The World Is Mine For The Taking

"Can you please tell me everything?" a voice broke through the cold silence.

I turned in the direction of the voice, and there stood Princess Myrcella. She was dressed in soft, flowing loungewear, the loose fabric clinging to her form under the moonlight. The cold night air curled around her, but it didn’t seem to faze her one bit. She must’ve overheard us somewhere in the castle.

"P-Princess, it’s cold and dangerous outside! You shouldn’t be out here!"

"I’m not some little princess anymore, so I’ll be fine." Princess Myrcella’s voice carried a calm but sharp edge. Her eyes narrowed on me, her presence more commanding than ever. "You… you’re Captain Angelica, right? I remember seeing you back then. When I noticed you, I came straight here. And then I heard everything you said. So, can you please explain to me exactly what’s going on?"

***

Myrcella’s POV

Captain Angelica. I knew her face from back then, back when she was still one of the rising knights appointed to lead. I was at her promotion ceremony, but now, her once proud and confident expression seemed almost broken, as if she had been through hell. Still, I could recognize her—barely.

"So then, will you tell me what’s really happening?" I asked.

"It’s the Eclipse," Captain Angelica began. "It’s a cult that’s been silently kidnapping people from the outskirts, far from prying eyes. They didn’t want anyone to notice too many people disappearing at once. The cult’s led by one man, but the members… they’re mostly innocent. People who were brainwashed and forced into doing horrible things, like kidnapping others."

"The Eclipse, huh?" I muttered. "So this article about the cult... it’s all true then?" n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"Article?"

I pulled out my phone and showed her the article that had been circulating for weeks. It talked about the Eclipse—this dangerous cult that had been behind a series of kidnappings across the continent. The targets were only women. People speculated it was just human trafficking, women being sold into prostitution rings. But I didn’t buy it. Not after the bombing at Leonamon. That kind of thing wasn’t random, and I knew deep down it had to be connected.

"Y-Yes, it’s all true. The kidnappings, the killings, everything. I know because... I’ve been part of it." Angelica’s voice faltered, but she didn’t shy away from admitting it.

"I see…" I murmured. "And what about you? Was everything you did because of your own will, or was it the brainwashing?"

"It’s the brainwashing…" Angelica said. "But at the same time, it feels like I was acting on my own too. Like I wanted to do it. The lines between reality and the brainwashing have blurred so much I can’t even tell what’s real anymore. But I’m not going to claim innocence. Brainwashed or not, I’ve done terrible things. I know I deserve to be punished for it. But now’s not the time for that."

"And the people outside the castle? They’re like you, right? Brainwashed too?" I asked.

"Yes," she confirmed, a heavy nod accompanying her words. "They’re just like me. Innocent people forced to commit horrible acts."

I couldn’t believe something like this had been happening right under our noses. A cult this large, this organized, and yet no one had done anything to stop it. The knights, the soldiers... all of them in the dark, not even aware of the danger surrounding us. It was maddening. Whoever was behind this had been doing it for a long time without getting caught. Then again, it made sense—magic knights and royal knights weren’t allowed to use smartphones on the job, so this kind of thing could easily slip past them.

"I’ve seen reports online about what’s been happening in the Capital City, but what confuses me is why no knights are taking any action."

"They’re keeping the information from reaching the knights," Angelica explained. "The citizens are suffering as we speak. All of this… it’s going exactly as he planned."

"He?"

"The Leader."

"Can you tell me who exactly he is?"

Angelica’s face twisted in pain, her hand shooting up to clutch her forehead. "It’s... Ugh!" She staggered, almost collapsing under the weight of whatever was tormenting her.

"A-Are you okay?" I asked, rushing toward her as panic shot through me.

"I’m sorry, but I think... something’s preventing me from saying his name," she said through gritted teeth. "If any member of the Eclipse speaks his name, their head will explode. Mine almost did earlier because I broke one of the rules. But I stopped it… barely, by sheer will."

"You don’t have to say it," I quickly cut in. There was no way was I letting her head blow up right in front of me.

Angelica’s eyes met mine, appreciation flashing briefly in her pain-filled gaze. She straightened herself, her hand still trembling as she let out a shaky breath.

"So... the real issue is how they’re deliberately cutting off the flow of information to the knights, right?" I asked, trying to refocus.

Captain Angelica nodded grimly. "Yes. The people across the Capital City are working to block any information from coming in or going out. It’s like the entire city has been sealed off. Although, in a way, the people

are

the information. But what they’re truly hiding is what’s happening in the plaza. That’s where the leader will be conducting his ritual... to accomplish his goal. Something beyond anyone’s comprehension."

"What kind of goal are we talking about?"

Angelica’s eyes darkened. "He wants to blot out the light. All of it. His plan is to cover the sun, to make sure its rays never touch this world again. He’ll plunge us into eternal darkness."

I stared at her, dumbfounded. "He wants to... cover the sun? How does he plan to do that?" The idea sounded utterly insane. But one look at Captain Angelica’s deadly serious expression told me this wasn’t a joke. This was real.

"He’s only hours away from finishing it. Everything he’s been doing leads to this one moment. And once he completes the ritual... that’s it. We’ll be living in darkness forever." Her hand tightened into a fist. "There’s just one piece of the puzzle left. We have to stop him... or it’s over."