~Sam~

Sam reckoned that he had never been so cold in his life. In this dark, damp, sulfurous dungeon, it seemed to seep through his tattered clothes and settle deep in his bones. His fingers were stiff, and his lip quivered uncontrollably, and curling in on himself was all that he could do to prevent himself from freezing to death.

He decided that the best thing he could do to distract himself was to think; so he thought about what had happened at his hearing earlier that day.

First, he thought about the room. Two banners were hung on the walls on each side of the thrones approximately twelve feet away from each other. One was that of Azor; his home city.

A weak smile broke across Sam's lips as he recalled his aunt Eudora. The memory almost being enough to make him forget about the cold. But then the face of that girl from the hearing cut through his mind and suddenly the cold had returned.

Sam's lip curled in disgust. No matter how much he despised the girl, she would not leave his mind's eye.

He could almost see her as clearly as if she were right in front of him.

She had very light brown hair, like desert sand. And her eyes were a smoky grey-blue. Her face was small and round, like a doll. And her expression was so dreamy, Sam almost wished that he could escape his reality as easily as she.

"Pst..." Someone whispered somewhere in the darkness. "Psssst!"

Sam pressed his back against the icy wall of his cell as his eyes darted around the room.

"Who's there?" He demanded.

The girl stepped out of the gloom and peered inside of his cell. The same girl from the hearing.

"I brought you some blankets." She said. She rolled up two blankets and squeezed them between the rusting bars of the cell. Sam caught them before they hit the ground.

He wrapped both of the blankets around his shoulders and pulled the back over his head like a hood.

When he found the girl again, she was sitting on the ground, staring at him with that dreamy look on her face.

"Who are you?" Asked Sam.

"My name is Elizabeth Morphew." Said the girl.

"Morphew..." Repeated Sam. "Like...Like the noble family?"

Elizabeth nodded. "That was my uncle at the hearing. And my cousin Helen."

"So...You're the princess?"

Again, Elizabeth nodded.

Sam sighed. "Why did you save me?"

"I want to know what a Mortem is."

Sam scoffed. "So you're keeping me around for info? And then what, you're gonna let your uncle kill me like he originally planned?"

"Oh no," Said Elizabeth. "I want to get you out of here. But under one condition."

"What?"

"I need you to tell me what a Mortem is. And after I break you out, I want to stick with you."

"No way--"

"You know you're way around Arcadia, don't you? I figured you would since you're obviously not from here."

"Yes, I know my way around. But if you break me out, you're not sticking with me. I'm not going to get blamed for your decision to leave."

"You'll have my protection. I swear it."

I didn't take Sam long to come to terms with babysitting the princess if it meant getting somewhere warmer than here. So he agreed.

"Now," Said Elizabeth. "What is a Mortem?"

"How do you live under the same roof as your uncle and not know what Mortem's are?"

"Answer the question," Elizabeth demanded.

"Fine. Are you at least aware of the old legions of rune magic?"

Elizabeth nodded as she crossed her legs eagerly.

"Well, in Arcadia, Rune's were to communicate with the higher realms. Mainly the fourth realm; The spirit realm.

Sometimes spirits and Arcadians would fall in love and have children. Those children were considered monsters because they could do things that normal Arcadians couldn't. They were deemed dangerous and against the laws of nature. Anyone who produced a Mortem was sentenced to death...And so was the kid."

"Could Mortems change how they looked?" Elizabeth asked.

Sam nodded. "I suppose. I've never met one--"

Suddenly Elizabeth's light brown hair began to bleed white, and her eyes grew even lighter, almost the exact same shade as his own.

"You..."

"I've never heard of Mortem's before," Elizabeth admitted. "My mother just told me that people said nasty things about my eyes and hair... So she made me change them."

"If your uncle finds out--"

"That's why I need you to take me away from this place." Said sighed desperately.

Sam considered this. "Fine." He said. "When do we leave?"

"Tonight." She replied. "My uncle is hosting a feast for the lord of Farrow tonight after another hearing. He doesn't expect me to join them, so tonight will be perfect."