Chapter 1

Twelve years have passed since I first meet the handsome man in the top hat. Twelve years have passed since I saw him. Twelve years have passed since he started haunting my dreams. I was only six when I met him and I felt as if I was looking at a god, I was so awestruck. I knew I had a crush on him and it only grew as more time passed without seeing him.

As my crush grew, so did I. Walter taught me melee and ranged combat. He said that I had a natural affinity towards ranged weapons, more specifically, pistols. Logan also had been taught, but had more of an affinity towards melee weapons. Walter taught us how to read and write, history, mathematics, different languages, and what we couldn't learn from him we either learned from each other or from books in the Brightwall Academy.

A year ago, I decided that I wanted to go out and start adventuring. After a long session of yelling and calmly talking, Walter and Logan finally agreed to let me go on the condition that I send letters and return home on occasion.

A few months into my adventuring, a stray dog started to follow me and, eventually, I let him stay with me and befriended him.

Now I am working for a gang of female mercenaries, the Ladies of the Black Sun, against Logan's better wishes.

One day, on my way back to the house, when I ran into him, literally, I walked straight into his back. As I started to fall back, he whipped around and wrapped his arms around my waist, holding me to him.

"Well, it seems we're making a habit of this," he said, looking down on me.

Looking up, I recognized him as my little girl self's crush then I noticed his face. He looked to be late twenties/early thirties when I met him as a child and now he looked no older. There were no wrinkles, no age spots, not even a blemish, other than a small heart tattoo on apple of his left cheek, to signify there had been any time passing since our last meeting. Though his eyes, once a bright snakelike green, were now hazel.

None of this made since to me. How can a man look to have not aged a day in twelve years and change his eye color so drastically?

"It's impolite to stare, Princess."

I shook my head, clearing it of its confused state, and stepped back, out of his arms, "My apologies, Sir." I bowed slightly to him, "I was not watching where I was going."

"Yes, well, no one was hurt or dirtied so all is well."

"If I may ask, Sir, why do I always find you near my house?"

"Is this your house? It was to my understanding that you don't live here anymore."

"How did –"

"Anyway, I was just on my way to speak to Sir Walter. Would you care to walk with me, since we are going in the same direction?"

"I do not walk with strangers."

"But we are hardly strangers."

"We do not know each other's names."

"We will just have to fix that, won't we? Reaver, at your service," he took my hand and made a big show of bowing down and kissing my knuckles. He let his lips linger for a few seconds, I felt myself getting a little bit flustered.

When he stood straight again, still holding my hand and smirking, I said, trying to sound like he hadn't affected me, "Charlie."

"I knew a Charlie once. Man thought he was an adventurer. I believe he died in some tomb somewhere."

I was about to say something when I heard my dog start to growl. I looked over at him and saw that he was looking at Reaver, "Rebel, down boy."

He looked at me with puppy dog eyes and his tongue hanging out of his mouth from the left corner of his mouth.

I looked back to Reaver seeing he had his arm out for me to take, "Shall we?"

I took his arm and smiled, "We shall."

The rest of the walk to the house was silent with Rebel excitedly running ahead of us then looking back at us and running back.

When we got to the house, Walter was already outside waiting for us, "Charlotte, there you are. I was just about to go looking for you." His eyes zeroed in on Reaver, "What are you doing, Reaver? I know this trip isn't about your annual absents."

"It's time."

Walter's face changed from annoyed to worried, "Are you sure?"

"Yes, the Barbarian King is starting to send search parties out and is starting to get suspicious of me. I can't keep the façade going much longer."

"Very well, bring the Princess inside. I'll go get Logan."

I was extremely confused at this point, "What is going on?"

"Everything will be explained shortly, Princess. Just get in the house."

"Why is everyone calling me 'Princess'?"

Reaver didn't wait for anyone to respond before opening the door to the house and shoving me in, "Sit down and shut up."

I tried to say something.

"I said 'shut up'."

I closed my mouth and sat down, waiting for Walter and Logan.

When they returned, Logan sat next. Walter and Reaver were standing in front of us, sharing a look that I couldn't quite figure out.

Walter looked back at us, "I guess I'll start. Logan, I'm sure you remember this but Charlie, as you were just a baby when it happened, I can assume that you are very confused by all this. Eighteen years ago, your father ordered me to take the both of you and find somewhere safe, where you would neither be discovered by the Barbarians nor be attacked."

"Why would this barbarians want us?" I asked.

"To us against the King of Albion, your father, to assure that he had no heir to the throne."

I looked over at Logan, "You knew about this?"

"I knew about how we would be forced to leave the castle and our parents, but I didn't know why."

"So, what, I wasn't allowed to know about my parents, but everyone else could? You all lied to me." I pointed at Walter, "You told me that my parents were dead."

"There is no guaranty that your parents are alive."

Reaver decided to speak up at this point, "Actually there is; the Barbarians are keeping the King and Queen imprisoned in the dungeons of the castle."

"Why are they keeping them alive?"

"That's not the point. The point is that –"

He never got to finish that sentence because a firebomb was thrown through the front window, shattering on impact with the ground, catching everything in its vicinity on fire and spreading fast.