Chapter 9

Queen Isabel

I feared who would step through the door when my servant left her place by the wall to answer the knock. My foreboding was answered when a Unicorn strode forth, his coat as white as the snow in winter.

The chief of their tribe was a rare guest, but the sound of hooves against the tiles as he crossed my audience chamber was familiar enough to send quivers up my spine. He halted in front of me and bowed.

“I come, Your Highness, to offer my counsel as you have summoned me.”

His eyes glistened in the dark hall. Hesitation must have flickered on my face, and I was grateful for the darkness that hid it. I lowered my voice as I spoke,

“Did you come to betray me as your race betrayed the world, Almerious?”

He didn’t flinch at my words.

“It brings me pain that you would think of us that way. My ancestors only did what was necessary to protect this world. The peace their actions brought has lasted for millennia”.

He slowly lifted his head, and I could see the flames dancing in his eyes as he spoke.

“Would you not have done the same were you in their situation? You would not bring ruin and destruction to the world you hold dear, would you?”

His words were as sharp as a whip, and it cost me all my strength not to turn my gaze away. I would not succumb to the ones who brought ruin to this world. I would not let the darkness I’d seen in the Mirror settle on me. But my face must have betrayed my hesitation because he continued,

“What is the price for our actions, Your Highness? Who can tell if our choice was right? Only future generations have the right to judge.”

He lowered his head again and added,

“Please, don’t let us quarrel, Your Highness. I come with counsel.”

He concluded the conversation, leaving me no chance to respond. I wished Cat were by my side. The Unicorn would never have dared to speak to me this way had she been present. But she wasn’t here. Had it been a mistake to send her away to look for Sara when her kin gathered around me like vultures on a carcass?

I glanced at him, and his eyes fell on me. He didn’t avert his gaze. He knew I needed him. Had his race not possessed the knowledge I sought to purge the evil of this world, I would have destroyed them a long time ago. But his traitor tribe still preserved parts of the knowledge from the old days before the mighty empires fell into barbarity, and the Unicorn’s Peace wiped out what remained of our past glory.

I nodded, and he spoke,

“I have news about the Southern Provinces. Your Champions have gained experience, and the latest graduates are ready to rule. I have personally chosen those worthy of this task. The nation you want to build is taking shape. “

I smiled despite myself. Finally, some favourable news. The people would see the bright future I had promised them: peace, unity and prosperity. A future worth fighting for.

“I thank you, Almerious. We will celebrate the inauguration with the new moon.”

I hoped that Cat had returned by then to see what we had built together.