access the Land of Dreams. It was one of the most powerful transformations in the dimension, and therefore, gaining it was very difficult. A fairy had a year to complete a task, and if she completed it, she would be granted the power of Dreamix.

She had begun to work on the task, trying to explore her mind and figure out what was going on. But then she'd been captured, and with that, her powers had more-or-less decayed, making her task futile. And now, the year was almost up…

She thought of her mother, who had been killed so brutally, and her father, who had been more-or-less a broken half of himself after her death. She felt miserable inside, wondering how he was doing, now that she was gone. It must be killing him. Oh Mierve, what if he's gone now? What if he couldn't bear the loss of both his wife and daughter… She gasped, remembering her first memory of his unraveling.

It had been three days after her mother's death. Angéle had been in her room, lying in her bed. Her sleep was restless, for she was too terrified to dream. The first night, she'd woken up screaming, horrified as she relived every moment of her mother's death.

She dozed fitfully. Then suddenly she was awoken by a snarl, furious and demanding. "How dare you insinuate I'm a horrible father?"

Angéle woke with a start. The king's calm voice spoke below, though she detected a note of panic in his tone. "I'm not insinuating anything, Franc. Please, you're making a big mistake."

My father! Angéle stared at the wall. What's he doing? Her father roared, his rage echoing through the palace walls.

"I will NOT listen! I am not consorting with you royal crooks any longer. You used my wife for your own agenda, but you will not take my daughter, too! This isn't going to work anymore!"

"Trinity made the sacrifice out of her free choice," the king protested. "And what a valiant sacrifice she made, one that will be honored throughout all of time" –

"HOW – DARE – YOU!" Angéle's father seethed, and Angéle drew back in fear. "THIS IS MY DAUGHTER WE ARE TALKING ABOUT!"

"If you leave now, I will no longer be able to protect you," the king said urgently. "The child is bound to be under threat. I won't be able to stop the inevitable."

"Hell to your protection," Angéle's father spat. "It didn't do anything for my wife, and it won't do anything for my daughter, either." He stormed up the steps, and Angéle leaned back in fright, never having faced her father in this mood.

The next morning, they left the castle and were unpacking their things in a two-room cottage, cramped between walls.

Angéle hated the cottage. Everything about it was a prison, confining and eternal. But she knew better than to complain. And she also knew better than to ask her father what he and the king had fought about, what he had meant when he'd called her "special". She didn't want to know the answer herself.

For the next two years, Angéle stayed at home. She did all the chores and the cooking while her father went to work. She continued to study her priestly spells and powers, but nothing was the same. Without her mother, an empty void filled her from top to bottom, one that she'd never overcome.

She was no longer training to become the Priestess of Rêve. Since her father had banned her from continuing with such studies, her old life was on hold. Since they practically lived in the middle of nowhere, she could barely even leave the house. Her life was utterly lonely, her father unable to provide her with the love he had before.

For her mother had been their anchor. She was the by-all of everything, their guardian angel. Without her, nothing was the same anymore.

And that was the way it always would be.

I need help, she thought. She had not slept well for the last few days. Restlessness had overcome her, and she often experienced stabbing pains in her heart. Closing her eyes, she called upon the guardian fairy of Dreamix, the one remotely magical thing she could do.

A white jeweled box in the shape of a swan appeared in front of her. It opened to reveal a miniaturized apparition of Desirée, the guardian fairy of Dreamix.

"Greetings, Angéle," she said in a raspy voice, the voice that had shocked Angéle when she'd first met her. "What is it you wish to know?"

Angéle looked at her. She'd heard of Desirée's grandeur long before she'd set foot in the Cave of Dreams. Her voice was aged, and so was her appearance; she was a dark-skinned woman with long silver hair and blue eyes. But her wisdom extended far beyond her four hundred years of age, which was why she spoke with such an ancient glamour.

"I need help," Angéle said desperately. "The time is almost up."

"Yes, you have eight days and seven nights left to complete the task," Desirée said matter-of-factly. "You can already feel your energy starting to drain, Angéle. It has taken you until now to realize the dire circumstances."

"But I can't use my magic anyways," Angéle protested. "How on earth do you expect me to complete the task?"

Desirée flicked her hair back. "How many times to tell you, Angéle? This test does not require magic. Sure, it would be helpful to have magical ability, but you do not need it." She looked at Angéle gravely. "And yet, you do not focus your energy on this task. What can I possibly do to help you, after that?"

"I… don't know," said Angéle, feeling faint.

"You are the only one who can help yourself at this point, Angéle," Desirée said sternly. "I can do no more. Either you pass the task or you don't." She disappeared, the box's lid closed, and then it vanished.

I can't do this, Angéle thought, an involuntary shudder going through her body. I can't. She collapsed to the floor.

The year was ending soon. Angéle could already feel her energy draining, even more than it had over the past year. It would be gone in about a week. And when it was over, she would have no hope of getting out of here…

She looked up in surprise as someone entered through the door. Rather, a golden-haired someone. Her eyes were bright and her hair was soft and sleek; she'd clearly worked very hard on her appearance that morning. She grinned down at Angéle. "All right?" she asked smugly.

"Aria?" Angéle asked. She managed to pull herself off of the ground and into a sitting position. "Why are you here? I mean" – she caught herself. "What's going on?"

Aria smirked. "Just coming around to say hi," she said. "How're you doing?"

"Okay," said Angéle unsteadily, her voice wavering. "I'm fine." That was when she remembered something.

"Isolde has me sweep the entire sixteenth floor once a week," she said. "I was wondering, do you want to do it with me?"

Aria laughed. "What do you think I am, some simple kitchen-sweep?" she asked scornfully. "You think I would stoop down to that level?"

Angéle's heart plummeted. I should've known she wouldn't want to do anything with me. She let out a sigh.

"I didn't mean to offend you," she apologized. "I just thought it might give us some time together. I mean, we're both stuck here, so we might as well make the most of it."

"This is what you call making the most of it?" Aria laughed.

Angéle held her gaze steadily. Finally Aria let out a sigh. "All right," she sighed. "I'll come." She rolled her eyes. "But if I mess up my hair, you're dead."

"You won't mess up your hair," Angéle said automatically.

"And why is that?" Aria asked, her eyes narrowing.

Angéle didn't even think. Instead, she just blurted out, "Because nothing could ever mess it up."

There was a silence. Aria stared at her for a long moment. Then, she burst out laughing.

"Nice," she gasped between her laughs. "Looks like I have another admirer." She shrugged. "Well, having an admirer is always good, especially in a place like this."

Angéle's cheeks burned; if it wasn't for her dark skin, she was sure she would've been a brilliant shade of red. Why did I just say that? Lowering her head, she turned to find the brooms, and passed Aria one.

"How do you sweep?" Aria looked at the broom with disdain.

"You just have to push all the dust in one corner," Angéle responded. "Like this." She picked up the broom and began to sweep, pushing the dust to the side.

Aria coughed and gagged. "Ew, this place sucks!"

"You try it," Angéle responded. She moved to another corner of the room.

She found that having Aria along was a hindrance rather than a help. Aria kept bursting into fits of coughing, muttering about how crazy she was to be doing this. "I tell you, the things a girl has to resort to once imprisoned," she muttered.

Angéle could understand where Aria was coming from. Although she had been raised to live as humbly as circumstances would allow, she'd never had to sweep the floor before coming here, either.

"This reminds me of the people back in MOA," Aria huffed as she swept. "The kids who couldn't sing had to sweep the floor of the common-room, while the rest of us would sit and eat."

Angéle dropped her broom. "Your school allowed this?"

"Yeah," said Aria, rolling her eyes. "The teachers were totally clueless – they probably even endorsed the social order. We could do whatever we wanted."

"But that's so mean," Angéle gasped.

"So?" Aria responded. "They deserved it for not being able to sing as well as us. Let me tell you, I was the star. I ruled over everyone." She smiled smugly. "And that is why Isolde brought me here, you see. She brought me here because she knows I'm better than everyone else!"

"What?" gasped Angéle, unable to process what was going on.

"Don't you see?" Aria laughed. "She's going to make me powerful. She's going to make me triumph over my enemies, and restore all that is wrong with the world. She's going to make me rise!"

Angéle's mind was reeling. How could she do that? Without thinking, she turned her back to Aria.

"What are you doing?" Aria demanded.

"I'm going to my room," Angéle answered. "I'm not sure I want to talk to you anymore."

"What do you mean?" Aria had fired up, and she towered over the girl. Angéle shrank back.

"You're not who I thought you were," she sobbed, turning around and fleeing to her room. Her body felt weak and insignificant, but her shaky legs were at least steady enough to get her across the hall.

She could hear Aria's enraged shouts behind her. "Well then, fine! I never liked you, anyways! You're a stuck-up loser, just like the rest of them! Anyways, once I get my revenge, I won't ever have to see you again!" She slammed the door.

Angéle's legs gave way, and she hit her bed facedown, crying. She was at a complete loss for words.

How could I have thought I'd ever find a friend?

Daewon looked at Sharzad. "Ready for the plan?" he asked.

Sharzad nodded, heading to the garden hedge which they'd snuck through five days prior. The plan was simple; they would sneak outside, being careful to keep away from the guards. Darcy and Stormy were pulling some strings to get them a spacecraft. What strings they were, Daewon didn't know, and he thought they were better off not knowing.

Kinda wish Arishtat was here. There was no mistaking it: the guy was cool. He smiled slightly, remembering how they had bonded the previous day over spacecrafts and flying. But they had no choice; if he knew they were going, he would probably lock them in their rooms for the rest of the day.

He felt adrenaline coursing through his veins. This is it. In a few hours, they would be landing on Glacia to defeat Aria, the fairy who had killed his childhood friend and turned against everyone. The liar who had everyone wrapped around her fingers until now. He clenched his teeth thinking about her.

He remembered the days he'd been under her torture, back when he was at MOA. The two of them had started dating when he was an eighth-year and she was a ninth-year. For the first month, things had gone well. They'd had a fairly decent relationship, going out to buy pizza together and hanging out in the common-room – just casual things that boyfriends and girlfriends did together in high-school.

But then things had changed. Aria had started to expect more, demanding that Daewon come to every performance that she had. If he ever failed to compliment her singing, she would act cold, claiming that he didn't care enough for her. She cut off any conversation he had about himself, simply talking about herself all the time. Daewon couldn't even argue with her. She was too learned in the art of demand, the art of modeling him as guilty and heartless.

And then came the worst part; Aria had started to bully Galatea, Daewon's closest friend. She'd sent spiteful anonymous notes to Galatea online, ruining her self-confidence completely. They'd gotten the other students involved, but no one had ever found out who was the one doing the cyberbullying – no one except Daewon. He'd known it the second he caught Aria in the act of pouring Nodule Potion into Galatea's coffee, two days before her sudden disappearance. Only now had he learned that the sudden disappearance had been to go to Alfea.

He didn't know what had happened in the past three years in Alfea, but he guessed that it was nothing good. It was not for nothing that Alfea was the highest-ranked school for fairies in the Magical Dimension, and so with the new skills she learned, she'd switched from petty spitefulness to evil destructiveness. After all, that's what the Trix did. But the Trix didn't actually kill very many people, so that makes Aria far worse.

He glanced over at Sharzad, who was standing away from him, still quiet. That's weird. She's being weirdly quiet. Wonder what's up. "You okay?" he asked.

Sharzad sniffed, which was something also unusual for her. She crossed her arms. "As if you care."

"What?" Daewon wasn't sure he'd heard her right.

"You always act so arrogant," she snapped. "As if you know everything there is to know. Just do me a favor, okay? Stop ordering me around."

What did I do? thought Daewon, not understanding a word of what Sharzad had said. Why are women always so frustrating? "I didn't do anything," he said. "Maybe you should cut down the whining a little."

"You were the one who stopped me from talking to Priestess Atete, when she was about to give us important information" –

"Oh, so that's what this is about!" Daewon couldn't stop from raising his voice. "You're upset because I saved the mission! I stopped us from being reported to your goody-goody mom, who would've put a stop to it immediately" –

"Don't you dare bring my mom into this!" she fired back.

"No?" said Daewon heatedly. "Why not? She's the one who stopped us from being able to use the normal spacecraft. It's because of her we might not even be able to reach Glacia" –

"If you're going to be so immature about this, then I won't even speak to you!" Sharzad turned around, thrusting her nose into the air.

Then there was a voice from above. "Stop your chattering, pixies, unless you want to alert the entire city that we're here!"

A spacecraft landed on the ground, one of lower quality than the royal ship, but a blessing nonetheless. Stormy stuck her head out, staring impatiently.

"You coming?" she sneered. "Or are we leaving you behind?"

Daewon cast Sharzad a disgusted look. "Let's go." He climbed up the ramp to the ship. A moment later, Sharzad followed.

The flight took off, and they were soon soaring in the air, away from the planet of Electrix.

"How did you get this ship?" Daewon asked.

Darcy shrugged. "We pulled a few strings," she said. "I mean, you pixies are so dependent on your royal fleet, you probably wouldn't understand. We witches have other means of getting what we want."

"I'm not a pixie," said Daewon, anger rising in his chest. He wasn't a fairy-being – he was a warlock, just like Darcy and Stormy. Although warlocks were equally enfranchised in Melody as fairy-beings were, the fact that the royal family always comprised itself of fairies and warriors was… irksome, to say the least. It always bothered him that fairy-beings managed to get special privileges that warlocks didn't have.

"Whatever," Darcy said, rolling her eyes. "We're going." She pressed a button, and she ship enabled atmospheric defenses as it sailed into the stratosphere. She looked back towards Sharzad.

"Make sure you show your royal seal to the immigration officers once we reach the troposphere," she said. "Then they won't question us as we go. We don't have a royal spaceship this time, so we're bound to raise a few eyebrows."

"How long is it going to take for us to reach Glacia?" Sharzad asked.

Darcy shrugged. "At the fastest speed, five hours."

"Wonderful." Daewon sank back into his chair. Five hours stuck with those annoying witches and a princess who now hates me. Just what I need. But then he thought of Galatea, and his fists clenched.

If this gets us to Aria, it'll be worth it…

"Interesting," Isolde murmured, staring at her tome. "Very interesting."

She flipped the pages, staring into the book. It was a book that she had stolen from the castle library when she was very young, and since then, had taught herself many spells, spells that would one day ensure her dominance over the kingdom. Called the Tome of Sorcery, it had been written thousands of years ago, by the most learned sorceresses, fairies, and witches in the realms. It had been from this book that she'd learned the art of transfigural possession.

The Axe of Anguta was a curious object. It was the only magical relic she knew that had a connection with death; death was a matter that was strictly handled by the powers of divinity. No mortal had the power to breach that gate, until his or her own death.

It was not for nothing, however, that this Axe had been fashioned by the Nunangatan god of the Underworld. It had certain powers that she would utilize – very important powers for her mission. If her mission had been to conquer the realms, Isolde would not have been satisfied with the Axe – she would have needed something much more. It was not control over the dimension that she wanted; she was perfectly satisfied with what she had. No, it was something much more.

The Axe increases the power of its bearer through acts of revenge. As more and more destruction is caused, the Axe exponentially increases the strength of its owner. At the end of each act, however, the bearer will have no memory of what he or she has done.

This was what Isolde had tested, and so far, everything had gone by the book. She had sent Aria to Solaria to kill her parents, although she had no memory of what had happened. It had massively increased her destructive capacity; the first time, she'd only killed Ujurak and injured a few other members of his tribe. But the second time, she'd left three thousand people dead and six thousand wounded or missing. Her power was truly fantastic.

Better not get ahead of myself, Isolde warned herself. After all, the best plans required patience and caution. She couldn't make Aria enact the spell she needed until her mind was fully under her control.

And then I will find the last traitor, the one who committed the ultimate act of betrayal against me. And it will all be thanks to my faithful servant.

She would never let anyone betray her ever again. She would have her revenge completed, and destroy all of the people who had ever committed wrongs against her. Her plan was in motion.

Sighing, she walked out of her study, slamming the doors shut.

It had been another exhausting day. The realms had still not managed to come to any agreement about how to deal with Aria. King Jun had suggested putting the armies of all the realms together; that plan had immediately been struck down. Although the realms were willing to work together to promote peace in the Dimension, each realm preferred to keep her independence, and was not willing to combine armies until absolutely necessary.

Makes sense, thought Darius. After all, the first time the realms ever sent out a joint army under a single command was last year, during the War of Tritannus. Each sovereign's realm had a history far beyond the Age of Unity. As determined as they all were to defeat Aria, he couldn't actually imagine them doing anything other than arguing each other's lips off.

Why did they ask me to come here? It wasn't as if anyone even cared about his opinion. But since he was the crown prince, he had to stay there to support his father, and help him come up with a position so that he could argue during deliberation. But his father wasn't even listening to his position – he was adamant about the fact that Aria needed to face swift, merciless retribution.

Darius was sick of helping him. He loved his dad, but he couldn't believe how close-minded he was being about this. And for all of his talk about saving the dimension, he hadn't even declared a state of emergency in Fulgur yet. As of now, all of the other realms had, but his father refused to follow suit, saying he didn't want to cause mass panic. As if a mass attack on a major city isn't a cause of dimension-wide panic.

He thought back to the past two years, the years after his relationship with Aria. He'd dated a few girls then, but their relationships had been casual and brief, and none had lasted more than a few months. It was as if his heart couldn't hold onto anyone but Aria.

And now she was missing. Darius knew that the only way he would ever be satisfied would be if she came back. He had to bring her back home and save her from herself. Whatever her problems were, they could be fixed.

As he thought, his phone rang again. Darius picked it up, seeing the caller ID: Maire. What does she want? "Hello?" he asked, picking up the phone.

"You've got to see this," Maire gasped, her voice breathless.

"Great," said Darius, irritably. "What is it now?"

"Shut up and look!" Her face was white; whatever she had seen, it wasn't good. Okay, this is serious, he realized.

"Show me," he said. "What did you look at?"

"Her journal," said Maire, showing the diary in front of the screen. "Read it!"

Darius stared at the lines. As he read aloud, his eyes widened, and he gasped.

8 Duodecemenis 1012

It's been a few months since my breakup with Darius. I've tried dating more, but to no avail. The boys at Red Fountain are pathetic. They really don't care about me. And the girls are all jealous, because I'm better at singing than them.

Why haven't I learned by now? No boy is ever going to love me. I should just give up the search right now. Every time I date, I'm always plagued by the curse of that one boy, the first one I ever dated, who should be rotting in hell right now – Daewon.

7 Trimensis 1012, the day before I started at Alfea. Daewon cornered me in the common-room. He screamed at me, calling me a fake and a lunatic and a liar. He told me that he didn't know what he was thinking, becoming my boyfriend. He told me that I didn't deserve to ever date again, and shouted to everyone that no boy should ever think of dating me.

It was the worst day of my life. I should have kept my decorum; if there's one thing that MOA taught me, it was that dignity and pride was very important. But I just couldn't keep it together. I ran up to the girls' dorm, sobbing madly, my makeup dripping down my cheeks. Not one person came to comfort me. Not even my best friends came upstairs and

I MUST STOP! I cannot think about those times. It will be the end of me, the end of everything. I am not the girl I once was. I am strong, beautiful, and powerful. And I will never see Daewon again. He is a figment of the past, something that never existed to begin with.

The diary ended, and Darius's mind was reeling. He could barely contain his fury. That critter is still in the palace, enjoying my mother's hospitality…

"Well?" Maire demanded. "Spill."

"Aria told me about him," Darius gasped. "The day before she… she broke up with me." He closed his eyes, clenching his teeth together as he remembered.

It had been a stormy day. Darius had burst into Light Rock Café, skiving off Aviation 101 to respond to his girlfriend's distress call. The only person there was Aria, along with a man standing behind the counter, (unsuccessfully) ignoring the girl at the table. He stared at her, shocked.

Her eyes were red; she'd been crying. Despite this, her makeup was intact, and her face looked just as beautiful as ever – probably even more so attractive. Her face had the appearance of a hurt princess, one who had been kidnapped and needed her savior to come rescue her.

"Aria," he gasped, scooping her up into his arms. She clung to him, resting her face against his shoulder. "What in the realms happened?"

"I'm s-s-scared," she choked out. "I – I think someone's stalking me."

"Who?" Darius demanded, pulling Aria in even tighter. No one messes with my girl. "Who is this?"

"I don't know," she said weakly. "Someone sent me a message online." She showed him her phone.

He grabbed it, staring down at the message in horror. It was written in Harmonian, and his Harmonian skills were poor at the time; nevertheless, he could make out the general idea. You stupid loser, cheater, and lout. Someday, you're going to get the punishment you deserve, and the whole world will be laughing.

"That – that's"… Darius was furious. Someone had the nerve to send Aria this horrible message. "Do you have any idea who did this?"

"I have a few suspicions," she said. "Some people back at my old school – they didn't like me. They were horrible to me – they were jealous because I was the best singer in the class!" Her voice fired out angrily. "They did this to me." Her voice became quieter.

"There was this boy… Daewon," she wept. "He might be behind it. I think it's him."

"What did he do?" Darius demanded.

He'd never gotten an answer to that question. The next day, Aria had broken up with him, leaving him utterly confused and devastated. Apparently, he hadn't given her enough support, even though he'd come the second she'd called, getting a detention from Professor Krishnan for his troubles.

And then the next year, he'd met Daewon. He'd only seen him a few times, either in Magix or when he came to Red Fountain for aviation class, but those few times had been enough for him to gather an utter dislike of him. The boy was arrogant and thoughtless, always acting as if he was on top of the world.

Darius had always hated the fact that he'd never been able to confront Daewon and ask him what he'd done. He'd never had the guts to do it. For one thing, Aria wasn't his girlfriend anymore. For another thing, what if he only further ignited the cyberbullying? Whether Aria had ever bumped into Daewon during her second or third year at Alfea, he'd never known. Probably not. After all, wizards from the Academy usually only interacted with witches from Cloud Tower, the same way Red Fountain boys mainly only interacted with fairies from Alfea.

I'm not going to stall any longer. Darius clenched his fists. I'm going to find Daewon and get an answer from him right now. "Where is he?" he demanded. "Where is Daewon?"

Maire was about to answer, but just then, a soldier burst into Maire's room. Sir Arishtat, one of the palace guards.

"Miss Maire," he gasped, "I must speak to King Cyrus."

"Sir!" Darius barked, before Maire could respond. "We are in the middle of a conversation. You can talk to her after we're done."

"This is urgent, Your Highness," Arishtat gasped. "The princess and her friend, Lord Daewon, have gone missing."

What? A pressurized chamber of magma built up in Darius's heart, practically exploding out of his mouth's volcano. "Where did she go? WHERE DID DAEWON TAKE HER? And why did you not alert my mother?" What scheme has Sharzad been taken with now?

"Her Majesty is in Barq, suppressing a riot!" Arishtat cried. "I tried contacting her, but my phone did not send a signal."

"Well, don't just stand there!" Darius seethed. "We're going after her!" He looked towards his bedroom door. "Guard!" he bellowed.

A knight burst into the room. "What is it, Your Highness?" he asked.

"Get a spacecraft ready," he ordered. "I want it ready in five minutes. We are taking off!"

"But Prince," the knight protested, "your father"…

"I don't care!" Darius barked. "Just get it done!"

"It will be as you say, Your Highness," the knight gasped, turning around and running into the hallway. Darius turned back to his phone, glaring.

"Well?" he said. "Are you going to help or not?"

Maire looked at Arishtat, her eyes wide. Clearly she did not know what to do. Arishtat quickly answered.

"We will set off as well," he said. "I will get another spacecraft ready. Her Majesty ordered us to ground the spacecrafts, but I will find a way around" –

"Whatever, just get it done!" Darius snapped. "Do you have any idea where Sharzad has gone?"

There was a pause, then Arishtat answered. "To the forgotten realm of Glacia."

Alright, the drama is up! Anyone got predictions as to what'll happen next?

Next chapter:

- Sharzad and Daewon reach the Gates of Glacia.

- Darius, Maire, and Arishtat chase after Darius's sister.

That's it for now! See you all later!