The Red Queen's Daughter: Book One

Chapter 25: I Haven't Stopped Crying Ever Since

Before I start the chapter, I just wanna say, thanks for reading my story, and I'm going to try my best to try to make this chapter really long!

Maddie

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I wake up late, I check the clock. 12:07pm. I groan, remembering what lies ahead for me today. Battle. With Alice.

Mother knows of the battle. Nate told her.

Charlotte knows.

Everyone knows.

But I'm the only one that knows that deep down inside of me, I'm horrified.

I stand and put on a black dress, describing my feelings for the day. Sad. Scared. Upset.

I walk down to mother's room. I knock on the door. She opens it, sorrow on her face when her eyes meet mine. She hugs me. I hug her back. I squeeze my eyes shut, I will not let her know how scared I am, she'll be even more scared if she finds out I am.

"Come with me," she says, walking to what I guess is the armory. She opens up the doors and stands in front of some armor. She turns around. "Put on this armor, Nicole," she says quietly. She leaves the room so I can put it on. After I have, I see my reflection in the glass cases that hold the armor. My eyes go out of focus on me in the glass and see the knives encased in the glass. Perfect sight for me.

The armor. It's silver with a huge spade engraved into the chest plate. It's beautiful armor, yes, but not for battle. It should be just for decoration. No. It has to be worn into battle. I don't put on the headpiece, I tried it on and it's just- uncomfortable. Too tight. I shouldn't be thinking about that though. I open the door for mother to see me. She frowns, seeing me. She knows why I'm wearing this.

"Here's a special bow and arrows for you," she says, handing me a steel bow with swirls engraved into it. The arrows are made of steel, if I'm not wrong. It's a little heavier than wood, but I can handle it. "Thanks, mom," I whisper. "Can I go practice?"

She nods. I walk out the doors of the castle, and to the orchard. I start shooting apples out of trees. After I'm satisfied with my shooting, I sit down on a dead tree trunk. I put my hand on my cheek, freezing it. I take my hand off my cheek. I look around after hearing a noise. I ready an arrow. After seeing it's Nate, I put down down the arrow and put it back into the sheath.

Nate's decked out in armor, too. But there's an engraving of a chess piece in his chest piece instead of a spade.

"I knew I'd find you here," he says.

"Well, you were right," I reply.

"You're going to live through this battle, Nicole."

"I don't know."

"Listen to me! You're going to live!"

"I don't know, moonrise isn't that far away. It's three. And since it's winter now, the moon will be at its highest at like six or seven."

"Yes, you're right. But you will live, believe me."

"Fine, I believe you, but what if- you don't? Or Charlotte, or Danny, or Erin or Nick?"

"We will live, believe it."

"Okay."

***

It's late, I start walking down my stairs and walk to the Red Castle. Nate, Charlotte, Danny, Nick and Erin all walk behind me. As does all of the White Army. Mother stands on the balcony watching us walk away. It's against her vows to hurt anyone.

We reach the Red Castle at Moonrise. Alice walks out the front doors wearing black armor and the whole entire Red Army walking behind her. Perfection.

I have my sheath over my shoulder and a bow with an arrow readied at hand.

She meets me eye-to-eye. "You kept your promise. Not much of a promise, but I'll take it." she says. I narrow my eyes at her. "At least I have more things to do than terrorize everyone I see," I say with a sarcastic smile.

She narrows her eyes, purses her lips, and walks back to her army. I won that.

"You gonna start the battle anytime soon?" I yell to her.

"Ha! I'm waiting for you!" she yells back.

"Okay," I say, shooting a knight next to her. This starts it.

I shoot five knights until I'm pinned down. I see a nearby knife. I grab it and send it straight through the knights arm. He realeses my arms. I stand and grab the knife out of his arm. I throw it forward, hitting a Red Knight right in the heart. I smile, feeling energized after that hit.

I shoot a lot more until Alice is only left. I look around, seeing dead bodies of White and Red Knights littering the battlefield. I have my minor injuries, too.

"I'm the only one left, huh?" Alice says.

"Guess so," I yell back.

"Well, I wonder who I should use my last knife on," she says, flipping her knife in her hand. No one's left but Charlotte, Nate, a few Knights, Erin, Danny, and me. I shed some tears right now thinking of who she could hit.

All of a sudden, she sends a knife soaring through the air. I don't know who it hit. I turn around and basically die at the sight.

***

It's been a year since Nate died. I haven't stopped crying ever since. I cry in my sleep, remembering the funeral. I watered the flowers with my tears pretty much. I searched remedies, spells, and potions, but nothing worked. When I lost all hope, I threw the book off my balcony, letting it soar through the air and crash on the ground.

"Nicole, I'm worried sick about you! Everyone is, please get out of this trance of sorrow, please, for us!" Charlotte says to me, sitting on the foot of my bed with Danny, Erin, Nick, and Charlie. They've tried to turn my sadness upside down, but nothing has worked.

"Nicole, it's been a year, and spells and potions haven't worked. I'm worried sick about you. We are," Charlotte continues.

"I've told you all a million times, I won't stop crying until I avenge Nate!" my voice rising into a yell.

"Nicole, you've driven yourself crazy. You know Alice is already dead. You know we went and killed her one night." Danny says.

"I feel like I should've, though! I loved him!" I yell. I put my hands to my face.

"Nicole, there's only one way to bring him back, and it's way too dangerous, we won't let you do it."

"Let me! Tell me what it is and I'll do it!"

Danny and the rest of them exchange a glance.

"The task, it's hard, Nicole," Charlotte says.

"I don't care!" I yell.

"You have to travel someplace far away from here, to find him. You've heard of the Soul Kingdom. Where the King is Death. Nate lives there. You have to retrieve his soul. It's so complicated, I don't even know how to describe it. But here's what you do. You travel there, find Nate, and bring him back here, I don't even know how hard it is. If you choose to do this, one of us is coming with you," Danny says.

"I'd do anything to get him back, so, yes, I agree, I'll do it," I say with full confidence. I don't know how hard it'll be, but I'll do it.