Prologue

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock.

The clock has been working since the beginning of time. It keeps everything in motion; the seasons, the years and even the people. The clock was hidden away in a tower with other ancient items, far west of the kingdom. It was attended by the clock keeper who made sure that everything was in order. It stood tall in a hallway, along with the Book of Order that was set right beside it.'

It was time for the clock's daily checkup. It was midnight on a full moon. The tower keeper was dressed in a dark black cloak, holding a lantern which illuminated the dark hallway. Itf held pictures of the royal family and friends, and other very important people of the kingdom.

The tower keeper finally came to the huge, mahogany clock. Nothing was missing. Or so they thought. The cloaked figure looked closer at the item to discover that the most important part of the clock was missing. The hands. They gasped and ran over to a bird cage. Opening it a little, the called to a white dove, which landed on there outstretched wrist.

"Take this letter to the kingdom. Quickly." They whispered to the dove. It understood, and flew out one of the open windows….

The castle was a lovely place to be. It had everything you needed to be entertained; good music, delicious food and hospitable people. Everywhere you went, you got a smile. Except from the princess herself. Once, the princess used to love being in the company of others. Now, it seemed like all they did was bother her. Yet, she had still managed to keep her some of her friends.

Ella was sitting in the courtyard of the castle, with a bored looking expression on her face. Waiting for others was a terrible process, especially when they liked to take their time. If everything would go Ella's way, the kingdom would be "perfect" or so Ella says. Ella's childhood was rough, with her mother dead and her father running away from the castle.

Her guest today was her Godmother, the one who had practically raised her after her mother's death. Her step-mother, who didn't care for her at all, was hardly ever there. She was always wasting money on expensive vacations to other kingdoms. So Godmother took over.

"Godmother, what took you so long?" Ella said annoyed as Godmother sat down in her chair. Godmother sighed and took a cup of tea from the middle of the table. Ella waited for a response as Godmother got comfortable in the light blue colored lawn chair.

"I was with my Granddaughter. I was trying to teach her a spell and she took the whole roof off of the house." Godmother said chuckling.

Ella rolled her eyes. "Well, she was never the brightest person in the kingdom. It's useless to even try to teach that blonde bimbo. But it is a liable excuse."

Godmother's lips formed a tight line, but she didn't respond. Now, angering the princess meant instant execution. "Have you visited any of your friends in awhile? You haven't taken a stroll through the forest since last Christmas."

"Why would I want to? I absolutely hate animals." Ella said picking at her nails. "They just love to mess up."

In the distance, a white bird could be seen with a piece of paper tied around it's ankle. A messenger dove. It was common to see messenger birds flying around, but it was quite rare to see one coming towards the castle. Princess Ella had always requested to see a citizen in person if they had something to tell her.

The bird landed on the table, right in front of Godmother. The elderly middle aged woman untied the knot and opened the letter. She read it quietly as Ella watched.

"Oh dear." She gasped placing her hand over her heart. Ella sat up in her chair. "What happened?"

"The tower keeper is saying that the hands to the Clock were missing. Should we warn the citizens?"

"No, the dummy probably just missed something. Or maybe she needs an excuse to take a break from her responsibilities." Ella sighed and stood up from her chair. She stretched. "Tell the servants to get a horse ready for me. I'll e leaving in a couple of minutes to check out the problem."

"Shouldn't a guard go with you though? It's dangerous out there. Remember what happened to your cousin out there?" Godmother pointed out.

"My cousin was on the run," Ella said. "I'm stronger than that. Tell the chef to have some brioche prepared when I return."

This is the start of war…

This actually took me quite awhile to right. If you can try and match the TDI Character with their Fantasy counterpart, you get a cookie!

This will be updated slowly. And I mean SLOWLY. Unless an idea pops up in my head….

Until next time!

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