Chapter One: The Escape
14 year old Aeria Blackheart led quite a life. Pretty much every single day of her life consisted of hiding her only chance of survival in the vast kingdom, her darkness. Her cousins often teased her of her last name, saying that she was a witch with a heart as black as the night, or that she had silver blood in her veins, turning to shades of black once it reached her heart.
Her parents, Queen Erin and King Edston II , were a particularly an odd couple. Queen Erin was a beautiful slim woman, with high cheekbones and prominent shoulder blades. Her eyes were large and blue, complete with a regal nose. Her mouth was tiny, as if words were scarce in them and her complexion was pale.
Personality wise, she was kind and loving, unlike Aeria’s father. King Edston II was a large, stocky man with a large nose. He was tall and gaunt with sunken black eyes and a long, ragged mustache. His eyes were almond shaped, and his brow was always furrowed. His subjects loathed him because of his countless cruelty toward his daughter and peasants. How the two found each other was a mystery yet to be solved. Aeria was clearly like her mother but she looked vaguely like her father. Aeria had long, layered black hair and large dark blue eyes, rimmed with long dark lashes, just like her mother. She was pale skinned, also like her mother.
But there was something special about Aeria. She possessed a beautifully dark magic, a forbidden sorcery in her kingdom. Her father must not know or he would surely hang her or much worse. Nothing like the “gifts” royals usually received, her mother, extraordinary healing powers, and her father, unusual strength. Her mother knew a long time ago, that her daughter had extraordinary talents as well. Queen Erin did not care that her daughter had a forbidden magic, she still loved Aeria, forbidden or not.
But one tainted day, King Edston II was plotting revenge against his enemies. He was frantically gesturing to his knights to attack, block, or charge, with accurate incisions and defensive stabs. With the enemy coming in close, King Edston II foolishly tried to trick them, even with the number 3:1, with enemy outnumbering them. He had planned to cut them off as they invaded the castle, but to do that, he had to let them close to the castle, carefully timing it. King Edston II, being the arrogant king he was, let them come too close. Queen Erin, in a tall winding tower, was casting healing spells to her kingdom’s army of knights. As the enemy invaded, they split into groups to close in on the royal family. Terrified, Aeria stayed, inclosed in her small room which seemed like a living hell. Black walls surrounded her, once blue but darkened by her wild magic. A nearby wolf howled, long and sorrowful. During this time, enemy knights surrounded the tower in which Queen Erin was casting her magic. These knights were trained to know common war sense; take out the healer first. A particularly brave squad of knights raced up the tower, and a handsome knight, Ashton, was left behind.
Meanwhile, Aeria was gazing out her window, staring horrified at the bloody battlefield before her. She blushed as a particularly handsome young knight stared at her, up in her window. She steeled her emotions, This is the enemy! You can not act like this! , Aeria thought to herself. With a sigh, she forced herself to shut her ebony window. She paced her room and thought, Surely the battle should over by now correct? All the others have only lasted half a day, a complete day at most! However, right as she thought this, her father fell forward, forfeiting the battle in grief. Queen Erin was slaughtered by an enemy knight who had lunged forward, right behind her. Aeria wondered why her father, with incomparable strength, forfeited and her brow furrowed in worry, she did not know what had happened to her mother yet as the tower was no in view of her bedroom window.
Her maid, Belinda, rushed to her room and pounded on Aeria’s door, yelling.
“Quick, Your Highness, please listen to me! You have to go. Her Majesty was slaughtered and she cannot go against His Majesty’s wishes of assassinating you anymore! You have to go!” the maid cried desperately.
“What why?! But-- I do not wish to leave! May I be slaughtered, I do not care!” she said, “My mother will protect me!”
“Your mother is dead. She was slaughtered by the many men who came here for battle.”
“...But, she cannot be. She was doing so well, you are lying!”
“No, I am not, His Majesty lost the battle due to the grief of losing your mother. I am so sorry Your Highness.” And with that word, Aeria collapsed with grief and sorrow, vowing to avenge her mother. To take revenge against her father, the same way that he slaughtered many men with his foolish decisions.
