Ch 1 Once Upon a Time
Have you ever had one of those days when your past and present lives end up colliding and intertwining somewhere along the way? I know it may sound crazy but hear me out. I guess to fully understand how crazy things can get when your true love and soulmate are involved is to start at the beginning. We all have three personalities, our royal form which in his case is Karyson Gabriel Wolfe of Thaddea, his human and present form Tristan Michael Llewellyn, and his hero form Knight Wolf. But somehow his royal side got separated from the other two parts of his personality and landed back in Thaddea with no memories of our past together. This is the story of how through a crazy case of mistaken identity, lies, deceit, rivals, hidden agendas, conspiracy, invasion of privacy, blackmail, and manipulation my true love and I as Reimeiko Thunderis made it back to each other and full circle. I am known as Reimeiko Christyne Amaryllis Thunderis Wolfe by royal standards, Queen of Thunderia and Thaddea thanks to my getting married to Karyson before the last battle with Darcien’s forces. My father, his Knights and fellow royals had to use their combined powers to send us here to be reborn and find each other again. The problem was none of us had any memory of our pasts until our respective guardians found us and reunited us. But that is another story for another time. Anyway, when we were all reborn here, I was born Jamison Logan McKagan the eldest daughter of Robert and Veronica McKagan also known as Thor and Kyiandra Thunderis of Thunderia. But you already know that, if you know my story. Anyway, I am getting outrageously off track. But when this all started, I had no doubt how it would end because of Karyson and our past together. But boy was I wrong. I had never felt so betrayed in my life. How I came into this as Reimeiko Thunderis instead of who I am in the human form? Well I will tell you. It all starts here at the Coronation Ball. On this night, not only will Garyson be taking his place as king, but he will also be choosing his future bride. At the doors of the grand ballroom stood Jamison Logan McKagan Llewellyn also known as Reimeiko Christyne Amaryllis Thunderis Wolfe of Thunderia and Thaddea. The Lady Knight of Thunder was getting ready to make a grand entrance. Tonight was the night for her. As she entered the ballroom, the herald announced her.
"Lady Reimeiko Christyne Thunderis." the herald announced. She walked further into the ballroom spotting her friends and Knights from back home as well as some of the friends she had made along the way or so she thought. Her brother and sister in their Knight forms showed up close to her speaking telepathically.
(I know that the connection between Karyson and Reimeiko is solid.) Knight Shadow said. (But you might want to take the connection between Jamison McKagan and Tristan Llewellyn into consideration.)
(Tristan is Karyson’s human form though, remember brother?) Knight Nova replied. (They were separated into their own individual personas somehow and we must figure out how to reunite them, but now is not the time. The Knights are all stationed throughout the palace grounds, fully powered but dressed for this ball.)
(Do you not think that you are overdoing it just a bit?) She asked. (How are all the background checks into the key players going? One cannot know how to play the game without a scorecard and details on everyone involved especially who gains and loses the most. There are a lot of secrets here and I want to know all of it. Not just the key players but the background players too. Leave no stone unturned, leave no passage unexplored. We had orders to do that before we left.)
(Our wisdom knights are taking care of that and have been since before Dad debriefed us.) Shadow replied. (Anyway, we will keep in close contact with you as the night progresses)
Shadow and Nova made their way into the crowd to check in with the other Knights as Jamison glided over to talk to two other suitors in the competition. For some reason, she suddenly felt uneasy, why, she did not know. Granted, she had seen and dealt with her share of evil tyrants, love rivals, band rivals, and threatened hostile takeovers, but she and her Knights had always made it through almost unscathed.
“Reimeiko, you look so beautiful.” Elenia Zhang gushed. “The prince will not be able to take his eyes off of you all night in that gown.” Jamison drifted back and forth between the first debriefing and present day.
“First off we have Elenia Zhang.” Marco said. “There is not much known about her and her family except that they are Thaddean nobles who live outside the typical line. In addition to being a Thaddean noble, Elenia is multi-talented which will be one of her strengths and make her a good ally as well. Knowing you Jamie, you would have her and everyone else won over in no time.”
“Hah, he might like the way she looks,” Lamani Evander sneered. “But when it comes to choosing his future queen, he knows who will be able to rule by his side and that woman will be me and me alone.” Back to the debriefing.
Lamani Evander, she was so evil that she made Dariana Lanoson look and act like an angel, but even though she could scare or intimidate others, she did not scare or intimidate Jamison or Reimeiko. Long before, Jamison had faced off with the Federation of Evil’s many different factors, love rivals, rival bands, threatened hostile take-overs and she knew how to fight dirty if she had to. In her royal form of Reimeiko Thunderis, she fought like a man although she was a woman. Along with her siblings and fellow Knights, she trained from the time she was young to be able to take down and fight the forces of evil who continued relentlessly to take them down and take over the universe. Reimeiko and Jamison were rejoined or reunited when Jamison was fifteen and was discovered being Princess Reimeiko Thunderis while in her hero form of Knight Thunder and her boyfriend Tristan Llewellyn in his hero form of Knight Wolf was discovered as being Prince Karyson Wolfe of Thaddea which was who Jamison and the others were vying for. She knew something about Karyson, his true siblings Corydon and Racine, and Samuel and Francine that the other people present did not know. Samuel, Francine, and the Thaddean Trio were immortal like Reimeiko, her siblings, and Knights; and no matter what the other ladies of court thought, Karyson was Reimeiko’s eternal soulmate.
“Well I can say this without any conviction.” Jamison said. “It will be his choice who rules by his side not yours, and may the best woman win.” To herself she said. “I know it will be me because I have been to the future, I am the Queen in it and none of you are there.”
“I am sure that I will win because I have known him all his life.” Lamani replied.
Jamison rolled her eyes and shook her head as Lamani walked away. The only other woman in the running so-to-speak was a woman by the name of Almeda Fitzgerald who was being sponsored by the present queen Alyssa Candelaria. No one had really seen her through the competition because she had been staying close to the queen. Just then a trumpet sounded, and a herald announced the arrival of Karyson Tristan Michael Llewellyn Wolfe Prince of Thaddea and he was heading right in the direction of Jamison and Elenia. He took her hand and bowed. “Princess Reimeiko, may I have the pleasure of the next dance with you?” Prince Karyson asked.
“You want to dance with me?” Jamison asked. “I am ready to do much more than just dance with you, but I would love to.”
“I was hoping you would say that.” Karyson replied. He took her hand and whisked her away to the dance floor of the grand ballroom. As the orchestra plays, he leads her into a waltz around the room her gown swirling as they glide through the steps.
“To think a few months ago as Jamison McKagan,” Jamison acknowledged. “I did not even know the first steps to the waltz.”
“And now no one would ever know that your human form was not born into this life.” Karyson replied. “I hope you never have cause to regret coming here.”
“What do you mean? Why would you say that?” Jamison asked. “You and Tristan will be reunited before this crazy adventure is over, then so will we be.”
“So much has happened.” he said pausing as the song winds, his hands lingering on her waist and his eyes searched hers which were filled with uncertainty, fear, and confusion. “I need to speak with you.”
“Is something wrong?” Jamison asked, fearful of what the answer would be. Despite the soulmate connection between them, she knew that something was not right.
“There is nothing really wrong per se.” he replied. “It has been nearly impossible to even get a moment alone with you these last few days, but I need to know--”
“Prince Garyson, may I be so bold as to cut in?” Duchess Lamani Evander asked.
“Oh yes of course.” Karyson replied. “Do not worry, Reimeiko, we will talk later.”
[Yeah right] Jamison thought sourly. As Lamani and Karyson glided away, Jamison found herself wandering off the dance floor and running into a familiar face in the crowd. “Derrick? I did not know that you would be here tonight. You look so handsome in your formal uniform instead of your usual mix of clothes.”
“Karyson insisted.” Derrick replied. “I guess I should congratulate you. You look exactly like one of them. I guess you are one of them now in these days.”
“Please do not lump me in with those two-faced, hypocritical, narcissistic fleet of bozos and bimbos.” Jamison pleaded. “Real people like you are more fun to be around. You and I are cut from the same cloth. We do not fit into their world of snobby losers and I thank God that we do not.”
“This time tomorrow, you might be queen and then our lives are going to go in very different directions.” he said.
“If I am chosen to be his bride, but I have a sick feeling that I will not be,” Jamison said. “I will still be me. Titles do not make me who I am or who I will be. Nothing will take me over.”
“Looking at you right now, it is hard to believe that.” Derrick said with a sad look. “This place has a tendency of changing people, and some of us like the woman you used to be. You know, that right?”
“I promise, I am the same person I was from the beginning, even under this fancy, hard to breathe in a ball gown.” Jamison replied. “Despite everything that has happened, I have not changed. I am the same Reimeiko Christyne Amaryllis Thunderis, Jamison Logan McKagan Llewellyn. If there is ever a time you feel that I get too cocky, just remind me of the first time we met, I was taking out the garbage to the big dumpster outside and waiting tables at Russo’s bar and grill.”
“It does feel like it was so long ago.” Derrick acknowledged. “I cannot believe that it has only been a few months since this all began, and it feels more like once upon a time now more than ever after everything.”