Will of a Prince

Jacob looked at Doc in disbelief after his story had finished. It made him start to question the nature of the mimics everyone had killed.

’Are they really copies? Why was the copy of my mom so unique?’

Doc seemed to notice Jacob’s confusion and continued speaking.

"The experience itself was extremely troublesome, but there’s something much more sinister that I don’t understand about what happened to me."

Jacob looked at Doc with wide eyes.

"What is it?"

"How did she know she wasn’t supposed to be here? Not only that, when she looked in the surface of the water and saw her imperfections, she knew what she was. Not only that, but she also knew that we were following the masked men. If she really was a true copy, that can only mean one thing. Your mother knew about these masked men enough to know that these trials existed."

Jacob’s head started to spin. The more he thought about, the more he realized how much of a mystery his mother was to him. Doc also seemed to struggle to understand how she knew so much, which meant she was a mystery even in the time she was alive.

"Did my mother leave the kingdom often? How is it possible she seems to know so much about the outside world?"

"That’s what I don’t understand. I hardly ever saw her leave the kingdom. She was always with your father or helping with things throughout the kingdom. She did go on a few trips outside the kingdom with your dad, but he never told me about encountering such trials before."

There were too many mysteries about Iron Kingdom that didn’t make sense in Jacob’s mind. Everything from Iron Kingdom’s existence being a mystery to the statue of the woman who had his helmet. Now, he’s learning that his own mother knew much more about the world than she was leading everyone on to believe.

"So, it wasn’t the specific mimic that was unique, it was my mom that made your interaction different? But how can she have so much power over something when she isn’t here anymore?"

"That would require us to understand the nature of those copies a bit more. However, we are missing too much information to put anything together currently. For now, the only thing we can do is rely on what Squabee can tell us."

Doc looked over at Squabee who shrugged her shoulders.

"I’ve never once heard of a copy taking its own life. That’s a unique event even among the other epigones."

Jacob looked at her curiously.

"I’m interested in who you had to fight. Was it hard since it was your first one, or were you able to do it easily since you knew it was a trial?"

Squabee pouted as she continued walking.

"I got this bard who I really liked. His music was so inspirational that I couldn’t help but be so obsessed with him!"

"So, did you kill him?"

"Actually, a random storm appeared in mine, and he was struck by lightning. Isn’t that convenient?!"

Jacob squinted his eyes at her.

’Too convenient...’

"It still hurt to see him go. I was so excited to hear more music if I ever visited his village again."

Maria interrupted her rambling.

"Wait, so you didn’t imagine Charles? The guy who you left the prison camp for? The reason you are out here in the first place?"

"Oh please. Why would I imagine that loser? He didn’t make one of the greatest songs of all time!"

"Loser?! I thought you loved him?!"

"I’m over him. He left me and now he’s gone. Even though I never stopped looking, I was still stranded in the wilderness by myself for months! It was getting to the point where if I did find him, I’d want to strangle him for leaving me behind!"

Jacob rubbed his face trying to understand the complex psyche of Squabee. Maria seemed to be doing the same thing.

"Is there something you aren’t telling us? I’m sorry to be doubtful after we’ve made it this far, but everything you are saying to us simply sounds too convenient."

Squabee didn’t seem upset or confused by this remark and simply smiled back at him.

"Believe it or not, a lot of people say that about me. How my life is always too convenient or how lucky I am. In fact, it has been difficult getting people to believe me when I tell them things because whatever I experience sounds too crazy to be true. I swear I’m an honest person! I’ve just been through some insane stuff!"

Jacob thought about what she was telling them a lot and came to a small conclusion in his mind. After every crazy thing they have experienced and been through since leaving the Iron Kingdom, hearing what Squabee was telling them seemed more and more possible. He had absolutely no reason to doubt if she was telling the truth or not. However, if she knew this fact, it would make it extremely easy for her to deceive them. He ended up circling back to square one, being just as conflicted as when he started. Eventually, Maria spoke up.

"I believe you, Squabee. If I was in your shoes, it would be really frustrating if no one would believe a single word I said, even if it was all true."

Squabee scratched her chin.

"Now that I think about it, you all have been my bad luck charm since I’ve been a part of this group! I’ve never seen a monster until we found that guardian and I’ve never been in a trial until I travelled back with all of you!"

"We’re... sorry?"

"No, don’t worry! It’s a good thing that I’m experiencing these things now! I know this will sound a bit weird, but it makes me feel more normal to experience things that other people normally do."

Jacob stared at her with a dubious expression.

’Is it normal for people to almost lose their lives every other hour when they travel?!’