Swan Lake - The fallen Kingdom

Chapter Four

"Liliana. Liliana!" my uncle's voiced boomed throughout the throne room and broke me off from my chain of thoughts. "Liliana, what were you thinking? You seemed to be zoning out." My uncle asked. I certainly didn't sense any worriedness from his tone, he just sounded suspicious. Of me. That was probably because I was staring at his queen before i zoned out. "My most sincere apologies, Your Majesty. Please pardon my ill-mannered ness . That is solely because I flew a long way here and I am feeling very famished." I said, bowing to show how "sorry" I was. I felt pathetic , bowing to the person who murdered my parents and grandparents, wiping out the very last of my clan. I was the only survivor and that was only thanks to the person who had brought me to my adoptive parent's doorsteps. However, my saviour must have not known that he took me into the enemy's arms. Thank goodness, Mother and Father were very much kindhearted unlike the cold-blooded man that stood before me now. If they had not taken me just because I was the enemy's child, I would not have survived. Then, there really would not be any Phoenix left in this world. My uncle tried to destroy our legacy but that will not happen as long as I am alive. He made a huge mistake missing me out.  Had I not been curious and read the book left on my bedroom window, I would have never found out the truth behind how Avenor came under the Swan's rule. Then I would have worshiped my uncle like the rest of the people in Avenor because my Uncle was a very "kind" king.

"You may rise. Niece, we have prepared a banquet for your arrival. Follow Charles, over here to the lounge." The king dismissed me. I followed Charles around the Palace, examining its features. . It was definitely more grand than when my aunt was still alive. However, it had lost its sense of comfort. It was very beautiful but it looked like a dollhouse. Everything looked controlled. As we turned around the corner of the corridor, I realised that there were many more young maidens. They looked 15-16 years old and they were definitely more well dressed than the Palace maids. I guessed that they were some Palace guests. As I walked past them, they bowed to greet me. One of the maidens caught my eye. As she bowed, her dress lowered to reveal raw red cuts on her chest. What was going on? It must have been the doings of my Uncle. That man sickens me.

"Right in here, Your Highness." Charles led me into the lounge. As I entered, I noticed that there were already people inside. My three cousins. A girl was sitting on the couch with creamy bronze curls that just fall short of her shoulders; lithe frame and graceful movement. That must be Seraphina. She looked just like my aunt. We were the same age and she was my playmate when we were both young. The girl sitting next her with a poised posture is her older sister, Rosabella. Standing next to her is her twin, Albert. They both have misty grey eyes and ash blonde. Just like their father, the King.

After catching up, I suddenly felt that something, well someone, was missing. "Albert, where's Dylan?" I asked turning to my cousin. Dylan was his bodyguard, he followed Albert everywhere back when I was last at the palace. The King was afraid that his only son - the heir to his throne would get be in danger and assassinated. Therefore, he hired Dylan to protect his heir. Dylan was the strongest teen I have ever seen. He was fast and agile. I really liked Dylan. Even though he looked cold, he would always smile at me. Something about him made me feel at ease and he was like a brother to me. I felt closer to him than any of my cousins. He was the only one who made me feel at home during my stay. I really missed and could not wait to meet him again. Now that I thought about it , it seemed weird that he was not by Albert's side this very moment.

As soon as the question came out of my mouth, Seraphina quickly nudged me with her elbow and Rosabelle quickly shook her head. Why were they behaving so strangely? I looked over to Albert. Tears were beginning to well up in his eyes. His eyes were empty. He looked broken at the mention of Dylan. I had said something very wrong. What could have happened to Dylan?