"So you're the girl they call Queen," the prisoner said. He spat at me
"Who are you?" I ask him. The key to talking to rebels is acting completely emotionless. They will try and break you, and if they do, you lose everything.
"Someone who sees through your lies," the prisoner replies. His head is hanging down on his neck, and his right side is almost completely covered in blood.
"Who are you?" I insist. He chuckles.
"Did you really think you could get an answer out of me, missy?" He spits at me again and laughs.
"I won't ask again," I say, putting my hand on my sword. "Who are you!"
"Like I'd tell you," he rolls his eyes. I draw my sword and slash his left cheekbone. Not enough to bleed to death, but enough to hurt. "They weren't wrong when they said you were feisty," he continued. I hate the word feisty. It makes me feel weak.
"Who is 'they'?" I ask bringing my sword level with his neck.
"The man that deserves the throne. You are too weak. You will lead this country to its doom," he glares at me. This causes me to lose it. How dare he question my claim to the throne. In doing so, he is questioning generations of kings, my ancestors.
"WHO ARE YOU?" I shout at cut his chest. He grunts in pain.
"What do you want?" I say as I bring my sword back, ready to stab him. No one had ever made me this angry before. I want to end him.
"Now, now, missy. You wouldn't kill me, would you?" He scoffs.
"Try me," I say.
"Then you would prove me right. That you are a heartless monster who would kill me in cold blood," he glares at me, darling me to disagree. If I kill him now, it would prove the rebels right. If I let him live, I would bend to their rules. I'm trapped.
"I can't kill you in cold blood," I say. The prisoner smirks. "But I can put you to death for treason and plotting against the Queen."
"You need witnesses. It's just the two of us. People would call your crazy," he says.
"Guards, be my witnesses. I, Arabella, Queen of Luania, sentence this man to death by hanging. His sentence shall begin tomorrow," I announce. I see a glint of fear in the prisoner's eyes. "Unless you have more to tell us," I add. The prisoner stares at me.
"Please, I have a family! A wife! Kids!" He yells. I finally got under his skin. I smile proudly.
"Then maybe they can tell me something. I'll be sure to pay them a visit," I start walking towards the door.
"Lord Fallik," the prisoner gasps. I turn around.
"What about Lord Fallik?" I ask him
Lord Fallik of Aubin lives on the eastern side of the country. That is also where most of our farms are. This prisoner is from Esta, a neighboring province to Aubin.
"He is the leader of the movement. He sent me here," he cries. "Just please don't hurt my family. My name is Jacobson. Archer Jacobson. I'm from the Faylon village in Esta."
"Who hired you?" I ask him calmly, still holding my sword to his throat.
"I ain't no mercenary. I'm a farmer. Lord McCaffrey convinced me to join the movement. Said he would get my family more money. You see, my kids were starving. Then Lord Fallik told me to kill you. He said he would
give me thousands of coins. Please don't kill me," the prisoner begs.
"Congratulations Archer Jacobson, you won't die tomorrow." He sighs in relief. I can't let him go, he knows too much. I continue, "We need your information. And we won't hurt your family. Guards, start an investigation on Lord Fallik of Aubin and Lord McCaffrey of Esta and their activities. We will need evidence for a trial," I leave the cell and walk towards the rest of the castle.
"Do you believe him, your majesty?" A guard asks me.
"Not really, but this is the only lead we've had in months. I need those rebels gone," I tell him. I head back to my room.
In my room I sit on my desk. It is very cluttered, with maps of the kingdom and lots of books. With a lead, I can investigate for evidence. With strong evidence, I can kill the Lords Fallik and McCaffrey. I can be safe. My advisors need to know about this. I grab a piece of paper and write a letter, telling my advisors that I need to speak with them.
A maid enters my room with a cup of tea. Chamomile, my favorite. There are also chocolate cookies. If I could eat one thing for the rest of my life, it would be chocolate.
"Would you care for some tea, your majesty?" She asks me.
"Yes, thank you. Would you mind taking these letters to my advisors?" I take the tea and hand her the letters.
"Yes, of course your majesty," the maid hurries away. I bite off a bit of a cookie. The map in front of me shows all the provinces in our country. On the western coast, there is Brulon, Ocea, and Caslia. The northern mountains has Rothsburn, Stomin, and Col. The eastern slope is where the rebels live. Aubin, Esta, and Tirol are the only provinces we highly suspect to be home to rebels. Such a pity that the eastern slope is one of the most beautiful regions, and has so much bloodshed.
I read a scouts report from Tirol. Two months ago, we suspected Lord Hallin of rebel activity. The scout returned last night and I haven't had time to look at the report.
It says: As I crossed through the borders of the Middle lands, I noticed that the farther east you go, the poorer the farms get. Maybe one reason for why they rise up against the Queen. When I entered Aubin, I saw lots of soldiers stationed along the Aubin-Landor border. Landor seems to have not yet fallen to the rebels, but i advise the Queen to watch out for Aubin.
That would have been nice to know earlier. I continue reading the report.
I was stopped at the Aubin-Tirol border. They searched by body, horse, and bag. When they found nothing of importance, they let me go. The Queen must watch both Aubin and Esta as they fall under rebel influence. When I reached Tirol, they didn't let me pass. When I told them I was a farmer hoping to return to my family, they asked for my Tirolian citizenship card. As none of the provinces have citizenship cards, I refused. I fear the rebels are trying to make Tirol it's own country. I advise the Queen to keep an eye out for Tirol, Aubin, and Esta. The rebels are growing stronger by the day.
Reports like this stress me out. The rebels have been amassing soldiers along our borders, and we have been blind to it. I must bring this report up with my advisors at our meeting. The tea will help me calm down. It is chamomile, after all.
I lift my lips to the calming tea and drink.
This tea is stronger than usual.
It burns my throat. I can't breathe. What the hell? Then a realization dawns on me.
Poison.
My face becomes itchy and red. I run to the mirror. Little boils have started growing on my face and neck. My hands are shaking.
That maid poisoned me. A rebel, no doubt. How did she get past the guards? She will be put to death immediately.
I lose my balance. The ceiling is spinning. My body is freezing cold and boiled hot at the same time.
"Guards!" I try to scream. No sound comes out. I stumble over to the door. My vision is blurring. I use the last of my strength to slam into the door. The last thing I see is the ceiling.
Hey readers! What do you think happened to Arabella? Do you believe the prisoner?
Make sure to vote and comment, I really appreciate it!
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The Queen of Luania
Fantasy"A weak Queen is a dead Queen" When Arabella became Queen of Luania, she thought it was all ballgowns and dancing. 4 years later, she has learned that it is quite the opposite. As she and her allies play a complicated game of love, hate, peace, chao...
