Across the vast expanse of grassland, only the wind hums—like in every good adventure tale. No more city sounds slipping through the window. No sterile white coats, no operating rooms, no straps… those straps that bind my wrists tight. But I know. I know the hands of my captors—those surgeons with their scalpels—are digging into the mind of a little girl, tinkering with the essence of my thoughts.


    And yet, here it is—the sunrise, crowned by clouds, serene and indifferent. Nearby, a forest of towering deciduous trees, and a crumbling tower. Shapes of boys and girls flicker within, half-formed silhouettes, running, fighting. Absorbed in a strange game. They''re playing with Light—I know this. I’ve heard whispers. The game is called… Steal the Light? As if Light were a toy, a tool to be bent to their will! They think it’s some kind of power—a way to control others'' minds. And honestly, who could blame them? They don’t see the Light from the inside, the way I do. They don’t feel it, they just use it.


    This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    The surgeon’s scalpel moves. The nurse injects something into me... Out in the fields, the wind sweeps the stalks, bending everything—boys, girls, nature itself—toward one direction. Because Light is in everything. It simply is. We’re all part of it. We all move to its rhythm. All of us. Except for me and… her. She''s like me. She’s a Queen. She understands. She’s kind, though scared.


    She knows it too—everything happens within the great mind, within the Light.


    She sees me now. Watches what I’m doing. Together, we sail through the ocean of Light, and suddenly, I understand. There is a way. This won’t last forever. Now, I know what to do.


    My name is Malee. I’m fourteen. Everyone says I’m special. They call me a Queen. The other girl is a Queen, too. We are daughters of rare, precious Light. Among the Illuminated, we are nearly extinct. But that doesn’t matter. What matters is this: history books say Queens—whether they want it or not—“have been, are, and always will be at war with each other.”