The Forgotten Queen

The Black Mist

The Black Raven's hall was empty. The leader of the coven, though, sat on the throne.

A thump echoed in the hall, followed by a quick pace approaching the throne. The individual who entered the hall knelt before the leader and bowed their head.

"Your Grace, we have received word," they said. "The Crown Prince has made his move and captured the wrong person. Our Guardian is Isla."

They stretched out their hand, then rolled their wrist, and black flames embraced their hand. The fire faded as a paper emerged in their hand.

The leader lifted their hand out, and the paper flew to them. An ink sketch of Isla was on the paper, and the leader hummed. "Isla Trivia, the eighth Guardian of Aurora..." they muttered.

"She has sword and combat skills, and Edward watching over her like a hawk. The travel party has paused their journey to the Black Mist as both members have been weakened by shadow dust."

"I do not care..." The leader said with a sigh. "All I need to know is when they arrive at the Black Mist and after their mission in the Black Mist. After that mission, we can plan an attack. We need to know who would be in our way and when they lower their guards."

"The Crown Prince would be in our way."

Under the veil, the leader furrowed their brows. "Why is that?"

"King Vincent ordered the Crown Prince to return with the Guardian if he wanted to keep his title and become King upon completing the mission."

"Ha! As if that boy can do anything. King Vincent would have had a chance in capturing the Guardian than his dumb son. His son has no skill and is a spoiled brat."

"So, we do not do anything about him?" they asked awkwardly.

The leader scoffed and tilted their head. "He may be used to us again. Just keep an eye on the Crown Prince and report to me if he does something stupid. You may go..."

"Yes, Your Grace!"

The servant bowed their head, jumped onto their feet, and stalked away. The coven leader sighed loudly and leaned back, looking at the sketch again. "Isla Trivia... I cannot wait to meet you," they whispered before the paper lit up in flames.

"Your powers will be mine..."

Back at Isla's camp, Isla treats Sara as she breaks into a fever from the shadow dust. They managed to teleport to safe ground.

Edward held his scolding as they needed to get Sara to drink a solution to dissolve the poison. Aiden went back to sleep, trying to recover his powers, which put a hold on their planned travel.

Isla stared down at Sara in worry as she whipped the sweat from her forehead. Isla's body could stop shivering.

She could not believe Aeson came all this way to capture her. With their small interaction, Isla could tell Aeson was the same as before. Always commanding but not acting for himself.

She except King Vincent if anyone were here in the Shadow forest to capture her. Isla remembered King Vincent as a madman who was not afraid to command and kill those in his way. He even fought with Edward...

Isla's thought faded, thinking about the time King Vincent attacked Aurora. She glanced down at Sara, who shivered, then Aiden, who slept peacefully.

"What if he used shadow dust to weaken the entire kingdom?" Isla asked herself.

Flashes of that morning plagued her sight. She remembers being rudely woken by Sara, whose forehead was covered with beads of sweat. Sara dragged her out of the room, seeing a heavy panting Edward waiting outside with his guard up.

Her young self was confused and concerned as they all looked tired and ill. She remembered screams ringing in her eyes and the grunts and groans against the clank and clang.

Isla remembered she tried asking about what was happening. Still, Edward and Sara ignored her, dragging her behind them down the hallway. Her eyes wandered, seeing piles of bodies lying in their own blood, and they were her guards.

Sara stumbled, Isla glanced upfront, and Edward yelled at Sara to stay strong and protect Isla.

Isla has never seen Sara or Edward look sick. What was going on?

"Isla!" Edward called out, placing his hand on Isla's shoulder. She snapped out from her memories and looked up at a worried Edward. "Are you okay? Is something wrong?" he asked.

She gave Edward a weak smile and sighed, looking down at Sara. She was happy that she avoided that morning to play out.

But could not shake how the feeling that King Vincent used shadow dust to get the upper hand.

"Edward, do we know where the shadow dust is produced?" Isla asked.

"Unfortunately, no. I know that there is a search for a purple bell farm."

"Purple bell?"

"It is a purple flower that looks like a bell. It looks beautiful with a sweet smell but is made into powder. It becomes deadly. Bring the rise of the first Guardian, purple bells were destroyed. They were hunted, uprooted, and burnt to prevent this effect to magis."

"Who would have thought they would make a comeback?" Edward murmured.

"Do you think an entire kingdom can be poisoned?" Isla asked.

Edward chuckled, and Isla glanced at him. She had a blank expression with concerned eyes. Edward chuckles faded, wondering why Isla would ask that question. He sighed, "it is possible..."

"One can keep the shadow dust in its liquid form and pour it into the main rivers. In a big celebration where most citizens would gather, put in food, drinks, and even the air. One could use air magic to blow the dust into the sky, and people would inhale without knowing," Edward continued with a shrug. "There are endless possibilities..."

So, King Vincent might have used shadow dust to weaken a powerful kingdom. However, Isla needed to know which method he used. How did he discover this secret, and where did he get it?

"We must find that farm and destroy it. I do not care if it is in another kingdom. We must put a stop to it..." Isla said.

"Speaking like true Guardian."

"Because I am..."

Edward smiled, and Isla's lips flinched a smile, then stared at Sara. Isla gently took Sara's icy hand and gently squeezed it. She quietly prayed to the gods for Sara's recovery.

Later that night, Sara's fever stopped, and she woke up whining and moaning about her capture. She complained about the Veritas' knights and the Crown Prince. Isla did not care about Sara's wines as Sara sounded like she was getting back to herself.

Edward got annoyed and put Sara back to sleep and told Isla to go to sleep.

Aiden remained asleep until the following day, and his power returned. Sara was still weak, but Edward pushed to continue their travel. Isla ordered Edward to take it easy on the road, and they traveled slowly and carefully.

The next day, Sara's energy was back to normal except for her magic. She whined and complained about the journey and being kidn*pped. Edward and Aiden both rolled their eyes. Isla quietly laughed at how the energy returned to the old way.

However, Isla could not shake her thoughts about the past life. She could not stop thinking of King Vincent's actions to weaken the kingdom and if he was going to go through with the plan.

The key to preventing that attack she needs to find the source of the shadow dust.

Isla planned to focus on finding the farm after becoming a Guardian and returning to her kingdom. She was looking forward to using magic for the first time. Still, she needs to solidify her position within the council and the kingdom.

On the final day in the Shadow forest, the party was close to finishing their trip.

"How do you think the Black Mist would like?" Sara asked, nervously looking around.

They were still going through the shady dense forest.

"Like a big mist that looked ashy and cloudy. That would be amazing to see," Aiden said, smirking.

"How about... A thunderstorm of gray clouds collected together a tall wall from the sky down to the ground," Sara said.

"That sounds dramatic..." Isla whispered.

"It should be! There are shadow beasts in there. So, can you imagine how scary it could be in there!"

"Shadow beasts cannot be that scary?" Aiden asked.

Everyone turned their gaze to Edward. Edward felt their eyes on his back and sighed. "The Black Mist is a black wall-like thick mist from the sky to the ground and spreads far as the eyes can see. There are seasons when the mist lightens, which is a good chance to travel." Edward said.

"What about the beasts?" Sara asked nervously.

"There's a reason why the adventurers enter the mist with no light source as the light attracts the shadow beasts," Edward said.

Sara glanced over her shoulder, looking at the forest behind the team, and sighed. She turned her gaze to Isla. "I think I would rather go back into the Shadow forest," she said with a large gulp.

"We will be returning to the Shadow forest after completing the mission," Isla said.

The trio continued to chatter and joke about their mission. The youngest made light of the situation, forgetting what awaited the group.

Edward remained silent in his thoughts. He worried that the Black Raven coven would try k********g Isla once she gained power. Veritas' troops could be in their way when they return.

However, these are the after concerns. Edward knew Isla's challenge would be within the Black Mist. It could go two ways; Isla would come back as a Guardian or could end up lost within the mist.

But Edward believed Isla could make out the Black Mist and become Guardian.

A howling horn echoed towards the team. Aiden, Sara, and Isla became silent and stopped their horses. They glanced at each other, confirming they all heard the same thing.

"Edward?" they asked Edward, turning their gaze to Edward.

Edward halted his horse, chuckled under his breath, and nodded 'yes.' Sara and Isla gasped and glanced at each other. Isla was excited, and Sara surprise.

Aiden smirked and commanded his horses to run. "See on the other side!" Aiden said as his horse dashed past, between Sara and Isla.

He howled in excitement, then slapped Edward's horse as he passed Edward. Edward's horse squealed, jumping and kicking its two limbs. Edward stayed calm, controlling his horse, and watched Aiden disappear.

"Aiden, wait up!" Isla yelled, commanding her horse to run.

Isla's horse dashed off behind Aiden. Sara groaned nervously and followed after Isla. "Why are you leaving behind! What if there are monsters behind me!?" Sara asked.

Edward shook his head and chuckled, watching the three race to the camp. He tipped his horse to the side, encouraging his horse to move, and whistled to pick up the pace.

He passed the shady trees, coming out from the forest and seeing the journey's end.

The Black Mist.

A grand gray-black wall of smoke stood from the sky down to the ground. The mist stretches out throughout the land before them.

Edward's horse moved forward and steadily. The gemstone green grass changed to yellow, down to brown shades, and looked withered until grovel and dirt.

Since the appearance of the Black Mist, the ground between the mist and Shadow forest was nothing but dry-up lands. Nothing grew, and people did not take a chance to live there.

But the Mist Voyagers' camp stood before the mist wall. A collection of miners, warriors, and explorers camped for their mission within the mist. This camp was made by Duke Blaise and controlled by his son.

Lord Kai Blaise.

Twenty-one years of age, he commands the voyage and holds the classic Blaise warrior spirit.

Now the group was under Lord Kai Blaise's care.