The Ravaged World (Book 2 of the Exiles Series)

Three: Magnus

The light is what makes me wake up. It shines brighter than I think it should from a ship porthole, especially when I was abducted late at night and the journey from the island to my city isn't more than thirty miles.

My eyelids snap open and I study my surroundings alertly. I'm right. The lighting is different because I'm back at what I call home, instead of beneath a ship's deck. Light streams in through the drawn shades so brilliantly that it looks like the sun is right outside my window. I'm laying in my bed, in my bedroom. Everything is untouched, looking exactly the same as before I left, besides the thin layer of dust that has settled upon my belongings.

I sit up, wide awake now, and stumble into my bathroom to take a shower.

A towel is folded neatly on my sink vanity, emblazoned with the family crest: a golden W intertwined with arrows and roses to symbolize sacrifice (for what I have no idea). I push the towel aside and briefly catch a glimpse of my reflection. I don't even know it's me I look so different. I look away quickly and shower in silence, using a whole bar of soap just to scrub away all the dirt.

When I'm done, I step out of the shower and wrap the towel around myself. I leave the bathroom and head for my closet, looking for something to wear. To my surprise, all of my old clothes that I had when I left here have been swapped out for new clothes that actually fit me. I look at all my options before settling on a plain red t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

I'm just about to sit down on my chair in the corner of the room by the bookshelf when I hear a soft knock at my bedroom door. "Uh...come in, I guess," I mutter. The door opens softly and a tall blonde girl enters my room. Same blue eyes as mine, same blonde hair. It's my sister, Arina, whom I haven't seen in five years.

"Ari." I stand up and hurry towards her, my heart pounding. I haven't seen her in five years. And here she is, at thirteen, slender and pretty and my sister.

"Magnus!" She smiles the biggest smile I've ever seen and embraces me. I hug her back, heart racing. "I missed you so much," she whispers.

I feel her tears on my shoulders. I'm almost crying, too, but I hold back. "I missed you, too," I whisper back. We separate. I notice that she's still crying, but she doesn't look happy at all.

"Arina, are you ok?" I ask. She shakes her head, wiping tears off her face with her sleeves.

"Did you hear the news?" she inquires. A lump forms in my throat, and I nod. "About Dad?" she presses.

I nod again. "I'm sorry," I tell her, because I am. Dad and her were very close, in a way that I could never understand or have. Dad despised me because he felt that I was a threat to his political status, due to the fact that I hated him and was naturally a leader. Arina, on the other hand, was trusting and followed him around like a lovesick puppy, which made him kinder towards her. And, to be brutally honest, Ari just isn't fit to be a leader, so Dad never felt any threat emanating from her, as he did me.

"What happened?" I ask, trying to keep my voice from shaking. "You...you weren't there, were you?"

Her lip quivers and she shakes her head. "Fortunately, I wasn't," she confirms. "Some rebellion broke out during one of his speeches, and he was shot. Someone said there was no way he could have survived it." She hangs her head.

"How long ago?" I ask. Arina sighs, and I can tell that this will be the last question I'll be able to ask before her calm facade crumbles.

"Last week," Ari replies. "They already had the funeral and everything. While you were away he told me he never wanted to see you again, so that's why you were just sent for now." She smiles, and I can't find a logical reason why except as a smooth subject change.