The Dark Kingdom

Chapter 3

Silas was Amarinda and Tobias's son. Alexius and him never really got along, even though they grew up together. They were friends of course, but they argued more often than anything. "Alexius, that is rude!" Imogen scolded, but Alexius noticed a slight smirk on Jaron's face. That made her laugh but it was rewarded by another scold from Imogen, not only for her but for her father too. "Silas is bossy and annoying! Sometimes I wonder if he's even their son because he's way too mean to be their son! It would make sense if he belonged to Roden!" Alexius complained. "Young lady! There is no need to be saying all this nonsense!" Imogen countered, "I raised you to be better!" Alexius was growing quite annoyed and she stood up from her chair and excused herself from the dinner table. 

Once Alexius got back to her room, she took her shoes off and the many accessories she was wearing. She walked over towards her bed and noticed a note on it. It was rolled up with a single strand of string holding it together. Alexius looked at it is suspiciously and then looked around the room to see if anyone was inside. Alexius shrugged and began to read what was inside the note. 

My Dearest, Princess Alexius...

Hey, on my travels through Carthya, I was passing through the mountains in between Carthya and Gelyn. I found an underground tunnel that leads to a secret market, I think you should come check it out for yourself!

Your Friend, Cyrus

The letter was immediately suspicious. Alexius sat on her bed an immediately scanned over the letter multiple times. Two things were obviously off, when Cyrus exchanged letters with Alexius, he never addressed her by 'Princess Alexius'. The way of the writing was suspicious too, but the thing that stuck out the most was simply the beginning of the letter. 'My dearest, Princess Alexius," her heart stopped as she re-read that line multiple times. Adding a comma after dearest was considered a way of flirting, maybe it was Cyrus after all. Alexius knew that he liked her and he hadn't told anyone about it and neither had she. Well, he never exactly admitted it, but they both new deep down and things had become awkward between them now. She stared at the letter before she realized that she had zoned out. It couldn't hurt to make her way there and come back before her birthday, it would be a couple days of traveling, but she didn't want someone tagging along. 

Alexius set the note down on her desk, collected some stuff, changed into a traveling outfit, and headed towards the stables...again. It was already late and most would be in bed now. Alexius made sure to stop by the kitchen and grab some snacks for the ride. As she was putting Dawn's saddle on, she looked at the empty spot where or sword was normally clipped on. She sighed, Alexius dearly missed her old sword. "Missing your sword?" Jaron asked. "ACK! WHAT THE HECK!" Alexius jumped back. Jaron laughed, "your way to easy to scare!" Alexius glared at him and shoved her dad. Alexius went back to tightening Dawn's saddle and hoped Jaron wouldn't stop her. "So what's this note about?" Jaron asked, dangling it from her hand. "How- did you go through my room?" her parents gave her no privacy.

 "I wasn't going through your room, I was simply coming to talk to you and then I saw you staring at it, so I waited until you left and read the note. I've got to say, there is something really off about this letter," Jaron explained. Alexius nodded, there was something definitely off about it. "So your going to ride out into a possible trap without anyone to back you up if something happens," Jaron asked. Based on what Jaron was wearing, it seemed like he planned on going with her. "Are you going to say that you won't let me go unless I let you come with me," she inquired. Jaron nodded slightly and Alexius sighed. "Your probably going to need this," Jaron handed her a sword in its sheath. Her eyes immediately lit up as she unsheathed the sword. The guard of the sword was shaped like wings. It looked very similar to her old sword, but more adjusted to her liking. "It was supposed to be your birthday present, but I think you need it now. this time it's made out of iron, but they mixed it in with a dye that made the blade darker, how you like it," Jaron explained. "I love it! Thanks dad!" Alexius embraced her father into a hug.