The One (A Selection Fan Fiction)

Chapter Twenty-Three

THE KING LAUGHED WITHOUT HUMOR. "You?" He asked, incredulous at such an idea of a lady leading an army. "You're tiny," he said as if those words would hurt me. But I only blinked at him with an expressionless face.

His expression dropped when he realised I was serious. "You can't be serious."

"But I am." Maybe I have put it too nonchalant. Oh, well.

He scowled. "I will not let a puny little girl lead my army!"

"Then give me half of the army," I said.

"No."

"One-thirds, perhaps?"

"No."

"Quarter. That's enough," I said, crossing my arms. "No agreement, no information. Therefore, no success."

He scowled when he heard 'no success'. He clearly hated failing. I took advantage of that.

"You despise failing, don't you? But everyone fails. We all have to learn from it so we could not fail again. You fail everyday because you don't trust the right persons you're supposed to trust. Maybe it's time to crack the shell. Do we have an agreement?"

His scowl deepened. I raised my eyebrows in challenge. I really am stubborn, am I not?

"Agreed."

I grinned. "Everyone in this room is a witness." Now, don't say I was being stupid. I've had the idea in my mind since I heard the objectives.

"This is my plan, everyone," I said. "You see, the reason why I put the measurements on the side and top is that I want to mimic the drawing. I want to put it on the guards and on the palace's staff."

"How are we supposed to know who is on our side?" Kriss asked.

I raised my palm, gesturing for her to wait. "The tattoo is to be placed on their forearm. It will serve as a disguise so we could infiltrate the rebels. The group of rebels is one, divided into two. I've heard there are lots of them. There's a group here and there, but they're still divided into two: the Insurgents and the Mutineers."

"Let me guess," Elise interrupted. "The 'Insurgents' are the Northerners and the 'Mutineers' are the Southerners."

I nodded.

"So why are they in different groups?"

"This girl told me that she would answer my questions in compensation of saving her brother from bleeding to death. I had to thank Dr. Blue for that. This rebel said that they have two goals, which, I think, are the shapes and the words. I have found out what they mean but I will tell later. First, I should answer Elise's question. The Insurgents, also known as the Northerners, want to accomplish the goal peacefully while the Mutineers do the opposite. It's part of their strategy, to see which would work."

"You still have not answered my question," Kriss said. I keep my patience longer than hers.

"Well," I said. "We're to have to add something to the army's uniform."

"Your army's uniform," the king corrected.

I shook my head. "No, sir. We have to include everyone in the palace's staff in this uniform. That way, we can tell who's on our side and who is not."

The queen pursed her lips and nodded. "And what is this garment you think they should have?"

I paused. I have not exactly thought of the uniform yet. I was about to shrug when Aspen answered, "A red band on the wrist."

It sounded like a good idea. I raised my eyebrows at them. "Possibly. Anyone object?"

No one responded so I just continued with my discussion.