The prompt given was as follows:
From her cell, Kate gazed out at indifferent stars. A guard whispered, "Your message got out." And it was encouragement, not condemnation.
It was originally posted on X here by the user SeptimusBrown.
This was my reply:
"What message," Kate asked the guard.
The guard blinked. "To your cousin," he replied. "About the trial."
Kate's eyes widened. She slipped an arm through the bars and grabbed the guard by his green-trimmed, red frock coat. "Listen to me," she said urgently. "You have to get out of here!"
"What do you--"
"I never sent a message! Nor have I asked one to be sent!"
The guard's face went pale, and he broke out in a cold sweat. He turned as the door to the dungeon swung open. Kate quickly released her grip on the guard. They both froze as Kate heard her own voice echo down the row of cells. "Bors, Bors, Bors," that eerie copy of her voice drifted in the air. "When will you ever learn?"
Bors stood frozen in shock and horror as the court wizard bore down on him, flanked by two other guards. The wizard was a stocky man with with silver-shot black hair and a well-trimmed beard. The guards escorting him wore the same green-trimmed, red frock coats as him, and each carried a musket at port arms with bayonet fixed. "You can never trust a voice alone," the wizard continued in Kate's voice.
Kate looked away, no matter how many times she'd seen it, she still couldn't get used to that particular use of magic. Something about it...unnerved her.
Bors lunged at the wizard, but the man made no effort to defend himself. He didn't need to. The two guards stepped forward and quickly subdued Bors. He fought in vain as they shackled him. He looked up at the wizard with pure hatred in his eyes. The wizard looked back at him with a tired look on his face and heaved a sigh. "Nothing here was ever as it seemed, Bors," he said patiently, now speaking in his own resonant baritone. "I told you that three days ago...for about the hundredth time."
Bors spat at the wizard's feet.
The wizard shrugged and fished in the pocket of the loose robe he wore over his waistcoat. He removed a key and unlocked Kate's cell. "I really wish you wouldn't borrow my voice like that," she remarked as she stepped casually into the hall. "It's...unsettling."
"My apologies, your highness."
A shocked look crossed Bors's face and he stared up at Kate. "H--highness," he stammered.
Kate nodded. "The same," she replied. "Poor Bors. You are, by all accounts, a great Dragoon, but I'm afraid you'll never be a Royal Guard."
The guards helped Bors to his feet and unlocked his shackles. "It's not back to the farm, then, is it," he asked uneasily.
The wizard shook his head. "No, Bors, it's back to the Dragoons," he told the soldier. "Don't worry, most of our recruits come from among the Dragoons. There's no shame in failing the tests."
Bors looked around. Kate could tell that he was still uneasy. She tsked and turned to the guards. "Why don't you take him somewhere and help him get his mind around everything," she suggested.
The guards saluted, then collected Bors and led him out of the dungeons. The wizard waited until he heard the door close. He politely motioned towards it and fell in next to Kate, his hands clasped behind his back. "I trust your highness's stay was not too unpleasant," he remarked.
"A little dry this time, perhaps. But, at least the food seems to have gotten better."
"That or you're getting too used to this. Which reminds me. Your father's advisors and I all appreciate your willingness to help in whatever way you can. However, we would take it as a courtesy if your highness would, perhaps, not mention this to her father."
An impish grin crossed Kate's face as the wizard opened the door and let her through first. "I didn't say anything the last three times," she pointed out. "I'm sure I can be convinced not to mention it this time, too."
The wizard chuckled. "The usual books, your highness," he guessed.
"Of course!"
Wouldn’t mind some thoughts, comments or inputs.
I would also be curious how anyone else would’ve titled the result. I haven’t been able to think of one.