Power in the ease of death

Short Story: Power in the ease of death

"I am the Queen and you are my subject!". A fearless woman was screaming at a young commoner for nothing. He stole bread because he needed to feed his family, he did not want to commit a crime. But that did not matter to Avalon Weston, the Queen of Araphin. She was cruel and no soul would like to be married to her, but many wanted to use her power for their own will. Sadly enough Avalon knew that and that's why she was an alone ruling Queen, you could say, she was a virgin. 

"Please, your Majesty, I'm begging your greatness to forgive me!". The boy was still young and hopeful, but he did not know what the real world was like. Every single person present in the courtroom knew how these things end. Blood scattered everywhere. But today the Queen was still in a good mood, as she let him go home with only one finger chopped off as punishment.

"Lady Enya, come with me to my bedchamber, we still have something to discuss about the upcoming ball. And everyone else, get back to work, your job is to serve me and not just to stand around!", with a dark undertone and two quick claps with her hands, everyone knew to better not make her mood any worse or they can say hello to the rats in the dungeon. 

Lady Enya Cortiz was a highly respected lady-in-waiting from Queen Avalon, thats why she was also trusted a lot by the Queen. You could say she had a word in almost every decision made in the court. Some rumors are spreading of them being secretly together, but that is just some speculation that the maids and cooks talk about when the higher ranked people in the castle are not present. It would make sense, the reason for why she wouldnt marry a king for her country. Some say they saw Enya walk into the bedchamber of Avalon in the middle of the night.

As soon as Queen Avalon and Lady Enya wanted to walk out of the courtroom, the ground began to shake and it almost felt like an earthquake. Avalon stopped for a second and listened closely to what was happening, but then was rushing out of the room, a quick glance at the guards was enough for them to know to be ready no matter what, leaving Enya behind and telling her to wait for her in her room. When Avalon was on a mission without Enya it could only be bad news, because she obviously didn't want her to get hurt. Every other Servant or guest of the royal house that was present in the room except the guards who had to hold still, was rushing to the windows, trying to see if the sound came from outside. And there you could see over 20 men on horses, riding towards the castle gate. They did not look like they were here in peace or for negotiations.

"We demand to speak to the Queen!", the leader of the group was shouting like he was using every little breath he had left in his throat. What they wanted exactly was a question for everyone, except the queen. From the courtroom window you could see how she was talking to the leader and inviting him into the castle, but also by pointing at the swords of his men. She probably did not want any bloodshed. As soon as the other men were putting their swords back she walked with the leader and his followers inside the castle and probably to a secret conference room, servants or guards were not allowed to know about. Right after the Queen was nowhere in sight anymore, the loud whispering began and new rumors started to spread. Spreading rumors is apparently the only thing that is amusement for the servants or guards.

Later in the afternoon, Queen Avalon was walking calmly back into the courtroom with a steady step, but not together with the leader or with Enya. She slowly made her way up to her throne and sat down in silence. 

Not a single thing or person was moving and everyone was waiting for the Queen to speak. She just looked straight ahead, no one being able to guess where and what she looked at or what she was thinking. How everyone must have dreamed of being able to read minds at that moment. Suddenly a young man came in, stepping up to her throne and whispering something in her ear. Probably her secret messenger no one knew about. She always had her ways around the kingdom. She even had secret lady-in-waitings no one was supposed to know about, but some maids who cleaned her bedchamber saw them once talking to her in a trustful way. They were her so-called "Ravens'', because they see everything, but no one ever sees them in action. Only a few servants who know about this, know to better keep their mouth shut, to not mess with the queen.

Avalon was clearing her throat and was probably thinking about how to form a good explanation about what happenend. But not as usual with her strong, powerful face looking straight ahead, you could now see disappoinment and terrifiedness in her eyes.

As a Queen she was not allowed to show her true emotions and had to stay strong for her country, because as soon as she would show any weakness, other kingdoms would try to use this and attack her country and take away her crown.

Finally she spoke, with a loud voice, trying to push the pain away. 

"Lady Enya... is dead".