《Reborn as a Royal》


 Prologue: There is Always Calm Before the Storm

    We thought it was over. Everything seemed fine - perfect, almost. Our abusive father was gone, our injuries were fully healed, our mother had a stable job, and all of our bills were fully paid. Little did we know just how wrong we were.


    It was about a year after our father was indicted for both domestic and substance abuse, and our lives were running smoothly. Our grandparents fully supported us, and we hadn¡¯t seen any sign of our father¡¯s gang since last fall. The men in his gang were all forced to be there, and had neither controlled nor supported our father¡¯s actions against us. Many of them actually stood up in our support during the (mostly symbolic) trial. Afterwards, they offered both monetary and emotional support, put us in contact with our grandparents, and promised to keep any other gangs away from us. The lack of contact from them was comforting - when we turned down the offer of monetary support, they promised to stay out of our affairs unless we were being threatened.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    As such, it was a surprise the other day when one of the gang¡¯s youngest members ran up to our home and started banging on the door. We weren¡¯t expecting any trouble anymore. He brought news of his gang¡¯s defeat in a fight with a larger gang in defense of our family, and warned us to run. As fast as we could, preferably. He was hoping he had come soon enough for us to escape safely.


    Unfortunately, he wasn¡¯t fast enough. About an hour after he left, just after sundown, we were accosted by a large gang, many times larger than the one who had protected us. For some reason, they were trying to capture my little sister. They lit our house on fire to try to smoke us out. Mom was the first to go down, protecting us with her life, before my older brother also died in our defense. I threw myself over my little sister, the baby of the family, in a last-chance attempt to save her, both of my split personalities in perfect agreement for the first time in years. It didn¡¯t work. I died draped over the youngest of us even as the smoke stole her breath.

 Chapter 1: Choices and Changes

    Now, as I wake, I¡¯m not sure exactly what has happened. The world around me is a monochromatic gray. My mother, older brother, and younger sister are sprawled around me as if they walked in and simply collapsed. A beautiful woman is standing nearby, humming to herself. ¡°Ah, you¡¯re awake,¡± she says quietly. ¡°No surprise that you woke first. You always were strong.¡± I watch her carefully until my family stirs.


    Turning, I scoot over to my brother. He sits up looking like he just walked out of a hurricane - which, in a way, I guess he did. A hurricane made of fire and gangsters and knives. I check him for injuries, but find him perfectly healed.


    Mom wakes next. ¡°Huh?¡± she asks blearily. ¡°Wha-where- oh, good, my children are safe.¡± We offer her very slight smiles. Our little sister is the last to wake. She sits up and immediately buries her head in my chest, sobbing with what seems like a combination of fear and relief. She¡¯s always been our gentlest family member.


    I turn to the woman - I¡¯m certain she¡¯s some sort of goddess - and lift an eyebrow. The rest of my family looks with me (even my sister unburies her head). The lady smiles. ¡°I will explain your circumstances in a moment. But first, allow me to take care of something.¡± She reaches toward me. ¡°There should not be two of you in the same body; it just isn¡¯t right. Let me fix this.¡±


    I feel a slight tearing sensation before suddenly, I¡¯m looking at a perfect copy of myself. ¡°You are now separate,¡± the (now-obvious) goddess announces. She continues without a pause, ¡°The reason you are in my realm is that you have died early deaths in your own world. I feel that you shouldn¡¯t be dead yet and I would like to offer you a chance to live another life in another world. I can guarantee that you will be born in the same family, with the same age gaps - though the family you are born into may have other children between you - and genders. If you like, you can even keep your memories.¡±


    We stare at her for a moment, taken aback by her straightforward speech. We take a step back and huddle together to consider her offer. We all look at Mom first. She gives us a sad smile and says, ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ll join you. I¡¯m ready to leave and join the afterlife; after all, I¡¯ve done my duty. There are people there I want to see, and I think you¡¯ll learn more if I¡¯m not there.¡± She pauses to eye us sternly. ¡°However, I want all of you - yes, of course I¡¯m including both of your personalities, sweetheart - to take this chance to live on. While all of you died far too early, I can understand why you older siblings would consider eternal rest as a good chance, but please think of your younger sister. If you won¡¯t live for yourselves, live for her.¡±


    We sit there in silence for a moment before nodding. My alternate personality speaks up suddenly, ¡°Of course we will, but I hope you¡¯ll hang around until we leave, Mom. Out of everyone in the family, only she¡± a nod toward the youngest ¡°realized there were two of us, and I know for certain that she prefers Warrior.¡±


    The goddess laughs a little. ¡°That¡¯s a way to keep you separate until you obtain your new names, I guess. The warrior, the lady, the healer, the protector, and the mother. Wonderful titles, they match you perfectly.¡± I suppose she doesn¡¯t realize she¡¯s interrupting, or maybe as a supreme deity she just doesn¡¯t care.


    Looking toward Healer, I offer a tiny smile. She beams and buries her head again - in my side, this time. The goddess continues, ¡°There¡¯s one other thing I¡¯m going to offer you: the chance to control which traits, abilities, affinities, skills, and magic you will be able to learn, as well as some aspects of your physical appearance. I suggest you consider these as a group, and preferably before you decide whether or not to keep your memories.¡±


    We contemplate her words in near silence. I lift a hand to gain everyone¡¯s attention; when they turn to look, I lock eyes with a goddess and give her a single, respectful nod. She smiles. ¡°You¡¯ll go first? Excellent. How should I format this so it will make sense to you?¡±


    Protector cuts in. ¡°Maybe if you set it up like video game controls¡­¡± He trails off when he notices everyone staring. ¡°What? It seemed like a good idea.¡±


    Lady smiles gently. ¡°And it was. If you weren¡¯t the only one here who¡¯s ever played one. Perhaps you¡¯d like to go first to model it?¡±


    He opens his mouth to object before realizing he is now officially caught and won¡¯t be getting out of it anytime soon. ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll start first, but we¡¯ll all work together, as a group.¡± I nod, Lady smirks but agrees, and Healer just snuggles closer to me.


    Goddess steps over to him and touches his forehead, evidently reading his mind for a better picture of the control system on a video game screen. Soon enough, a profile just like the ones he¡¯s used to manipulating shows up in front of him. ¡°Whoa!¡± He exclaims. ¡°It¡¯s exactly the same!¡± He looks around like he¡¯s searching for a controller. ¡°Do I use my hands to control it?¡±


    Goddess nods. ¡°Now for the rest of you.¡± She projects our profiles, all of which are pretty much empty. We don¡¯t have races, so no skills, attributes, affinites, or traits; we don¡¯t even have magic or names yet.


    Everyone looks to me and I remember that I volunteered to go first, giving me the honor of choosing our bloodlines and races, since we¡¯ll all have the same mix. My eyes narrow as I scan the options. I glance at my brother, but most of the races are self-explanatory. Okay... Elf 30%, Shapeshifter 30%, Elemental 30%, Witch 10%, a perfectly respectable mix.


    Looking around again, I see Goddess raise an eyebrow. ¡°Interesting choice. Was your goal magical strength?¡±


    I consider how to respond. Many of the races have severe disadvantages with their strength: elves meld into their environment when they run out of magic instead of dying; shapeshifters lose their identity from the constant changes; elementals fade into their strongest element; and witches go crazy from power overload (they have human bodies, which aren¡¯t meant for channeling magic, so unless they¡¯re mixed with another race, they self-combust). I mixed them all together to balance each of them out: elves are very firm and confident in their identities, removing the threat of losing yourself; the mixed blood covers the magic overload; and they all combine to remove the threat of fading away. In terms of physical strength, elves and shapeshifters are incredibly strong, though witches have strength equal to humans and elementals are actually slightly weaker. I refuse to say all of that, it takes too much time and energy. ¡°No. Balance. Magical, physical, channeling. Safer.¡±


    Everyone stares at me except Healer, and I suddenly remember that she was the only one who recognized Lady and I as being separate before Goddess pulled us apart. Lady is much more talkative than I am - I prefer to speak in phrases and sentence fragments to conserve both time and energy. In my opinion, I talk just fine; it¡¯s everyone else who uses far too many extra words. Lady coughs. ¡°I think what Warrior means to say is that when mixed, those races balance out each other''s advantages and disadvantages; provide almost equal physical and magical strength; and create safeguards against possible bloodline issues, making the overall mix far safer. Unless there¡¯s something about the process of mixing the blood that creates problems?¡±


    Goddess shakes her head. ¡°No, it¡¯s an excellent mix. I just wasn¡¯t expecting it. The last person I allowed to create her own profile was focused purely on magical strength - she tried mixing dragons, vampires, shapeshifters, and elementals and equal amounts, but in the end, her magic overloaded and she faded away.¡± Everyone winces. ¡°You should all choose which abilities you¡¯ll have and which magics you¡¯ll be more proficient in, and then I¡¯ll give you small boosts.¡±


    ¡°What kind of boosts?¡± Lady asks.


    ¡°I''ll give you all the ability to read, write, and speak the ancient language straight from the beginning, and I¡¯ll provide certain traits that are usually inherited in bloodlines. These traits often have disadvantages when inherited, but if given by a goddess or saint are perfectly safe. People with goddess- or saint-given traits are very rare and usually highly respected. I¡¯ll try to make them correspond with the magics and abilities you choose.¡± We nod.


    Protector says, ¡°Then I¡¯ll thank you in advance. Anything that helps me protect my sisters is highly appreciated.¡±


    Everyone turns to me again and I sigh internally. I¡¯m rapidly losing any desire I had to be the center of attention. Looking back to the ¡®profile¡¯, I start rifling through my options. Moving past things like bards and the various classes of tradespeople, I find a section more to my liking. Fighting, assassination, defense, compassion, leadership, loyalty, masking, magic (weapons, cold, moon, shadow, fighting, animals, water, earth > plants, healing), dancing, silence, singing¡­ I smile darkly. Much better. I don¡¯t bother looking around; I can practically sense the disapproval radiating off Protector from ten feet away, but I don¡¯t care. I¡¯ve made my choice.


    I look directly at Lady, who offers me a nod as she turns to her own profile. I watch as she skips almost all of the same things I did, but Healer distracts me and I don¡¯t see what she chooses until Protector coughs and I look up again. I smile slightly at my counterpart¡¯s choices: fighting, offense, persuasion, love, leadership, loyalty, sarcasm, disguise, magic (fighting, warm, sun, light, plants, fire, air > animals, healing), dancing, sound, and singing. Lady meets my look with a smirk of her own, purposely ignoring our brother¡¯s disapproving glare and turning to address Healer. ¡°Little one, I believe it¡¯s your turn. Would you like advice or do you want to do it on your own?¡±


    Healer thinks for a moment. ¡°I-I think I¡¯ll give it a try, but you can review it with me after,¡± she says nervously. I offer her an encouraging smile and gently push her toward her profile. She gulps but stumbles toward it, scrolling awkwardly until she finds whatever she¡¯s looking for. Lady and I are both looking away out of respect for her self-dependence despite our desire to comment.


    ¡°Done!¡± Healer exclaims. ¡°Come look. What do you think?¡± Lady and I step forward. My eyes scan the list - healing, love, kindness, empathy, loyalty, sympathy, magic (healing, plants, animals, honesty) open, honest - and I give my younger sister a thumbs up and the biggest smile I can muster, leaning down to give her a hug. As I release her, Healer says brightly, ¡°Your turn, Protector! What will you pick?¡±


    Though Lady and I can still feel our brother¡¯s annoyance with us, he ruffles Healer¡¯s hair affectionately. He shoos us all away and starts muttering to himself, taking notably longer than any of us. Finally, he turns back to us. ¡°Opinion?¡± He asks gruffly. My eyes slip down his profile. Fighting, defense, protection, loyalty, bodyguard, brother, kindness, steady, solid, magic (defense, fighting, weapons, earth, fire), safe, firm/stern, understanding¡­ all of his choices are aimed toward guarding and protection, probably for Healer. I can¡¯t say I¡¯m particularly surprised.Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    Goddess clears her throat. ¡°Well, everything looks right,¡± she says. ¡°You all certainly chose things that match your personalities. Now it¡¯s my turn.¡± She starts fiddling with something in front of her and suddenly we hear a collective ding as our profiles update.


    They now display certain ¡°saint-given bloodline traits¡±, as I hear Protector call them, and some ¡°affinities¡±. Mine shows siren traits, vampire traits, and moon affinity. Pointing to the last, I raise a questioning eyebrow at Goddess. She smiles. ¡°It means you¡¯re stronger in moonlight. You¡¯ll notice I also upgraded your shadow magic to a shadow affinity, so you¡¯ll be stronger in the dark or at night.¡±


    Turning to the others, Goddess says, ¡°You¡¯ll notice that I also enhanced your light magic and gave you a sun affinity; to Healer, I gave Nature and Healing affinities; and for Protector, I simply enhanced his physical abilities. Protector, you¡¯ll notice that Warrior and Lady will both likely be able to beat you in a match; you are physically stronger, able to wield more powerful weapons, and have more force to your swings both with and without weapons), but your sisters are faster, with a natural grace you won¡¯t be able to learn. Your strength means nothing if you can¡¯t hit your opponent. Therefore, you are excellent for guard duty, but full-out battle would be disadvantageous for you. Your sisters are better suited to large-scale fighting against multiple opponents than you are, but in a one-on-one match, they will be nearly impossible to beat, even before you consider the extra attributes I granted them.¡±


    As Lady scans her own list, which says siren traits, succubus traits, and sun affinity, Goddess continues, ¡°Warrior¡¯s vampire attribute won¡¯t negatively affect you in any way. She¡¯ll have better night vision and olfactory senses and she¡¯ll be able to move like the wind in addition to the transportation abilities provided by the other bloodlines. Lady¡¯s succubus traits¡± Protector scowls ¡°are not entirely sexual. They increase her mental manipulation abilities, mostly; something I trust she¡¯ll use sparingly and with great discretion and good judgement.¡± She stops to give Lady a very significant look.


    Shifting to face Healer, Goddess offers a gentle smile as she resumes her explanation. ¡°For Healer, I decided on angel traits, fairy traits, and siren traits. The angel attribute gives her touch a purifying effect and stops black magic - yes, there is such a thing - from affecting her at all. The fairy attribute gives her wings and a bit of a boost to her nature magic, though it may also result in a more petite figure.¡± She pauses and waits for a moment to ensure that Lady and I are also listening. ¡°The siren attribute that I gave all three of you basically allows you to sing magic into existence. It gives your voice a magical effect, and if used properly, a slight hypnotic effect. It may also give your hair a mind of its own. Once again, I ask that you use the hypnosis and mental manipulation effects very sparingly.¡± She barely glances at Protector. ¡°To yours, all I added a little bit of giant blood to bulk you up a little. I apologize that I couldn¡¯t do more, but most races aren¡¯t built specifically as bodyguards.¡± She frowns slightly. ¡°...I feel like I¡¯ve forgotten something. Oh, yeah, I also added some dragon blood to each of you except Healer for an extra strength and magic boost. It will increase your control and toughen your skin a little, too.


    ¡°Now, I want all of you to pay careful attention to my next words. I am going to allow you to tweak your visages. Any changes that you make will not appear on your body until I send you into your next world. You may only modify your inside normal body proportions - no super-long legs or perversely oversized breasts, please - and some things, like height, cannot be changed. The tattoo-like markings are also permanent, though you can change their locations, because they are the symbols of your magic. Attempting to remove them would be like attempting to remove parts of your magic, though they may be hidden with illusions or in certain shapeshifter forms.¡± She gives us a grin and sets us loose with a cheerful, ¡°Have fun!¡±


    The profile changes from a list of our abilities to a 3D representation of what we¡¯ll look like when we reach maturity on the next planet, not accounting for injuries or scars. I remove all colors and markings from mine after promising the system that I would put them all back, though not necessarily in the same places. After deliberating quietly for a solid five minutes, I spend the next probably half hour re-placing the markings and colors and modifying some of the body shapes.


    The end result looks to be about 5¡¯3¡± with long limbs, B-cup breasts, a small waist, slim hips, and lean muscles. I was aiming for small, agile, and powerful instead of beauty, though I still ended up creating a perfect hourglass figure. The skin is moonlight-silver, with purple eyes, light pink lips, and pitch-black hair. There are turquoise vines representing plant magic winding up the legs over slim, barely visible purple lines meant to resemble scales (the animal magic and dragon blood symbols combined). When threatened, these lines expand rapidly to cover the entire body with a shimmering, sheer, skin-tight armor. The arms are covered in swirls of turquoise and purple (showing water, dancing, and cold mixed together) and there¡¯s a ring of brown around each ankle like a cuff to symbolize earth. Similarly, there¡¯s a thin ring of light green around each wrist marking me as having healing abilities. The vampire blood contributed to overall paleness of the skin, especially when added to the pale silver of my moon attribute, and the siren doesn¡¯t seem to have a marking at all. I turn to her and ask quietly, ¡°No siren mark?¡±


    She smiles, but it¡¯s the type of smile you give to a small, ignorant child. ¡°Sirens don¡¯t have marks because their hair is their mark. It changes to become a magic conduit and absorber.¡± I try to ignore her condescending tone, but I feel a bit better when I see both Lady and Protector glaring at her from behind on my behalf.


    In a distraction attempt, Lady drags me over to see her new form. The hair is a beautiful fire-red, with a sprinkling of freckles that come off as charming and playful rather than ugly or distracting and a perfect golden tan. She modeled her body to be almost identical to mine, except her markings are bright and fiery colors rather than my darker and cooler shades. It seems her succubus trait and sun affinity combine to create the golden tone of her skin, making her radiant, like the sun. We share a small smile in the understanding that our opposite/identical status is a mark of unity and support. We¡¯re just about to discuss some of the finer points of the bodies when Healer cheerfully interrupts us. ¡°Come see!¡± Dragging us by the hands, she asks with a beaming smile, ¡°What do you think?¡±


    Lady grins and I offer Healer a small but genuine and gentle smile, which seems to make her even happier. Her image shows hair so platinum blonde it¡¯s almost white, with skin that one shade of pure-vanilla white that not even foundation and face powder can achieve. Her markings aren¡¯t quite like ours, though, because she¡¯s not a fighter. Instead of a shimmery dragon-scale pattern, she sports iridescent swirls over her entire body and a pair of snow-white angel wing tattoos. ¡°I think they can become real wings if they need to, but I don¡¯t know how the fairy markings will affect the coloration. Maybe my wings will be pink!¡± She exclaims. Instead of thin green lines around her wrists, her healing marks cover her entire forearms in light green swirls.


    Her vines are a deep green color with - surprisingly - light pink roses. The presence of her flowers causes me to look back at my own vines; I didn¡¯t notice before, but I have royal-blue roses blooming on my thorn-covered vines. Huh. I could¡¯ve sworn the flowers and thorns weren¡¯t there a few minutes ago. Taking a closer look at Lady¡¯s markings, I notice that she also has thorns and blood-red roses. I turn my attention back to Healer¡¯s image and notice that she doesn¡¯t have any thorns, probably because she isn¡¯t a fighter. I wonder what the flowers represent. I nudge Lady and gesture to the flowers, then to Goddess, then mutter, ¡°Your turn. Ask.¡± She shoots me a dirty look but calls out to Goddess anyway.


    ¡°Miss Goddess? What do the flowers symbolize? We were just noticing that all three of us have them, is it because we¡¯re girls?¡± Lady asks, overdoing the politeness in an effort to not be treated with condescension. It kind of works.


    ¡°Not at all, girls. The flowers represent your song magic, what you had before I added the siren blood, as well as the family line I¡¯ll be giving you.¡± Goddess says with a sly smile.


    ¡°Family?¡± Protector asks. For the sake of our own modesty, we¡¯ve all been avoiding looking at his image. ¡°Will you tell us anything about the world we¡¯re going into, or do you plan to send us in blind?¡±


    ¡°Sure, I¡¯ll tell you things, but only after you decide how much of your memories to keep. This is an individual decision, but I highly suggest discussing it with each other before you decide.¡±


    We look at each other. When no one speaks up, I sigh. ¡°We keep. Healer lock. Impressions, feelings. Safer.¡±


    Everyone stares until Lady translates, ¡°All of us should keep our memory except Healer, for her sake, because she shouldn¡¯t have to remember watching us all die. Instead, she should keep impressions, emotions, and feelings. That way she¡¯ll still love and trust us as she does now, without the trauma of Father¡¯s abuse and the death of our family.¡±


    Healer opens her mouth to protest, then reaches up to touch her face. Her eyes widen in surprise at the presence of tears on her cheeks, and she reluctantly nods. ¡°I¡¯ll accept it, but don¡¯t take away all of my memories of Mom. I don¡¯t care if you have to merge her with my future mother in my future mind, but leave some memory of her, please.¡±


    Mom muffles a sob with her hand and pulls Healer into a hug. ¡°Thank you, darling,¡± she says, ¡°but don¡¯t make yourself miserable for my sake.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not, Mom,¡± Healer promises. ¡°All I need is a single picture of you, happy and healthy, like you are now.¡±


    Mom smiles with tears in her eyes. ¡°I love my children, you all care way too much,¡± she says, but she sounds proud. ¡°All I want is that you all have a good life with a loving family. Don¡¯t let yourself dwell in the past too much.¡±


    We all nod in understanding. She¡¯s telling us to enjoy what we¡¯re being given. I force my voice to work. ¡°Of course, Mom. We¡¯ll use your memory to inspire us, and be sure not to dishonor your memory or your words.¡±


    Everyone stares at me until Healer giggles. ¡°I think that¡¯s the most I¡¯ve ever heard you say, Warrior!¡±


    Lady smiles warmly. ¡°Indeed, but you are correct.¡±


    Protector rumbles softly, ¡°I respect the idea, but if Mom returns to the reincarnation cycle, she won¡¯t see it. I won¡¯t argue with your plan, but how can we do things in her honor if she¡¯ll never know?¡±


    We all sit quietly, considering this idea sadly, until Goddess speaks up. ¡°I could make her one of my attendants and keep her here with me. If you are amenable to the idea, that is,¡± she says, addressing the last part to Mother.


    Mother gasps. ¡°Y-You would be willing? I would greatly appreciate the chance to look after my children in their next life. What would I need to do as a handmaiden?¡±


    ¡°Not much, really,¡± Goddess says. ¡°There¡¯s not much work to be done up here, I pretty much let people do as they will. But if someone below were to discover a great evil, and invoke my name¡­ maybe I could help¡­¡± She trails off meaningfully.


    We nod, catching her meaning. The awkward silence drags on until finally Healer says, ¡°So Protector, what does yours look like? I refuse to look at it until you cover its, um, manly areas.¡±


    I relax a bit as everyone else releases nervous giggles. ¡°Sure, Healer,¡± Protector smirks. ¡°Here.¡± He places a loincloth over the image and beckons us over to view his figure. His lower legs are almost entirely brown with a scale pattern that is far more obvious than Lady¡¯s or mine. His hair is brown with red tones mixed throughout and his eyes are storm-gray. He kept his body fairly simple - a bit bulky, but that¡¯s probably the result of the giant blood. He¡¯s tall, around 6 foot, with well-defined muscles and a narrow waist, forming a triangular abdomen that would make any Olympic swimmer jealous.


    ¡°All right,¡± Goddess says. ¡°If everyone is finished, I¡¯ll send Protector off. You¡¯ll all be able to watch his first four years before Lady and Warrior are born, and then Healer can observe for another two. Everyone ready?¡±


    We all nod affirmatives, and Protector drops through a swirling hole in the floor.

 Chapter 2: Rebirth

    Protector was reborn as Andrew Kuyaris, second son and third child of the King of Emerali. He now has an elegant older brother, a doting older sister, and a rough younger brother. The king and queen are both genuinely kind; they both make regular trips into the castle town to converse with their people.


    Despite all of this, watching him grow for the last almost four years has been boring. Healer has been snuggled up against me or Mother for most of it, seeming to enjoy the time spent with family, but she¡¯s the only one of us who doesn¡¯t seem bothered by the long wait. Lady seems like she¡¯s about to go completely insane if she has to stay up here even one more day. She wants to get out and do stuff. She says the world below looks like ¡°so much fun!¡± I have far more patience than Lady does, but even I¡¯m starting to get sick of seeing infinite gray in every direction.


    Today is the day that Lady and I are officially reborn. I know Andrew is looking forward to it, and Lady seems excited too. I¡¯m torn between wanting to get out of this gray space and not wanting to leave my sister, but Mother has promised to keep her entertained.


    Suddenly, Goddess speaks. ¡°All right, you two,¡± she says, ¡°it¡¯s time. Try not to get merged into the same body this time, okay? I can¡¯t split you apart once you¡¯re born.¡±


    Lady laughs and prepares to dive through the hole now appearing on the floor, but Healer grabs her hand and points at me. I offer them all a barely-there smile, hug Mother and Healer, and tilt backwards into the swirling gray. I can see Lady jumping not even a minute later and smirk inside since I know there¡¯ll only be seconds between us.


    I see blackness ahead and close my eyes. It feels like I pass through some sort of gel-like barrier that gives only slight resistance before I hear, ¡°Congratulations, Your Majesty! It¡¯s a girl!¡±


    I wonder how I should act. Are they expecting me to cry? Should I cough? Or scream? Will they be worried if I stay quiet? My train of thought is cut short when I hear a woman start gasping again and then the same person as before announcing, ¡°Another girl, Your Majesty! Today you have truly been blessed.¡±


    My sister doesn¡¯t seem to share my concerns as she immediately starts crying. I reach out blindly toward where I can sense her, but it feels like I¡¯m moving through gelatin. The woman holding me gasps. ¡°Oh! I think they want to be together!¡± I almost sigh in relief as she sets me down beside my twin.


    ¡°Your Majesties,¡± I hear the person who announced our births say, and I note the sudden plural. Huh. So the king joined us. ¡°What will their names be?¡±


    I hear some quiet murmuring that¡¯s probably the king and queen discussing. ¡°In order of birth, Chayana and Sikhara respectively,¡± the king says quietly. ¡°Chaya means shadow and sikha means flame in one of the forgotten languages. I believe it was called Bangla, and they used interesting symbols that we don¡¯t use to denote sounds. I can¡¯t remember how they actually wrote it¡­¡± The king trailed off. ¡°Anyway, those will be their names.¡±


    ¡°As you say, Your Majesty,¡± the announcer-person says. ¡°When will they be taken to the temple for their blessed names?¡±


    I remember when Andrew was taken for his naming ceremony. It didn¡¯t make sense to me until Goddess explained that the temple calls upon the spirits, including her, to provide a middle name for a child. It is a privilege provided to all who ask, nobles and commoners alike. The given name embodies a characteristic that the child will have in abundance, offers them advice, gives them something to strive for, or provides them with comfort, depending on the person receiving the name. Andrew¡¯s blessed name is Tueor, something I didn¡¯t understand until Goddess told us that all blessed names are in the language we call Latin, and tueor means to guard.


    ¡°In two weeks. The older one will be named at midnight beneath the full moon, and the younger one at high noon as the sun peaks in the sky. Of course, the ceremony will take place in the highest temples, the temples of the sun and moon at the tops of the twin hills. Then we¡¯ll introduce them to the public at sunset, as the light fades from the sky.¡± The king hesitates. ¡°Unless that will hurt them?¡±


    I¡¯m surprised at the concern in his voice and the cynical side of me wonders if he¡¯s just worried for appearances¡¯ sake. I shift my head on the pillow slightly. I should know better than that. We¡¯ve been watching for four years; the king honestly cares for everyone.


    ¡°Not all all, my king.¡± It¡¯s the announcer-person again. I really hope someone says their name soon, because with my eyes still closed I can¡¯t even tell the person¡¯s gender; their voice is in that perfect range of could-be-either. ¡°In fact, with their coloration, I daresay those might be the best times to name them; one is as pale as the moon and the other as golden as the sun.¡± There¡¯s another pause. ¡°Should we invite their siblings? Prince Andrew in particular has been quite excited for the birth of his new sisters.¡±


    ¡°Yes, of course,¡± says a woman¡¯s voice. ¡°My daughters should be introduced to the rest of their family as soon as possible,  and having family nearby may help calm them during the naming ceremony.¡± Ahh, she must be the queen¡­ no, Mom. She¡¯s our mother now.


    ¡°Well of course she is, you dolt! What else were you thinking of calling her?¡±The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.


    My sister¡¯s voice in my mind startles me enough to make me twitch, but not enough for me to cry. ¡°Ouch. Sudden.¡±


    ¡°Sorry. I only just figured out how to reach you. You know, they¡¯re probably getting worried with how little sound you¡¯ve made. How about crying a little? You don¡¯t have to get very loud, just make sure they know you¡¯re alive.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t need to. I plan on staying relatively quiet until this body can properly speak. I¡¯ll practice my sounds once we¡¯re alone. You can practice with me if you want.¡±


    I hear a telepathic gasp. ¡°I think that¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve ever heard you speak in complete sentences! I will absolutely practice with you.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t speak in complete sentences. You¡¯re hearing thoughts, not words, and I think in full sentences, just like you.¡±


    ¡°Oh.¡±


    While we¡¯re having our mental conversation, the adults start discussing how to announce our births, and when to hold the next ball. Finally Mom clears her throat. ¡°I believe I said that they should be introduced to their siblings as soon as possible, did I not? Why has no one let them in?¡±


    ¡°Ah! I knew I was forgetting something,¡± the king says. ¡°I apologize, dearest. By all means, let me get the door. I¡¯m sure our children are getting impatient.¡±


    Sure enough, as soon as the door is open wide enough, two small boys come zipping in. The princess and eldest prince are a bit more graceful, waiting for their father to finish opening the door and thanking him before running over to us. I can feel the weight of their stares for a solid minute before one asks, in a soft voice like he¡¯s in a church, ¡°Why isn¡¯t that one crying too?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, Conor,¡± I hear one of the others say. This one sounds older. ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because she¡¯s the elder twin?¡±


    I almost laugh at his logic. I hear a voice that is unmistakably Andrew¡¯s say, ¡°Hey Colin,¡± and the older one reply, ¡°Yeah?¡±


    I can practically hear Andrew¡¯s smile. ¡°What if she just doesn¡¯t want to make noise right now? She could just be a naturally quiet person.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t know there was such a thing as a quiet girl.¡±


    ¡°Hey!¡± The new voice is clearly that of the princess, our elder sister.


    ¡°Aahh!¡± There¡¯s a thump. ¡°Crazy sis, get off me!¡±


    I hear Sikhara laughing in my head. ¡°Oh, this is gonna be fun,¡± I hear her say, chortling.


    ¡°Yeah¡­¡±


    Two weeks later finds us bathed and swaddled, waiting on top of a hill as the full moon rises. My new mother, the queen, carries me inside the temple and lays me down in a basket floating on a small pond. I stare at the moon as it crests, feeling something start swirling around me. The water starts glowing and I think I hear the royals gasping but I¡¯m so focused on the moon that I can¡¯t really tell. All I can see is silver.


    Bellator.


    I startle at the sound of a whisper as the moonlight wraps around and lifts me bodily out of the basket. We are your friends, Bellator, the voice says. Look around. We are Moonlight, and Shadow, and Water, and Earth; we are Fauna, and War, and Ice, and Cold. You have our allegiance. Learn to use us, and we will be your guides.


    I hesitate before calling out. Are you the elements I chose while I was speaking with the Goddess?


    The voice seems to chuckle. Yes, child, it whispers. But even your Goddess could not have forced us to choose you. We chose to be your strength, and we will guide you. Our counterparts will guide your twin. The one named Tueor, the one you call Andrew, already has our protection. Now go! The moon is moving and we cannot stay here any longer.


    Thank you, I whisper. Can I find you in my magic?


    Yes, little one. Now have a good night¡¯s rest.


    I feel myself sliding back into the basket and blink when I realize I¡¯m still staring at the moon. The queen walks in and lifts me. ¡°May I introduce,¡± she says in a hoarse whisper before clearing her throat and continuing, ¡°Chayana Bellator Kuyaris, daughter of moon and shadow. All hail the Shadow Princess!¡±


    The cheer startles me. Shadow princess, what an interesting title. I wonder if she knows the meaning of my blessed name, if she recognizes that being christened as warrior means my life will be dangerous. Based on the tears sparkling in her eyes, I¡¯m guessing she does.


    Twelve hours later, as the sun peaks in the sky, I witness something very similar happening to my sister. She glows gold and floats in the sunbeam, and I know that she¡¯s staring at the sun in all of its intensity but won¡¯t get burned, only stronger. She says her name in my mind as she settles back into her basket. Domina.


    I guess it¡¯s a good thing that I went first; had she undergone this ceremony without my explanation of the events at mine, she very likely would¡¯ve panicked. I¡¯m calmer and was able to soothe any concerns she may have had before she started floating. The queen lifts my twin into the air. ¡°May I introduce,¡± she says, in a much stronger voice than she had for mine, ¡°Sikhara Domina Kuyaris, daughter of sun and flame. All hail the Sun Princess!¡±


    It suddenly occurs to me to wonder what the first princess¡¯ nickname is, if we each have one. She catches me staring at her and smiles. Leaning in close, she says quietly, ¡°I was the Sky Princess, little shadow, so now we have Sun, Sky, and Shadow. Is Mom choosing all S names on purpose, or do you think that¡¯s just coincidence?¡± She smiles at me before muttering, ¡°Not like you have any idea what I¡¯m saying, but saying it makes me feel better.¡±


    We survive the sundown introduction ceremony - everyone seems so happy to meet us - and Sikhara falls asleep as soon as Mom pulls her away from the crowds. I, on the other hand, am wide awake until the sun rises, a fact which appears to bother the advisors quite a bit.