Discussions of War

“Your Highness?”

Amante whirled around, looking over the gazebo-like structure’s railing to see Morbin, who looked puzzled and concerned.

“Are you alright? Why aren’t you in bed?” Morbin inquired.

“I’m fine, Morbin. I just needed some fresh air,” Amante assured him.

He didn’t look convinced. “If you aren’t feeling well—physically or mentally—I highly advise you to see a medic.”

“I said I’m fine.” She smiled at his concern. “I was unable to sleep, so I came out here to think.”

The captain nodded. “Well then… if there’s anything you need, please don’t hesitate to ask me or the guards. I know you’re in a rough place right now, especially with some of your advisors. I want you to know that the boys and I will always be ready to help.”

“Thank you,” Amante said softly.

Morbin nodded, bowed, and resumed his patrol of the palace halls, leaving Amante alone again. She stood there for a bit longer before returning to her quarters.

_____________________________________________________

The “sun’s” morning light came all too quickly for Amante, and she wrapped the bed sheets tighter around her. Did she really have to go out and interact with her advisors? But she didn’t want anyone to consider her a neglectful queen, so she finally swung her legs over the side of the bed and glanced at the mirror.

Amante was instantly reminded of last night’s events, and she grew tense. A sudden beep from the door to her chambers caused her to jump, but it was just one of the servant girls from the previous day—the one with black hair and amber eyes, whose name was Nakili.

“Your Highness, a letter has come,” Nakili said, bowing as she offered the young queen a brown slip of paper sealed with white wax.

Curious, Amante stood and crossed the room to the door, gingerly taking the paper. She carefully broke the seal, her eyes scanning the page.

Dear Amante,

I was wondering if you would like to come spend a day with me? I know you have royal duties to attend to, but if you can manage, I’d love if you’d join me for tea.

Love, Mum

It was her mother’s handwriting, there was no doubt. But her mother had never asked her to visit before. Amante wondered if perhaps her health was declining. She decided she’d try to visit tomorrow, but today she needed to ensure that order was kept in the palace.

“Nakili, please send a palace messenger to deliver my love and tell her I will arrive tomorrow morning. Have the messenger let her know that I need to attend to things in the palace today,” Amante ordered.

“At once, Your Highness.” Nakili bowed again, and with haste, she turned and hurried from the room and down the halls in search of a messenger.

Amante’s mother had no normal communication devices, insisting that letters were the only proper way to send messages. Most communication was done through Flickers—simple and small watches that held lists of contacts for both calls and written messages.

The queen glanced out at the faux sky, which was crystal blue. Hundreds of thousands of tiles lined the cavern ceiling, projecting the illusion of a sky. She walked to the wardrobe and selected a simple yet regal purple dress, and a gray shawl to keep her warm. Today seemed chillier than average, and she would be sure to inquire why.

She had just exited the bathroom after getting dressed when she noticed the mirror shimmer red for a split second. Denara was awake.

“Good morning,” the spirit purred as the red mist formed her familiar shape.

“Morning, Denara,” Amante said, rubbing her forehead. “I’ve got lots of work to do today.”

“Indeed. Shall I accompany you?” Denara tilted her translucent head, her long misty hair swaying in an invisible breeze.

“I guess, but tomorrow I’ll be paying a visit to my mother,” Amante paused before continuing, “and I think I’d like to go alone.”

Denara scowled slightly but nodded. “Of course. It would probably be weird for you if I was there,” she said in an understanding tone. A moment later, Amante felt the strange buzzing in her head again, and the red mist faded.

I hope you don’t mind. I just thought perhaps we should be moving along before the day wastes away, Denara said silkily into Amante’s mind.

Amante shrugged, ensured that her Flicker was firmly around her wrist, and pressed the button to open the door. Her footsteps echoed through the palace halls as she strode purposefully toward the council chambers.

The council room was a circular space with a tall domed ceiling. A large crystal chandelier hung above, lighting the room with a warm glow. Her advisors were seated in a ring around a stone table, and all twelve of them turned their heads to look at her as she entered. Judging by the tense atmosphere, Amante guessed they had been arguing. She took her seat, trying to keep her head held high.

Merrin and Tani sat next to each other to the right of Amante. Phineas and another advisor named Silas sat across from her. Phineas was a short Underlander with gray skin, short cropped graying brown hair with a long beard, ram-like gray horns, and hazel eyes. Silas, on the other hand, had the same pale skin as so many other Underlanders. He had somewhat sloppy black hair with a single streak of silver in it, and one eye was violet while the other was green. He wore black-rimmed glasses, and his black horns had a spiral twist at the ends. Silas was Morbin’s older brother—but despite that, Amante did not trust him at all.

To her left, she recognized Xylophus, a dark-skinned Underlander with pure white hair that fell just to his shoulders and was pulled back in a half-up twist; Narella, an Underlander with blue hair and glasses; and Kestas, who was the oldest advisor in the room. Amante looked at each advisor in turn, listing them all in her head. Even after a year, she still found it difficult to recall all their names.

Tani, Merrin, Ghili, Moizoos, Trillan, Noor, Phineas, Silas, Xylophus, Narella, Kestas… Remus isn’t here today.

Amante’s eyes narrowed slightly when she noticed the advisor’s empty seat. Occasionally, they would have something come up at the last second, or they’d be ill and unable to attend—but usually, they let her know.

“Good morning,” she said, keeping her voice even.

Amante was met with a chorus of “Good morning, Your Highness” and “Good morning, Your Majesty.” However, she noticed that Silas said nothing.

Keep an eye on him, dear queen, Denara warned. He could be a problem.

The young queen dipped her head ever so slightly. “I’m aware that there is unrest among many of you due to what I said last night,” she spoke up, and several advisors murmured amongst themselves.

“Going to war is the last thing we should be focusing on!” said Narella loudly.

“I agree,” Amante said—to everyone’s surprise. Even Denara’s presence in her mind seemed to jolt.

So far, she doesn’t seem to be reading my mind. Perhaps she can’t… or perhaps she just doesn’t want to. Yet, the queen thought.

“War is the last thing we should be focused on—but we should still prepare for it, because it is inevitable,” she continued, looking each of her advisors in the eye. Some avoided eye contact, but Silas stared her down.

In a cold, quiet yet clear voice, he spoke up. “And what exactly will we fight with, Your Majesty? Our forces are spread thin as it is. Unless, of course, you plan to send what few loyal soldiers remain—including my brother—to die for your cause.”

Amante hesitated at that, caught slightly off guard. She raked her mind for answers, but her thoughts felt fuzzy. Then Denara’s voice, dangerous and silky, cut through her panic.

Mubrisa isn’t the only city in Underland.

The queen frowned, aware that all her advisors’ eyes were on her and waiting for an answer. The tunnels connecting Mubrisia to the other cities had long ago collapsed. The city to the north—Howlsled—had sealed its connecting passageway on purpose. The others had caved in after years of enduring earthquakes. However, the cities were possibly still active. If they could only get through, they could ally with each other. Amante lifted her head.

“We aren’t the only city down here, in case you’ve forgotten. If we can reach the other cities in Underland, we can ally with them,” she said, staring Silas dead in the eyes.

“Your Majesty, the tunnels have been closed for years. Even if we could get through, there’s no guarantee the residents of those cities are still alive,” Moizoos spoke quietly from his seat.

“If they’ve all died down here, then guess who’s next? Us!” Amante snapped, her gaze not leaving Silas. “Would you all rather die in this cold, artificial world like cowards? Or would you die fighting up in the sunshine?”

The advisors all looked at each other. Some looked bewildered by her tone, and a couple looked angry at the suggestion that they were cowards. It was Merrin who spoke up.

“I’d rather die in the real sunshine than the fake. But who says we have to die fighting? Why don’t we try diplomacy?”

“The Overlanders hate what they don’t know—what they don’t understand. They’d kill or capture anyone we sent to negotiate,” Amante shook her head. But would they really? From what I’ve seen, yes. From what Denara’s said, yes. But what if we’ve been watching the wrong Overlanders? What if there are some who would accept us? The queen shook her head again to clear her thoughts.

“I want to see the sun,” Noor suddenly said. Her voice was soft and slightly hoarse, yet melodic as well.

Several advisors, including Xylophus, murmured amongst themselves.

“We’ll support this decision to go to war against the Overlanders if another Underlander city allies with us,” Xylophus finally announced, earning a sharp glare from Silas.

Phineas looked grumpier than usual, and Amante was reminded that he had connections with the Verré family. He likely did not support this decision in the slightest. Narella and Tani also looked rather irritated with the outcome of the discussion, but before anyone could speak up, a bolt of “lightning” split the “sky.”

“A storm has arrived in the Overland, and it has spoken. The meeting has come to an end,” Kestas croaked.

The advisors looked at each other, then to their queen. Amante dipped her head, and they all rose to their feet. There was a great commotion of chairs scraping and voices speaking, but Amante turned and left before a single one of them could attempt to talk to her.

Once safely in her quarters, Denara’s king cobra slithered across the floor and eyed the queen as she strode to the balcony.

“You handled that… somewhat well,” the spirit said flatly.

Amante held out her hand, letting some of the rainwater gather in her palm. Fake—everything was fake. The weather cycle during the day was meant to mirror that of the world above. But as drops of rainwater fell from the sky, she could see faint glitches in the simulated clouds. She realized that she'd forgotten to inquire why it was so cold in the cavern.

“We need to get out of here. Our ancestors never should have had to go into hiding,” Amante muttered.

“You’ll go down in history, Amante, as the queen who set us free.” Denara glanced up at the sky. “Nothing can stop the inevitable. But we are going to need every bit of help we can to take our place in the world above.”

Amante nodded, flicking the raindrops from her pale fingers. “You’re right—we will need help.”

And I will need help, the queen thought as she turned to go back indoors.

Hi! Phobia here! I'd like to thank a special person on Scratch for making Moizoos! Thank you so much for making such a cool character for Underland: Monarch! <3