The Amari War

Prologue

It had been a year and a half since the day I had officially taken my mother's place as Queen. To the rest of the world, she'd been Queen Scarlett, a noble Queen who helped the Coven heal from her mother Aurora's rule, who fought alongside her soldiers, and who had tragically died in battle, like a true warrior. To me, she was just my mother, who taught me what it meant to rule a kingdom and showed me the cost of the throne.

It had been a year and a half since I'd seen my mother off on her last battle. A year and a half since I'd watched her body burn on Pyre Rock. A year and a half since I'd felt the weight of her gold crown fall on my head. A year and a half since I'd addressed my people as their new Queen. Now it was time for me to lead them into the most important battle of my lifetime.

We were going to attack London. If we succeeded, England would be under our rule. One of the most important contenders in this war would fall. We might even win soon, if we could take London. But that was unlikely. Even with the magical skills that all of our soldiers could use, we were still vastly outnumbered. Why on Earth had I ever agreed to this?

It had been in a meeting with the current General, Mara. Even though I had more power on paper, as the Queen, she controlled the army, which made up most of our population. When she suggested that the benefit of attacking England's capital would be greater than the cost to us if we failed, I'd agreed, against my better judgment. If we failed, we wouldn't be conquered, but we'd lose a lot of soldiers. Yet I'd agreed. It was a rather stupid choice. But I couldn't back out now. Everyone was ready for war.

I glanced at the tapestry in my room, which depicted the smiling face of my mother. The crown on her head was studded with sapphires, rubies, and amethyst, the official colors of the Coven. She held a sword and an iron shield, which aside from having been her weapons of choice, symbolized her reputation as a warrior and a protector.

She'd successfully healed our people from the effects of her cruel mother's rule. But for me, it wasn't her crown or her weapons that were important. What was important to me was her. The tapestry failed to do her justice, of course, but it reminded me every day of the footsteps that I now had to follow in.

I turned away from the tapestry, forcing myself to walk toward the door of my room. It was nearly time for the daily army meeting, at the barracks, and I would have to address the army. I placed my hand on the hilt of my rykal, a thin curved sword that had been developed about fifty years ago. Today, I would be going into my first real battle.

As the sole heir to Scarlett's throne, I had never been in a real battle. Of course I'd trained and participated in tournaments, like every other girl in the Coven. And I was good at it; my skill allowed me to perceive an opponent's weaknesses and easily find openings. I'd never lost a battle, but then again, I'd never fought for real. I'd never been in a kill-or-die situation. Yet.

I hadn't wanted to join the battle. After what had happened to my mother, I hadn't been able to look at blood or injuries for months. Recently I'd been feeling more like myself again, but I had tried to avoid funerals. I wasn't sure how I'd do in a battle, where I'd be surrounded by carnage on all sides. But General Mara had recommended that I fight too, to show my people that, young as I was, I wasn't a coward; if nothing else.

The streets of the Coven were very quiet in the predawn light. Everyone was already at the meeting, waiting for me to address them and lead them into battle. I would be the least experienced person there; how did they expect me to take on any sort of leadership role? But that was just another drawback of being Queen.

I walked through the side door of the barracks, running up the stairs to the fifth-floor balcony, where General Mara was already waiting. I forced my hands to stop shaking, focusing only on what was directly ahead of me; a public address. I'd done this before. I would be fine. I pushed all thoughts of the coming battle firmly out of my mind.