Val and Aylin sat side by side on a log at the very edge of the jungle, staring at the vast expanse of sand. It was an awkward silence. He'd never spoken to Aylin before, in fact, never met her until a few minutes ago. She was very pretty, and she looked very prepared. She had a neatly tied bag slung over her shoulders and her hair tied up expertly. She wore light, airy clothes that desert winds ruffled easily. She was practically the polar opposite from him.

All Poppy had told him was that they were going to Ailica's capital, and that he should pack a bag befitting that journey if he was up to the task. He was more than up for it - whatever she asked, he was happy to do. More than happy. He was bouncing on his toes to see her again, even if it was just because she needed him to do a task for her again. However, his excitement didn't translate to understanding the assignment. He'd packed some clothes, some food for himself and Berri, plenty of waterskins, and a blanket for cold desert nights. He probably wasn't dressed right, he'd never been to the desert before. Jungle sandals were still fine, right? Would wearing dark clothes really make that much of a difference? He didn't own any other clothes.

Berri hopped around his fingers in his cupped hands, occasionally poking him with his thin beak. He wanted to talk to the bird about it whilst sitting next to Aylin, waiting for Poppy to show up, but he was just too self conscious. Was it rude to speak to someone else while she was just sitting there, staring out at the desert? Should he try to make conversation with her? Stars, this probably wouldn't be a problem for anyone else in the world; unfortunately, Val happened to be Val.

"He's cute," Aylin said out of nowhere, gesturing to Berri. "Is he your messenger bird?"

Oh no. She's talking to me. I have to respond, now. His hand having been forced, Val replied, "Yeah, his name's Berri. He's technically my messenger, yeah, but, uh, he's not great at it. He can't actually talk. I just don't want him to feel bad, y'know?"

Aylin chuckled. "Aww. Well, that's very sweet of you. Are you sure bringing him to the desert is a good idea? He seems very bite-sized, especially for snakes. I've heard the ones in Ailica can be real heartstoppers."

"Neckbreakers, actually, but, uh, funny joke," Val said nervously. "Yeah, I'm not worried. I can take care of him, so he'll never be in reach of any snakes, plus I can talk to them and everything, so I'm sure if we run into any trouble, I'll be able to talk any snakes down."

"Hmm," Aylin hummed. "Isn't Ailica a dead spot, though? I thought magic doesn't work."

Oh, damn. She's right. What did that mean? Would Val lose his powers entirely? Would he and Berri still be able to interact? He didn't think about that. He probably should have. "I'm sure it will be fine," Val lied.

"If you say so. You know more about magic than I do," Aylin said. "I left my birds back home. They're really all I have left of my family, so I didn't want anything happening to them. I don't think they'd be too happy in the desert either."

How the hell was he supposed to respond to that?

Thankfully, he didn't have to.

"Hey, you're already here! Great," came Poppy's voice, strolling up behind them. They both turned around to see her and councillor Zef Tenebris making their way through the jungle. There was no official path to the desert, so it was pretty much trudging through jungle brush. Poppy had a bag much like Aylin's on her back, and she, too, was wearing mostly shawls and light colors. Stars, did everyone know the desert dress code except Val? "We can leave right away."

"Not without saying goodbye," Zef protested. "Good luck, Poppy. I have faith in you. And you better come home safe, or Arion will kill me, use my blood as a sacrifice to reanimate you, and then kill you again. So really, you're carrying both our fates with you."

Poppy laughed and gave Zef a quick hug. "Don't worry, I'll come home safe and sound. Don't let him stress too much while I'm gone, and don't stress yourself. I can do this."

Zef retreated back into the jungle, and Poppy turned to Aylin and Val.

"Nice to meet you," she said to Aylin. "I'm sure we've seen each other around before, but to formally introduce myself, I'm Poppy."

"Aylin," Aylin responded. "Happy to help, Your Majesty."

"Please, Poppy."

"Right, Poppy. I'm always thrilled to do anything for the royal family. And, of course, the pay isn't bad," she said with a lighthearted smile.

"So," Poppy clapped her hands together, "What are the next steps? Val, man with a plan, how are we getting across the desert?"

"Well, I don't know if I'd call me the man with a plan, but I figured we just walk a ways into the desert and we're bound to run into a couple of camels eventually, they usually hang out near the jungle because of the humidity and the early rainfalls. I can just ask them to take us to the capital, and we'll be there in a matter of days."

"Smart," Poppy said, grinning, and Val felt his cheeks go a little warm. Thankfully, he could just blame it on the heat. "Let's go! Ailica isn't getting any closer."

Aylin went first, as she insisted. She was the protection detail of this mission, so if there were any snakes or quicksand, she should run into it first. Both Poppy and Val told her that was ridiculous, but she insisted. So, Poppy and Val walked next to each other behind her, leaving shallow footprints in the sand behind them.

"Poppy," Val started, patting his shirt pocket where Berri was sleeping through the heat, "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," Poppy replied brightly.

"Well, I was just... wondering, I guess, that... about this mission... it doesn't have anything to do with that Raven guy, does it?" he asked quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"I just... you told me to keep Raven a secret, and there's a lot of tension between our countries, and everything is super hushed... and now all of a sudden, we're going straight to the home of the people who had your mom killed... Just, what's the point of this mission, Poppy? We're not going to deliver a ransom or anything, right? We're not going to assassinate anyone back?"

"Oh, heavens, no," Poppy said quickly. "Listen, I can't tell you everything. I wish I could, but it just wouldn't be safe, for more reasons than one. But I promise we're not going for any nefarious purpose, okay? I just want some answers about some things. You can trust me."

He did. Stars, he did trust her, he always did. But she left him wanting answers, too.

❁

At first, Rig had thought it was a prank. He'd shown up to the given address and been met with the face of a room full of dolls and puppets. He hated puppets. In every corner of his peripheral vision, it felt like someone's eyes were on him. Then, he turned around and it was just wood. Stupid, painted wood.

But, no, it was no prank. The couple that actually lived there just enjoyed being in the presence of puppets, apparently. That, and one of them was a ventriloquist. Which was probably the more likely explanation compared to 'they just liked dolls.'

Damien and Felix, those were their names. Felix was a performer Rig had seen many times before, and Damien was the architect he occasionally stole- no, borrowed - blueprints from when he needed a discrete entrance. He didn't know that they knew each other, much less lived together.

The two moved in sync with each other, that was the first thing Rig noticed. If one opened the door, the other closed it. If one poured the tea, the other drank it. And, most commonly, when one was awkwardly quiet, the other one spoke up. Namely, Damien filled in the silences while Felix whispered to himself.

"And you have to understand, this is a classified job," Damien was saying, pulling blueprints from shelves on the wall to lay out on the table in the center of the room. "You understand that?"

"Perfectly. I've done hushed jobs before."

"Excellent. This order came directly from the council, so it's important. We're looking into the Queen's murder."

At this, Rig straightened up like someone had slapped him. There was an investigation going on? There hadn't been one already? Perhaps that one had been inconclusive. Yes, it must have been if he was being called in. Thank goodness he had accepted this job. This was definitely something he wanted to be involved in. From this moment on, his attention would be rapt, he promised himself.

"So, what do you need me to do?"

"Well, the objective is to figure out how the hell the assassin got to the Queen at all. It's still a complete mystery how she managed to get past all the sentries entirely unnoticed, and no one's been able to figure it out yet. I've been scouring blueprints all night, but I can't find anything. Felix figured a different perspective might shed some light on the situation, so we called you. We are, of course, willing to pay you for your input-"

"Worry about money later," Rig said. "I want to see these blueprints."

Damien motioned for Rig to crouch next to him on the floor so the blueprints were right in front of them. He pointed to a few entrances and exits, pointing out their security flaws, but nothing stood out to Rig. Yeah, that window was wedged next to a wall so you couldn't see if someone entered. Sure, the door on that side probably wasn't helping anyone unless they wanted to enter discreetly. Still, as Damien pointed out, most of them would be in sight of the sentries, and they were risky enough that no assassin worth the money would ever want to use them.

"I'm not getting anything from this," Rig said. "I need to go to the house in person, get my feet on the floor. Who knows, maybe we'll find a loose floorboard or something. All I know is we could turn these blueprints inside out and translate them backwards, and it won't help at all."

"My visitor's permit should be approved by this afternoon," Damien said. "If not earlier. Trust me, I'm just as eager to take a look for myself."

"Is the crime scene perfectly preserved? Do you know?"

"It's not. They sent a cleanup crew. I mean, to be fair, it seemed a bit disrespectful to leave a puddle of the Queen's blood on the floor to dry up into the wood."

"So it's possible that evidence is missing altogether."

"Yes."

"No wonder no one's cracked this yet. Some crucial piece of the puzzle is probably lost forever."

"Well, even when one piece is missing, if all the other pieces are there, you don't need it. You can still see the picture," Damien said determinedly. "This is a puzzle we're going to solve."

❁

Kai held the compass out in front of him, displeased with the way the needle still spun in circles, buffering. He'd spent a lot of magic on this spell, and if this one failed too, he wasn't sure what he'd be able to try next.

He was walking along the waterfall trail, a wooden walkway precariously jutting out of a cliff behind a mighty waterfall. To Kai's left was a wall of jagged stone. To his right, water crashing down, sounding out like an extremely loud maraca right next to his ear. Still, it was consistent noise, so it was welcome and calming.

This was one of Myth's favorite spots to walk. She liked the constant noise to stimulate her senses, since sight was off the table. She said it smelled like rock moss. She had walked here often.

Kai had never appreciated how nice the place was, how relaxing the unending cacophony was after a long day he didn't want to think about. He'd been tasked with autopsying Nefia Obcisor that day.

Her body had been magically preserved, so it was still warm when he had inspected her. The blood was still red. It still stuck to his fingers instead of flaking to the ground. He was wearing black nail polish to hide the bloodstains under his fingernails.

The procedure had yielded no surprises. She had been killed by multiple stab wounds with a small, thin knife; an envelope opener, he'd been told. A particularly well-placed one by the side of her ribs had punctured her lung. It had let blood flow into her chest cavity, blocking her airway and suffocating her, as well as trapping pressured air in her lungs. She'd died in a matter of minutes, probably painfully. If they'd turned her onto her back, maybe she might have had a bit more time to finish whatever she had been saying before dying. However, Kai didn't blame the prince or councillors for not having enough medical knowledge to know that. They'd probably thought laying her on her stomach would be less painful than lying down on a bunch of open wounds.

After hastily washing his hands of the blood, Kai had hopped straight to his new spell, eager to put his mind somewhere else. Rather than working like other spells, this one was like a hound dog, searching for traces of the person's aura and pointing in the direction it came from. With the magic having a vessel, the compass, it should have flowed easier, if a little slower. But the needle was still spinning in circles. Myth walked on this path so often, surely a trace of her would still be detectable. Beyond that, almost no one else walked her because of the noise, so it was unlikely that the spell was confused by the auras of other people. But the result was inconclusive. Kai's spell was still stumped.

He kept walking though, determined to find something. However, he was surprised to find that he was not alone on the little-known walkway. Up ahead, he heard voices. He heard an argument.

He pressed his back against the stone, hiding behind a crag of rock. Better not to be seen until he figured out what was going on. He could make out voices, angry voices, but they were mostly drowned out by the waterfall. He scooted closer, trying to peek around his outcropping and remain unseen while catching a glimpse of the culprits.

He recognized the two men instantly. The taller, larger one was the unmistakable figure of Dray Mendax. He was imposing, and his build was easily recognizable. He was wearing a black coat, very different from the jeweled jackets he could usually be found in. The second person was harder to distinguish, but Kai was pretty sure he recognized that hair, the lines by his mouth... was that Arion?

Mendax had grabbed Arion by the lapels of his blazer, shoving him harshly against the cliff face. He was all too close to his face, hissing angrily at him. Arion looked like a hamster pinned by a hawk, which wasn't a totally outlandish analogy. Kai needed to know what this argument was about.

He held a hand up to his ear and muttered a short spell, wincing when the small magic sparks singed his skin, though the pain was over as soon as it started. His hearing focused as if he'd been holding a can on a string to the argument. The waterfall was muffled background noise at most.

"You are being difficult on purpose," Mendax accused Arion.

"I'm not being difficult, I'm being rational," Arion snapped back, his voice defiant despite his body language. "Your war is going to get people killed, and you don't even seem to mind the feeling of blood on your hands."

"You are turning against this council," Mendax replied. "I don't know what you're trying to do, but there's a little voice in the back of my head that's saying you're conspiring against us."

"What do you mean, 'us'?"

"The council. You're consistently siding with Tenebris. She's not one of us, not really. The council is meant to steer you in the right direction, and she's screwing that up, and you're letting her."

"She is part of the council as much as you and I!"

"We both know that's not true. She's the odd one out for reasons you know damn well enough. Her ignorance is causing problems for the security of this kingdom."

"Ignorance isn't the word I'd use."

"Don't pretend you wouldn't also like to have conversations when she's not in the room. Don't act like there are things you're not saying because she's there."

"She's part of the council, so, like it or not, she's going to be a part of every conversation, and she's going to have a place in every room. Get used to it."

"It doesn't have to be that way. You know the rules. If she's guilty of committing a crime she'll be kicked off, or if she's injured badly enough that she can't safely attend meetings-"

"Are you suggesting that we sabotage her? Or frame her for something? Stars, do you hear yourself? Do you even see who you're talking to? Do you think before you speak?"

"It seems like you sure don't. You know why this kingdom would win a war easily, and yet you play her games instead of getting rid of her like you should."

Arion scowled at Mendax, hardening his stare. "I will never turn against Zef. Never, not for anything."

"And that is why you're the weakest one on this council," Mendax growled. "Weaker even than her. At least she can take a side."

"Hey," Arion said dangerously, throwing his own hands up and slapping Mendax's grip off him. He leaned forward so he was no longer pressed up against the wall. "I am still the future king. You better remember who you're talking to. One day, I'll be a far more dangerous enemy than I think you'd like to admit. Don't underestimate me."

Mendax chuckled. "You? Dangerous? You're a child, still leaning on the women in your life and hiding behind their opinions. I don't underestimate you, I estimate you just right. You pretend to be better than me, than the other real councillors, but you're not. Don't forget that our lies are your lies, too."

Mendax put a hand on Arion's chest and shoved him backwards into the wall, hard. While Arion stumbled and pressed a hand against the back of his head, wincing, Mendax strode away quickly, pulling the collar of his coat up to hide his face. Arion watched him turn a corner, and as soon as he was gone, he sank to the floor and cradled his knees to his chest, breathing shallowly.

Kai immediately shook his head and the spell dissipated, as if wool were removed from his ears. He rushed around the outcropping he was hiding behind and knelt in front of Arion, trying to get him to look up. "Your Highness? Arion? Are you alright?"

Arion jumped when he heard Kai's voice, inhaling sharply. To Kai's dismay, his presence seemed to only panic the prince more. "K-Kai? Did you just get here? Were... were you listening? How much of that did you hear?"

"I caught the end of it, I think, but-"

"Well, don't worry," Arion said shakily, swallowing thickly. "I have everything under control, I swear. Please, you can't tell anyone about this, it has to stay between us-"

"He was borderline attacking you!" Kai protested. "That could be enough to kick him off the council, if you're willing to testify. You don't need to hide from him."

"I'm not hiding," Arion promised. "There's a lot you don't understand. He wasn't attacking me, just reminding me of some things, I swear-"

"Arion, you don't have to keep up a front with me," Kai said. "If he's scaring you, or threatening you with something, you should speak up."

"No, Kaiden, trust me," Arion said seriously. "It has to be this way. There's more at stake than you know."

Kai shook his head frustratedly. He wasn't getting anywhere with the prince. Did Arion think he didn't understand how politics worked? "Arion, if that's really how you feel, this conversation and what I just heard will stay between you and I. You have my word. But that doesn't mean you have to go through everything alone. If you need help carrying your burden, I can help. I'm happy to help. Don't hesitate to ask if you need it. You've got a lot of people who care about you, you know."

"I know," Arion agreed. He ran a frantic hand through his hair. "Thank you. I appreciate it. I'm okay right now. But I'll remember this."

Kai nodded. "Good." He winked, trying to get Arion to smile. "It can be useful to have a magician in your corner."

Word Count: 3567

Character Appearances:

Ignacius Valentine by TheExplosiveCyborg

Penelope Vorago by arcanevi

Zéphine Tenebris by me

Rigmund Azazel Orca by SincerelyLoki

Damien Thorne by EstelElfstone

Kaiden Esterius by TheShortBosmer

Also Featuring Appearances From:

Aylin Starlin by New-Identity

Felix Brook by ghostofwolves

Mythil Ivor by DragonDancer55 (mentioned)

A/N: Hello six months later! This is not an apology cuz i don't feel bad for not updating. also i didn't proofread so um... deal with that too

I'll be honest with y'all, wattpad's been getting pretty dry recently and I'm starting to drift away from it, but I still like this story and I still plan to finish it, however long that takes. I don't blame any of the few of you who are still here if you stop reading, though; feel free to hop off the wagon at any time

A quick note about Nefia's autopsy, in case it wasn't obvious; i've never autopsied anyone and i also don't have any real medical knowledge, so it's pretty much 100% fiction

Finally, a question... uh idk give me a random word and refuse to elaborate. Here's mine: calls