Kingdom Come

Chapter 13

Simon and Kerri walked down the middle of the street, pausing only when they saw the castle in the distance. It was truly a masterpiece. Its towers were practically touching the clouds, smooth and about as advanced in technology as it was possible for a building to be. The entire castle looked as if it were a computer of sorts, reflective like a monitor and wires running colorful electric shocks around the castle's walls. One touch would have killed anyone who dared try to enter without permission. The royal family's crest was branded into the giant iron doors in the front.

Kerri looked at Simon, whose gaze didn't leave the castle even for a moment. His normally bright blue eyes had darkened to a stormy grey. Kerri was sure that Simon's hair had looked fluffier before, but now it was hardly wavy compared to its usual curls, practically greasy, and it looked like someone had poorly sectioned off a couple of pieces at the front. And when had Simon aged five extra years?

"Home sweet home," Simon said bitterly.

"It looks impressive," Kerri tried to offer. But his own voice sounded dead even to him. It was impressive. It was also terrible. A symbol of so much greed, torture, and tragedy.

"Do you see that tallest tower to the left?"

"Yes, what about it?"

"The window second from the top... that was my room once. I wonder if it still might be."

"I see. Do you suppose they'd let you have a new room?"

"Not until I become king and can change that for myself."

"You're going to have a lot of things to do once you're king."

Kerri looked at the ground for a moment. That room was the place where Simon's first boyfriend had been killed. He knew that. The torment that Simon would feel going into that room again... Kerri would never have had the strength to do what Simon was about to do. It had to be pure agony even thinking about going back in there.

Speaking of things that Simon had done....

"Come on, Ker. There's somewhere I'd like to show you before we go up to the castle and all hell breaks loose."

Kerri nodded and followed Simon's lead. A few turns and another longer road led them to a sort of market on the far edge of Jolier. Handmade jewelry and goods were sold everywhere. And then there were games. Children laughed at the smallest things and rode tiny horses, and giant machines took some people up into the air and dropped them, slowing only when they reached a few feet from the ground. One structure looked like a giant wheel with boxes on it. "What's that?"

"What, haven't you ever been to a carnival before?" Simon asked. Kerri shook his head, still watching the wheel turning.

"Carnival... what a weird word. Why do people ride it? Is it relaxing?"

"No, no, the place is the carnival. The ride is a Ferris Wheel. It's one of the most popular rides."

"Ferris must have a lot of friends." Kerri bit his lip trying to hide a snicker. He knew that it was just the name, but Simon didn't need to know that. Simon sighed in defeat.

"Please tell me you've at least had a caramel apple."

"We weren't allowed caramel at the Inn, and I could never afford any apples of my own. An apple was always a treat, and a ripe one was a treasure, you know that."

Kerri saw Simon visibly cringe before grabbing his wrist. "Well come on then, we need to change that. I missed them, they're so good!"

"Are they better than strawberries?"

"So much better than strawberries, Ker. So much better."

When Kerri saw the giant group of people that Simon was dragging him towards, he shook Simon's hand off him and held onto Simon's coat. The crowd started getting so dense that Kerri was starting to lose his grip on Simon's trench coat, and he felt slight irritation. Why had Simon worn a trench coat in the middle of summer? It was too warm for that. Simon pulled Kerri to a food truck. "One cotton candy, one candy apple, and two lemonade slushies please."