"Christian. Why don't you go next?" I grinned at his frown.
"Fine. Christian Ross. I'm twenty-nine and was born in Ireland. I'm also a part of PINC and pretty much the getaway driver," he explained.
Getaway driver? Like in those Earthala shows Marcus watches?
"Yes, Makoto. Those shows," Marcus replied to my outspoken thoughts.
"Cool! Can we go for a speed ride?" I beamed.
"No," all of them replied in unison.
I frowned. "Aww, why? It looks fun in the movies. There are even explosions," I emphasized, using my hands to demonstrate a huge explosion.
They all gawked at me.
"Hey guys, can we have her?" Christian asked.
"Hey, hands off. She's our girlfriend," Daniel argued.
I looked at Daniel who pulled his glasses off, narrowing his eyes at them and Scarlet's group.
"Aww, he's being all protective of you." Hope's voice sang happily in my mind.
"Right? Boys always act like that when other guys show interest in their girl," Lexi commented.
"So, you are all dating her," Cece pointed out.
I blushed, looking at the guys who began getting flustered except for Kai, who relaxed in his stool.
"Yup, she's ours. So, hands off," he declared, giving her confident smirk.
"Smooth," Ethan commented.
"You should be more confident like that, Ethan," Jaxson commented.
"Guys, introductions? Icebreaker in session," Scarlet reminded, waving her hands.
"Oh, yea," I replied.
She crossed her arms but smiled. "Let's continue. Junho." She gestured to him.
"Junho Bom Suk. I'm Korean, but spent some time in Russia since my family traveled a lot. I'm the owner of a few businesses, particularly car dealerships. A pleasure to meet all of you," he introduced.
I raised my hand, causing him to grin.
"Yes, Makoto."
"Do you have a motorcycle like Marcus?" I inquired.
"Yes, I have owned a few models," he revealed.
I grinned. Maybe he'll let us drive one.
Ryder and Kai snickered, while Marcus shook his head.
"Firefly, you can't tell us your diabolical plans of riding Junho's motorcycle. And no, he won't let you ride one or I'll murder him," Marcus announced.
"Murder is such a strong word," Junho complained, rolling his eyes.
"Darn. Okay next," I announced, looking at Jaxson.
"Jaxson White. I'm the leader of our team at PINC. I also own a few businesses, and I was born in Switzerland. I actually know Ryder from when we were teens," he revealed.
We all turned to Ryder.
"You two know each other?" Marcus asked, shocked.
"Yeah," Ryder replied.
"How? And how come we’re all finding out about this now?" Ethan asked.
"Because he accidentally kicked my ass," Jaxson revealed.
We turned back to face him.
"What?" Scarlet and I said together. We glanced at Jaxson and Ryder; Jaxon's bulk structure and six-six height against Ryder who was five-eight with a slimmer build.
Ryder sighed.
"I came down to Earthala to get something for my mother and ended up delayed. I had to spend the night and decided to go get a drink. Basically, I pissed off a group of crooks and they wanted to teach me who was boss in the dark alleyway of the bar. Jaxson over there came to assist, but I assumed he was a part of the crew and accidentally knocked him out. He wasn't out for long; Agni took over and explained he was on my side and ya. We keep in touch occasionally and go out for drinks when I come down to Earthala," he explained.
"So that's where you go when we come down here," Daniel huffed.
"He couldn't even invite us to come with," Marcus replied, looking hurt.
"Oh, suck it up. You don't ask him to go with you when you come to Earthala every month," Kai brushed off.
I giggled at their exchange.
"I wanna see Ryder fight Jaxson. And wait, who's Agni?" I asked.
"My spirit, Makoto," Jaxson replied. His eyes flickered to a bright amber, a seductive smile morphed on his lips.
"Pleasure to meet you, Princess. Glad to see you’re in good hands."
I gawked at him, glancing at my side to see the others shocked expressions.
"Princess? Agni, why do you call everyone female Princess?" Ethan mused.
"I don't call everyone Princess, and I suggest you all show some respect to Makoto over there. Or should I refer to your real name, Makoto?" he questioned.
The others all glanced at me.
"Real name?" Cece asked.
"Wait, Makoto? You're a Princess too?" Scarlet asked, astonished.
"Too? What do you mean too? You're a Princess?" I replied.
"Uh..." she trailed off.
"I thought they wouldn't find out," Daniel whispered.
"Ya, or at least maybe in the middle of the trip," Marcus whispered back.
I sighed. "We all can hear you," I revealed.
"Maybe, we should skip everyone else and go straight to the details," Cece proposed.
Well, this was unexpected.
SCARLET
"Wait....you’re the stolen Princess of Heila! The one in the book that was kidnapped on her sixth birthday who simply vanished with no leads for years?" I exclaimed.
We had moved into the living room; Makoto and her group of men on one half of the oversized room and myself, the guys and Cece on the opposite side.
"Yup. Well, I didn't know I was until four rotations ago...wait, guys aren't we supposed to not tell anyone?" Makoto asked, glancing on both sides; Kai and Ryder sat on her left; Marcus Daniel and Elias sat on her right.
"Only the King and Queens of the other Realms know of Makoto's existence and even those individuals have been limited depending on the realm. Realms Two to Eight and Ten have been notified and they've been sworn to secrecy with magic," Ryder explained.
"What about Nine?" I asked, curious why the realm was left out. We all knew about Realm One which was basically no man's land.
I noticed Ryder exchange looks with Elias; his eyes returned to mine.
"We're dealing with a situation in Miolana. We’d rather play it safe with them for now till that issue is solved," Ryder disclosed.
We all nodded, knowing what it meant by 'dealing with a situation'. It was code for the government or hierarchy can't be trusted.
"So, Makoto’s not your real name?" I asked.
"My real name is Rosalina Heart, Princess of Realm Eight, Heila," she announced with a stern voice.
I felt the power leak off her; my body automatically shivered at her introduction. Holy shit, she's powerful.
"She's definitely royalty. I can sense her power," Aurora acknowledged.
"She hides it well," Serenity admitted.
"Um...do we bow? Cause my body is telling me to bow," Ethan admitted.
Makoto blinked as if coming out of the trance she was in. She shook her head. "No. I'm banning bowing," she announced proudly.
"Um, are you even able to do that?" Junho asked, looking uncomfortable.
"Elias said I could. I don't care, I will make it a law," she argued.
I smiled. For a Princess, she's very humble.
"She wasn't raised in the kingdom," Serenity pointed out.
"Where was she raised then?" Aurora pondered.
"Makoto? Where were you then all this time?" I asked. I noticed her change in expression; a glimpse of sadness flashed in those turquoise eyes.