The Legend of Lemur (Book 3) - Rise of The Desert Queen

Prologue: The Shifting Sands

(Summer of 2007)

A young woman dashed into the closest alleyway she could find and hid within it, catching her breath silently, as several armoured guards charged valiantly through the street.

"Where did she go!?" exclaimed one of the guards.

The guards looked left and right, and all around until one guard said, "Sir Alan, what are your orders?!"

The guard, who had gold armour, unlike his iron-armoured comrades, sighed with slight disgust and replied, "Search the entire city of Auroreus! Look everywhere possible! We cannot risk letting her escape. She poses a threat to the survival of the Desert Kingdom, and anyone around her!!! Queen Sahara wants her executed at once for witchcraft! We will search the entire kingdom if we need to! Now go!!!"

The guards saluted courageously and searched the area. One approached where the young woman was hiding and she reacted by grabbing the guards arm and then quickly muttered, "I demand you to kill your guard companions, and if anyone catches you, you will not speak of this, or remember this encounter, until your final breath."

The guard rigidly turned around and walked away from the alleyway towards the other guards. The young girl smirked as she watched the guard assault his comrades with such force that even his own body and armour began to deteriorate... then she looked at her hands and recalled the problem she had to face.

Queen Sahara wants me dead, the young girl thought. After she found out what I was capable of. What I can do...

The young girl looked back at the guard she had ordered, who had successfully killed two of his comrades before being restrained by the other three.

"This is work of the witch, Savannah Nile! Be on your guard! She must be here somewhere!"

Savannah, the young girl, rushed out the other end of the alleyway and took a secluded path towards castle within the heart of the Desert Kingdom.

Ever since I given myself the power to read minds, long ago, I learned that it was in the queen's best interest to dispose of me. She had a feeling that I could threaten her position as ruler... now her suspicions are fact. I didn't want to do it but...

Savannah looked at the castle, appearing on the horizon and smiled grimly.

To preserve my life... I have to kill the Queen.

Two guards had come within view of her and shouted, "It's her! Quick! Get her!"

Savannah exhaled sharply and said, "I guess the secret is out now, so there's no need to hide it anymore."

Savannah pulled out a stone from her satchel, and said, "I enchant this stone to immobilize anyone within 3 metres or less of it," before tossing it at the two guards.

The guards immediately froze in their tracks as they approached the stone, wide-eyed and bewildered.

Savannah continued to approach the castle steadily. When she got there, she was both relieved and surprised no guards had been at the castle to defend the Queen.

I guess the Queen isn't exactly battle smart, Savannah thought.

Savannah then entered through the empty front entrance, and when she got to the throne room, her previous justifications on the Queen were proven wrong. The Queen sat on her throne calmly as several guards filled the room, and numerous more approached Savannah from behind, cornering her.

"Give it up Savannah," Queen Sahara said, "You're only delaying the inevitable. You will die here, for your sorcerous deeds."

"Listen, I don't want any trouble," Savannah replied, "I just want to live my life."

The Queen cackled and spat, "Give up the charade! From the day you were born, I knew that you were destined to contest the throne. I could see the ferocity in your eyes. I had no real reason to rid of you then, but now... now child, your villainous deeds will be your ruin!"

Savannah looked dismayed at first, then laughed atrociously, which unsettled the guards.

"You saw through it... and I am trapped here," Savannah said, "Yes, I conspired to contest the throne... and you've given me the perfect opportunity to do so! You are trapped here as well!"

"Unlike you, witch, I am trapped here with the protection of my guards! Execute her now!"

Savannah grinned and disappeared in a swirl of sand.

"Where did she go!?" a guard said timidly.

"AAAAAAAAAGH!" shrieked Queen Sahara.

The guards quickly turned around and saw Savannah, with the Queen's neck in her grasp.

"Your Queen has failed you!!!" Savannah exclaimed, " She has always failed us!!! She let the poor die of hunger, and the rich live pampered lives!!! And now, like the fallen... she will reside within the sands!!!"

The Queen's body slowly shriveled away and became nothing more than a pile of sand and clothing in front of Savannah. The guards were petrified with fear.

"I am your Queen now! Queen Nile, of the Desert Kingdom!!! Things are going to change here!"

Sir Alan walked amongst the several guards, and appeared at the front of the crowd and ordered, "The Queen's last wishes... was for Savannah's execution! Live up to her final orders! Kill her at once!"

The guards yelled barbarously and began to charge towards Savannah in a frenzy of blind courage, when Savannah waved her fingers disapprovingly.

"This isn't the way to treat your new Queen!!!" she exclaimed as she threw on the Queen's crown, "You will all obey me! Every last civilian of the Desert Kingdom will fall under my command as long as this crown survives!"

Suddenly, the guards stopped in their tracks... in fact, the entire kingdom stopped. The bustling kingdom fell into a moment of overwhelming silence. The guards then looked up at Savannah with bright blue eyes, that resembled hers, and stared in awe.

"That's better," Savannah said, "Now bow!"

The guards and every civilian outside of the kingdom had bowed in reaction to Savannah's command, and she chuckled.

"As the Desert Kingdom's rightful ruler, you will forget everything about your previous queen, Queen Sahara! I am your ruler now!"

"Yes Queen Nile, we will happily oblige," said everyone in unison.

Savannah pondered melancholically for a moment, before continuing, "You will remember your lives the same, and live them just as you normally would... however, none of you will gain any thoughts on overthrowing me. You are all gifted the power of manipulating sand, I can control you from afar as long as you live. Do you understand!?"

"We understand."

Savannah sighed, and everyone's eyes dulled back to their regular colours. The civilians then tended to their regular duties as if nothing had happened.

Savannah then sat back in the throne and sighed heavily.

I finally did it. I gathered the courage to do it... only took my execution as motivation.

Savannah peered out the window at the soldiers marching out of the castle to guard the perimeters.

But... it's not enough.