Chapter Eight: The Kingdom Beneath
1980 Words
The passage beneath the palace seemed to have no end.
Kael walked ahead with his sword drawn, one hand brushing the rough stone wall as they descended. Lyra followed closely behind, trying to keep her breathing steady.
The farther they went, the colder it became.
Not ordinary cold.
This was the same unnatural chill she had felt when the darkness beneath the palace awakened.
Lyra rubbed her arms.
“Where does this lead?”
“Below the palace.”
“That much I figured out.”
Kael glanced over his shoulder.
“You're getting impatient.”
“I've been hunted, nearly killed, accused of waking an ancient darkness, and apparently discovered that I was supposed to be queen.”
The corner of his mouth lifted.
“When you list it like that, I understand.”
“You're enjoying this.”
“Not even slightly.”
“You smiled.”
“I didn't.”
“You did.”
“I was thinking.”
“About?”
“You.”
Lyra nearly missed a step.
Kael turned away before she could respond.
She hurried after him.
“You can't just say things like that.”
“Like what?”
“That you're thinking about me.”
“I was.”
“Why?”
“Because you're standing behind me.”
“That doesn't answer the question.”
“It wasn't supposed to.”
Lyra shook her head.
“You're impossible.”
“So I've been told.”
They continued deeper.
The passage gradually changed. The walls were no longer plain stone. Silver symbols appeared between the cracks, ancient writing glowing faintly beneath layers of dust.
Lyra slowed.
“Kael.”
He stopped.
“What?”
She touched one of the symbols.
The entire passage suddenly illuminated.
Silver light raced along the walls, revealing hundreds of symbols that had been hidden in the darkness.
Kael stepped closer.
“What did you do?”
“I didn't do anything.”
A whisper moved through the passage.
Lyra froze.
The daughter returns.
She pulled her hand away.
“Did you hear that?”
Kael's expression tightened.
“Hear what?”
“The voice.”
“What did it say?”
Lyra swallowed.
“It called me the daughter.”
Kael stared at the glowing symbols.
“Then we're close.”
“Close to what?”
“The place your family hid.”
Lyra's heart stopped.
“My family?”
“My father told me there was a place beneath the palace that belonged to the first Moon Queens.”
“And he knew about it?”
“Yes.”
“Why didn't you tell me?”
“Because I didn't know if it was real.”
Lyra looked around.
“It seems pretty real.”
They reached the bottom of the stairs.
A massive stone door stood before them.
There were no handles. No locks.
Only two symbols carved into the center.
A crescent moon.
And a black sun.
Kael approached.
The black sun began glowing.
Lyra stepped forward.
The crescent responded.
Silver and black light spread across the door.
With a deep rumble, the stone doors opened.
Lyra stopped breathing.
A vast underground city stretched before them.
Ancient towers rose from the cavern floor. Bridges crossed glowing rivers. Houses were carved into enormous walls, while silver trees grew between forgotten ruins.
Above everything hung a crystal ceiling filled with thousands of tiny lights.
It looked like a night sky trapped beneath the earth.
“What is this place?” Lyra whispered.
Kael stared in disbelief.
“The kingdom beneath Elarion.”
“It can't be.”
“It was believed to be destroyed.”
“By who?”
“The royal histories say the first Moonborn civilization disappeared centuries ago.”
Lyra looked at the statues lining the streets.
“Maybe the royal histories lied.”
Kael gave a quiet laugh.
“Royal families are very good at that.”
She looked at him.
“You're part of one.”
“I know.”
They crossed the first bridge.
The city was silent.
Too silent.
Then something moved.
A woman stood in the middle of the ancient square.
She wore a long silver cloak, and white hair fell down her back. Despite her age, her face seemed untouched by time.
She smiled.
“Princess Lyra.”
Kael immediately drew his sword.
“Who are you?”
The woman looked at him.
“Still protective, I see.”
Kael froze.
“You know me?”
“I knew you before you knew yourself.”
Her eyes returned to Lyra.
“And I have waited seventeen years for you.”
Lyra stepped forward.
“Who are you?”
The woman lowered her hood.
“I am Selene, Keeper of the First Moon.”
Lyra glanced at Kael.
“Is that supposed to mean something?”
“It does,” Selene answered.
Her gaze settled on the silver mark on Lyra's wrist.
“You carry the blood of the last Moon Queen.”
Lyra's mark began glowing.
“Seraphine was your grandmother.”
“You knew her?”
“I served her.”
“Then tell me the truth.”
Selene studied her for a moment.
“You are ready?”
“I've spent my entire life being lied to. I think I've earned the truth.”
A faint smile crossed Selene's lips.
“Yes.”
She turned.
“Come.”
They followed her through the ancient city.
The deeper they went, the more alive it became. Silver flowers bloomed beside the pathways. Tiny creatures with translucent wings flew between the trees. Glowing water flowed upward from the rivers, disappearing into the crystal ceiling.
Lyra stared.
“This place is alive.”
“It has always been alive,” Selene said. “It feeds on Lunar Magic.”
“Then why did it disappear?”
“Because the Moonborn were betrayed.”
“By Varian?”
“Not only him.”
Lyra stopped.
“What does that mean?”
Selene turned toward her.
“Seventeen years ago, the royal family fractured because the truth about the prophecy was discovered.”
Kael's face hardened.
“What truth?”
Selene looked at him.
“That Moon and Shadow were never meant to fight.”
Kael's jaw tightened.
“They were meant to unite.”
“Yes.”
Lyra's pulse quickened.
“That's what my grandmother said.”
Selene nodded.
“But she never told you everything.”
She led them into a circular chamber.
At its center stood a stone altar.
Resting upon it was a golden crown.
Lyra recognized it immediately.
“My grandmother's crown.”
“The real one.”
Selene lifted it.
“The crown in the Moon Chamber is only a replica.”
Lyra stared.
“Why?”
“Because Seraphine knew someone would eventually come searching for this one.”
“Who?”
Selene's eyes darkened.
“The king.”
Kael stiffened.
“King Aldric?”
“Yes.”
“Why would he want the crown?”
“Because it does not merely represent the Moonborn throne.”
Selene looked at Lyra.
“It is a key.”
“A key to what?”
Selene pointed beneath the altar.
A thin crack ran through the stone.
Black smoke seeped from it.
Lyra stepped backward.
“The darkness.”
Selene nodded.
“The crown seals the prison.”
Kael's expression changed.
“And if the crown is removed?”
“The seal weakens.”
Lyra looked at the crown.
“Then why did you remove it?”
Selene smiled sadly.
“I didn't.”
She released it.
The crown remained suspended in the air.
Lyra's silver mark burned.
The crown flew toward her.
“Lyra!”
Kael reached for her.
She caught it.
The chamber exploded with silver light.
Lyra screamed.
Images flooded her mind.
A palace burning.
Her grandmother standing before a massive black gate.
Her mother carrying baby Lyra.
Kael's father kneeling beside a wounded soldier.
Queen Elara crying.
King Aldric holding a sword.
And Varian standing behind him.
Laughing.
Seraphine raised her hands.
Moonlight poured from her body and struck the black gate.
The darkness screamed.
Then Seraphine turned toward Kael's father.
“Take the child.”
“She must survive.”
The vision changed.
Lyra's mother ran through the palace corridors.
Aldric followed.
Varian followed him.
Kael's father stepped between them.
“She is the future of Elarion.”
Aldric raised his sword.
Then everything went black.
Lyra collapsed.
Kael caught her before she hit the floor.
“Lyra.”
Her eyes opened.
She was in his arms.
His face was inches from hers.
“Stay with me.”
She blinked.
“I saw them.”
“Who?”
“My grandmother. My mother. Your father.”
Kael's expression tightened.
“What did you see?”
“Aldric.”
He went still.
“He was there.”
“Where?”
“The night everything happened.”
“What was he doing?”
“Trying to find me.”
Kael's grip tightened.
“Then my uncle knew.”
Lyra stared at him.
“Your uncle?”
“Yes.”
“Aldric is your uncle?”
“My father's older brother.”
“Then why does he want me dead?”
Kael looked toward the crown.
“Because if you become Moon Queen, he loses his claim to the throne.”
Selene spoke quietly.
“That is not the worst of it.”
Lyra turned.
“What is?”
“The king does not truly want the throne.”
Kael frowned.
“Then what does he want?”
Selene's gaze moved toward the crack beneath the altar.
“He wants what sleeps beneath it.”
A deep rumble shook the chamber.
Boom.
Dust fell from the ceiling.
Lyra grabbed Kael's arm.
“What was that?”
Another tremor struck.
Boom.
This time, something screamed.
It wasn't human.
It wasn't an animal.
It was something ancient.
The crystal ceiling cracked.
Blackness spread across it like ink.
Selene's face went pale.
“The prison is breaking.”
Kael grabbed Lyra's hand.
“We have to go.”
They ran.
Behind them, the ancient city began collapsing. Towers shattered. Bridges snapped. Silver trees bent beneath the force of the tremors.
Then something enormous moved beneath the ground.
Lyra stopped.
Kael turned.
“What are you doing?”
“I can feel it.”
“What?”
“The thing beneath us.”
Her eyes filled with silver light.
“It knows me.”
Kael stepped closer.
“Lyra.”
She looked at him.
Suddenly, a voice echoed around them.
Come to me, Moonborn.
Lyra's eyes widened.
“Did you hear that?”
Kael shook his head.
“No.”
Then his eyes turned completely black.
Lyra stepped backward.
“Kael?”
He stared at her.
For one terrifying moment, he didn't seem to recognize her.
His hand went to his chest.
Black veins appeared beneath his skin.
“Run.”
“What?”
“Lyra, run!”
She refused.
Instead, she reached for him.
The moment her fingers touched his hand, silver light exploded between them.
Kael cried out.
The darkness inside him recoiled.
Then a symbol appeared across his chest.
A black crown surrounded by silver fire.
Selene stared at it in horror.
“No.”
Lyra looked at her.
“What?”
Selene's voice trembled.
“The first Shadow King.”
Kael's eyes opened.
The blackness was gone.
His eyes were now silver.
But when he spoke, the voice was not his.
“The heir has awakened.”
The underground kingdom fell silent.
Then every bell in Elarion began ringing above them.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Until they reached thirteen.
Lyra looked at Kael.
The moon above the kingdom disappeared completely.
The eclipse had begun.
And beneath their feet, something answered with a roar.
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