Silver Skeletons: Book 3 The Rose Tree Chronicles

Chapter Five: And Thus Began a New War

"As stated in Article 1, Section 1 of the Law of Noelle, all Persons possess inherent, God-given rights further specified in Sections II-V. However, because a Slave is not a Person, a Slave does not bear the same God-given rights bestowed upon Persons."

Three days later, on Sueño 14th, King Darren had nearly finished getting dressed in light blue and lavender when the courier delivered a message from whom Darren believed to be King Klaris. He dismissed his footman and read the script to himself. Rein had spent most of the past three weeks reading Polaris's journal at the palace while she waited for this response. Now that it had arrived at last, she watched impatiently as King Darren grew angrier and angrier the further he read through the letter. Why couldn't he read anything out loud?

Rein had managed to find the letter that Queen Ariana sent to Count Rallian. She read it in his study and confirmed that sure enough, Ariana was the mastermind of this entire charade. However, Rein was unable to find the letter that was currently in the king's quivering hands until this moment. Now curiosity grasped her by the throat as she craved to know what Rallian had the nerve to write to the king.

Rein watched as Darren's hands trembled harder until finally, he crushed the parchment in his fists.

"Send in Polaris!" he barked. The courier bowed and left hastily to do his king's bidding.

Not long after the demand, Polaris casually entered the royal bedchamber dressed in a dark purple shirt and gold vest. Prince Myrdor, the eldest of the three princes, followed curiously behind the royal advisor dressed in dark blue and gold. This seventeen-year-old heir was eager to prove his worthiness to the throne now more than ever since he would be eighteen by the end of the year. At that age, the king would have the option to hand the crown to his son, or remain king for another eighteen years. King Darren had already made it clear that should Prince Myrdor prove himself worthy, he would gladly hand the crown down to him.

Without a word, King Darren thrust the letter at Polaris, who took it calmly and scanned the contents.

"This is the same handwriting," he said.

"Read it, Polaris," Darren demanded.

Polaris sighed and, to Rein's utmost delight, read the letter out loud.

"'I understand the concerns which you've expressed and of course, they are expected. I confess I have eyed your country secretly for years, and it is flattering to know that I have been so successful in keeping my desires silent. That is all you need to know on the subject and I refuse to answer any more questions regarding it. As for your second concern, it is true that as of late I've had my scribe write all my documents due to a recent injury to my wrist after taking a nasty fall in my chamber. The miracle worker promises recovery in a matter of five weeks from the time this letter is written. Until then, you will have to tolerate the foreign handwriting and trust that this is an honest message from myself. I am still waiting for a response to my first letter and I am not a patient person when it comes to such matters. His Royal Majesty, King Klaris of Saíd.'"

Polaris heaved a heavy sigh as he folded the letter back up and attempted to flatten the crinkles that the king had created. He hardly knew what to think, let alone what to say. When he finally looked up from the document in his hands, he noticed that King Darren and Prince Myrdor were both watching him intently, expecting a response of some kind. Polaris handed the letter back to the king.

"I see."

"Well?" King Darren was not satisfied with this simple reply. "What have you to say to that?"

"In all honesty, Your Majesty," Polaris answered, "this does not offer me enough evidence to alter my previous conclusion. Still, nothing adds up. For instance, where did Klaris get word of Nadia so quickly? It's not as if it only takes a couple of hours to travel from Noelle to Saíd, and you only learned of her existence the night before. There is a vital piece missing from this puzzle, Your Majesty. I stand by my judgement and insist that you avoid a war until we receive more answers."