The Shattered Night

53| Piper

The queen did not notice me following her.

At least, that was what I had deducted based on my own reasoning. From what I had seen, Evelina had not turned even once to look and question if there had been a shadow behind her. The closest reason to why, was most likely because she had too much on her mind.

No one can emphasize how much of a shock our previous king's death had been to everyone. Even the royal court themselves didn't see the murder coming.

Up until this point, after so much time had passed, still no one was able to get a hint of who the assassinator was. High ranked officials and detectives were called out from far and wide around the country. None succeeded. Based on that judgement, I could say without hesitation, that Queen Evelina was not prepared for the throne to come to her so soon. Sure, it was already known that our old king would be overthrown sooner or later. Secret conspiracies were already plotted against him. But no one ever figured out it would be at the peak of our dynasty's end.

The Blood Moon is rising. Even without looking at it, I can tell that our time has run out. Hope is slowly starting to ebb away once again. When the scarlet red finally covers up what remains of the milky white, the night will shatter. All will be lost.

In the depth of the darkness, it was then when I had figured that this would be the perfect time to escape the wrath of the kingdom. I had been back in my chambers pondering on the words of my brother, when the queen had slipped away like a shadow down the halls. It was already late at night, and unless the situation was urgent, the ruler of the throne would not need to leave her restful peace. I had found the timing suspicious enough, so my guts told me to stalk the queen and her motives. Turns out that in the very end, Evelina had decided to meet up with our enemy, a Fallen Angel.

They had struck a deal. A deal that could end the world. Everything around me seemed to have stopped in place the moment I had seen the silky silhouette of the Banished One. Nothing else mattered except for the scene that was unraveling in front of me. Was our queen crazy? Did she not learn anything from our centuries old history, as well as human relationships with the Angels?

I thought nothing could get any worse. But then of course, my own ruler had to bring up the idea of New magic. It was then, when I finally realized that fate had really been sealed. If even Queen Evelina decided to stand with our enemies, the humans had no hope. Who could lead us out of the light that the darkness had decided to swallow?

Standing outside the courtyard of the kingdom this very moment, all my thoughts spiral and swirl and crash into each other. I cannot make out the difference between reality and my nightmares. They all are the same thing. Everything I have ever dreaded has started to come true.

I know that there might be no chance of hope left, but if there is anyone I can confide in about the truth of darkness, there is only one person to go to. I have to get to her. I have to uncover answers. Why is this happening to us? Why after all this time?

And no matter how much I dread the realization, no matter how big of a risk I have to take, the shattering of the night, has to be stopped.

_

"I have been waiting for you. It seems that the girl has finally come to her senses."

The voice coming from the Lady of Darkness enters my ear like a melody of a siren's song. Even without her telling me, I know that this is the title for the woman who calls herself Adaria. Such a sweet name for a person who once had been sane. It turns out that power corrupts the best after all.