Fallen Angel

The King's Revelation

The room held so much paper; it might as well be made of it. Large shelves held log books containing census records, lists of items imported and exported, and other things Leira could care less about. Papers were stacked into tall towers along the walls of the room. The two of them dug through them all; all she found was the names of every single servant and soldier to work in the castle; some were from several hundred years ago. Though she skimmed the pages, she noticed that Will’s name was not on the register. Odd…

 The records describing every trade made no mention of any rare gems. She found receipts from the purchase of Incendian machinery: two early airship models and some fire-powered generators. They also bought some expensive jewelry from overseas and new, updated weapons.

 They rummaged through every drawer, shelf, folder, everything. Leira was about to give up and look for some other method, until she found it. The only book she had not opened yet. It looked so delicate that she was almost afraid to pick it up, for fear it might crumble to dust in her hands. Gently, she turned to the first page, which read, “A Journal of Events at the Royal Palace”.  The date on the inside cover revealed that it had been written approximately three-hundred years ago, at least.

 Will, who was busy digging through some drawers, had not spoken much in the time they were in here. Usually he was the most talkative person she knew.  It seems he does know how to be serious every once and a while… she thought.

 “Will, come look at this,” she whispered, and held out the journal for him to see.

 “What is it?” he replied. He dropped some of the papers he was holding on the floor rather carelessly and came over to get a closer look.

 “This could definitely tell us if the crystal came here or not,” she explained, pointing to the date. His eyes widened excitedly and he quickly responded with, “Well what are you waiting for? Open it!”

 She nodded and set the book down on a desk, shoving papers over to make room. “They really need to consider cleaning up in here,” she commented.

 She flipped through some pages, skimming for any details regarding any peculiar events. It seemed as though this journal was from the perspective of some king from long ago. The first few pages were nothing exciting. They described various governmental issues and their grief at the battles fought. Leira noticed the mention of Luminaria; when this was written, news of the city’s destruction had reached them mere hours ago.

 What do you know; some nobles actually DO care…

 After that, she was able to tell that the writer was becoming more and more nervous. Every small noise made them jump, every event that took place in the castle or in town was an omen, and every person could not be trusted. It was not until they reached the end of the journal when they found the most useful entry.

 A strange woman came to the palace tonight. Her clothes were ragged and her hair was a mess; it was easy to tell that she had been through a great deal. She begged me to let her stay. I could not leave her out there in the cold so I showed her to a guest room and had the servants bring her some food. I asked her where she came from and was shocked to find that she came from Luminaria. I had heard that no one survived the attack on the city, so I was skeptical at first. She showed me a pendant with the emblem of the royal house of Luminaria engraved on it. It would have cost her a fortune, if she were an ordinary person. This simple item identified her as the queen herself.

 I wondered why someone like her had come to me of all people, seeing as we did not know each other very well. That was when she pulled out a gem, one the likes of which I had never seen before. Oh how it sparkled in the candlelight. It felt as though the candlelight was not needed to see it; it appeared as though it emitted its own warm light. She told me it was a fragment of a whole crystal, one her family had been charged with protecting for centuries.

 Then she told me that as its guardian, she was to hide it from her enemies. Luminaria had fallen and her people murdered. She told me this was the only thing she could do for them.

 This queen had come far, and experienced much in her travels. I was shocked to learn that she was dying; at such a young age too! Some time in her journey, she had contracted a disease of unknown origin. Suddenly I could tell; she appeared so fragile. She begged me to bury her with the crystal when her time came, in a tomb hidden wherever I chose.

 Of course, I agreed.

 Leira, eager to read more, turned the page over to read the next few entries until she found another satisfactory one.

 I fear sadness may live in this palace for all eternity. No one has smiled in days. A single woman was the cause of this. She was the sole survivor of the fallen city, Luminaria. Her name was Clarissa, and she passed away yesterday.

 She had been here for a month, allowing the disease to take her without a struggle. She refused any medicine, knowing that none of it would help her. She told me tales of her home. I would smile and listen politely, amazed by the stories. Occasionally she would smile; she was so very beautiful.

 I remained at her side as she died. I think she was grateful to me for it, for when her eyes closed and her body went limp, a soft smile had formed on her lips. She had grown so weary and exhausted. Her eyes were always filled with sorrow. I believe she longed for death as a release from this cruel world. If there is such a thing as life after death, I pray her soul finds happiness there.

 The architects I hired are in the process of building her tomb. I do not consider myself to be a very clever person, but I think this idea of mine is very ingenious. Nobody besides its builders will be able to locate it. That room that no one uses… It is fitting for a tomb; it will be underground. We have not decided how far yet, but it will be deep. No one will find it, no one…

“A room that no one uses,” Leira said, staring at the pages. Her heart raced with excitement; so the crystal really was here!

 “I’m glad he was so specific,” Will muttered sarcastically, “There are a lot of rooms in this palace, and a majority of them are rarely used.”

Leira frowned. “Why don’t you think of all the rooms that fit that description, and we’ll explore each one.”

 “We’ll be searching through quite a few rooms,” he added.

 “Who cares? We’ll just move fast.”

 “Oh alright; I suppose we could start with the old parlor on the first floor.”

 Leira turned off the lights in the room and they exited, closing the door behind them. The music from the festival had gotten so much louder that she could hear it from downstairs. It was a lively tune accompanied by the laughter of the dancers and chatter of the partygoers. It almost made her upset that they had to work instead of enjoying themselves. She wondered if the others had any luck.

 They snuck downstairs; making sure no one saw them. No one noticed as they scurried down the steps and nonchalantly blended into the crowd. Leira spotted Cora leaning against a wall, eying the dancers enviously. Kyle and Marissa were nowhere in sight.

 “How are we going to get into each room without someone noticing?” she spoke softly to her companion.

 “Let’s pretend we’re here to actually enjoy ourselves. Maybe grab some food or something, and then sneak off towards the old parlor.”

 She was surprised; that was actually a decent plan, especially coming from Will. If they went around inspecting every nook and cranny of the first floor, people would definitely wonder what they were up too. They need to be nonchalant, and pretend that they weren’t here for any other reason but to have a good time.

 Leira had no trouble keeping a cool head, but she began to feel tired of all this work. It was definitely going to be a long night.

---

A/N: That is all you be hearing of the nameless king. He served his purposes well.

Comments please? :D