by S. T. Bende
Royal Rebel
Alfheim Academy: Book Three
S.T. Bende
Contents
Back Cover Copy
Also By S.T. Bende
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Viking Academy
Perfekt Order
Also By S.T. Bende
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Royal Rebel
Alfheim Academy: Book Three
Copyright © 2020, S.T. Bende
Edited by: CREATING ink
Cover Art by: Melissa Stevens of The Illustrated Author Design Services
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All rights reserved. Except as permitted under the U.S. Copyright Act of 1976, no part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without the prior written permission of the author.
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This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage system without the express written permission of the author except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
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First publication: 2020, S.T. Bende
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Back Cover Copy
Aura Nilssen’s life hasn’t gone at all according to plan. She’s the unwitting heir to a tainted throne, the recipient of not one but two unwanted legacies, and she’s on the hit list of every dark realm in the cosmos. But with weeks to go before her graduation from Alfheim Academy and official coronation as queen, the reluctant royal thinks she can finally take a breath.
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She should have known better.
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When her allies’ borders are breached, Aura knows it’s only a matter of time before Alfheim is attacked. As dark powers move against her home, Aura and her friends set out to determine exactly who might be strong enough to overpower the light realms. With more than just Alfheim’s future on the line, Aura must decide how much she’s willing to sacrifice for the home she’s grown to love . . . and the warrior who’s claimed her heart.
Also By S.T. Bende
Meet the Valkyris crew in VIKING ACADEMY.
VIKING ACADEMY
VIKING CONSPIRACY
VIKING VOW
* * *
Meet the Norse gods in:
THE ÆRE SAGA
PERFEKT ORDER
PERFEKT CONTROL
PERFEKT BALANCE
PERFEKT MATCH
-and-
THE ELSKER SAGA
ELSKER
ENDRE
TRO
TUR (a novella)
THE ELSKER SAGA: COMPLETE BOXED SET
* * *
Meet the faeries in ALFHEIM ACADEMY:
ALFHEIM ACADEMY
DARK FAERIE
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Meet the demigods in NIGHT WAR SAGA.
PROTECTOR
DEFENDER
REDEEMER
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And introduce your Padawans to STAR WARS!
Complete list of S.T.’s Star Wars children’s titles
at http://www.stbende.com/star-wars
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Stay in touch with S.T. at www.stbende.com.
And find pronunciations, translations, and info on all things Asgardian on S.T.’s website at WELCOME TO ASGARD.
* * *
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Dedication
To my favorite little adventurers.
Chapter 1
“SORRY I’M LATE! MY drills got held up by this bat-skit crazy deer who should not have wandered onto the Verge lawn. Signy thought it might have been a Svartalfheim tracker, so she put the whole class on lockdown, and, well . . .” I dropped into the gilded chair that rested regally beside my grandmother’s desk. I raked my fingers through my ponytail, which had tangled considerably on my run to the royal residence. I was so not making a good impression. “Anyway, I know you always say that there’s no excuse for tardiness. I’m sorry.”
“You are forgiven,” Constance said primly. She opened a drawer and removed a tissue, which she slid discreetly across her desktop.
“Oh, my nose isn’t running,” I assured her.
“Perhaps not. But your mascara is.” Queen Constance arched one perfectly groomed brow. “And royalty always looks their best.”
Right.
I took the offered tissue and dabbed at the corners of my eyes. When I’d finished, I pulled my data pad from my bag, leaned back in my chair, and crossed my legs. “So, what’s on today’s agenda?”
Constance frowned. “Posture.”
Double right.
With a sigh, I set my pad on the desk and sat up straight. “Better?”
“It could not have gotten worse,” Constance said under her breath.
A smile tugged at my lips. “Is that sarcasm? Am I rubbing off on you after all?”
“Posh.” Constance waved her hand. But her eyes sparkled just a bit more, and I knew she appreciated the newfound ease we shared every bit as much as I did.
It had been a long road.
My relationship with Alfheim’s ruler had come a long way since our early days of mutual loathing. In the year and a half since I’d forced her to job share, we’d learned to co-exist as regents. We even had a standing weekly tea date, during which she shared pearls of queenly wisdom while I tried not to embarrass myself in front of her ever-present—and ever-judging—staff. But no matter how much time we spent together, I’d never get used to her insane standards of physical perfection. Constance’s office was always perfectly kept, her clothing neatly pressed, and I’d never seen so much as a hair out of place from her tightly wound chignon. Me, on the other hand . . . I just wanted to do the job.
Preferably, in combat boots.
“Good. Our tea has finally arrived. You may enter.” Constance waved at the page hovering in the doorway. The girl glided into the room with the grace characteristic of my grandmother’s staff—I secretly suspected that her hiring pool consisted solely of principal dancers from the Royal Alfheim Ballet. The girl set down two china teacups and saucers, then placed a teapot beside each. I knew my grandmother’s pot would contain her favorite jasmine tea, while mine, gods willing, held my own favorite beverage—
“Hot chocolate for you, Your Majesty.” The girl bowed to me.
“Thank you. But again, call me Aura. Your Majesty is my grandmother.” I’d told the pages a thousand times I wasn’t that into formalities. This girl was new, so I’d give her a pass.
“She will address you by your title.” Constance’s prim voice cut through the room. “Traditions exist for a reason.”
“Progress exists for a reason, too,” I muttered under my breath.
; “And for you, Your Majesty.” The page bowed again, this time to my grandmother. “Your tea was steeped for exactly four minutes, just as you like it.”
“Thank you. You may take your leave.” Constance waved one hand, then turned her attention back to me. “Where were we? Ah, yes. Today’s agenda is brief. It concerns a matter of inter-realm diplomacy, and the merging of our cabinets. Regarding the latter, our official first meeting and swearing in is this evening, and I want to ensure your representatives are prepared.”
I smiled at the page as she scurried from Constance’s office. “Oh, they’re ready. Viggo, Elin, Jande and Finna are excited to settle into the trenches and get things done.”
“Governance is an involved process,” Constance cautioned. “One steeped in protocols and traditions. I worry that your new appointees aren’t sufficiently experienced to handle the tasks that will be put to them.”
“My friends will be fine. Elin’s going to rock the minister of arts post we created—nobody inspires greatness like she does. Finna and Jande have been working together all their lives, and I know they’re excited to bring new ideas as co-ministers of science. And Viggo’s more than ready to serve alongside your current minister of defense. He’s got plenty of ideas on how to increase our security, while still allowing me to do the job I’ve trained for as a Verge.”
“Of course.” Doubt clouded Constance’s tone. Although she knew my friends had undergone rigorous training over the past few weeks, somehow managing to balance their final semester at Alfheim Academy with a crash course in governance, she still had her doubts about allowing not-quite graduates to fill such important roles.
But my friends were as suited to these roles as cake was to birthdays. They were each determined to make a difference—the most important job qualification as far as I was concerned.
“Our new ministers have already submitted their policy proposals to Minister Andriskog, and she’s approved them all,” I reminded Constance. “She’s eager to see the changes they’ll bring to our joint administration.”
Ella Andriskog had taken over Fyrs Narrik’s minister of state job when he’d disappeared last year. She’d proven herself adept at navigating the power shift as Narrik’s appointees removed themselves from governance, and managed to incorporate both Constance’s and my occasionally clashing ideals for a new united Alfheim.
“Yes, well.” Constance’s lips formed a thin line. “Let our newest ministers not forget that this realm has thrived for thousands of years, in no small part because of its adherence to tradition.”
“Tradition’s good,” I said cautiously. “But change is good, too. Especially with everything that’s happened with Narrik, and you, and . . . are you feeling all right?”
Constance removed the back of her hand from her suddenly pale cheek. “I’m fine,” she said too quickly.
“Hey.” I reached across the table and placed my hand atop hers. “Nobody blames you for what he did to you. You know that.”
“I do not,” she said primly.
“Narrik drugged you with älva dust for years.” I shook my head. “You can’t be held accountable for the actions you took when your mind wasn’t your own.”
“I can and I should.” My grandmother raised her chin. “A ruler should never allow herself to be compromised. My weakness nearly cost this realm everything.”
“But we’re rebuilding.” I squeezed her hand gently. “We’ve come a long way in the past year.”
“And we’ve still farther to go.” Constance withdrew her hand and picked up a single sheet of paper. “Now, if you can in good conscience assure me your friends are prepared for tonight’s swearing in, then we may move on to the diplomacy issue. I just received a correspondence from the Crown Princess of Vanaheim. She’s asked that we reach out to her posthaste regarding a security issue in her realm.”
My eyes widened. “Is Idris all right?”
“Let’s ask her ourselves. Since you’re emerging as a ruler, I’ll let you take the lead in this conversation.” Constance tapped a button on her desk, and a beam of light shot from the center of the table. It flickered for a moment, before taking the form of a familiar face.
“Idris!” I grinned at the crown princess. With her rosy cheeks, dewy skin, and the bounty of braids she always wore, she looked more like a homecoming queen than the skilled diplomat I knew her to be. We’d grown close during the past year, bonding over the weirdness that was being a teenager in a royal role. “I didn’t know we were going to get to talk to you today.”
“It’s rather last minute.” Idris’ perfectly groomed brows knitted together. “We’re experiencing a situation in Vanaheim that I believe may impact both of our realms.”
Crêpes. “What is it?”
“Do you remember last year when somebody broke into Vanaheim and tried to bribe members of the royal household?”
I leaned toward the hologram. “The perpetrator appeared as a shadow, and wiped your staff’s memories so they had no recollection of being asked to grant him entry. The only reason you learned about it was because someone overheard the conversation, right?”
“Correct.” Idris folded her hands together. “After you recovered your senators, and Minister Narrik disappeared, everything went back to normal. Until today.”
My grandmother and I exchanged worried looks.
“What happened today?” Constance asked.
“Another specter—that’s what we’re calling the shadows—appeared on Vanaheim. Two of my ladies-in-waiting were walking the palace gardens. The specter must not have seen Lucinda—he cornered Kalynn in the rose garden, wiped her memory, and demanded she disclose her entry code for the palace. Thankfully, Lucinda ran over from the lavender garden and scared him off.”
I frowned. “Did Kalynn tell him anything?”
“No.” Idris shook her head. “My staff is fiercely loyal, and they would never compromise the safety of our realm.”
“Yeah, we thought that too. But there are substances that can impede free will.” I avoided looking at my grandmother. I knew how sensitive she was about Narrik’s drugging. “Just in case, you might want to rethink your security protocols. How often do you change the entry codes?”
Idris’ lips quirked up. “They’re retinal scans, so never.”
Fair.
“Let me talk to my ministers,” I said. “Finna and Jande are doing their final project on something called a resonance code—I don’t really understand the science, but I know it has some kind of security implementation. It might be useful.”
“I’d love their insight,” Idris said honestly. “Put them in touch with me.”
“I will,” I promised. “Back to the specter—do you have any leads on who’s responsible?”
“None.” Idris shook her head. “The surveillance footage reads as a shadow—literally, a shadow hovering in front of Kalynn.”
“Is there any audio?” I asked.
“Yes. But the quality is abysmal—the words are completely indistinguishable,” Idris said.
“It still might prove useful. Send it over, and I’ll forward it to the technology division.” I made a note. “And I’ll ask linguistics to look at it as well. If it’s decipherable, someone there should be able to determine the origin by language or dialect.”
“Good.” Idris nodded. “The last time this happened was right before you discovered your former minister of state was working with Svartalfheim. I hope there isn’t another insurgence rising.”
“Gods only knows who Narrik’s been in contact with since he disappeared.” I shuddered. “Do you need backup? We can send a unit.”
“My security team is more than capable,” Idris assured me. “But our realms are both at risk so long as this specter is out there. If you can spare any investigators, it would be to both of our benefits.”
I glanced at my grandmother, whose steely-eyed expression was indecipherable. “Let me talk to Queen Constance, and we’ll see what we can do.”
“Very well. Stay safe, Alfheim.” Idris folded her hands together, and bowed her head.
“Stay safe.” I lowered my head. When I looked up again, the hologram was gone.
“Well?” Constance said tightly.
“Well, what?”
“Your political ally has requested your aid. What do you intend to do in order to strengthen the strongest alliance Alfheim currently has?”
“Send her an investigative team. Obviously.” I picked up my data pad.
“No!” My grandmother barked. My pad clattered to the table at her uncharacteristic break in decorum. “You will personally go to Vanaheim as soon as your schedule allows, and you will assure the crown princess that you are united in wanting to protect her realm.”
“Uh, I kind of have finals next week,” I reminded Constance.
“All the more reason to go quickly,” she countered. “Your graduation is nearly here, after which you will be full-time co-regent of this realm. We do not have many alliances, and it would behoove both of us for you to prioritize the one we can currently count on.”
“Yes, but—”
“But nothing.” Constance’s spine stiffened. “Your coronation is next month. And at that time, you will need to have the backing of—”