Klaia Batellia

Today

Avala, Crecana

Klaia dug through the royal library, yanking out texts over interpretations of the Sygar, the religious text housing the stories of Sodes and eventually his son Kharis. Discarded books lay strewn around her, useless to what she wanted, what she needed.

The past two months had been nothing short of torture. After the respectable mourning period was over for Inan, her father moved onwards, bracing Keku for the now inherited throne. For the most part, Keku seemed halfway uncomfortable, preening at his father's praise but uncomfortable at the speed at which he was thrust forward into duties.

Keku had only grown more distant as he aged, no longer the mischievous brother of their childhood. He had always been more of a father's boy than Inan, something King Tirkus treasured. Klaia could not help the sneer of anger that bubbled at her lips when she thought of them. Keku seemed to care little about their relationship as siblings.

And to be honest, Klaia missed him. Missed playing pranks on the handmaidens. Missed hiding in the stables at night. Missed stealing Inan's books as he studied. Missed playing darts in the common room. Missed rolling in the dirt.

Keku, Klaia decided, was not a good sibling.

Klaia flipped a page angrily, staring down at the text once more. It refused to help. Pray about it, and it shall be taken away. It was the constant advice. It never worked. She rolled her eyes, nor should it. A science textbook proved to be useless as well. There was no mention of anything from before the war. The only exception was the Sygar, but it was unreliable.

Frustrated, Klaia stacked the books before sweeping her skirt upwards and headed out the doors. She had poured over the endless books within the castle library, but they all held the same standard. Even the greatest collection of works in Crecana could tell her nothing.

Quickly she exited the castle, brushing off the guards who stepped to follow her.

"I am just headed down to the market. I will be fine," Klaia commanded, waving a hand behind her.

"Your highness, it is for your safety. After former Prince Inan's death, we must be careful." One guard spoke, voice wavering only slightly.

Klaia whipped around at that, "My brother died at sea, not from some assassin in the market. You would be fools to compare the two."

The guard stepped back, joining his buddy, "Of course Princess. We mean nothing ill of Prince Inan."

Klaia jutted her chin outwards, "Then make sure you do not think it."

They nodded once, before resuming position. Quickly Klaia exited the gate, slipping through familiar backstreets towards the market. She pulled the hood over her head, before browsing peaches and fish from outside the city. Glancing backward to make sure she wasn't tailed, Klaia slipped between stalls, before entering the door of a downtrodden bar.

The inside was dark and cramped. The floors had a layer of dirt and peanut shells, and flickering candles lit up the walls. A man slowly strung a banjo in the corner, caring little for sound in the daylight crowd. The glasses behind the bar were stacked precariously, and an older woman wiped the counter with a thready rag. Klaia slid into a creaking seat, leaning over towards the woman.

"Hey Viviana, I hope it's not a bad time."

The woman glanced upwards, eyes narrowing before smiling brightly, "Oh love I always have time for you. What you got for me?"

Klaia sighs, "Nothing much. Even in the best science books in the library, there is no mention. Still only vague interpretations in texts on the Sygar."

Viviana shook her head, "I don't know why you keep going back to those, they do nothing but hurt you."

"I can't seem to stop reading them," Klaia sighs. "I know what they will say and how much it will hurt, but it's like I need all the reasons I can to stop practicing."

Viviana wrung the rag over the sink, "My grandmother used to tell me about how the texts used to be ages ago, in her grandmother's time, though she only had the murmurs of it before. It was over two centuries ago. The war changed everything. It feels like only the Sygar survived in this new way. We lost so much knowledge in the war."

Klaia nodded, "It's like a piece of the puzzle was left out. Even with the best education in Crecana, I still have questions no one is willing to answer."

Viviana looked up sharply at that, "You best keep those questions to yourself girl. They will get you killed, just like Inan."

"Vivi, we don't know-"

"-Of course it was," Viviana interrupted. "Your brother was the brightest mind in decades, maybe even centuries. He happens to be the first royal to leave this nation since the war and he dies. Dead and done."

"I don't have any evidence to bring against my father," Klaia whispers.

Viviana softens at that, "You'll probably never get any love. This circus is too well run for that. We only ask that you don't die."

The door bursts open. The banjo dies, the daylight patrons staring at the disheveled man clutching his chest.

"Shut the door you fool!" Viviana seethed. "Do you want this place to garner attention?"

The door shuts, and Viviana is moving faster than a woman her age should, snagging the boy and dragging him towards the stairs.

"Love, come with," she hisses, "Banjo, back on set."

And just like that, the bar settles into normalcy.

***

The underground basement is not a secret to Klaia. Knowledge is held tightly in Crecana, and raids on the bar are constant, calls after the so-called calls of treason and illegal materials. Viviana doesn't even turn on the lights, knowing the stone halls by memory. The sound of a match hits, and the room is illuminated before Viviana throws the man onto a rickety chair.

"You could have thrown our whole cover," Viviana says, body taught, "Why are you here, and who sent you."

"Your buddy at the docks," the man mummers, "We don't have a lot of time, they're after me."

"Who."

"The royal guards."

"Then I guess you better speak."

The man takes a breath, before removing an object. It shimmers blue softly. Carefully, he takes a pinch, before throwing it into the air, causing the room to light.

"How did you do that," Klaia whispers, caught in the moment as the light hangs.

"Magic," the man replies equally as soft, "The royal family forbade it after the war. I don't know why. But it's the reason why every other nation is so developed, so much stronger."

"It's why I can't leave," Klaia says, "They're hiding this from everyone?"

"The whole nation," the man agrees. He turns to Viviana. "You're on a mission to discover what happened here, and this is the missing key."

Viviana shakes her head, "We are on a mission to protect the queer folks of Crecana, and find out what happened to make it a death sentence here. This, this changes everything."

The man nods, "Please, take it. I must go before they find you. They know I have contraband."

Viviana snatches the parcel, before shoving the man down the hall, "Go, pass three doors before taking the left. It will spit you out at the docks. Take a right and you'll find the escape through the fjord."

The man nods once, before scampering out. The sound of boots can be heard overhead. Viviana and Klaia stiffen.

"Royal Guard open up!" a voice commands. "We have suspicion to believe you are harboring a wanted criminal and contraband."

Viviana's eye's widened, "Go, take this with you. They won't look for it with you."

Klaia snatches the magic parcel, before racing down the hallway. She stops, glancing backward towards Viviana. "Are you going to be okay?"

The woman smiles, "Darling I have survived much worse than the guards. I have lived my truth as a woman for nearly 65 years right under their noses. If anything happens tonight, know I lived much longer than my brethren. We are not so easily wiped out."

Klaia nods, sucking in a breath. "Viviana, know I love you. And I thank you."

The woman smiles, wrinkles crinkling her eyes. "I know love. Thank you for surviving."

And with that, she disappears towards the bar. And Klaia runs.

***

She's out of the tunnels before the bar explodes into flames, sending a large plume of smoke into the sky. The heat is scorching like the sun touched down onto Earth. Her ears are ringing as the screams start. Klaia turns, her heart plummeting to her feet as she watches the building burn. It's like her feet have been shackled to the market floor, unable to move. A familiar sob gets caught in her throat, eyes watering as the smoke stings them.

"What's on fire?!"

"Seafront Aleworks!"

There's a wrenching cry from the woman, the man holding her upright.

"My boy was playing there!" She cries.

Klaia couldn't stand it anymore, twisting away from the sight. She didn't know what to do. Viviana had told her to run, but she was in the bar. She was in it. She was-

A hand grabbed her arm, yanking her backward and out of her thoughts. Klaia blinked, staring at the woman pulling her away from the ghastly scene.

"Viviana?" She whispered, disbelief coloring her voice, "How did you-"

"Be quiet," the woman snapped.

Klaia quieted, half following, half being dragged by the woman. The magic pouch rested against her chest, tied safely under her clothes.

In the quieter streets farther from the town center, looming under the mountain, Viviana came to a stop. Dawnton Castle rose menacingly above them on the sheer cliff face.

"You have to get back. It's not safe anymore." she hissed.

"I can't just leave you!" Klaia protested.

"Love, I have survived far longer in this world without your protection than with it. Go, before we lose you as well."

Klaia sighed, before yanking Viviana into a hug, murmuring thank you against her ear. Viviana placed a soft kiss against her cheek, before taking a step back and bowing slightly.

"It's been an honor to serve you, my princess."

And with that, she disappeared into the streets, slinking back into the town she knew life her how hands. Klaia glanced upwards at Dawnton, before sighing and hitching up her skirt. It was time to head home.

***

The back gate was empty when Klaia returned, and it did nothing to abate her nerves. Quickly she slipped inside, before wandering the gardens. She reached a rock structure, riddled with blooming vines. Klaia lifted a rock, pulling out the box laid in the ground underneath, and removed the book from inside. No doubt they would come looking for her soon.

With familiar ease, she settled the box and rock back into place, then slipped away to settle under an old downy birch, leaves thick from spring. Quickly she cracked open to book, the wind softly blowing through the garden.

It was not long before footsteps approached. A servant, young and baby-faced, was glancing nervously around the garden. Upon spotting her, he let out a sigh of relief.

"Your highness!" He cried, running over quickly, "Her royal highness Queen Varja has requested that you return to your room to prepare for dinner tonight."

Klaia sucked in a breath through her nose, before glancing upwards, a smile radiant on her face, "Of course. Has she been asking long?"

The boy gave a quick nod, "You were not in the library."

Klaia gave a slight chuckle, "Ah yes, I was not. I slipped out here to get some fresh air while I was reading this book." She waved it forward, before placing it in the boy's hands. "Please take it to here as I clean up, she'll want to know I finished it."

The boy nodded, "Of course princess. Will you be long?"

"I don't suppose so, but I will make haste."

The boy nodded once more, giving a swift bow, before scurrying off towards the queen, the Things to Know as a Wife clutched between his hands.

Klaia stood, brushing dirt from her skirt, and headed into the castle, jaw steeled for the upcoming dinner. The thick door shut behind her, sealing away the adventure of the day, with only the faintest wisps of smoke clutching to her hair, sealed into her clothes.