Jack Benjamin

When Jack was a boy, before anyone called him Prince Jonathan, even before his father imagined himself King Silas, the city of Shiloh was a war-torn ruin of craters and fallen walls. Jack remembers the weight of his father's hand on his shoulder as they walked through the gritty streets, Abner never far from Silas's side, eyes alert for looters and snipers. Still, Silas had thought it was important for Jack to see the ruined city, so he could better understand Reverend Samuels's vision of the Shiloh to come.

"We'll rebuild it, Jacky," Silas had said. "It'll be the shining jewel of Gilboa."

Today, the vision is fulfilled. Shiloh is rebuilt and Gilboa is a united country -- united under King Silas Benjamin, the Butterfly Monarch.

(Jack smiles at his own joke. He'll tell Michelle later -- she might even laugh.)

Never mind the rumors about Gath rumbling again to the north. Never mind the lingering, troubled legacy of the former king. All that matters today is that Shiloh is a living, thriving city, and his father has told the butterfly story yet again.

Once the official reception is underway, Jack ambles off, ignoring his mother Rose's warning look. The royal family has lived in the palace for a few weeks now, but he still hasn't seen every corner or opened every door. Knowing its secrets is something Jack wants. Even a prince needs to duck away now and then.

It's not the most mysterious door ever. It's fairly ordinary-looking. Jack expects to find nothing more interesting than another waiting room behind it, or even a linen closet. (The palace is lousy with closets. It feels ironic, somehow.)

But what's behind the door is bigger than either of those, and Jack steps through without a backward glance.