>>Prologue<<

PEACEFUL, THAT'S HOW BEST TO DESCRIBE the atmosphere. That kind of cold and silent peace that best seems to cling to the dark forest

A lady dressed in dark robes was on a mission that night. She could barely see with all the fog, yet she stumbled as though the devil himself was on her heels while clutching her bundle to her chest.

She ran until she burst from the entrapping trees of the forest into a clearing, where she slowed down for a bit, exhausted and happy to have reached her destination.

The rushing of a river roared over her ears as the lady walked slowly and came to a stop in front of the river, where she freed her bundle of its wrap.

The wail of a child pierced through the night air, louder than the chirping of the nocturnal insects. The lady took no care to appease the wailing, naked child as she hastily placed the baby in a bowl.

With a heavy heart, the woman waded into the river and laid the child down.

She stood for a while, gazing at the infant as she thought of all the things the child might have become. Overcome by guilt, she hastily backed away and left the child to the elements.

The child cried out into the night as a fervent battle began between her and the waves of the river.

As the woman ran, she turned back for a second to get a last glimpse of the child. Then, as swiftly as she came, she turned her back on the child and ran into the forest, haunted by the wails of the innocent she left to die.

**** 

Some people believe in fate, but that night seemed to be a design by destiny. For, walking in that same forest with her husband was a queen haunted by her inability to produce a child.

The queen had tried all she could to conceive a child, and she longed for a babe to call her own. Queen Vanisha occasionally took long walks in the forest with her husband as they prayed to the moon goddess to induce fertility.

"Andres, do you hear that"? The Queen asked as she stopped walking and turned to face her husband.

King Andres, not bothered by his wife, grunted in reply.

But Vanisha was certain she could hear a baby crying.

"My King, I can hear the cries of a child. Surely you can hear it too, or am I being punished for my sins?".

By then, King Andres could also hear the cries of the baby, and he replied, "There is no punishment involved; I can hear the cries of an infant as well."

 "Well, then come on!”

Vanisha cried as she walked back to the king and held his hand, then hastily pulled him in the direction of the cries.

They arrived at the clearing with a river, just in time to see the outline of a woman in dark robes run away.

“Hey! Wait!” King Andres yelled.

He tried to run after the woman, but she had gotten a large headstart, and she soon disappeared from view.

Meanwhile, Queen Vanisha was having an epiphany of her own as she she waded into the river with no care for her royal dress.

She spotted the overturned bowl and found the baby girl drowning. In a panic, she pulled the coughing child out of the water and tried to nurse the child.

Her husband came towards her out of breath from running, he stopped and gaped at the child his wife held in shock.

"Is she okay"? he asked in awe.

"Barely" Vanisha replied while petting the crying child as she made her way of the river towards her husband.

"I wonder what kind of monster leaves her child to die," The lady hissed in annoyance as she peeled off her scarf and used it to wrap the shivering child.

"I don't know who that lady was, but she is not one of our people; she wore the colors of Berravin." King Andres said warily as he eyed his wife and the obvious connection she had formed with the baby.

"I do not care if this child came from Berravin, Graham, or even from the gates of hell.

Just look at her! She was abandoned so that means I can keep her, " Queen Vanisha said obstinately, as she began to rock the baby.

"Vanisha You can't just keep the child because you want to; she's Berravini. This could prove detrimental to us when she finds out her heritage. Besides, we can't have a Berravini sit on the throne." King Andres said in a worried voice.

"And just what is her heritage? From this moment on, this child is my flesh and blood, and nobody is permitted to know otherwise. Don't worry about the throne; I will raise her, and she will make a spectacular queen." Vanisha said as she clutched the child to her chest protectively.

" Vanisha I need you to be reasonable. I know we have no child, and the kingdom is expecting an heir, but they will never accept her." King Andres said sadly.

"Well, anybody who doesn't accept my princess will be beheaded. I will go into two months of seclusion, after which I will announce the birth of our joy." Vanisha vowed as she planted a kiss on her daughter’s head.

"I just hope you know what you're doing," King Andres said as he hugged his wife and new daughter.

"Arielle Zura Theron, what do you think?" Queen Vanisha with a smile on her lips

"I love it" 

King Andres smiled as he looked at the happiness on his wife's face. Finally, his queen would smile again. That alone would make him very thankful to his Berravini child.