Tangled After Ever After

Guards Quarters

Varian walked down the hallway, wondering what he was going to do. But, He knew who he could talk to put some sense into Lance. He would listen to the previous Captian of the Guard if he wouldn't listen to him.
Varian just needed a little help finding him. He started heading towards one of the guards on one side of the doors leading to the library. "Excuse me, but do you know where I could find the Old Captain of the Guard?"
He looked at Varian repeatedly, seeming taken aback by the request. He thought about it momentarily, giving up at the wall at a ticking clock. "It's about noon. I would guess he's probably in the Guards Quarters."
"Oh, thank you." The alchemist turned to leave before another voice called.
"Hey, aren't you, Varian, that one kid who created a way to heat up the water?"
Finally, someone who knows what they're talking about. It's about time somebody recognized me as an engineer, not a cruel dictator.
Varian leaned against the wall and folded his hands across his chest. Trying to play it cool. "Yep, that's me. I am Varian." He said in a deep voice, trying to make him seem more respectable and essential.
He brought his hands up to his chest in excitement. "I just want to say thank you, sir."
"Oh, it's no biggie, just trying to help you guys out...Trust me, I know how hard it is to get water daily; it's a trial." Suddenly, out of his eye, he noticed a familiar image.
The other guy started saying some more things about Varian's unique talents. But He just couldn't concentrate. He could have sworn...could it have been...a smile plastered over his calm exterior.
"So, because of you, I finally got this big-looking bump off-"
"I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying yourself, but sadly, I must leave you now." Varian interrupted, quickly running after the figure; seeing the dress and the familiar form, he began running faster.
"Cassie!" Varian shouted, his arms stretching out until she suddenly stopped, causing him to hit her, falling backward. She turned slowly around. Disappointment instantly flooded over the alchemist.
"Oh, Friedborg... I thought you were Cass." She stared at Varian creepily as he stood up." I guess she's not back yet." She continued to stare. Well, it was the best stare she could muster. They both stood there awkwardly for a few seconds.
"Well, sorry to bump into you." Varian pulled away, shuddering as he walked toward the lounge. Varian found the door reading guards' quarters. He instantly opened the door, seeing immediately at least ten guards. Some were in uniform, while others sat or talked in towels. Except for one. Passing through the group of people watching as they made bets and spread rumors.
As Varian made his way closer, He could tell it was Cassandra's father. He was talking to another guard who laughed as he said something funny. I cleared my throat. He turned to look up at me. "Varian? What are you doing here."
"I came to talk to you about a certain issue I'm having, if it's a good enough time, that is?"
"Oh, ok?"
"Just give us a second, Ron." He whispered in his friend's ear. The friend nodded and walked towards the pool table.
"Sorry to interrupt."
"Oh, it's no problem; it's great to see you. I last saw you a couple months ago. What have you been up to?"
"Well, not to brag, but I have been working on a liquid that can instantly turn water to ice." He bragged before instantly shaking off my pride. "But I'm not really here to talk about that."
"Alright, I'm ready." Varian looked around, seeing eyes turning in our direction.
As Varian spoke, he couldn't help but feel a sense of unease at the possibility of being overheard. "Sir," he said in a low voice, "I'm afraid It might cause a bit of a stir if I speak freely out here." The man furrowed his brow in confusion but quickly composed himself and rose. "I understand," he said, motioning for Varian to follow him.
Leading Varian through a maze of corridors, they eventually came to a small office. The walls were lined with maps and charts, and a detailed diagram of Corona was displayed prominently on the left-hand side.
The man gestured for Varian to sit opposite him in an unassuming wooden chair. At the same time, he settled into an oversized leather office chair.
"So, what's going on?"
"Sir... I fear that the Saporians are coming towards Corona...and they have the royal family with them. And now they are coming to Corona to collect me for this dangerous weapon that they want me to design. You must warn the citizens and get everyone out."
The weight of the situation seemed to immobilize the man as he whispered to himself, "They did escape. I knew it."
"What?"
"A few nights ago, a guard was stationed near the holding cell of Andrew and his crew. He noticed something strange about it, though." He leaned forward, not wanting to miss any details.
"They repeated the same motion after a certain round of minutes. The guard, of course, grew curious and entered the cell. He went out to touch it with none of the prisoners giving him even a glance. The bubble they were contained in popped at his touch, but to his surprise, there were no prisoners."
"What, so it was an illusion?"
"It seems like they were never in that holding cell."
"Clementine must have cast a spell. But if you knew about this, why didn't he tell anyone else."
"I did tell Lance and even showed him proof, though he just brushed it off like it was nothing. Telling me it was no concern and the royals would return soon to reason it out."
He brought his hands over the table to his lips, "That was two weeks ago, and I have heard nothing. It seems my fears have been justified."
"If Lance refuses to acknowledge the situation promptly such as this, we have to execute." He walked over to a table that contained the diagram of Corona.
Varian followed in his steed.
"It's far too late to get you out of Corona now. The best we could do is evacuate everyone outside the castle, including Old Corona." He started to move all the guards from their original stations to the outskirts of Corona.
"I'll send guards to these areas to gather as many civilians as possible. After they leave, no one can leave the castle under any order. Well, keep this place under lock and key until they arrive." He finished and laid his hands on the table, looking over the scene.
He stood up to full height and turned back to Varian. "Alright, let's gather the guards."
Varian followed him out of the office. The Ron guy returned and went to ask how it went, with Cassandra's father stopping him mid-sentence with one hand motion. He cleared his throat, causing everyone in the room to stare at him.
"Men, you must perform today. I've been keeping this from you, and it has come to light that I must tell you in this form of much urgency. The Saporians are coming to attack Corona." There was a wave of panic that crossed through faces. Varian suspected as much.
He pointed to the left side. "I need this half of the room to equally divide into four groups to help evacuate Corona, which will include Old Corona as well." He gave me a quick smile.
He pointed this time to the room on the right. "I need this side of the room to divide into two groups. Group One: start gathering people in the castle and evacuating immediately. They will most likely attack the castle first." He then pointed to the middle group."
"Group two: Grab your weapons and start surrounding the castle; no one enters." They all nodded in agreement.
"For Corona!"
"For Corona!" They all cheered along with his plan, with Varian joining. They all filed suit, grabbing other guards on their way out and filling them in.
Varian started making my way out with the rest of the guard when the Captain stopped grabbing his shoulder. "You wouldn't, by chance, be losing a raccoon, would you?"
"Well, yeah, but I don't think that should be our main concern right now." He shrugged. "Well, I believe I saw him in the Sauna if you're interested."
My face turned up in awe. "You guys have a Sauna?! I don't remember installing that?" He shrugged.
"You didn't need to...it was a gift from a nearby kingdom." He led Varian towards the Sauna, which stood in the back of the room. He opened the door and put Ruddiger in a mini towel, laying on one of the benches. His arms crossed underneath his head.
"Ruddiger?" This woke Ruddiger up, and he quickly stood up, looking alert. As soon as he realized it was his owner, he climbed up his back and onto his shoulders. "There you are, buddy," his owner said with a smile.
Varian turned to him, "Thanks for your help, Captain." He went to shake hands Varian's hand.
"Call me, Gideon, son. You did a grand service, my boy." A simple scream suddenly echoed in the halls, breaking their little interaction.
As soon as they heard the sound, they rushed out of their quarters and headed towards its source. The alarm sounded again as they made their way to the Throne room. From gasps to blood-curdling screams like the one before.
Varian soon noticed that the guards and servants who were usually seen guarding or cleaning the hallways had suddenly disappeared. This was good, but he sensed that something was wrong.
They entered the Throne Room, where large groups of servants and guards spread throughout the area. They made their way through the crowd and looked up to see Stan and Pete, who were no longer dressed in their King and Queen attire. Lance stood before the large group of people and said, "My dear people, there is no need to worry. As long as we stay united, we will be safe. However, we must prepare ourselves for the Saportists if they attack us."
The ground began to shake. Which soon followed more screams. The windows started to crack at impact as something huge entered through one of the windows. Dust exploded from each one. Varian brought his arm up to shield his eyes from the appearing glass. A familiar smell erupted that began to echo through his memory.
"The Quirineon," I whispered it under my breath. I began to pray silently that it was just my imagination.
There was a giant thud behind me. I turned in horror to see the monster I had long ago created. It was bigger than ever before. Spikes lined its spine to its head, with a Saporian symbol on its chest. It looked at Varian, its eyes ghostly red. Ruddiger jumped off his back in terror.
"Ruddiger!"
Varian returned to his nightmare to see its arm coming straight towards him.