"Wake up, Wellness. The sun is up. Don't you think you've slept long enough? And if Phils comes, don't say I didn't wake you," Prince Sam called.
"You stupid girl is still sleeping — the commander has been calling you," Well added.
"Listen, Well. Just because you were given an order doesn't mean you can do whatever you like," Prince Sam scolded. "The commander refused to be merciful, so I'll wake her up my way."
I had been lost in a sweet, deep sleep when a sudden kick landed on my backside. I yelped and spun around, furious and startled, to see who had struck me. The face I saw was calm — too calm, almost indifferent. Well grabbed my ear hard and began pulling me along.
"Okay, I'm coming. Wait—let me get ready. I haven't even packed," I protested, wincing from the pain.
"There's no need for belongings," Well said in a cold voice.
I asked him a dozen times where we were going, but he gave no answer, as if he couldn't hear me — or simply chose to ignore me. He really was ignoring me. "Where are you taking me? My ear hurts," I complained again, but silence. Then we stopped. Well released my ear and announced, "Commander, I have brought her."
We stood in a hall where Prince Phils sat on a sofa, fully prepared to leave — composed, handsome, sunrays lying across his face as if to spotlight him. For a moment I remembered yesterday: he had been the one to wash me. I tried to hide behind Well, but he pulled me out and made me sit in front of Phils.
"No—let me go!" I shouted, but I was already seated. I clenched my hands and looked down, my heart pounding and fear rising in my throat.
"Wellness, did Well beat you too much yesterday?" Phils asked with a small smile. I forced a smile back and lied, "No — not too much. Just ten, fifteen hits on the head, that's all."
"Is there anything you want to tell me about yesterday?" Phils asked gently. "I know I lost my temper. But mistakes don't mean you won't be forgiven."
I took a breath. "I want to ask—why did you hit me so much? I barely spoke. I don't know much about being raised — sometimes, in my city, parents beat their children. Why do they do that? Is that why you hit me?"
Phils laughed softly and patted my head. "Listen carefully. Children are scolded and punished when they do wrong. Why? So they think before they repeat the same mistake. When people scold or fight or joke with you, or even discipline you, it's often because they care. If no one cared, they'd ignore you completely. Remember this: we are like your elder brothers. We are family. Ohana means family, and family means no one gets left behind—or forgotten. Keep that in your heart."
Hearing that, something inside me loosened. That day felt like a miracle — I had found a family that cared. Sobs rose in my throat, and I hugged Prince Phils, crying without shame. The feeling that washed over me was new: a warm, protective love I had never known. Phils wiped my tears.
"All right," he said. "I'm going to Mariya. I'll be away a while, so I leave your care to Well. And your training starts today — from this moment."
"Yes! I'm ready for training!" I answered, full of sudden energy. Phils smiled, rose, and left. Prince Sam called after him, "Good luck, Wellness," and went away too.
Well gripped my collar from behind and dragged me out. He took me to a field. "Bring a chair and a long rope," he ordered.
I thought to myself that they were just making me follow orders, and I obeyed. I returned with a chair and a rope. "Sit on this chair," Well said. I sat, trembling. He began tying me up with the rope, knot after knot, binding me tightly.
"What are you doing? Are you kidnapping me?" I cried.
"Think of me as a thug," he said. "I've tied you up — you can't move, and now you must escape. If the person in front of you must die, then so be it. Self-defense comes first."
Doubt filled me — could anyone really get out of this? I opened my mouth and began gnawing at the rope with my teeth.
"If you can't even bite it through with your teeth…" Well warned softly as he approached me and shoved a cloth into my mouth. So I threw that cloth out of my mouth.
They were training me in their own harsh way — breaking me down so I could rise stronger. Fear and defiance tangling inside me, I prepared to face whatever they would force me through next.