Astrid Stark Writes...

Rosella stood outside the school with Maria, waiting for the twins to come out. Even two weeks in, she still wasn’t used to her own school days, much less the routine of picking Lorelai and Jasper up. But Roman was even less used to it. So here Rose was, having to call Maria in again, because fourteen-year-olds weren’t allowed to drive. 

The Director of Black Ridge’s assistant never spoke much, and Rose was glad for that. She never knew what to say to this young woman who claimed she was human, but had magic spiralling around her wherever she went. Rose didn’t think Maria was powerful, but she was intimidating. And like everything else in this mundane society, Maria didn’t fit in any of the boxes Rose had in her head. Not for humans or Supernaturals.

The shrill bell of the elementary school startled Rose from her thoughts, and she quickly looked away when she realized she’d been staring at Maria openly. 

Parents, teachers, and what looked like hundreds of children swarmed the school doors, and Rose had to remind herself that she wouldn’t lose Lorelai and Jasper in this chaos. She and Maria stood right by the entrance closest to the kindergarten classrooms, and the twins knew to come right out to them. It was a far better plan than to have Rose go in to find them. When she did that the first day, she got so overwhelmed that she missed them entirely and spent what felt like an extra hour finding them. 

Rose just wasn’t used to being around so many humans at once. They felt different, smelled different, sounded different, and lived so differently than anything Rose was used to. It wasn’t that she was never around humans before she moved in with Roman Pizarro and his two five-year-old children a few months ago. But being around them all the time, every day, was weirdly exhausting. Not to mention that Rose was terrified of being discovered by the wrong people.

Finally, Rose saw Lorelai and Jasper coming towards them, Lorelai pulling her brother behind her. She walked them confidently to where Rose and Maria stood, like she instinctively knew where they were. Rose wouldn’t put it past the twins for having that kind of intuition. Not only because of the trauma they’d already suffered in their short lives—losing their mother and then being put in the care of a twenty-eight-year-old father who hadn’t known they existed—but also because of what Rose sensed in them the moment she met them. There was magic in their blood.

“Rosie!” Lorelai exclaimed when she finally saw her and ran to throw her arms around Rose’s legs. 

Rose gratefully wrapped her arms around Lorelai, able to let out a tight breath. Jasper came more slowly behind his sister, but he grabbed Rose’s hand when she extended it out to him. It took a month and a half before Jasper felt safe enough to speak to Rose, much less touch her. He was even less comfortable around Roman. Rose couldn't blame him.

“How was your guys’ day?” Rose asked

She felt Maria move slightly closer to her side, as more people moved around the school. 

The Director’s one job concerning Rose was to keep her safe and under the radar. For the first couple of months, the Director really only had Roman on that job as the rest of her team focused on finding the man responsible for this heightened security in the first place. But since Rose and the twins started school, Maria was put on the job too, coming around the house to see how the kids and Roman were managing, picking the kids up from school when Roman wasn’t around, and acting as Rose’s bodyguard whenever they were out of the house. 

“It was weird!” Lorelai answered, like that explained it all.

“What do you mean?” Rose asked, but was already brushing it off. They could talk about it in the car.

Surprisingly, it was Jasper who explained. “Those big guys that took us away from Mommy came for a girl in class today.”

Rose turned back to them in confusion, but it was Maria’s voice that had her concerned.

“What the…”

Maria barely spoke at the best of times, so at the sound of her voice, Rose’s defenses immediately went up. She looked around and saw two police officers escorting a little girl, who seemed even smaller than the twins, out of the school, a teacher at their side.

“They said Gwynie’s mommy was in trouble,” Lorelai tried to explain, “so Gwynie had to go with them. Just like we had to go with them when our mommy was in trouble.”

As the officers came closer, an uncommon but familiar feeling washed over Rose. It took her a minute to remember what the sensation signified and another second to pinpoint where it was coming from. 

Rose looked at both officers. No. 

The teacher? Also no.

Then Rose’s gaze connected with the little girl, the one Lorelai called Gwynie, and Rose knew.

“Maria,” Rose breathed with urgency. “The girl…”

But they were already at the police cruiser that Rose just noticed. She was still getting used to taking everything in in a landscape that already felt so full. The police car hadn’t stood out to her, but it must have to Maria, which was probably why she was so tense when they got there.

“What about her?” Maria asked, looking concerned. She should be.

“We need to find out her name.” Rose kept watching them. “And I need to talk to the Director. Now.”

For some reason, Maria listened and walked over to the officers. Rose could just make out Maria taking out a badge, which Rose had no clue she even had. Maria’s work was part of a secret branch in the government, one that worked with Rose’s family. Regular police officers shouldn’t know what it was, but whatever Maria said worked, because suddenly the officers were nodding and talking openly with Maria. She nodded a couple of times and then came back towards Rose and the twins. 

“The girl’s name is Gwyneth Dare,” Maria said quietly, as she gestured for Rose and the twins to start walking to the car. “Her mother was just apprehended and charged with the murder of her husband, Gwyneth’s father. They live on a farm just outside the city.”

“Take us to the Director,” Rose said as they climbed in. “I need to talk to her.”

“Does Gwynie need a new home, too?” Lorelai asked as Maria drove off. “Is she like you, Rosie? Will she come live with us, too?”

Maria’s eyes briefly shot towards Rose’s in the passenger seat before they went back on the road.

“I don’t know, Laylay,” Rose said. “But she does need a new home. Just like we did.”

Rose could tell Maria wanted to ask her about Gwyneth, but she didn’t. Rose didn’t know what to say if she had.

They finally made it downtown to a high-rise building where Rose was introduced to Director Abba three months ago. The day everything changed for her. 

Maria led them up the elevators and through the halls to the Director’s office. Rose didn’t know when, but she knew Maria had given Director Abba a heads-up before their arrival. 

Without even knocking, they went inside.

The twins were obviously nervous, and Rose hated herself for not dropping them off at the house before coming here, but she also didn’t like them out of her sight if she could help it. She didn’t know if that was for her benefit or theirs.

Rose clutched both Lorelai and Jasper’s hands as they entered.

Director Abba looked up from her desk, face unexpressive.  “What can I do for you, Rosella?” 

Rose held her head high. “There’s a little girl at the twins’ school, Gwyneth Dare—”

“Yes, the one whose mother killed the father,” the Director interrupted. “I’m aware.”

“Does the girl have any family to take her in?”

“Why does that concern you?”

Rose didn’t break the Director’s stare. “Does she?”

The Director huffed a sigh, but answered. “No. The father was an only child with elderly parents who died before Miss Dare was born, and he isn’t close to any extended family. The mother doesn’t seem to have any family whatsoever, which is all I could find out before you barged in here. Now, would you like to tell me why you’re wasting my time with a little kid I have nothing to do with? Do you think it’s another one of Roman’s?”

Rose shook her head, holding on tightly to the twins. She wasn’t sure she actually wanted to say the truth in front of them, but she just hoped they didn’t understand the full scope of what she said.

“Gwyneth Dare has Fae blood, I’m assuming from her mom’s side. And it was powerful. I think there’s a reason they lived on a farm outside the city instead of in, and if Gwyneth goes into the regular foster care system, or to some unknown relative on her human father’s side, she’ll be unsafe. She’s too young to know how to control her abilities, and being close to too much iron in the city will weaken her.”

“Then how has she been able to go to school in the city?”

Rose shrugged. “She’s only half-fae, and from what I’ve been told, the Fae can withstand the city for short periods of time.”

The Director arched an eyebrow. “And what are you proposing I do about this?”

“You’re the Director of Black Ridge. Supernatural relations is your job, and I thought you wanted to protect us. Not just my people, but others too. Isn’t that why you brought in Maria?”

Maria visibly startled by the door.

Rose may not know what Maria’s ties were to the Supernatural world, but they touched her blood and soul. She wondered if Maria’s abilities were part of the reason why the Director thought Roman’s household was the best fit for Rosella, with his twins of magic-users. Could Maria sense the twins’ magic? Was that why she came around so frequently to make sure not only Rose was okay, but the twins as well?

Rose’s own senses of the magical world were dimming the longer she was away from her people, but she could still detect the type of magic surrounding a person, a Supernatural. The twins had magic-using blood in their family—what humans called witches, wizards, or sorcerers. Their father, Roman, didn’t have a drop of magic in his blood, so it could only have come from their mother. 

Rose didn’t know much about Roman’s brief lover, Evita Flores, besides the fact that she and Roman parted ways before she told him she was pregnant. She also knew that Evita barely scraped by when she got sick and died shortly thereafter. Roman also mentioned once that Evita left her family in Cuba when she was young, and Rose wondered if she was able to come to Canada so easily because she knew the Supernatural world and knew how to use her own abilities. But Rose hadn’t told anyone else about the twins’ blood.

Although that didn’t mean Maria and the Director hadn’t come to the same conclusions.

“And others in your employ,” Rose continued. “So I thought Gwyneth would fall into that same category. She needs help.”

Director Abba watched her carefully. “Those others in my employ are able to work for me. Miss Dare is too young.”

“Then let Roman take her in. He’s already fostering me. Let him foster Gwyneth, too.”

“What about the city’s iron? Roman’s not moving outside of the city anytime soon.”

“I can shield Gwyneth,” Rose said. “If I generate enough energy—well, magic—I can lessen the iron’s effect on Gwyneth.”

“I thought the whole point of you living with Roman was to keep you under the radar. Isn’t using your magic the antithesis of that?”

“My kind doesn’t use magic. We are magic. But our magic, and the ability for others to feel it, is amplified when we are around our kind, and yes, when we expel large amounts of it. But I wouldn’t do anything drastic.”

Director Abba didn’t look convinced.

Rose sighed. “Do you know how my kind can shapeshift into an animal? It’s usually one animal based on our family. Well, I can shift into two, and not only can we shift into them, but we can separate them from our bodies. If I keep at least one of my animals out in the world at all times, the energy generated should expel enough magic to offset the iron’s burn.”

Director Abba actually seemed to consider it. “What about the mother? According to your theory, she would be a full-blooded Fae. Do you want me to get her out of murder charges, too?”

“She’ll waste away in prison. The iron…” Rose started to say, but she really only cared about the little girl. If the mother did kill her husband—and got caught—Rose wasn’t sure she needed protection. 

“Most humans waste away in prison,” the Director retorted. “And they don’t have the iron as an excuse.”

“As long as Gwyneth is safe, I don’t care. The mother made her decision.”

“The murder could have been self-defense.”

“Then shouldn’t your human courts clear that up and give her a fair sentence?”

Director Abba looked at her in disappointment.

Rose knew what she said wasn’t true; she’d watched enough human movies and shows, and read enough books growing up, that she knew that the human justice systems were corrupt to their core, but that wasn’t her fight. Not right now.

Finally, the Director gave a slight nod and stood up. “I will get the necessary documents set up for Roman Pizarro to foster Gwyneth Dare. I’m assuming you didn’t run this by him, so I will also break the news and weather his temper tantrum. Anything else?”

Rose just gripped Lorelai and Jasper’s hands and shook her head, ready to leave.

Director Abba nodded to Maria by the door. “Take them home. We’ll reconvene later.”

Not for the first time, Rose thought there was more to the Director and Maria’s relationship than they let on. Their actions and looks fit more between mother and daughter than boss and employee.

The reminder sent a pang through Rose’s entire body, but she shoved down the grief before it could fully emerge. 

They followed Maria out without another word.

Next: PART TWO (coming soon...)

Hi! I’m Astrid, a reading fanatic, an avid tea-drinker, and an obsessive daydreamer whose biggest outlet is writing. This fall, I’ll also begin my Masters degree in English Literature and Transmedia research at the University of Alberta, where I’ll continue fangirling academically over my favourite storyworlds. 

Here’s a visual of what takes up my brain:

Other random things:

My Zodiac: Cancer Sun, Cancer Moon, Libra Rising

Favourite Colour: Orange

Favourite Number: 2

Life Path Number: 3

Favourite Flowers: Roses and Snowdrops

Birth Flowers: Roses and Honeysuckles

Favourite Crystal: Peach Moonstone

Birthstones: Pearl, Alexandrite, and Moonstone

Favourite Scent: Vanilla

Favourite Tea: English Breakfast or any black tea

Favourite Ice Cream Flavour: Birthday Cake or anything with sprinkles and/or Cheesecake

Favourite Cake: Cheesecake

All of my writing is connected in some way, shape, or form, meaning that all of my prose writing takes place in the same world and my poetry is connected by themes, motifs, and/or threads from my prose writing.

Where to Start?

Welcome to the world of Solaris—our world unveiled to reveal the Magic and Supernatural elements hidden within. While all of the stories I share contribute to building this world, the driving force behind everything is my upcoming series, Descendants of Magic. 

Book 1 in the Descendants of Magic series, titled The Rose Locket, is coming soon-ish and you can follow my 5 Project Plan updates to see how it’s coming along.

In the meantime, I have written and posted some short stories following the main characters of the Descendants of Magic series which you can find here and below.

I also have a “Terminology” page that expands on some worldbuilding and the nitty-grittys of Solaris. 

Descendants of Magic

The Rose Locket - coming soon-ish

In a world of corrupt governments, secret organizations, assassins, and gangs, Rosella Pizarro—a Supernatural warrior—must stay under the radar and away from her family to hide from a murderous enemy intent on harming her race. But when a human boy from school starts to ask questions, Rosella has to decide how much she’s really willing to sacrifice to live. 

Swiftly Magical Stories

A Place in This World - out now

The story of how and why Rosella has to hide in the human world and leave her family and people behind.

Tales from the Shadows

My Three Little Daisy Buds - coming really soon :) 

Summary

Rosella Pizarro is still getting used to living in this very human world with her very human foster father, all while realizing the challenges of being a Supernatural in a place where people, at best, don’t know anything about the magical world, and at worst, feel threatened by what they don’t understand. So Rosella vows to do whatever she can to protect those like her, including her two young foster siblings. But one day, she notices that another magical child needs help, and she’s the only one who can. To hell with the consequences.

PART ONE

PART TWO (coming soon)

Extras

May 19, 2026

An update :)

Project 1: The Rose Locket

I feel more and more ready to share this novel with more than just my family and have it officially be “out” and/or “published”, so next month I will start the long (and terrifying process) of sending out query letters and the first pages. And since strangers will already be reading the beginning of the book, I will probably also start posting the first few chapters on here.

If traditional publishing goes nowhere, I do feel emotionally prepared to self-publish just so I can move on from this first story. Good luck to me :)

Project 2: The Queendom of Hunters & Roses

I am a planner at heart, so I have completely outlined how many poems will be in this book, what they will be about, and the “story” I want to tell. (I use the term “story” loosely because as many people know, poetry is very subjective, so while I may see a plot with a beginning, middle, and end in the poetry I create, someone else will probably see something very different.) 

The poems themselves are slow moving because I need to be in the right headspace to write them and inspiration has to spark just right for the words to flow easily for me. Poetry is impossible to force myself to write, unlike prose writing, but I do have a goal to finish this collection by this time next year. We’ll see if that comes true.

Project 3: My Three Little Daisy Buds

I think this will be the next short story I release on here, so all I need to do is buckle down and finish editing it. Stay tuned for the release!

Project 4: The Heirs of Red

This one is still kind of on pause, but working on TRL to get it more ready to publish has been giving me a lot of inspiration, so I’ll probably commit to adding more to the story soon.

Project 5: A Place in This World The Outside

I finished APITW and posted the whole thing! So now I have moved on to outlining a new short story, which will also be about Rosella and her new life, but in this one, she will experience human school for the first time. I’m excited for this one, especially to start introducing new characters that play a big role in the TRL, including Rosella’s best friend, Madison!

I’m going to focus more on this one after M3LDB is ready to be posted, but for now it’s just fun to plot it out!

Here is a timeline to show when most of these projects take place chronologically:

Present Day…

 The morning of her fourteenth birthday came, and a coronation was far from anyone’s mind. Guiltily, all she felt was immense relief. Did that make her a terrible person? Did she even care anymore?

“You won’t be gone long,” her dad said, mostly to himself, as he wrapped his strong arms around her. “You’ll be back in no time.”

“Of course,” she said, holding her dad tightly even as her nerves felt more like excitement. She was sure she was the only one feeling that, though.

Her dad gave her one last squeeze before letting Milian take his place.

She looked at her baby brother, and a rush of emotions pummeled her: guilt, shame, love, pain, and too many others to name. She was a terrible older sister, leaving him like this. But it wasn’t enough to change her mind.

Taking him in her arms, she suddenly realized that he was the slightest bit taller. She didn’t have to bend down as much to whisper in his ear. When she came back, he would probably be the same height as her, if not taller.

“Take care of Dad,” she said. “And before we know it, Zoller will be defeated, and I’ll be home again.”

His body trembled slightly. “I won’t let you down, sis,” he promised.

He was the hardest to let go.

I love you, baby bro.

I love you too.

And then Uncle Lukas was leading her to the car.

She looked back only once to see her dad and brother at the entrance of the estate, holding each other up. They would be okay. They had to be okay. And once she came back, she would be able to handle this life better. To be the sister and daughter they needed. She could make that vow.

And that would be the only vow she made today.

Uncle Lukas and her were silent in the car as he drove through the mountain passes that gave way to smaller rolling hills and then finally the flatlands. They could have portalled, but the Council agreed that expending that much magic would defeat the purpose of her going into hiding in the first place. And since Uncle Lukas and Aunt Kat were the only ones who knew the Director of Black Ridge personally, Uncle Lukas got to take her. 

It felt like both forever and no time had passed once they reached the city, driving further to its centre as the buildings got taller and the streets looked dirtier. The building they stopped at was tall, with a mixed look of modern office building and old European bank with its ground floor brick and columns paired with a glass skyscraper up top.

Suddenly, she was nervous. Walking into the building felt like there was no going back.

She was now in a new world.

Uncle Lukas went right to the front desk, where a woman showed them to the elevator and pressed the number inside before leaving them. The whole thing was overwhelming, like even in the human world, she was being waited on. But maybe that’s how they treated everyone?

She grabbed her uncle’s hand, feeling extremely young for a second. Uncle Lukas took it and squeezed.

“I know you’ll hate to hear it again, but I have to ask one more time,” he whispered, even though they were alone. “Are you sure about this?”

Truthfully, she wasn’t. But they’d gotten this far.

“I’m sure.”

Uncle Lukas nodded and didn’t ask again. 

The doors opened, and they stepped out onto a pristinely ordered floor full of cubicles, meeting rooms behind walls of glass, and professionally dressed people that reminded her of all the movies her mother loved. 

The young woman standing before them played her part perfectly, with her woman-in-black pantsuit, hair in a tight bun, and lips thin as she surveyed them.

“Hello Rosella, Lukas. Right this way, please.”

The woman led them to the back of the floor where a huge door stood with no glass walls to reveal what was inside. But they didn’t have to wait long to find out. The woman opened the door and presented the most impersonal and organized office the young Queen had ever seen. Inside, a straight-backed blonde middle-aged woman sat at a huge desk in the centre of the space, who was obviously the Director, with two other adults standing to the side.

The Director nodded to the young woman who brought them in. 

“Thank you, Maria.”

The young woman returned the gesture and left immediately. 

“Georgina, I would like you to meet my niece,” Uncle Lukas said before the silence got uncomfortable. 

“Rosella,” the Director said, like she was trying out her name. They all were. “Rosella, I am Director Georgina Abba of Operation Black Ridge here at SSAND.”

She couldn’t help herself. “Sand?”

“S.S.A.N.D., the Secret Security Agency for National Defense,” the Director answered. “A branch of government that deals with highly classified security threats and relations. Operation Black Ridge is the section of SSAND that deals with Supernatural relations, particularly with your people.” She nodded to the man and woman standing to the side. “These are Agents Warner and Rajul Sanders. They’re the supervisors of Code Z, the mission to keep you safe and hidden from the Zoller threat.”

“Warner?” Uncle Lukas asked incredulously. “Warner Sanders from Lakewood.”

The man’s jaw ticked. “Hello Lukas. Long time no see.”

Mr. Sanders looked like he was the same age as her uncle and the Director, his dirty blonde hair peppered slightly with grey, and the only line marking his fair-skinned face was the furrow between his brow. He didn’t look like he smiled much.

Her uncle glanced between Director Abba and Mr. Sanders before shaking his head. “I didn’t believe Kat when she told me.”

Director Abba looked ready to snap. “Can we get back on track? If you’ve somehow forgotten, I am now in charge of your niece’s safety, Lukas. Maybe we can focus on that.”

She thought Uncle Lukas would snap right back, but he actually looked apologetic. “Of course, Georgina.”

The Director’s attention shifted back to her. “Rosella, do you understand what will happen now?”

“I move in with your agent.”

Director Abba nodded. “Yes, you will officially live with Roman Pizarro, who is not officially our agent anymore, so this will be considered contract work for him. Pizarro has two kids of his own living with him, so there will be a total of four of you in the house. Mr. and Mrs. Sanders are also responsible for your safety, so they will check in from time to time, while they also lead the search for Zoller to take him out. My assistant, Maria, will also keep tabs on you and Pizarro’s twins, so you will see her around and be able to ask her for anything you need.”

“Will Mr. and Mrs. Sanders be in contact with my family to find Zoller?”

“Yes. We will have all hands on deck to complete Code Z. I will, of course, have a hand in the operation as well, but as I’m sure you are very aware of, from your own responsibilities, I have many other missions to oversee. But you are in capable hands with both Warner and Rajul.”

And that was that.

It was quite simple, all things considered. 

“Mr. and Mrs. Sanders will take you to Pizarro’s whenever you’re ready. Lukas will not be able to follow,” Director Abba said with a pointed look at Uncle Lukas. “Now would be a good time to say your goodbyes.”

Uncle Lukas looked more than reluctant to leave, but he was the last piece to let go of before Rosella was allowed to start her new life. A new chapter without the weight and reminder of her mom’s death, her inability to be a queen, her lack of experience, finesse, leadership, power, affection, being enough… 

She would finally be free.

At least for a little while. 

She turned to her uncle. “I’ll be okay.”

He smiled sadly down at her before bending to hold her tightly in his arms.

“I love you, little rosebud. I love you so much.”

“I love you too,” she whispered. “And everything will be okay.”

She felt his tears before she heard his sniff, and it took everything in her not to cry with him. 

But then he was letting go, and she could finally take a full breath again.

He didn’t look back as he left the room.

“Okay Rosella,” Director Abba said, getting up. “Let’s get you to your new home.”

She nodded and followed the Director out as Mr. and Mrs. Sanders trailed after them. 

Another car, another silent drive, and then they arrived at a single-family home.

“You should know, Rosella,” Director Abba said from beside her in the backseat. “Pizarro is good at his job, but he’s… temperamental.”

She thought back to dealing with Master Roar and Master Kingston all her life. “I can handle temperamental men.”

Director Abba nodded. “I’m sure you can. I believe he is the best for the job, so dealing with his antics is worth it, but I just wanted to warn you.”

She didn’t know if the Director was purposefully keeping it ominous, but she felt like there was more than a warning in her tone. Guilt maybe?

“He’s waiting,” Mr. Sanders said, turning off the car and getting out. 

Mrs. Sanders looked back and gave an apologetic smile before getting out herself. 

Director Abba just rolled her eyes before also exiting, and then there was no more excuse. This was the beginning of her new life. 

Rosella got out of the car.

They walked up the steps to the house and let themselves in. 

A man stood in the entry: tall, with dark hair and a prominent scowl. He was a lot younger than she expected, but then she remembered that the file said he was only fourteen years older than her. Behind him stood two little kids, no older than five. They had a slightly darker complexion than their dad, with expressions of complete uncertainty as they stared at her. She remembered that they lost their mom recently, too, which was why they were living with a father they had only just met. 

“Pizarro, this is your new ward, Rosella,” Director Abba said. “Rosella, this is your new home.”

Roman Pizarro grunted a hello, but her eyes were on the twins. They reminded her too much of the brother she left behind. 

She knelt down.

“And you guys must be my new siblings.”

The little girl smiled first, walking forward confidently while her brother stood still and unsure.

“I’m Lorelai! And this is my brother, Jasper.” Lorelai gestured for Jasper to come forward until he was at her side again.

What were the odds that her new life began with a little girl who had the same name as the main characters of her and her mom’s favourite mother-daughter show? And the odds that her twin brother had the same name as her mom’s favourite mountain town that they used to visit every other week?

Hi Mom… 

“Nice to meet you, Lorelai and Jasper. My name’s Rosella.”

Lorelai cocked her head. “Rose-ella? Like the flower?”

Rosella laughed. “A rose? I guess, yeah.”

Jasper nodded gravely, as if this made all the difference, and Lorelai followed suit. 

Rosella realized that she was actually smiling for the first time in months. 

Maybe she actually would be okay.

Maybe she found the place she was meant to be.

SUMMARY

PART ONE

PART TWO

The hierarchy of the Magh Court and Council.

The Magh Queen of the House of the Owl is the leader of all the Maghs and, in particular, leads the Houses that follow the Centre Path, which include the Houses of the Wolf, Leopard, Bear, Elephant, Hippopotamus, Cattle, Boar, Turtle, Fox, Walrus, Junglefowl, Mouse, and Badger.

Master Roar, the head of the House of the Griffin, also leads the Houses that follow the Order of the Griffin, which include the Houses of the Lion, Horse, Deer, Cougar, Goat, Cheetah, Buffalo, Rhinoceros, Gorilla, Rat, Monkey, Giraffe, Rabbit, Frog, and Tortoise.

Master Kingston, the head of the House of the Dragon, also leads the Houses that follow the Order of the Dragon, which include the Houses of the Snake, Bat, Crocodile, Tiger, Lizard, Lynx, Hyena, Sea Lion, Sheep, Orangutan, Tuatara, Donkey, Wolverine, Toad, and Turtle.

Present Day…

When they arrived at the council chambers, Aunt Kat was handed a phone, and someone whispered that it was weird for the Director of Black Ridge to want to speak to “that human woman”. 

“Georgina?” Aunt Kat said once she was on the phone.

“Auntie knows the Director?” The question just slipped out, but her dad looked down at her and nodded seriously. 

“They went to high school together. That’s when your uncle met Kat and the rest of her friends.”

She wanted to ask more, but Aunt Kat was talking more adamantly now, watching the council members around her warily. 

“Yeah, it’s serious, Gee. My niece— Yeah, we think it’s best that she’s hidden from us, too. Lukas and the girls can’t see her, and I… I don’t want to accidentally compromise her whereabouts.”

Uncle Lukas stayed at Aunt Kat’s side, clearly listening to whatever the Director was saying. 

“What are the parameters?” Aunt Kate repeated before looking around the room until her gaze landed on the one they were all talking about. 

They locked eyes. 

“Just keep her safe, Gee. By whatever means necessary.” 

That, more than anything, sent a shiver racing down her spine. It suddenly felt a lot more real.

It wasn’t long before Aunt Kat was shutting off the phone and turning to her husband and brother-in-law.

“Georgina will have a plan and a place for her to stay by morning. We agreed that only she should know who will be the guardian and where they will live.”

Uncle Lukas nodded.

And that was that.

Everyone was ordered to go to their living quarters, except for the Maghs who had patrol duty for the entire night. Anyone not patrolling had to stay inside. The Court was in lockdown.

Aunt Kat would take Josi and Emilia home, promising to be back in the morning. They weren’t welcome at Court, and it was no secret that the Council still wanted to bring Josi and Emilia into their ranks… and leave Aunt Kat in the human world “where she belonged”. 

Josi gave her an extra-long hug while Emilia held Milian.

“We will always be here for you,” Josi whispered in her ear. “No matter where you end up, we’re here.”

She nodded and wished for the hundredth time that her cousins didn’t have to stay one step away from Court and the Council, the entities she was now in charge of. Did that mean she was part of the problem? Did she even have the power to change it?

She turned to her younger cousin, who was only born half a year after her, and held her just as close. If Josi was fire and action, Emilia was earth—grounded and stable. 

“Everything will work out,” Emilia said.

“One way or another,” she agreed. Now they just had to believe it.

After they left, it was quiet in the Royal Apartments. 

She and her brother sat in the family room with the TV on full volume, but it still wasn’t enough to drown out her dad and uncle crying in the next room. Although it was better than being in the room with them. 

They cycled through movie after movie: Iron Man, Bourne Identity, A New Hope. All the movies their mom watched with them. Some with sequels that they saw in the movie theatres on release day, against the Council’s wishes. 

And it wasn’t just movies that got their mom into trouble, but also the constantly growing library of CDs that they danced along to in the living room; the piles of books they bought from midnight releases only to stay up listening to her melodic voice through the night; the schedule of showtimes each week that led to quick bathroom breaks during commercials.

“I don’t want you to go,” Milian whispered as Iron Man 2 started up.

She held her baby brother to her side and squeezed. “I know, but this might be good for me, Mili. I can take some time to think about how to be Queen and what I want my legacy to be without all the pressure of being one.”

“But you can do that here, where I can protect you!”

“I know you can. Of course you can. But I don’t want to put you in danger, too.”

Milian wasn’t convinced, frowning with glassy eyes.

“Think of it like I’m going on a mission,” she said quietly. “I’m almost at the age where I would have to go to other Courts for training anyway. Pretend that’s what this is. It actually kind of is, to be honest.”

“But you’re not going to another Court.”

“Maybe I’ll change that. Maybe I’ll follow in Mama’s footsteps and make a Human Court.”

“Then I want to go on this mission too. Take me with you!”

“You can come on my next one.” She pointed to the TV. “We’ll go on our very own Stark adventure.”

That seemed to appease Milian, and he settled more happily into her side.

She just hoped she wasn’t lying to him.

One Month Earlier…

After Elsa died, the new Queen, her dad, and her brother had to immediately move to Court. They were no longer allowed any separation from the rest of the Maghs. Their entire species’ salvation was on the line. But that knowledge didn’t make it any easier to be around the same people who made your mom feel like she was inadequate and weird for her entire life, just because she empathized and wanted to understand humans. 

The first council meeting without her mom was one of the worst. It was like the Masters and members wanted to covet and manipulate her power with every word they spoke. Adults that she’d known and trusted her whole life now looked at her like she was someone to use and control. To rule through her instead of helping her. 

It was too much too quickly.

Her father followed her out of the council chambers, and it only took a few steps before tears streamed down her face.

“Bud?” Her father asked, but she was already sprinting to the Royal Apartments.

Her father gave chase and barely caught her when she collapsed inside the front door.

Thankfully, Milian was still training with the other kids who lived at Court. He didn’t need to see her like this. She never wanted him to see her like this. Her baby brother just lost his mother. He didn’t need to deal with a broken older sister, too.

“I hate it, Daddy!” She sobbed as her father held her on the floor.

He had thankfully shut the door, so no one else, including her mother’s old guards, had to see her meltdown. But she barely noticed anything besides the pain inside her head and soul anyway. Her whole body felt like it was drowning—pressure and weight in her chest and head, while her lungs slowly suffocated.

It was agony.

It was the purest suffering.

It was how she imagined her mom felt as she died right in front of her.

“Make it stop! Please make it stop!”

And then her father was crying too. He rocked her back and forth in his lap, like he used to do when she was a toddler, but neither could be consoled. Their tears and snot ran through each other’s hair and clothes as the full extent of their hopelessness settled between them.

“I know, rosebud, I know,” her dad said through tears, voice shaking. “We just have to get through this. I know it’s hard and I know it hurts, but it will get better. We just have to weather the storm, and the rain will pass.”

“I can’t do it,” she sobbed. “I can’t do it.”

Her dad didn’t reassure her again, just held her in his arms. 

While he could understand her grief, more than she probably knew, he could never understand the stress and pressure of being Queen. They both knew that. They were both powerless to it.

So all he could do was hold her. 

And he did. 

Until her body gave out from exhaustion, and she went limp in his arms. He carried her to bed and kissed her forehead, no longer able to promise her it would be okay.

They both knew it wouldn’t be.

Present Day…

The morning came too quickly, and while it was suspected that no one got a good night's sleep in the Royal Apartments, no one said anything about it. Aunt Kat, Josi, and Emilia came early in the morning, and before long, the Council was called into session, and Aunt Kat was on the phone with the Director of Black Ridge again.

The call was shorter this time, and even though she was at her aunt’s side during the whole thing, she could barely hear any words exchanged. Except for the final remarks from the Director: “We’ll keep in touch, Kat. I promise that nothing will happen to your niece.”

It was reassuring, and Aunt Kat murmured a quick “thank you” before handing the phone back to Council Member Snake.

“She sent an email with the complete plan of action,” Aunt Kat told the Council as they sat around the same cold table as yesterday.

“I’ve got it,” Council Member Gold said, taking out a folder of documents. “It was decided that Her Majesty will stay with one of the Director’s retired agents and go by the name Rosella Pizarro. The agent will act as her guardian and has the necessary qualifications to also be a bodyguard. Since he is retired and has nothing else to do with the government, hopefully no one will suspect that he houses the Magh Queen. Furthermore, his past occupation as a spy gives him the skills and knowledge to keep Her Majesty hidden and safe from the general population.”

“Where does he live?” Master Kingston asked.

“That has not been disclosed to us,” Council Member Gold replied.

“But Director Abba told you, didn’t she?” Master Kingston said with a pointed look at Aunt Kat.

Aunt Kat didn’t back down from his stare.

Uncle Lukas looked ready to spring into action if needed. 

Finally, Aunt Kat answered, “She did not.”

“But she implied it.”

Aunt Kat did not confirm, although her silence spoke volumes.

Master Kingston looked like he wanted to say more, but both Uncle Lukas and her dad stood up, showing a united front.

Before the tension increased, the regent of Council Member Rogers stood up and looked right at her.

“Are you sure about this, A— sorry, I guess I should start using your middle name, so you get used to it. Rosella, is this what you want?”

Rosella… that would be what people called her now. 

She didn’t mind it.

“I’m as sure as I can be,” she said. “We can’t take the risk that I end up like my mother, so why not give the humans a chance to protect me. They surely can’t do worse.”

The jab wasn’t supposed to be hurtful, but Lilian Rogers winced all the same. She had been part of the previous Queen’s Varangian guard, her most personal bodyguards and advisors. Those six women were an integral part of the Queen and her family’s life, because despite their sworn duties, they were also her mom’s best friends. 

It was hard not to remember that it was the Varangians’ job to protect the Queen. Now Elsa was dead, and Rosella wasn’t safe enough to stay here. Who else was there to blame?

Her dad looked like he was about to say something, but she was already getting up from the table. “Meeting adjourned. I’ll read the plan in my rooms.”

Master Roar scoffed. “Your Majesty—”

“That was not a question, Master Roar,” she snapped, letting the anger inside her be unleashed for just a second. “As this whole ordeal has made quite clear, I am now your Queen, and I have adjourned this meeting.”

“The Director wrote in the plan that you can move to your new residence tomorrow,” Council Member Gold said. “This will be the last council meeting before you leave.”

She didn’t sit back down.

“Then isn’t it poetic that I finally got to adjourn one of my own meetings,” she said. “The Director’s plan stands, and I will finish reading it in my rooms. Was that not clear?”

Before another council member could speak, her father stood and led her out of the room, followed closely by her aunt and uncle. 

As soon as they got back to the Royal Apartments, exhaustion overtook her. This would be the last night she had with her family for the foreseeable future, and it seemed to hit everyone at once. Her brother and cousins came to her side first, holding her up while she felt the floor coming ever closer. Then the adults were there and carried her over to the living room couch. They all held each other, unable to offer anything more. 

The four cousins fell asleep like that, while their parents watched over them.

Two Days Earlier… 

The coronation for the new Queen was set to be on her fourteenth birthday in three days, and every Magh in the world—besides those who wanted nothing to do with their people anymore—were at the Queen’s Court, one of six Magh estates in the world. To say it was busy was an understatement. Everyone wanted to share their condolences for the old Queen, while simultaneously congratulating the new Queen. It was exhausting and painful, like a chain was tightening around her neck. 

At every turn, the new Queen was surrounded by people: her guard, her family, her Council. It started to get harder and harder to breathe. 

All she wanted was a moment to herself.

Just one moment.

She snuck away, knowing it wasn’t smart. Knowing she was putting herself in danger. But she couldn’t handle the people, the noise, the bodies.

She only went behind one of the outbuildings for a second, needing to be closer to the forest to feel some relief. To just breathe.

One second, she was trying hard to compose herself.

In the next, a blast of power hurled her to the ground.

“Our Great Majesty was just waiting for me, it seems,” that haunting, cruel voice said. The same one who tormented her nightmares since her mother’s death.

“Zoller,” she spat, feeling the beginnings of her power trying to take control with only one objective: kill him.

But he was fast and strong, and she was inexperienced and tired, just like the last time.

“You think you can escape me, little Queen,” Zoller said with glee. “But your power is a beacon. It calls to me. And there is nowhere in this world you can go that I won’t find you. You Maghs amplify your own powers. It’s like you want to be found, to be tested.”

She flung her power at him, blasts of light, wind, energy… anything to knock him down. But it was like he knew what she would do before she did. He dodged and countered with his own strength, and then she was on the ground with him on top of her, squeezing her throat. 

Her hands scrambled, clawing at his grip, but he just squeezed harder. Her windpipe felt ready to give out. Her lungs screamed. 

And for a blissful moment, she imagined what it would be like if she died right here.

No more duties.

No more grief.

No more pain.

And as her vision blurred, she stopped fighting.

At least her whole family would follow her into the afterlife, and they could build something new there. It would be okay.

It might be okay. 

Then someone screamed her name, and Zoller was wrenched away. 

She gasped painfully and tried to blink herself awake, but all she saw was Nico Blank fighting Zoller as four other boys ran to join. Boys who had been training to be in her guard since they were all children. She chanted their names as her eyelids grew too heavy.

Nico, Ahren, Gideon, Toby, Tyler…

Help… 

She awoke in the infirmary to her father and brother beside her, both of them openly crying.

“Did they get him?” She croaked out.

Her dad grabbed her hand and held on too tightly as he shook his head.

“No, he got away. He got away. He got away.”

His tears poured down his cheeks to her hand and down her wrist. 

Her brother climbed into bed beside her, and she held him even as she thought she heard him say, “I should have been there.”

But then sleep was taking her again.

All she wanted to do was sleep.

Just let me sleep. 

But she knew that sleep would be the last thing she would be allowed to do. Now they knew Zoller could get to her even with every Magh in the world around to protect her. She would never be safe again. Especially not here.

Next: PART FOUR

PART ONE

PART TWO

Present Day…

Her dad and uncle led her into the living room, where Aunt Kat, Josi, Emilia, and her younger brother, Milian, sat quietly. They were clearly anxious, probably waiting impatiently between games of Uno for the council meeting to end.

Before the door was even closed, her aunt was walking to her with her arms open. “Was anything decided?”

She fell into the embrace, exhausted. “They want to hide me in the human world.”

“To stay with us?” Emilia asked, still clutching her Uno cards. 

The deck looked out of place in the Royal Apartments. The Court probably hadn’t seen a human game since her mom lived here when she was young. 

“No,” Uncle Lukas said, giving Aunt Kat an undecipherable look. “They’re calling the Director of Black Ridge. None of us will be allowed to make contact until Zoller is found and stopped.”

“What do you mean, ‘no contact?’” Milian asked, standing now too.

A twinge of guilt formed deep in her belly as she turned to her brother. “I won’t be allowed to contact or get close to any Supernaturals, including Maghs, when I’m away. Otherwise, Zoller might be able to find me. We’re pretty sure he has contacts everywhere.”

Milian’s face contorted to shock, grief, and then anger as he absorbed the news. It had never been clearer that he was only eleven and had just lost his mother.

“Are you kidding me!?” Milian demanded. “They can’t just send you away! You’re the Queen! We need you!”

Her heart cracked as his anger morphed into pure agony. His face crumpled as their dad pulled him close to his chest.

She could never tell him that she had been the one who suggested leaving during the meeting. How horrible a sister was she that she was making her brother go through losing a mother and a sister in the span of two months? He couldn’t know that she was essentially abandoning him. At least getting away from here would keep Milian and her dad safe from more attacks.

She locked eyes with her older cousin, who stood beside her parents, and she had the sinking suspicion that Josi knew what she did. But Josi didn’t look judgemental; she just gave a slight nod before turning to her own dad.

“What do we do?” Josi asked.

Uncle Lukas looked suddenly stern. “None of us are allowed to see or hear from your cousin while she’s in hiding. That’s how we help to keep her safe.”

“But we’re her family—”

“Josi,” Aunt Kat said sharply. “This isn’t negotiable.” 

Emilia went to her sister’s side, but before anyone could say anything else, a loud knock came from the door. 

“Your Majesty, the Council requests your presence in the Chambers.”

With a sigh, she moved to the door with her dad and uncle on her heels. But when they opened the door to reveal Council Member Gold and Master Roar, they didn’t move right away.

After a pause, Master Roar reluctantly pointed behind her, disdain clear on his face for the only human in the room.

“The Council requires your presence, too, Kat Porter.”

Two Months Earlier…

“I hate this!” She screamed as her mom tried to get closer with the ceremonial robes. “Don’t touch me with those!”

“Rosebud, we have to wear the robes. It’s tradition!” Her mom snapped, clearly fed up now; no more placid words.

She knew her mother thought she was acting like a child, but the sight of the heavy, white robes sent a violent shiver down her spine. Her skin was already crawling, and imagining the robes touching her all day had acid churning in her stomach. She couldn’t do it. She couldn’t, she couldn’t, she couldn’t—

“They’re clean,” her mom started to say.

“She literally died in them—”

“Yes, and I wore them to her funeral!” Elsa shouted. “My own mother’s funeral! And now it's the anniversary of her birth, and it’s your turn! It is not up for discussion!”

The light shone off her mother’s cheeks as she realized that they were both crying. 

The Princess and the Queen, a mirror of tears and exhaustion.

“I’m sorry, Mom. But I can’t—”

“Yes, you can. You are the heir to the throne, the very same throne your grandmother died to protect, like every Queen before her and every Queen after. You do not get a choice in what you want or how you live. So you have to suck it up and just do it.”

She had a feeling they weren’t talking about the robes anymore. And as she watched the strongest woman she ever knew unravel at the seams, hatred crawled up her throat. This life, these expectations killed every Magh Queen before them, and they were both chained to the endless cycle. It wasn’t fair. All she wanted to do was stop.

But her mom only had her, and she only had her mom.

So she did what every eldest daughter had before her. She squared her shoulders, blinked back her tears, and took the robes.

“I hate this,” she whispered.

Her mom deflated. “I know, rosebud—”

“No, I hate this life.” She turned before she could see her mom’s expression.

And she put on the robes.

And she took the crown and staff as her mom took the Queen’s ring and sword.

And they didn’t speak as they left the room, and followed the Masters and council members down the procession aisle to honor the previous Queen. The grandmother whom she never knew, the shadow that loomed over every decision Elsa made. The one who died believing all the Queens must grin and bear it and never be a person, but a figurehead and a symbol. The one who made Elsa think everything she did was never good enough, and made her pass that on to her daughter.

Everyone watched as the Queen and Princess walked to the dias to pay tribute to Queen Emilia, the woman who cast out her son because he fell in love with a human, but who still named his daughter after her. 

Queen Elsa walked on the dias with the Princess right behind, the last two standing as all the Maghs behind them lowered to their knees. Then her mother unleashed the Magh Sword and stabbed it in the ground of rock as she too knelt.

She fell beside her mother, landing gracefully on knees that were only barely protected by the layers of fabric from the robes. And with a final exhale, her mom grasped the blade of the sword with the hand that had the Queen’s ring on her middle finger—a silver ring shaped like a rose encrusted with diamonds. The diamond in the middle was the biggest and already started to glow; the birthstone of the first Magh Queen and Queen Emilia and most recently, Queen Elsa. The oracles and seers blessed the Diamond Queens threefold when they were born. 

They only prayed when the newest Princess came along.

The Queen’s blood mixed with the power of the sword, coming from the sapphire at its hilt, and the power from the diamond in the ring, until the whole courtyard filled with the smell of Magic. 

That’s when the smallest tingling started at the back of her skull, telling her something was wrong.

And then… 

Chaos.

From the shadows came what seemed like hundreds of armed people. All were some sort of Supernaturals—many magic-users, like witches, elementals, and mages. 

The Maghs were taken completely unaware, and the first screams sounded as an alarm. 

Everything happened too fast after that.

A huge group of magic-users surged towards the dais, but Queen Elsa’s Varangians, her most loyal Magh guards, moved forward to protect her.

And then her mom was grabbing her arm, and they were on the move. 

More magic-users came their way. Her mother didn’t hesitate or falter, but it became increasingly clear that the Queen and Princess were the targets. When they moved, more magic-users started forward, barely stopped by the Maghs around them.

“Mom?” 

“Keep running, rosebud,” her mom said. “Just keep running.”

Her mom still held the Magh Sword, and she looked ready to use it. 

With only one glance back to see her father engaged with three assailants, magic and swords clashing, as more kept coming at them, she held her mom’s hand tighter and sprinted with her through the fray. Fortunately, the ceremony was held outside, so it was easy to run to the forest surrounding the Court’s grounds. But they didn’t get far when four more were on their heels. And even trained warriors with supernatural speed and agility could not outrun someone in heavy and constricting ceremonial robes.

Her mother abruptly halted and, in one smooth motion, brandished her sword while shoving the heir to her throne behind her. Feeling like a coward, she hid behind her mom, watching the four Supernaturals study them in turn. Two had wands, the third a sword, and the man in the middle only had his hands out.

Before anyone could speak, the Magh Queen unleashed her full power and stabbed the three magic-users with lightning through their chests. The guy in the middle barely escaped the same fate by pivoting and creating an air shield around him.

He grinned, like he wasn’t up against the most powerful being in the world.

“Your Majesty. What a pleasure to finally make your acquaintance.” 

“Who are you?” Her mother demanded, sounding and looking more like a Queen than she had in the ceremony.

Another menacing grin. “Can’t you tell?”

In the seconds that her mom’s eyes widened, the guy sprang forward.

Without thinking twice, she flung herself in front of her mother, putting more power and force in her outstretched hands than she ever had. But she was young and inexperienced in actual combat despite training since birth. She only knew how to release magic through fixed points in her body, unlike older Maghs who manipulated the magic surrounding them with just a thought. Her power hit the guy, but more than half caught his outstretched hands and was flung right back, catching her square in the chest. She was sent flying into the trunk of a tree, head hitting something unforgiving while the rest of her body crumpled.

Her mother screamed her name before the sounds of swords clashing brought the world back into focus.

Whoever the guy was, he was trained well and was younger and faster. Her mom was fighting with emotion, but was holding back for some reason.

“I can help you now,” her mom panted.

The guy only seemed to move faster. “You’re too late. He found me first.”

Her mom didn’t stand a chance, trying to contain him as he put all his strength into his attacks. The Magh Sword fell from the Queen’s grasp as her murderer sank his own sword into her chest… and twisted.

The scream that tore from the Princess’s lips rattled the world as her mother sank to the ground. Blood ran from her lips and down her chin as she fell, her power already seeping from her body and slithering over to her daughter.

“And then there was one,” the guy said as he turned towards her.

Agony and fear and anger surged through her as he stalked forward. 

Mama… 

“Zoller!”

They both turned to see a woman sprinting towards them, with a group of Maghs coming after her.

“Zoller, we must retreat!” She yelled.

The guy grimaced before turning back to the new Queen.

“This isn’t over. I will be back.”

And then he and the woman were gone.

With a sob, she dragged herself across the forest floor, her bones knitting themselves together as she went. 

“Mom!” She screamed, thinking that if she just called for her loud enough, her mom would look at her again. 

But she could feel the mountains of power already surging through her, healing her far quicker than a normal Magh would. 

“Elsa!” 

Her dad came tearing through the trees, not stopping until he was beside his wife. He frantically scanned her body, hands shaking her slightly.

“Elsa, no, no, NO!”

Tendrils of power snaked from both her and her father’s hands as they tried to heal her. If she just used enough magic, wanted it enough, she could bring her back…

Why wasn’t she waking up?

She could feel the destruction of her mother’s heart and lungs, blood still running from too many places. 

Just wake up!

“Mom! Mom! MOM!”

Next: PART THREE

PART ONE

PART FOUR

The exhaustion settled in her bones as the council members’ voices droned on. It felt like they’d been at this for hours. Her robes felt too tight and too heavy, like they didn’t belong to her.

“I don’t think I need to remind everyone that if the Queen dies, the rest of us perish too! Our life forces are connected to her!” Master Roar’s voice boomed through the chambers. “If we do not keep her safe, none of us are safe!”

“I think we know the stakes, Rick,” Master Kingston answered lazily, the disrespect clear in his tone.

Master Roar leaned forward as if he would retaliate, but another council member piped up before the fifth Master argument of the day could spark.

“Your Majesty, can you repeat what this Zoller fellow said to you?”

The question made her recall the second-worst day of her life, which only happened yesterday. As all eyes turned to her, she tried her hardest to push down the fear and anger and grief that threatened to overtake her. Like in all the other council meetings of the past two months, she would not cower, no matter how much she yearned to.

She sat up straighter and met their eyes from the head of the table, recalling her mother’s words: Do not let them see you weak.

“He said he had ways to sense me. That my magic’s a beacon, especially at Court around other Maghs to amplify it.” She looked at her dad and uncle sitting beside her. “He said there was nowhere I could go that he wouldn’t find me. He has Supernaturals supporting him everywhere.”

Her dad gave her an encouraging smile, but it vanished as soon as it formed.

“So what’s our plan?” Council Member Teller asked. “We clearly can’t keep Her Majesty safe here at Court. And without an heir of her blood, if she dies… as Master Roar said, the Maghs will no longer be. This is serious for our people’s survival.”

“We could always choose a suitor for her now,” Master Kingston said with a shrug. “The humans still conduct child marriages for their daughters all the time, and they don’t have a whole race’s existence connected to them.”

With a bang, both her dad and uncle stood up as the comment sank in.

“That’s my thirteen-year-old daughter, Vallerd!” Her father yelled. “Watch your fucking mouth.”

“It was in jest, Billi,” Master Kingston countered calmly. “But she turns fourteen in a few days, and humans have sold their daughters off younger. And with an heir, we wouldn’t need to worry about our entire race dying out.”

“Be very careful how you talk about my niece, Vallerd,” Uncle Lukas said coolly. “Remember that she’s your Queen now.”

“We know that better than you, Lukas!” Master Roar snapped. “You shouldn’t even be here!”

“Well, since you failed to keep my sister safe, and now her daughter, I think you revoke the right to order me around—”

Master Roar stood up abruptly. “I am Master of the Griffin Order! You will treat me with respect—”

“Oh shut up, Rick! I was there when you streaked naked through Court after downing four bottles of your father’s finest—”

“That’s enough!” Council Member Gold shouted. “Rick, Lukas, stop acting like children! And Vallerd, stop riling up Billi and Lukas. Elsa wasn’t only their Queen, but also a wife and sister. Now her daughter is in danger, and it is our job to keep her safe.”

Again, everyone turned and looked at their new Queen, like they just remembered she was there. Like talking about her mother would finally shatter her. She wanted to. All her mother’s death had done was pile responsibility after responsibility on her shoulders, on top of a mountain of grief threatening to spill out. And the only other person who could understand was the one they were mourning.

“We could hide her in Esparza,” Council Member Benett said. “Or Aquzor or any of the other Borderlands.”

“Her Majesty just correctly pointed out that this Zoller fellow has allies within the Supernatural community,” Council Member Snake argued. “Did we not just fight off members of the Shadowmoon Coven twice now? I sensed many different species of magic-users and Supernaturals in their ranks, and it isn’t like the Supernatural world is large. We are but 1% of the human population. Our Queen would be found in no time.”

As the Council continued to go back and forth, an idea came to her mind unbidden. It was the last thing the rest of the Council would agree to, but it was something her mother would say.

Before she could stop herself, she spoke aloud.

“I could hide in the human lands.”

The entire room went silent.

Not only did she rarely speak unless spoken to, but she also just barely made it through a second attempt on her life. She doubted anyone thought she would say much at this meeting.

But she was still Queen, and so they were forced to listen to her.

“I could live with Uncle Lukas while the rest of you eliminate Zoller. Or any of the other Maghs in the human world.”

She eyed specific council members around the room whose families had left the Magh Court to live in peace with the humans. Something she dreamed of doing in her darkest moments, even before her mother died.

Council Member Blank held her gaze, being one of the ones whose parents fled the Court and left him here to take their place on the Council. He was only two years older than her.

“I think, Your Majesty, that being around other Maghs is part of the problem,” he said, but not condescendingly. Just as a fact. “Your magic is stronger when you are with your people, so wouldn’t hiding with Maghs, even exiled ones, make you into the same beacon you are here?”

She bowed her head and was about to murmur an agreement when Uncle Lukas spoke.

“What about Black Ridge, the government operation that knows about us? They could help.”

“What could they do?” Master Roar demanded.

“They could help hide the Queen,” Council Member Snake said, holding her gaze while addressing the rest of the council. “With the might of the federal government and the absence of magic, Her Majesty would be hidden from this Zoller fellow. Or at least not be a beacon to him. They have capable enough humans to keep her safe for a time.”

Council Member Snake was also her uncle, but through marriage on her dad’s side. She was surprised he agreed with Uncle Lukas, though, since Council Member Snake felt personally affronted when Uncle Lukas left Court to marry Aunt Kat—a human. Uncle Lukas was part of House Snake after all, and left behind more than his family. She’d heard whispers that Uncle Lukas had the potential to be very influential at Court before he left. Her mother always said he could have changed so many outdated traditions, but his leaving made the Court even more set in their ways, and made her mother even angrier and more stifled.

“She would also be hidden from us,” Council Member Benett argued.

“Maybe that would be for the best,” Council Member Snake countered. “Lest we accidentally give away her location.”

Beside her, her father and uncle looked at each other with brows furrowed, like they were actually contemplating it.

She sure was.

“I think it’s a great idea,” she said. “I could live among the humans, hidden from the entire Supernatural community so Zoller can’t use any of his Shadowmoon network to find me.”

“But how would we contact you, Your Majesty?” Council Member Farland asked.

“I’m sure the Court can function without me for a while. It’s not like I will be with the humans forever, and without the need to protect me 24/7, you can expend more resources to locate and eliminate Zoller.”

“Are you sure, Your Majesty?” Council Member Teller asked. “The only way we would know if you were in danger is if the Director of Black Ridge contacts us.”

“Are we seriously thinking about this?” Council Member York demanded. “Humans cannot be trusted!”

“We cannot really depend on humans to keep our Queen safe!” Another member added.

“It would be like entrusting her to children!”

“They’ll probably do more harm to her than keep her safe!”

“ENOUGH!” Master Roar yelled.

The chamber immediately quieted.

Master Roar stood. “If the Queen thinks this is the right course of action, then we must take it seriously!”

“Are you sure about this, Your Majesty?” Her father’s oldest sister asked, one of the most influential members of the Council, being married to Council Member Snake and the sister of the Queen’s Consort—the previous Queen’s Consort, he was now the new Queen’s father.

It was difficult to think of herself as Queen, especially since she had not been officially crowned yet.

“We can’t be sure of anything right now,” she told her aunt, silently pleading to stop questioning her. How am I to know anything? “I shouldn’t be gone long anyway.”

Her aunt gave a curt nod and looked over at Council Member Snake and Gold. Both men nodded and got up from the table.

“We will contact the Director of Black Ridge now and see what she thinks about a plan of action,” Council Member Gold said.

“Then this meeting will be adjourned until we find out the next steps,” Master Roar said. “We’ll stand by.”

With a nod from the Queen, the rest of the members got up and left the room. Her father and uncle trailed her from the chambers and followed as she walked to the Royal Apartments.

“Bud, are you really sure about this?” Her father asked softly as they turned a corner and lost sight of the other members.

She rounded on him. “I have no idea, Dad! How am I supposed to know anything? Mom’s gone, and I’m not— I’m not—”

Suddenly, the pressure was too much, and sobs overtook her body.

Her dad reached her quickly, wrapping his arms around her. “I know, rosebud, I’m sorry.”

It was as if her body wasn’t her own anymore. She had no control over the pain and misery roiling through her.

“I just want to be away from this stupid Court,” she cried into her father’s shoulder. “I need out. Just for a bit.”

“But sweetheart, Zoller might not be defeated that quickly,” Uncle Lukas said softly beside them.

“Your uncle is right,” her dad said, pulling back slightly to look her in the eye. “We’ve been trying to track down Zoller since your mother—”

He paused, face collapsing.

“Since Elsa died,” Uncle Lukas finished for him. “For these two months, we haven’t been able to find Zoller, nor could we predict or prevent his attack on you yesterday. He has some way to evade our senses, which is quite concerning considering that every able Magh is being used and deployed to find and defeat him.”

She knew that her stint in the human lands might not be the months-long vacation she dreamed it would be, but ultimately she didn’t care. Living at Court and being Queen was shaping up to be the worst experience of her life.

​

One Year Earlier…

Loud voices sounded from the kitchen. Her parents must have thought that she and her brother were still training, but one of her mom’s personal guards brought them home early. Her brother was outside in the backyard, and her parents probably didn’t see him as they arrived, or else they wouldn’t talk so freely, or loudly, about the Council.

As was often the case when her parents got home from Court, her mother couldn’t keep the anger in any longer, but the explosion was usually contained a lot better than this.

With a sinking heart, she crept closer to the stairs to better listen to her mother’s frustrations.

“They’re such bigots and hypocrites!” Her mom shouted. “They think we’re so much better than humans because we don’t harm or discriminate against our own, but if one of our own loves a human, we cast them out the exact same way humans do!”

“I know, Elsa,” her father said, attempting to be soothing. “They are idiotic when it comes to their perceptions of humans, but they are still the Council, my love. Together, they hold as much power as you. More even.”

“That’s what’s worrisome, Billi! And I know it’s not the entire Council, but Rick and Vallerd are the worst, and they equal me in power! I need to stop them!”

“You know that Vallerd hates humans for good reason, Elsa, and Rick is just a contrary ass—“

“They won’t let me visit my own brother, Billi!” Her mom screamed. “And they want to take my nieces away from their mother! The Council are turning into monsters!”

There were rumours that the Council wanted all the exiled Maghs to give their children the option to live at Court, but the exiled Maghs gave up their firstborns to the Council on the condition that no one would bother their younger children. Uncle Lukas never made that kind of deal when he was exiled, and he didn’t leave because he didn’t agree with the Council anymore. He left because he fell in love with a human.

But did that mean her cousins were fair game?

Could the Council forcefully take them?

Were humans that awful?

Or was she and her family just too different from the Council and Court to ever understand?

Was she too different?

She ran to her room then, unable to hear more. She hated when her mom cried, and she hated the Council for making her, and she hated them for making it harder to see her aunt and uncle and cousins. Her cousins were better than half of the Magh children at Court. The same children who were supposed to be her friends and future subjects, but who whispered behind her back.

Human-sympathesizer, weirdo, not a true Magh.

Not a true Queen.

And then the tears started to fall.

Her parents must have heard her run up the stairs because suddenly there were footsteps following her and a knock at her door.

“Sweetie?” Her mom said softly. “I’m sorry I yelled. I didn’t want you to hear that.”

Without waiting for a response, her mom came in and climbed on her bed. The bed wasn’t big enough for the both of them, but they made it work. Then there were arms wrapping around her.

Her mom sighed. “The Council just makes it hard to be Queen.”

“I’ll never be Queen!”

Her mom tensed.

“Honey…” her mom paused. “Is something else bothering you?”

She sniffed and buried her face deeper into her mom’s sweater. “They don’t like me, Mama,” she cried. “They keep saying my favourite books and movies are beneath me and that I shouldn’t like them because they’re not real or serious. That they’re written by humans. They don’t like Percy Jackson without ever reading it! They’ll never accept me as Queen.”

“Is it the Heirs saying this?”

“It’s all the kids at Court! They make fun of me, Mama. They hate that I got my blue jeans from shopping with Aunt Kat, Josi, and Emilia. They hate it when I put on my music during training. They hate everything I like! I’ll never be good enough!”

She started sobbing again as her mom held her even tighter.

“Oh, baby, I know it’s hard. All the kids at Court just listen to their parents’ ignorant comments. They forget that without the humans, we wouldn’t exist. The first Maghs were human before they became what they are. But remembering that will make you an even better Queen.”

She looked up at her mom. “But why do I have to be even more different than them? They already keep their distance because I’ll be Queen one day, but now it’s also because I’m a human sympathizer!”

“There is nothing wrong with sympathizing with humans or any other species.” Her mom held her gaze, intensely serious. “I know it’s hard, honey. Gods, do I ever know, but you have to remember what’s really important. Whether we like it or not, the whole Supernatural community rests on our shoulders, and so do our people. Our responsibility is everyone. Not just Supernaturals, and not just humans.”

“But our direct responsibility is every Magh.”

“Yes, it is, my little rosebud. And it is a heavy burden to carry, but we can carry it together.”

She leaned into her mom, her body finally exhausted from crying.

“Together.”

Next: PART TWO

PART THREE

PART FOUR

Summary

A new queen is crowned for the world’s most secret supernatural warrior race, the Descendants of Magic, but they are more vulnerable than ever. With the new young, untried, and grieving leader at their helm, the Maghs have to do everything in their power to keep her alive, otherwise their entire race will be wiped out. But with the biggest threat they have ever faced attempting to destroy the Queen, and the Queen herself wasting away with all her new responsibilities, the Maghs may have to trust the one species they look down on like no other: the human race.

PART ONE

PART TWO

PART THREE

PART FOUR

Extras

Magh Royal Family Tree

Magh Council Hierarchy

March 4, 2026

To keep myself more focussed and less overwhelmed, I will try and only work on 5 projects at a time with hopefully one major project (a novel), an alternative project (most likely poetry), and a minor project (probably short stories) so I don’t feel like I’m limiting my creativity, but I’m also not stretching myself too thin.

Project 1: The Rose Locket

This is my biggest project that I have been actively working on for ten years. It’s a novel that’s more than 100,000 words long about a girl who’s hidden in the human lands while the lives of her people, a superhuman warrior race, are threatened. But she’s living with an abusive spymaster/ex-assassin foster father and is slowly losing her sanity while trying to keep her younger foster siblings safe and going to a public high school with its normal level of teen drama. And then there’s a boy, as there is always a boy ;)

It feels closer to finished than ever before, but I still have so many little fixes to do before I commit to starting its publication journey. As with so many of my stories, I need to polish some explanations, cut more characters, and flesh out the world building. So here’s to continuing the longest creative marathon of my life.

Project 2: The Queendom of Hunters & Roses

This is a poetry book that I’ve been playing with for a while that will hopefully have 22 poems in total. I’ve highly enjoyed writing poetry in recent years, and find it to be a great creative outlet that has less rules and structures compared to narrative writing. Of course there is still a storyline that arcs through all the poems, because I can’t help myself, but it feels more personal and raw than my narrative writing.

The premise and/or overarching metaphor is that I conceptualize my mind as a tangible place — a queendom, if you will — and the reader (and me?) is taken on a journey throughout the queendom to discover… something. You’ll have to read it to find out!

Project 3: A Place In This World

This is a short story that explains why the main character in The Rose Locket (TRL), Rosella, must leave her people/family and hide in the human lands. It takes place during the three days it takes to decide, plan, and execute Rosella’s move to her human foster father’s house, but it also has multiple flashbacks to why Rosella would want to even go to the human lands and why it’s too dangerous for her to stay at home.

I have completely outlined the short story, but I’ve only written 900 words, which barely covers the beginning of the story/plot. Hopefully I keep this a short story length and don’t go overboard as I tend to do. But I also think writing this story will help me better understand Rosella and what she went through before TRL ever starts.

Project 4: My Three Little Daisy Buds

This is another short story that takes place before TRL, and shows when/why one of Rosella’s foster sisters comes to live with her and their foster father. I’ve already written the first draft and it doesn’t feel like a lot goes on, but I think it was helpful for me to write. It fleshed out some gaps and questions I had about Rosella from the beginning of her life with her foster father.

Even though it is completely written, it needs a lot of work both to correct some inconsistencies and to help my grammar (which is a constant struggle). But I feel the need to finish “A Place In This World” before I go in and correct everything in this story.

Project 5: The Heirs of Red

This is the sister short story to “My Three Little Daisy Buds” but shares more important information about Rosella, her foster siblings, and her foster father. So of course it’s more of a struggle to write. It takes place after the other short stories but before TRL, and explains the story of when Rosella’s final foster sibling comes to live with them and explores the danger of their foster father’s occupation.

I’ve loosely outlined this story and written both the beginning and the end, but was struggling with the middle when I put it down in favour of trying to flesh out more of who Rosella was at this time. Again, I think finishing “A Place In This World” will help a lot with this.

Here is a timeline to show when most of these projects take place chronologically: