Something's wrong. 

I didn't know how or why, but I could feel it. Some unexplainable evil seemed to have descended upon my heart. I tried to attribute it to the pain of separation from my Swan, but she had been attending boarding school for the past nine years. She had faced and survived whatever discrimination she was met with there while keeping a remarkable calm. Unlike previous years, she hadn't even seemed unwilling to go off to school. In fact, her attitude toward entering high school could even be described as excited. There was no reason for me to miss her or worry for her with particular fervor now. 

Yet, somehow, I did both of those things. 

I sat in a leather chair outside the Council Chamber, looking out the window at the lively city of Glaisse below. Yet, even this cheerful sight did little to lighten my mood. It had been more than ten minutes since the conclusion of the most recent meeting of Lessaenes' Ruling Council, but I found myself either unable or unwilling to leave my spot. A pang of apprehension clawed at my heart, and I simply could not shake off the notion that something terrible was happening to my only daughter. Something far worse than the school bully. 

"Hey, Vivi." 

Turning around at the sound of the familiar voice, I smiled at Aron in acknowledgement before rolling my eyes at his timing. As always, he had "forgotten" about the Council meeting and chose to show up just minutes after its conclusion. Politics had never really been his thing. In fact, the former rebel warrior and Wielder of the Staff found almost anything that involved sitting in one place for more than five minutes to be unbearably tedious. I assumed it was one of the quirky side effects of a Rhenan upbringing. 

"Hello," I laughed. "I hope you enjoyed sleeping in while Tara, Thorel and I discussed Wellae's recent budget cuts with the Chiefs."

"I wasn't sleeping!" Aron scowled in protest, pushing the arm of my swiveling chair to the side forcefully so that I faced him. 

"Then, what were you doing?" I cocked my head to the side.  

"I was...uh...at your uncle's house, doing...stuff." 

"Uncle Airel was at the Council meeting, where he was supposed to be," I smirked, rising from the chair at the sight of his defeated look. "I win, as always." 

"Whatever," Aron sighed, fiddling with the sleeve of his red button-down shirt. If it had been someone other than my husband, I would've questioned the sanity of a person who chose to wear a very Kilaenaian button-down shirt with Rhenan khakis. Aron, however, was a willing exception to almost every rule of Lessaenite dressing and behavior. On the day after our wedding, he had told me that he would never be comfortable in noble clothing. However, since the media would throw a fit at the sight of a prince in the attire of a commoner, I couldn't just allow him to dress like he did back in our Iceheart-fighting days. Our awkward compromise involved large hats, painstakingly shined shoes, and, of course, lots of button-down shirts. "Anyway, how's Swan? She hasn't called home in days."

"I know," I nodded. "I'm not too worried, though. She's a princess. If something was wrong, the IAYN would've informed us," I said with confidence that belied my true feelings of worry.

"Vivi! Aron!" Tara stuck her head through the door of the Chamber, looking quite distraught. Her purple eyes had lost their usual vibrant glow and the largest of the scars on her face somehow seemed more prominent than usual. A certain fatigue seemed to have set into her gait, adding weight to the ominous feeling that surrounded me. 

I winced, crossing my legs as a chill rushed through my already uneasy gut. Her appearance was beginning to remind me of things that I'd rather not think about...

First an inexplicable feeling of danger, and now flashbacks to my sister's torture? I'm no prophet, but this screams "BAD!" 

"What is it?" I frowned, forcing down my thoughts once again. 

"Come inside," my sister whispered seriously. "There is something I must tell you." 

Now, I definitely didn't have a good feeling about this. 

Crossing my hands over my stomach to ease my mild nausea, I entered the Council Chamber behind my sister, followed closely by a very reluctant Aron. We walked past the rows of padded benches that were set up for the audience and up to the grand dais, which sported the famous Five Thrones in addition to the Regalion itself. 

"Ah, Princess Viviana," Chief Valior smiled, stepping out from behind her throne. 

"Sophie," I returned her affable expression. 

"You don't know how glad I am that you were able to stop by. My clan's researchers have come across an alarming discovery, and I was afraid that I would not gain a Royal audience soon enough to request permission to act on it," the Scientist Chief said. 

"Yes, that is all well and good, but we are here, now," Thorel said impatiently, crossing his arms. "What is this discovery you've been raving about all morning?" 

"Lights, My King. They're Lights!" Sophie's eyes widened as she spoke with great enthusiasm: an action that was not at all characteristic of the Scientist Clan, let alone its leader. 

"...Lights?" Thorel stared at the Chief in disbelief. "Like those?" he pointed at the blue-tinted Aurabulbs that were embedded neatly into the ceiling above us. 

"No, Your Majesty," the Chief shook her head gravely. "Although, they are very similar to the lights we might use in our buildings. They definitely have some sort of on and off function: our computers recorded them growing suddenly brighter and dimmer. We tested all sorts of things on them, from simple one-minute-on, one-minute-off patterns to complex algorithms, but nothing works. These lights aren't following a natural pattern, like the rising and setting of the sun; they're being deliberately activated and shut down according to someone's will. That can only mean one thing: intelligent life." 

"Not another race!" Aron groaned, slapping his forehead. "As if humans, Rhenans, Lessaenites haven't torn each other up enough."

"We highly doubt that this is a new species we're dealing with, Aron, because of the location of these lights," Sophie crossed her arms. 

"And where, Sophie would that location be?" Tara questioned, stepping up onto the third tier of the dais in order to grant more of a height advantage to her small frame. The Chief paused, clearly reluctant to answer this question. Finally, after a solid minute, she took in a deep breath and let out a long sigh, buying as much time as was possible before allowing a single word to escape her lips. 

"Earth."