The Phoenix People

Chapter Four

Handmaiden-for-Alexia shrieked. I shrieked. She clutched a paper to her bosom, crumpling it, and hurriedly shoved a quill down her boot.

I held a hand over my rapidly beating heart and asked, "Were...were you...writing a letter?"

Lowborns had been banned from learning how to read or write for decades at least. Audric's academy was certainly the first authorized Lowborn school ever since the Highborns had risen to power close to a century ago. So how could Handmaiden-for-Alexia have ever learned to write? More importantly, how was she writing? Parchment and quills were hard to come by.

"Give me that paper," I said quietly. "Now."

Handmaiden-for-Alexia hesitated for only a second before she complied, holding up the parchment with shaking hands. I snatched the paper from her and scanned the message.

While it was written in our language and with the correct letters, the words and the way they fit together made no sense to me. Within seconds, I realized that it was written in some sort of code, which had never been my strong suit.

There was only one word that really caught my attention: phoenix.

The pieces clicked into place. "You're part of the rebellion," I whispered, smoothing the paper carefully on my knee. "Aren't you?"

Handmaiden-for-Alexia said nothing. Her face was impassive, but her jaw was working ever so slightly. She glared defiantly when I met her gaze.

"Phoenix," I said, pointing to where the word appeared multiple times on the page. "The rebellion is called the Phoenix People. Admit it!"

"I found that letter. I...I was trying to read," the girl said quietly, grasping at any remaining hope. She stared at her hands as if they held the solution to her dilemma.

"I'm not going to turn you in," I informed her. "You must do something for me in return, though."

Handmaiden-for-Alexia looked up from her hands as a flicker of hope gleamed in her eyes. "Yes, Princess?"

I faltered. "I...need more time to think about that. However, I - I swear on the Fairmeadow crest that I will not turn you in." I felt my words hardening and chaining themselves to me, dead weights of guilt and confusion. Was this the right thing to do?

Either way, it was a binding oath. Breaking it would mean shame and embarrassment staining the Fairmeadow name. Crest oaths were not to be taken lightly. But did they hold any potency when made to a Lowborn? I knew I was now in over my head, that much was certain.

Handmaiden-for-Alexia obviously recognized the significance of the oath. Her eyes widened and after a moment's hesitation, she nodded. I stepped away from the wardrobe so as to give her room to climb out. She did so, refusing the helping hand I offered her.

"For now..." I hesitated, attempting to think of tasks that would keep her occupied for quite some while. "Visit the library and find some books for me. Then go to the physician and collect my herbal remedies. I fear tonight will be a restless one." Handmaiden-for-Alexia nodded and practically ran from the room.

For the rest of the evening, I paced the castle hallways, trying not only to think of a plan, but also to digest all that I had learned. 

What Audric was doing was wrong. Every bone in my body screamed that truth. Thinking of all of the unwanted and illegitimate children broke my heart. Where did my brother go so wrong? Was it after Father's death? Mother's? Or far before either of those events?

I thought back to when we were children. Audric had often spent his time in the castle library, reading tome after tome of Highborn knowledge. I remembered he had always preferred the story of our victory over Lowborns to any other tale.

Suddenly, a long-forgotten memory rose to mind. When Audric was younger, naught ten years old, he had played a game with Alia and me called simply 'Highborns and Lowborns,' something of our creative sister's invention. The rules of the game were simple: one person was the Highborn king or queen of the time while the other two were Lowborn assassins who had to attempt to steal the throne. Audric was almost always the Highborn king, and being bigger, stronger, and faster, he won game after game. Once, exasperated, Alia had nominated me to be the queen, and had quickly defeated me while Audric hung back, brooding. Our brother had refused to let Alia take the spot of queen, however, claiming that it was traitorous to Highborns and showed an unforgivable sympathy toward Lowborns. From a simple game, our brother had made us feel like dirty Lowborn lovers.

I was furious at myself for not having seen the signs of his corruption sooner.

Needing some fresh air, I hurried to the doors that exited into the palace park.

I walked clean across the palace grounds, from the building itself to a strip of woods in the back that little boys used to hunt squirrels and rabbits. The woods only ran for about twenty feet before being stopped by the huge, thirty-foot-tall inner wall surrounding the entirety of the palace.

I had never been outside of the palace grounds. The girls in my books went on grand adventures with the loves of their lives, but neither of those concepts had ever appealed to me. At sixteen, everything I needed with within the inner wall - the grandest temple in the kingdom, a theater in which the best actors performed, a small zoo filled with exotic creatures, the best and most complete library in the land, an enormous ballroom, more nooks and crannies than one girl could discover in seventeen years of living...the list went on and on.

I stood among the trees of the forest, my mind drifting from Audric to Handmaiden-for-Alexia. I tried to think back over the course of our half decade together - had she ever shown warning signs for who she truly was, as Audric had?

I didn't think so, but I couldn't be sure. She had always seemed like another generic, meek handmaiden who would someday slip up and quickly be replaced by another just like her, so I hadn't paid her much mind. But a member of the Phoenix People? That was insane. It was an odd feeling, realizing that my handmaiden had an entire life outside of me.

How did she contact the rebellion? Who in the castle had smuggled her in (for surely a rebel couldn't pass the background checks performed on castle employees)? I doubted she would be willing to tell me, but with a couple of well-placed threats to reveal her...

What if I took this all further? What if I met with the Phoenix People to tell them of my brother's plans?

This idea made every muscle in my body clench with fear. Not only would that mean venturing outside of the inner wall, it would also mean being surrounded by strangers - Lowborn strangers - who hated Highborns, especially Highborn royalty. I wasn't sure of the ultimate goal of the Phoenix People, but it couldn't bode well for me.

Perhaps I could tell them about the Eradication Initiative, getting them on my good side so I was safe. Then I would also have a clear conscious because I wouldn't be holding on to the twisted secrets.

It would be dangerous and stupid. But it would be worth it.

Taking a deep breath and steeling my resolve, I turned and hurried back towards the palace to find Handmaiden-for-Alexia.