Rightful | Crossmare

Part 1 | Disloyal Guard

~Twelve years later~

A cheer could be heard echoing throughout the empty ballroom. A small skeleton, adorned with a golden crown with a swirl design and a pale yellow cape, spun around in a circle while grinning happily. "Oh, Cross! Can you believe it? I'm finally 24! I'm finally of-age!" He exclaimed, his gloved hands clasped together as he came to a stop.

His excitement was met with a grunt from his bodyguard, a taller skeleton with a long scarf and a hoodie with fluff on the hood. He had been assigned to be Dream's bodyguard two years prior. He'd never dare to say it, but he despised his job and Dream.

"Aren't you excited? I'm excited!" Dream giggled.

"I can see that," Cross muttered, rolling his eyes when the prince had his back turned. "Don't slip." He added, seeing him skid on the polished ground a bit.

"I'm finally going to be king! But..." He sighed sadly and turned to face the grand stairway and the large family portrait that hung above it, pouting ever so slightly. "I wish Nighty could have been here to see it..." 

Cross looked up at the portrait, his gaze landing on the image of the older prince. Nightmare. Cross had never met the prince, of course. He hadn't lived in the kingdom when he was still around. But he had always seemed so... Mysterious... Well, at least to Cross. The picture of him up there screamed that he was mature and sophisticated. His posture was straight, and he had his hands folded in front of him, a simple smile on his face. He, in the guard's opinion, seemed to be a better fit for someone who would rule over this kingdom. But he had disappeared many years ago without a trace, it was like he just... Dissolved into thin air. Night hadn't fallen upon the world since he disappeared, which was definitely annoying

Cross didn't think of the whole thing as fair. He'd read up as much as he possibly could on the missing prince, heard every story from every worker, and had even once snuck into his forbidden wing of the castle. According to the information he gathered up, Nightmare was indeed the older sibling of the two, and he had found out that he was definitely not the favorite of the two siblings. 

And, according to another rumor, the royal family hadn't even attempted to look for him at all. Not even a bit. 

Cross was jarred out of his thoughts by Dream's overly cheerful voice continuing. "But! I'm going to make sure I'm the best king ever, and I'm going to make sure that, wherever he is, he'll be proud of me! And I'm going to honor him no matter what it takes! Right, Cross?"

"Yes, your Majesty," Cross replied in a monotonous voice, making the young prince frown. "I'm sure you will."

Dream sighed dramatically. "You're so boring, Crossy." 

The guard opened his mouth to speak but didn't get the chance to utter even a word before someone rushed in, seeming in a panic. It was the royal advisor, Blue. He seemed absolutely terrified. 

"Dream! There's something you need to see!" He stuttered out, pointing to the doors. The prince ran to the advisor, following him out of the ballroom. Cross followed closely behind. "I don't know what's happening, but it's getting really dark out!"He pushed open the doors to the balcony overlooking the castle courtyard. The sky was quickly blackening, and the sun was disappearing behind the horizon at an unnatural rate until the moon, something that hadn't been seen in twelve years, was suddenly above them, illuminating the courtyard in an eerie but beautiful light. 

Someone was standing in the center of the courtyard, their figure hard to miss against the white stone below him. There was a skeleton, coated from head to foot in black sludge, long, thick tentacles protruding from his back. The people who were in the courtyard before had backed themselves against the wall, looking at this person in absolute horror.

He looked up at the balcony, the moonlight reflecting off of a golden crown atop his head, his only visible eye locking onto Dream. His mouth drew up into a sinister grin. He spoke five words that could be heard even from the balcony, his arms extending in a flourish.

"...The True Prince has arrived~"