The Tower

The light disappeared and Rapunzel fell down to her knees after seeing those images. Queen Aureole opened her eyes and saw the princess fell down on the floor. "Are you alright?" She helped her get back up. "What happened?"

"I... I saw everything." Rapunzel answered, still in shock. "I saw everything."

"What do you mean?"

"I saw your brother. He... he is the first one who found me."

"If he found you, where is he?"

Then her mind went blank. The visions are gone however she remembered them. She just didn't get any more details about those visions. "I don't know. I don't know."

Later, her husband Eugene came up to her with some great news. "Did you see that?"

"See what?"

"I saw my birth parents! They are alive and far away! I saw how I got separated. There was a big shipwreck and..." But then he noticed that Rapunzel was not interested. There is something bigger than seeing his parents. "What's wrong?"

"I need your help."

On the next day, Rapunzel and Eugene went to the tower once again, searching for a trail of Prince Benjamin. Eugene asked, "Why are we here again?"

"There was a prince here. He found me first." Rapunzel checked the vines of the entrance wall.

"Did that light show you these things?"

"Yes. The prince is the brother of Queen Aureole of the West Kingdom. And she's here to see her brother."

"Why are you doing this?"

Rapunzel paused, recalled the story of Aureole about her brother's suffering. "I just want to know where the prince is. I just want to help her."

"Is that why you brought her here?" Eugene points at Queen Aureole wandering around outside the entrance along with her two strange armoured bodyguards. Their weapons just give the former thief the chills. "I think those things can dice a cow."

"She must know. There is a reason why those visions appeared to me."

Eugene then asked one big question. He even asked the queen and the two knights. "Has anyone even wondered where that light comes from? I mean a lot of people saw it but they are not curious about its origins."

"Whatever it is, Mister Fitzherbert..." Aureole answered the man. "It's not important right now. I want to know where my brother is and I will never give up until I find him."

"Okay." Eugene said. "I'll help you find your brother."

"And after this, I promise you, Mister Fitzherbert. I'll help you find your birth parents." Aureole replied.

"Now that's a deal." He shook her hand unexpectedly to the queen. The knights responded by pulling out their swords and point them close to Eugene's face. He immediately lets Aureole's hand go and raised both of his. "I didn't do anything. I just shook her hand. That's all. No harm."

"Gregory! Heath! Stand down!" The queen commands her knights. "False alarm, guys."

"Sorry. We are just over protective, young sister." The tall knight Gregory apologizes.

Eugene stepped back and after getting three steps away, he went to his wife Rapunzel. "Those two knights are her brothers?"

"Yes."

But then here is my surprise appearance. A last piece of my soul shows up to warn them of a danger that will happen. The orange energy that forms into an image of my past self stands before them. "Hello. I'm Oliver the Omniscient.

Everyone was horrified to see an orange glowing man. The two knights moved in front the queen. Defensive formation. As for Eugene, he just froze, scared of me. He completely forgot about his wife right beside him.

"I have come in peace." That's what the first invaders said and I used it to them. I don't know if they ever trust me or...

"Oh, okay." Eugene was relieved. "For a second there, I thought you were a demon."

Such imagination. Flynn has never seen a demon. He just remembered what those old folks say from whence he came. All of them have never seen a demon. But I do. "And I have no time to tell you that."

"Tell us what?" Rapunzel asked. They heard me talking to myself which is pretty embarrassing.

"Sorry. I'm just narrating. It's just my habit. Sorry."

Everyone looked at each other, thinking that I'm crazy. I should tell them what they must know and what they must do. "Anyway, I'm here to tell you noblemen and lovely women that there is a murderer on the loose and he has my gem. As you can see, I'm a ghost that means I'm dead."

Queen Aureole steps in to ask me a question. "And why us?"

"Okay. Who among you here has seen that flashing light last night?"

Rapunzel and Eugene raised their hand. I pointed at the two lovebirds. "Them! I chose them to help me."

"But we are in a trail to find my brother." Queen Aureole said she doesn't want to abandon that. "If you are an almighty being, can you tell us where he is?"

Oh, I hate to spoil it. I hate to do this all of a sudden. But when she asked for it, I have to tell her everything she needs to know about her brother.

"Please. I want to know. Is he okay?"

"Alright. But prepare yourself. The truth will be hard to handle." Here it is.

The ugly truth.

I revealed to her the fate of her long-lost brother. It's obvious what really happened to him.

Pretty obvious.

I told her everything about her brother, Aureole paused but in shock. Her two brothers checked if she's okay. Rapunzel clenched her fist, feeling angry about Mother Gothel. She's mad of Gothel for keeping the truth from her.

Eugene doesn't know what to do but to comfort his wife.

"That is what happened." I said. "Prince Benjamin followed Mother Gothel to the tower and sneaks in. I know it's stupid because he was not prepared at that time. It's just... he wants to prove to his brothers and you that he's not weak and a coward."

Then the young queen turns to the tower and looked at it and its surroundings. "Where is he?"

I pointed at the hole on the base of the tower. "There."

Aureole sniffed, holding down her tears. She instructed her brothers to help her. They are going to take their dear brother home. Heath and Gregory enters the ruins, picks up and throws out a lot of rocks and bricks until they find what they came for.

Rapunzel and Eugene followed the three and I watched them uncovering inside the abandoned tower.

After removing the rocks and reach to the bed of soil, the knights start digging. Queen Aureole watches but her feet can't stop moving. She's nervous. I know that feeling she's having now. Later, the brothers got something. They slowly grabbed it and pulled it up to the surface.

Aureole went closer to see what they find. In one glimpse, she breaks down to tears and fell to the floor. Her brother Gregory gave her a warm embrace. "It's alright. It's alright, Aureole."

The young queen was not the only who's sad. Rapunzel turns away and cried on to Eugene. The princess cannot believe that the lost prince was under her former home this whole time. She's angry. Very angry.

Heath held the corpse of his young brother and wrapped him all over with a clean sheet of cloth. "Let's go home, sister."

It looks like those three are not going to help me now.

But I expect too much, the princess Rapunzel and her dashing husband came up to me. The princess faced me with her tears mixed with rage and sadness. "Why?"

"Excuse me?"

"Why didn't you do anything? If you are Omniscient, why didn't you use your almighty powers to save everyone?" She has a point there but also she needs to understand my duty as this being is to watch and record everything. If I interfere, it will cause another trouble. "If you came to save that prince, he should have been alive! He could get home to his family!"

"But if I did, you will never meet Eugene." I was right. If I didn't interfere, Eugene might find her.

Her head hurts. She tried to calm herself down.

I said, "I know. Since the day I receive these powers. I was given a responsibility to record the history of the world. But I must not interfere because it will ruin the future of your world. I've seen your future, Rapunzel. It was good. But the time I was murdered, your future changed. That is why I came here to tell you that you must help me to save the future."

Eugene looked at his wife. He saw her serious eyes. He can't tell what the princess is going to do next.

I asked her again. "Will you help me save your future?"

Then Rapunzel turned back to Queen Aureole and saw her still weeping near her dead brother. I can see her expression and even without my powers to see what's next, I know what she will say.

I just hope I was wrong.

Then the captain of the guard came and approached them to fetch Eugene. He asked Rapunzel, "My lady, your father wanted to see Eugene immediately. There are visitors who wants to see him."

"Who are these visitors?" She asked.

"I don't know. But they are very mad at your husband."

Eugene gulped, recalling his past crimes of thievery. "Oh, boy."

TO BE CONTINUED