Blood Curse - Red Queen Fan Fiction

Chapter 14

A/N: A chapter waiting to be posted for ages! This contains one of the first scenes I envisioned for Blood Curse and I hope you'll like it, despite being told by my OC ;-)

Dear anonym, you'll meet your OC Hope Lerolan in this chapter. Thank you for allowing me to include her.

Cassandra POV

I kneel on the floor of the queen's temple when itbegins. It starts as a subtle vibration, even noticeable in the marble stones.But when I open my eyes and turn my head to the outside and its booming noises,I see buildings falling in the distance.

"My queen," I say quiet-, but urgently.

Iris doesn't jump up like I do. She finishes her rituals, bowing respectfully to the icons. She walks to me with serene grace, no rush disturbing her regal demeanor. That doesn't mean she's unaware about what's at stake. While I learned about the planned assaults for today from my Scarlet Guard connections, Iris has her own spies and intelligence. And with the foregoing attacks in the last days, it was only a matter of time. Not that Iris's face betrays any unsettlement. She's ever-calm, ever-unaffected but I know her to be as relentless as the sea. If Mare Barrow, the Lightning Girl, is the thunder, Queen Iris is the eye of the storm and I'm left to wonder what role she'll take on today.

Of course I passed the news of Iris's pregnancy to the Scarlet Guard, being a reliable spy. That information should be highly interesting, as the queen hasn't made a public announcement although she begins to show, and only close-standing courtiers and curious servants know about the heir at the moment. Apart from the Lakelander royals, I suppose. Maybe the Guard's awareness will work in Iris's favour, I tell myself.

I follow the queen out of the temple doors and the cold November air hits me like needles in my skin. I retrieve my jacket. The temple is spaciously and openly built, but it's warm in comparison, despite the Calores' and Iris's proclaimed resilience to the cold.

"Captain," Iris stops in her tracks and looks at me over her shoulder. "Who - or what - did you pray to?"

I startle. Hesitate visibly. It shouldn't matter what I say, not today. I could use one of my usual evasions and be done wit it but Iris needs to think it costs me. So I can just as well tell the truth.

"My mother puts great faith in our ancestors," I reply. "Or rather ancestresses. She researched them a lot and well, came to the conclusion they watch over us still. As in benevolent spirits or ghosts." I shrug unceremoniously. Iris turns away and continues her way to the main palace, her long train dragging on the grass and getting wet. I must have disenthralled her, with my answer revealing nothing about my own faith. How I flout the enormous honour of accompanying the queen during her religious services - by not telling her that I prayed for the downfall of the monarchy as well as for my father, his wife and my little sister who live down in the city of Archeon.

"I wish both of us see our prayers answered," the queen says once we reach the main building.

"I'd hope so, my Queen," I agree with a bow, fully aware how unlikely that will be.

The security personnel doesn't share their queen's serenity and assurance. They fuss and dart about, stressed and shouting, clearly unsettled and unused to real attacks, and still shocked from the last palace attack during the royal wedding. No improvements are made when the lights go out. Already I hear whispers of the Lightning Girl. As far as I know, she isn't going to come here but doesn't say much about a woman like her. Confronted with the possibility of Mare Barrow in Whitefire in recent councils, the king showed no reaction, he rather froze. He agreed to the suggestion to install electricity-free luminous elements and that was that on his side.