My Light In The Darkness.

2 - The New Battle.

Princess Saki never truly understood her place amongst her family. Being the youngest of her and Tsukasa, she felt as though she held no true role in Luminaria's functions. With her parents holding the main monarchy rule in the land and her older brother not only being heir to the Luminarian throne but also holding the title of Head of the kingdoms knight force, Saki often found herself feeling useless in comparison, imagining her purpose was to only smile and look good for visitors, and to eventually bare a child to carry on her family's bloodline, which was not a fate she much awaited. While her brother was off serving the kingdom across the border, all she would do was wander the endless corridors of the palace that were always too bright for her eyes, the lavish designs and blanched colours straining any sense of reality from her mind. She always had an overwhelming sense that everything unique about her kingdom was boring, that it showed no originality and its design showed no purpose, although on second guessing she figured that she was most likely projecting her feelings on her own role in her family onto her Kingdom's environment. Only fifteen years old at the time, the young Princess yearned for freedom. A freedom that would allow her to venture around her Kingdom and offer herself and her aid to her people, in hopes of being known as anything but useless.

That was all until she turned sixteen and was given her own personal guard, granting her her desired freedom, although now her freedom from her constant boredom in the palace seemed much less exciting when put beside who her personal guard was. Saki could only swear she felt love at first sight as she was introduced to her. Ichika Hoshino, a teenage girl who was also sixteen years old, passing Princess Saki in age by only a couple of months. She was gorgeous, short black hair resting just above her shoulders, bright sky blue eyes that looked as though they would glow in the sunlight. Dressed in a long, formal white blazer that contained detailing of sunset pink fabric along the lapel, Ichika Hoshino could only be described as a dream.

"Saki, this is Ser Ichika Hoshino, from this point onwards she will be your personal guard, and rest assured, she has been trained under my wing since she was first recruited, and her talents are much above that of an average guard." She remembered her brother speaking to her, although at that moment she didn't care about any amount of training or skill. A rosy tint rose to the princesses face as the knight bowed down, pressing a kiss onto the back of her hand. "Princess Saki, I promise to serve and protect you with my life, and I can only hope that you will accept me as your guard" The black haired girl spoke. "I would be honoured to have you as such! You have my greatest thanks for this!" Princess Saki smiled widely, resisting the urge to throw her arms around the girl in an embrace. "I suppose I'll leave you two off then, if you need anything, just let me know" Prince Tsukasa smiled warmly before leaving the two girls alone in the long hallway. With someone by her side, the blanched white walls of the palace suddenly didn't feel so plain and cold anymore, and although her feelings on her place in her family had not completely left her, having a friend who was with her almost constantly, she had nearly forgotten all about her feelings of uselessness.

Six years can feel like months when you're caught up with the people around you. Over the years, Princess Saki and Ser Ichika's bond grew, their originally professional and sophisticated conversations turning into talking about anything as they wandered the palace and town together. Of course, their friendship was not just restricted to the two of them, being considered a member of the knights force, Ser Ichika had many friends from that side of her profession as well, which naturally passed onto the princess as well. There was no doubt that Saki's feelings for her guard were far beyond a friendship, however. What she once considered a childish need to be with someone had grown into her needing Ichika, wanting her company, wanting her.

It was on days like these that the Princess hated the fact that Ichika was a knight. Of course she found her talents incredible, and she was more than grateful that she had the privilege of having Ichika as her guard, however there was still a part of her that hated it all. "I'm sure it's nothing, my princess, you need not worry yourself about it.." Ser Ichika attempted to reassure her as the two walked down the marble staircase. "I know that, but at the same time I don't trust it, Mother can suggest some strange things sometimes" She huffed, her face clearly showing worry. "I-" Before she could continue, a voice called up to them, a figure with short grey hair standing at the bottom of the steps. "Ichika, you got called too?" The figure spoke. "Yeah, I'm not too sure what it's about though, who else was called?" She asked. Princess Saki's mind began to race as she recognised who was waiting for them. "I don't know, I thought I saw Shinonome on my way in but he wasn't headed towards here from what I can tell" Shiho lowered her tone as the two girls approached her. Shiho Hinomori had been a close friend of Ichika's since they had both joined the knights force together, their only difference was the fact that Ichika was trained to be a Royal guard, and Shiho was trained to fight on the Kingdom's frontlines. This realisation was what caused Princess Saki's mind to wander around endless possibilities regarding what this meeting could be about. 'Was Ichika being put out to fight? But I thought you needed to be trained differently for that!? What if Tsukasa did train her but never told me? I don't want her to get hurt.. I don't want her to leave me..' She thought, suddenly being dragged out of her thoughts as the three had reached the corridor of the throne room, Ichika's voice interrupting her thoughts. "I can tell you're overthinking this, my princess, please don't worry about it, what will be will be" She smiled lovingly at her, wanting to take her hands into her own but stopping herself as she saw Prince Tsukasa and Sir Akito Shinonome approaching them. "My Prince" She bowed to him, followed by Shiho doing the same. "Ser Hoshino, Ser Hinomori" He bowed slightly out of respect. "And of course my darling little sister has joined us too!" He beamed as he placed one arm around her, pulling her into a side hug. "Tsukasa-! You're embarrassing me!" She squealed. "You're so cute Saki, sometimes I forget that you're twenty six now! Where did my baby sister go-!" He cried dramatically. "Tsukasa!!" She complained, twisting herself out of her brother's embrace, leaving a pout on his face as he whined. "Oh wow, you don't even love me anymore, and you choose to inform me of that in front of my knights? How heartless, that's not very princessy, Saki~!"
A slight hum of a chuckle could be heard from the three knights as they attempted to silence themselves from laughing at their Prince and Princesses interaction. "Shall we head inside?" Sir Akito Shinonome suddenly asked to break any growing tension. "Ah, of course, my apologies for having you all wait!" Tsukasa exclaimed apologetically. The five adults continued to converse as they entered through the large wooden doors that separated the throne room from the rest of the palace. The throne room was gorgeous, as would be expected of such a place of perfection. It was a familiar place for some of the knights, often hearing plans for battles here from the Queen, and for the Prince and Princess it was practically their second bedroom considering how much time they are made to spend in there. The room was long, with eight, thin, white marble pillars creating a walkway towards where the Queen and the other Royalties were meant to reside. Four pillars stood on each side,the bright Luminarian sun beaming in through the large arched windows on the wall beside each of the pillars, and of course, the two thrones themselves were nothing but pure beauty. Raised by a step on the floor, two thrones of gold sat at the top reserved for the King and Queen, enough space being left on either side for Prince Tsukasa and Princess Saki to stand beside their parents. Compared to that of other rulers, the Tenma's thrones were surprisingly plain, only simple crystals embedded on the armrests of each to symbolise who's was who's, with the King's throne being slightly larger than the Queen's. Closer to where the Queen sat, two knights stood, patiently waiting for the rest of their party to join them. "Apologies, Mother, it seemed as though we all got caught up in our own business" Prince Tsukasa called out, skipping ahead of the others. "Apologies to you as well, Akiyama and Yoisaki, I understand you two are punctual as usual, sorry to keep you waiting" He said as he passed them, leading them both to bow to their Prince. "Punctual? Akiyama? That sentence makes no sense" Akito whispered as he nudged Shiho in the arm, causing the shorter to laugh slightly. "That's quite alright, Tsukasa, don't run." His mother scolded him. "Is this everyone I called?" She questioned him. "Yes, and-"
"Saki? What brings you here?" The Queen asked over him. "I figured I would join Ser Hoshino since you called her down here with the others!" The princess explained. "Well, I purposefully only called Ser Hoshino, so if you wouldn't mind waiting outside, this doesn't involve you at the moment" Her mother requested. Saki was about to reject her mothers proposal but figured that it was no use, there was no stopping whatever she had planned. "Very well then." She sighed as she turned to leave, glancing over to her knight who mouthed, "It will be fine" to her with a reassuring look.

"Why don't you just tell her already?" Shiho asked her quietly, fearing that her voice would echo around the spacious room if she raised it too high. "Tell her? Why would I do that? That's so unprofessional, Shiho-!" She replied to her friend in a slightly higher tone. "I think you're stupid not to, I see the way she looks at you-"
"I'm not telling her, I'm her guard, nothing more, nothing less" Ichika stopped her, turning back to ensure that her princess had left the room and hadn't heard what the two girls were discussing.
"Alright everyone" The Queen began, Tsukasa standing by her side, equally as curious as the rest of the knights as to what she was going to say. "I have called you all here because you five are possibly the most highly trained knights in this kingdom, joined by Prince Tsukasa, of course." He nodded towards Tsukasa. "As you all know, Obscuria is somehow still persisting with this foolish war, however they only strike when we cross their borders, that King of theirs is planning something, and we need to be prepared to strike back" She explained. "Is that not right though, Mother? I mean, we are on their land, surely they have a right to defend it?" Tsukasa pondered. "You make a good point, Tsukasa, however this is a new system. They had no problem attacking over our borders in the past, and they are practically baiting us in to be able to plan something. As you know, we recently installed border guards at a safe distance from the legitimate Obscurian border, Sir Shinonome being one of the first to serve that role, and from reports given by the border guards on duty, Obscuria has been allowing its army to advance closer to Luminaria, which poses a threat on our people" The Queen detailed her explanation. "So what are you suggesting?" Tsukasa asked her, growing impatient with the unnecessary explanation of information that he and most people in the room already knew about. "I am saying that I think a surprise strike should take place, of course the actual planning would be your responsibility as the Head of the Knights Force, Tsukasa, however I would like to request that each person in this room is included in the battle." The Queen demanded.

With the large wooden door slightly open, and the echo of the ballroom like a speaker, Princess Saki could hear every word that was being said. She couldn't stop the warm tears that streamed down her face as she listened further, sliding to the floor with her back against the wall. 'Everyone? What does she mean everyone!? She can't send Ichika out there, I won't let her! But what can I do? I'm nothing compared to the power she has.. I just want Ichika to be okay, I don't want her to get hurt, I don't want her to die.. I don't want her to leave me!' Once again, her mind began to race as her breath quickened, everything felt too much in that moment. Her flowy dress was too tight, her skin was too tight, her mind was too tight in her head. 'What do I do.. What do I do.. I can't be seen like this.. NO! This isn't about me, it's about Ichika, I need to help her.. What am I saying? I can't even defend myself! How can I save her if I rely on her to save me!? Why am I so useless!?' She grabbed onto her loose curly blonde hair as her tears continued to flow down her face, her cheeks red and her eyes puffy as a result. Her head felt fuzzy as she couldn't comprehend the meanings behind her own thoughts. "Saki.. Princess Saki..!?" A collaboration of voices flooded through her ears. She suddenly felt her hands being lifted and held by someone else. "Saki..?" One particular voice sounded the loudest. It was familiar, she knew who it belonged to, she began to piece her surroundings together. "PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME!" She shouted as she pulled herself into the familiar warmth of the girl in front of her, squeezing her arms around her thin frame. "Please don't go, Ichika! I'll handle whatever my mother says but you can't go! I don't want you to die out there!" She cried, nuzzling her head into the latters shoulder.

Ichika's eyes widened at the sudden impact of her Princesses embrace, her face flushing pink with blush. She let out a small giggle as she listened to her princesses pleading. "I believe you have the situation mistaken, my princess.." Ichika looked up at Tsukasa, who couldn't help but grin widely at the two girls, his initial worry for his sister turning into pure joy. Saki lifted her head, her teary eyes meeting Ichika's. "W-What?"
"I'm not going anywhere, I'm staying right here with you.." She pulled the shorter girl closer to her. "B-But mother said-"
"She said everyone in terms of those who fight as a part of the knights' force, so basically everyone but Ser Hoshino" Tsukasa informed her. "So then why-?"
Ichika looked up at her prince, hesitant on whether to continue or not, to which she was met with a nod. "Your mother wanted to make sure that if needs be I could get you out of here safely if Obscuria attacked past their side of the border, she didn't want you to hear because she knew you would worry, and I can see why now.." Ichika explained as she let out a small laugh. "So you're not going..?" Saki asked tearfully. "Well I'm hardly going to leave my princess defenceless, now am I?" Ichika smiled warmly at her. "Ichika..." Saki dug her head into her guard's shoulder as she continued to sob. "It's alright.. Let it all out.."
"Yeah, I'll be fine too, Saki, thanks for being concerned," Tsukasa said sarcastically. "Shush Tsukasa.." She muttered. She was of course concerned for her brother too, but in that moment she couldn't help but be relieved. Her guard was safe, her best friend was safe, Ichika was safe.

Tsukasa wasn't scared about what stood ahead of them, he knew what he was doing. He was trained to know how to handle situations like these. However he couldn't help but feel a rush of tension in his body as he stood in the knights clubroom about to announce the plan that his mother requested. He couldn't help but notice the sudden lump in his throat before he began his announcement. "It has been requested by her majesty the Queen that we start planning a new strike against Obscuria, with the rising concerns of a planned attack from their end of the border. So I think it should be within the next few weeks if not towards the end of this week, as we don't know when they are actually going to strike, if they even do at all, but we can not be seen as underprepared" He described his mothers wish briefly to his knights. "Shinonome? You worked along the border, do you have any suggestions?" Tsukasa asked his friend. "Well, from what I can tell there is a lot more going on than what we can see from our posts, many of us were in agreeance that they were advancing closer, although they weren't doing much, most likely trying to get an idea of the new borderguard system so that they can try and track our moves but that's really all I can report on" Akito told him. "Are they advancing quickly?" One of the knights asked him. "Ehh, I'm not entirely sure, I mean, I'd say if we were to leave it we should only leave it three weeks at the very maximum, and even that would be leaving it late..." Akito added. "So then what do you suggest?" Prince Tsukasa inquired. "It's completely your call, my prince, but I'd say this week would be a smart time to do it, I mean, it's not like we take ages to prepare anyway" He suggested. "Alright then, this week it is then, let's begin discussing formations and such"

By Friday, each knight that was deployed on the short battle was standing in the square outside the palace, awaiting their prince's arrival. Families and friends gathered around the knights as they were about to set off. Beside Sir Akito Shinonome and Ser Mizuki Akiyama stood a young woman dressed in an almost floor length dress, her ruffled collar and poofy sleeves standing out along with the velvet belt that connected the skirt and bodice. "You're wearing the dress!" Mizuki exclaimed as she threw her arms around the girl. "I love this dress almost as much as I love you, of course I'm going to wear it!?" The girl retorted. "I know I know, Enanan, but it still makes me happy to see you in it~" The pink haired knight giggled. "Cut it out, you two, this isn't the place to be all lovey-dovey" A strong voice scolded them both. "Shut up Akito, I'll be romantic with my partner if I want to be!" The brown haired girl scoffed at her younger brother. "Ena, you do realise that everyone is watching right now.." Akito said embarrassedly. "Uh, no? They're not? They're all too busy doing their own thing!" She argued. "And you better take care of Amia for me, if I find out they got killed on your watch, I'll kill you" Ena warned. "My love, I can protect myself.." Mizuki sighed lovingly, pressing a kiss against Ena's forehead. "I know that, but I don't trust that kingdom, I don't want anything to happen to you out there"
"You have nothing to worry about, my dear, if anything, I have an advantage over everyone else, and besides" Mizuki held Ena's hand up to their lips. "I'll have my memory of you with me the entire time" She brought the matching bands that the two shared on each of their wedding fingers. Tears began to well in Ena's eyes as she listened to Mizuki speak. "Don't cry, this is just a whole load of nothing, trust me, Obscurian knights can't fight for shit" Mizuki joked, telling a slight lie, although she found it beneficial as a way to reassure their fiance. "I'm not crying, shut up"
"Am I just invisible or something?" Akito complained. "That would be the single brother effect, my friend" A voice beamed from behind him as an arm swung over his shoulder. "Prince Tsukasa-!" Ena and Mizuki immediately broke apart from their embraces in order to bow and curtsey to their higher up. "There's no need for that, Akiyama and Shinonome are comrades I consider to be quite close friends of mine, and of course with your talents, Lady Shinonome, I should be the one bowing to you!" Tsukasa tilted himself over slightly to show respect to Ena, causing her cheeks to flush a bright pink in embarrassment. "He never shuts up about your paintings, Ena, he's always like 'Sir Shinonome, I simply cannot get over how perfectly your sister paints my family, it's absolutely beautiful!' or 'I can't wait to meet your sister again, Shinonome, I would love to further commend her on her talents!' It's quite funny, actually" Akito mimicked him. "Be respectful, you idiot!" Mizuki stood beside him, nudging their elbow against his muscularly tall figure. "T-Thank you, my prince, you praise me far too highly.." Ena said, her face remaining the bright pink shade from the initial interaction. "Nonsense! I admire your work a lot, Lady Ena, it deserves nothing but the highest praise!" Prince Tsukasa exclaimed boldly, further proving Akito's mockery to be true. "That's my girl, perfect in even the eyes of the Royal family-!" Mizuki laughed. "S-Shush Mizuki!"
"Anyway, are we setting off soon, my prince? I need to get away from these two, desperately" Akito asked him, his jokes lined with an insulting tone. "That's what I came over to you for, could you get your squad ready? I'm trying to find the other group heads, so if you see them could you pass on the message?" He requested. "Of course, Sir"
"Thank you! It was lovely to see you again, Lady Shinonome, however I must be off! See you two on the line-up, Akiyama, Shinonome!" He called out before running over to another group leader who caught the corner of his eye.
"Right, I'm off too, see you later" Akito walked over to his older sister and hugged her half-effortedly. "I'll kill you if you die on me, Akito" She warned him. "Yeah yeah, I know, the usual" He sighed before releasing her. "Akiyama, group call is in five minutes, you better be there" He added before walking away. "Yes Sir~!" She mocked him, leaning in to plant another kiss on his sister's soft skinned face.

The border between Luminaria and Obscuria was a lot more underwhelming than many people expected, the two lands separated by nothing more than a large grey stone wall that contained many gaps and gates along it. The knights always enjoyed the initial walk towards the border, the small, lighthearted conversations served as a great distraction to the possible dangers they were marching towards. "Is the Princess actually dating Hoshino?" Akito asked his prince. "Nope, but there's obviously more than just a friendship in their heads, it's not hard to see, that's why I implied them as a couple earlier on when I approached you and your sister" Tsukasa explained. "That makes sense, I was just a bit confused whether you were joking or not" The latter replied. The two halted a few metres away from the wall, turning to face the crowd of knights that trailed behind them. "From here on we split into groups, and when we are past the border everyone is free to separate themselves from their group or to remain as such, please, stay as safe as you can, and do not be afraid to have your comrades assist you!" Prince Tsukasa spoke firmly towards the group, before nodding at Akito and the few other knights that served as group leaders before they all split.

It was only a matter of minutes before almost everyone was entranced in a battle with the opposing army, although many found themselves creeping through the woods trying to find any source of a plan against Luminaria or any stashed weapons. Prince Tsukasa was surprisingly one of these knights, slowly hiding himself behind each tree in the wooded land in an attempt to get closer to the centre of Obscuria. Everything had seemed to be going to plan, until a single branch snapping underneath his shiny black boots gave away his position. Suddenly there was a flash of red thrown past him in what could only be assumed to be magic, a weapon that no known Luminarian soldier possessed. Poking his head out from behind the large oak tree that he hid behind, a recognisable figure stood boldly in the distance, their bright violet hair making them easily recognisable.
"So we meet again, I must say, long time no see!" The prince called out in a seemingly friendly tone. Drawing his weapon from his side, he stepped out from his place and held his sword out bravely.

"Shall we have this dance, Prince Kamishiro?"