Chapter 6: Sapphire

She opened her eyes, the deep shades of her bedroom helping her adjust to the blue lights. She was scared to sleep, and had only gotten ten minutes before the nightmare's finally kicked in. After the recent indecent around Sapphire kingdom, and learning that this was also happening in Onyx, only heightened the fear that resides in her mind.

Indie was only a noble who lived in the castle with the king and queen, but they included her on most royal debates. Recently they had just gotten word of the people in white making an appearance in the Onyx kingdom. It seemed this was growing to be more of a problem. The people in white had been tormenting Sapphire for a year now, claiming that they needed no monarchy. Indie disagreed. The king and queen were nothing but kind, the only kingdom that needed better monarchy was Viridian. And the king barely even ran his own kingdom, it was the nobles and bourgeoisie who took care of the government.

The queen of Sapphire, Aurelia, was a beautiful goddess like woman with a small baby bump and milk chocolate skin. Her gorgeous dark hair was almost always in a bun with sapphire jewels eventuating her blue eyes. Indie had always admired the queen, she wished to look like her someday. For now she was just a seventeen year old girl with acne, round glasses, and poor makeup skills. But who could blame her? She had no mother to teach her the essential way to take care of all that stuff.

She got out of bed and did up her caramel hair. Her eyes were a dark magenta color and her skin was pale…not the best thing when everyone compared you to a vampire. She had sharp fangs and long slender legs that gave her the look of a bloodsucker. She hated to admit it, but she didn't mind the title. It was almost something cool to her. Vampires didn't come off as gross or scary, just cool and possibly hot.

She did some light makeup over her face, blue eyeshadow and some pink blush. Her eyes were almond shaped and made her look more cat like. Indie loved cats. She then pulled on her blue dress, some white stockings, and pretty sapphire jewelry. This kingdom was famous for its sapphire supply.

As soon as she had finished dressing up, she made her way out of her room and down to the kitchen. Sure, it was two in the morning, but it was never too early for breakfast. It was, after all, the first meal you ate in a day. She quickly got to work, chopping up some fruit and mixing it around in a bowl. Her favorite food, a fruit salad. Indie could always go for a good old fruit salad.

But, just as she finished taking the first bite of her breakfast, footsteps ran right into the kitchen. She lifted her gaze to see a town leader panting and leaning over. He frantically looked to a Indie, obviously something was wrong.

"Lady Indigo!" His voice was hoarse as he gave her a look that said he needed help. "A huge Onyx carriage has just pulled into the town!"

Huge? Onyx? Why would they be in the Sapphire? Indie had no recollection of the Onyx Royalty visiting, or anyone from Onyx for that matter. Why would a giant carriage be in the town? Were they perhaps attacking? Giant carriages could most definitely hold many Onyxian soldiers. Indie quickly stood and followed the man without hesitation.

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Sapphire kingdom. Raven could barely believe his eyes as they traveled through the kingdom. It was extremely close to Crimson, only a days ride away. It was easy for them to make visits to the other, and for the most part, they were allied. Raven couldn't say the same for his own kingdom. Sapphire had once been a powerful kingdom before their newest king and queen took hold of the throne. Onyx had never really liked the Sapphire kingdom.

But he could always appreciate the beauty aspect. It was early in the morning, the sun hadn't even begun to rise. That meant the sapphire lights were glowing above the shops and homes around Sapphire's main village, and all the others for that matter. He smiled to himself as he looked out the window.

Nobody was outside, of course, but he noticed the occasional light flicker on as they rode past. It was a natural reaction to such a loud carriage. They weren't exactly hidden, that was for sure.

Raven glanced at the others who were seated in the carriage as well. Flynn Crimson, the eldest son and the current crowned king. Although rumors say he planned to become famous for inventing things rather than ruling a kingdom. Rowan, the princess's royal guard, sat on his own further away from everyone else. He had been quiet the whole way and only spoke to Rosewood. And of course, Rosewood. She sat so prettily, her dress and hair messy as she had just woken up. But her eyes were wide while she stared out the carriage window today.

"Flynn! It's the most beautiful village ever!" Rosewood exclaimed in a hushed yet loud whisper. Flynn chuckled.

"I know, sis, I can see."

Raven admired their relationship. Throughout the journey they would check on each other or play games. It was cute, and it reminded Raven of his own brothers. Always trying to keep it playful during any situation. He missed them now, it had already been four days since he'd last been home. He never traveled like this, not alone.

Soon enough the carriage came to an abrupt stop, and the royals sat straighter. They all stayed silent as they listened to the outside. The coachmen were talking with someone it seemed, the conversation getting louder with every few words. Raven was worried they'd ran into some thieves.

He was about to get out of the carriage himself when the door opened, revealing one of their coachmen. He gave the prince an apologetic look before motioning them all to climb out. Raven was first, meeting face to face with a pretty girl that seemed high school age. Her hair was a caramel color and her eyes were a magenta. She seemed confident, but he could feel the fear radiating off of her. Flynn stepped out next and then Rowan. They all stood to the side as the girl started speaking. Where was Rosewood?

"Prince Raven? Prince Flynn? What do we owe the pleasure of the Crimson and Onyx kingdom visiting?" She seemed to fumble her words as she spoke, but her expression stayed somewhat calm.

"We've come on a quest to find these people in white. We were just on our way to the outskirts when we decided to take a detour towards Sapphire." Prince Raven gave her a soft smile as he kept his hands behind his back.

"O-oh, this is about the people in white? Have you heard of our situation by now?" She seemed hopeful when she asked, but this only left them confused.

That's when Rosewood stepped out. She had fixed her hair and makeup, looking like a porcelain doll as she stepped out of the carriage. Raven almost reached out to lift her off the steps, afraid she would break. She gave the sweetest smile towards the girl and walked right over to her. Every single step was so slow and precise, so graceful. Everyone hushed, and the men (besides her brother and guard) all seemed to blush. Raven didn't like that.

"You must be Lady Indie. I've heard so much about you, dearest, and it's a pleasure to see you in person. It was a disappointment you weren't there for my birthday as my sister is quite the fan." Rosewood spoke gently before lifting her hand to cover her mouth, giggling. Raven wasn't sure if he was getting sick or if she was the the one making his head spin.

"Y-you've heard of me? And your sister is a fan?" The girl, Indie, immediately lost her original aura.

"Of course. Such a young artistic talent, my sister loves art. I'm sorry if we scared you at such an impossible time."

"It's no w-worries at all, I'm sure the king and queen would be honored to have you visit!"

"Honored?" Raven voiced. For the first time since Rosewood stepped out of the carriage, everyone turned to him. "They hate the Onyx family, don't they?"

"Hate is a strong word, Prince Raven, and they don't have anything against you." She peered into the carriage before nodding. "If it's just you four then we should be fine!"

"I appreciate the offer but we must be on our way-"

"No, you must at least try some of our food! It would be a pleasure to have you taste something from the Sapphire Kingdom." She frantically turned and walked towards a small store.

Raven groaned internally and looked to his travel partners, not sure what to do now. It wasn't often that he got to eat good from foreign kingdoms though, so he sighed and started to follow. He listened to the footsteps behind and and detected that the three Crimson people were close behind him. It was strange, as this probably would mean he was being taken to jail. But instead he was completely fine and wandering through the Sapphire kingdom.

They eventually stopped at what seemed to be a diner that was open all night and day. Which was strange, as the kingdom's population didn't seem likely to have a place staffed for all nighters. But they entered anyone, and to Raven's surprise, there were a few people dressed in blue hanging around. They took a seat with Indie in a booth, Rosewood scooting close to Raven. He felt the need to protect her as she looked around, obviously somewhat scared. But she kept her pretty and innocent appearance on the outside.

"Lady Indigo! What can I get for you, sweet pea?" A waitress with a thick southern advent booped on over, way too energetic for it to be nighttime.

"Just a few cups of blueberry tea and some scones, please ma'am." Indie handed the woman a small bag of money, watching her walk off.

Raven took that time to look around the diner, noticing the photos and decor. Everything was either blue or white, nothing else. It was almost nice seeing such a vibrant and diverse color after all the black he'd been seeing. Even the Crimson kingdom had given his mind a break. And Raven was sure he had it go, as the color he'd been forced to see since birth was really just a shade.

"So I take it you don't know about our own incidents?" Indie asked as they had been sitting in silence.

"I've been traveling the past four days, word hasn't gotten to me yet I suppose."

"We recently revealed to your kingdom about the last year and how the people in white have been tormenting us. They kill people, who I think are innocent, but after your confession about them…" She gave a guilty stare towards the table. "I watched them execute one. They hung her and made her boy watch. He was only twenty and he witnessed his mothers death before being thrown in the dungeons. This was last month, and he still won't speak."

"So…" Raven trailed, waiting for her to continue.

She took a breath before speaking again. "Prince Raven, are they really killing for revenge? That woman…she killed an old coworker of hers, I did my research. The person she killed had apparently mocked her and hurt her daily."

"My immediate assumption is that they are upset with the monarchy," Flynn commented. He reached across the table and held his sister's hand. "People treat them like that and the royals don't do anything to fix it…and if there is an entire community?"

"Queen Aurelia is a saint!" Indie protested, a little too quickly for Raven.

"Sure, she's sweet, and her husband is a mediocre king. But we are talking about harassment and murder. About revenge." Flynn seemed to know what he was talking about. Raven was more than willing to agree with that as well.

He still couldn't quite grasp the fact that his family hadn't noticed the awful things those people were doing in his kingdom. A young girl was murdered, for gods sake, and nobody did a thing! He was mad at himself for that. Why had nobody reported this? Why had that child not been in trouble sooner? Why had those suicides not been investigated by Pitch or even Jett?

He was about to put in his opinion when the waitress came back with their drinks and scones. They stayed silent for a moment, drinking and eating. Then, it was Rosewood's turn to speak.

"I think we should investigate the other cases. It's obvious to me that all these people have been wronged in some way. Wether it was by the monarchy or the people. And in most cases, the people are the monarchy. You know which kingdom I think has the most issues with its government?"

"Viridian. It's obvious they must have the majority when it comes to people in white, if we go by Flynn's claim." Raven responded, a smile forming on his face. This little red princess might just be smarter than she pretended to be.

They finished eating soon enough, heading back to the carriage. But Raven could feel that something was off with Lady Indie. She was almost sad to see them go. Which led him to doing something he really didn't expect.

He asked her to join them.