To Imprison An Idea of You

ELSEWHERE…

Duke Volkoz was a simple man—much to Lord Calilah’s eternal dismay.

It showed in everything. Including the fact that there was a woman sprawled across his lap, both arms draped lazily around his neck.

As he got older, Lord Calilah started to realise just how much of a mismanaged dump East Gate really was. Letting the richer businesses and citizens run it too liberally had meant the Crown was in power only by name.

And somehow, deep in his gut, he just knew that harlot Miss Quansia, stretching like a cat on Father’s thighs, had something to do with it.

“Dad… what are you doing?!”

“Passing the time, what else?” the king said, completely unbothered. Ugh, he was drunk again.

It wasn’t fair. He had a mum too. Had, being the operative word.

“GET OUT!!”

Miss Quansia immediately untangled herself from the king’s lap and set her feet delicately on the floor. “I’ll make myself scarce,” she purred.

“Y-you better! Hussy!”

The woman had the audacity to boop his nose as she passed.

“Cute,” Quansia teased.

Calilah could only growl. She was hiding something, but he just can’t prove it!

When the harlot was gone, the king called out cheerfully, “Now what did you want from me, my sweetness?”

Calilah snapped his head in defiance. “I… I don’t need anything from you! Forget it!” 

Before the king could say anything back, Calilah stormed out of the court (not that anyone was being attended to, thank the gods).

The door to his bedroom slammed behind him. He then proceeded to plant his face into the pillow to cry.

Unbecoming of a Lord such as him, but what just happened encapsulated everything that was wrong with East Gate.

Nobody ever took him seriously. Maybe it was the stupid baby fat still clinging to his cheeks, or the fact that he wasn’t old enough to attend the prestigious Academy in the Capital yet. But they’d see. One day, they’d all see.

With the Phoenix Elves forcing a… change in management for the better part of a decade, this town should have been the embodiment of opulence by now! Instead, it was just an obligation the family clearly didn’t see any benefit in supporting, so they sent the runt of the family lot: Dad.

It was a cruel game to play, and a cruel thing to say about one’s father, but that’s simply how it was for those burdened to carry the weight of rule!

If Calilah could just fix this place—even a little—he could get out of here faster. Be taken seriously. Be more than a powerless prince in a crumbling province. And that started if he knew what was going on!

Daddy wouldn’t let him go out on his own—to “see how things really were.” It was too dangerous, he always said.

Dangerous, how?! Criminals? Gangs? None of them were clear.

And then there was the classic excuse: “You’re still too young.”

He was attending magic classes for a reason, damn it! He demanded the very best of his tutors, and so did they in kind!

“The guards are there for a reason,” Daddy would say.

“I’m a grown man!”

“You are fifteen."

“A grown man!”

…

He shook the rancid memory out of his brain. 

Creaking open the bedroom door, he checked the hall outside his room. Empty! Incredible.

Preparing the incantations and candles, he slipped out the crystal ball.

If only the signal stretched beyond a kilometer. That would’ve been useful to solving a multitude of things. But alas, technology had not caught up with people's needs.

Ah well. For now, it was enough.

Magic thrummed from his fingertips. The crystal pulsed to life. He made sure to activate the ball just before dusk, like always.

Head Guardsman Orpheus answered on the other end, operating under his direct command… and the castle’s coffers. Not that Daddy knew.

“Anything new to report, see, say? I’m getting kind of antsy here.”

“Oh, the usual… apart from one crucial detail,” came his gravelled voice. “Beastkin at the orphanage wreaking havoc again. I assume you saw the white light before dawn?”

“Yeah… it woke me up,” Calilah said. That side of town had always seemed to be a problem.

“That was the work of the orphanage, as you might guess,” the guard admitted.

“It’s like they are trying to be uncooperative…”

He didn’t know much about the history of the orphanage, other than what he was told: that it had been a blight on the town for decades. Once built to house the spoils of the Crystals’ conquests, they were always an eternal reminder of the dark days they left behind. Ever since, it seemed a continuing source of misery.

Whether it be Beastkin being Beastkin or kids turning into juvenile criminals…

It would look bad for the Duke to supply any more coin than what they were supplying right now.

“Anything else?” he continued.

“They’re still peddling those Moonboxes. Still as flimsy as ever. We’ve since seized their ill-guided gains.”

Calilah put fingers on his temple. 'This is despite me giving them a stern warning in the letter I sent them earlier this week... it should have reached them before this morning…'

“I even heard the Crystal Elf boy they housed has been making moves,” Orpheus continued. “We have reason to believe he was one of the orchestrators.”

Of course. The age-old adage that Crystals didn't break rang true here. And neither did their nature...

“I’ll send your well-deserved payment soon,” Calilah said. “Meet my retainer in the Cloud Tavern. First thing next dusk.”

“We look forward to our continued partnership. And don’t worry, we will be patrolling the orphanage a lot more. You can count on it.”

“Thank you, Headguardsman Orpheus. You are a life-saver.”

The light from the crystal dimmed. But just before it blinked out, he swore he heard something.

Laughter.