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There was once a kingdom far away.
And in this kingdom were several royals, but for this story, we’ll focus on one that worked in the furnaces and lower levels of the castle.
Let’s call him Prince Wrench for now.
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“Josiah, what are you doing?”
Asked Shiloh as she poked her head into the library, finding her older brother looking over a book.
“I was going through some of the books that Gala brought over from her stay at the prison.”
Was his response, eyes not truly leaving the page in front of him.
“That’s neat, but I need your help with a couple of repairs. Something’s acting up in the command room.”
Josiah nodded, closing the book, and following Shiloh out of the room, asking questions in regard to the problem.
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Prince Wrench spent most of his time helping his siblings and working on his own inventions.
Among many of them was a special pocket watch.
One that didn’t just tell the time, but could also act as a compass.
So one could never truly be lost when holding the pocketwatch.
Until one day when a princess had gotten lost in the woods.
The princess needed to return to her kingdom, but she didn’t have the means to guide herself out of the woods.
That same day the prince had also been walking through the woods.
The only difference was he knew the forest that grew around his own kingdom.
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“The prince could navigate his own forest, but owned a compass?”
Muttered Judah as he flipped through the pages of the book. The book had ended up being moved around the agency the last few days, since one of the other agents had seen Josiah reading it.
Honestly he had wanted to see if there was anything good, but it was just a book of stories.
Many different ones, but the one that still had one of Josiah’s bookmarks in it was the one about some royal mechanic prince.
“Hey Judah.” spoke a voice, Judah looked up to see Micah stepping into the room with a couple of boxes in his hands.
“Shiloh wanted us to finish some supplies around the building again.”
Judah nodded, getting to his feet placing the book on his desk. He was certain that the book probably wasn’t going to be there when he got back, but he hoped to at some point read the ending.
“Let’s see if any of these supply crates have anything fun in them!” he shouted as he grabbed a few of the boxes.
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In a different town, nowhere near either of the kingdoms spoken of before.
Lived a young fairy maiden, who needed aid.
A monster with a ravenous appetite was soon to arrive to consume everything in its path.
The fairy flew off in search of anyone to aid her.
Even though others didn’t believe there was any hope of saving her village, or any of the towns nearby.
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Elijah was staring at the book in annoyance, he had been skipping around the book of fairytales trying to make sure that there weren't any secrets or old knowledge about the rift.
Instead it really was a book of fairytales.
So far he had finished a couple of them, but he was sure that he stumbled upon the original attack of the Goliath.
The one that they had helped Lila stop.
They hadn’t checked on her in a while.
With a slight frown, he looked down at his watch. He had time for a quick lunch break, he was sure that Shiloh wouldn’t mind if he had lunch off on a different Raelo.
He left the book in the library on its proper shelf.
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The prince had met the princess in the middle of the woods as he walked it.
The princess asked him for the quickest route back to her kingdom, and the prince told her he wasn’t sure what would be the proper path.
But then he thought of the compass in his pocket. Of what his little trinket could do.
With a gentle smile and a small word of warning he gave the pocketwatch to the princess.
She thanked and was off on her way, but the prince was saddened by the loss of one of his treasures, but he was glad to know that it helped the princess.
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“He could’ve just asked her to stay on something if he was that bothered by giving her his pocketwatch.”
Muttered Michelle as she paged through the book this time. She had decided to read the book in order.
Though she was sure that others were just skipping around considering the surprising number of bookmarks decorating this thing.
Deciding it didn’t matter, she turned the story that stood out to her in the table of contents when she had seen the book the first time. Leaning over Judah’s shoulder as he talked about the foolishness of “Prince Wrench”.
Instead she flipped to the tale of a knight and lord that sounded more her style and pulled out her own bookmark to add to the book.
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The Knight shook her head as she raised her sword.
“I’ll never abandon my lord regardless of one’s foolishness.”
The Lord glared down at the knight.
“But one must obey their lord if they force a command.”
The Knight shook her head again, and took a brave step forward, hand reaching out to grab her lord’s wrist, to keep him from moving forward.
The Lord turned to look at her again, eyes filled with a fear that almost startled her into silence.
She opened her mouth to speak.
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“Taila, I asked for those reports to be on my desk an hour ago! What are you doing?”
Elijah asked as he stepped into the library to see reports half done and Taila standing over a book.
She marked her place with two fingers and held up the book.
“Just trying to finish this one chapter about some lord and knight. I’ll have those reports done before I leave for my Raelo honest.”
Taila said, but that only made Elijah scoff, and an almost scowl stayed on his face. He had been trying to find the book again for the better part of the week, he wanted to finish the fairy, but it seemed that everyone else still had their own to finish first.
Considering the major fact that the bookmarks were growing, instead of decreasing.
“Fine, but I do need those done.”
He turned to leave, the book wasn’t his business anymore. Elijah knew that at some point that book would make its way back to him again.
For now he had actual work to do.
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Prince Wrench went back to work in his forge, making other things for the royals around the area, but when he tried to make another version of his beloved pocketwatch compass he couldn’t.
They would either be just watches or compasses, and they couldn’t for both if he tried.
He wanted to ask the princess for it back, but he didn’t know what kingdom she hailed from.
He knew absolutely nothing about her, and that fact saddened him.
The prince kept to his work to keep him busy and to keep his mind off what he had done by mistake.
“You’ll find her again.” was his silent vow.
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The story of Prince Wrench was one of her favorite stories, and found it odd that the book would find her again in prison.
Her mother used to read the book to her when she was a young girl.
Whenever her mother would open the book and ask her what she wanted to read, Gala no younger than three would ask over and over again every night for Prince Wrench.
Her father was a bit indifferent about her adoration of the story.
Considering it was a story more about a man that helps her and then goes about his own manners, only wanting back his special watch from the princess.
Gala thought in her own way that it was a story about the prince giving a princess a way to guide herself.
In the end, well she wouldn’t spoil that.
She opened the fairytale book once again, opening to the first chapter.
“Prince Wrench and the Watchful Compass.”
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A lone traveler was simply a person that was always alone.
Always searching for something just out of their grasp.
That was what it felt like to be lonely.
The lone traveler had some family, but he refused to go back to them until he had an answer.
A solution to offer up for his ability to provide proper comfort.
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Daniel closed the book there, he read enough.
Many of the stories in the book seem to have their own cliffhangers and moments where the situation felt hopeless.
Like the prince and his pocketwatch, or the knight that can’t have who she loves.
Or maybe it's like them, who can’t find their mother, no matter what part of the world that Daniel runs.
All this information and it left them standing in front of his rift that they created.
That’s where he was now, standing in front of it.
Pondering all the possibilities of all the ways that it could fail or maybe something could be right and they would have all the answers for once.
Until then, he picked back up the book and went back to headquarters.
Some problems can be answered another day.
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Royals from far and wide came to a grand ball being thrown by the king, wanting to quickly get his daughter married.
One of the siblings of Prince Wrench heard about the Princess of a nearby kingdom and pushed his brother to ask for the young lady’s hand.
Once Prince Wrench set out though he met the strangest people.
A lone traveler in search of his mother.
A knight looking to aid her lord.
And a kindly joker, who wanted a place to live with his trusty companion, a strange furry brown creature.
Prince Wrench told them what he was planning to do, and the others nodded, all asking if they could be with him.
So, they set off.
Each wanting to find an answer, but were more than willing to help each other.
———————————————————————————————
When Shiloh opened the book, she wasn’t sure what she was expecting.
Maybe like Daniel and Elijah, it was answers, a clue.
Instead she was just like the others, reading a story because reality can be too much sometimes.
Still she hadn’t the heart to skip to the end.
To see if all them got their happily ever after.
To see if everything worked out in the end.
For now she would read about the journeys.
With a light smile, as she leaned back in a chair.
Reading next to the lamp’s light.
———————————————————————————————
The knight was saddened, she could never confess her love to the lord.
The lord’s job was to stand proud and steady.
Knowing that his knights had his back.
Even when they were to wed someone that they didn’t love.
A knight gave their life to their ruler.
As the knights requested.
As it demands.
She ran when she learned that the lord was to wed in a month.
Was to place his hand into another's.
A hand that wasn’t hers.
So she left without a word.
With a warning.
Knowing that the lord wouldn’t miss her if she disappeared.
After what was one knight out of dozens at his disposal.
———————————————————————————————
Michelle didn’t like where the story was heading.
It was a bit of a struggle to read the story.
Especially the moment where the knight’s heart broke, all because she couldn’t be with the one she loved.
She didn’t really have any time to read further, but she desperately wanted to know if the lord missed the knight, or if the knight was truly correct, and that the lord didn’t care for her at all.
Shoving the book back onto the desk, she went back to working on the files and the paperwork that she was actually supposed to be doing.
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Those that traveled with Prince Wrench were sure that if they helped this young fellow, then they too might find answers to their own plight.
Prince Wrench though was too kind, instead they kept detouring.
When the young traveler heard a lead for his mother, Prince Wrench gave the loner a small device that could trace his mother.
The lone traveler took the gift, and when he left he promised the prince that he would bring something to aid the man in return. While the prince told him he didn’t have to, the promise was still there.
When the jester found a small troupe of magicians and musicians that were in need of his help, once more Prince Wrench gave him a device almost in the shape of a carrot that could help him with anything he needed.
Once more it was the jester that promised the prince that he would be there to bring a smile to his face, and promised to meet him again.
And once more the prince declined, but the promise was still made.
Finally though when they made it to the gates of the kingdom, where the princess lived. Prince Wrench turned to the knight, who was still at his right side, but she didn’t belong there.
The knight knew that, and she confessed to the prince that she had run away, and didn’t believe that she could return to the lord’s side once more.
Not with her feelings still within her heart.
Prince Wrench understood, so he took from his neck his special locket.
He told the knight that if the lord felt the same as the knight than the locket would possibly give her an answer, but he warned her that feelings of the heart can not be controlled, and that she couldn’t force the locket open.
The knight understood, and promised that there would be an army to defend him if he was ever to fall into danger.
While she wasn’t sure if the lord loved her, she knew that the lord was a fierce man to have as an ally.
The prince didn’t say anything, all he could do was just accept the promises, and hope that his odd companions stuck to them.
He watched the knight leave, and turned to finally face the princess.
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Josiah hadn’t picked up the book in a while, but he had finally made it further into the prince's story, and wondered if there were some similarities between him and the inventor prince.
The thought was brushed away as he tinkered away with some odd ends and bits that he was trying to get to work, and the stress drove him to the book again.
It was a confusing matter, was there an answer, or was it truly just a book of stories?
Still he thought it was kind of the prince to give away more of his personal inventions to help others, he was certain he would do the same for his friends if they asked.
Staring for one more moment at the book in his hands, not opened yet, and he realized that he didn’t need a distraction.
No, he needed inspiration, and he found one.
Putting the book back on his desk he got to work on designing the pocketwatch compass from its vague description from the book.
He was sure that he could make it.
If he tried.
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As he traveled with the troupe he found a place where he belonged and was understood, but at the same time he was a bit lonely, missing the prince and some of the other travelers.
It was almost like they were brothers born of distant mothers.
During this time the troupe had stopped in a bustling city, where in the midst was a young healer, trying to make her way through.
The Jester saw her struggling and walked over to help her, where the young healer thanked him, but she didn’t have a proper way to thank him.
Since she didn’t have much money on her, the Jester refused her riches; instead he gave her the odd carrot, saying this was an item that could help her with her work.
The young healer thought it was an odd device, but took it anyway.
And the two parted ways, the jester feeling lighter, and the young healer just a tad confused from the whole exchange.
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“Judah, it's just a book of stories, I don’t have the time to read it.”
Said Patience, as she went about putting some of the newer medical supplies.
“But it's not patience,” said Judah from where he sat at her desk. “It's like a narrative about all of these interesting people, but I feel like it's something we could learn from.”
Patience only rolled her eyes, “Didn’t Elijah and Shiloh both say already that it's just a “good book”?”
Her gaze didn’t shift from her work, not seeing Judah give her a pointed look.
“So? Elijah and Shiloh don’t have to be right about everything.”
The young doctor shrugged, “Sure, but I’m still not reading it, and I don’t think it's in the infirmary. I mean you can ask Mary if she’s seen it, when she gets here.”
Judah shook his head, standing from the desk.
“Nah, I just thought I would ask you while I delivered the supply crates like normal.”
Patience frowned at that, but didn’t say more, instead keeping up with her job.
When Mary would come in later with the book though to read, Patience would’ve already finished her tasks, and retired for the night.
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The Lone Traveler finally did find his mother, and they were on their way to a happy ever after, when the traveler remembered his promise to Prince Wrench.
His mother asked him what was wrong and the prince told her the truth.
Of the promise that he made.
His mother told him to go and keep his promise and return the map, and she told him she would make the journey with him.
As they traveled though his mother grew ill, from the journey she traveled before she found him and now this new one.
Lone travelers asked for help, but no one could stop their own journeys for them, not for a mother or her son.
Traveling on that same road though was a young healer.
She had been needing to find a young lord on his way to death’s door and she got lost in the process, but when she heard the cries for help she went straight to them.
When she saw the lone traveler and his mother, she knelt beside them to check her over.
It was a few days later that the color was back in his mother’s face, and Lone Traveler could put more light in the older woman’s eyes, so he turned to thank the young healer.
The young healer only shrugged, and asked for nothing in return, only telling them that she was in search of a sick lord, and was indeed very lost.
The man shook his head and was about to tell her that he couldn’t help her, but then he remembered the map that Prince Wrench had given him.
Reaching into his pack to pull it out he gave it to the young healer, who then in return gave him the carrot gadget, stating that it brings hope.
The lone traveler didn’t contradict her, considering he had traveled for a while with the jester that this had been gifted to.
Once the young healer was on her way, he turned to his mother to ask if she was ready as well to make the rest of the journey.
With a kind smile and a light laugh, the mother was ready to travel once more.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The most recent chapter that Daniel read brought the traces of a smile to his face, with the fact that they’ve had no recent discoveries of where their mother went, it was great to know that there are still some happy endings.
Closing the book, he looked towards where Shiloh had fallen asleep on her desk.
They had been working late into the night again, after coming back from a couple of raelos, and Shiloh wanted to get a head start on some of the paperwork.
Now though they were both tired, and he was sure that they could finish in the morning. Paperwork has never walked away before.
Picking her up carefully, he carried her to some of the side rooms they kept in case some agents needed to rest in between missions.
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The knight felt cowardly and brave all at the same time as she climbed the steps back to the lord’s castle.
Yet there seemed to be no one there to greet her, instead the other knights were whispering and talking about the fact that the lord was dying.
Clutching the locket in her hands, she rushed to his chambers, to find lying in his bed.
His eyes were closed, his breathing labored.
The knight kept the locket in one hand, and reached his with the other.
In the corner of the room sat a young woman, the one that he assumed he was going to marry.
When the knight asked the maiden to explain what happened to her dear friend, the maiden told her of a dark enchanter that had come and cast a curse of death onto the lord.
The maiden told her the lord had only merely hours left to live, and that there was no hope to save him.
They had called a healer, but the healer hadn't arrived in the last few days.
The knight was desperate to save him, and told the maiden as such, leaving the castle once more in search of the doctor.
There was a young healer now guided by a map this time, who was able to find her destination this time.
She met the knight through the castle gates, the knight asked the healer if she could really save the lord.
The healer hadn’t failed to save anyone before, and she wasn’t going to now.
They made it just time for the healer to do what she needed to save the lord.
And once the lord could actually sit up and speak, talking to his knight.
The healer decided to make her leave this part, not before the knight gave the locket to the healer, saying that it was payment, and that it maybe could help the healer one day.
Still the healer asked if the knight still needed it, but the knight told she could manage on her own.
Turned out the lord and decided against marrying the maiden, saying that he still needed time to think over other marriage contracts.
The healer took the locket, and gave the knight the map, telling her it was a fair exchange.
The knight accepted the gift, and with the lord by her side, they saw the healer off.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Gala marked her place in the book. It had been a while since she had a chance to read it, considering everyone throughout the agency had gotten a chance to read it.
She hoped that everyone was enjoying it. It felt nice to share something with everyone.
Carrying the book out of the room with her, she spotted Josiah sitting at one of the desks sorting through some metal scraps that he had thrown in there after many of their missions.
“Josaih have you gotten a chance to read the book yet?”
She asked, taking a seat in a chair near the desk. Josiah dropped whatever he was working, startled.
When he saw her, seeming confused.
“I heard the book, I’m the striped black bookmark.”
He tapped with the screwdriver he had picked down from the floor where it dropped from his hands.
“I’ve made it to the part where the prince goes to the ball.”
Gala nodded, staring at what Josiah was working on, it was some kind of watch, and next to it was a mostly torn up compass.
“Are you trying to recreate Prince Wrench’s pocketwatch?”
The question didn’t seem to faze Josiah as he grinned.
“After reading about it I wanted to see if it was possible to create such an idea, so for the last few days I’ve been attempting to bring it to life.”
Then he pulled something else out of the drawer.
“And this is the actual finished product.”
It almost seemed like the one from the tale in Gala’s eyes, having read the description many times.
Josiah placed it in front of her.
“The not so completed version is my second attempt. Not gonna lie, I can see now why Wrench was having issues.”
Looking between the two watches, she thought about the plight that Prince Wrench went through as he tried to make a new one after giving his to the princess, then she realized that Josiah had been speaking, while she was thinking.
“And I want you to have the finished one, because we never know when we’ll get lost again.”
Gala nodded, to make it not seem like she wasn’t listening, “So, I’m to keep what I’m holding?”
Josiah hummed.
“Yeah, I heard we needed to investigate some more forest raelos, so I just assumed that these would work better in case our tech fails.”
The princess agreed, placing the watch into her satchel.
“Thanks Josiah, if you like I pass the book onto you so you can finish reading it?”
Josiah shrugged, “Sure, I’ve been wanting to know how the ball goes.”
Taking the book from her with a smile.
“Well see you later Gala.”
He turned back to his desk, setting the book aside and going back to work on the second watch.
Gala assumed that the second one was going to be given to Shiloh or Elijah to help on missions.
Though it was kind of him to give the working one to him first.
It made her think of the story again.
Isn’t that how Prince Wrench lost his first watch, by giving it away to the lost princess in the woods.
Smiling as she left to go talk to Shiloh about the next mission, thinking of good friends and kind actions.
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When Prince Wrench arrived at the ball he saw many nobles milling about talking to each of them or their sons and brothers could be picked to take the princess’s hand.
He didn’t really think about the princess though, instead he was more worried for his friends.
The ones that left to go finish their quests. He knew that they could do it, and that he didn’t need to be physically there for all of them, but he wished he knew if they found what they were searching for.
Still he did keep an eye out for the princess, wondering what she looked like.
Prince Wrench had forgotten to ask his brother of her features, instead more focused on making another watch.
Which he did finish crafting, but it works as good as his old one.
He hoped that the lost princess had made it safely to her kingdom.
The prince tried to speak with the other suitors, but upon seeing him and his dirtied look, they turned their noses.
Telling him he looked akin to that of a walking forest fire.
Prince Wrench sometimes couldn’t help his appearance, but he knew it was his fault for not changing after helping the knight.
The words didn't exactly hurt the prince, but it did make him feel unwanted in the palace, so he ventured out into the kingdom’s garden.
It was a vast space and there weren’t that many guests milling about, giving him ample room to sit on a bench and admire the flowers.
Flowers wouldn’t judge him for his love of the forge and the hearth.
The princess hadn’t wanted the ball, but her father insisted, saying how she needed to find a husband before she turned twenty and then nobody would want her.
She had stormed out of the palace and into the garden.
But the argument had been hours ago, and when the party started she went to get some food from the kitchen and remained there in the garden.
She moved slightly though when she heard footsteps on the grass, by the noise of the leaves beneath their boots.
Whoever had entered the garden was a traveler.
Peeking from behind the hedge that she usually hid near, she peered out and saw a young man around her age.
His features are dirtied by the scoot and some dirt is still on his face.
The man takes a seat on one of the stone benches, looking towards the pond.
Clutched in his hand though was an odd pocketwatch, similar to the one that she kept in her satchel.
Then with a realization, she looked back at the man who entered the garden, sure he looked more dirty than she remembered, but this was the man that gave her the watch.
Stepping out from her hiding place, she spoke.
“Excuse me, is your name Prince Wrench?”
The man turned, and with slight hesitation nodded.
“Yes, that is I.”
The princess smiled, and held up the watch to the moonlight.
“I believe that this is yours then.”
Prince Wrench stood and took the watch from her hands carefully, looking it over before turning to her.
“Thank you.”
And after that the pair went on to talk about a great number of things.
How the watch was made, the pair’s journeys of trying to find their own way to things that they thought they lost.
And in the end maybe they did marry.
Maybe they didn’t.
All we know is that they made it to the right path.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Judah closed the book with a large slam, startling Patience from where she sat writing.
“Judah, I said you could read it quietly.”
Judah merely shrugged.
“And I said that you should read the book.”
Patience rolled her eyes.
“And I told you that I hadn’t wanted to read it.”
With a gasp Judah had a wonderful idea.
“Well, since you hadn’t had a chance to read it, why don’t I read it to you?”
Patience went to open her mouth for a clever back, but then they thought about it for a moment.
“I mean, why not?”
She then tapped the book.
“I guess start at the first story, and tell me how it goes.”
Judah gave a small smile.
“Alright, let’s see, “The story of Prince Wrench”.”
And that’s how it was they went late into the night, Patience working and Judah reading her the stories in the book.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
That’s how it was, Prince Wrench finally had his watch back safe and sound, but in the process the watch had also helped him gain the companionship of an odd, but nice group of friends.
And in the end they all lived happily ever after.
The End