Chapter 1: Fall of Monroe
The truth be told , I thought that being an emperor was a good thing , but I was not entitled to it. My brother Roston was . Sometimes I was jealous of him. But as time passed by I leant to accept the bitter truth , that my role in the palace was ceremonial. To stay pretty and kiss children and the so boring works of the princess'. I could not accept that so I started taking fighting lessons in secret.
By the time I was 18 , the French empire attacked the Monroe Empire .Papa sent troops to the border ,but it did not work the cruel French did not give up and our army although nobody wanted to accept it,Monroe was slowly becoming weaker and weaker and weaker .It reached to the point where papa tried to put his guts ,pride and ego down and declare peace with the French . The French took advantage of our vulnerability and as papa withdrew his army trying to show them that he was really serious they continued to attack our empire. According to papa , the Empire was no longer safe for us anymore . So Papa took the decision and sent us away for our own safety to Russia . As we packed our bags to Russia with my younger brothers and sisters , Papa prepared himself for war against the French . As he kissed us goodbye , I knew my life would never be the same for me or for anybody else .We were leaving the palace for the first time in our lives .The palace had been home for the 18 years of my young life . But I saw it as a privilege for my brother as he got a chance to fight alongside Papa and fight for mother Monroe .So together with Mama and my siblings we left for Russia.
One Thing I knew was that in Russia I would not be the same Princess Bella again, maybe Bella only .
My name is Dmitri and as the Emperor said that we were going to fight the French in the battle line I knew for sure that in that battle my role would be only one which was to protect the Emperor with my life and make sure he stayed alive . For the longest time I had been his personal bodyguard. As days went by, the battle proved to be harder and harder. The French were stronger and mightier than we had even thought . But we had to keep going , we had to fight for our empire . The emperor said he had to fight for the future. He said he did not want his children to grow up under the French .The thought of his beloved daughters being married to the French rulers made him shutter . And at that time I had thought of Bella, the oldest daughter of Emperor Zishak, being married to the French ruler with all the beauty she had. I had managed to laugh at that funny joke although we were at war but moments later I realized that it was no joke , it was actually very serious and very possible. If we lost the battle to the French, Monroe would be taken over by the French and declared a French empire. Then it was very possible for Bella to be married to the French .
In the second month of the battle we were so sure that we had already lost the battle. Most soldiers were so hurt and many dead .Prince Roston was the crowned Prince of Monroe so he had to be protected at all costs . Emperor Zishak ordered for Prince Roston to go away to Russia where his mother and siblings were until the war was over . On the second day after the Prince's departure , a word came with a messenger to the Emperor . The carriage that was with the Prince had been attacked, all of his soldiers had been killed and possibly also him/ he had been taken hostage by the French . Maybe this was a sign that we had lost . People lost hope and morale to fight. The French took us by surprise at night when they attacked our camp .It became chaos and chaos as everybody fought for their own lives . At first I was confused because I was sleepy and by the time I realized that I had a responsibility to the Emperor it was already too late . I rushed to his chambers to see if he was okay but it was already too late , because by the time I got there the French troops were already there. I tried to fight with all I had but they were too many . Before I could do anything , I heard a sharp object pierce me on the stomach . I looked down only to see a sharp blade on my lower abdomen and fresh blood coming out of it . And as I tried to come into terms with the pain in me the French were already with the Emperor . I could not do anything . With my own two eyes I watched as they harassed the emperor and mistreated him .I had already lost a lot of blood and it pained me because I failed to protect the Emperor , since it was the only job I had . Within no time I had passed out. When I woke up I found myself in a different place and the Emperor was not with me . My godfather Rudin had rescued me .He had heard that the camp had been attacked by the French and remembering that I was there, he rushed only to find the whole camp in blazes .He said the Emperor had been burnt to death by the fire ,that the French had started.I stayed with Rudin for a month until I got strong enough to stand on my feet .After that I went to my home village Celeville.
It was on one cool morning that I do not think that I shall ever forget when a messenger from Monroe arrived .He said that everyone had to be there when he gave them the news . You know I expected him to say," hey the Great Emperor Zishak has won the war against those weaklings who call themselves the French . So he has diligently asked his family back home in Monroe." But instead he said after we had settled down ," It is with a heavy heart that I do announce this news . After the war got worse The great Emperor Zishak sent away the crown Prince to Russia for his own protection . On his way he was attacked and unfortunately , he was killed." Well we thought that was the only bad news he had for the day but he still damn continued. "Days after that the Emperor`s camp was seized by the French army and the Emperor together with his whole army were killed and their bodies were put in flames. After that the Monroe Empire was declared a French Empire."
Mama did not cry after that horrible news was announced to us .Maybe she wanted to be strong for us , that was what mothers did. All of us cried on that day ,us children . I tried to be strong for my siblings but everytime I remembered that I would not see Papa and Roston again, I continued to cry. That day I knew my life would never be the same for us. Papa and Roston were gone and gone forever and together with them Monroe was gone . Russia became our new home . The king of Russia feeling indebted to Papa for their long term friendship gave Mama a land to settle in . We could not go back to Monroe . '' My darlings ,'' Mama said ,'' this will be our new home from now henceforth . We cannot risk going back home . The French bastards could kill us before we got there. So this shall be home.''
Weeks after that , things in our family started to change .My younger twin brothers left home. ''Bella '',they told me;"we cannot continue to stay at home and expect Mama to continue to provide for us .We are not princes anymore .So we are going to join the Russian army and try help Mama with educating Maria and Lisa .''
So with that the seventeen year old men left home. Mama still thought they were still very young, but nothing would change their minds. I knew I also had to do something with my life . Everybody else seemed to be moving on with their life except for me. I mean , Jack and Don were in the army , Maria and Lisa were studying and mama had started a business . But I had nothing to do . I didn't even know what I would do with my life . I could not join the army like my brothers because I was a girl and Mama would not allow it at all. I had already finished studying back at home and I was not ready for marriage. I knew I had to find a part of myself and to do this I had to go back home . I knew I belonged in Monroe and so despite the fact that Monroe was in the hands of the cruel French, I made the decision to go back to Monroe . Mama thought of me insane but still allowed me to go on one condition. I would write to her constantly as possible and if things got worse in Monroe I would immediately head back to Russia. And with that I left for Monroe and settled in Celeville.
Chapter 2: The masked girl.
The cruel French came as often as they could to molest us . Nobody did anything to stop the French cause we knew we could only lose . Without the Emperor and the Crowned Prince we were so doomed . The royal family had left for Russia so for all we cared we were so alone . That day I was in the village market when the French army came . The village chief Andrews , came to know what unwanted pleasure he owed them .
"My Lord , what would you want with us or from us ," Andrews started.
"Well ,well well Andrews of Celeville we need you and your people to pay the Emperor your monthly due ," the soldier on the horse said .
people started to murmur because they had already paid that month's due .
" But we already paid this month's due as suggested," Andrews said not knowing what he had brought upon himself.
" How dare you unworthy brat question the Great Emperor's decision ," the soldier shouted, making everybody quiet and the market to be so quiet. "If I come here to say I need the monthly dues from you then that is what I shall have immediately ."
Well and that's what came to happen .The French continued to mistreat us and we said nothing to defend ourselves.Life continued to be hard on us and in time we came to terms with the unpleasant fate. Fear crawled on us when rumors got to Celevile that The French were recruiting the people of Monroe to join their army . This was the biggest nightmare of the people of Monroe.Being under the French was not enough now they wanted us to serve them in the army Ít was being said that the French wanted to expand their territory further and further. So all strong men would be taken away. And also the mature girls were also being taken away to serve the French royal family and others to serve the army at wars.
When the French soldiers showed up again in Celevile it was not for the monthly dues but this time they were looking for men to recruit in their army. I had to hide because I did not want to serve as a slave in the French army.
It was at the market where the French went to recruit their soldiers , but people were not ready . This brought upon chaos as they resisted to be taken away from their families and loved ones unintentionally.But you know how heartless the French are , even something as simple as that did not require education but logistics they could not contemplate. They started using force.
"I'm needed here my mother is sick and I'm the only one who can take care of her and my siblings ….."the man was begging the French crying at the same time but I don't think anybody was paying attention to him .They continued to drag him mercilessly and that when the most unexpected thing happened.
From a distance we heard quick horse footsteps approach . Everybody turned to see who it was. The rider of the horse stopped his animal a distance away from the soldiers.From the tense air it seemed he was not a French.
"You heard the young man , he doesn't want to be part of your acquaintance ,"the rider said .
Oh My God , and who the hell was this ,oooh she was a woman I knew it from the voice . She clearly was looking for an early grave.
"Once again Celevile you are questioning the Emperor but I'm still taking this man with me…"the soldier whom I thought was their leader exclaimed .
"Huh … in that case you have to confront my sword , "the rider said alighting from the horse .
She had black low heeled boots , a black trouser and a long red shawl.She wanted her identity hidden because she had a long hat that covered her face and beneath it was a black mask. On the right hand she had her sword.
Though her identity was anonymous, something in me seemed to recognise her . Her tone in her voice and pride in her words was so familiar.
The way she held that sword and how she fought the French army was comprehensible . The French wanted to kill her but she did not . She only used her sword to defend herself . They did not even come an inch close to her .She defeated a whole army all by herself but also let them live.
"Get this message to your Emperor , we are not his slaves nor his subjects,"she told the last soldier and let him live and spread fear . She got to her horse and without minding what the people of Celeville had thought of her she rode away just the way she had come .
The masked girl as she came to be called , might have stopped the French that day and everybody was grateful but what of next time ? Even Though nobody wanted to agree with the bitter truth there was bound to be a next time and that time the French would come back angry sighting revenge . So what if the masked girl shan't be there then what would become of our beloved Celeville .Truelly , truly we were doomed.
That day after having confronted the French I went back to my house . It was located in the corner of Celeville and I was sure nobody knew it actually existed and I wanted it to remain that way. I don't know what had gotten into me that day when I confronted the French .Maybe Papa's spirit had gotten into me . But really it wa just not right what the French were doing .I had to do something or else I would not have been able to live with myself knowing I could have done something to help my people .A week after my first fight of my life I wrote to Mama in Russia:
"Dear Mama
I'm seated by the fire as I write this letter to you . It is with great pleasure that I write it .I'm adapting well in Monroe. I have settled in the village of Celeville well and as of now nobody even exists . I like that I live like a ghost. You won't believe that it was last week I fought the French army all by myself .They are now recruiting men to the army and girls to serve them.I never thought in the 18 years of my life that Monroe shall ever get to this place.I know Papa must be rolling in his grave to see how his people are being treated . I only wish that Roston was here today and maybe he would have brought Monroe back . Anyway I hope you and my sisters are good .May the spirit of Papa continue to be with you. If you happen to write to Jack and Don pass my kisses to them.
Love you Mama.
Yours lovely daughter ,
Bella."
"....Dmitri what do you think of the masked girl ,"a vendor asked a man standing in front of me . I was almost choked by the fruit pudding I was swallowing . It was not only because they were talking about the masked man who happened to be me but also because of the man who the vendor called Dmitri. I knew Dmitri from somewhere. It was when I was running the name on my Medulla Oblongata when he turned to face me .
"Hey…"he said with his deep, cool voice . Of course I also knew that voice . I looked him in the eye and as soon as I caught his blue eyes , his long hair and lips I remembered him . I almost shouted his name and blew my cover.Dmitri was Papa's right hand man . The man he trusted most in Monroe , even with his own life. How come he was not dead . Dmitri was a good man or at least I thought him to be one . Although Papa loved him I did not want him to recognise me . If he did I was going to make him look like a fool to think of me as Princess Bella . I quickly looked away from his face .
"Um… Hey ," I answered him, looking away .
"You look so familiar …,"he was now really studying me.
"Oh , really …,"I said smiling and decided to look at him
"No … Sorry you look like somebody I used to Know but the thought of her being here is clearly insane," He commented .And I thought why not know someone from Celeville?
"I'm Grande ,"I said, handing him my hand to shake.I did not lie to him about my name if you are already judging me for lying to handsome Dmitri. Grande is my maiden name only that everybody calls me Bella.
"Dmitri ,"he responded, shaking my hand .When I realized Dmitri was staring at me I decided to ask him an awkward question and stop thinking he ever knew me .
"Is it your girlfriend ," I said and he seemed confused , so I added," Is she your girlfriend that I remind you of?"
Dmitri had laughed and I had also laughed with him though only in heart. The thought of me dating Papa's right hand man was a joke itself. I was probably betrothed to a Greek Prince or something .
"Nah , "he was still laughing and his laugh was a natural one, "She was not my girlfriend but more of my boss. You would probably think of me crazy if I told you who it is.
After that day I knew I had found a friend on whom I could rely on and that was Dmitri even if I had told him my name was Grande . He had said , "see you around,". And I had actually looked forward to it .The next day I went on and met with Dmitri.
"Hey… where did you get that,"was the first thing he said looking at my bangle . Papa had given it to me and probably they had bought it together or his opinion was used in the purchasing of it . The bangle meant so much to me. It always made me feel closer to Papa especially now that he was not around .So I did not lie to Dmitri.
"My Papa gave it to me ,"I said, holding on to it as if I was holding on to Papa himself.
"It must mean a lot to you , "he was now looking at me . We were in the middle of the market but I felt as if we had connected to each other ,"....The girl I confused you with yesterday had the same bangle. She never took it off.Her father also gave it to her . Only now her dad is gone."
Dmitri was talking about me . Wait he still thought of Papa . I was starting to feel like a moron and I wanted to tell him that I was Princess Bella .
"Dmitri…"I called out his name .He might have sensed the seriousness of what I was about to tell him because he immediately turned to look down at me . It was then I realized how tall he was. "Um…."But before I could confess, the town bell rung .
"What could be wrong …"he said looking around ,"let's go see,"he took my hand and pulled me along to the city town hall .All the way I was staring at his handsome face .
People had already gathered there by the time we got there . There was a man on the stage whom I sooner came to realize was the chief of Celeville ,his name being Andrews .
"With me here I have a letter from the French Emperor, "and by the mention of the French , everybody was all ears. "The French Emperor has issued a large amount of money to the person who shall manage to find and bring to him the masked girl ."
For a minute there I couldn't breathe .My heart stopped beating and I couldn't think .If the French were really looking for me then that was a problem .Everybody would be out hunting me down . But then what did I really think, this was bound to happen sooner or later. People were murmuring and then all I could think of was ,they are gonna catch me .What that meant was that I was gonna die young .I was gonna rejoin my elder brother Roston and Papa.
Dmitri was the one who brought me back me from the torture that was going in my mind .
"People are going to hunt the masked girl to death, "he said but what he did not know was that it was not helping . He might have noticed the restlessness in me because he asked, looking concerned, "Are you okay Grende …"
"Oh My god , I'm not okay .I'm the masked girl," I wanted to say.But instead I found myself saying
,"Yeah , I'm good."I only held on to Papa's bangle and hoped for some kind of miracle to save me . For a moment there I wanted to go back to Russia and get married to a Russian man .The French had given out one week for the people of Celeville to find the masked girl and hand her over to them and if not there shall surely be severe consequences.
"How is it going with your girl …. "Dad started messing up with me . We were tidying up the farm as we were preparing it for farming season . Dad was talking about Grende , a girl I had met a week ago . You know she looked a lot like Bella . Yeah you must be thinking me mad , but it really it is true she looks like Princess Bella only that she can't be , because the Emperor sent her away together with the whole family to Russia . And knowing the kind of girl Bella was she wouldn't come back to Monroe with the French under it.
"It's all good dear dad , "I said , not sure when I would see her again.
"How about the masked girl, what do you think of her ? "Dad asked .
"Oh dad , I don't know . This girl will be the end of us .A week is now gone and nobody has found her ,not that I expected her to be found . She could be anyone because that day she had a mask,"I said .
" Maybe it's time people embraced the girl ... .I mean , if she fought a whole French army all by herself then she can do more for Celevile," Dad said and then I realized just how insane his idea was.
" Seriously dad , are you implying that the masked girl should start a rebellion,"I said and holy yeah that was what he was exactly implying .
" Then ,George, you should find the girl," someone behind us answered, only to see it was Andrews, the Chief of Celeville.
"Good morning to you too ,Andrews ," Dad said, in mockery .
" Find the girl, Surely you can't be serious … we know nothing about her," I said , trying to understand Andrews .
" I heard that you had a very specific role in the army …. Dmitri.Maybe you could use that knowledge to help us .If the French raid Celeville it shall be the end of us ," Andrews said .
"so You want to turn in the masked girl to the French government … Eeh," I found myself saying . " Okay , why am I defending this anonymous girl," I wondered .
" No,... not necessarily we could use Geoge's idea , " Andrews was smiling wildly . The thing is that they did not even know whether the girl was even interested in a rebellion.
Two weeks passed and we had forgotten about the masked girl and the French threat . Life had almost gone back to normal. We were with Grande and just as I was starting to enjoy her company , somebody shouted , " the French troops are here."
There was no time to hide , they were already there . They were angry and had no time for anything . " We want the masked girl or this shall come to be called the Celeville massacre by whoever shall manage to survive this , "Their leader said and I knew they were dead serious . " Run , Dmitri Run ,"It was the first thing I thought of .
"Hey Grande , how about we get you out of here , "I said to Grande .The French had already started their devil's work .
"You are not going to run, are you?"Grande asked, her eyes piercing right through my heart and soul .
"No , I mean yeah ,"I said .
"What … and leave all these people to die … you can't be serious . "she tried to make some kind of sense to me .
"Grande, this is a whole army and I'm only one man ,"She wasn't getting the situation here .
"Oh, come on Dmitri… you were the Emperor's right hand man… "She was saying and this really got my attention .
"Hey, how did you know that , "I asked . Her face changed to tense .
"....Um .. everybody knows that here… Ha .."She was stammering now and it looked like she was hiding something .
"Actually , Nobody does , "I said . And Yeah nobody did know I was once the Emperor's right hand man . It was a secret I had kept with me for a very long time . So the question was how the hell did Grande know that .
"You know what , I do not have time for this , "her voice was cold . And also the pride in her voice was so familiar .
Grande left to where God knew where . I wanted to follow her but then I got carried away by the French inhumanity . I decided to help my people. Alongside with other people we tried to at least protect what had been home for generations . I knew for sure we would lose . But for the first time since I lost the Emperor I was at peace with myself . I was fighting again .
We were at the verge of losing hope when the one who had got us to this mess showed up .That's right the masked girl with her horse. Once again the masked girl showed us or rather the French her superiority in her skills . But something very interesting happened .As we were fighting I noticed the girl was looking at me .In normal occasions I would have said ,"Holy Hell I have an admirer."But this weren't normal times and besides I Knew those eyes .Just then as I was staring at the girl , a soldier out of nowhere showed up with a sword in front of the masked girl . She might have been fast but not fast enough . As she tried to dodge the sword and protect herself ,the soldier's sword cut a very valuable possession of the masked girl at hand , a bangle. That was when I realized that Oh My God ,I Know the identity of the masked girl . After that day I only had one mission which was to find the masked girl now that I had something that belonged to her . I had her bangle .
The masked girl was Grenda and Grenda was Bella . Life is funny ,The Princess Bella I used to know before the French took over Monroe could not be the same Bella who went as Masked girl .Oh, I was right that Grenda was Bella . And she made a fool out of me . It was then it struck me that the Emperor used to say , " Oh Bella Grenda Zishak."Where in Celeville would the Emperor's precious daughter be?It was good I used to be the Emperor's right hand man ,because by that I came to know some of his secrets . He had private land in the outskirts of Celeville.I told no one that I had found the masked girl . I wanted to be the first to confront her .And with that I set out to find Bella.
Chapter 3:Rebellion.
By then I had already known that my cover had been blown up . I knew Dmitri had now known that I was Bella . I had fucked up. I expected him to show up anytime .I was right . A day did not pass and the next time I realized he was already there .I was not surprised at all to see that he had found my hiding place.
" It seems that I have a visitor," I said , making him shudder. I was somewhere on the balcony while he was trying to make his entry slowly and quietly, not realizing I had already seen him .
" Oh ,Grenda , or shall I call you the masked girl , Princess bell…." he was saying and I realized he was mocking me .
" I almost forgot I was a Princess ,until you called me that , " I said , coming down to meet him .
" I see this war has changed everyone … Huh , " and he continued to mock me in my face . I heard some noises nearby and I knew something was amiss .
" You brought company ? ," I asked .
" what ? No… " he was surprised as I was . then he must have been followed . Good thing I always kept a sword next to me . And he had a bow and arrow . We prepared ourselves to attack .
" Show yourself you coward ! ," I found myself saying .
"You have got to be kidding me ! "Dmitri managed to say .
We were doomed if not doomed . Dmitri had been followed by a whole crew of the French . It was true I had fought the French in the market , but these, they were too many . And with the attitude that Dmitri had , we could lose . We were outnumbered .
" Any plans , Princess Bella, " he had the guts to ask .
" I would prefer next time you refer to me as Bella….. And yeah the plan is to get caught… ,"I said, dropping my sword.
" We are so dead ," he said, dropping his weapons . We raised our hands in surrender as the French came to arrest us .
" That was first, " The French Captain said . " Don't be so sure , " I said to myself . The good thing is that I was always prepared for such things . I had stuffed a knife into my boots . As soon as we were pushed to the carriage , I asked Dmitri to get the knife in my boots . We used it to free ourselves . I knew that if we allowed ourselves to be taken to the French camps or jail , there would be no coming out . We would be beheaded immediately .
Then we had a commotion outside . " This is our chance to get away , " Dmitri said . I knew he was right . We pushed the carriage door to pave our way . On the outside we found a man fighting the French crew .
" Wow , " I said, wondering who was interested in saving our asses .
" Will you stay there standing or will you help me out? " The man said, throwing swords for us .
" Rudin!!!!!!" We said at the same time . What the hell was he doing in Celeville?Everything I knew , Okay not everything but most of the things I knew about war , Rudin had taught me . He was my teacher and one of the closest friends of Papa. That was how we evaded the French that day.
" What are you doing in Celeville Rudin, " At Least Dmitri asked , because the same question was ringing in my head. "You are welcome ," Rudin said after realizing nobody was thanking him .
" Okay , " he said after Dmitri gave him a serious face," I was on my way to Imaton that day . I decided to stop in celeville . It was when the French came . Then a masked girl out of nowhere showed up . At that instant I knew you were one of mine . And the fact that you were a girl, left no option . I instantly knew it was you . I was surprised at first but I also knew you were making a grave mistake . So I decided to stick around . I knew you would one way or the other find your way to Dmitri . But Dmitri ,no offense , is a fool . The identity of the girl was right on your nose. I knew you would make a mistake, so ...."Rudin continued to say . I didn't hear anything else he said . My mind was trapped somewhere else .
The French never killed us on the instant , as their reputation went by . They were taking us to their damn camps . Oh My God , It Struck me then and there . Neither Papa nor Roston's body was ever found .The Messenger only said that the army that was escorting my dear brother , Rosto was killed but nobody saw his body . And Papa , They said that the fire at the camp had killed him .But all the same, no body ! Holy heavens , was it possible that Papa and Roston were still alive and were held hostage by the cruel French!
I was brought back by hearing Rudin declare,"... You are going back to Russia , Bella.."
" What! "We said in unison with Dmitri.
" I am so not going back to Russia , " I declared .
" What ! Why? " It was Rudin. Dmitri was smiling wildly at me ,Like he was glad to hear me declare that I was staying. I had to tell them my thoughts .They did not say a thing , they stayed for a long time only looking at each other as if they knew something I did not .Dmitri nodded at Rudin . Rudin sighed heavily before he spoke his mind or should I say his heart ," My God Bella … Emperor Zishak died on that day in a fire set up by the French . believe me I wanted him to be alive . This is not a mere rumor about Zishak's death. I witnessed him die . I arrived a few minutes after the French lit up the fire . Zishak had already lost a lot of blood and was on the verge of death . I wanted to save him when he pointed at Dmitri's lifeless body . I knew Zishak since he was a little boy .He was a kind person and even at the point where he was almost dying , he still managed to do a noble thing ." You have to save Young Dmitri Rudin ,"he had said . When I hesitated , he said Dmitri was still young and deserved to live at least . And so I left with Dmitri who was unconscious by then . At the back of my head I told myself that once I secured Dmitri I would be back for him . When I came back It was already too late . He had been consumed by the fire ."
I wanted to be strong and not to cry . Yes , I had believed that Papa was dead that day when the Messenger from Monroe came to Russia to deliver the news . I had mourned his death that day . But For a few minutes there when my mind had been filled with hope of Papa being alive and the thought of speaking to him and being to me. And it felt good .Papa had been one of the strongest pillars of my life.It is true that hope is one of the poisonous things in life . I had cried in front of Dmitri and Rudin , I didn't mind .In my chest , no my heart , some new feeling had taken over . It was not desperation , the feeling I had felt months ago when I first realized that Papa was never coming back . It was not pain only , I wanted to avenge Papa's death. I wanted the French to feel the pain I felt after losing Papa. It was not enough that they had killed Papa but they left him to be burnt by the fire . They deprived us of even burying Papa .
" … I'm so sorry Bella …"Dmitri was saying .
" But Roston could still be alive.." I said hoping he would be.
They did not answer me . In my mind a new motive and plan had filled me .Monroe was home and it was upon me to take it back from the hands of the French. I was the daughter of the Great Emperor Zishak . Papa would have wanted me to protect Monroe with all that I got and that was exactly what I was going to do . I would scratch and tear any trace of the French and tear them down from Monroe . At the same time I would search for my brother Roston , the crown Prince of Monroe . Papa's spirit would now rest in peace cause I was going to bring back Monroe.
"I'm starting a rebellion …. " I declared , " So are you with me or not."
" Dear mama ,
Weeks have passed since the last time I wrote you the last letter. Definitely a lot has happened in that time . I hope you did find the last letter. But things have changed in Monroe and so have I . I'm afraid that life in Celeville has built a completely new Bella . I wanted to get your blessing because I have taken a deadly path in my life . I just hope it is worth it . Mama , I'm starting a rebellion in Monroe against the French . I do not have an army to do so but I have two strong men by my side ,Dmitri and Rudin. I don't want my siblings to grow up in a foreign nation . I assure you Mama I will bring back the family together in Monroe .May Papa's spirit continues to guard you in Russia.
Love you Mama.
Your lovely daughter,
Bella. "
I did not mention that I suspected Roston was alive .
The idea itself was crazy to start a rebellion , so I did not even dare to tell dad cause he could declare me mad . As time went by I realized that was what Monroe wanted ,people to fight for the future.
"If we want to start a rebellion we have to get a plan , " Rudin was saying and I immediately knew he had a plan . Bella sipped the coffee in her mug as she awaited him to continue with his idea, " we have to understand the settlement of the French in Monroe and how their camps are set. Then we shall need the support of our people . It is so obvious that after the way the French rule , some people have already sold their loyalty to the French . So what we do need is to steal that loyalty. I believe this shall help us a great deal . We need to mobilize people .They shall gain confidence in Monroe after we give them hope towards the future and stop helping the French ."
"... And how exactly shall we achieve this , " Bella asked the exact question that was in my mind .
" I shall check out the structure of the French camps in the empire and you two shall visit Lucheng and all the big cities in Monroe and spread the news that the masked girl is fighting for Monroe . Make sure that your identities stay hidden ."
With that we left for Lucheng . We agreed to come back to start the mission at our base after one month.
All through the journey to Lucheng I kept thinking of Bella . I was not sure why she was doing this, I mean taking back Monroe . I just hoped that dear Bella was not revenging the death of her father . Maybe , more than any of us , Bella had lost too much . Both her father and brother had died unexpected deaths and if that was not enough they had been sent away to an alien country . She had lost her title as the Princess of Monroe . She and the remnants of her family were also deprived off their home .Now all I could do was to pray to the heavens that Bella's heart was not filled with hatred and revenge cause if that was so then it was no longer the Bella we knew off .One thing I knew of deep revenge that lusted for blood for blood , was that it never ended . I only hoped that Bella had not gotten to that point .
"Do you think Roston could still be alive, "Bella had asked . I was startled at the question .
"You really want your brother to be alive … Heh… "I thought out loud . Bella stayed quiet for long before she could say anything .But when she talked she was calm ,"Roston and I were always at odds …We never truly understood one another . There was a time when I was even jealous of him since he was the crowned Prince of Monroe who would ascend to the throne after Papa while I would amount to nothing. I would be married off to a foreign nation to strengthen the ties between nations . I wished that I could get a chance like the one Roston had . But Roston was always so naive and did not see his position in the angle that I did . He always took it for granted . I even started some secret fighting lessons with Rudin . But as time went by I came to accept the bitter truth about myself . I realized that what I desired was beyond my reach and I would never get it . It was Roston's birth right to be the Emperor , and so I kept my distance . So , yes I really want him to be alive and I know in my heart that truly my brother is alive . For Papa I will do anything in my power to make sure that by the time I send those French perverts away Roston shall be here to rule Monroe after Papa ."
Two months went by and everything went as planned . We had already started the rebellion . And actually it was great than any of us had expected . We had managed to retrieve the whole of the Eastern province . Celeville was located in the Eastern Province.Now the eastern Province had been declared independent. During the fight we had made sure to plant the Original Flag of Monroe and burned that of the French with no remorse .I had watched Bella in every attack that we did scavenge like a vulture looking for her dear brother .
"Ha ," It was what she said when she saw the newspaper with the masked girl tagged on the front page .It seemed our visit two months ago to the daily news of Monroe was not all in vain . Now just as Rudin had said it had mobilized people and at the same time it had helped instill fear to the French.