Aurora placed her foot on the first stair of the spiral staircase. Her vision fogged, and she experienced the sensation of being back inside Dew Mountain. She tried to call out, but the words caught in her throat. Something was wrong.
The fog receded, and Aurora was in her childhood room. It was one of the few times her mother had come to visit her, and it had ended in disaster. Aurora had only been four at the time, and this was one of her earliest memories. Zephyra had attempted to play with the child, but quickly became dissatisfied with the young babe's childish behavior.
"Be realistic," Zephyra had said, not realizing that the child had no idea what that meant.
"Come on, mommy! Fly with me," the little girl raised a toy doll and spun it through the air. In her flight, Aurora had not seen the canter of juice that had been brought in for refreshments. The pitcher spilled and sloshed all over Empress Zephyra's dress.
"What is wrong with you, little beas
Aurora landed in the pool at the top of the spire with an impressive splash. She was back in the robe given to her by the Fates as she lay in the water unmoving. Devrim ran to her, his feet nearly freezing in the frigid fountain. Scooping up the Empress, Devrim carried her swiftly out of the water and laid her next to Hanna. As Aurora began to stir, the man heaved a huge sigh of relief. Although he had not wanted to voice his thought, he feared the worst when he had seen her materialize unconscious."Give her a moment. It will take time to adjust," Hanna said gently as she watched Devrim cradle the young woman.The Empress turned her head toward the sound of Hanna's voice. "Am I back?" she asked groggily.Devrim wiped a stray tear from his eye. "Yes, my love. You are back. I missed you." The moments she had been gone had been the hardest of his life. If a monster had threatened her, he would have slayed it, but the sense of helplessness was much worse."D
Zan's senses left him for a moment as he tried to comprehend her words. "Wedding? To who? Oh…oh!!" He understood the sight before him. The lovers entwined arms and looked fondly toward one another. "My congratulations and best wishes," Zan blessed them, forgetting his own feeling of gloom and doom.Alvar's face also brightened. "You do not suppose Brinn would consider a double wedding?"The Empress smiled awkwardly as her body tensed. "You can ask, but do not get your hopes up." She knew the she-elf had strong feelings about when and how she would wed.Alvar nodding knowingly. "Perhaps I should wait so she can have her own special day.""That is very thoughtful," Devrim agreed."You can can continue to discuss the wedding, sweet ones, but remember the others are waiting." Hanna reminded them."Oh yes," Aurora chirped. She yanked Devrim, "I need to tell Brinn!"———————-Entering t
While Hanna began the preparations for the wedding, the eight mortals sat down and exchanged information in a small office. Aurora had returned the Guardian's cloak to Zan, and he had draped it lovingly across his shoulders. "Hello, old friend," he had whispered."I am sorry for whatever you find in its recesses. I am afraid I will never find all my things," the girl had lamented.Around a thick stone table, the events of the previous weeks were laid out. The Empress was saddened by the events that had occurred in her absence, and part of her considered abandoning her nuptials to attend to the urgent matters. But in her heart, she knew that she must wed first. The time had come for the fake Emperor to become the real one.Zan listened carefully to the others' encounters with the fairies, elves and gnomes. As both elves and gnomes were among their company now and he did not wish to offend them, he chose only to comment on the fairies. "Bolemir and his family did
The gathering room looked gorgeous with cascades of red roses and wild indigo flowers adorning each tapestry and stone bench. On the podium stood Justum wearing a white robe, and Nurlan and Junayd in a copy of their soldiers' uniforms in crimson. Amid them in the center, Devrim, wearing a royal blue cape, white and gold tunic and blue and gold trousers, waited for his bride. As Aurora strode down the aisle, the Fates attending the ceremony stood.Aurora held tightly to Zan's arm as she walked down the aisle. It all seemed surreal, and she hoped it was not just a fantastic dream. The scent of the bouquet in her arms, which matched those flowers on the wall, comforted her that this was real. When they reached the marriage altar, Devrim descended the platform to meet them. His face was one of pure wonder as he beheld his bride. Zan took the Empress's hand and gave it to the eager young man."Devrim," Zan said sternly to catch the boy's attention. His face was grim and for
Aurora stretched in bed as light beamed in the window only to realize that there were arms wrapped firmly around her. The room she was in was not her own, and a brief panic overcame her as she tried to remember how she had gotten to this point. The memories came all at once, and the proof that it was not just a beautiful dream lay beside her. She cuddled back under the covers for a time, but eventually the thoughts of the day overpowered her calm. Stretching again to relieve the tension in her back, she got up to prepare to leave.As she exited the bath and got dressed, Devrim came in groggily. "I had no idea you were such an early riser." Travelling on the road had been rough and sleep patterns had been tentative at best."Get used to it, dear husband," she said with affection. "We have a big day ahead of us. It is time to return home."The others met them in the common area between the male and female quarters. They all had their packs and were ready to go. "H
Aurora found an extreme pleasure in the wonder that the soldiers expressed when they entered the glow-stone passage. 'This is how Hanna must feel when she reveals something to us,' she thought. She smiled smugly. Unaware of what normal human structures looked like, Brinn and Alvar were eyeing the passage as if it were a normal occurrence, and Zan and Gandr, having already used the tunnels to escape once, were only mildly surprised."I knew it," the Guardian muttered under his breath.Devrim heard him. "Knew what?""When I told you about the secret passages out of the castle, neither you nor Her Majesty even blinked. You have been here before!" Zan lifted his finger to punctuate his revelation."Many times, Zan. One of our hobbies has been to explore all these passages. They go to every room." Devrim put his hand on Zan's shoulder and smiled."What is this? I have been in the Council's meeting room and I have never seen this window." Nurlan gently t
Nurlan and Junayd wandered through the tunnels, using their memory of the layout inside the palace. While they had both stood guard inside the Castle Valiant many times, they had not been inside in months, and their lack of practice showed."This way," Junayd insisted."We need to go up a level and then past the officers' quarters." Nurlan argued.The men stopped and squabbled for a moment. They used their chalk to draw on the stone floor and recreate the castle's floor plan. Finally they agreed and set off again at a more determined pace. When they reached the armory, many soldiers were selecting weapons and donning armor.Nurlan was surprised that he didn't seem to recognize any of them. "Do you see anyone that you know?" He asked Junayd in a low voice.The young soldier began to shake his head and then his eyes widened. "There! There is Captain Caleb. I don't see any of his men though. How can that be possible?"Nurlan pulled at his chin.
The others waited as Nurlan and Junayd were the last to arrive. To be fair, they had the least idea what they were doing and the furthest to go. Aurora smiled graciously as they joined the small circle. "Sorry Your Majesty," they bowed humbly.She waved off their apology, and they began the exchange of information. "The children are safe," Devrim said gently. "But Cafer has convinced the boy to dissolve the Council. Mairwen was as plucky as ever, but Cafer mostly ignored her.""Just as well," Aurora said. "If he considered her a real threat, he would have tried to kill her too."Zan told of Anna, Ezer and Birger. The Guardian had gone to the other Councilmen's rooms as well, but all of them were conveniently missing. When the Guardian told them of the Blue Guard, Nurlan confirmed that he had seen them. "Nasty looking buggers, and I would not doubt for a second that some of them are gnomes. They are led by some bully human lowlife named Ledford."Devrim an