1 Chapter 1: The Princess, Astra

7th July, 5077

The day marked the birth of the Queen Astra, the destined ruler of the planet Mega-Earth, KEPLER. The next monarch of Kepler, Astra, the daughter of God Elohim and Flora.

"Arrggggghhhh, I can't stay strong anymore" Queen Flora cried out in excruciating pain, the immensity of which she had never felt before while she was delivering the baby.

That night was bitterly cold, it seemed ominously and more uncanny than usual, almost to a fault. Ravens cawed and the moon gleamed in hue of vermilion. The eerie feeling persisted but to no avail. The moonlight was directly gleaming upon the kingdom, the pangs of forlorn growing by the second.

Elohim could fathom the power of evil haunting that night. Though everyone was high in spirits, the lurking danger of death appeared imminent.

Their kingdom, the planet "KEPLER-10c" lies 560 light-years from Earth in the constellation Draco, where it orbits Kepler-10 with a year of 45 days. It weighs 17 times as much as Earth and is more than twice as large in size. Even the planet formation theorists back home are challenged to explain how such a massive world could have formed. The prospect is so perplexing in regards to its constitution that it has opened up a new category of exoplanets called "Mega-Earths."

Elihom was known as the God of this planet and he was venerated like one.

Alas, even the God couldn't save his wife because that wretched night he had to either choose his wife or his daughter. This seemed as premeditated and Elihom was trying his best to save his family.

That same pathetic night, a gloom crept in with the waving moon and the almighty God was reduced to a pitiable state as he lost his beloved wife. Flora was counting her last breath as Astra took her first. The birth of Astra took the sacrifice of her own mother. Mixed up in a myriad of feelings, Elohim felt at loss. The joy of being a father and the sorrow of losing his Queen tugged at his heartstrings.

While holding Flora in his arms he said, "I promise you, my love that I'll make our daughter the most capable queen for our kingdom so that no one can deceive her." With these words, he bid farewell to his Queen.

She was blessed with an appearance of an angel. An incarnation of ethereal beauty she had inherited from the previous monarch, Flora herself. Her first impression of giggles that came from deep inside, always wonderful and precious, so much that one could not help but love her. She was the only one who could once again render sunshine in Elohim's life with her adorable and delicate smile, bright precious eyes sparkling that hauntingly resembled her mother.

Her true journey begins to take shape from the day Elohim prepares her for all possible outcomes to face in the upcoming season of her life. He was preparing her to be a woman of no weakness, ricocheting with fortitude fueled by an incomparable foundation. Elihom decided to arrange a personal-guard-cum-teacher for Crown Princess Astra whose name was Robane Chaucer, a descendant from a duke's bloodline and who grew up alongside with Elohim. Though he is an attractive, highly-coveted bachelor, Robane always prioritize his position as an imperial knight foremost. He put duty above everything else and decided to serve the King faithfully.

With an appearance that can put the most handsome men to shame, Robane's wavy, crimson red hair with bangs fall into his light grey eyes. As an imperial knight, he has a tall, lean stature with long, muscular limbs and envious broad shoulders. As a guard, Robane typically wears a double-breasted shirt, matching pants, boots, and a black cape. It is on the debutant balls when he dons a formal, decorative knight ensemble.

From a young age, he prepared Astra for combat in the training grounds various plateaus extending from the edge of the cliffs of Kepler. They trained with weapons, spirit animals, clashing and testing one another to their limits to prove their valor as warriors of the highest order. Whilst engaging in a dazzling array of training exercises. Astra looked like an ageless beauty. From honing herself in staves, knives, swords, archery, spear throwing, and lasso from horseback to flying on the her Pegasus and accompanying other spirit through mist dimly glimpsed forest below where Astra would scrutinize the vibes of her majestic Kingdom. It's breathtaking – all from the edge of the field, every nook and corner is unearthly.

"Just 20 reps more I guess Robane" said Astra, gleaming with sweat as she arched her eyebrow.

"No, my princess you are suppose to do 30 more." Robane smirked in a teasing fashion.

Elohim's eyes blazed with pride at Astra's growth. He was nurturing a rewarding relationship with her daughter. From dusk till dawn he would cherish the moments with his precious daughter where he could discern Astra becoming the best version of herself.

Inculcating some divine magical trick and practicing to deal with any spirits, Astra was constantly refining her own gifts that she blessed with from her birth. Little did Elohim know that his daughter could feel her mother's presence when she used to occasionally burnout from excessive workouts.

Astra's best friends were her father and Knight Robane who always had her back through every thick and thin, through her high and low tides. Their special bond full of warmth made the kingdom bright enough to sparkle.

Astra was known as an enigma because the kingdom was oblivious of her powers. Elohim was too overprotective for his daughter and knew that someone would surely take advantage of Astra's abilities when the word spreads about the capabilities of his daughter! Her powers were a secret kept safe with her father. Astra developed the ability to wield magic hidden from the eyes of the world. Due to her abundance of mana and innate affinity towards magic, she is capable of easily conjuring spells that would typically require years of practice. The nature of her magic is related to time, allowing her to transcend dimensions.

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Years passed and Astra turning into a 15 year old teenager with sharp features with long, wavy brunette hairs which she usually tied back into a high ponytail with soft bangs falling into her jewel-blue eyes, the trademark of the royal family. Her appearance often compared to that of her mother, Flora was a constant source of discussion. Her chiseled face, flawless complexion, deep heavy lidded piercing eyes, muscular stature with mesmerizing personality was certainly glorious enough to enchant any being. She mostly dressed in warrior's attire instead of following the typical trend of the noble ladies. It only made her stand apart further.

"Good morning princess, please get ready soon and I hope you to have a great day ahead." Diana, her nanny greeted.

"Thank you and you too Diana" replied Astra in a gentle tone.

Diana Alger volunteered to be the nanny of Astra. With a kind and nurturing nature, Diana raised Astra as if she was her very own child. Although strict at times, Diana works in favor of her motherly instincts, protecting the young Astra with all her might. Despite her timid tendencies, Diana displays conspicuous bravery and confidence in the face of any challenge that threatens to harm even a strand of Astra's hair.

A bright young woman, Diana, with chestnut-brown hair, generally pinned back into a braided bun, her sweeping bangs which veer to the left fall shortly over her sea-like blue eyes. Diana commonly wore her maid's uniform which consisted of a simple black dress worn over a white blouse with a thin black tie and black buttons.

As the exclusive nanny to the crown princess, Diana was placed in charge of ensuring that all of Astra's needs were met. Additionally, Diana would lovingly read and educate Astra on topics such as etiquette.

A constant chide that Diana would chuckle over was Astra's love for sugary treats. "Oh, my lord, Princess even though you have a sweet tooth, you shouldn't consume this amount of bagels so early in the morning before breakfast." Shaking her head at Astra in disapproval, she continued to emphasize, "Too much sweet is not good for health, it will also make you overweight and less agile."

"Don't worry Diana I'll burn it while working out" Astra replied back sharply, feeling a bit irritated.

Running towards the closet and removing attire for the day, Diana wittingly changed the topic by saying," Princess you look so gorgeous in the floral pink gown but unfortunately black is your favorite colour. How will you spend your day today? Since the weather is so moist and cloudy, there will surely be a heavy downpour!

"Well I don't know, let's see, I'll ask Robane about it" Astra remarked casually.

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A glorious luxury style royal wood dining table set for the morning breakfast with all the scrumptious delicacies served with gold and silver cutlery, each stoutly upheld of copious meals. The table was laid by the servants and the king's chair was put in place and followed by the princess chair too.

Preparing for the following day's event, Astra sat next to King Elihom on the breakfast table.

Elihom cast a worried eye at her, "I had an epiphany Astra and it seems some bad energy is lurking and growing powerful by the day, I want you be on guard."

"Don't worry dad. It's just your overprotective father instinct that makes you feel in this manner" Astra dismissed his worries without giving a heed to his warning.

....

The next day, Astra was getting dressed up in her training attire in her bedroom. In the midst, there was the knock from Robane.

"Good morning Princess but we probably have to stay in the castle. There will be no practice today. We better read the theories and practice with some spells. Besides it's raining heavily." He let out a sheepish smile while his eyes saddened knowingly at Astra.

Astra agreed to it but a sense of gloom took over her and her expression was quirky which made Robane tense further. The rest of the day crawled by at a snail's pace.

It was Astra's dejected and lonely look which made Robane thought of introducing Astra with someone of her age with whom she can get along well. Without any second thought he went directly to Elihom for his permission.

In Elihom's studyroom, he voiced out his concerns. "I would like Astra to make some friends of her age who could support honing her in magic and I know a person who fits well" Robane suggested as he ran his fingers quickly across his hair, worry gleaming in his eyes.

"I trust you Robane and believe princess to be in safe association and company. You already know I can't trust anyone when it comes to Astra" said Elihom in his characteristically resigned tone. Ever since Flora's death, his entire world revolved around his daughter.

"My majesty, I understand your concern and won't let you down. Thank you for your consideration." Robane excitedly nodded.

Robane's joy knew no bounds as he headed up to visit the Hercules watchtower to meet Christopher.

On the way while horse-riding Ronbane thought, "Astra accompanying the magician would help her to get a good peer and someone who's of her age too." Now the little Princess won't have to drown in a sea of loneliness.