Chapter 4
Slate
Ipushed through the throng of Kinetic bodies.
Everyone was overjoyed to witness yet another branding ceremony for our legendary hero, Chrome.
After chasing him through the reveling crowd and weaving past the king and his two lackeys, I managed to spot his back in the distant hallway.
Chrome never hung back to enjoy the revels that celebrated his accomplishments, so he was already off. I needed to catch him.
I jogged, hoping to stop him before I lost access once he went home. “Chrome.”
My cousin’s shoulders jolted as he spun around to face me, eyes wide. “Slate? What’s up?” he asked.
I assessed him, noting his tense shoulders, rigid back, hardened blue eyes, and the bandage on his arm. “You good?”
Chrome narrowed his eyes. “You know I am.”
“Are you really, though?” I asked, not buying his facade.
“I’m a legend,” he said with a forced shrug and transparent smirk. “I’ll always be okay, cousin.”
I held his stare, seeing through the front he put on. There was something more than the pain of the branding in his eyes. “What’s wrong?”
Chrome began sweeping his gaze around the hallway, his nostrils flaring. “It’s her. She’s scared.”
I scanned the hallway as if she’d manifest out of nowhere. “Chrome—”
“I need to get to her, Slate,” he gritted out through clenched teeth.
“Chrome.” My voice dropped lower, shaking my head. “You can’t—”
“Fuck.” His breathing picked up, pinching the bridge of his nose as he closed his eyes.
“What do you need, man? What can I do?”
“I need…” He compelled himself to slow his breaths as his face contorted from restraint. “I need you to get close to her. Protect her.” It was a plea.
I nodded, wholeheartedly willing to help him.
The guy may be the best Warrior in our history, but we were just teenagers.
I knew he got harsh punishments for stepping out of line.
It was all kept secret, of course, and Chrome never talked about it openly, but there were heavy implications that he received punishments that were more sinister, going beyond mental and physical.
Having grown up and trained together, I’d learned his tells really well.
So, anything to prevent him from further punishment, I was down for. “Yeah, of course. I can do that.”
Chrome sighed. “If they’d let me near her…”
“I know, man. It’s fine. I’ll talk to Hazel and figure out if she knows anything that can help me get to her,” I assured him. “It’s going to be fine. She’s going to be fine. I got you.”
My knuckles rapped on the smooth, polished white door. I stood, waiting for a response, as I pondered over Chrome’s state regarding the princess only an hour ago.
I watched the gold currents race up my forearms, still in awe of my light magic.
Even though it wasn’t meant to be an offensive power, it was mine.
And having the power of light moving through my veins was special to me.
I knew how to wield it in ways that worked best for me in a fight.
It kept me and others alive. That’s all that mattered in the end.
The door creaked open, exposing my younger sister in the small gap. “What’s up?” her voice, soft and high in tone, greeted me.
“Hi, Hazy. You got a minute?” I asked, shoving my hands into the front pockets of my black jeans.
Hazel pretended to ponder my question for a few seconds, pouting her lips as she looked up at the ceiling. Several quiet seconds passed as I waited needlessly. I knew she’d let me in her room, but I wouldn’t come in without her permission, and she knew it.
At last, after seemingly coming to a decision, she eyed me.
With a smile and a quick shrug, she said, “Sure!” before turning, heading to her unmade bed, and plopping on the edge.
She tucked her leg on top of her lavender bedspread that matched the various shades of purple throughout the room, including the floor-length curtains.
Hazel’s room was exactly what you’d expect of a teenage girl’s room.
She basically honored her bookcase filled with young adult romances and fantasies that overflowed it.
On the shelves, she had a Kinetic dagger used for display as well as other ornaments.
For her, she’d rather experience the battlefield through books, which was fair.
She wasn’t a fighter, and I was glad for it because I knew she’d always be kept safe.
“So what’s up, Slate?” she asked, crossing her arms over her chest.
“Well, I was wondering if you knew anything about the princess by chance? Y’all are the same age and in the same grade, right?” I suddenly felt awkward asking her about this. It wasn’t like I was trying to get with the princess, but I could only imagine how my sister would perceive it.
“What?” A look of confusion morphed her dainty features, the baby fat on her cheeks making her look so young.
I sighed, running my fingers through my hair as I figured out how to best explain this. “Chrome needs me to help him with the princess. He says she’s in danger, but he’s not allowed near her. So”—I paused—“he asked me to protect her instead.”
“Okay…” she dragged out, waiting for me to continue. “But first, how and why is she in danger?”
“I—” I started, but realized this was going to be more difficult to explain than I’d anticipated. “I’m not sure. He just knows.”
Hazel stared at me with an open mouth and narrowed eyes as if I were dumber than a sack of rocks. Her black hoodie with the white outline of a raven on it swallowed her whole. “I don’t….” She closed her mouth just to part her lips again. “You expect me to believe that?”
“No, actually. I don’t. But it’s not something I can really get into right now.”
“Do Mom and Dad know about this?” she asked with a raised brow.
“Not yet. I’m leaving that up to Chrome.”
“Fine,” she conceded. “As long as this isn’t about you trying to get in her pants,” she said, nearly gagging with her lips twisted in disgust. The light freckles on her nose and cheeks bunched up with her sour expression.
“Uhm, no! Gods, Hazel!” I scoffed, shaking my head. “If I were, I can promise you’d be the last person I’d come to for that.” I was only fifteen. The idea of actually having sex terrified me because what if I was awful? And to do it with Princess Gray…just fucking bury me now.
Hazel sighed in relief, her shoulders slumping. “Okay, good.” She grabbed her hair, the metallic bronze strands glinting from the light streaming in through the windows, and pulled it into a ponytail at the top of her head. “Now, how can I help?”
I chuckled at the absurdity of it all. “Do you happen to have any classes with her? Know when the best chance is for me to catch her alone so I can speak to her?”
“I think you can probably catch her alone during last period. It’s gym for her. Sometimes I see her leaving it later than everyone else after school. The kids aren’t exactly nice to her,” Hazel explained, a sadness filling her eyes.
“What? Why?” I asked, surprised. I had never seen it.
But then again, I hadn’t seen her much around school or at the Kinetic Palace.
It baffled me, seeing as she was my princess, but I guess humans didn’t know we existed, much less that we had an entire kingdom.
There were different domains spread throughout our country and the rest of the world, but the Royal Domain was home to the true Kinetic King.
I’d read that many years ago, King Forest’s predecessor had fallen in love with the many landscapes that the State of Georgia provided, so he’d chosen to plant the flag there.
Thankfully, Elementals had pulled their kids out of the human schools that mingled with us years ago.
After the incident with Chrome that nearly exposed both of our kinds and the rising tensions over the past decade, they decided they’d homeschool their children.
At least we didn’t have to worry about any depletions happening in the schools.
I nodded. “Okay. So, last period in the gym,” I said, my mind already spinning with plans. “I can see if Ms. Hawthorne will let me leave class early. I’m sure it won’t be an issue.”
Hazel rolled her eyes. “Yeah, because you’re the golden boy. You’re lucky Chrome doesn’t go to our school; otherwise, he’d take your place in a Kinetic second.”
I snorted with a small smile. “Leave it to you to always remind me to stay humble, Hazy.” Not that I even cared about the hierarchy at a human school.
“That’s why I exist,” she responded dryly.
“No, it’s not.” I chuckled. “You’re gonna make a great spy one day.” I ruffled the top of her hair, earning a scowl from my sister. “And Gods, I really envy you for that skill.”
The savory scent of roast beef and seasoned vegetables wafted up my nose. My stomach growled, reminding me of how hungry I was and how glad I was that I wasn’t at the revel. After serving myself a plate and sitting down at the dinner table, I faced my family.
“Dinner smells delicious, Mom.” I gave her a wide grin from across the long table where she sat beside my father, who headed it.
My mother’s soft pink hair was braided over one shoulder, her signature style that left a few strays to fly loose. “Thanks, honey. I hope you enjoy.” It was her insistence of “no magic at the table” that was the only intent rule of etiquette we all adhered to.
“I know I will. I’m starving.” I didn’t waste time before digging into the roast beef.
“How’s training going, son?” My father’s gruff voice broke through my ravenous tunnel vision. “I heard about the mission the other night.”
I shrugged as I chewed. “It’s going fine. I’m no Chrome yet, but I’ll get there,” I responded after swallowing a mouthful of roast beef that made me want to groan. “As for the mission… what were you told?” I asked, wondering what information to omit.