Hello! This is quicker than expected, but I really wanted to give you guys another chapter as my exams will keep me quite busy. I HAVE PASSED 100 REVIEWS. I can't believe it, I never expected to have this many reviews, especially when I don't even have like 20 chapters up. Thank you guys soooo so much! You're all incredible. Enjoy this chapter!

Lady Sawyer

We were all so tired of dancing in our heels that most of us had chosen to take a break, have a seat and enjoy the snacks. I looked over to the dancefloor to see Killian dancing with Alondra.

''She never gives up, does she?'' Jia quipped from beside me. ''Look at the way she's dancing. And why is her chest always exposed?''

''I guess that's her method of winning his heart. With his nether region.''

''I would be very disappointed if he fell for that.'' Jia answered as she took a sip of her drink.

''Let's hope he won't,'' I said as I took two different drinks and mixed them together, carefully tasting the mixture I had just made.

''Well, Sherlock? Is it any good?''

''Anything I make tastes good,'' I answered with a wink. Jia was referring to my costume. I was dressed as the female version of Sherlock Homes, a fictional detective. My costume consisted of a blazer, a tie, a black skirt and a matching hat and jacket. I even had a fake pipe and a magnifying glass.

Jia looked around at the other tables. Some of us were sitting in groups, but there were a few girls who were sitting alone, like they always did. It was quite a pity. We had tried to approach Maria once, but all she managed was to squeak out a ''Hello'', and that was it. She didn't seem to be welcoming our company, so we just left her alone after that. Maria was dressed quite scandalously for this party though, with a short angel costume that didn't shy away from cleavage. She had matching grey wings, and it seemed like she wasn't the 'traditional' angel, but rather a fallen one. Her make-up matched her costume, with wings drawn under her eyes, reaching the corners of her mouth.

Alicia was the same as Maria, although she seemed more open to making friends. Arizona, the sweetheart, had spoken to her a few times and she said that she was nice enough. She was just not as social as most of us.

And then there was Aenwyn, who was jittery and scared of us. She only seemed to get along with the Prince. He had even asked her for the first dance, so my guess was that the feeling was mutual.

Viollca was an artist, so most of the time she was sitting in the corner of the Women's Room and drawing. We all liked her though, as she was always friendly to us, although she would never join us in our conversations.

And then there were the rest of us, who all got along well with each other and were open and friendly. I looked around at all the girls, and smiled to myself as I now considered most of them as my friends. Accepting the bet from Ivy seemed to be paying off.

''Who's that?'' Jia asked, as she pointed her red covered arm in the direction of a pale haired young man. The man in question was dressed in a Vikings costume, and was dancing with Yasmin. He was holding her rather close to him, and no one seemed to think anything of it.

''That's Prince Oskar of the German Federation. He's Yasmin's fiancé. He has arrived a few days ago and will be staying for a while,'' Evelaine informed us as she joined us at our table.

''Is there anything you don't know?''

''Not much,'' Evelaine boasted.

Prince Killian

I sat with Viollca as she showed me some of her new drawings, which she coincidentally had brought along with her in the pocket of her dress.

''They're really good. I can't wait to read it,'' I grinned as my gaze shifted to the golden crown on her black hair, pulled back into a bun. ''How bold of you to wear a crown, Princess.''

Viollca chuckled, ''Well, an important part of writing is imagining myself in my character's shoes. And what better way to do that than to impersonate our heroine princess?''

''You make a good point there.''

''And besides, don't I look like a total badass?'' she joked as she patted the fake sword that was attached to a leather belt on her hip. She was wearing a long, deep green dress along with a green and blue checkered sort of sash swung across her shoulder. The crown combined with the sword did in fact make her look like a Princess that could fight.

''I wouldn't want to pick a fight with you.''

''Good thinking.''

And in that moment, the alarms went off. A red flashing light illuminated The Great Room, and I saw fear appearing in Viollca's brown eyes. Rebels.

I pulled her to her feet, and to my reassurance, guards were already gathering the girls and pulling their weapons. Viollca got whisked away to a nearby safe room and I looked around, only one thing, or rather one person on my mind.

I rushed over to where Arizona sat in her wheelchair, a panicked expression on her face as she covered her ears to shield herself from the loud noises.

''Arizona!''

She looked up, tears in her hazel eyes.

''Don't hate me for doing this,'' I warned her as I scooped her up in my arms, out of her wheelchair and into the safety of my grip. She started protesting, but I quickly silenced her. ''We have to get you to a safe room, and you can't wheel your chair down the narrow steps.''

She bit her lip and nodded, allowing me to race after the other Selected as they were led out of The Great Room, guards flanking them with their weapons pulled; ready to shoot any rebel that came around the corner.

We made it into the safe room just in time, as I started hearing gunshots going off behind us. I set Arizona down on a chair and she smiled gratefully at me. ''Are you okay?''

She wiped away her tears and nodded, ''I'll be fine. Go check on the others.''

I took her hand in mine and gave it a reassuring squeeze, before turning back to the other girls and making sure they were all okay. Luckily, they had each other for support and most of them were holding onto another Selected, crying silent tears or consoling the other.

I scanned the room and I felt my blood run cold. ''Where is Yasmin?''

Officer Tristan Bates

Yasmin had excused herself from her dance with Prince Oskar, and given me a pointed look before telling him that she ''needed to go to the bathroom''.

She left the room, and I followed close behind. When I rounded the corner, she pulled me into an empty room, before pressing her lips against mine.

''Hello, Prince Eric,'' she whispered against my mouth.

I grinned. ''Hello to you too, Ariel.'' I pulled back to look into her aquamarine eyes, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. ''I hate seeing you with him.''

Yasmin's face fell, the smile disappearing from her face. ''Let's not talk about him right now.''

''So we should just ignore it forever? He's not going anywhere.'' I pulled her hand up so the glimmering diamond ring was shining in the light. The engagement ring she was forced to wear. ''You're bound to him.''

''Tristan, please.. I don't want to talk about this now.'' I could see that I had upset her, and her eyes became watery with tears, but I wasn't done yet.

''Don't you know how much it hurts me to see you two together? He's a Prince, a Crown Prince, and I'm merely a guard. You deserve someone like him. Someone who can give you everything your heart desires, someone who is worthy of you. I'm just a fraud.'' I angrily pulled at the sash that came with my costume, ripping it off and throwing it on the ground.

I had always known that Yasmin was to marry Oskar, but seeing them together was like a slap in my face. It was a reality check. That this thing we had going on between us was hopeless. It would only lead to heartbreak.

Yasmin's tears were now spilling over, and she took a step back. ''You know that I don't love him. I love you.''

''But is that enough?''

She fell silent. She straightened her back and wiped away the tears, smudging her mermaid makeup in the process. ''I'm going back to the party.''

She turned around and opened the door, when the blaring noise of the alarm startled us both.

''Get back here!'' I pulled her back from the door, slamming it close behind her and locking it. I started raking my brains, thinking of the closest safe room, which would have us leave this room and hopefully make it to the end of the hallway, where the secret passageway was located.

I was just about to open the door again when the loud sound of gunshots resonated through the hallway.

Yasmin shrieked and covered her mouth, eyes wide in fear. The rebels were close. Too close for us to leave this room.

I pulled out my gun and grabbed Yasmin by her arm, pulling her with me to the closet that was tucked away in the corner of the room. ''Hide in here.''

''What about you?''

''Don't worry about me, just please, get in,'' I begged as the gunshots started getting closer. She pulled up her skirts and got in the closet, but not before pulling my face to hers and pecking me on the lips. I smiled at her, our argument from before disappearing from my mind as I closed the closet door, praying that no one would find her there.

A loud bang, followed by a scream could be heard from just outside the room. I braced myself, facing the door with my gun pointed at it. I wasn't about to let anyone in.

The doorknob started rattling. Someone was trying to get in. I kept my finger on the trigger, ready to shoot any rebel that tried to get close.

More rattling, until it suddenly came to a stop. I breathed a sigh of relief, thinking they had given up. I was wrong.

Another loud bang and the door came off its hinges. I pulled the trigger and started shooting, without knowledge of whether I was actually hitting someone or not.

The device they had used to blow up the door had created some smoke, which made me unaware of my surroundings. All I could do was pull the trigger and shoot.

I felt a sharp pain in my left leg as something hard crashed into it, throwing me onto the ground. I groaned in agony as a face came into view.

The man grinned, ''Nice try, boy. But we know she's in here.''

I tried to reach for my gun, but he stepped on my hand, crushing it under his filthy boots. ''Don't even try.''

He lifted his hand, and the last thing I remembered was his fist coming into contact with my temple, before everything turned black.

…

''Tristan! Tristan, wake up!''

I groaned as I slowly opened my eyes, eyelids heavy and a throbbing pain in my leg and skull.

As my sight slowly grew less fuzzy, I saw a friendly face standing over me, and I recognized him as my friend and fellow guard, Christopher Adkins. There were tears in his clothes, and he looked as terrible as I felt. What had happened?

I jolted up, the previous events flooding back as I remembered the rebel attack. Yasmin.

''Careful, buddy. You have a nasty head wound.'' Chris tried to push me back and force me to lay down, but I shoved him off.

I stood on my feet, despite the protests my head and leg were making. I ignored the blood that was dripping down my leg as my gaze went to the corner of the room, to the closet where I had left Yasmin. The door was wide open, and her shell tiara lay on the floor.

Yasmin was gone.

Okay, please don't hate me for that ending. Part one was so happy and lighthearted and I just threw a rebel attack in your faces. Sorry!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter regardless and again, thank you so much for all the support!

See you next time.

~wolfofstark