1 Chapter One

I sat in the small nook of the window sill beside my bed and simply stared out at the ever expanding kingdom. The small shops, streets, and homes seemed to stretch farther than the eye could see and rested safely upon rolling hills. At this time of day, soft orange, yellow, and red-ish colors engulfed the kingdom and left shadows to the parts they didn't touch. The entirety of it was a beautiful sight.

The kingdom of Hubris. A name known for as far as the salty oceans of Irene. I'm pretty sure you couldn't stumble across a single person who hadn't heard the name.

It was such a hard thing to believe. To grasp. To wrap my brain around. That I, Lissete Eversec, rule over this kingdom in some way. This kingdom is not only a home to me and my brothers, but it is also our birth right.

It felt wrong to put it into those words, but it is true. The stone walls, the brick paths, the expansive homes, they were all my brothers and I's birthright.

I scrunched my face as the thought of entitlement discomforted me. I never was one to enjoy things given to me without an ounce of hard work for them. It never felt justified.

Had I continued thinking about how I was to inherit this beautiful kingdom, I'm sure I would have thrown a fit, but I was fortunately swept away from it by spotting a quaint little bakery resting on the corner of a street. The "open" sign had just been flipped to read "closed" and, who seemed to be the owner, dusted her hands off on her apron and stepped back into the bakery's interior.

I smiled at the thought of the townspeople happily going about their life, not a worry to their thoughts. No imminent fate looming over them. Then the thought hit me.

I uncurled my arms from around my knees and let my muscles stretch from being seated for so long. I felt my bone crack and I let myself squeeze my eyes shut before stepping down from my perch upon the window sill.

I heard my bare feet hit the cold stone floor and immediately made my way out of my room, pushing the large spruce doors open and stepping out into the empty corridor, barely lit by the torches along the wall at this time of day.

I shut the large door behind me, attempting to not make any noise for Father and Mum are sure to be asleep by now. I then sprinted down the hallway towards my brother's room. Even though it was the room directly next door, it was still quite a ways away, due to the large area of the castle. My feet pattered beneath me and the smile on my face never faded.

I came to a quick halt at Elliot's door. The tall Spruce was quite menacing as it looked over my rather small figure. Tap. Tap tap. Tap. The rhythm of the knock was something my twin brother and I used to alert the other of our presence at the door.

I heard him quickly run to the door and swing it open, his head popping from behind the thick wood. He smiled widely and pushed the door open to let me in.

"Liz, it's a little late in the evening for you to be stumbling around the corridors. Is it not?" He chuckled at the statement playfully as I stepped into the dark room. Lit candles resting on his desk, dangerously close to the layers of parchment, were the only source of light within the room, causing the shadows to dance around us.

I turned to my brother, my smile identical to his. "Yes, I know the hour is late, but this thought could not wait for morning." My statement was light.

He smiled wider and crossed his arms while leaning against the cold stone walls of the room. "Go on then."

I nodded and continued my half of the conversation "Would you be interested in visiting the town with me?"

His smile was traded for a shocked look. We hadn't visited the kingdom outside of the walls of the castle for years. The, then, shocked face faded into a smile once again.

"When?" Excitement laced his voice as he seemed just as elated as me.

"Tomorrow. No exceptions." I grinned, but didn't wait for his response, instead I slipped through the tall spruce door once again. I sprinted down the hall, half expecting my brother to follow me, but he didn't and I continued on my way. This time, I stopped in front of Atlas's door.

The scratch marks in the wood from the times he had attacked it with his rapier could still be seen and marks of red ink covered the lower half of the door.

I smiled as the thought of the maids dragging 6 year old Atlas away from the door, covered in red ink and crying about how he only wanted to make it "pretty" replayed in my mind as if I had seen it yesterday.

I knocked firmly on the door attempting to call my younger brother from his room. On the other side, the sound of a chair scraping across stone could be heard and then sudden heavy boot straps. The door swung open and there stood Tommy, who towered over me. "What?! Do have any clue what hour-" He cut himself off from his aggressive rant once he spotted me.

"Lissette, what on earth has you knocking at my door this late in the evening." He groaned, hiding a smile behind his lips, not very discreetly. I'm sure it was due to his older sister, who unfortunately never visited, was suddenly coming to see him.

I smiled up at him kindly, almost solemn.

"Atlas, would you mind accompanying Elliot and I into town tomorrow? I would love to have you there."

This melted his entire tough guy appearance and his smile began to spread from ear to ear.

"Of course, I would." He grinned. I grinned back, excited to spend time with him once again, but just as soon as the smile was there it was gone again, replaced with the strained straight face.

"Now, go to bed." He grumbled as he shut the door directly in front of me with a slam. The force caused a breeze to fling my hair behind me. I sat there, staring at the door for a moment, but only a moment, before turning around and starting my way back down the corridor.

My excitement from the rush of a good idea drained from me through spigot and was replaced with a tired numbness.

I yawned and stretched as my bare feet stepped across the cold white marble of the floor on my way back to my room. I was extremely excited that my brothers had decided to join me, even though the thought was sudden and impulsive.

What bothered me though, was Atlas's behavior. It was almost identical to that of my eldest brother, William. He must be spending so much time around him that Will's attitude is beginning to wear off on him.

I grimaced at the idea of Atlas, the lively young boy I knew, turning so cold and closed off.

I guess, it's best if I didn't think too much of things that displeased me so. I'm sure it's not good for the well being of my health.

I didn't bother to stop my pace at my room and simply pulled the door open and pushed it out of my way, the heavy door almost taking my entire body to move. I, then, let the door shut behind me and let myself fall into my mattress.

The hem of my dress and legs lifted themselves into the air slightly upon impact and I let out an "umph" sound.

The soft comforter almost wrapped itself around me, calling me to fall asleep.

Ignoring its call, I flipped myself over to stare at the ceiling. The old painted remains of the galaxy my mother and I had once created lingered on the ceiling's surface.

A fond memory of my mother and I played itself within my head as I smiled. I pointed out parts of the painting that I had done to myself as I slowly drifted to sleep. The smile I wore never fading.