Neviana Moreau

         The sleeping sea was a dull grey beneath the clouded sky.

Other than the soft ripples spreading out, the water stood calm and still. A horde of seagulls circled above the horizon and rested on the boulders, screeching their way back and forth. It was the most peaceful day I had seen in a long time, not even the strong winds we always had were blowing today, all was serene until the ships poured through the sea's strip.

For the second time in our lifetime, we saw the tall wooden bridge of our fortress being pulled up in a means to defend our lives from vicious intruders. Women urged their children inside the walls as men shouted commands at one another and grabbed weapons and rushed outside the walls. But these were no intruders.

As I held onto the soft fabric my long white skirt, I went down the stone steps and walked over towards the sealed gate. After throwing one look at the guards, they lowered the bridge and the gates squeaked open. Miles ahead on the ocean I could see the ships approaching, at least two dozen of them and even bigger than the ships already tied to the docks, those which the former flock of Eileen Dovraven had brought along.

A breeze blew my long curling hair around as I watched the bloodlines step foot on dry land. First appeared the Fay clan, a bloodline made of filthy gypsies with clinging coins attached to their hideous clothes, whose only notable talent was to see hints of the future in their glass ball. The Torve family followed, a bunch of snobs with arms full of glistening jewelry, their men dressed in suits and their women in gowns that were only appropriate for weddings. They looked so opposite to the Fay clan that it seemed as if one of the two families had time travelled. Third came the Provszak bloodline, and the greasy look they had to them matched their reputation of being conniving snakes. They pulled a cage along onto the beach. I squinted my eyes and focused hard to see what was inside, and once I had cracked the dark shadow inside the cage I saw it was a bear, brown but not so big, and sleeping. Or dead, perhaps, there was no way to tell.

A dozen more bloodlines followed of which most of them I didn't even know the name of. I didn't need to learn their names, as I could make each and every one of them drop dead with a flick of my finger. Compared to the blood that streamed through my veins, that of the Original Seven, all of these inferior bloodlines were mere ants beneath my soles.

A pale woman with white hair and dark eyes stepped in front of me and gave me a slight, vain curtsy. Her green trench coat flapped around in the wind, as did her hair. "Nice to see you in one piece, Loreen," I said, and nodded at the horde of people behind her. "You recruited nearly all of those on the list?"

"Yes," Loreen said with a frown. The way she looked at me was as if she were equal to me, and I didn't like it. Once she may have been a witch of the Original Seven, but today she was nothing more than a filthy vampire, and therefore Loreen needed to be aware of her new place. But she wasn't. She stared down at me with a bored look in her eyes, as if anything else in the world was more impressive than I, a queen, was. "Only the Drossen family refused to align with us, everyone else pled their loyalty."

"And, none of them chose to align with Farren?"

Loreen shook her head. "Strangely, Farren didn't even bother to recruit them." The families moved past us with their suitcases and she paused for a moment. "After the Fay clan chose our side above hers, she stopped trying."

"That is indeed very strange," I said with a frown as I observed the families settle inside the tents. "Farren must have some tricks up her sleeve, otherwise she wouldn't take the risk of not gathering an army."

"Whatever tricks she has, we have the numbers and so we have the upper hand," Loreen replied. A seagull's feather fell on her shoulder, which she held between her fingers and blew away. "Farren does not stand a chance."

"You're too naïve. Numbers mean nothing, in the end it's all about strength and strategy," I turned to face her. "And, believe it or not, you can have that without the numbers."

"My little Queen, I'm sure your schemes will be superior to hers." Loreen threw me a smile. The parasite was great at sucking up, I realized, she was even charming in a way. "You're much more clever than she is."

I didn't smile back. "Let's hope you're right, Loreen."

For a small second she looked down. "My Queen, I don't mean to be persistent, but..." She pursed her lips and swallowed. "Since I've done my part, have I earned your trust now?"

"Yes, you most certainly have." This time, I did smile, and it may have been the most insincere smile I'd ever faked. "Well done, Loreen." It was now to teach her a lesson, to show her that her and I were no equals and to show Loreen her place. "I now trust you so much that I'm appointing you as the commander of the army."

But Loreen wasn't stupid. A deep frown appeared as she realized how she was being appointed to become cannon fodder. "Oh, I'm honored, but..."

"I insist," I interrupted her with a big grin. "You've gained my trust, Loreen, and I just know that you will make an excellent commander." With that, I turned on my heels and marched off before she could say another word.

Smoke drifted around in threads and clouds as Chrim's exiles swarmed over my courtyard like buzzing bees, standing in lines in front of the tables that were filled with all kinds of food, scooping their choice on their plates. Behind those tables stood cooks behind fire holding pots and pans preparing those meals. Through the gates poured endless carts carrying more food, trailing all the way back to the vegetable and fruit fields, and the animal pens, located up ahead near the woods.

My footsteps echoed through the stone hallways. The torches attached to the cold, crumbling walls made my flickering shadow rise tall across the arched ceilings. For the new room I demanded they'd built me the stonemasons had to break off two walls, making three rooms into one. In the far end stood a staircase leading to my big bed, beneath it draped warm lights and stood soft cushions; my reading corner. On the other end of the room stood a fireplace with sofas across from it. The middle of the room was empty except for the white furry carpet spread over the dark wood. It was a queen's room now.

A queen of ten years old who was about to be thrown into one of the greatest battles in history while barely knowing how to rule. A squeezing feeling clenched my guts. It was the same fear that kept me up at nights. There was a great army outside at my disposal and I had a loyal council with the best advisor one could get, I couldn't be more ready for this battle if I tried, but then why was I this terrified? The nagging feeling of concern inside of me wouldn't leave me, not even in my dreams.

There were some knocks on the door, and the door opened without answer. A girl with brown tousled hair poked her head through the doorway. "You summoned me, my Queen?"

"Heather Fay?" I asked. After she nodded, I gestured at one of the sofas. "Take a seat."

As she stepped inside and closed the door behind her, the coins attached to her skirt clanked. The brown top she wore left her shoulders and belly bared. She took a seat across from me and laid a glass ball on the table, and locked my eyes. "I'm guessing this is what you called me here for, my queen?"

"Yes," I said. "Tell me what you see about the upcoming battle."

Heather looked down at the glass ball and hovered her palms above it. Purple bolts appeared, striking fast and violent, followed by dark smoke. When she looked up, a dark look of fear had set across her face. "Demons."

"Demons?"

She nodded with a deep frown, and swallowed. "They have demons with them. And I saw the dead rising."

"The dead rising?" I asked with ridicule. "Dead people can't rise, Heather Fay, it's the whole point of being dead."

After looking at me for a while with deep concern, she shrugged and shook her head. "I know that's the point, yet they somehow manage to make the dead rise."

Upon hearing this, I couldn't help but to swallow hard. "What does it mean, Heather? Will we thrive, or lose?"

"I can't see," she said with a shake of her head. "The outcome is not certain yet. But we need to be very, very careful." Heather shuddered and rubbed her forehead. "In my lifetime, I've never seen anything as dark as this. A lot of people are going to die, Queen Neviana." She hunched forward and looked into my eyes with begging puppy eyes. "My queen, even if you do win, it will cost the lives of many. You can still stop this by surrendering."

"Surrendering?" I rose up and folded my arms. "How dare you?" I walked over to the fireplace and peered at the flickering flames. "Even if it costs my own life, I will never surrender."