Empress Berenice lay slumped in her chair, a strange green substance leaking alongside drool from her mouth. Her eyes were rolled backwards in her head, dead.
Emperor Arthur was sprawled across the cold marble floor of the Empire's Royal Palace. Blood leaked from his chest, where a knife had been violently inserted and pulled back out.
Lord Cassius smiled, pleased. His plan was coming along well enough. With the emperor and his wife dead, the other kingdoms would be soon to follow.
A messenger stumbled into the room, panting and out of breath. Sweat trickled down his dark face, and Lord Cassius raised his eyebrows.
"Queen Reyna of the South, King Elijah of the East, King Edward of the West and Queen Lilian of the North have been killed. We may move on to the next phase."
Lord Cassius smiled without humour. It was cold and dark, haunting. He kicked aside the body of his brother on the ground. "Then we must prepare for the Trial."
The messenger's face widened. "Can you not simply seize the throne? My lord, we must not engage ourselves with people who can betray you."
Lord Cassius sighed as he casually tossed a scroll into the roaring fire. It rose, then slowly died again.
"I do not know your name, though I ought to. It is like the Empire knows not whom I am, though they should."
His eyes sparkled with a dangerous light. "And we must make the Empire trust me. They will trust a young child, who has proved their worth to the kingdoms. They will not accept a maniac who committed fratricide to get to the throne. We will hold a Trial, and control the victor. Leave us."
The messenger, giving a short and low bow, raced out of the room, fearing.
A knight stepped forward. "What shall we do now, your majesty?"
Lord Cassius looked into the depths of the hearth. "We wait. We wait for 10 years."
The knight blinked in surprise. The metal of his armour gleamed against the light.
"We will wait for my dear nephew to grow up. We will make him challenge for the throne. And I will kill him, until every single drop of my late brother's blood has been removed form the empire. And in that time, I shall sit on top the imperial throne."
YOU ARE READING
A Trial Of Emperors and Empresses
FantasyA knife in the back. A bullet through the heart. A poison in the blood. A shatter in the mind. A blow to the head. A rebellion in the streets. The war has begun. With all 5 of the rulers of Elvlossea either killed or mad, the challenge for the thron...
