Drip... Drip... Drip...

Teal was perched high in the branches of a tree that overlooked the cliffs and allowed him to look out to sea. It was one of the tallest trees in the forest.

He knew this forest, the scent of it, the sound of it as the branches swayed. Not many people took the time to acknowledge that forests had a certain sound as well. Many merely focused on the sights and the smells.

This was the sound of the forest near his adoptive parents’ home in Hulena. It was the high-pitched call of the Frear birds and the lizards who climbed up the trucks with their sharp claws, and the hiss of a snake as it curled its way around a branch. There was also the sound of the waves crashing onto the cliff face, so daringly far below Teal.

Drip... Drip...Drip...

Teal frowned at the unusual sound. He tilted his head up at the sky to find it clear and blue. When he looked out in the direction of the ocean, there was a hint of purple along the horizon of the darkness that would soon be upon him. The waves broke onto the rocks of the cliff, but it was a gentle ocean and the water spray did not reach that high.

Drip...Drip...Drip...

All of a sudden, the palace in Dalenia appeared out across the ocean opposite to where he was sitting in the tree. He was no longer in Hulena. On one side of him was Jale, who was sitting with one leg up and his arm resting on his knee while he leaned back peacefully on the trunk of the tree. On the other side was Lana, lying precariously on the branch with one of her arms tucked lazily behind her head. Except, he wasn't in the tree anymore but in Jale's luxurious quarters with his two lovers by his side.

Drip...Drip...Drip...

He could still hear it.

The sound of water, dripping and hitting something hard.

Teal gazed around Jale's quarters and across the large balcony, confused and annoyed at this persistent echo in his head that protruded into the sanctuary of his subconscious. For he knew this wasn't real, the scenery before him.

Drip...Drip...Drip...

Had it always been there? In this dream? It wasn't a sound that belonged in Jale's quarters.

The sound of the dripping water became louder and louder until he unable to focus on anything else. Teal stirred, the dream ebbing away and, in an instant, he became aware of the hard cold stone floor beneath him. His body shivered, and he tried to move only to find that his arms and legs were restricted, bound in some way. His head was pounding, and his muscles were protesting from the position of his limbs. His mouth was parched dry, and his lips were cracked and covered in dry blood when he ran his tongue over them.

Teal reached for the dream, for the comfort and safety it had given him only to find that the tentacles of sleep had moved too far away. He rolled onto his back and heard the clanging of metal chains and cuffs that he could now feel around his arms and ankles. Weakly, Teal opened his eyes, guessing from their puffiness and tenderness that he had been beaten at some point, although he had no recollection of it occurring. It was night and the room he was in was dark but still, he tried to take in his immediate surroundings.

From the circular curve of the stone wall that created the perimeter of most of his small room, he determined that he was in a tower. Not the top, but high enough for him to see the trees through the tiny square hole window that allowed for air and light to enter. He was alone in his cell but the cries and moans of those also incarcerated within the walls reached his ears.

Pain and suffering.

He shivered again from the cold, fearful of what may happen to him and whether he was to endure similar wrong doings of those wailing souls he could hear.

He had no idea how long he had been in the tower, but the coolness in the air both surprised and worried him. Was it autumn or even winter? He suspected he was in the Keglar Kingdom for it to be this cold, but he had no idea of exactly where.

Teal half crawled half dragged himself across the stone floor where several clumps of bread lay on the floor. He gazed up and found a small hole in the wooden door that they must have been dropped through. Beside the bread, was a bucket of water that had been filled via a small wooden funnel that led to a hole in the wall beside the door. It was observation that allowed him to realize where the dripping sound had been coming from. He scooped at the water with his hands and gasped as the liquid hit his parched mouth.

He sat back against the wall, sighed weakly and took in more of his surroundings. There was a trough along one part of the circular wall where he could relieve himself and hay on the ground where he guessed he could sleep. He had the bare necessities to keep himself alive.

Teal took two mouthfuls of bread and chewed down on the stale, dry substance. It was burnt on the outside and tasted terribly bland, but it was food. He also knew he needed to pace himself. No matter how hungry he was, he would take his time to allow his stomach to adjust to having food again.

No one came.

Minutes passed, then hours. He drifted in and out of sleep. The days were not that different from night with the sun's late arrival always covered by thick dark clouds. Day after day, food and water were delivered, shoved through the tiny hole in the door and poured through the funnel to the bucket.

He was chained securely to the wall. Obviously, they had learnt from their mistake in the caravan. The metal chains fed through hooks that were attached deeply into the wall. His eyes tried to spy where the rest of the chains that he was attached to went, but they disappeared into holes in the walls as well. There was a chain around his neck, his arms and his legs. In his weakened state, he tried tugging on the hooks on the wall, but they were stuck solid. He had no idea how he would escape this terrible hell hole.

And then, one cold bleak morning while he was leaning on the wall after eating another small chunk of stale dry burnt bread, the metal chains that fed through the hooks and the hole in the wall started to turn. They tightened up and drew Teal back against the wall until his back was flat against its surface and his feet were barely touching the floor. Fear pounded in his chest but just before the tightly linked chains would put too much pressure on his body, the chains stopped moving. Pinned against the wall, unable to move, Teal's chest heaved.

A banging sound suddenly pounded through the silence of the cell coming from the other side of the door. Further clanging of metal also followed. Teal's heart raced even more, and he tried to brace himself for whatever was going to come through the door.

Prince Yernal and another man, well dressed and official looking, stepped into the cell. They were followed by seven guards. Two guards took position in front of Prince Yernal, and they each held a club in their hands with sharp metal spikes attached on the end.

Prince Yernal crossed his arms, a smug, satisfied expression on his face.

"Here he is. The famous Lombock," he said to the man standing beside him.

"I can't believe my eyes," the man stated.

He was an unpleasant man with a large nose and thick red hair. He shook his head in disbelief, unable to take his eyes off of Teal. The man looked pleased though despite his disbelief.

"Why have you kidnapped me?" Teal asked, his arms beginning to ache from where he was hanging against the wall. "The Emperor is not going to stand for this!"

Prince Yernal chuckled obnoxiously, a sound that infuriated Teal. The man beside him maintained a neutral expression.

"The Emperor is dead," Prince Yernal said coldly.

"What?!" Teal gasped.

It was as if he was punched, no pummelled in the middle of his stomach. For an instant, Teal was thankful for the chains that were holding him up because there was no doubt he would have collapsed to the ground at that sound of those words.

The Emperor was dead?

How?! When?!

“Wh-What happened?” Teal gasped.

Disbelief and shock soared through his body.

“You’re lying!” Teal decided.

"Murdered by bandits a couple of weeks' ago. Prince Vox will take the throne very shortly," Prince Yernal explained.

Teal gazed back and forth between Prince Yernal and the other man.

Prince Vox was going to be the Emperor? But what of Emperor Rathner’s Empire and everything that he stood for? Would Prince Vox be able to maintain that? Would he stand up to Prince Yernal or give in to his every whim? And what about Prince Salren who had always been vying for more power?

But what of Emperor Rathner? The kind patient man who had taken him in when he had nothing to work towards in his life. Who had given him opportunities and had opened the world to him? What would the empire do without this man who radiated integrity and honour?

And what of the harem?

And then, Teal’s stomach dropped. What of Jale? He was supposed to be with the Emperor going to capture the Hummingbird? Was he safe as well?

The sudden unknown was more torturous than being locked in his cell.

Teal startled back as the sound of impatient clapping reached his ears.

Prince Yernal frowned and snapped, “I need you to pay attention. I want to introduce you to Prince Tolder. He has been one of the masterminds behind this plan to bring down the Talbecan Empire.”

Teal frowned trying to remember where he had heard the name before.

Teal’s eyes flashed towards the other man who narrowed his eyes in response to Teal’s open assessment. There was a dangerous intelligence deep within his steady gaze. A man who had the patience to create a plan and wait years to execute it. It took him a moment, but Teal called who this man was.

“So, you’re the man who experimented on the innocent family members of the Brandeen family?” he said. “You’re the Hummingbird.”