Harriet got out of the car, blinking as she looked around. A large mansion stretched along the banks of a river, the roofs glittering in the morning sunlight. Arches were inlaid into the front of the building, making it feel more like a castle than a house. But of course it would be. She recognized it from their bank notes, and from the time she had spent there as the 'Chosen One'.

They were hurried through one of the arches, towards the centre of the Palace. It was set out like a medieval castle, or with the same principles, at least. Meant to mean something about strength and not forgetting your past or stuff like that. Kinda cruel.

Anyway, there was the outer 'wall', or building with the arches, which guarded a square courtyard. In the centre was the 'keep', a smart tower like building, reaching up into the sky. Of course, there was a tunnel leading to the river. Even though it was quite a modern building, the King was not above secret passageways.

As a child, Harriet loved trying to find them. She would go from room to room, pressing on walls and searching for cracks in the flooring. Most of the time, her searches would be fruitless, but sometimes, she would find a passage. Darian would always be adamant that they were 'escape routes' and that they 'weren't secret'. She begged to differ. They would sit there for hours, and she would beg him to tell her where the other ones were. Of course, he'd just say 'but then it wouldn't be a secret'. But he always told her about one, every time, without fail. Harriet wondered now if it was because he really wanted to tell her, or if he was just trying to manipulate her. With some sadness, she realized he was the closest thing to a father she had. And he had packed her up to go to the army base as soon as he'd found out about Kadriq. Shaking her head, she told herself he wasn't any better than her biological dad.

Soon, they came to an elevator and they were shepherded inside. The doors shut with a soft click behind them, and Laar pressed the button for the sixth floor. They waited in silence, her, Kadriq, Mina, Caleb and the General. There was a small 'ding' as they reached the floor, and the doors opened. Laar led them through the hall, but she didn't need to be told where to go. She'd been in this corridor before. It was where Darian's office was. He had tutored her in there.

General Laar pushed open the door and let them in. Harriet walked in, looking around. Nothing had really changed since the last time she'd been there. Monitors still perched on the desk, armchairs still in the corner, tall, tall bookshelves still holding hosts of thin books and stacks of paper piled messily everywhere. She could still imagine her sitting in one of those armchairs, reciting the laws of their land to Darian. He had taught her to lead, not follow. All her studies were geared towards being a politician, not a soldier. Though, she didn't know who she would be if she didn't fight.

It scared her.

The door opened once more, and a man walked in. Grey hair, startling blue eyes and a golden crown perched on his head. Now she could see the resemblance between him and Xavier.

Darian smiled at them, and sat down in his desk chair. He surveyed them, his chin resting on the tips of his fingers. His eyes slipped over each of them in turn, her, Mina, Caleb and Kadriq.

"You are back." He simply said, leaning back.

Glad to see you've noticed.

Kadriq evident said something to Darian through his mind, and the King nodded, his face looking dark for a second before flickering back to how he normally looked. She wondered how many times he had changed, and how many time's she hadn't noticed. Shivering inwardly, she grabbed her hands behind her back, trying to seem normal.

He fixed his gaze on Harriet, his eyes boring into hers. She felt her breathing quicken, and slowed it down. She was sure he could see her. Her hands dug into each other, and she could feel the blue half-moons forming.

"Harriet." Darian said, a small smile on his face.

She gave him a polite smile, standing up straighter. Back when she'd lived here, she would have grinned back and given him a lazy wave. Maybe it was the military. Probably.

"At ease, soldier." The King grinned, waving a dismissive hand at her.

Harriet sighed, and relaxed. Or fake relaxed. One of the two. Half of the time, she didn't what she was feeling, and now she was back at the Palace... Well.

"Gee, thanks."

Laar gave her a cool look, and she was sure she would have hit her if they were alone. But they weren't, and Harriet was greatful.

"It's fine, Marina." The King said, addressing the general. She sighed, and gave him a look that said: 'really', before relaxing, too.

He pressed the intercom, and said, "Lilith, can you take the kids to their rooms, please?"

Harriet hated it when he called them 'kids'. She was almost eighteen, for goodness sake. There were footsteps, and the door opened to reveal a woman with pinched features, wearing a black uniform. She gave them a forced smile.

"This is Lilith, she will take you to your rooms." Darian said, as if they hadn't heard him on the intercom. Sometimes, she detested him.

Lilith held out a hand, waving them back into the hall. Ever since they got here, they had been bouncing from place to place to place. Harriet hated it. But she followed, and taking a last glance at Darian and Laar, left the room.