The weather was clear, bright sun and cool salty breeze washing over the city of Kos. The capital was shrouded like a grieving mother, black banners hung from rooftops and flags were at half-mast. Lanterns painted black and white had been lit outside almost every home and each pony in the city mourned their fallen ruler. The funeral of queen Starlit Eyes had taken all morning, hundreds of female clergy members and soldiers had marched down the streets carrying her casket. It began in the courtyard of the royal palace before it had been carried down the dark parts of the city on a designated route. Guards stood with spears raised high on both sides of the road, blocking civilians from interfering with the highly religious ceremony. The fallen queen had been carried past holy shrines to the gods, streets whose very bricks had been laid by her predecessors, and famous buildings connected to the long line of the Cosean royal family. The royal orchestra had been pulled on carriages behind the casket bearers, playing the soft melody of ‘Quiet storm’. The song had been written by a Silfy ambassador for the funeral of Starlit Eyes’ grandmother, and now it was being played for her.

The train of clergy mares and female soldiers had stopped at a marble building on the other end of the city. It was made from limestone and black marble. The entrance of the building had a staircase with a roof hanging over it, said roof being held up by thick pillars. The roof of the building had domes dotted about. Outcroppings in the form of seashells made from gold grew from each dome, denominating the building as a property of the crown. It was the last resting place of each king and queen of Cosea, the royal family’s original seat of power in the city. The queen’s casket had been carried into the building and placed in the middle of the grand room, with the clergy taking their place on stone benches and the military ascending one floor to the galleries above. The high priestess Seris Vitali had walked towards a podium at the far end of the building, walking past dozens of slots in the walls filled with the caskets of previous rulers. She was the only one that could stand up there, she was the leader of the church and the Shamën, the church representative on the Shekel council. The very council that had helped guide the queen. Next to her walked a young male Cosean, his ears pressed against his head and his tail dragging along the floor. When they reached the podium he would stiffly stand next to her, keeping his gaze on the floor.

As the high priestess took her stance at the podium light illuminated her from above, a window of stained glass depicting the constellations taking up a majority of the ceiling. The light would make her large headdress shine, the golden amalgamation made to appear like two fishes swimming west and east with a rolling wave between them. Her dress was not anything to scoff at either, made from the finest black silk. Seris even wore make-up, dark lines underneath her eyes, and red coating her lips. She was bright and dazzling, like a guiding star. Many of the clergy bowed their heads at the mere sight of her, muttering small prayers to Cerilin and Burthis. The high priestess’ light yellow skin also helped her stand out among the crowd since it only helped highlight her beautiful appearance. In comparison, the stallion was more grey, like a dulled autumn morning. He was light blue, with his mane and the tuft of hair on his tail being a bit darker. Even his eyes seemed to be darker in comparison to the high priestess’ shine. They were a light blue, covered in a dark haze as if something had come over their usual shine. His clothes did not help his case either, a dark military jacket with the royal seal sown into each shoulder.

Crown prince Vigilant Watch looked like he had the weight of building on top of him.

The high priestess would raise her tail high and the clergy and soldiers ceased their whispering and conversations, each Cosean watched her intensely. “Thank you all for coming so quickly to attend the funeral of Queen Starlit Eyes. I know the journey could not have been easy, and I know many of you suffer by being here. Starlit Eyes was a good queen, a kind leader who did her best to guide Cosea. She was a dear friend and mentor. She was also a mother, a mother who raised a son equally as kind as her.”

Vigilant was shaking. He gritted his teeth and kept his gaze on the floor. He was right next to the high priestess, so close. Her words cut deep, and they were not even meant to offend him. All the same his chest ached and Vigilant felt like he had to hold back tears.

Seris continued. “I am deeply saddened by her passing. I can still remember my first meeting with her. I was a young mare who had just become a mere scribe in the clergy and I was assigned to transcribe the queen’s letters. It was such an overwhelming feeling to be in the same room as royalty, the queen’s grace and authority flowed off her like water. I remember shaking with excitement and I decided that one day I would be like her. While I was just a scribe to her royal highness at first, in time we became friends. I remember serving her tea that I had made for the first time, and her praise made me feel like the gods had blessed me. She would mentor me for the rest of my time as a scribe, helping me learn important insights. Her wisdom is the reason I could achieve a feat never seen before, obtaining the title of high priestess before I had even turned thirty-five. That was the kind of mare Starlit Eyes was, a kind and supportive figure that guided everyone around her. There was no one else she guided as much as her son however, our beloved crown prince, Vigilant Watch.”

Vigilant felt every pair of eyes in the building on him. The clergy looked at him with smiles and tears in their eyes. He looked so much like his mother they whispered, oh how proud the queen must have been. The military was no better. They looked at him with proud smiles, many saluting. The mares in the building all seemed to eye him as some sort of gift left behind by their beloved queen. He wasn’t a person as much as he was evidence that starlit Eyes had existed in the first place. Vigilant would grit his teeth harder, tears escaping his eyes. He didn’t want them to look at him like that. He didn’t want any of this!

“Prince Vigilant, would you please step up to the podium and say some words about your mother?” the high priestess smiled at him and held out a paw.

He hated that smile. It was patronizing. She acted like she knew what he felt like. She just wanted to help a small part of him said, but he knew that look. It was pity behind that smile, not love or kinship.

Slowly he would make his way up to the podium, his movements stiff and rough. He would raise his head and look at the clergy and military in the eyes. They were smiling and crying, the adoring son had taken the stage. “I was very young when my father died.”

It was as melancholy as the rest of the situation they found themselves in.

“I was five years old when he passed away. Even when I attended the funeral I was too young to truly understand what was happening around me. I remember my mother going up on this podium though as a clergy sister hugged me. I remember her words very clearly. It was short, but it carried such emotion and resolve it stuck with me,” Vigilant looked at the attendees before continuing, “Do not cry. The dead care little for sorrow and pain behind the veil. Smile, smile for having been part of their life. Smile so they know that everything is going to be alright.”

There was a dead silence, not even Seris had managed to drain the building this way.

“She was happy to have been married to my father. She told stories for over three hours about their adventures in their youth and I was enraptured by every moment of it. I had only seen my father as some sort of cold soldier for most of my short life, and all of a sudden I was being told tales about him bringing down a Silfy warship with a crew of four and saving an entire island from civil war. These stories became such an integral part of me, and through them, I got to learn so much about the stallion my father was. He was one of the few stallions to ever get the title of commander in the army, one of the few soldiers who defeated a minotaur in single combat, and one of the few ponies who managed to capture the heart of a queen. I grew such a deep love for him and I had my mother tell me hundreds of stories about him through my childhood. It was only years later I woke up and truly realized what I had lost.”

There was a pause for a moment, Vigilant’s stance lightly swaying. When he spoke again he felt like there was honey at the back of his throat.

“I asked my mother to tell me the story about how my father had proposed to her a week before she fell ill. She promised me that she would tell me that story when she was feeling better.”

Vigilant looked towards the casket in the middle of the room. Inside laid his mother. He prayed that she and his father were finally reunited beyond the veil. He hoped that they could tell each other grand stories, and when it was his time he hoped to do the same. Vigilant closed his eyes and murmured a small prayer, the clergy and the rest of the ponies in the building soon joined him.

“I will tell stories about my mother like she told stories about my father. Because keeping their memory alive will mean that they live on, in more ways than one,” He would look at the casket one more time before adding saying his closing statement, "I love you, mother. I hope I'll see you soon," he finished his speech with a bow and took his place by the high priestess side, sniffling.

Every single mare in the building bowed their head in return, but some looked at others in concern.

Seris would take her place as the podium with a gracious smile. "Thank you, Vigilant. Now let us sing for our departed queen, so the gods may bless her journey across the veil."

The chorus would sing a song dedicated to Demos, the god of death, and pray for the journey of Starlit Eyes. As they sang the casket was carried to a slot in the wall right next to Vigilant's father, prince consort Anim Heer. Two lovers reunited at last, in the embrace of death. Vigilant found himself joining in on the song, tears sliding down his cheeks.

"Oh sleep now beautiful child, for the gods wait for no one, oh sleep now beautiful child, so we may play in the fields of wheat, oh sleep now beautiful child, so we may see each other yet again."

Vigilant would seat himself on an empty stone bench as the song continued. He looked at the rest of the attendees in the church, mumbling to himself. It was then one of the said clergy mares seated herself to his left. She was clad in white and blue like the other clergy sisters and she had a veil around her head, but her pink eyes and grey skin immediately gave away who she was.

"Healer Kira," Vigilant said cordially, keeping his gaze away from the mare.

He felt like getting up and leaving the room, but the funeral service wasn't over yet. He couldn't help but glare at the mare next to him. Vigilant exposed rows of sharp teeth and gave her a quiet hiss before he looked to the right. He felt his tail flicking aimlessly while his claw dug into the stone they sat upon.

"I am sorry for your loss," was all the mare said in response.

Vigilant looked back at her, his glare now even more intense. "You think an 'I'm sorry' is enough? It was your job to save her life and now... And now..."

He looked at the floor, more tears escaping his eyes.

"I know I have failed you, my prince. It was my duty to help your mother and I failed. I will always live with that failure. However, I came here to fulfill my other duty as a healer, to carry out her final wish," Kira said and looked over her shoulder.

Vigilant followed her gaze. The healer was starring right into the crowd of clergy mares before it shifted to the military on the galleries above. Sweat ran down her forehead and he tilted his head at her. Her tail flicked much like his own, only this wasn't annoyance as much as it was fear.

"I must give you something, your highness. It is a thing that some people in power don't want you to see. I can not show it to you here, it would be too dangerous, you are too exposed," Kira said and swallowed thickly.

"The royal guard is in the building, whatever you have to show me is safe. No one can get me when I am surrounded by the military and faithful," Vigilant would bring his paw to his mouth and nibble on one of his claws.

"I am happy about your faith in the people, but they could get you even here."

That made Vigilant look up, eyeing the healer suspiciously.

"What did you do?" he asked and looked over his shoulder.

Everyone else in the building seemed to eye the high priestess as she sang, there was not a single member of the clergy or the military that he could see watching them.

"I didn't do anything, your highness. I was given a message by your mother meant for your eyes only. I believe that someone is trying to take this message from me, however. I discovered that my office had been vandalized and searched through this morning," she said.

"Can I see this message now, please?" the crown prince asked, eyeing everyone around them.

Was that guard a bit closer than usual? Was that clergy mare making some sort of sign with her tail? Was that military captain eyeing him from the gallery? Vigilant felt himself sweat and much like Kira, he swallowed thickly.

"No. I can not show it to you here. I will try to deliver the message tomorrow night. I do not trust any armed escort at the moment. I will spend the night with a friend and then deliver the message to you."

The healer would stand up and bow to him before she left. Vigilant felt like his blood had turned to ice for a moment and like his heart was being played like a drum. He took a couple of deep breaths and looked around the room. Was he only imagining things, or were they all watching him? He swallowed thickly once more as he let his gaze drift over the room filled with mares. Vigilant was certain that they all were watching him now.

"Let us now leave this dark place and return out to the sun. Let us reminisce about the life of Starlit Eyes, and the large role she played in all our lives," the high priestess would decent from the podium and head towards the exit, the rest of the clergy following.

With that, the funeral of Starlit Eyes ended, and Vigilant could finally get some rest. Even if he felt like each mare bumped into him with infernal smiles on their faces.

Vigilant was escorted back to the royal palace by a group of female guards and clergy mares. They walked in tight formation, with him in the middle flanked by heavily armed guards and being protected in the front by the clergy’s most powerful spellcasters. It was quite the sight to see, a royal walking down the street. Many citizens gathered to watch, some bowing their heads and other praying for Vigilant’s well being. The prince just sighed and had a tired look in his eyes, avoiding the gaze of the populace. At one point a firecracker was suddenly thrown in front of his paws and a magical shield was immediately put up around him. The small explosive went off and crackled in many different colors, washing the shield in sparks. He looked back to see a mare in plate armor casting the spell, her horn ablaze with a green glow, and the seal of the royal family proudly displayed on her chest. He recognized her immediately, another member of the Shekel council. She was the nation’s Felreth, the leader of the guards and the law enforcement, Sacred Shield. One of the few ponies in the crowd who was not a Cosean. Despite her face being hidden behind a metal helmet, he could feel her gaze, burrowing into the crowd for whoever had thrown the firecracker. Vigilant just eyed the small explosive with a raised brow. Who had been stupid enough to throw this at him?

“It is not right! A stallion should not sit on the throne!” one mare yelled from the crowd.

So that was the pony stupid enough to throw a firecracker at him.

Sacred Shield pointed her hoof towards the crowd and three of Vigilant’s guards rushed off after a mare in the crowd. It was an uncommon sight to see royalty marching down the street, it was an even rarer sight to see someone attempting to disrupt the walk of said royal. Sacred Shield would dismiss the magical shield and walk over to him. She removed her helmet, revealing a cascading red mane and green fur. Her horn was straight in comparison to Vigilant’s curved horn and her tail was made from the same red hair as her mane in comparison to Vigilant’s long powerful appendage. She put her hoof under his chin and lifted up his head, examining him with scrutiny for any blemishes or injuries.

“It was a firecracker.”

“And I am making sure that that was the only thing thrown,” she said and let go.

The Felreth would let go of the prince and put her helmet back on. She would push on Vigilant to keep moving and the rest of the royal entourage would follow suit. They would walk down grey cobblestone and dirt roads. They would also walk past small shrines and whitewashed buildings. Pearls and seashells lined the walls of many homes along with small lanterns in different colors. The buildings varied from small wooden shacks painted white to grand mansions carved from limestone. All they had in common was their color scheme, white and blue. Holy colors derived from the gods themselves. Many houses they passed had constellations drawn on the walls, showing special reverence for one particular god or goddess. The city was a painting brought to life with Coseans running around carrying crates of goods for the harbor, carts of food for the market, and important letters between different members of the royal court. There were mysterious shops tucked away in corners and friendly cafes open for business. It was a marvel to gawk at, though Vigilant was not impressed. Dark banners till clung to the blue rooftops and black lanterns were still lit. It didn’t matter how much anyone pretended, it was still clear what kind of day it was. A day of death, a day of new things. Promises of change and alliances had to be blossoming in the city on a day like this, with the old monarch gone. There were still a few months until Vigilant could even be coronated.

Right, the coronation.

Vigilant sighed and closed his eyes. He looked around him at the ponies who passed, bowing their heads and smiling at him. Was he truly meant to rule over all of this? He looked towards the clergy in front of him, eyeing their horns and the books strapped to their sides. Spellcasters in service of the church, in service of Cirelin. They were brave warriors, defenders of the faith. He had studied under clergy spellcasters like them, and he had worn blue and white robes like them. Wasn't that enough? He could feel his tail flicking back and forth in annoyance. Why did he have to sit on the throne? Wasn’t there some far off cousin that could just take the damn thing? His mother hadn’t prepared him for this. He hadn’t been allowed to sit in council meetings and he was barely allowed during the royal court. Now it was all handed to him with the expectation that he would know what to do? Damn them. His expression twisted into a snarl and he walked faster, forcing the guards and clergy to increase their speed.

When they finally marched up the steps to the royal palace Vigilant was out of breath. The large iron gate and stone wall that protected the palace was under heavy guard, a few mares whistling to open the gate. The large metal doors would swing open to reveal a grand courtyard with a graveled path among bushes and living statues of Cosean ponies. In the middle of it all was a grand silver fountain that gleamed in the sun. It depicted several seashells riding a torrent of water with the top spewing forth actual water in jets. It was quite the sight to see, but the palace was an even more beautiful sight. The domes that had been seen on the roof of the royal’s resting place were also present here, lining the blue roof of the royal palace. The building was intended to look like a coral reef, with the walls being washed in color and the construct being large and bulky. Many found the royal palace to be the most beautiful building in the city, Vigilant had always seen it as an eyesore.

“Arriving with his royal highness Vigilant Watch, prince of the realm, guardian of the people, and defender of the faith,” Sacred Shield called out and the guards lining the walls saluted him.

Servants would walk up to the arriving entourage, all males with the exception of one red-skinned maid. She seemed to be so different from every other mare in the courtyard. Her mane was blacker than a stormcloud and her eyes were a hazy blue like she was blind. Yet she could clearly see since she stared intensely at him. Her tail swished playfully, and her paws gripped the ground. She would wink at the prince, who just tilted his head in confusion at the gesture. When had servants gotten so bold?

The Felreth would suddenly pull Vigilant to the side, breaking him out of his thoughts. “Your highness, it is best that you rest up for tomorrow's activities. The first council meeting will be in the morning with every council member attending. Our beloved queen left us with much to do.”

Vigilant just nodded. “Like what?”

“Like what to do with the infernal red light district. Shamën Seris is quite eager to speak with you on the issue,” Sacred Shield would nod and then walk away to join the guards.

“Of course she is...” Vigilant muttered and walked towards the servants. They would gather around him and apologize for his loss, offering him baths and lunch. The cure red maid in particular was keen to offer him tea. Vigilant would simply decline it all and head across the courtyard. He just wanted to sleep.

He was going to have to decide the fate of all the whores in the city after all.

Author's Note

Thank you for reading the first real chapter of the story. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I did writing it. Our unwilling prince is thrust into his first real challenge in the next chapter, having to deal with the competing values and goals of the Shekel council. Can Vigilant overcome this trial? Stay tuned to find out.

Also, does anyone know a good cover artist? I really want some cover art for this story.