The Vault

It was the evening before the coronation and presentation of the twins to the world. It would be a full and tiring day, and Aurora knew she should sleep. But knowing and doing are two different things. The princess sent her maids away after dinner and lay down on top of the blankets on her bed in her under clothes. It was far too much work to put on her night clothes, and yet in her exhaustion she knew she could not rest. Reaching for her collar bone, she ran her fingers along the delicate golden necklace which her father had given her. Her mind was empty and full all at once.

A soft knock from the wall caught Aurora's attention. She sighed and sat up with a groan. Throwing on a thick green robe, she pulled the switch and allowed Devrim to enter.

"I can't sleep," the boy said when he saw her upset glare. "I don't suppose you want to go exploring?" The princess continued her death-stare. "Please?" Devrim begged. "We didn't go last night, and there is still so much to see. Please Aurora."

The boy played his trump card by using his friend's name. He knew how much she loved to hear him say it. Her resolve weakened. "Fine," she agreed reluctantly, "But just a short trip!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" He saluted her, which caused the girl to smirk.

"Don't do that or I'll change my mind," she warned playfully.

Once in the secret halls, they wound there way to the bottom floor, peeking in and out of the many hidden windows. It still amazed them that it appeared no one—well, almost no one—could hear or see them. They came alongside the Council's meeting room. Before they were even with the window, the pair could already hear a heated discussion going on within.

"Why can't we ask the future Empress ourselves? Is it not she who selects the Chief of the Council?" Zan was angry.

Cafer nodded, "Of course the new Empress has already selected me. How long have I been Chief? Her Majesty knows it would be foolish to change things now."

"I would feel better if I were to hear it from the future Empress's mouth," Birger sided with Zan.

"How many times did Zephyra give me an order, and all of you trusted my relay of the information?" Cafer tried to redirect their thoughts. "Besides, whatever the world believes, the new Empress is still a little girl, and frankly, all of you scare her."

Aurora balled her fists. She was afraid of many things, but the men of the Council were not among them. This was a blatant assassination of her character.

"She seemed brave enough to me. I saw no fear when she argued for the babies' lives." Ezer commented.

"Ezer is right!" Zan yelled. "You've been keeping her from us!"

Cafer seemed unperturbed. "I understand your concern. I would be too if I were in your place."

"It isn't that you are not good at your job, Cafer," Birger tried to calm the room.

"You are an excellent Chief," Ezer agreed. "But your methods are sometimes extreme. Are you sure this is the future Empress's desire?"

"Her desire is for the Empire to remain intact. As such she has selected me for Chief. This is the end of the matter."

Zan could not hold his tongue. "You are hiding something, Cafer. I will speak to the Empress myself."

For the first time, Cafer's placid façade broke. His eyes narrowed on Zan and his voice came out as a hiss. "I would caution you not to approach the young Empress rashly. I would hate to have to advise her to replace you…for her own safety of course."

"You fiend!" Aurora yelled in spite of herself. Her anger seethed as she realized just exactly how low Cafer would stoop to retain his power. He had used her name to stamp approval on his decisions. It was infuriating. Cafer's head snapped to the hidden window. Although no one else in the room reacted to her outburst, it was clear the Chief had heard it. His eyes stared intently at the wall.

"Get back!" Devrim whispered hastily as he pulled the girl away from the window. He held her tightly and urged her toward the wall, only to find the wall was no longer there. Where once had been solid glow-stone, now there was a strange and unfamiliar doorway. Devrim was too panicked to care. He led the girl down the long thin corridor until he was sure they were out of sight. Finally they stopped to catch their breath.

"The nerve of Cafer! To think he can decide who I select for my Chief! Why I ought to just…where are we?" Aurora realized something was off. They hadn't been this direction before, and the walls were not made of the sparked glow-stone like the other passages. The walls here were dark, yet something was giving off light.

Devrim gasped, "Aurora, your necklace! It's shining like it's on fire." The princess looked down at her chest. The delicate gold chain shone as if it was alive, a rainbow of colors radiating through the cords. "Has it ever done that before?"

Aurora shook her dark head, her mouth agape. "Never," she responded. "This place feels different. How did we get here?"

Devrim shrugged. "The wall kind of opened up when I leaned on it. I know the doorway wasn't there before."

"Where do you think it leads?" Aurora wondered, motioning down the hall.

"Only one way to find out." Devrim led the way. For once it was the princess who had to give chase.

"Wait for me!" Neither of them could tell how far they went, but two things were clear: they were heading down underground and they were no longer inside the palace grounds. Outside the light of Aurora's necklace, there was only darkness. Finally they approached another doorway. It had the same foreign appearance as the first, and the pair entered it with the due amount of respect.

The princess's necklace had been growing brighter with every step, and now the light burst forth like a hundred fireflies, igniting the sconces along the walls of the room with an ethereal blue light. The room was filled with rows and rows of shelves. On each shelf was every size and shape of book. As Aurora looked around, she could read some of the titles of the books, but many were in writing she could not understand. Some were in old languages she recognized from her lessons, but the more exotic-looking ones had script resembling geometric symbols. "It's a library. Why keep it down here?" Aurora mused.

Devrim corrected her, "I think it's a vault. A vault for knowledge."

"Why would someone need a vault like that?" the girl was confused.

Devrim was wise beyond his years. "Because knowledge is powerful. In the wrong hands it can be wielded as a weapon, and in the right hands it's an agent of peace."

"I choose option two," Aurora said decidedly. They wandered through the shelves, Aurora picking up books to flip through their pages. There were pictures of elves, gnomes, and artistic sketches of Fates. "So many fairy tale creatures," Aurora commented. "Do you think they actually exist?"

"Perhaps they did at one time. How else do you explain this place? It's so clean and yet so ancient. And your necklace? I've never seen human things glow like the light of the sun."

"Hm." Aurora could not refute him. "My father claimed the necklace was made by the Fates themselves."

"Then perhaps your necklace is why we found this place."

"That's a fair guess... Look at that!" Aurora ran up to a small wooden podium that appeared to be used for the examination of documents. On it laid a single-page document. "It's a map!" All of the known world was sketched on the map, though not exactly as Aurora remembered it from her geography lessons. The writing on it was more geometric figures, and the top of the map was the strangest of all. Above a white barrier was a circular symbol inlaid with gold.

Devrim noticed the strange symbol too. "What do you suppose this means?" He touched the gold filigree gently. Suddenly, the whole room rumbled. The children had a sinking feeling. The lights on the wall abandoned their perches and attached themselves back to Aurora's necklace.

"I think that's our cue to go." The girl said. Her words were unnecessary. Devrim had already taken her hand and was leading her toward the exit. The room groaned again, causing the pair to quicken their pace. Once they were out of the vault, it disappeared from view, leaving only a wall of black stone behind. The passage also began to fade, and Devrim and Aurora ran with all their might. Even when they had left the strange black walls behind and returned to the glow stone, they did not slow their pace. Not until they were safely back at the princess's room did they finally stop. Neither had words for what they had just experienced, and they parted ways in silence. Aurora had never been so glad to climb into her own bed. She did so, robe and all, passing out before her head even hit the pillow.