Morning should have been peaceful.
Sunlight filtered through the tall windows of Princess Eirlys' chambers, painting soft gold across the walls. Outside, birds sang as if the world were still safe.
Inside, Eirlys slept curled beneath her blankets, her hair spread messily across the pillow.
The door burst open.
"My lady! You must wake up — quickly!"
Eirlys jolted upright, heart racing. "W–what?" she mumbled, still half asleep.
Alya, her maid, rushed to the wardrobe, hands shaking as she grabbed dresses and shoved them into a travel satchel.
"My lady, there's no time!" Alya cried. She snatched a gown and hurried back, thrusting it into Eirlys' arms. "Put this on, Quick!"
Eirlys blinked at her, confused. "Alya, enough — what is going on?"
Before Alya could answer, a calm voice came from the doorway.
"The Lotus Army has attacked."
Eirlys turned sharply.
Prince Cassian stood there, already dressed for battle, sword at his side, expression tight but controlled.
For a moment, she could only stare at him.
Then reality crashed down.
"What…?" she whispered.
Cassian stepped closer, taking the gown gently from her trembling hands before placing it back in her grip. "You need to change. Now."
She hesitated — pride, shock, fear all tangling inside her.
"I'll wait outside, your parents are preparing to go to battlefield, you should see them." he said quietly, then turned and left with Alya.
The door shut.
Eirlys moved fast after that.
She changed with shaking fingers, tied back her hair, and strapped her sword to her waist. The weight of it felt heavier than usual.
When she stepped into the corridor, Cassian was there, along with Lorenzo and Sera. Guards rushed past them, armor clanking, voices shouting orders.
"Let's go, father is waiting for us." Lorenzo said urgently, grabbing her wrist.
She burst into the royal chambers.
"Pa! Ma!" she cried.
King Leon stood in armor, fastening his gauntlets. Queen Amelia, pale but composed, stood beside him.
Leon crossed the room in three strides and cupped Eirlys' face.
"My dear daughter, strong Eirlys. Listen to me, your mother and your brother Lorenzo will stay at the palace to keep things safe if anything happens and I have to go on the battlefield."
"You can't just go alone, father!"
"I can," he said firmly. "Our people still need a future. "
Amelia pulled her into a tight embrace, her voice trembling despite her brave smile. "Prince Cassian is not like his father. Your brother and he will protect you."
Leon turned to Lorenzo, who had followed her in. His voice dropped.
"I'm going now, keep your sister safe, and escape if anything bad happens. And if something bad happens, you are the next king now… Protect her."
Lorenzo bowed deeply, jaw tight.
-------
King Leon rode at the front of his army, his silver armor gleaming beneath the morning sun.
"For the kingdom!" he roared.
The soldiers answered with a thunderous cry as they charged.
Steel crashed against steel.
The battlefield erupted into chaos.
Leon cut through enemy soldiers one after another, his sword moving with deadly precision. Around him, men fought and fell while war horns echoed across the valley.
But something was wrong.
The Lotus Army did not fight like ordinary soldiers.
Even after suffering wounds that should have crippled them, they kept advancing.
Their eyes glowed faintly beneath their helmets.
Their movements were unnaturally fast.
Almost inhuman.
Leon parried a strike and cut down another opponent, but more kept coming.
"Monsters..." one of his knights whispered in horror.
Suddenly, a cloaked Lotus warrior appeared behind Leon.
Too fast.
Far too fast.
The warrior's blade flashed.
Pain exploded across Leon's side.
The sword sliced deep into his waist before he could react.
A strange black liquid coated the blade.
Leon staggered backward.
His sword slipped from his fingers and struck the ground.
The world tilted.
Around him, the battle continued, but the sounds seemed distant now.
The king dropped to one knee.
Then another.
His vision blurred as the Lotus Army surged forward toward the palace, where Lorenzo and Cassian were defending the palace.
Amelia was in the grand hall with Eirlys and Sera. She stood over the window, placing one hand over her belly, looking at the battlefield, she gripped the window's frame hard as she saw her husband Leon on the ground.
"Mom, what is wrong?!" Eirlys said, as she and Sera walked over to the window.
Eirlys froze the second she saw her father on the ground.
"Oh god… Eirlys.." Sera said as she placed a comforting hand on Eirlys shoulder.
Tears burned in Eirlys eyes, she placed her hand over her mouth, she swallowed hard as tears spilled, she walked towards her mother, who was five months pregnant.
"Mom, are you…" She asked but stopped as of course no one was okay in this situation.
Then the grand hall's door burst open, Lorenzo and Cassian were panting.
"We have to go now! They are too much to hold back." Lorenzo said.
Then he grabbed Eirlys' hand and pulled her toward the hidden passage.
"No! Loren, wait! The Lotus forces are too many! Father will die!" she screamed, trying to look back.
But Lorenzo didn't let go.
He looked at his mother, "Mom, come, we have to go."
Amelia smiled sadly as she placed her other hand on the window, "Lorenzo, take your sister and go."
The door of grand hall, which Cassian locked was now thudding as Lotus Army tried to open it.
"Mom! What are you saying?!" Lorenzo shouted.
Amelia shot him a firm glare, as she said, "Prince Lorenzo, take your sister and go. I will hold them back, they are our long term rivals and they attacked the palace to end Leon's bloodline. Go. Fast." She ordered as she grabbed a dagger and the door was almost open now.
"Mom…." Lorenzo said as he hesitated and looked at the door and said, "Then let me be the one who sacrifices himself."
"No! You have to start your life-!" Amelia said as she got interrupted as the doors were about to burst open. Amelia shoved Eirlys and Lorenzo towards Sera and Cassian in the hidden passage, "Go, protect your sister at all costs. Remember to be good." She said as she kissed the foreheads of Lorenzo and Eirlys and gave Cassian and Sera a firm nod, her eyes teary. She locked the hidden passage before they could hesitate again.
"MOM!" Eirlys shouted as she stepped forward, crying openly now.
"Eirlys, get a hold on yourself…." Lorenzo said as his eyes were also teary but he refused to cry as he held Eirlys back.
"Come on! We don't have enough time, the Lotus Army will open the hidden passage." Cassian said as he and Sera were already moving.
Lorenzo grabbed Eirlys' wrist hard and they didn't stop running until the forest swallowed them.
Few hours later, the palace was only smoke on the horizon.
Eirlys stumbled over roots and stones, tears blurring her vision. Sera walked beside her now, steady and quiet, offering silent support.
Ahead, Lorenzo and Cassian scouted the path.
After a long stretch of silence, Lorenzo finally spoke.
"Where are your parents?"
Cassian didn't look back. "They returned to Helexia before dawn. They offered to help defend the palace."
Lorenzo's hands curled into fists. "And?"
"Your parents refused. They told them to take us and keep us safe. And our parents took the will of you father, King Leon, and other important stuff."
Lorenzo let out a slow, shaking breath.
Behind them, Eirlys wiped her tears, forcing herself to keep walking.
Behind them lay fire, blood, and the echoes of a kingdom falling.
Ahead lay uncertainty… and the fragile alliance between four heirs who had just lost everything.