The dragon landed on a circular platform suspended in the air that connected to the floating island like a large stone dock. We dismounted and walked toward a pair of guards. The view of the city from up this high was magnificent. You could tell a lot of thought had gone into how it was laid out. 

To the west and south of the city was a gigantic forest that went on as far as I could see. Somewhere in the southern forest was a large tower that tugged on a corner of my mind, but nothing more than a fancied pull came through the Veil. The east was a plain that gave way to rolling hills and some very impressive plateaus. The North was an ocean that stretched on into the horizon.

As we approached the guards of the dock, one took out a trumpet and tooted two notes loudly. They stood at attention as we passed by. Clem continued to walk as if nothing had happened so I guessed that was normal. The guards looked past us and didn’t even acknowledge me, so being with Clem was a free ticket into the castle.

The castle was of spectacular size and design. The building was full of large pointed spires that made the entire thing look like elaborately crafted stalagmites. The walls were a polished white marble and the roofs were all a matching red.

We walked to the doors of the castle through a garden of various beautiful and meticulously pruned looking plants. As we approached the doors, the four guards present stood at attention and one produced a trumpet, tooting the same two notes as the previous one. I winced at the loudness of the sound.

‘Hey, Clem? Are they going to do that everywhere we go?’

‘The trumpet? It’s their way of announcing I have arrived without yelling themselves horse. It will lessen when we get inside, but you will have to get used to it while around me. Also, until people are more used to you around here, you might want to call me Your Highness. At least around others.’

‘Are they going to cut my head off or something for being too friendly with you?’

‘No, but many will probably have a negative opinion of you for not respecting the monarchy.’

‘I’m not sure if you’ve realized yet, Clem, but I' not one to really care much for other people’s opinions of me.’

‘Not much of an aristocrat?’

‘In my experience, the politicians tend to argue semantics and cover for themselves while civilians and soldiers die needlessly on the front lines.’

‘I hope that you find my family different.’

‘Ah, but in the end, one family can’t possibly run a country on their own.’

At this point, a young woman in her early twenties came jogging down the hall in a very formal looking dress. She looked as beautiful as she did strong. She towered over me at six feet tall and the tone of her muscles that could be seen through the frills in her white and cobalt dress suggested she had spent considerable time training her body. She was an absolute Amazon.

Her long straight brown hair was held back from her face by a sparkling tiara and a jewel-encrusted pin. Subtle amounts of makeup highlighted her bright brown eyes as she excitedly hurried towards us. She quickly enveloped Clem in a hug.

‘Clementine! I heard the trumpet and I had to greet you.’

‘Sister! It has been too long. When did you return from the north?’

‘Just yesterday. I was absolutely devastated to find you had left on official business in my absence.’

‘It was just a short trip, although the ramifications of the trip will probably be widespread.’

I stood awkwardly on the side as she held her hands and let a concerned look furrow her brows.

‘A problem with the Fairybond school? Do I need to get involved?’

‘That won’t be necessary. This will best be handled by the council. I’m afraid a change in leadership may be necessary.’

 ‘The Headmistress has always been a bit…heavy-handed. Her results were respectable but maybe this is for the best.’

I chuckled to myself at the thought of Vicky being only slightly heavy-handed. I was eyeing what looked like a very elaborate vase on a pedestal by the wall when I found myself enveloped in a cage of arms and cloth.

‘Ack!’

‘And who do we have here? She is so tiny and cute! A new Fairybond from the school? She doesn’t look old enough to be a graduate though.’

I struggled against the iron-like grip of the princess but found myself lifted off the ground and spun around. Her arms were under my arms as she held me like a cat up to her chest. Clem let out a loud snort as I cursed not being able to use blink to escape her grasp. I had flashbacks of being held in place by Miss Irons. I would have headbutted her if she wasn't a princess of the current country I am residing in.

‘She’s not a kitten, Roxanne! She is a child summoned from another world, but she refused to take a fairy and has been imprisoned there for over a year.’

‘You poor thing! You must have been terrified!’

‘Sure, terrified. Can you please let me down.’

‘Just a minute, dear. I need my cuddle fix. And so why have you brought this adorable bundle to the castle? Surely she could find a life in the city.’

‘Ah, but your little snuggle buddy happens to be a very accomplished swordsman. She single-handedly dispatched a Quicksilverback on the ride home before I could exit the carriage.’

I felt the air rush out of my lungs as my captor tightened her grip. Her relaxed posture stiffened and I felt myself rise a few more inches off the ground. Clem apparently liked the reaction I wasn’t seeing behind me. With a glint in her eye, she continued.

‘And she is capable of absorbing Aura, even without a fairy.’

‘Impossible!’

‘I wouldn’t believe it if I had not seen it myself.’

I began to kick my feet to wriggle loose. I lifted my arms in the air, and began to slide down a little, but felt my shirt sliding up and revealing my belly and yelped a quickly lowered my arms. The princess didn’t seem to notice as she was deep in thought.

‘Then that means that she can…and she will be able to…you don’t mean you want to…’

‘It is exactly as you think, sister.’

I caught myself as I fell to the ground. The princess dropped me and ran to her sister and enveloped her in an energetic embrace, lifting her off the ground and spinning with her. Whatever she had just realized seemed to put her over the moon. I was quite annoyed that I was somehow part of it and had not been filled in on the details. Clem’s sister lowered her to the ground and continued speaking.

‘An adorable girl like her! You have my full support! I’ll run and tell Mother and we will start to get things in order. When do you want to do it?’

‘Tonight at the ball.’

‘Oh, a fast mover. I like it! I’ll go and get things ready.’

‘Oy! I’m beginning to get really annoyed about the two of you making plans that include me without my consent. What’s going on Clem.’

The princess looked down at me in shock for a second and then chuckled as I stood up off the ground and dusted myself off.

‘I see the world you came from didn’t have a concept of royalty.’

‘We once did. Until the common folk got sick of being used for their entertainment and decided to form their own government. It went well for everyone except royalty.’

She eyed me for a couple of seconds before smiling radiantly and turning to leave.

‘Fifty percent. With her on our side, we have at least a fifty percent chance at pulling this off.’

She took a few long strides before stopping and turning back.

‘What is your name, girl?’

‘Sam.’

‘Sam? What a rough name for such an attractive girl. Well, Sam. Treat Clementine well and I will support you in all your endeavors. Hurt her, and I will hunt you down to the ends of the Wilds.’

She turned again and hurried down the hall. We stood there in silence for a few seconds before I turned to Clem. I had a ball of tension in my gut and I had no intention of internalizing it away.

‘What the heck was that! Why does she make it sound like we are getting married?’

‘I’ll explain everything to you when we get to my room. The halls are not a proper place to talk about these things.’

‘Look, I thought I made it clear that I’m here to get my memories back and get home. I’m not about to become a political pawn for your games.’

‘Calm down, Sam. I promise that this will be mutually beneficial to us both.’

‘Fine. I’ll give you one day to prove it, and then I’m out.’

‘Trust me. If things work out how I plan, we will be able to get out hands on a massive nugget of Aura for you. Come on. I’ll show you where you will be staying for now.’

She led me through the halls for a while. We went through several big doors where the guards blew trumpets. We eventually arrived at a place that looked more like a living area. She led me to a room that looked almost as large as the gymnasium back at the school. I whistled as I walked in the door behind her.

It was everything you would think a princess’s room would look like. The bed looked massive and draped with lavender silk sheets. A large couch lay facing a large window that looked out over the whole world below. A table and several chairs were in the corner primed for tea time with snacks. A dressing area with an elaborate paper divider stood by a second door on the wall. Another area was a designated working space with a desk and several cabinets for file storage. The desk was cluttered with papers and a large drawing of a map of the world hung from behind the desk.

‘Quite the nice place you have here, princess. You could live in a place like this and never have to leave for anything.’

‘The rooms are designed to eventually house a family. All royal family members are expected to live within the castle. So while I am unmarried, this space is quite vacant, but when I marry and have children, they will all live here until they turn sixteen and get their own room. Imagine fitting my husband and six children all in this one room.’

‘Six! You plan on having six children?’

‘That is the average amount any princess of the von Ancelot family has birthed. My aunt had ten. We are expected to raise strong and able heirs to help run the nation. How many children do you plan on having?’

‘Me?! None. I wouldn’t be a suitable parent. And I wouldn’t want to leave some orphaned child all alone when I inevitably die on the battlefield.’

I felt a minor tightness in my chest as I spoke. A slight pang of sadness crept into my emotions. While I couldn’t remember why, our little talk was irritating me on a psychological level.

‘Alright, we're here. Tell me the plan.’

‘Are you sure you don’t want to take a bath and relax for a bit? I can have the servants bring some fresh tea.’

‘Clem.’

‘Alright, alright. Sit down because this may be a bit much to take in.’

We walked over to the table and sat down. She composed herself for a few seconds as I stared at her impatiently.

‘Sam, I plan on making you my Confederate.’

‘…’

‘…’

‘Wait, that’s it?’

‘Yes…Well…um, No. Why are you not more surprised by this?’

‘Maybe because I have no clue what being a princess’s Confederate even means? You want to sign some treaty or deal with me?’

‘Oh, did your royalty not have Confederates?’

‘Isn’t that obvious at this point?’

It was at this point she got a devilish smile on her face. Something was spinning behind those big brown eyes. I didn’t like it one bit.

‘Ah, I see. Well, each royal family member can choose one person in their lifetime to be their Confederate. It will grant you full access to the whole castle and great influence throughout the kingdom. You will have the freedom to move however and whenever you want.’

‘So what is the catch? Why grant a complete stranger this privilege?’

‘No catch. I have a strong feeling about you, Sam. And my feelings are rarely wrong. You are an outside voice for a kingdom that has so few outside voices left. You offer a unique perspective by being from another world.’

‘How diplomatic. So what do you expect me to do as your Confederate?’

‘Fight, mostly. Teach us how to fight against the Revenant. We are birds in a cage currently. The city walls are our last defense from the monsters. Our city only flourishes because other countries to the north prop us up to be their defenders. If we fail, the Revenant move to the rest of the world and destroy everything.’

‘Wait, so the Revenant come from the south?’

‘From the Wilds. The forests are vast, so we don’t know their point of origin, but the Fairybond have been instrumental in keeping them there. They are losing ground fast, though. The Revenant grow stronger and they can’t train new girls fast enough.’

I thought back on the large tower from the south I saw earlier. It was massive and gnarled. Has anyone investigated it? The tugging sensation returned to my chest attempting to tell me something that I had once remembered.

‘So, if I do this then it is only until I find a way to get home, then I am gone. I don’t get benched from the action. I lead the charge. I get the Aura of every Revenant we kill. I’ll get supplies and manpower to make sure I get what I need. OK?’

‘Perfect! Oh, but just one thing. We are going to need to prove to everyone that you are as good as you actually are. Becoming my Confederate will allow you to enter a tournament coming up in a few weeks. Roxanne and I are already entered. The winner gets all sorts of prizes, one including a large chunk of crystallized Aura. We have our eye on a couple of those prizes, so entering you as part of our team will almost guarantee us to win.’

‘And there's the catch. This now sounds more like you are trying to use me to win some petty bet you made with another noble.’

Her eyes flashed quickly from a look of being caught, to a look of shame, to a look of puppy dog eyes.

‘Please! I promise that when everyone sees you fight they will accept you as a leader in the fight against the Revenant. As it stands, no one will take the words of a child without some proof of competency.’

I stared at her for a good ten seconds trying to read her face. I let out a long sigh and crossed my arms.

‘Fine.’

Clem clapped her hands in excitement. She was beaming from my suggestions. It seemed like her negotiations had gone as favorably as she wanted. She got up and started to scramble around and look through some dresser drawers.

‘What are you looking for?’

‘We are going to need to get you a new outfit for the ball tonight, and you cant be walking around in that uniform all the time. Though I don’t suppose you will fit in any of my clothes.’

‘A ball? What ball?’

‘The ball tonight where you are confirmed as my Confederate! We will need to get you a dress befitting a princess. I’ll call my tailor over. Maybe she can alter something to fit you.’

‘Wait! I need to wear what!’