The King's Remorse

Work Your Magic, Dust Devil

"Well, you can go tell whoever requested our presence to f-."

"We will be there in a few moments," Icarus quickly interjects. "We're just finishing up here." Seneca scowls at him but doesn't say anything.

"Very well, thank you." I internally smirk as the Soldier makes a quick exit.

"You can't do that, Seneca!" Icarus whirls around, eyes wide as he stares down his friend.

"Why not?" Seneca doesn't seem the least bit ruffled, instead continuing to eat as if nothing had happened.

"Brook is right, we can't go after the Amethyst Throne without Wolf and Dove. Until then, we can't anger the Guard or Soldiers- we don't need them coming after us... yet, that is. Once Wolf and Dove have returned, we can anger them all we want. There will be no mercy for the Amethyst Throne."

"Yeah," Seneca sighs. "You're right. But the second Wolf and Dove come back..."

She trails off, and Icarus mirrors the grin that spreads across her face.

"S-Seneca?" Clap asks.

"Yeah?"

"You k-kinda remind me of Phoenix."

"Phoenix? That fire-wielding one Brook told me about?"

"Yeah. Y-you both d-don't like K-King Garonda XIV c-cuz he's mean. A-a-and you both want t-to destroy K-K-King Garonda XIV."

"Destroy? Yeah, sounds about right. The Amethyst Throne's not making it out of the battle in one piece. More like a billion little flakes of purple dust."

A Guard comes over and takes our plates. It's so weird having them wait on us, treating us like visitors of King Garonda XIV. It was something I'd never get used to. As the Guard walks away, I don't miss the glare he sends us, though it's gone as quickly as it came.

By we reach the Earth Tree, a crowd has begun to form. I quickly realize the crowd is made up of people from the northern portion of the White Tent Sea, the one Clap and I live in and Seneca and Icarus are staying in for however long they remain in this dimension of Ragdon. And they'd blocked off a section earlier... My thoughts are cut short as a Soldier steps onto the makeshift stage and gets everyone's attention.

"Alright, everyone. Listen up! We are currently blocking off this section of the White Tent Sea. We're just going to go over some things real quick, shouldn't take too long. Once we're done, you are free to continue going about your day, just as you were before this. Any questions?" The Soldier's raised voice carries across the crowd.

"Yeah, I've got one." Seneca raises her hand, standing on her toes and craning her head so she can better see the Guard and Soldiers. The Soldier's shoulders fall as he sees who had been speaking.

"Yes?"

"What are you doing exactly? You were blocking off parts of the White Tent Sea and it was really affecting my day. So just give it to me straight- what the hell are you doing?" The Soldier's jaw clenches as his lip begins to curl, but he fights it back.

"This should only take a few minutes. Not too long, and then you'll be free to go about your business. Alright?" Seneca moves to speak again, but Icarus silences her with a shove from his free wing.

"Fine," she grumbles.

"Come here, Luke. Test run." Luke?

A hooded figure slowly makes their way onto the stage. Their head is lowered and their shoulders are hunched. Two horns gently curl from the back of the figure's cloak. A few thick locks of hair shield their face, and the rest of their body is obscured by the heavy cloak.