by Aaron Oster
“The Princess wanted to meet me. She put the portal on an hour long delay so we could have a date,” Morgan replied, smiling at her. “The food was amazing!”
“Please, call me Katherine. Princess sounds so formal,” Katherine said, reaching over the table and taking one of his hands in hers.
Sarah gaped, not understanding a thing Morgan had just said.
She’d been gone for an entire hour? Morgan and the Princess were having a date? What?!
Sarah’s face went from a stark white to a deep red in a matter of seconds.
“You mean that after all the time we spent together, you agreed to a date with the first woman who comes along other than me?” she yelled, practically exploding.
Morgan blanched at her sudden outburst, wondering what he possibly could have done to upset her this time.
Katherine however, was quick to come to his rescue.
“Do calm down, dear, and have a seat. We have a lot to discuss and not a whole lot of time in which to do it.”
She turned to face Sarah, releasing Morgan’s hand in the process.
“Let me be perfectly clear. I plan on marrying Morgan. He is vital to my plans and in the short amount of time we’ve spent together, I’ve found that I quite enjoy his company.”
Sarah felt the fight go out of her then and her shoulders slumped in defeat.
If the Princess of the North Kingdom wanted Morgan, then there was absolutely nothing she could do about it.
“No need to look so glum.”
Sarah looked up to see Katherine smiling at her.
“I can tell that you’ve got it bad for our young supermage here. While I may be the Crown Princess, I don’t mind sharing, if you don’t,” she said with a wink.
Sarah flushed a deep crimson at the insinuation and quickly looked to Morgan, who looked more confused than she’d ever seen before.
He had no idea what was going on right now. He probably didn’t even know what a date was, let alone the significance of having one with a bloodthirsty monster like her.
She took a deep, calming breath, then walked over to the proffered chair and took a seat. Taking a moment to collect herself, she parsed out exactly what she wanted to ask.
“Why the sudden interest in Morgan, and how did you even find out he was a supermage?”
They’d worked very hard to keep that piece of information a secret. No one other than Gold should have known about it.
“That, believe it or not, was pure dumb luck. We found a boy after the battle to take the academy. He was barely alive and seemed to hate Morgan more than death itself. He gave us an account of the battle, but what gave him away, were his eyes,” Katherine said, her gown shifting as she crossed one leg over the other.
“I thought my eyes only changed when I used a specific skill,” Morgan cut in.
There was only one person she could be talking about and he was troubled at the fact that Grub was still alive.
“So you’ve seen it,” Katherine said, turning back to him.
Sarah noticed that she subtly leaned forward as she did, revealing more of her plunging neckline to him. Her fists clenched at her sides when she saw this and she had to make an extreme effort not to punch the Princess right in her perfect face.
She would likely just break her hand on the Princess’ tough skin, and who knew how she would react if she dared to strike at her.
“The eye color shift is caused when a massive amount of your reiki is used all at once,” Katherine continued. “I studied up a bit on supermages during my time at the academy.”
This got Sarah’s attention.
“Wait. If you spent time at the academy, why attack it? In fact, what is the point of this entire war?”
Katherine turned back to her, her expression unreadable.
“I never wanted this war,” she said simply. “This was all my father’s idea. The glorious descendant of the Tyrant King, finally taking his rightful place as the ruler of all.”
“You’re descended from the Tyrant King?”
They both turned as Morgan cut into their conversation.
“You know of my ancestor?” Katherine asked, leaning toward him once again.
“Yes. I learned about him during my first lesson at the academy,” Morgan said, looking thoughtful. “But I thought he was destroyed during the war.”
“Oh he was, but he didn’t die without leaving a line of succession.”
Morgan nodded at that, then went silent once again, his mind processing all the new information.
“If you didn’t want this war, then why did you attack the academy, and why kill all those guards in such a horrible fashion?”
She didn’t want to ask this question. She was actually afraid to, but she had to know.
“Before we go any further,” Katherine said, “I’ll have you swear an oath of secrecy. I trust Morgan. As my future husband, he will be privy to all my secrets. You however, I do not; at least not yet.”
Sarah colored slightly at the blatant insult, but she agreed to keep her silence.
“I have long wanted to overthrow my father. He has been sitting on his throne for hundreds of years and in all that time, has not improved the kingdom one bit. This ridiculous war is just the latest example of his stupidity and vanity. I have been secretly working for years to undermine him, but up until now, I haven’t had the backing needed for a coup.
“I’ve been forced to bide my time, following all of his orders and playing the faithful daughter. Killing those academy guards, and in brutal fashion, fits perfectly with the persona I’ve crafted for myself over the years. Just a simple minded and bloodthirsty princess who will do whatever she’s told. If it makes you feel any better, those academy guards were the only ones I personally killed.
“After the attack, I began desperately looking for an angle. I had contacted King Herald in secret before the attack took place, but he didn’t make it back in time to stop it. Now a war rages on between the two kingdoms. It has completely wrecked the Central Kingdom, and is becoming a massive drain on our resources here. I was nearly ready to act, despite my position being so tenuous, when I heard about Morgan.”
She smiled here and glanced over to him.
“I could barely dare to hope that the ramblings of an angry boy could be true, but I had to know. So I coerced Arnold into tracking him down. The moment he stepped though the portal, I knew that I’d been right. With Morgan by my side, my brothers will undoubtedly back me in overthrowing our father. With him out of the way, we can pull our forces from the Central Kingdom and try to salvage what we can. Though I do think my father’s reckless actions will have greatly damaged the balance that the Central Kingdom provided.”
Sarah listened to the princess’ story in rapt attention.
No matter how badly she wanted to believe that she was lying, she just couldn’t. Katherine was so open and sincere that she must be telling the truth, which just made Sarah hate her all the more for it. Of course the perfect princess would have to be even more perfect.
“How will marrying Morgan help you, though? If anyone found out what he was, they would have him killed,” Sarah said.
“I can protect him,” Katherine replied. “No one would dare attack the Queen’s husband. Not even the Assassins Guild would take on such a mission.”
“Assassins Guild?” Morgan cut in. “You mean like those people that Sarah’s father sent after us?”
Katherine’s head whipped around when he said this, her expression morphing into one of anger.
“Of course that sniveling bastard would go to the Guild. He’s likely sent men after Arnold as well for not returning Sarah in a timely enough fashion.”
“Can you ask him to stop?” Morgan asked. “It’s really been getting annoying, having to kill all the people he sends after me.”
Katherine let out a long sigh here and shook her head.
“Unfortunately, I can’t. If I ask him to stop, he’ll begin wondering what interest I could
have in you. If anything, it would just make him all the more persistent in hunting you down. I also can’t just kill him, as he’s managed to worm his way into my father’s good graces.”
“Oh, okay,” Morgan said, slumping down in his seat.
He’d really been hoping that Katherine could deal with Simon once and for all. He was really growing sick of the arrogant noble’s constant harassment.
“Back to the topic at hand,” Sarah said, “you still haven’t answered how Morgan could help you. While he is high ranked for his age, he isn’t exactly all powerful.”
“I didn’t say that it would happen overnight,” Katherine replied. “Overthrowing a country takes a lot of work. As it is, it’ll take me at least six months to get everything I need into place. By then, Morgan will be a whole lot stronger, and will be able to make all the difference.”
Sarah folded her arms and glared at the princess.
“And how do you propose that he becomes powerful enough to be an actual threat to an entire kingdom in only six months? It’s taken him nearly that long just to get where he is now, and the cost to increase in rank will just keep going up.”
“That’s simple. I will provide him with all the cores he needs. I can’t have my future husband be unable to defend himself.”
“And what will we be doing while you plan this coup? Will you keep us here as your guests until then?” she asked, placing heavy emphasis on the word guests.
“Not at all. The palace would be much too dangerous a place for him. As you saw earlier, I can literally transport you anywhere you’d like to go. Just name the place and I’ll send you there.”
Sarah bit her lower lip.
This wasn’t going at all how she’d imagined. The damned woman had a ready answer for every question she threw at her. She did say she’d be willing to share, though, and Morgan would be a whole lot safer with her protection…
No. She couldn’t think like that. If the princess could send them anywhere, then Sarah would ask her to transport them somewhere far away, then she and Morgan would make a run for it.
“Fine,” she said with a sigh, feigning resignation and folding her arms over her chest.
“Excellent!” Katherine said, turning back to Morgan with a smile. “Looks like your friend approves. So what do you say Morgan? Will you marry me?”
11
Morgan blinked as Katherine leaned back toward him. He hadn’t heard her last question, as his mind had been elsewhere.
He’d heard Katherine say that she would provide him with all the cores he’d need. He’d completely tuned the conversation out after that, imagining all the amazing skills he could acquire, and how powerful he could become.
“What did you say?” he asked, looking up at the smiling Princess.
“I asked if you would marry me,” she repeated, smile not faltering for even a second.
“No,” Morgan answered.
In truth, he wasn’t one hundred percent sure what marriage was. All he knew was that people did it to have children and he wasn’t interested in that.
Katherine looked both surprised and hurt at his reply. Sarah couldn’t have looked happier.
“Well, you heard him. Better just send us back to the inn,” she said, already rising halfway out of her seat.
But Katherine wasn’t so easily dissuaded.
“Morgan, do you even know what marriage is?”
“Yes, people get married to have children. I don’t want children, and if we get married I’ll have to take care of them,” he replied.
Katherine laughed lightly at his response.
“People don’t automatically have children if they get married. In fact, all it would really take to have children would be for us to sleep together.”
Morgan’s mind came to a screaming halt when Katherine said those words. His blood ran cold and his heart rate rapidly increased. His mind went immediately back to the previous night he’d spent sleeping with Sarah.
He remembered how angry she’d been when she’d woken up in bed with him that morning. At the time, he’d thought it was because he’d woken her, but this was so much worse than he ever could have imagined. Was Sarah going to have a baby now that they’d slept together?
Thankfully for Morgan, Sarah noticed his look of horror and was quick to put two and two together.
“You can calm down, Morgan. She means something different. I’m not going to have a baby.”
Morgan looked at her, hope now filling his eyes.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m quite sure,” Sarah deadpanned.
“Would one of you mind explaining what you’re talking about?” Katherine cut in to their conversation.
“No!” Sarah immediately answered, face going red in embarrassment.
Morgan however, had no such qualms and was quick to explain what he thought might have happened. By the time he was done with his story, Katherine was laughing so hard that she could hardly seem to breathe.
Sarah was hiding her face in her hands, neck flushed red and groaning to herself. Morgan on the other hand, was looking between the two of them, not understanding what could possibly be so funny.
If anything, they should be happy that he’d avoided a potential disaster. He was too young to have children and he didn’t think Sarah wanted any right now either.
Finally managing to calm down, Katherine gave him a warm smile.
“Thanks for that. I can’t remember the last time someone made me laugh so hard!”
“Please don’t encourage him,” Sarah begged, finally looking up.
Her face was a deep red, the kind of red that Morgan associated with anger, but it looked as though Katherine’s presence was stopping her from lashing out at him.
“Alright, Morgan. How about I explain what a marriage to me would entail, what expectations I will have of you, and what benefits you will gain as a result. Then you can decide if you’re interested or not. Does that sound agreeable to you?”
“Sure,” Morgan answered with a shrug.
In truth, if marriage didn’t automatically produce children, then he wasn’t really sure why people would do it in the first place. It all just seemed kind of pointless to him.
Katherine lightly cleared her throat, then began.
“Marriage is a special sort of partnership between two people, that is sealed by a binding contract. In the case of a royal marriage, the contract is bound using very powerful magic. This is done to ensure that both parties can be completely honest with one another, without fear of one divulging the other’s secrets. Any questions so far?”
Morgan shook his head.
It all sounded pretty straightforward to him, and he could definitely see the appeal of having someone he could completely rely on.
“Now, I’ll first tell you what I’ll be expecting from you, and then I’ll tell you what you can expect from me.”
She waited for him to nod, then continued.
“As my husband, you will be expected to support me, both in public and private; in any decisions I make, provided they are reasonable. You will have to make appearances with me as my husband in social gatherings, and eventually, provide me with children. You will also have to stand with me against my father and make a public demonstration of your power.
“As for the benefits,” she continued. “Your marriage to me will protect you from anyone looking to harm you, including Simon, and I will provide for all of your needs. You will live here in the palace with me; food, money, cores, access to beast zones and anything else your heart may desire will be at your fingertips. So, what do you say?” she asked once again.
Morgan was silent for a long while as his mind turned over all the pros and cons.
On the one hand, he would be forced to reveal his identity and make a very public stand against the king. If Katherine was to be believed, however, she stood a very good chance of overthrowing her father. From his point of view, she was asking for very little and offering a lot; but then
again, he didn’t feel like tying his life to someone he’d just met…
“Sorry, not interested,” he answered after a few seconds.
“Great!” Sarah replied. “Now can we leave?”
Katherine looked hurt.
“Come on, Morgan. Why not?” she asked, pouting a bit. “Haven’t I offered you a good deal?”
“You have,” Morgan replied. “But I don’t know you all that well. Besides, I have things to do, and can’t spend all my time here.”
“Aww, don’t be like that!” Katherine said, leaning forward and taking one of his hands in her’s. “Just say you’ll marry me. I promise you won’t regret it.”
“Nope.”
“Please?”
“Nope.”
“Pretty please?”
“Still no.”
Katherine leaned back, pouting at him, but still not ready to give up.
“How about a compromise. You say you’ll help me overthrow my father and that you’ll think about the marriage proposal, and I’ll give you everything I promised.”
Morgan had opened his mouth to shut her down again, but stopped as he heard her new deal.
All he had to do was help her kill her father and say he’d think about it? Why not, then?
He nodded.
“You have a deal.”
Katherine let out an excited squeak and hugged him tightly.
“You won’t regret this!” she said excitedly.
It took Morgan a few seconds, but he eventually managed to extricate himself from her embrace.
“So what happens now? And where is Arnold, by the way? Shouldn’t he have arrived by now?” Morgan asked, noticing the mercenary’s absence for the first time.
Katherine’s smile turned predatory when he asked this and she released her grip on his hands.
“I trapped him on the way here. I didn’t want him to overhear my plans, and I also have an image to maintain. Can’t have him thinking that I’m soft. As for what happens now… well, that would be up to you. You can’t stay here as it wouldn’t be safe. I can send you anywhere you would like to go, though. Just name the place and I’ll open a portal.”
“We want to go to the East Kingdom,” Morgan immediately replied. “We were supposed to go there, but the border was closed due to the war. I tried getting over it and the two of us almost died because of it.”