Three Lies, All True || ONC2021 Longlister

Chapter 12: De Fecto

After infiltrating General Alejandro's home, everything was quick. Frankly, Peter didn't care. The moment he saw the Royisan Airship flying down to them, he didn't waste a single time climbing aboard and sleeping in one of the luxurious cabins.

Five days after that, everything went back to normal. Crown Prince Nikolas, now King Nikolas, signed the Declaration of Peace with the Nuryynian Royal Family. It was unnerving to see Princess Nesha and some of her soldiers in the same room as King Nikolas. It felt like his entire breath was held the whole time, and he released a long sigh once the king of Nuryyn shook hands with King Nikolas.

Judging by the way they acted, they brushed off the incident under the rug. At least, Nuryyn did.

But he didn't know what was worse. That, or that there was an empty space between the Commander of the Battle Brigade and him. The space where Adrien was supposed to stand on was empty.

It made his chest twist. Yet no one seemed to care. Not the other commanders, not King Nikolas, especially not Nuryyn.

Without the war, Peter spent the next moon locked in his room. Some of the soldiers did the same, too. Either hiding in their rooms, finally resting, or exploring Royisa free from war. If he didn't feel so drained, he would have done the same thing.

His hands reached for the bolo tie on his neck. It had been a moon, and there was still no news about--

"Peter!"

Peter blinked and snapped his head up. His vision blurred for a moment, then his eyes finally cleared. Right, he was in the infirmary. He finally decided to come out of his room and have his body checked. A few people from the Medical Brigade were around him, while its Commander, Sof, stood in front of him. The blue gem on her tie glowed, before reverting back to its original darker color.

He cleared his throat and sat up. "S- Sorry. I've been... thinking."

"I don't blame you for dozing off this time." She sighed and crossed her arms. "To be honest, as much as I didn't like the war, I also missed doing something."

"Yeah..." He placed his hand in front of him, begging for even the smallest spark of magic to reach his fingertips.

She cleared her throat, making Peter shift his attention to her again. "Anyway, Peter. I'm going to ask you something, and I want you to be very honest about it. Alright?"

He nodded, making her continue.

"During the Infiltration, did something happen to you or your body?"

"Well... I did pass out in Nuryyn." He sighed and crossed his arms. "After that, I remember seeing something weird. Like a bunch of weird colors. Then I woke up, and I couldn't use magic anymore."

Sof hummed. She spun her fingers in the air, making her papers appear in front of her. Peter felt a twinge of jealousy forming inside of him, and he instinctively tried to reach for his magic. But just like the previous moon, it only made him flinch.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Sof sighed and scratched the back of her pointy ears. "You said you passed out and that you saw strange colors, right?"

Peter nodded. "Yeah."

"I'm assuming the strange colors were from Adrien's pocket dimension. I told that idiot to be careful with it, but he seemed like he wasn't." She sighed, mumbling curses under her breath, before continuing.

"Anyway, you don't have to worry about those colors. They're not the reason why you lost your magic. But that doesn't mean you're off the hook just yet. Why did you pass out in Nuryyn?"