Solace and Nox: A New Light

Chapter 13

It was uncommon to have two missions in one swing, but it wasn't unheard of.

Cytra was actually kind of impressed that Moldark thought up such a devious plan. He used the first assassination to draw out the king's guard, so the castle would be mostly clear for Cytra to target one of the king's loved ones. To top it all off, she got her revenge on Jitlan. Moldark made it possible for everyone to win... except King Lotharius, that is.

Cytra waited patiently outside for the king's family. He had his wife, who lived with one of his sons. After the war against the Kresallis broke out, he sent her to his oldest son, Prince Laris, to keep her out of the line of fire. The line of fire just so happened to be the place she was returning to.

Should have kept her away, Cytra thought to herself.

Queen Jivete was Cytra's next target. She was the perfect target, seeing that Lotharius cared so much for her. He knew that the castle would constantly be attacked, and Moldark's attack proved that. If she had been in the castle at that time, Moldark would have killed her himself. But why was Lotharius bringing her back to the castle? Especially since he knows it's not safe.

Cytra scouted the carefully guarded group of loved ones. The Queen was in the front with her own personal Elite Guard. Even with the king's guard gone, this was going to be a difficult mission.

If anyone gets in your way, get them out of your way, Moldark's voice echoed in her mind.

Among the crowd were King Lotharius's two daughters, their husbands, and their children. They weren't as well known, due to their brothers' reputations. Prince Laris, being the firstborn was famous among the Shodon community. His two other brothers, Urien and Hawkin, were also well known, and due to the three reputations, their sisters seemed to be overlooked.

That's what made the queen such an amazing target.

When the Queen and her daughters were safely in the castle, Cytra propelled herself toward the second floor balcony, just above the front door, and slipped through the doors. The hallway she entered was dimly lit by candles. Down the hall was the staircase that the Queen, and Princesses would inevitably use.

Cytra slipped into the shadows and disappeared completely. Although the hallway was empty, there was no room for error. If she failed this mission, Moldark would have her head. It was the one thing that held her back from the decision in the first place. She knew how dangerous her master was, and was rightfully scared of the monster.

After a few minutes, as Cytra had predicted, they came up the stairs.

"Princesses, this shall be your floor," one of the guards explained. "Go ahead and choose from any of the bedrooms on this floor. They are all unoccupied at the moment, so feel free to choose. Your families shall stay with you on this floor. Queen Jivete, we have a special room for you on the third floor."

Two of the guards continued up the stairs with Queen Jivete tailing them, while the princesses and their families meandered on that floor.

Cytra cursed under her breath. She should have known the queen would be on a higher floor. What was she thinking? Now she had to wait for the princesses to go to their rooms, with their families, before she could leave the shadows. Would she be able to hold her power that long?

The older of the two sisters, Princess Alycie, had two sons, one about the age of eight, and the other couldn't have been older than three. The younger sister, Princess Aliss, was only recently married, and did not yet have kids.

Princess Aliss and her husband immediately chose a room to sleep in. Aliss didn't even regard her sister. Princess Alycie stayed in the hallway, talking to her husband in a hushed tone. The eight year old child admired the castle's architecture, while the the three year old ran wild. Cytra could not remember the names of the young children, but she couldn't help but admire the younger boy. Such innocence... Cytra was like that once.