“His Majesty, King Lucas Cameron lives up ahead in that castle.” Agnes gestures towards the old, crumbling castle in the distance. Dislike curls into her tongue at the mention of his name.

They had passed by a stable when Sela asked, “This king of yours is a fair ruler?”

“If you ask the rest of the kingdom, yes,” She accompanies this with a shrug and a disappointed sigh.

Sela raises her eyebrows, “And if I ask you?”

Agnes glances at the road behind them. Upon finding no one she speaks in a hushed tone, “Lately, the king has been inviting young women to his palace. And they have not returned.”

“They came willingly?” When the girl nodded, she added, “How many have there been?”

“Sixteen over the past few months,” Agnes paused as the sound of clopping resounded behind them, “and possibly more today.”

She pushed Sela to the side of the path as two men on horseback- one of them carrying a flag with vibrant blue waves embroidered on its parchment yellow cloth- sped towards the road and past the two women.

Sela and Agnes exchanged worried looks before following them.

                                   ---
When they arrived at the cluster of houses, the two men had already halted. One of them read from a scroll before the gathered townspeople, “The King invites the following young women to dine with him tomorrow night.”

A

murmur spread through the people, who all whispered amongst themselves in anticipation.

“Dorothy Kenneth, and Lara Charlotte,” The crowd parted to give way to the two women as they approached the horsemen.

“The purple-haired one-” Agnes’s voice nearly broke, “That’s Lara.”

Sela gazed at the young girl for a long time, the stiff set of her jaw, the rapid blinking of her eyes as she seemed to hold back tears. She knew enough about grief and decided not to question her for now, but her heart twinged in regret for her.

“I know a way to stop this,” Sela said to her, mostly in reassurance.

Lara took a piece of paper from the horseman, an unreadable look on her face as her eyes scanned its contents. Whom Sela guessed as Dorothy also took her copy and smiled in delight as she tucked a strand of brown hair back behind her ear.

As soon as the horsemen took their leave, life returned to normal. People resumed to selling chickens and fruits and vegetables from the harvest.

“They’ll be escorted to the palace at sundown the next day,” Agnes finally spoke, holding her arm, “Come on, there’s someone I want you to meet.”

                              ---
The Island’s only tavern seemed to multiply the lively atmosphere of the outside, adding alcohol and chaos to the mix. Raucous voices hollered about as people challenged each other through arm wrestling, exchanges of insults, and a drunken version of fencing using wooden mugs.

Sela and Agnes had taken the table in the middle of the chaos, the eye of the storm, to say the least. Using a knife, the sorceress spread jam over the surface of a split bun as she told the girl, “Spirits from the Hellish Yard possess individuals near the Virtue in order to lure them out, and kill their host- their Eye, in order to try and weaken them.”

Agnes looked down at her bowl of chicken soup, “So Purity must be around. Where is its Eye?”

Sela avoids her gaze and lies, “I don’t know, but I hope they’re safe,”

“It could be Lara,” She only nods in response.

“You know, I’m open to training an apprentice,” she says, “I’m an immortal now, but only one person like me running around seems useless, no?”

“I’m not good with magic,”

“With hard work, you could be after a few weeks.”

Agnes seemed to be considering it when her gaze found someone in the far end of the room. She stands up, “There he is.”

Sela follows her as she approaches a blue-haired man dressed in armor seated on a bar stool. She nearly did a double-take; he was the spitting image of Joseph Solaris.

“I have someone who can help,” Agnes announces to him.

The man leans back on the side of the bar table, regarding Sela with grudging awe, “A sorceress, huh? The Isle rarely gets unusual visitors in these times.”

Sela bristled, “How did you know that?”

He gestured at her cloak, “Well, you’re wearing a cloak when it’s blazing hot outside, and you don’t act like every single piece of your clothing is worth a hundred domes.”

“And yet you’re wearing armor,”

“That is correct,” He laughs, extending a hand, “I’m Arthur Orator, one of His Majesty’s knights.”

She takes his hand and shakes it, “Sela Gaium.”

Arthur nodded at Agnes, “So, you’ve met Aggie.”

“She’s my guide for the day,” Sela replied, “And I’m here to help regarding the King’s recent actions.”

“Look, Arthur,” There’s a frantic shift in Agnes’s voice, “Lisa has been-”

“I know. But we can’t talk about it here.” He lowers his voice, “They may be drunk off of their behinds, but just one insult about their king will get them on their feet.”

He stands, gesturing for them to follow him.

They leave the noisy tavern and head outside into the town common, hich was now quiet and mostly empty under a night sky. The merchant stores were closed, and vendors carried the rest of their unsold goods in sacks. In the center of the village, a bright bonfire blazed.

Arthur led them to a nearby house with a splintered wooden door. Once he turned the key into its hole, they headed inside.

It was dark until he lit a torch hanging on the wall, illuminating the entire room. A table stood in the center, littered with maps and bottles of ink. The far end wall was covered in the flag of the Royal Island, and several swords and spears were bundled behind it.

“Ever since King Cameron took the throne after his father’s death, I’ve been planning routes to the castle, collecting schedules.” He walked towards the table and placed his hands on a map.

“Why?” Sela asked.

“The Cameron Royal Family has been tainted with innocent blood for decades,” Arthur explained, anger evident in his voice, “Do you know how they took this Island in the first place? They slaughtered the people who refused to give them the land, and Lucas held the dagger himself. They were thirsty for power.

“My family was among those who defended their home. My father rallied the people to fight. But they were no match. The Camerons captured those who remained, and had them beheaded for everyone to see and cower at. And now Lucas is the only remaining Cameron in power. I want- I need to make sure he is put away by any means necessary!”

Tears streamed down his eyes as he recounted his story. Anger born from loss festering in his heart finally boiled to the surface. Sela nodded after he stopped speaking, and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder, “I’ll help you.”

“Maybe we can get closer to the King,” said Agnes, “He has no court wizard to aid him in case magical problems arise. So maybe we need just that.”

“You’re right,” Sela agreed, “And a court wizard is incomplete without an apprentice, you know.”

Agnes grinned, “You can teach me a few spells, and we can join the King. I’m sure he’ll guarantee us living quarters. Then I’ll be able to get the women out of there.”

A determined look crossed her eyes, “We have to hurry with this plan. Escaping Lucas was difficult alone, so they need all the help they can get.”

Wait- alone? Sela regarded her more closely. But this was still not the time for questions.

“I’ll meet you two in the morning,” was the last thing Agnes told them before she turned and left Arthur’s home.

Two people filled with rightful vengeance, and one of them is the Eye of a Virtue. Sela knew that this path would be extremely difficult.