The Fallen Throne

Chapter 3 ✦ Catalyst

The throne room is large, with walls that meet high ceilings with beautiful chandeliers.

Lancaster leans against one of the majestic walls of the throne room, eyes closed and deep in thought. His arms are crossed, his sword dangling lazily at his side. Beside him, the large open arch window allows tiny bits of twilight rays into the room. The room is bright and outstanding, but never enough to compete with the twilight rays that form incandescent brilliance more beautiful than that of the chandeliers.

There are occasional sounds of tapping that make him frown. Once they stop, though, the quiet never returns -- for clattering sounds take their place.

He rubs his temples. "Your highness," he sighs.

"Hmm?" Alaina says, though her mind isn't really present at all. She has been twiddling with decoratives or artifacts she could find in the throne room, tracing their ancient designs absently. She gets bored from time to time, thus occasionally walking towards the open arch window, tapping her fingers on the windowsill as she stares blankly into the sun setting over the horizon.

At times like this, Lancaster stays by the princess's side. She is back in the castle safely, but he knows better than to leave her alone.

"I know what is on your mind, and what is bothering you," he starts. He glances over at Alaina, who is now beside him, her head resting on one of her arms that are spread across the windowsill.

"I know you do," she says, sighing as she stops tapping the windowsill.

"And I am sure you know very well that the outcome is final, whatever the kings' decisions are."

She sighs again. "I know."

He steals a glance over at her again. "But rest assured. I am sure the kings would not agree to the proposal."

Alaina lifts her head to look at Lancaster in the eye. "But what if they do?"

Lancaster is silent. He honestly doesn't know how to respond to her question, probably because he didn't think that the negative outcome would be an option. To him, he thinks that it would be impossible for the kings to accept such a proposal. It is a mere preposterously packaged idea, with no support, only empty lies.

Hearing no reply, Alaina finds herself staring yet again over the horizon, at the sky with a mixture of the colours red, orange, yellow, blue and even hue of purple. The sun is no longer visible, long gone; and in its place the moon shall take over not long later. "They wouldn't, just like what I told the man back in the city centre."

Not tearing her eyes away from the setting sky, she nods lightly as a gesture of assuring him, though part of her feels that she's saying it to assure herself -- hoping that her seemingly serene words can calm her chaotic mind.

As she fixes her gaze onto the beautiful sky, she can't help but think that the most beautiful things never last forever; just like how she'd only briefly turned away to look at Lancaster for a moment, and in a blink of an eye, she'd missed the sunset. In a flash, the sun is now gone, as the night gradually crawls in.

"Your highness," Lancaster says, pulling Alaina away from her thoughts. "If the unfortunate -- you and I and even everyone else in Theia apparently know which outcome is -- should happen, just remember that I shall always be by your side."

"As a knight?" she questions, but it is rather posed as a challenge.

"As a friend."

She smiles. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

"And in which the turn of events are not to our favour, it is a problem for the future, if a bright one still exists, of course," he says, trying to make her feel better. "And so we should deal with matters at hand now, in the present."