*Press space* Absquatulate: Tales of The Quarter Chapter One --------------------- An unexpected encounter [Takes place before the events of the storming of the castle] _ Pyper sighed as she looked out her third story window overlooking the town. The people looked like small honey bees buzzing about, trying to get all of the chores done in time for the evening meal. Her fingers twitched as she put her hand on the frosty glass. If only she could be down there, surveying the well-being of the people like her brother. Yet, he was overprotective and wouldn’t let her outside due to her experiences outside of the castle walls. Her fingers traced the burn scars along her arms. They were rivers of callused pink skin that flowed from her arms to her back, and then up her neck. She cringed, expecting the pain that would never come again. Visions of that night haunted her. Pyper shook her head and cleared her mind of those awful things. Her eyes drifted from the window to her wardrobe. Little painted flowers along the border looked dull and lifeless in the dim light. Pyper stood up and walked over to the wardrobe, running her fingers along the flowers. Pyper’s eyes flashed with tears. It had been over a month since Kole had disappeared. He was the one who painted the flowers with her. She could remember the exact moment when he looked around her room and said “It could use a bit of sprucing up, couldn’t it?” Even though he wasn’t her blood brother, he still took every chance he got to spend time with her. He taught her how to ride a horse - even though she wasn’t very good at it - , how to paint, and a lot of other things. She took a turn and taught him how to sew. She remembered his laugh when he took a look at the monstrosity of a pillow cover he had managed to make. Pyper looked up with a start. She heard the scrape of boots come up the stairs outside of her room. She scrambled back over to the window as she heard the door knob turn. “Pyper?” She turned and her eyes met with her other older brother, Remi. She hadn’t spoken with him since Kole’s disappearance. He smiled and stayed in the doorway. “How are you doing?” Pyper smiled half heartedly and shrugged, but she couldn’t stop the tears from rolling down her face. Her eyes became unfocused as she turned and stared out the window again. Remi sighed. “I miss him too, Pyper. You’re not the only one.” He began to leave but turned back quickly. “I found these on his desk,” he said hurriedly. “I thought you might like them.” He gave Pyper a few paintbrushes. “Maybe you’ll paint something to remember him by.” Remi faintly smiled, but Pyper saw that there was no light in his eyes. Remi exited the room and shut the door behind him quietly. Pyper suddenly became angry and more tears rolled down her face. Remember him by?! Kole had to be alive, didn’t he? Pyper didn’t even give it a second thought then. She couldn’t stay in this room forever. No one could make her, not even Remi. She opened her wardrobe and grabbed her cloak. She put it on over her dress and arranged the hood so it shaded her eyes. She opened the door a crack and saw that no one was there. She exhaled and started down the stairs. _ Pyper got out of the castle without incident. Well, almost. She didn’t think that scaring the cook’s cat counted as one. She crossed the bridge over to the town, trying to blend in with the townsfolk. It was the first time Pyper had been out of the castle in over a year, but it wasn’t too unfamiliar to her. Pyper walked past market stalls that were selling exotic fruits, clothing, and jewelry from faraway places. She smiled as she remembered the city she used to live in, Halcyon, before she was adopted. .Pyper stayed clear of the castle guards who were keeping watch over the people while she wandered a little bit more. The guards were known for gossiping, and she didn’t want Remi hearing that she had snuck out. She almost considered going back to the palace when she saw the guards whispering amongst themselves, but stopped when she found a stall that was selling paints and brushes. Pyper went up to the stall and looked at the paints. Beautiful yellows, reds, and indigos were lined up. “Do you want to buy anything?” Pyper looked up with a jerk. “Um, just looki-” she froze. The seller was twirling a paintbrush with his fingers and looked bored. He had a bandage over his left eye and left side of his face, but his uncovered eye was brilliant lime green. A streak of faded green also ran through his hair.
Her eyes grew wide as she stepped back, and she felt her hood slip off of her head. The seller’s uncovered eye widened. Pyper almost started hyperventilating. It couldn’t be. It wasn’t- “K- kole?” The seller shook his head, and Pyper saw his panic. “Kole? Is it really you?” she said softly. The seller bit his lip as his eye darted left and right. He motioned for Pyper to follow him behind the stall. The stall was blocking the entrance of an alleyway, and they slipped through. Pyper turned around angrily and brushed her bangs out of her eyes. “Kole, what are you doing here? Why did you leave? Wh- wha-” Kole shushed her with a finger to his lips. “Quiet. I’ll explain what I can,” he whispered as he unraveled the bandage around his eye. Pyper gasped as she saw scars on his cheek and below his eye. “What happened to you? We thought you were dead!” Kole sighed. “I’ll explain that. But what’s most important for you to know right now is that not everything is as it seems in Midori. Even in Lavian. There are secret societies that are going up against the throne. They were right under our noses this whole time. “You see Pyper, they chased me away from the castle on the night of my birthday and did this.” He touched the scars on his face. “They want to take over the throne. One group in particular thinks that they’re doing this for the good of the kingdom, but really it will tear it apart.” Pyper’s forehead wrinkled as she frowned. A secret society… trying to take over the kingdom? “What’s this group called?” “The Star of Vetis.” Pyper frowned again. “A group like this can’t just go into something like this without a plan. They have to have a very strong leader who knows his way around the society. Who could it be?” Kole’s eyes saddened as he looked at the mossy brick walls of the alley. “You may not believe me, but it’s-” “KOLE!” Kole spun around. “What? What happened?” He exclaimed as his eyes grew wide. A girl’s voice responded. “Jerald found a way in. When we didn’t find you at your stall, we thought…” her voice faded away. Pyper could barely make out a figure in the dim light of the alleyway. Pyper recognized the voice almost instantly. “Kole, is that-?” Kole nodded, and the girl stepped into view. It took a moment for Pyper to recognize her, even though she knew who it was. It was Deck Demond, one of the royal advisors. Pyper saw two other figures behind Deck, but she couldn’t make out who they were. Deck had changed- a lot. Her hair was cut shorter, so she almost looked like a boy. Her clothes were a bit baggy, like they were a size too big for her. Deck looked stunned and angry. “Pyper… What are you doing here? This is dangerous! You shouldn’t be here!” Pyper shook her head, clearing her thoughts. “What am I doing here?” she said angrily. “What are you doing here? I’m guessing they chased you away from the palace too?! Why didn’t you fight back? And why are you dressed like this?” Deck looked at Kole. “Did you tell her who-” Kole shook his head. “Not yet.” “And… are you two alone? Were you two the only ones chased out?” Pyper asked. “No. Jerald and Magenta are here too,” Kole replied. Pyper turned to see Jerald Aarav and Magenta Rose emerge from the darkness behind Deck. Magenta smiled, her eyes closed. “Hello, Pyper.” Magenta was one of the stable girls, and Jerald used to be assistant inventor before he was kicked out. Pyper sat down on a stray crate and groaned. “Ohhh. I definitely can’t tell Remi about this,” she mumbled. Kole’s head snapped up, his eyes filled with panic. “You definitely cannot tell Remi.” Pyper looked at Kole. “Why not? He’s our brother.” Kole looked at Deck, who nodded slightly. He sighed. “Remi… is the leader of the Star of Vetis.” _ If Pyper wasn’t already sitting down, her knees would’ve buckled. “What?” she whispered, shocked. There was an uncomfortable silence. Finally, Pyper looked up at Kole. “Why would Remi want to chase you from the palace? Why would he want to hurt the throne?” Kole sat down next to Pyper. “He believes that he is doing what’s right for our kingdom. And- we think that he isn’t in his right mind.” Magenta spoke up but kept her eyes closed. “We believe that he is possessed by the demon Zagan. I could sense it. There was an uneasy feeling at Kole’s birthday celebration.” Kole nodded. “Exactly. We don’t have any proof though.” Pyper was almost speechless. “You mean- the Zagan from old Lavianen legends? The one that was the embodiment of deceit?” “Yes.” Pyper’s eyebrows creased. How did Zagan possess Remi? Jerald seemed to read her thoughts. “Remi was filled with so much jealousy since Kole was first in line for the crown that Zagan saw a perfect opportunity to come back into the mortal world and try world domination once again.” “So what do we need to do? I don’t want Remi to be possessed.” Kole sighed. “Now that’s the tricky part. Zagan will not willingly come out of Remi, so we don’t know how to destroy him.” _ Music: Centuries - Fall Out Boy
