Chapter 3- The Masqueraders.

“It’s almost time to leave for the ball,” Akane thought; sipping her evening tea. She was living a luxurious life, almost like a princess. She was given a room on the third floor of the royal castle furnished with the most exquisite furniture with intricate workmanship, windows draped with red curtains with golden threadwork and a large cozy bed with linen sheets.

“What more can a girl dream of??” she thought as she sat on the pouf in front of a magnificent dressing table. “But how many people have the right to even dream in this kingdom?” she thought and dabbed some rouge over her ivory skin.

“The stark difference between the living standards of the Royal family and the nobles from that of the general public shows that this Kingdom is sick. Or at least that is what Neo sama would say,” she smiled at the thought of the man, her savior. “But, these things; I don’t care about it. I can’t care less about people who can’t stand up for themselves. It’s when you accept yourself as a victim, that you truly become one.”

She painted her lip with red; it matched with the dress she wore. She looked at the mirror.

“Hmm.. not bad,” she said and smiled. The words Ayane had said some time ago came back to her. She stared, transfixed at the reflection that was hers but yet not hers.

There was a knock on the door and a maid walked in. “His excellency, Vincent sama is expecting you in the garden Ms. Akane,” she said.

Akane nodded and the maid left the room. Akane stood up and examined her reflection once again. She was flustered. She was always flustered before attending these social gatherings with elite men and women whose eager eyes are always waiting to catch the slightest of folly in your every move and action. And this time the ball was being organized be the Worthingtons one of the most corrupt Nobles families.   

Her door was pushed open unceremoniously by a man with long white hair and emerald green eyes; he wore a black long coat embroidered with gold and silver.

“Vincent sama!” Akane said; she was startled.

“Patience is not one of my fortitudes,” he said planting his cold eyes on her.

Akane gathered her disheveled self. She let go of the dagger she had hidden in the folds of her dress.

“Where are your manners Vincent sama? Won’t you knock before you enter a lady’s room?” she said.

“And where are yours,  Akane, won’t you curtsey a prince, when you are in his presence? Or have you really started considering yourself as a princess??” he retorted.

“I would never make such a blatant mistake your Highness!!” she said; curtsying.

“Well, I have something to tell you, or I wouldn’t bother coming here,” he said and walked to the window on the opposite end of the room. “We have information about a certain young man. He goes by the name of Kiosky Shubah. He is a well-established merchant and has managed to make it into the good books of all the Nobles and Royal families worth knowing. He is backed by the Varsalis family.  He attends all the parties and it has come to my notice that he has made contact with you.”

“You don’t mean Kio kun do you?” Akane said. “Oh yes, he is a flamboyant young man who seems to attract a lot of attention from the girls these days. He has often tried to start conversations with me; he is quite persistent, I must say. He has even extracted a promise of a dance with me. He seems to be an average young man.”

“Well he is not of this country. I have reason to believe that he is a spy,” Vincent said.

“A spy??”  Akane chuckled. “He is drawing too much attention for a spy. Aren’t you just being paranoid, Vincent sama.”

Vincent threw a dangerous look at her. “It would do you well to mind your manners, Akane. Don’t think my hands are tied since you are playing my sister’s double.  I could make a mindless puppet of you if need be,” he said walking towards her and looking into her eyes. “Do you understand?”

Akane looked away. Anger and loath overwhelmed her. If she could just stab him right here, right now. It would all be over. But, she could not. She had to wait.

“Well, all you have to do is extract information from him,” Vincent said as he walked to the door. “Now, make haste we are already late.”

Akane watched him leave the room. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. She could not afford to mess things up right now. Everything was going according to the plan. She had to wait patiently; she owed it to Neo sama and the others of the People’s Army.

She threw a last glance at the mirror and walked out of the room slamming the door behind her. 

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Neither the starry night sky nor the mild pleasant breeze from the west could have ever warned the people of Sano of cruel fate that awaited them.   

Nazo’s eyes reflected the flaming village that stood before him. His ears echoed with the cries of the men, women and children who cried out for help as the royal army burnt it down. The smoke that engulfed the whole area was hardly the reason for the feeling of suffocation that was overwhelming him.

He was sent there to supervise the whole scene and to report back to the crown prince who would be enjoying the ball organized by the Worthingtons.  Nazo patted his horse, it seemed restless due to the noise.

“Sir Nazo!” one of the soldiers called out to him. “We have made barricades to avoid any one from escaping. There is no way for the rebels to escape,” the man reported.

“Fine, I shall leave the rest to you then. I have to get back to the Prince’s side lest the devil might strike him down.” Nazo said and turned his horse. “Please check for any survivors. And if there are any children take them to the Chuka shrine. The priest there will take care of the rest.”

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The ball room was decorated with anything and everything that cost enough to make people acknowledge the power and wealth of the Worthington family. There was a large spread of gourmet dishes of every sort arranged according to the various cuisines on the counters lined in the eastern side of the large ballroom. Waiters dressed in tailed coats carried drinks to the handpicked guests invited to the ball.    

“No Ice cream?? You have every dish from every corner of this world, but no Ice Cream!! What is the use of a party without Ice cream!!”  Kiosky Shubah said as he pulled the waiter by his collar. He was frustrated after checking every counter. He just could not understand how people could miss out on Ice Cream, the only dish that one can never get bored of, no matter how many times one eats it. 

“There is wine,” said a woman wearing a gaudy green puffed up gown and covered from head to toe with gold ornaments decorated with precious stones of every kind. She held a glass of wine up to him.

“Oh, Mrs Worthington,” Kiosky said taking the wine from her. “Thank you for inviting me to your ball. It’s an honor to be invited by the Worthington family, one of the four great Noble families. Word has it that your husband is the right hand man of Vincent sama.”

“Oh.. ho ho.. Don’t flatter me Kiosky,” the woman laughed heartily clearly happy with the flattery. “I heard you are living as a tenant in the Versalis Mansion. They are not in the good books of Vincent sama, and that is worse than having a death wish. A young ambitious man like you should move over to our mansion. Our little Grissel will be very happy,”  she said beckoning a blonde girl who looked like her younger version.  

Kioski sensed trouble as ‘little Grissel’ started walking towards where they stood.

“Pardon me ma’am but I just remembered something, I must take my leave,” he said giving a slight bow. “I’ll take you up on that offer very soon Mrs. Worthington,” he winked at her and walked away.

He heaved a sigh of relief. “That was close,” he said to himself and picked a blue mask from the inner pocket of his dark blue long coat.  It was decorated with silver thread work and stones of sapphire and ruby. He looked into the reflective glass of a large vintage window beside him. He brushed away the strands of blue hair that fell over his blue eyes. As he adjusted the mask in a way that would not obstruct his vision he saw the Royal carriage make its way down the pathway leading to the entrance of the mansion.  “So they are here,” he thought to himself.

He sat on the wide window sill and waited for the Prince and the Princess to make their entrance. In a few minutes he saw them walk into the entrance of the ballroom on the red carpet. Mr. and Mrs. Worthington who had run out to welcome them were sticking close to them. Ms. Grissel was trying hard to grab the prince’s attention while talking fervently with the princess. Kiosky held himself from laughing out aloud and sipped his wine. Everyone had gathered around to greet the two young royals.

After what seemed like an hour the prince walked to the middle of the ball room and held up his glass of wine. “Let the ball begin!” he said donned a mask on.  The sound of the orchestra blared as the princess walked to his side wearing a black mask that went very well with her red gown.  The Prince and the Princess danced together for the first song. Every one watched them with awe. For the next song more couples in masquerades made their way onto the floor. The Prince and Princess bowed to each other and left the floor together.  Vincent passed by Ms. Grissel who was waiting for a dance with him, without giving her a second glance. Kiosky could not hold himself back from laughing this time. The embarrassed look on the girl’s face was epic.  

He saw the princess pull away from the crowd. He gulped down the wine in one swig and placed the glass on the window sill.

Kiosky walked to where the princess was standing.  A few young men had swarmed around her asking her for a dance.

“Princess! May I have the pleasure of sharing this dance with you?”  A man bowed down and asked the bored looking princess.

“I am sorry gentlemen, but the princess has promised all her dances to me this evening,” Kiosky interrupted.

“There you are.” Akane said, looking back at him. He bowed down and kissed her hand.

“I am sorry to have kept you waiting, my lady,” he said. “Pardon me guys; we shall take our leave for now.” He walked to the dance floor practically pulling the disheveled looking princess with him. The other couples parted to make way for them as they made their way to the center of the dance floor.

“A bit too flashy, aren’t you?” Akane said as they came to a stop. Everyone’s eyes were on them  

“Red suits you,” he said; pulling her closer and placing his hand on her waist.

Akane looked away flustered, she hoped that her cheeks had not turned red with embarrassment.

“Vincent is already suspicious about you,” she said, pulling her voice down to a whisper. “A week or two in the max and they will come to get you.”

“Ah finally, it’s going to get interesting.” he said. “I was getting bored.”  

He directed her smoothly and they danced for another two songs. They were still the center of attraction. At the end of the song the bowed to each other and walked off the dance floor to a heavy applause.

“We are quite a pair I must say,” Kiosky said.

Akane rolled her eyes while taking her mask off.

A waiter approached them with an assortment of drinks.   

“I hope everyone is going well with you madam,” the waiter said with a bow.

“Ivan san!!” Akane exclaimed. “I am fine, and I hope it is the same on your end.”

The waiter smiled at her. His beady black eyes displayed concern. “Everyone is fine my lady.”

Akane looked around to see if they were being observed as she put her hand in her purse to produce a small note. She slipped it beneath the tray cloth.

She picked a cocktail to cover her actions. Kiosky chose a glass of red wine.

The waiter bowed again and left.

Kiosky sipped the wine. “Neo actually uses Ivanoh, his right hand man, just to relay messages! Either the man has no sense or he wanted to show his concern through this gesture. Neo sure cares a lot about you,” he observed.

“Neo sama values every member of the People’s Army,” Akane snapped back.

“Hmm.. The righteous type eh?? They are my least favorite sorts,” Kiosky said with disdain as it brought to his mind another of his least favorite people.   “Do you know of Nazo? The Prince’s personal knight??”

“Yes, what of him??” Akane asked. “He is a devoted knight. And his sword can slice through anything.  At least that’s what I have heard. He is Vincent sama’s ultimate defense.” she said clenching her fist unconsciously.

“It seems that the mask you are wearing is on the verge of breaking,” Kiosky said taking her hand pressing it to his lips.  “If you carry on this way, you will be of no use whatsoever.” His cold blue eyes seemed to pierce her very soul.  He wrapped her hand around his arm and led her to the balcony.

Akane felt a pang of regret. It was like she had reached her limit. She wanted this to end. She could no longer breathe behind the mask. She looked into the contents of her glass as if she would have rather drowned in it.

“Just a bit longer,” Kiosky said..

Akane could not wrap her mind around this man. It sounded like he was consoling her. She had always prided her ability to analyze people. There was hardly any one Akane could not read, hardly any mask that she could not see through, but this man, Kiosky Shubah, made her re-evaluate her ability. She disliked him. He made her feel uncomfortable and insecure. They walked to the farthest end of the balcony where they could have some privacy.

He leaned on the wooden railing and looked at her as he removed his mask; the full moon sent sharp shadows across his features. He smiled. It was not a warm one. It wore the look of a predator waiting for his prey to run into the trap that he had carefully laid. He reminded her of Vincent. Akane looked away jadedly.

“So why is it that you were inquiring about Nazo??” she asked.

“How can I put it,” he said turning to look at the grounds beyond the gardens, “Nazo Shi is an important piece. Any time now he will enter through that gate to report to the prince about the village that has been burned down.”

“Vi.. Village??” Akane was shocked. “What do you mean by ‘burned down’?”

“My sources informed me that Vincent had ordered to ‘burn the village of Sano down to a cinder’ after he caught three of your rebels who belonged to that area.  It is a warning to other villages that harbor any of the members from the People’s army,” he said.

 “A whole village??” She asked as the horror sunk into her.

“A whole village,” he repeated in consent and held up the wine glass against the moon. The surface of the blood red liquid shined with the moons light.

Akane frowned. He was no different from Vincent after all.  She was surely going to hate this man.

Kiosky chuckled to himself. The expression of detest, that he had managed to make Akane wear was an accomplishment. He didn’t care a bit about how creepy he must be looking smiling widely after spewing out such sad news. He didn't really care about what people thought of him. He had his reasons to be happy about the unfortunate incident of Sano. Although it was sad that a whole village was burned down, he could use this development to his gain.

“There he is,” Kiosky said looking down from the railing. “Nazo Shi!!”

A horse galloped down the pathway with Nazo riding on it. He had been waiting for this.     

“Will you excuse me for now m’ lady,” he said. “We shall meet again soon enough.” He donned the mask once again and left Akane standing alone in the balcony. 

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Nazo got off the horse. He was tired and it had nothing to do with his stamina. He had reached his limit. He had never wanted to be the errand boy of the devil. The sounds from the party filled Nazo’s ears.

“It seems like they have deafened themselves to the cries of a whole village,” Nazo said to the horse and stroked it. He removed the saddle and handed it over to the attendant who came running to receive them.

“Give it some water,” he said.

“Yes, sir,” the man said and took the horse away.

Nazo looked at the grand garden that surrounded the mansion. It had different patches in full bloom with different flowers. Small pathways went through the flower beds which were tinted with the darkness of the night. He walked down one of the pathways. He did not feel like reporting to the prince; not yet. There were several statues made by eminent sculptors, a few fountains and ponds with lotuses and water lilies. Nazo took in the fresh scent of the flowers; they helped calm him down. There were very few people in the garden; mostly couples who wanted some time to themselves.  He walked to the bed of roses. He remembered how much he disliked the flower but that was long ago; before he had met Amane. The image of a little girl with silver hair and green eyes flashed in his mind.

He pulled a flower near to him and filled his lungs with its fragrance. His mind was pulled down the memory lane. “You should not blame the rose for growing thorns,” Amane had said. Her hair was tied in two ponies and her wide green eyes were frowning at him as she tied a bandage around his finger. She was a kid then and he was only a few years elder to her. She had dared him to pluck a rose for her if he wanted her to stop pestering him. All he managed to do was get his hands bloodied and being chased around by the angry gardener.  

“The rose was a princess,” Amane explained.  “She was the most beautiful of all and word of her fragrant wisdom spread all over the world. Many sought after her, not for who she was, but for her priceless beauty and wisdom. So she grew a wall of thorns to test the ones who came to claim her. No one dared to come near her after that, afraid to be hurt by the thorns. She grew old and died still waiting for a man who could risk everything to get her. A few days later, the wall of thorns was burned down by the goddess of the forests, who was a friend of the princess. She saw that her friend had died a lonely death and a tear fell from her eyes. And from the spot that the tear had fallen a new plant sprouted. And that is how the rose plant was born.”  

That was the weirdest story he had ever heard and he got to hear plenty more of these from her since he had failed to get the rose. He was glad that he had not gotten rid of her pestering, he was glad for the thorns and the gardener. He never gave her a rose; he never wanted her to leave his side. But, everything he had ever wanted had been taken away from him.

“I thought you disliked roses.”

Nazo turned and in an instant unsheathed his sword, pointing it at the hedge of rose bushes behind him. He was sure he had heard the voice from this direction. He couldn’t see anyone, but he was sure that someone was standing there.  

“Show yourself!!” he said. He could not believe that he had let down his guard so much so that someone could sneak up on him without him noticing.

“Is this how you greet your brother Ga-ku-po san??”  Kiosky asked, undoing the camouflaging spell.

“You should leave before I have to kill you,” Nazo said bringing his sword down. He did not sheath it. He might have to use it.

“Kill me?? Surely spilling the blood of all these innocent people has hardened you enough to be able to even kill me, your younger brother. I must say, I am disappointed with you,” Kiosky said in a mocking tone.

“I am doing you a favor by keeping your true identity hidden from Vincent sama. Return to your country before I have to kill you, Prince Kaito,” Nazo said.

“How many times do I have to tell you to stop addressing me as prince,” Kaito said shaking his head. “You are after all the rightful crown prince of Shion.”

“I said leave!!” Nazo said pointing the sword at Kiosky again.

“Fine!! I’ll just take five minutes,” Kiosky said, in a more serious tone.

“Speak,” Nazo said still holding the sword at Kiosky’s throat.

Kiosky rolled his eyes and sighed.

“Tell me brother, why are you bending so low as to do the dirty work of this selfish prince of Pelhar?? You could just return to Shion. You could even claim the throne which is rightfully yours,” Kiosky said.

“I am not interested in the throne,” Nazo said.

“I like that about you,” Kiosky said. “Just trying to confirm your status on that opinion.”

“Get to the point!!” Nazo said.

“It seems like you feel indebted to the King of Pelhar and so you are being loyal to the prince,” Kiosky said.

Nazo frowned, Kiosky was right. He seemed as perceptive as ever. Nothing ever escaped his keen eyes. But, what was the point of bringing this up? Nazo knew very well that Kiosky himself had an eye for the throne of Shion. The only reason why he did not make Nazo his enemy was because Nazo never wanted the throne. He had recognized Prince Kaito the first time he laid eyes on the famous ‘Kiosky Shubah’, but he chose to hide Kaito’s identity. It did not concern Nazo unless it had something to do with the safety of Prince Vincent.

Nazo stared into Kaito’s eyes trying to read him. He was too tired to play his games.    

“Look at you. Tired and lost. I think that if you bend any further for Vincent, you’ll break,” Kiosky said.

“And am I to assume that you are concerned?” Nazo said.

“Oh yes!! After all, I have saved your life once before,” Kiosky said.

Nazo’s eyes widened. What did Kaito really want?

“I am here to give you a chance to free yourself; from the ‘oath of debt’ that I had made you take for saving your life and also to free you from Vincent,” Kiosky said, a smile played around his mouth.

The ‘oath of debt’ that Kaito had made him take was an age-old sorcery which bound Nazo to repay his debt when asked for. The spell could only be broken if one of the partaker of the oath died.

“I can kill you here!!” Nazo said and tightened his grip on the sword.

“Really? Elder Brother? You would choose to kill me over the man who has done such heinous crimes? Your hands are already bloodied with the curse of all those you had to kill for him. Aren’t you sick and tired of this? Don’t you want to end this?” Kiosky asked.

Nazo stood transfixed. He was confused. How could it be that he was confused. He felt weak in his knees. Kiosky moved the sword away with the back of his hand. Why was it so easy to move the sword away?

“I’m not asking you to kill the Prince with your own hands. All I want you to do is save me. I am counting on you to repay my kindness elder brother,” he said and walked away, leaving Nazo alone to deal with the great battle that he had infused in Nazo’s mind.