Royalty Secrecy

Crown And Country

In the kingdom of Cordonia... Several days after their return to the royal palace...

There's a knock on Lauren's door first thing in the morning.

Lauren opens it to find...

"Good morning, Lauren," Camila greets.

"Camila!" Lauren smiles brightly.

The brunette curtsies and kisses her fiancée's hand, smiling fondly at her. "I'm on my way to a briefing with Gandy and my father. Given how much the attack affected both of us... I thought you'd want to attend. Gandy may have some new leads on the perpetrators," Camila says.

"Count me in," Lauren nods. She follows Camila through the palace.

The halls are abuzz with activity and full of more guards than Lauren's ever seen before.

"So all this hustle and bustle is for the Five Kingdoms Festival today?" Lauren asks.

"Yes. It's one of the most popular holidays in Cordonia. It commemorates the day that five ancient kingdoms came together under one crown, uniting to become Cordonia as we know it," Camila explains.

"Sounds like an important piece of history," Lauren says.

"Indeed. That era is the stuff of Cordonian legends... Some more fantastical than others," Camila says.

"Camila, just how fantastical are we talking? Are you telling me there were dragons and unicorns running around in the old days?" Lauren teases.

"Unicorns might be a stretch, but there's a rumor that one of the oldest royal crests featured a mighty blue dragon. This holiday celebrates more than our history, though. It's a symbol of unity. We even open the palace to the public so that the people and the court can celebrate as one. When I realized this year's festival fell only a few days after the attack, I considered canceling it... But I don't want to give our enemies any signs of weakness right now. Besides, we could use something to bring us all together," Camila says.

"A show of strength. Let our enemies see that we're stronger than ever and they won't stop us," Lauren says.

Camila leads her fiancée into one of the palace's dining rooms, where the King Father and Gandy are waiting for them.

Gandy bows stiffly, a brief grimace of pain flashing across his face. "Good morning, Your Majesty. Your Grace," He greets.

"Please, Gandy, no need to stand on formalities when you're wounded," Alejandro frowns.

"Yes, please sit," Camila says.

Gandy obliges and takes a seat. "Thank you, Your Majesty. First, let me apologize... I failed all of you. I failed Cordonia. The attackers never should have gotten into the palace," Gandy speaks.

"Gandy, forget about it. I'm just glad you survived," Lauren speaks.

"Thank you, Your Grace. I'm glad we all did... Zayn included. You saved his life, you know," Gandy smiles softly.

"He saved mine first. I think we can call it even," Lauren returns his smile.

"You did admirably... But you never should have been in that situation in the first place. I've made... More aggressive arrangements... For your security from now on. And I won't rest until we uncover our enemies. The people behind this attack were obviously well-trained. They left almost no traces behind," Gandy says.

"Fortunately, Gandy has been keeping tabs on the Crown's enemies for years," Alejandro speaks.

"Just how many are we talking about?" Lauren asks, heart racing.