Chapter One- Vorion

A Chapter by Princess

Introduction of character and plot.

1592 AD

“Why Princess Callea, you are so very lovely. Any courtier in her right mind should envy you tonight. My, I wouldn’t doubt if a few comely men brawl over your hand tonight,” my lady in-waiting states. Her tone was rather bitter while she tightened the corset around me, suffocating breath out of my lips.

Beauty is an intolerable word. It forces the finest and most well-mannered men to their knees, lusting after anything catching their fancy. It provokes envy and greed out of women. But it’s a plague. It’s disgusting. Intolerable.

I manage to suck in a final breath before the corset is completely tightened and Abigail knots it tightly. After examining her work she tosses a sky blue ball gown over my head, drowning me in layers of fabric. For once I was thankful for the chill of the castle, for in this dress I’m sure to be dead by the end of the night. Embedded in the blue finery is silver thread weaving designs and embalming small diamonds onto the dress, but before I have more time to admire it, two or three necklaces are being strangled around my neck and my blonde curls are thrown about my head before they decide it looks best in a simple blue ribbon weaved through my hair.

The mirror taunts me when they’re finished. Blood red lips brighten my whole face; dark lashes perfectly rimming my almost silver eyes. Rosy cheeks stand out over a too-perfect jaw and chin. I turn away, refusing to see that horrible face that causes men to swoon at the sight of a simple girl.

“Tut, tut, Princess, a simple ‘thank-you’ every once in a while wouldn’t kill anyone,” Abigail scolds, then pushes me out the door as I weakly thank her. I wasn’t ungrateful for her, really, I just despised what she made of my. And not that it wasn’t lovely; it was simply just her job. But I knew what this was for, and the thought made me smile.

Prince Vorion. He was my only elder sibling and in every way I admired him. He was my counselor and guide. He’d always been my closest friend. As children we would play jests on other courtiers, race through the gardens, swim in the lake. As we grew older and my beauty more evident he fended off the most disgusting of men.

As he turned fifteen, two years ago, he was called to the war.

That tasteless, greedy war.

The war started from nothing more than pride. One man against one man, one king against one king. This war has been around for hundreds of years but neither side would draw back. Not until one side was extinct. Over the years the pride became sicker, stronger, stealthier. And this was completely and utterly endless.

There was no escape from this war for both sides had formed complete and utter hate for the other. At the sight of another a man would grow red with anger, his heart would swell up with the hunger to kill. This was, in every sense, unstoppable and uncontrollable. No man could control their temper for it had been handed down. No man could cease the killing because it was in their blood.

Kaithron was our equal though. I never understood it. When I’d ask why it still continued, my father would simply tell me I’d understand later. But I’m fifteen now, and I still do not understand. Is the need to expand so great when our men are constantly dying? When we are becoming more and more scarce, is there really a need for a bigger kingdom?

You can imagine the grief I felt when my brother was called to lead the war. You can imagine the pain I felt when he was honored to do so. In a way it tore at my heart. Though I still loved him with all my soul, I couldn’t help the hurt I felt that he would continue with this nonsense.

When I told him this though, he simply shook his head. We didn’t fight often but when he heard my opinion he told it best of me to never tell anyone of my sightless thinking. It would only get me in trouble, he said. But I refused to think that I was wrong, and he told me I was being nonsensical. He left in a rage, spitting curses out at me for my childish thinking.

What did I know? He asked.

Since then I have not seen him but though we may disagree I have ever since missed his presence. I hoped from the bottom of my heart that he did too, because I did pay him the courtesy of his request to never speak to anyone else of it. But this was mostly out of my own fear.

I could only hope that he’d be pleased to see me. To see how much I’ve grown in two years, to remember how much fun he used to have. When I heard he was returning for a week, it was I who insisted on a ball. They thought it a marvelous idea, but not for the same reason I wanted it.

“Callea, stand up straight or you’ll look ridiculous walking in,” my mother insists as I’m hustled over to her. My father stood not far off, speaking to my younger sister and my younger brother. Lisle was but two years younger than me, and Tasia was four years younger so they weren’t as close to Vorion as I was, but they still seemed almost as anxious as I was.

“Your highnesses, your guests await,” a guard announces to us, leading us away. As we come upon the ballroom, I hear from outside of it our announcement and the grand doors are opened.

“When will Vorion be here?” I whisper to my father as we walk through the crowd, finding out way to the middle.

“Soon enough, Callea, patience,” my mother replies. “Make sure to smile dear, stop being so fidgety.”

I silenced myself then avoided the faces of all the guests as we continued our walk through the hushed music.

As we reached the middle, the announcer spoke again. My stomach tightened in excitement. It takes all of me to contain my composure, to be calm in this agitation.

“And let us all welcome with respect, our war leader Prince Vorion of Aynah.”

His blonde hair was the first thing I noticed, but then I noticed he was even taller than the last time I had seen him. As he advances closer, I see a broad smile on his face and he’s looking directly at me with a gleam in his eyes. The anticipation was starting to get to me as the urge to just run over and hug him was donning on me. The corset wasn’t making it any easier to breath when I was jumping all around inside. Before I made a fool of myself though he reached me and swung me around, laughing then setting my back down.

I was so content that I flung my arms around him squeezing him tightly too me. “Sister,” he jittered happily, laughing. “I’ve missed you.”

“You couldn’t have possible ached as much as I have,” I tell him as he releases then he moves on the hug my parents and siblings.

“May I have the first dance?” he asks me with that smile still plastered on his face and his eyes set right on mine.

“Absolutely,” I agreed, and as the positions started for the waltz, Lisle and Tasia hid in the crowd as my parents prepared too.

“It’s been too long,” I insist as the music starts. “Never wait that long again, Vorion.”

He laughs again silently. “Was that a threat?” he asks.

“It was, indeed,” I nod. “Promise you wont wait two years again to pay a visit to your sister.”

Smiling, he nods. “I promise. That is, if you promise to start making your letters shorter. I feel as if I’m reading novels!” he jests.

“But perhaps I could not tell you how much I miss you any other way,” I insist.

“Now tell me then, Callea, how is it that you are not yet married off to some prince by now? Look at you- when I thought you couldn’t get more beautiful!”

“Don’t speak of my beauty,” I mutter. “I hate it.”

“I can not see why you would. You could rule the world with it,” he grins.

I laugh at his joke, then shake my head. “Ah, it has been too long.”

During the waltz we go into a discussion of our childhood. The pleasant times and the not so pleasant times, we speak of everything. After the waltz my mother gets a turn while our guests join us and my father dances with me.

“I hear Prince Harry is here, and he’s searching for a wife. Perhaps you would like to meet him, Callea.”

“Or perhaps not,” I sigh. “I know you mean well father but I’m not ready for marriage.”

“Will you ever be ready, Callea? I hear you utter ‘no’ by the month, but one of these times I’ll be forced to send you off elsewhere.”

“I know father. Just not now, is all. I feel far too young. Why, you were not wed until you were twenty.”

“But your mother was young,” he reminds me. “Your age now, actually.”

“Then perhaps I’ll start preparing,” I sigh.

A few courtiers I did not recognize cut into the dance several times, speaking nothing other than of my face. Most women I suppose would find it flattering, but I did not wish to let it make me vain.

After a few more dances with other courtiers, I found myself holding my breath as a face came into sight.

There seems to be only one man who I could never get to look in my direction, to pay me any heed. I’ve admired him from afar since I was too young to love for his face is handsome. It’s hypocritical, I know, but my beauty always seems to be an immunity to him. I have never even seen him look at me though my cousin, Gloriana, seemed to catch his fancy just fine. She spoke of him being charming from time to time when I would seldom speak to her, but she said he was impossible to please.

But I’ve wanted so bad for him to love me. I would be ready for marriage anytime if it were him I were promised too. Gloriana calls him Hadrian but I know not if that’s what he is really called.

Still his eyes refused to meet mine today again but I could not help the fluttering in my heart. I also couldn’t help but notice that once again he was with Gloriana.

“Still lusting after him?” Vorion teases as he stands next to me. “Ah, I’m so disappointed,” he laughs, shaking his head.

“He’s amiable,” I protest. “Now don’t tell me you aren’t still infatuated with Princess Alys. You flirted with her constantly, my friend.”

“I hear she’s wed,” he frowns, but then shrugs. “Of course, I don’t have much time for a wife anymore.”

“You do too, if you’d stop being so stubborn and come visit once in a while.”

Vorion smiles ruefully, then places a hand on my back. “Let us flee from this ball and take a stroll through the castle, hmm?”

“Mother would be displeased…”

“Mother will not notice,” he shrugs mischievously. When we’re sure no one is looking, we leave out of the ballroom and into one of the halls, laughing all the while.

“You have not matured at all, I can see,” I smile as we round one of the corners.

“Nor you,” he retorts playfully. “But actually I brought you out here to ask you something…”

“Anything,” I tell him, suddenly curious.

“Callea,” he sighs, then turns towards me. Suddenly, all signs of laughter were gone. “Are you upset at me?”

This thought made me sick to my stomach. I knew what he was really asking. I hated to think of all the innocent men he killed, all the bad things he could have done.

“Well… I just wish…” I sigh, not wanting to disappoint him again.

“Have you not learned anything, Callea? Why is it that you can’t see why this needs to happen?” he asks calmly.

“What does it need to happen for, Vorion?”

“Callea, even if we wanted to stop this we could not. Kaithron would think we’re surrendering. Even if we wanted to make peace, Kaithron would continue to fight. But you see, our people don’t want to stop the fighting. They don’t want us all to die, and they’re afraid to stop. They want to get rid of all the evil in Kaithron, be rid of every last heartless soul. It can’t end now, Callea, and who am I, or you, or anyone for that matter to stop it?”

“You’re a prince of Anyah, that’s who. Vorion, you hold a power to help change this but you refuse to stop it.”

“Would you wish death on me then, Callea, is that what?”

“I don’t want to talk about this, you know that answer.”

“But I dislike that you resent me! We were friends once Callea.”

“And we are and we still can be. We don’t have to discuss the war.”

Vorion inhales slowly, then shakes his head. He doesn’t think I understand, but I know enough to understand that pride is a silly reason to fight for.

“I’m fighting to help keep you alive. Just remember that, Callea,” he exhales then he leaves me, walking back to the ballroom.