As we waited, my grandfather’s warning mixed with a later memory—one of when people from House Maria arrived late one night. Their vehicles lit up my bedroom window, waking me. I heard voices speaking in a rush. The whole village was awakened, and my father had taken me to the healer’s, who was to watch over me and the other children until late the following afternoon.
I was one of the older kids. The others and I all wanted to know what had happened: why had we been awakened and taken from our beds for this odd, impromptu sleepover.
I remember the healer had such a pensive look before she agreed with Amelia—an older girl from the village who had volunteered to speak to the healer on our behalf—that some of us were old enough to be told the truth of what was happening.
She told us of an accident in House Maria: a train had derailed from a bridge and crashed into the Viridis River.
It was the largest river in House Maria, connecting the Houses, and had been the main transport link between Houses Maria and Viridis for probably forever.
I later learned that almost everyone had died, and only a few survivors were pulled from the river.
House Maria had come to us that night for our community’s skill in the water, desperate to save any surviving passengers.
I heard—by eavesdropping on the grown-up's conversations—over the following days, that it had been a task of retrieving the dead from the moment they arrived.
Selene entwined our fingers and pulled me closer to her, dipping her head to the crown of my head and inhaling.
I leaned heavily against her, exhausted and hoping to sleep during the journey.
“What makes you anxious?” she asked softly, speaking against my hair.
“When I was little, there was a train accident in House Maria; many people died,” I said, speaking softly, fearful that others would overhear me.
The platform was crowded, but it seemed no one wished to speak—only a quiet murmur of hushed voices could be heard.
Perhaps no one spoke because the only thing they wanted to talk about was forbidden.
They had all been commanded to abandon their studies and return home, with little—essentially no—explanation given.
“The Viridis River Accident—eighty-eight souls were lost. I remember when it happened. It was, and still is, the largest loss of life from any incident outside of wartime in our history,” Selene replied, and I was shocked that it had been such a significant event for the whole kingdom.
“I knew it was bad, but I didn’t know it was that bad,” I said.
“Do you worry about such an accident happening again?” she asked. I nodded and felt her nose bump my head.
“You have no reason to worry now, pet. It has been nearly ten years since that accident. A thorough Crown investigation was carried out, the full cause of the accident was discovered, and new laws were implemented to prevent further accidents. In the case of the Viridis River Accident, there was a fault in a joint bar connecting two pieces of track together. The joint bar fractured, and the train derailed. There was concern at the time that the driver had been travelling too fast, but that was ruled out as a cause of the accident,” she explained.
“How do you know all that?” I asked, slightly surprised that she had all the details, including the death toll, readily available in her memory just like that—off the top of her head.
“I read the report as part of my modern kingdom history studies during my earlier homeschooling days. Father believes it imperative that all Royals should know the history of all major events of the land, especially those within living memory,” she answered.
“You were homeschooled?” I asked, surprised.
She released my hand and pulled me by my hips in front of her, wrapping her arms around my waist and pulling my backagainst her chest. She dipped her head to speak softly against my ear.
“Until my eighteenth year, when I attended a rather small preparatory academy in Obsidium—The Black Knights Academy. Upon my twenty-first year, I transferred to Sanguis Academy. I enjoyed The Black Knights very much; they specialised in hand-to-hand combat and military techniques. Did you enjoy your studies at the school you attended in Maria? Fishers School, I believe, was the name?” she told me, her jaw resting against my shoulder.
I leaned into her embrace, sharing the warmth of her body, I was still cold, a chill to my bones that was thawing slowly as I thought about my answer. “It wasn’t very enjoyable, no. It was nice to interact with people my age from outside my village, but lunch was my preferred class,” she laughed behind me and squeezed my middle.
“I preferred what I learned at home—about plants and healing, fishing, and the sea. It was much more practical and has proven more useful than anything I learned at school. But school was compulsory. Father made me go. He said that if I didn’t, Maria would tax him extra.”
“It is the law that all in the land receive compulsory education until their sixteenth year. A population must be educated enough to function and be productive, active members of the land, ensuring that the processes driving the Kingdom’s functioning remain in working order and continue to benefit the people. Yet not so educated as to become a nuisance. There is a difference between education and intelligence. There is little more dangerous to society than an educated idiot; they have a habit of leading their contemporaries into poverty and famine,” Selene replied.
The sound of the approaching train distracted me before I could question what she meant.
Selene’s arms around me tightened, and I took hold of her hands, steadying myself. The mixture of exhaustion and anxiety made my legs feel shaky.
“Breathe,” Selene instructed, and I inhaled, following her command without thought.
