The Prince

The Prince of Aurantia Prince Kaelan of Aurantia walked with a purpose that parted the sea of London grey like a blade. The tourists outside the Palace gates lowered their phones, their expressions a mixture of confusion and awe. He paid them no mind. He was not here for them. His attire, the formal regalia of his small, sun-drenched nation, felt simultaneously alien and natural in this historic setting. Each element was a chapter of his country's story. The tangerine silk of his tunic represented the legendary citrus orchards that funded their prosperity. The royal purple of the sash and waistcoat was the colour of the rare Vesper Orchid, which bloomed only on the highest peaks of the Aurantian mountains and was the emblem of his family line. The gingham check on his cuffs and sash, a pattern derided as rustic elsewhere, was the symbol of Aurantia's unbreakable community fabric. Even the small, textured crown was not gold, but fashioned from the hardened, polished rind of the first f