Queen's Reign

Aeviria, a kingdom situated in the continent of Cannia, which was located in the north by the Cannian river. It had gone through decades of the bloodiest wars in the continent, but peace had returned to the land with the reign of Queen Myranda. The palace stood proudly in the middle of the capital of Aeviria, surrounded by the great, large mansions of the nobility. Closer to the outskirts of the kingdom, little clusters of villages can be seen dotted throughout the perimeters. The towns are constantly bustling with merchants haggling their goods both local or imported. The town squares are always accommodated with people dancing, accompanied by musicians playing light, sweet tunes. Yet today, a violent storm raged beyond the kingdom, pelting heavily on the windows of the palace. That night, Queen Myranda and her sister, Princess Ethelina were sipping tea by the blazing fireplace in the Queen's chambers. The Queen gracefully put down her teacup on the oak table in front of her, glancing at her sister discreetly. Princess Ethelina noticed it right away. "Sister, what's the matter?" she asked sweetly while picking up her teacup. The light red liquid swirled inside her cup as she brought it to her mouth for a sip. She blandly looked at her. By her stature, she could find the Princess a husband anytime soon. She herself failed to marry, and she wouldn’t want her sister to commit the same mistakes as her own. “The Thatis Empire has sent me a letter regarding your betrothal to Prince Khan. Their Majesties have been very adamant about this betrothal." "Oh really?" Ethelina raised an eyebrow at her sister. "Though if I were to marry, who is to inherit the throne of Aeviria?"  Myranda’s face darkened at the question as she leaned back into the chaise lounge and tilted her face upward to regard her sister. "I wouldn't have you inherit it anyways," she said. Her sister halted midair for a moment at her sister's words. Ethelina furrowed her eyebrows in disbelief. "What did you just say?" "I said, I wasn't planning for you to inherit the throne anyways." She heightened her voice to purposely show her disdain for her sister. The Princess stood up in a flurry of skirts, dropping her teacup to the marble floors, smashing it to pieces. "Who else is worthy of being the next Queen of Aeviria? Tell me, sister. Who else?" "I plan on passing the throne to Adelyn. Is that so hard to believe?" Queen Myranda said unflinchingly. Ethelina fumed, threw her priceless lace fan on the floor and broke it.  “Stop that puerile attitude, Ethelina!” Myranda stood up from her seat, staring at her sister. “You have just proved one of the very reasons why I cannot set you upon the throne!” Her sister stared back. “And what are the remaining, Myranda? Tell me every single one of them,” sneered the Princess, folding her arms across her chest. She strode towards the Queen, coming to stop right in front of her.  “Then explain what happened to Mother-” “That was 15 years ago! We were both mere girls!” The Princess shouted back. Myranda wasn’t going to back up until she found the truth. “Girls old enough to think properly! Why in the world did you-” “I told you, it wasn’t my fault!” The Queen took a deep breath and turned away from Ethelina. “Enough with this folly, now go make yourself presentable before the guests arrive.” Myranda sat down defeatedly.  “I will be more presentable than you or Lady Adelyn will ever be. Presentable as Queen. Let’s wait till the populace find out that you wanted Lady Adelyn on the throne. Oh, how amusing.” The princess turned her back towards her sister and briskly left the room, slamming the ornate doors in her wake. The Queen sat quietly, thinking back to the days where her mother was still with her. Oh, how the halls lightened up with the cadence of her laughter and the smiles she brought to our faces when she told us stories every night before bed. She didn't have to die so tragically. She has done nothing wrong, yet… "Good morning, Myranda. Time to wake up," said Coraline as she gently stroked a still sleeping Myranda's forehead, smoothing the curls on her forehead. The sunlight streamed through the glass doors leading to the balcony, casting the marble floors a heavenly glow. She sat up on the soft, satiny covers, rubbing her eyes. "Mother? Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be with Father at the villages?" she mumbled sleepily.  Coraline chuckled at her daughter's answer. "Silly little Myranda, don't you remember what day it is today?" The little princess looked utterly confused, looking blankly at her mother.  "It's your 8th birthday!" She outstretched her arms, bringing the girl in an embrace. "Happy birthday, my princess." The little girl squealed with delight and returned her mother's embrace. "Come on, Mother. Let's go wake Lina." She pulled on her mother's hand, excitedly leading her to the door of Ethelina's bedroom. Both mother and daughter opened the door and crept in, trying not to wake the younger daughter who lay in her bed still asleep, swaddled in her favourite pink coverlet. Myranda clambered on the bed as her mother crept beside her. Coraline mouthed: "One, two, three…" "Wake up!" both of them shouted together. The 6-year-old Ethelina quickly sat up in bed, shocked to see her mother and elder sister laughing at the foot of her bed. "Humph, you scared me!" She sat on the feather pillows in her nightgown and crossed her arms angrily. Coraline lifted the little girl up into the air and settled her down on the floor. “Today’s your sister’s birthday, and tonight we’ll have a party to celebrate,” she stooped down so she could level her eyes with her youngest daughter. “And you will wear your best party dress that grandma gave you.” Ethelina giggled as her mother tickled her.  “Well, let’s get ready shall we?” Coraline called for the sisters’ maids to come and ready them as she left the room shortly afterwards. ********* The main hall was decorated with boughs of briar, magnolias and poppies and rolls of ribbon in hues of yellow and peach were strung up from one side to the other of the vast room. The lively, vibrant music of the flutes and drums resonated from the left side of the room. Myranda stood on the pedestal at the head of the room with her parents, looking down at the crowds below. Her father, King Consort Roland came up to her and kissed her forehead, smoothing out her curls. “Look at this Myranda, one day you will be like your mother, the Queen of Aeviria.” He whispered to her and rested his eyes on his beautiful wife. Queen Coraline was greeting one of the representatives from other continents, holding a wine glass filled with Enia, which was solely produced and manufactured in the neighbouring kingdom of Lavinia, famous for its wines and grape vineyards.  Out of a sudden, a commotion arose from the gathered crowd. Curious, Myranda stepped down from the pedestal and headed towards the group with a heavy tug in the pit of her stomach. The lords and ladies made way for her to pass through, and she saw her mother lying on the floor, with her lips turning black, frothing at the corners. Her wine glass spilt it’s rich, burgundy red contents onto the carpet. “No, mother-” Her voice came out as a strangled cry, a knot in her throat. A muffled cry came from across the room. Ethelina held an empty, strange-looking goblet. King Roland walked behind her towards the c*****e, the palace healer by his side. The healer rushed forward and checked for any signs of life in the Queen, but he shook his head with grief.  “I’m sorry, Your Majesty. The Queen is-” “How is my mother? Save her!” Myranda stood in front of the healer, tugging at his robe. “What are you waiting for?”  The healer knelt down in front of the Princess. “I’m sorry, Your Highness. Her Majesty, the Queen has died," he deeply bowed to the King and Myranda, as well as Ethelina from the opposite direction. "Mother!" Myranda ran and clung to her mother's lifeless body. Ethelina did the same, but instead, she said: "Mother, you can't drink from that glass… you can only drink from the goblets." The young princess said, falling to her knees and holding onto her mother’s arm. “What did you say, Ethelina?” the elder sister rose and walked to Ethelina’s side. “You knew?”  She immediately stood up to her sister defensively. “It wasn’t me, this vial was given to me by the man with a brown beard. He’s right there-” she pointed to the direction of the great hall doors, nobody was there. Myranda's anger grew furiously as she clenched her fists and shouted at her sister. “Enough of that! You’ve poisoned Mother and now she’s dead! Have you no remorse?” King consort Roland pulled the sisters apart before they could get into a fight. “Calm down you two,” his voice filled with sadness. “Everyone, thank you for coming. Since it’s getting late, you may depart now.” He addressed the public and they filled out of the hall unceremoniously.  Myranda couldn’t stand, her legs wobbly as she sat on the cold, marble floor. She hugged her knees to her chest and cried, while Ethelinda threw the vial on the ground, shattering it as she ran out of the hall. ********* "Your Majesty? Are you alright?” Queen Myranda snapped out of her trance. Her chambermaid stood beside her, in her hands the gown her father gave to her the very day she was crowned. The fire in the fireplace died some time ago, the remaining tea in her cup cold. “The feast is starting soon, Your Majesty. Would you like to change?” Her chambermaid asked quietly.  She exhaled sharply before answering. “Yes, thank you, and please call Adelyn for me,” Myranda ordered. With a subtle nod from her maid, she went further away from the sitting area to ready herself for the feast.