The Fall of Vequera

Chapter two | Valia

LOCATION: ARCADIOS, VEQUERA

YEAR: 620 C.E

EIGHTEEN YEARS AGO, ON THE NINTH DAY OF THE SEVENTH MONTH, A CURSE WAS SAID TO HAVE FALLEN ON THE HOUSE OF LAMONIA.

Two babes were born. One normal. One not quite. One boy. One girl. The girl had an odd look to her. Her eyes were not the same as her brother's.  One brown and the other gold. It was unlike anyone had ever seen. Humans weren't supposed to have golden eyes. Some speculated that The Queen had an affair with a witch who shared the same trait. Golden eyes. But to accuse The Queen of something so vile was treason, no one said a word in fear of being laid in front of the headsman. The firstborn heir was supposed to inherit the throne, but it had been the girl who was born first.

So, Queen Isabella and the small council decided that the secondborn son would inherit the throne and not the firstborn daughter. Removing the girl from the line of succession.

The daeifers feared she would be a danger to everyone if she were to be queen. Another Aeron the cruel, they would whisper about her in the halls.

"Valia?" Daefier Harold interrupted her thoughts.

She shrunk into her seat as a groan left her lips. Her mother thought it would be best for her to learn instead of being locked in her chambers all day. For the past four hours, she has been stuck in the palace library with her mother's favorite Daefier. The same one who taught her. "Yes, Daefier Harold."

Her tone was tight as she tried to push words out. He was older than her grandmother had been before she passed. Past seventy, he spent his time with his head stuck in the kingdom's archives. His skin was as seasoned as the old texts spread out in front of her. His eyes were dark but held some warmth. He reminded her of an old folktale, Midori had told a few years ago of a sad old man who had lost his lover in battle. Their spirit haunted him to his last days. She wondered if Daefier Harold ever had taken a lover.

"You are supposed to be reading the passage to me." He reminded her.

She rolled her eyes as she stared down at the old book in front of her. It was written in old Dethiaen, and she had started to grow a headache. "Why must I read something as boring as this?"

"Because your mother wants you to. A princess must be educated. You must learn about the ones who came before you."

She began to read the text out loud. He would stop her now and then to fix her pronunciation and she hated it. Eventually, he had given her a break, so she explored the library to pass the time. Walking through the bookshelves, she brushed her fingers against the old texts. She read the titles as she passed but none caught her eye. The princess stopped once she was far enough from Sir Harold. "If I have to be in here any longer, I'm going to scream." She grumbled.

The events from the night before still lingered in her mind. The voice had said something she had understood but it made her even more confused. Thought about how if she admitted to anyone in the palace that she had been hearing a voice inside of her head, they would have her sent to the Isles. A place where people who commit the most heinous crimes are sent to die. It is a group of islands on the coast of Emberfell. They wouldn't need that much time to try to convince her mother that she was a danger to herself and the people around her.

A book catches her eye as it wasn't in the common tongue or Dethiaen. She pulled it out and flipped through the pages. Her pointer finger traced the words as she attempted to read them out loud. Giving up after a few tries, she shut the book. She returned to Daefier Harold and slammed the book in front of him, causing the old man to jump.