Alründ:

Not more than five minutes ago, Alründ had been dumped on the steps of Queen Lyssian's castle, splat bang in a crowd of Lumirions who were floating towards the front doors. Neon bodies were everywhere, and they were all chattering away in vibrating tones that made Alründ's ears hurt. He wondered if he'd gate-crashed a Royal party, but he had nowhere else to go. He sat, scuffing his shoe over the step below, debating whether to put aside his pride and meet with the queen. After he'd insulted her people the last time, he would undoubtedly have to beg her for a place to stay.

Has Lücan informed her of my arrival? Who Knows? Unlikely. He wants to make me suffer, and having me grovel to the Queen of Lumirion would be a good place to start.

Suffer... As if I haven't suffered enough today! Watching Ash cry as she was hypnotized to forget me—us. Worst moment of my life. Lücan's only kindness today was that he'd blurred my memory of our visit to Astaria this morning. Possibly the other worst moment of my life. Strange that I remember returning to Lücan's Melbourne home, dirty, clothes shredded, but nothing else. Then he'd told me that I'd pleaded with him to erase the memory of my old planet, and the memory would return in three months when I had some distance from the event.

What had I seen? Not knowing, is possibly worse. A hole is growing within me larger by the second.

Curse, Lücan! He should have erased that conversation, too. He should have erased Ash from my mind without my knowledge, but he wants me to endure the loss of her, the pain. He probably considers it another one of his lessons. He wants to make me suffer, he thought again, punching the step beside him. He gritted his teeth as pain shot through his hand and up his arm. He held his aching fist, trying to quell the pain.

Alründ might have been considered the best of the up-and-coming Sepheri, but when it came to his life he could do nothing right. The anger inside of him rose as he looked to the stars, picturing Ash reaching for him seconds before they had been parted. Fighting back tears, he yelled into the night.

Lumirions passing up the steps fell silent and raced quickly into the castle, glancing back at Alründ as if he were a dangerous beast about to snare them all. Alründ laughed emptily. He stared down at the steps, clutching his head, fiddling with the severed roots where his ivy had been. At least some part of me is with her, he thought, thinking of the twine necklace.

A girl of seventeen paused beside Alründ. Her dress was a glowing hot pink that ballooned around her like a powder puff, her face ghostly white, with pink lips and green eyes. She spoke in a high hum, but all he could understand were the fuzzy words, "Prince Alründ." He shrugged apologetically. The girl gestured for him to rise, and as she took his arm little electric shocks went through him. He tried not to show his discomfort, but as she led him through the castle doors he had to pull away. His arm was numb from her repeated shocks.

At the entrance to the hallway, Alründ slowed to admire the waterfalls that ran behind the glass walls. They were backlit by pale blue light that became more serene the longer he stared at it. But there was no time for standing around, and soon he was passing with The Fates' stories etched into the stone walls. Again, he never had the chance to read them; the hallway was bustling with glowing people that strained his eyes.

His guide floated beside him, her voice clearer this time, as if she'd changed frequency. "I am Telene, the Queen's niece. My aunt has requested an audience with you, Prince Alründ."

"It would be an honor," he said, bowing his head to the princess.

"This way," she said, darting through the crowd. Alründ kept track of her powder puff dress and chased after her, taking a quick right. When he next saw Telene she was hovering before a large ornate door encrusted with gemstones. "She's expecting you." Alründ went to move past her, but she whooshed in front of the door, her smile as luminous as a light bulb. "Is it true you can hit a target with your eyes closed?"

"Yes." Alründ frowned. "Where did you hear that?"

"In the latest edition of Star Weekly." She pulled a meta-crystal from her ear, and Alründ was suddenly jealous. He had lost his several months ago, when it had fallen out during a mission. Those crystals were a link to the happenings of the universe—just a thought and any song would play in his mind, or a live news report could play holographically in the palm of his hand. If he had a meta-crystal he could contact the outside world. Instead, he was destined to months of isolation, probably watching this girl enjoy the perks of advanced technology.

Telene held the crystal in her hand and a cover article sprang to life in 3D. 'Star Weekly' was typed in bold, along with sub-headings floating in the air. And in the middle of the four inch hologram was a close-up of Alründ as he pulled back a bow and arrow. He wasn't sure exactly when the shot had been taken, but it had been recent, because a few sprigs of ivy stuck up from his otherwise wavy hair. He read the headline, amazed it could be this week's hot topic: 'Prince Alründ—Severing his roots! A betrayal of his organic origins or a case of baldness? We investigate.'

Alründ burst out laughing, making Telene giggle.

On the plus side, no one reading the journal would ever guess that he'd cut the remainder of his ivy to make more twine for Ash's new necklace. Although, he was curious to get his hands on the article. The last cover he'd seen, Keenan and Lücan had been flying through space during a bloody battle. The headline: "New Reaper brings terror to neighboring planets. Old Starkeeper struggles to defend.'

"Why did you cut your ivy?" she asked, eyes wide with intrigue.

Alründ shrugged, thinking up a lie. "Sun damage. Who wants to walk around with brittle leaves?"

"That's true. I'd never thought of that." She grinned, pleased to have learned the secret everyone was dying to know.

Sun damage? Alründ grunted a laugh. "Do you mind if I see the Queen now?"

Telene's light flickered. "Oh, yes. You should. She'll be most displeased that we took so long."

"Perfect," Alründ grumbled, moving past the girl and pushing open the heavy door. Walking through the ballroom, dancers parted to let him through. With every step towards the throne, he kept his head held high. Queen Lyssian could sense fear a mile away, and as it was she was glowing extra brightly. Her sublime features hardened at the sight of him.

Time to grovel, he thought, putting on a charming smile. He bowed before the queen and kissed the back of her hand. Tiny shockwaves of electricity stung his lips. The queen smiled at that. This will be fun. She truly despises me.

"Your Majesty," he said. "It is a pleasure to see you again."

"I just spoke to Lücan. He informs me that you will be donating your time to guard our borders over the next few months. And while we are grateful for the extra protection, I trust you will be on your best behavior?"

Alründ bowed. "Nothing less, Your Majesty."

"Then Telene will show you to your quarters and provide a map of the castle, which will explain the places you are forbidden to enter."

Forbidden places? How welcoming of her.

He bowed again. "Thank you."

The queen sighed, looking him up and down. "As you are already dressed for a ball, you may join us after you are settled."

"Thank you, Your Majesty."

Another bow to the queen and Alründ turned, happy to be following Telene from the ballroom and to his living quarters. They were sparse. A glassless window with a view of dense garden, and a domed room with wild flowers creeping around it. As for the bed, it must have been shipped in from Lyrethan. In fact, it looked exactly like his bed from back home—a soft purple cloud made for sleeping, complete with cloud blanket and cloud pillow. Other than that, there was no furniture. Just as well. He had no luggage to unpack, nothing but the suit on his back and the starshard bracelet on his wrist. He blamed Lücan for all of it—his new prison, his new sentence, the lack of possessions. Lücan had never allowed time to collect belongings; he'd flown straight from the beach to Lumirion, his parting words, "Your assignment: check Lumirion's golden net morning and night."

"For how long?" Alründ had asked.

"Right now, I would say indefinitely."

Alründ had fallen to the step on which Lücan had dropped him upon moments before. "You're banishing me... Forever?"

"Let me rephrase that. I would like to banish you forever, but as that is unrealistic of me, I will propose a deal. If you ever wish to return to Lyrethan you must agree to have all recent memories of Ash erased from your mind. You have exactly three months to decide." Then Lücan had sped away in a rush of light.

Alründ had wanted to punch something, namely Lücan. Even now, as he followed the map back to the Queen's ball, he was looking for something suitable to strike. There were only stone walls and electrified dancers, and he would have been stupid to attack either.

He tried not to cringe when Telene grabbed his arm and pulled him into an unfamiliar dance. She might have been the only one on the planet willing to talk to him, but Alründ wasn't in the mood for dancing with anyone but Ash. He danced regardless. The queen was watching from her throne, her gaze distrusting. Alründ planned to change that by week's end, anything to make his life on Lumirion more comfortable. As Telene waltzed him around the room, he forgot about the currents zipping through her hands. His thoughts were elsewhere:

Three months to decide...

Will and Ashala could seal their bond in that time, and I bet that's exactly what Lücan's counting on.

But if Ash is still unbound when I return...anything is possible.

Spinning Telene under his arm, Alründ clenched his jaw. How can I agree to forget Ash? It would be like cutting my spirit in half.

But not seeing her would kill me more. Even if I don't remember how I love her.