Mea Culpa

VIII

Hey, look! I had the motivation to write! An extra long chapter for y'all. Thanks for reading :D

~V.S

{~~♡~~}

There were no words to describe the devastation that the kingdom felt, once discovering the dead body of the king. Arthur Everard was loved within the village and castle, and it was shocking, yet horrific to see the bruises and cuts that littered his arms and legs.

Nobody had seen the young prince since that fateful day. No sound came from the closed doors of his bedchambers, no peek, no whisper. Caspian had completely closed himself off from the world, not even seeing Athena, who lay in the infirmary, still unresponsive.

Little did they know the true intention behind Caspian's disappearances.

{~~♡~~}

Pacing in his room, stricken with grief, the young prince thought aimlessly of his late father's passing. It had seemed too much of a coincidence, all these strange occurrences happening right after another.

First the arrival of Andria Apex, then Aethulu. Athena's comatose state, then the king's sudden passing.

Caspian closed his eyes, picturing the image of the little girl he had been seeing in his dreams, willing her to come hear his plea.

One moment later, and a shiver crept up his spine. He opened his eyes to see the little brunette stood in front of him, dressed in riding gear, holding a silver blade in her hand. It looked wrong for the girl to hold such a dangerous weapon, but there was nothing he could do, for he was afraid of her power over him.

"What is this black magic you have cast upon my family? What have we done for this treachery?!"

The girl pulled out a rock and started to sharpen her blade. "I told you to spend as much time with your father. It was not my fault you didn't listen to my warnings."

"That didn't give you the right to murder him!"

She sighed. "You will never know, Caspian. There are things that your father didn't know," Caspian raised an eyebrow, but didn't interrupt, "but I can tell you this: You're on the right track with the file."

"First you kill my father, now you're helping me?!"

"We're on the same side, Caspian, believe it or not. I am trying to lead you to the truth. You must trust me, and I will help you."

"What truth?" Caspian no longer held contempt in his voice. He was intrigued by the princess's epiphany.

"A dark truth," She said, putting her dagger and rock away, before looking into his hazel eyes, "that is covered by this kingdom's fake optimism. Only three people knew of this.

"One was your mother, Beatrice. She was the root cause for the evil that struck your family. Nobody knew her past when she arrived to your kingdom, young and starry-eyed for love. Unfortunately for you, I killed her-" Caspian's nostrils flared in displeasure. "-which means you can't get the truth out of her."

She paused for a moment, walking over to the prince's bed and hopping onto it, her short legs dangling in the air. "Another enlightened soul was your father. I killed him too, so you're almost out of luck. But there is another option."

"Do tell."

"One person alive knows."

"Who?" Caspian asked.