Labyrinth: Into the Malignant Book 2

Vagary

Elliana

The loss of my grandmother hung over my head for the longest time. The kingdom faced many losses besides my grandmother as well. My wing of the castle was destroyed along with the staff that tended to that area. I mourned the lives of many, but the most important besides my grandmother was just big enough to fit in my hand. My precious friend Cup seemed to have perished in the destruction with the staff.

The reconstruction would take time, but the conference leaders seemed to understand the future time frame. The kingdom would come first seeing as they needed homes quickly. The High Kingdom castle would have to wait because of its shortened staff and few occupants. Out of the five kingdoms, only two were damaged, the High Kingdom and Malignant. The Goblin city, Sina's, and Hedian's kingdoms were spared the views of war.

The biggest impact in damage of the crown and ground was for the future would be the Malignant. Thus far in the conference the leaders have been unable to determine the future leader of the Malignant. The Malignant was to be renamed and re-crowned for the better of all the kingdoms. Much arguing took place with the topic of the re-crowning. There would be much disagreement in most cases. Many of the creatures in the Malignant desired a new crown, but few were willing to go through with any plan we set on the table. Fortunately, the Malignant had agreed to be under the High Kingdom. My father would choose who would rule the Malignant and he will never be able to please the entire population.

In a more private conference, my father invited his siblings, Desben, Edoneon, and Leneon along with Leegan and I. We were to discuss the death of the King of the Malignant. His death was a very odd mystery. The arrow used to shoot him down belonged to neither kingdom. No one saw the arrow fly. No one saw who shot the killing blow. It was as if the death shot came from thin air. Its crafter was incredible after examination of the craftsmanship, but no creature had the trademark on the arrow. Perhaps it was for the best that the arrows stayed a mystery because of Edoneon. He kept a firm face, but his fingers would dance over the table when talking about his father's murderer.

It was difficult to watch Edoneon, my unrelated uncle go through such a difficult time after the war. His entire family was wiped out, his love was unconscious, and his loyalty was challenged by many who assumed he would turn into his father. The night Dream woke up was a joyous day for all the royal families who understood Edoneon's predicament. In an instant, Edoneon had a hope in his eyes. It had been too long since the last time he smiled. Much to everyone's pleaser, Edoneon and Dream were to be wed upon the day that Edoneon's kingdom was rebuilt and standing tall.

I spent most of my time either being with Dream while Edoneon and my father were out doing their rounds, or with my Intangible. With time, he was accepted into the family despite his background in the Malignant or the condition of his poisonous skin. Linthia was the most difficult to remind that she was not allowed to touch his skin. She was the little rebel who wanted to do everything she was told not to do.

My Intangible was nervous around other creatures and preferred to stay in his room or work in the forest. His broad build was easily spotted in the castle and the reaction to him upon being spotted was either that of a celebrity or criminal. He hated attention, but that was all he got. On multiple occasions he had stolen me away from Dream to take me to the forest. We would spend afternoons lounging in the trees to get away. It didn't take long for my father to do a random round around the forest with his sword drawn when my Intangible and I went to relax.

With my father's possessive abilities faced towards me, he was unable to see how Leegan was taking an interest in a girl for the first time in... well forever. I had spotted him in the gardens with the girl. He was speaking with her animatedly as she inspected all the flowers with her hands. It took me a while to figure out why exactly she would feel each flower until she turned around. She was a taller girl with black hair to her mid back. She was wearing a light blue, almost grey dress. Her eyes had a pale covering over beautiful blue orbs. She was blind.