Kai's eyes were full with shock. Cinder. His Cinder. His Cinder that was the cyborg with the fantastic personality. His Cinder who he could talk to like a person, and not like a prince that everyone put on a mask with. His Cinder who was the best mechanical engineering student in the Royal Mechanics office. His Cinder, Linh Cinder, was Princess Selene? It couldn't be true. Sure she was a cyborg, her parent and she got into a hover car accident when she was 11. She couldn't help that even though hover car accidents have been rare since about 15 years ago. But she was lunar, and not just a regular lunar, royalty. The very first girl he ever fell in love with, is the lost lunar princess? He just wouldn't accept this.
Suddenly, Kai jumped out of his trance.
"Kai!" Rikan yelled at his son.
Kai turned toward his father.
"Yes father" Kai replied.
"Did you know about this?" Rikan asked.
Kai felt anger washing over his face.
"Of course not" he spat as his father.
"You know how I feel about her father, she is my everything" Kai replied.
"Was your everything" Rikan said back.
"What?" Kai asked.
"She is lunar Kai, she must have used her glamour to manipulate and command you" Rikan replied.
"Cinder would never do that!" Kai yelled at his father.
"Oh really? She is lunar Kai. She can't be trusted" Rikan told his young son.
"Can't be trusted father? You trusted her right up to the point when you found out that she was Princess Selene" Kai told his father.
Rikan's eyes shot open with his son's disrespect. He couldn't believe that he was defending a girl. Not only a girl that was lunar nonetheless, but a cyborg as well. A cyborg is nothing more than a lowlife slave, but a lunar is much worse. This girl was a slave; it was all she was supposed to be. Kai wouldn't really marry her, and if he did, he wouldn't let his own son bring dishonor to the royal family. Rikan couldn't believe that his son "fell" in love with this girl. He had to make him see the light of this girl, and her family.
"Kai, hear me out. Linh Cinder is a girl with two features. One she is a cyborg. She is a slave; she'll be nothing more, and nothing less. Yes, she may be the best mechanic in the palace and all of New Beijing, but she'll always be in the orders of someone else. As the Cyborg Protection Act states, a cyborg must have a guardian to order them around, and the only way a cyborg can get their freedom is to be sold to someone else. So you must understand that no matter how pretty she is, no matter how fun of a person she is, no matter if this girl is the best thing in the world, she'll always be a cyborg. And that will never change. The second thing with this girl is that we now know she is lunar. A lunar Kai. Someone who can manipulate you to do anything and everything they want you to. As the future emperor of this country, you have to realize how dangerous this is. This girl can manipulate you into doing everything she ever wanted. How do we know that she hasn't already? Kai, as your father I have seen the way you look at this girl, I have seen the way you and her interact. If she was normal and not lunar, I wouldn't have a problem with Ms. Linh. However I will not in any way shape or form let the future Empress of the Eastern Commonwealth be a disgusting, manipulative, destructive lunar cyborg. Regardless of her newly acclaimed status" Rikan told his son.
Kai's heart sank. To hear his father talk about his first love like that hurt. Yes there was some truth in the statement, he knew Cinder was a cyborg, and she'll never be nothing more than a slave without buying her freedom. The second was that she had manipulated Kai. Kai felt that this couldn't be further from the truth. Kai has never felt anything forced with Cinder and he wouldn't have believed it even if she told him herself. But she wasn't just his first love. She was his first real friend besides Toran and the other servants. She was his age, and they could talk about things that they themselves would know. Ever since she came to work here five years ago, Cinder has always been there for him. From the press going after him for messing up the ritual tea ceremony, to the death of his mother, Cinder was there, more than his father of course. He couldn't give up on her. He won't give up on her, and not matter what his father's concerns were, no matter what the Earthen Union thought of him, no matter the thoughts of his own people. He would, without a matter of doubt help the same girl that helped him. Even if his life were to be put on the line.
The many servants and palace workers watched and listened in silence as the father and son argued over the most possibly best worker out of all of them. Konn Toran, the emperor's personal assistant knew that he couldn't possibly step into this, but he also was the one who had his head on straight. He knew that it would only be moments before Queen Channary would issue a threat for Selene's return. And if she doesn't return, well, Earth would be absolutely destroyed. He watched with the rest of the workers when there was a loud beeping. Everyone looked up at the big screen on the side of the main ballroom's wall. All of the people in the room's eyes light up. Some in fear other's in curiosity. Emperor Rikan silenced his son, and walked toward the screen and issued Toran to read it for everyone to hear. Toran came to the emperor's side and proclaimed the words that he knew he would one day have to read. Toran cleared his throat and read the port screen's title.
"An incoming message, to all of the members of the Earthen Union. This message is from her Royal Highness Queen Channary of Luna. Please accept".