Another One Bites the Dust...or not?

The runaway guard from the Lost Library reached the Royal Secretary's office instead of the Prince's chambers before havoc was wrecked upon Zyka only because all the guards were expected to, for the next few days, to report everything to the Secretary.

Ryoko was sipping her coffee when he came in with a red face and adjusted his hat before reiterating everything from their given task the previous day up to the girl with strange powers. "There was someone else, a Wintral spy, I suspect. The boy, about 16 years of age, had silver hair just like one of them."

Ryoko put her coffee down and ripples echoed throughout the gleaming brown surface. "Thank you. You're dismissed."

As the door slowly swung close, Ryoko reached for her phone and dialed Atlas's number for the tenth time that day. The monotone ring stretched across time but no one answered the desperate call. She wanted to throw the phone across the room, like the Prince himself had done before.

But she wasn't Atlas, how much ever she adored him. She was not a reckless teenager. She was a woman of class, of discipline...but now, she wished she had some of that recklessness in her so that she could make a move, any move.

"Atlas...where are you when I need you?" Ryoko curled her hands around the coffee, "What is going on?"

Sometimes, Ryoko suspected if another girl had entered his life. She used to hear him talk to someone with the doors of his room closed. He used to talk for hours on some days...incomprehensible things. He always talked through whispers during those times, like he knew someone was eavesdropping on him.

But if it was a girl, there would be dates, stargazing and concerts but Atlas had never left the palace since last New Year.

"What are you planning?" Ryoko mumbled, her eyes drooping.

She was thrown face first on to the table as a blast sounded from behind her. The furniture rattled and she heard the whiz of fighter planes.

She struggled to turn around, but when she did, her heart stopped at the sight of a thousand small airships coming towards the palace, orange flames and grenade shots all aimed at so called powerful Zyka.

She rushed to the door and saw Guards running. The pillars were burning in fire and ashes. The Chief of Army caught her sight. "Chief! Did the military take command?"

He halted and stood up straight, "Already done. The Navy is getting ready to deploy."

"Getting ready? What in the world were the Borderline Defenses doing when these buzzers shot in?" Ryoko demanded, her love demented head in a heightened frenzy.

"We were getting ready only in a week-"

"I don't care now," she hollered, throwing her hands up, "Just deploy all available resources! Limit casualties. The Wintrals have come here for the throne so it's a relief that Atlas is not here," Ryoko calculated out loud only realizing now that maybe him leaving was for this purpose. But Ryoko knew that he wasn't one to run away from threat. Then why did he leave?

"Our top priority must be to secure Royal information," Ryoko ordered, "Dismissed."

But the Chief hesitated, he couldn't bring himself to go, "But, Madam, since the Crown is not present for the Wintrals to abduct, shouldn't our top priority be protection of civilians?"

But Ryoko was already gone, her personal hoard of guards leading her to the safe chambers. The Chief of Army sighed and his eyes met with the second deputy of Army who awaited orders, "What should be our top priority sir?"

The Chief waited a second and curled his fists, trying to make up his mind. He gave up, time was running out, "Protection of Royal records."

The Second Deputy widened his eyes at the order, but he silenced himself and jogged off to follow command. Meanwhile, the Chief went to check on his little boy. If he couldn't protect the civilians, at least he should be able to protect the only family he had.

Isaiah's hands clutched her so tight that it left light marks. He shook her relentlessly as bombs and fire rained down upon them, as screams escaped from a hundred mouths. Isaiah couldn't hear anything...it was as if her lifeless corpse had ripped all senses out of him.

He bent down and gently touched his sweat traced forehead with hers, little drops of tears from his eyes falling on her nose. "Brooklyn," he whispered, "Don't leave me...I-I'm sorry, Brook..." he wheezed and shook his head frantically, "Don't leave me Brook!"

A hand touched his shoulder and Isaiah looked up at the sky as the sun blared against his red eyes. His irises adjusted and he saw the face of his dad.

"Son, get up. You can't stay here, it's dangerous," the Chief said, trying not to be stern. It broke him a bit too, to see such a vibrant and happy girl's face now transformed into a blank slate.

Brooklyn used to follow Isaiah around when they were kids. The Chief now remembered how she threw a tantrum in front of his house so she could sleep over at his place...and the bubble of joy she had been when he agreed. "Thank you so much! I am going to sleep here everyday!" she had giggled and followed Isaiah to the play room.

Lionel helped carry Brooklyn and they worked through the military base, trying their best to avoid fire. By the time they were by the gate, Lionel's eyes shifted towards the top of the palace and a shock of alertness shot through him.

He gave the girl to a broken Isaiah, "Take her to the infirmary...I have to protect the Palace now," and he ran off to call in more reinforcements. The Wintral army had reached the roof top and were trying to breach in from the top.

Isaiah nodded once and slumped forward, not knowing where to step. His face turned when he heard a voice calling his name, "Isaiah..." a quiet voice broke out.

Isaiah saw Kayden on the ground cradling another familiar face...Sam. Were Sam and Kayden friends? No...Isaiah thought, they weren't, they loved each other.

It was somewhat similar to the situation Isaiah was in but the only difference? He was too cowardly to even admit that he liked her. And now she is dead.

Kayden wasn't crying. He didn't scream or curse out like Isaiah did. He just stared...disbelieving. 'I knew coming here was a bad idea,' Kayden had thought, 'We'll go back to Jowamen, Sam, I'll try to get Dad to find some work for us...it'll be fine, Sam, it'll be fine,'

But Sam didn't reply. He didn't even breath.

Isaiah and Kayden made their way to the infirmary. People turned around to stare but no one offered to help.

"Nobody cares," the man had said. It was just them for themselves.

Adonis seemed to have chosen the infirmary as his hiding spot. There weren't many people her yet...he doubted the casualties will be brought in before everyone had finished dying. All he had to do was lie under a bed with his hat on and blend into the white walls, thinking about what he should do next.

He can't show his face now, they would only kill him on sight, if they figured out who he is. But he couldn't help but stand up when he saw the sparkly magic girl be brought inside the infirmary. She looked...dead?

Adonis walked towards the four and didn't take his eyes off Brooklyn, "Is she...is she dead?" He had only just seen her! No, she can't be dead...that's just absurd.

A mask fell over Isaiah as he brought up his guarded self and lay Brooklyn on a bed. Kayden did the same to Sam and knelt on the floor, his hand entangled with Sam's bloodless ones.

"Who are you?" Isaiah asked him, studying him simultaneously. The question he had asked was only one of the many questions that popped inside his head. How did he know here? When did they meet? Were they good friends? Is he safe?

Adonis got thrown off a little by the question. Who was he? Oh no, who was he? He can't be Adonis Selye, son of the Lord of the House of Selye South, one of the top three rising industries of Wintra. No, no.

"I'm Aiden, a boy who serves tea. I met this girl yesterday while...cleaning the pantry," Adonis lied.

"You don't sound like you're someone who would be just a servant," Isaiah said, deadlocking his gaze. Adonis aka 'Aiden' sounded arrogant, full of attitude. Like someone from a rich family.

Adonis shrugged and looked at Brooklyn. "Can't you heal yourself?" he whispered at her.

Isaiah's focus on this fishy fair boy only multiplied, "You know about her powers?" he asked incredulously. What was Brooklyn hiding from him? Who all knows? Isaiah scoffed internally. How stupid of him to think that he was the only one who knew. 'And to think I was special,' he thought sadly.

Adonis nodded, "I wonder if she got it from the Wheel...that's possible. Then she'll be alright if you take her to The Wheel."

Isaiah shook his head, "She's dead, Aiden," he said, trying to convince himself.

"Did she get her powers from the Wheel or not?" Adonis asked, suddenly being alert. He remembered the secret research programs--and the secret spies sent to Zyka-- the Selye South company used to perform on the 'Wheel of Zyka'...to hopefully steal it one day and put it into better and more profitable use.

Only recently had they found out, after countless spy reports, that a lightning strike upon the Wheel can cause some of the magic to fuse with the human DNA and send it to a more...superior state, allowing the person to tap into a different dimension and harness energy from there to reverse the normal laws of this dimension.

So if Wheel Magic can reverse laws...it can reverse death too, right? Adonis looked at Sam, they can probably save him too. Adonis promised to himself that he would try after seeing Kayden's face. It looked like it was okay, but any boy his age would understand the pain raging behind that face.

"It is," Isaiah admitted.

"Then let's get her there!" Adonis urged before Isaiah asked confusedly, "Why? Why are you trying to help us?"

The infirmary door swung open and the girl stood in front of it, panting. She winced and a hand clutched her chest.

"You!" Adonis yelled in joy. She had come to him without him having to find her again! He could finally find that Stone!

But the girl didn't look as happy. She staggered towards them and looked at the two lifeless bodies as she winced in pain again. Her heart...it felt like it was going to explode.

Pain rushed through it and sadness...and many feelings she had never felt before. But she wasn't hurt anywhere. Her body was completely fine. The hurt was coming from the inside.

"Are you okay?" Adonis asked. The girl shook her head, "Are they dying? No, no, they can't die," she said, her fear rising every second. She had survived all these years in Mars not just to die like this! She was sure that the pain she was feeling now was because the Dragon was in danger. It was the Dragon Stone inside her acting up, giving a warning signal.

It had started when she had almost reached the house and it got more intense when she stepped closer to the palace and less painful when she stepped away from the palace.

Following that as a guide, she walked towards the place where her pain was most intense and ended up in the infirmary. She looked between the two people, "The Dragon has got to be one of them," she said.

Adonis didn't understand what was going on with the girl who might know about the Dragon Stone. But what he did know was where the Wheel was and that he had to get them both there.

With Isaiah's and Kayden's help, they walked out of the infirmary with Brooklyn and Sam and headed towards the alley which lead to the lost library.

Adonis's eyes shifted through the pillars. There were a lot of Wintrals here, disguised as Zykarians. This battle is a lost cause for Zyka, Wintra is definitely on the win. The Prince was going to be assassinated today, Adonis realized.

The others followed 'Aiden' oblivious to the dark reality and into the alley.

But before they could get to the trap door, they found a lady with straight long black hair standing on top of the trap door with arms crossed.

She smirked, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Wintral Adonis Selye," she said.

Adonis gulped. Ryoko, the Crown Prince's Secretary only smirked wider. What was she doing here?

The three boys heard the shuffling of feet behind them. They turned around to see at least twenty guard standing behind them, trapping them with no where to go.

Kayden's hand curled tighter around Sam's torso, not sure how long they had left before it would be too late to save him.