The Makers of Destiny: Monarchy

Chapter Four: Secrets Unveiled

"Spill."

They were in Ameria's bedroom. After the group had found Lillian reeling in shock - she just saw plates flying around, give her a break! - Ameria had suggested that she and Lillian go up to her room so she could explain everything to Lillian while everyone else went back to what they were doing before. The second Ameria and Lillian had entered the room, though, Lillian had thrown the door shut so hard that it rattled in its frame and advanced on the younger girl. She wasn't sure where the sudden anger came from; she just knew that when she found everyone staring at her, she had felt humiliated. Immediately, anger followed. The entire time, she had been made a fool of, kept out of the secrets as everyone lied directly to her face. Lillian glared at Ameria, furious that she had been undermined by her.

"Start talking," she pressed, crossing her arms and looking down at Ameria.

Ameria backed up until her knees hit the edge of her bed and held up her hands in surrender. "Okay okay, I'll explain! Jeesh, calm down, won't you?" she said, a satisfactory touch of despair in her voice. Then her expression shifted, and much to Lillian's distaste, a smirk appeared on her lips. "Just let me go down for a sec. I need to grab something."

Without waiting for a reply, she sidled around Lillian and out the door, back downstairs. For the second she passed her, Lillian considered stopping her, but she was already being unnecessary mean; she didn't want to add manhandling to her list of crimes.

Lillian angrily tapped her foot against the ground and paced the room until Ameria returned. With Cheyenne.

Lillian turned around to find Cheyenne standing behind Ameria at the door.

"What? Why is she here?" Lillian demanded Ameria.

"Relax, Lillian," Ameria said, the perfect example of calm. She smiled easily at Lillian. "She's here to help me explain, in case, oh you know, that you will need some persuading to convince."

Something about the way Ameria was acting had Lillian's defenses slamming up. She bristled and turned to Cheyenne. "Oh really?" she asked sarcastically. "What kind of help? It shouldn't be too hard to explain. Why is -"

"Lillian," Cheyenne murmured, cutting her off. Immediately, an all too familiar feeling came over her, even as she struggled. The world was thrown into sharp relief, the limbs turned to stone, and the word, "Lillian, Lillian, Lillian," whispered itself in her hand, bouncing off her skull.

Cheyenne walked forward. Through Lillian's eyes, it seemed as if her figure was splitting, wavering, and condensing, every color too bright, each movement a dance on its own. A bright whiteness seeped in from the corners of her vision, wiping out other distractions. Lillian couldn't tear her eyes from Cheyenne; she was completely rooted to the spot. Cheyenne reached out a hand; the edges of it blurred a golden light seemed to emit from it. She touched a finger to Lillian's forehead and a heat suddenly burned through Lillian's head, like the heat wave of a nuclear bomb.

"Forget," Cheyenne whispered. "You will forget, won't you, Lillian?"

"Forget," Lillian murmured back, in a trance. A tugging feeling appeared in her head, almost as if it was dragging something to the surface. Yet, something else got dragged up too.

Then suddenly, in the blazing white, she felt a surge of anger, a surge of sanity. Some part of her brain dimly recognized the symptoms and a wave of defense came crashing through. A cacophony of colors, a thankfully muted and calm version, washed down over her vision, chasing away the white and restored her hearing. Energy streamed through her limbs, releasing them instantly. Feeling unexpectedly nimble, she approached Cheyenne and Ameria.