Episode 7: The Prince and the Puppy

***Alastair***

Wilhelmina was in the kitchen when Alastair woke up the next day. She was reading something on her weird watch.

The dog bowl was on the counter next to an open bag of puppy food. Wilhelmina must not have fed her yet.

Alastair furrowed his eyebrows. What does puppy food taste like anyway?

Wilhelmina slapped his hand when he went to reach into the puppy food. "Don't eat that!"

Wilhelmina grabbed the puppy food and made it for the puppy.

Since Wilhelmina had her back turned, Alastair snatched a piece of puppy food out of the bag and popped it in his mouth. He then immediately ran to the sink to throw up.

She took a deep breath before rubbing his back. "See? It's nasty, right?"

He nodded before going to the table.

The puppy hung her tail between her legs. 'Are you okay?'

"I'm okay."

Wilhelmina gave him a cup of cranberry juice before turning her attention back to the soup.

The vomit taste was gone from his mouth.

Wilhelmina set a plate of scrambled eggs in front of hm. "Will you be alright if I go do some work?"

He nodded.

"What do you do for work, anyway? I haven't asked you yet."

Uh...

"I'm a journalist." Alastair paused for a second. "Can I borrow your laptop?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Don't you have one?"

Electricity pooled in his cheeks. "I left it at my last place."

"Alright. I left it in the living room. I might need it in the evening, though." She handed him the collar. "We should really name her today, too."

Oh, yeah... We really should...

Wilhelmina glanced behind her before leaving.

The puppy tilted her head. 'What were you talking about?'

"A name for you." Alastair scooped her up so they could go back to his room. "You should have one."

When they got into his room, he shut the door and they laid down on his bed.

"What about Ivory then?"

'Ivory?'

"I think Ivory is a sort of white. White and super light yellow are pretty similar."

'What else?'

"Skye?"

'Not that, either...'

He stopped to think for a minute. "How about Opal?"

'What's that?'

He smiled. "It's a fancy rock. It shines all sorts of shiny colors."

'I don't really want to be named after a rock.'

"Snowy?"

'One of the puppies in my litter was called that, so I don't wanna be called that.'

"Frost?"

'What's that?'

"I think it's sorta like ice."

'I don't like snow that much... Snowy loved it, though.'

Love? The eggs were good, but I'd love to have some applesauce right now... Applesauce? That could be a cute name.

"How about applesauce?"

She turned her head. Her tail fell between her legs. 'I think I've gotten that thrown at me...'

Who would dare do that to a puppy?

Alastair's mouth opened itself. "Oh, honey..."

'Honey? She licked his nose. 'I wouldn't mind being called that.'

He laughed. Her tongue tickled. "Honey, it is."

'Thank you for naming me!' Her tail wagged. 'You're officially my favorite human!'

He stroked her back. "You're a sweet puppy, Honey."

'Do you have a name, too?'

"Just call me Star. It's short and easy to remember." I held out the collar. "I have another gift for you, too."

Honey yipped. 'Put it on! Put it on!'

He laughed. Even girl puppies liked getting dressed up.

"I'm going to do some work in the living room." He smiled. "Did you want to stay here or come in the living room with me?"

'I wanna be with you! Why are you asking?'

"Let's go then."

Wilhelmina had left her device on the couch cushion.

When he picked it up, a male voice started talking. "You must be Master Alastair. My name is Stephan. Lady Wilhelmina gave you temporary permission to use this device. Though, some functions have been locked for her own safety and privacy. Those apps without the lock icon are the ones you are free to use. Let me know if you need any assistance."

When he flipped the keyboard out, a popup popped up.

"Would you like to use me as a computer, Alastair?"

"Yes, please."

Where should he start?

Alastair ruffled his hair. Jeez... How could Hannah's friend be so late? How could he work when he didn't know what he was supposed to do? Where could he start when he knew nothing about this world? How could he try to research?

Honey licked his arm.

"You just ate!"

'I'm not hungry. You feel yucky.'

"No, I don't."

'I can smell it. Why are you mad?'

"I'm not mad."

She licked his cheek before rubbing her nose against his nose. Alastair couldn't help but laugh. It was wet but it tickled.

'Will you rub my belly?'

He smiled. "Okay, but only cuz you're cute."

She sighed and melted into his lap. That soothed grin made it more than worthwhile.

She soon dozed off, and Alastair could work without having to worry about her.

How could anyone abandon such a sweet puppy? It was beyond him. I was already glad I brought her home. Was this place like Russia or something?

"Stephan, what kind of government does this country have?"

"It is a monarchy. Would you like to hear more about it?"

He stroked the top of Honey's head. "Yes, please."

Once upon a time Nachima had been like many other worlds, once divided into many nations. Until a small kingdom in the northern continent, Rubicund, journeyed south in search of fertile lands. Two thousand years ago, the weather grew cold as a minor ice age set in. That incident was known as the Thousand Year Frost. King Fredrich led his people, the Kesselerites, into the fertile crescent, which was rich in grains. Just as Fredrich was about to unite the continent, he was killed in battle against the Reinerians, a people from the southern continent, Gelb.

Alastair furrowed his eyebrows. There had been an ice age. Had it been enough time for the world to be due for one? Del had to build dams before storms flooded places out. But if he had to deal with an ice age, shouldn't Kayleigh have asked for En?

Stephan continued reading. Prince Alaric was forced to succeed his father at age seventeen, taking the reins of an overstretched kingdom on the cup of its first war with an extra-continental foe.

As the Kesserites were pushed northward into their historic homelands by the Reinerians, a boy mysteriously appeared before Alaric, wearing close to nothing despite the chilly weather.

Nursed back to health by the prince, the mysterious child said he was sent to this world by the gods (many praises be to them in their holy wisdom) to end the war. The prince told him that there would be no end to war unless Nachima was unified. Hearing this, the boy who identified himself as Marcus said that was what they would do.

With his divinely chosen ally, Alaric fought back against the Reinerians, kicking them out of Rubicund. The new king didn't stop, giving pursuit to the fleeing Reinerians. The fleet of the Reinerians was no more by the time its ships docked in Reinerian soil as the Kesserlites occupied them. The force ambushed the unsuspecting Reinerians, conquering the nation that had plagued them for years in six months.

From their recently established foothold on Gelb, Alaric didn't waste time to take the rest of the lands. Thus, the twin continents of Nachima were united under the house of Kessler.

Done with his task, Marcus told Alaric that he had to go back home, to being a slave in a nation called Rome.

Alaric couldn't believe his ears. He couldn't allow his new friend to leave, especially to be treated no better than a beast. After much talking, Alaric convinced Marcus to stay in Nachima, to help him administer over his vast kingdom.

Marcus agreed and watched over Rubicund while Alaric went out west to Gelb to establish a new capital city in the ruins of the Reinerian capital of Obeshberg.

Things went well, until an army attacked the shores of Gelb. Alaric took the uprising with ease and demanded from the lone survivor who it was they worked for. The man said it was Marcus who sent him.

In disbelief, Alaric threw the man off of the ship and quickly sailed back to Rubicund. There, he was met by a legion of armed men aiming for his life. Alaric and his small escort narrowly escaped alive. Yet, despite their situation, the king continued to head toward the center of the continent, where the capital his father had built was. There, he found that the assassin's words rung true. Marcus was indeed after his life.

"Stephan." He furrowed my eyebrows. "What happened after that?"

"Marcus had been apprehended by one of Alaric's advisers who claimed he heard Marcus conspire in the dead of night. Marcus pleaded this wasn't true, but the adviser was adamant. The Key Keeper and former slave wanted the crown himself and was beheaded for his treason."

Alastair closed the laptop before he stroked Honey's back with tears in his eyes. Well, that was sad...