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His eyes opened, not to the garden or darkness he thought he would be in.
Instead, he was lying on a bed, staring at a familiar ceiling patterned with stars that he remembered often staring at when he was just a child.
His whole body hurt.
Everything hurt, something that would never happen if he was still-
Slowly, Yoichi smiled painfully.
Not only was he alive, but he was awake.
Izuku couldn’t run fast enough as he rushed to reach his Papa’s room.
Heart pounding as he tore past guards and slammed into the door to force it open. There, he saw his Papa lying in the bed, slightly propped up, eyes open and looking at him with a smile spreading across his face.
Izuku flung himself across the bed to hug the one person he held in the highest regard and jerked back when he yelped in pain. The child teared up, realizing he caused his Papa more suffering, and Yoichi was quick to soothe him and reassure him it was okay.
“Look how big you’ve gotten… I’m so sorry for what I did to you, Izuku,” he said quietly as he raised a hand to brush across Izuku’s cheek.
The tiny prince carefully curled next to his Papa and cuddled with him, happy to have the comfort he had missed for so long.
King Hisashi spoke to the healers in his study, and the news they gave him was grim. Yoichi was alive, awake, and would recover, but the damage to his body had left him unable to stand for long. He had little movement in his legs and no feeling in his feet.
“So he will have to remain in bed then?”
“Not necessarily… A mobile chair can be made once Yoichi has healed more and the swelling has gone down enough to allow him to sit comfortably.”
Hisashi nodded solemnly, dismissed the healers, and turned to look at a portrait of the previous King and Queen. The deaths of his parents had originated his need to keep his family safe and destroy the day elves.
“I failed to keep him safe… I won’t fail again,” he said as his mind turned to moving forward with plans.
Garaki huffed while he worked on a new soldier to replace the one the king had taken and turned into a babysitter to the brat prince. His mind turned to his limited supply of parts as of late, and he growled as he looked to the other Nomu Elves sleeping within their chambers until woken up. He needed more materials.
Once the war began, there would be plenty of corpses of both Night and Day elves. His decades-long plan had finally come to fruition.
Izuku sat before his Papa’s bedside, twisting his hands. A week had passed. Each of the last times he’d visited, he’d wanted to ask Yoichi for help. He’d promised Tamaki to do something about his father’s crimes, but he didn’t know where to begin. But he couldn’t bring himself to say anything whenever he saw Yoichi looking so pale and breakable. It made him remember that horrible birthday party and the fall…
Yoichi reached up and rubbed his adopted son’s hair. “Don’t make that face. I’m doing better. I’m sorry for scaring you like that.” A shadow flashed across his face.
Izuku wanted to talk about what had happened on his birthday even less than he wanted to discuss the corpses in the palace basement. Maybe the need to change the subject perversely gave him courage. He blurted out, “Pa—Uncle Yoichi—Papa. Father is… he’s been doing bad things. I…I…”
“Please, tell me,” Yoichi said.
Looking at his hands, Izuku mumbled, “Never mind. Father is the same as always.”
“You don’t think I can help you?” Yoichi asked. The question was delivered calmly, without accusation. “I understand. I haven’t been able to do much for you since we came to this dark place. But at least let me listen to your worries.”
Izuku glanced at the door, which always had guards outside. Then he lowered his voice.
When he’d finished spilling out the story of the resurrected day elf corpses and the planned invasion, Yoichi leaned back on his pillows and closed his eyes. Pain creased his face. Yoichi whispered, “Sweet darkness. I knew Hisashi was up to no good, but I had no idea it was this bad. We have to warn the Day Kingdom.”
Izuku felt relieved to finally spill his worries to someone else who cared about the Day Elves. Few people in this palace did. “Kirishima carried them a message about the planned invasion. But I want to do more. I want to stop this.” Words tumbled from his lips. “I probably can’t. I’m too young. Although I’m a prince, I have no authority here. Who would listen to me?”
“I can help,” Yoichi said. “We’ll come up with a plan together.”
Fumikage muttered as his hands wove, creating a portal of shadows on the floor. He was sweating more than the exertion of creating magic justified. Izuku couldn’t blame him. They were about to commit treason.
Momo handed Tamaki the letter with the royal seal that she’d forged. “Good luck,” she whispered.
Looking too scared to speak, Tamaki nodded. Tamaki had volunteered to deliver the letter to delay the invasion and prevent skirmishes with the day elves. This would buy Izuku and Yoichi time to enact their plan. It was a stopgap measure to delay war from breaking out. Even so, being caught with a fake royal seal would be an executable offense. Tamaki had jumped on the chance to escape the night kingdom in the light of recent reveals about the death of his old friend Mirio and his resurrection as the Nomu Aóratos. He’d vowed revenge. However, the closer they got, the more nervous Tamaki seemed. Izuku offered the other boy a reassuring shoulder pat.
With a rattle, the doorknob twisted. Aóratos entered the room. Tamaki screamed and leaped through the portal. At the same time, Izuku ran to block his bodyguard from seeing.
Aóratos tripped over Izuku’s body and fell into the portal.
The shadows closed behind him, the magic no doubt cut off by Fumikage, but a little too late. Both Aóratos and Tamaki were gone.
Fumikage, Momo, Tsuyu, and Izuku stood silently as they stared at the space where the portal had once been. There was a tenseness in the air that the four remaining young elves couldn’t bring themselves to break as what had happened slowly sunk in. The bodyguard had fallen through the portal into the Day Kingdom…
“…We don’t speak of this to ANYONE!” Momo said, and the others nodded in silent agreement.
Aóratos stood in the forest next to Tamaki, his face as impassive as always. But the closer Tamaki looked, the more he could see familiar lines on that scarred face. This Nomu had undoubtedly once been Mirio.
Slowly, Aóratos looked around. He did not seem bothered by being teleported. It was difficult to say how much he understood. He approached Tamaki and asked, “Do I know you?”
“I’m the prince’s friend. He’ll be distraught if you kill me.” Tamaki said, his throat nearly too dry to speak.
Aóratos nodded. “That must be why I feel like I should protect you.” He took another step forward.
In Tamaki’s later dreams, this was the moment where he extended a helping hand to his old friend, offered love and compassion, and jogged Mirio’s memories. But what actually happened was that he ran away screaming.
By the time Tamaki had delivered the fake letter and returned, he’d regretted everything and cursed himself for a coward a million times. He’d resolved to face the twisted mockery of his former friend and see if there was anything left to save. He felt torn between hope and fear that a false hope would be like losing his friend again.
But he was too late. When he returned to the forest where the portal would be formed again, Aóratos was gone. A sword had slashed against the tree, and a few drops of blood on the ground proved there had been a struggle. Tamaki picked up a golden charm shaped like a sun, the symbol of the Day Kingdom. Aóratos had been taken by day elf soldiers.
This time, Tamaki would be brave. He could not abandon Mirio again. He followed the trail.
Within perhaps half an hour, he realized he was wandering in circles through the Day Kingdom forest. He’d seen that lopsided oak tree before.
Tamaki shuffled through the crackling leaves, holding back tears. Why had he volunteered for this mission? Why had he chased after the Day Kingdom soldiers even though he was no good at fighting? He didn’t even remember the direction he needed to go! He might be heading back toward the Night Kingdom for all he knew. All this weighed on his mind, especially the realization he wasn’t feeling too good due to walking around in the direct sun for so long.
He should have stayed back in the Night Kingdom!
But he was the only one who could pull off the mission, and after he failed to save Kirishima the first time and failed to help Mirio, he needed to be useful…
He wasn’t a coward!
So, he continued to walk, fighting back the tears in his eyes and stopping in the shade to recover a bit before continuing.
He had been at it on and off for hours when he was finally found and cornered by a loud and angry Day Soldier in training and his master. The spiky-haired apprentice couldn’t have been older than Prince Izuku and was more than ready to stab poor Tamaki, only to be held back by his master, who was more well-spoken and forthcoming…
“I seek Asylum!” Tamaki cried, scared out of his mind. Then he collapsed.
Guards arrived with a creature bound with magic, yet it seemed a struggle to keep it under control and subdued.
What had been told to them by the strange troll, Kirishima, they hadn’t believed until this thing was dragged in. A giant, mismatched elf that held both day and night patchwork features. He was close to resistant to their magic and displayed great physical strength. Even once contained in a cage, it was challenging to keep suppressed it as they waited for the Master of Magic, Mirai, to study their only chance to see what the Night King had been creating and what he had been doing to them and his people.
Mirai wasn’t prepared to see what awaited him.
The prisoner sat tied to a chair, surrounded by day elf soldiers. His wrists had been bound by thick iron chains. The soldiers around him seemed nervous, casting frequent glances at his strange features and holding tightly to their spears. But the prisoner made no threatening movement, only sitting so still he almost seemed dead. Parts of his flesh were clearly dead. A graying fist was covered in scars. Stitch marks ran down his body. Downturned night elf ears had been grafted onto his face.
But his blond hair and facial features remained the same. Mirai remembered the days when the cheerful face of his student had smiled at him. But now the mouth with a scar running down the lip remained flat and implacable.
“Retreat and let us have a moment alone,” Mirai ordered the soldiers. They did not look happy, but they obeyed the king’s advisor.
Mirai stood before his former student with his hands behind his back. He started to say “Mirio…” Then he stopped. This undead before him could not be considered the real Mirio. He wanted to believe that. Yet, at the same time, he did not want to believe his student was gone forever. His head was a mess of conflicting emotions. He must master himself. This was important to the kingdom. He took a deep breath.
“What do they call you?” Mirai swallowed. “What is your purpose?
“I am Aóratos.” The undead’s voice was so familiar, it made Mirai flinch. “I protect Prince Izuku. Where is he?” The undead looked around as if expecting Izuku to materialize from the very wood of the walls around them.
Mirai gripped his hands harder to stop the shaking. “Do you remember anything from before you protected the prince? Do you remember…?” Me. “Your childhood?”
“I have always protected the prince.” Aóratos sounded confused by the question.
“But you’re not a night elf! Have you ever thought you should not obey a bunch of moon eyes?”
“HOW DARE YOU REFER TO THE PRINCE IN SUCH A DISRESPECTFUL MANNER!” Aóratos lunged. The chains on the chair rattled, but the wood held. His face remained impassive, but his eyes burned with a nocturnal fire. His lips peeled back like a growling dog. “If you make one move to harm him, I will end you.”
Mirai stumbled backward, not from fear of a bound prisoner so much as shock. How could his beloved student be willing to attack him for the night elves? On the orders of the same people who had killed and transformed him? Was there truly nothing of the original Mirio left in there?
The soldiers rushed around Mirai, surrounding him protectively. They pointed their weapons at the undead soldier. Aóratos subsided back into his passive state.
Just as Mirai turned away, he heard Aóratos mutter, “I’ve always protected the prince. My very first order…my first memory…before the laboratory…before the pain and darkness…someone told me to protect Prince Izuku.”
No night elf, but rather Mirai Sasaki had given that order. Somewhere, deep down, Mirio remembered. He was still trying to fulfill the last order his teacher had ever given him.
Mirai ran behind a tree and threw up.
Eijiro fidgeted with his claws as he stood before King Toshinori. He had no idea how to act in front of royalty. He bowed. Then he realized he probably wasn’t bowing low enough, so he kept lowering his head until he was staring at his legs.
A choked sound came from the throne.
Not a good sign. Surely the Day King was a noble ruler? Izuku had always spoken fondly of his time in the Day Kingdom and with admiration of their monarch. Hopefully King Toshinori wouldn’t execute someone for failing to bow properly. Shaking, Eijiro lowered his head a bit more.
“Please rise,” King Toshinori said.
Eijiro looked up, and saw the king was chuckling. His cheeks warmed. He’d clearly messed his bow up, but at least he’d been entertaining. The usual spot where the Royal Advisor sat was mysteriously empty. Rumor said that Mirai Sasaki had fallen ill.
“I’m told that you were friends with Prince Izuku and his entourage?”
Unsure where this was going, Eijiro nodded. “Um, I had that honor.”
In a worried but firm tone, King Toshinori said, “I need your help. A boy named Tamaki delivered intelligence to us, but then he collapsed from sun poisoning. Do you know him?”
Overwhelmed at a king needing him, Eijiro said, “Your Majesty, I met Tamaki during my time staying with Izuku. They are friends, and I believe Tamaki can be trusted. He’s more loyal to the prince than the king, that’s for certain. He helped me escape.”
“Prince Izuku sent us a message that his father plans to attack the day kingdom. They aim to invade in three days, on the night of the new moon, when their power will be strongest and we will be weakest. Day elves cannot use magic under the new moon. Even our bodies become weaker.”
Eijiro’s hands crept up to his mouth to bite his nails. He narrowly stopped before embarrassing himself again. Locking his hands together, he said, “Your Majesty, you must have a reason for sharing such valuable intelligence with me.”
“You’re a sharp one.” King Toshinori inclined his head. “I have a plan to halt the invasion, at least past the most dangerous day–and perhaps even to restore peace for good. And the plan requires your help.”
Eijiro gasped.
Toshinori rose and looked down from his throne. “We previously received intelligence from a deceased day elf agent that Hisashi’s claim to the throne is illegitimate. His parents named his younger brother as heir. A brave elf died to bring us this information…and then faced a fate worse than death.” Tired lines drew on the king’s face as he spoke. “We’ve created a copy of the documents. If we can deliver this to Prince Izuku and Prince Yoichi, then they will have the authority to stop the invasion.”
“Um.” Eijiro fiddled with his fingers, struggling to discern how to diplomatically disagree with royalty. “I’m only a lowly refugee, but it seems to me that even if King Hisashi is not the rightful heir, he still controls the army and nobility. He won’t just give up the throne because someone showed up with a decades-old document. He’d kill everyone who knew, then cover it up. Uh. Begging your pardon, Your Majesty.” He lowered his eyes, wondering if he was about to get beheaded for insulting royalty. King Hisashi had always been very touchy in that regard.
King Toshinori only laughed. “You’re smart indeed! That’s why my goal remains only to stall the invasion. If Prince Yoichi can escape to our side, then we can support his claim, and we might be able to split the night elves. Overthrowing Hisashi without a war would be ideal, but not likely. Perhaps Prince Yoichi will have more insight into the politics of the night court. But to accomplish anything, we must make contact with him. That’s where you come in.”
“Oh.” Eijiro swallowed.
King Toshinori continued, “King Hisashi has rolled out a group of troll-elf hybrid soldiers. You can blend in with them and sneak into the royal palace. You can take the documents and deliver them to Prince Izuku or Prince Yoichi–whoever you can find first. I will not lie to you: this mission will be extremely perilous.”
Eijiro swallowed harder. “I’ll do it.”
King Toshinori raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t even ask what reward I will offer you in exchange.”
“Oh, uh, that’s very generous of you, Your Majesty.” Eijiro bit his lip. “But I would help for free. Prince Izuku is my friend. He saved my life and led me to freedom. I want to repay him.”
King Toshinori smiled. “You’ve impressed me, young one. I’ve decided: as a reward, I will make you one of my own knights.”
Eijiro’s eyes widened. He blurted out, “A half-troll as a knight? Sir Sasaki won’t like that one bit!”
“Good thing that he isn’t here, then.” King Toshinori winked. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Eijiro laughed.
Mirai was not thrilled when he found out about his king’s plan. The screaming could be heard around the entire forest. The words: “I’d rather send the twisted mockery they made of my student!” had been spoken in anger.
But after Mirai had calmed down, he’d realized that might be the only way. The troll had been a prisoner, he did not know his way around the night kingdom. Although he would seem like another soldier to the common guards, there would be trouble if the troll boy ran into anyone who recognized him. Only one person could easily get into the palace and get close to Izuku: Mirio. Or Aóratos as he was called now.
Even in his current state, Mirai trusted his student more than a troll. (Or half-troll. Close enough.) If he spoke to Aóratos again, then maybe he could coax out the embers of Mirio inside? Mirai both feared to try and needed to try.
So once again, Mirai found himself standing before the chained prisoner.
Aóratos raised his head. “Where is Prince Izuku?” he asked dully. That was all he ever said.
“I heard you were refusing to eat.” Mirai wet his lips. It was hard to see Mirio Aóratos like this. “I brought your favorite shio ramen. Do you remember the first time you made ramen for me? You said I didn’t eat enough when distracted by magical experiments.”
Aóratos stared blankly. “Where is Prince Izuku?”
“Eat, and I’ll tell you.” Mirai loosened the chains, knowing he was taking a gamble.
Aóratos didn’t attack with his increased mobility. His arms stretched just far enough to bring the spoon up to his mouth. After slurping it down, he said, “I don’t need to eat.”
Mirai felt stupid, an uncharacteristic feeling he didn’t like very much.
Slowly, Aóratos said, “But it tastes good.” He ate a bit faster. “I think I know this flavor.”
“Do you remember anything else?” Mirai asked eagerly.
“No.”
Ugh, trust Mirio to remember ramen but not his own teacher. Mirai massaged his temples. “Prince Izuku is at the night palace, and we have reason to believe he could be in danger from his father.”
Aóratos dropped the bowl, his eyes blazing unnaturally. “His Majesty protects the prince.”
“But what would King Hisashi do if Izuku ever became a threat to his power?” Mirai laid out copies of the documents Mirio had retrieved at the cost of his life so long ago. He hadn’t been certain if an undead could read. But Aóratos looked through them quickly, his mouth turning into a frown.
“If Prince Yoichi is the rightful king, then what does that have to do with Izuku?” Aóratos asked.
“Izuku would be the heir to the throne, with his claim coming before Hisashi’s. That would make him a threat. Hisashi might kill Izuku to ensure he’d have no challengers.” Mirai truly believed this—he wouldn’t expect fatherly love from someone like Hisashi.
Aóratos stiffened. “I’m to protect the prince from anyone and anything.”
Mirai said, “If Yoichi is the rightful heir, then you should be loyal to him, not the false king.” He was curious to see if this reasoning would work.
Aóratos tilted his head. “Protecting Prince Izuku comes before anything else. I will not let even King Hisashi harm the prince.”
That was good enough. Mirai said, “We need you to escort the troll boy into the palace so he can deliver these documents to Prince Izuku. The prince needs to know that he might be in danger. If we let you go, then will you bring these documents to the prince, not the king?”
“My loyalty is to the prince. I will bring him the royal decree and let him decide if he supports King Hisashi or Prince Yoichi.” Aóratos’ eyes watched unblinkingly, a yellow unnerving gaze.
Mirai would have to trust in this promise, because the mission couldn’t succeed without Aóratos.
Izuku and Yoichi spent hours together, talking and planning.
The war had to be stopped. They both agreed on that. Protecting innocents was more important than anything else, including their own lives and freedom. Day elves couldn’t use magic under the new moon, so Hisashi had planned his attack for the right time to catch them helpless. If they could even manage to delay him, then they would create a window to stop this madness. At least they could prevent a massacre of day elves.
Momo and Fumikage had promised to stop their people’s forces from joining the battle. Izuku didn’t know if they could keep that promise. Both of them had been confident their parents would join the revolt—but Izuku hadn’t met their parents and could not be so sure.
Ultimately, Izuku and Yoichi both agreed the only way to be certain about preventing the war would be to disable Hisashi on the day of the planned attack.
Softly, Yoichi said, “When my brother finds out that you’ve turned against him, then he’ll be harsher than he ever has been before.”
Izuku understood what that meant much better after seeing Yoichi’s pitiful condition. “What did he do to you?”
Yoichi swallowed. “He trapped me asleep. In total darkness, always aware, alone except when he visited.”
Izuku sucked in a breath. If Yoichi had been left in a living coffin then no wonder Izuku had never been able to find him. No wonder Yoichi had gone mad. “I’m sorry, Papa.” He threw himself at Yoichi and hugged him.
Yoichi patted his back. “I would rather stay like that for eternity than see him do it to you.”
“At this point, I think Fath—Hisashi finding out is inevitable.” Izuku bit his lip. “I already set this in motion when I betrayed his surprise attack and lost my bodyguard. We can’t stop him from finding out. We need an escape plan for after we disable Hisashi.”
A question hung between them: disable or kill? For all Hisashi’s horrific crimes, he was still Izuku’s father and Yoichi’s brother. But if it came down to innocent lives, would it be wrong to spare him? Was regicide the only way to save the day kingdom and prevent the night kingdom from spiraling further into evil?
Yoichi said, “If we kill my brother, then Garaki will take charge of the castle. That could be even worse. Garaki has no moral limits. He doesn’t even care much for the lives of night elves.”
“Yeah,” Izuku said, relieved to have an out. Neither of them had the ability to take over the kingdom by force, they simply didn’t have the soldiers or the legitimate claim.
The two of them finalized their plan.
Eijiro felt strange wandering around with his claws visible. But instead of challenging him, soldiers made way for him, assuming he must have a task straight from the royal family because he looked like one of the private royal soldiers. (In a sense, they were right—just the wrong royal family.) He got the impression that the soldiers were uncomfortable with him. The first group of night kingdom soldiers they met were very quick to offer them a pair of their fastest horses to get them to the capital. In fact, they seemed eager to get rid of them. It didn’t appear news of Hisashi and Garaki’s genetic experiments had gone over well with the populace.
Perhaps that would be useful for the day elves. But Eijiro did not like the looks of fear and revulsion. At least he would have a place in King Toshinori’s court after this all ended, with his shiny new knighthood. Just remembering gave him a warm feeling. The likes of him had become a knight!
Aóratos was a silent companion. Eijiro tried a few times to start a conversation, with no luck. Attempting to establish common ground because of their origins in the laboratory earned him a blank stare. He hoped he could trust the bodyguard. There was a chance this was a trap, and Aóratos merely waited for the right opportunity to betray him.
Upon arriving at the palace, they left their horses at the stables and headed in through the front gate. The gate guards said that Izuku was heading to an audience with the king, but perhaps the two of them could catch him in the hallway first. They clearly trusted Aóratos. Eijiro breathed a sigh of relief when he set foot in the palace. But he’d breathed too soon. Stain rounded the corner, wearing a guard’s uniform. From the sudden widening of his eyes, he’d definitely recognized his former prey.
Eijiro hissed, “Aóratos, you have to get the documents to Prince Izuku. I’ll distract Stain.” Then he turned and ran.
With a sharp cry, Stain pursued.
As Eijiro sprinted out the palace doors, he could only bet everything on Aóratos’ loyalty to the prince.
Izuku pushed Yoichi’s wheelchair into the throne room. His heart raced and his palms felt clammy. This moment would determine if he found freedom again, or ended up trapped in eternal sleep. The latter seemed more probable.
Hisashi sat on his throne, speaking with Garaki. Izuku’s heart froze. Garaki had not been part of the plan. Unfortunately, trolls were notoriously resistant to magic.
As he looked up, Hisashi’s face was irritated. “We have an intruder in the palace. You’ll have to come back later—Yoichi!” The irritation vanished. “I’m glad you’re awake and looking less pale.” Hisashi rose and walked over gracefully. “Izuku, you shouldn’t have removed your uncle from his chambers. He’s not well.”
Hoarsely, Yoichi said, “I’m well enough to speak to you.” He tried for sternness, but his voice shook.
Hisashi assessed the two of them for a moment. “The birthday party experiment was a disaster. You’ve traumatized poor Izuku. You were clearly never well enough to leave your…quarters.”
Izuku swallowed as he watched the man who was his biological father. Does he not realize of course Papa would tell me the truth about what happened to him? Izuku thought bitterly. Father learned exactly nothing from driving Papa mad once. He’ll do it again. And he’ll do it to me too, if I fail to defeat him.
“I’ll return you to safety at once. Izuku, leave.” Hisashi reached for the wheelchair handles.
Izuku couldn’t allow Yoichi to be sent to sleep again. Poor circumstances though they had, they must fight.
When Hisashi’s hand ventured closer, Yoichi grabbed him and chanted a spell. Fur sprouted down Hisashi’s arm. They planned to transform him into a mouse. At the same time, Izuku activated entrapping vines around his enemies. He sent the largest thorny vine straight at Garaki’s head.
The troll slapped the vine away, then lunged forward, yanking Hisashi out of the circle.
Izuku and Yoichi exchanged brief glances of despair, but they had no time to speak. Hisashi immediately cast a sleep spell. Izuku cast the counter-charm at the same time, and the colliding magic sent all four of them slamming into opposite walls. With a cry of pain, Yoichi tumbled out of his wheelchair.
“HOW DARE YOU?” Hisashi screamed, his customarily composed face descended into mania. “Izuku, I’ve done nothing except shower you with wealth and power, yet you’d still betray me? Why?” There was a note of sincere anguish in his voice. At the same time, he turned the curtains into a net and shot it at them.
Izuku deflected with his vines. “I never wanted any of that! I wanted a father I didn’t have to fear!” he shouted.
There was nothing except incomprehension in Hisashi’s eyes. Even now, he didn’t understand what it had been like for Izuku to spend each year in desperate obedience, waiting for a birthday promise that never manifested. Hisashi did not listen. He’d never listened. Instead, he cast another net.
Garaki picked up the entire throne and threw it at Yoichi’s head. Unable to walk, Yoichi could not move away. He tried to cast a defensive spell, but nothing happened. Sweat dripped down his forehead. He must be still too tired for powerful magic. The stone fell straight toward Yoichi’s head, about to crush him.
Desperately, Izuku used his vines to drag Yoichi out of the way. In doing so, he failed to block the net. Heavy black strands fell over both of them, pinning them to the floor. Yoichi’s head cracked against the stone floor. Yoichi slumped over, unconscious. Izuku tasted icy despair. The threads sapped at his magic. Desperately, he tried to summon enough for one last stand. If he could become a mouse, he could slip away. He hated to leave his papa, but he could only save him later if he escaped now. He concentrated with all his might.
Whirling on his doctor, Hisashi screamed, “What are you doing? Be more careful! You might have killed Yoichi!”
Aóratos burst into the throne room, knocking the door off its hinges. Izuku gaped. How had the bodyguard accidentally sent to the day kingdom arrived here, at this moment?
“Message for Prince Izuku,” Aóratos said, then tossed a packet of documents.
Izuku moved, but Hisashi moved faster, shifting into an owl and snatching the documents in his talons. Perched on the window ledge above, he transformed back. “Now we’ll see who corrupted my son—”
Aóratos ran over and lifted the net off Izuku. He felt his magic start to return.
Hisashi’s face turned bone white as he read. Gazing at Garaki, he hissed, “It was you?! You killed my parents? Everything I did was to protect my family from those who committed that crime…”
“They would have disowned you,” Garaki snarled.
“That has to be a lie.” Hisashi’s face twisted, a million conflicting emotions passing across. “Yoichi is too weak, he could never rule.”
Garaki edged for the door.
That movement triggered Hisashi into action, like a cat after a mouse. He shifted into a tiger and launched himself off the windowsill at Garaki.
Sharp teeth ripped into Garaki’s arm. The troll flung the tiger away. The two of them wrestled across the floor.
Izuku finally felt strong enough to transform. “Aóratos, follow me.” He shifted into a snake and slithered across the floor.
With one last growl, Hisashi ripped out Garaki’s throat.
Izuku lunged, biting his father’s ankle. He released his venom, knowing the night elf was resistant. He’d be lucky if he could even briefly paralyze his father.
Shifting back into elf form, Hisashi reached down and grabbed the snake.
As soon as Hisashi touched Izuku, Aóratos punched him in the head, knocking him unconscious.
In the end, Aóratos had chosen his prince.
Izuku and Aóratos carried Yoichi out of the throne room together. Although Izuku had tied Hisashi up, he did not think regular bindings would hold the night king after he awoke. They had to escape fast. Fortunately no one else had yet noticed anything wrong. The noise had not attracted any servants because Hisashi often destroyed his throne room in a fit of rage. No one wanted to bother an angry king.
Aóratos asked, “Where are we going?”
“The Day Kingdom, hopefully,” Izuku said.
Aóratos paused, then asked, “Should we retrieve Kirishima first?”
“He’s here, too?” Izuku nearly dropped Yoichi. “Um…yes, definitely. Where is he?” Looking around, Izuku realized for the first time it was bizarre they hadn’t encountered any guards. Although he could hear footsteps far in the distance, like a stampede running away.
“Outside,” Aóratos said, not very helpfully.
But as they opened the palace gates, an army approached. Izuku nearly had a heart attack. Then he saw Kirishima sitting on a horse at the front of the army, waving his hands. He shouted, “I found help!”
“We found you,” Momo said, riding up next to him. Fumikage followed her.
The two armies marched under the banners of houses Tokoyami and Yaoyorozu. They had come to swear fealty to the new king.
With the help of the Tokoyami and Yaoyorozu armies, Izuku was able to take control of the palace. The royal soldiers stood down when he ordered it. He quickly spread copies of the decree naming Yoichi the rightful heir, in order to prevent a civil war. With Hisashi already in the dungeon, there was no one to lead the opposition. Hisashi had always ruled by fear. Izuku found the nobles fell all over themselves to proclaim they were happy Hisashi was gone. Cynically, Izuku wondered how many would have said that to his father’s face.
The war with the day kingdom was quickly averted. As soon as Yoichi woke up, he ordered the soldiers to withdraw.
Yoichi’s coronation was a tiny and fast affair. As his very first act as king, Yoichi declared Izuku to be his heir. As his second act, he signed a treaty with the Day Kingdom.
Tomura left shortly before the coronation. It seemed he could not accept anyone else ascending to the throne. Rumor said he had taken his most loyal people and headed to the troll’s kingdom to conquer it. Mainly Izuku was relieved Tomura was distracting the trolls from a retaliatory attack after Garaki’s death.
Kirishima had decided to stay in the Day Kingdom, training as a knight. King Toshinori had assigned Sir Nighteye as his teacher out of an optimism that refused to die.
Tamaki tearfully insisted on speaking to Aóratos every day. In honor of his grief, Izuku ordered his bodyguard to listen. At first Aóratos seemed like a numb statue, but he responded to Tamaki more than anyone else. Tamaki was even able to coax out a few of their shared memories. Every day, Aóratos seemed a little more like Mirio. Izuku had given everything useful in Garaki’s hideous laboratory to Mirai and the day elves, who were researching more techniques to bring Mirio back to himself. Then Izuku had burned the laboratory down.
Since Izuku could now freely move between the Night and Day Kingdoms, he waited until Yoichi’s rule stabilized, then he returned to the Day Kingdom. As the heir to the throne, he knew he couldn’t stay forever. There were parts of the Night Kingdom he loved, too. But Izuku missed his very first home. Now he could finally return.
There had been much debate about what to do with the former king Hisashi. Nearly every person had told Yoichi to have him executed. His crimes certainly warranted it. But it was difficult for Yoichi to kill his own brother even now, especially because Hisashi seemed to have gone a little insane from all the revelations and the shock of losing power.
Instead, Yoichi sent Hisashi into slumber in the royal gardens. And he decreed that he’d reconsider the punishment once a year, on Izuku’s birthday. They would have to see if Hisashi had learned a lesson enough to apologize after a year. Izuku suspected it would take much longer before Hisashi could ever hope to figure out what he’d done wrong, and before Yoichi would be ready to forgive.
