"Announce the death of the king, at once." I said, facing the crowd that had gathered, my voice, cutting through the silence. " Y.. yes my Queen". a voice rose from the crowd as they all gushed out of the room at a frantic pace, scared. "Not you". I said facing kanth.
"Now" I said, tracing the outline of his face." What do we have here."
"You don't scare me," he spat. "Behind all that power, you're just a terrified, pathetic little girl - clinging to an empire that never was, or is yours to command."
I pause for a second and stare at him. My eyes bare into his, I claw into his mind.
"You will fear me - because I don't even know how far I'll go.". I say, digging deeper into his mind, into his memories.
He collapses to the ground clutching his ears shut, as if that could get me out of his mind. "No! you can't do this, no! " He shouts desperately trying to shut me out.
"Don't bother, just let me in, it will be much easier that way, We're allies after all, no?"
My voice whispers inside his mind in a loop.
"Please, stop" He falls to the ground, shaking, profusely.
I slowly slip my way out of his mind, I watch his body tremble, his hands slowly making their way back to their original position, his tears flowing.
"Oh, no did I break you?" I ask standing above him, my head tilting sideways. My thoughts falter just for a minute, maybe I am as broken as him? I push the thought away.
He just sits there his face in his hand.
I kneel down in front of him, "Now, what exactly are you - An oblivion?, disguised as a human. That's new."
He gathers his trembling body and stands up to leave. I don't stop him, I already knew what I needed to know.
It really was a test, he was an oblivion all along, one disguised as a human. But why? that was the only question lingering in my mind.
I stand there, in the silence, in the wreckage of my own making.
I stare at the throne sitting right ahead of me, at the crown laying on the ground. It's mine, but it doesn't belong to me.
I sit on the ground my knees hugging my chest, he was right - I am just a terrified, pathetic little girl. I am the queen that no one wants.
"Oh sweet heart you don't need to rule the world to be a queen, you are already one"
My foster mother said, trying to make me feel special. "No mom, I want to be queen, you don't get it." I said grinning. "Well, well if my lovely daughter wants to be a queen, we'll make her one!" My foster dad said, grinning from ear to ear."
As he went to get something from the other room. " Look what I got for my little queen!" He said holding up the prettiest shimmering puffed up dress i'd ever seen.
"Dad! I can't believe you actually got it for me" I said jumping with joy, giving him the tightest hug ever. "Anything for my queen". He said hugging me tighter.
The memory fades like smoke with a crash. I sit there, with this heaviness in my chest, that makes me feel like i'm drowning in silence all over again.
I stare at the shattered pieces of the painting that crashed. I can't do this, I can't
I can't, I can't The words repeating in my mind over and over again, I break down into sobs, holding my face in my hands, "I can't". I repeat, tears flowing down my face. All the feelings I didn't get time to process bursting out. My heart about to explode out of my chest.
"I can't, Aries." I said to my older sister. "You can do this, I believe in you, trust me you got this." She replied practically pushing my towards my crush, Illan. "Oh, Hi would you like to um... I paused mid sentence. reading his face to find any sign of him being interested in me. "Oh uh never mind I have to um.. go. Bye." I finished, bolting out of his sight and towards Aries. " So what did he say" she said beeming with curiosity and excitement.
"Aries, I told you I can't.. I uh. I didn't say it." I told her killing her excitement.
"I swear to god if you don't tell him that you like him the next time, I will do it for you."
"No, you will do no such thing" I told her in a serious voice. "Try me" she said grinning.
The memory dissolves.
I sit their, in the silence, my thoughts drowning me.
Then.
Footsteps, breaking the silence, soft, careful.
The door creaks open, I try to stand on my feet, but I can't. A figure walks in. Cilith.
she sits beside me.
"You broke him, y..you were'nt supposed to do that. she said her voice barely above a whisper.
My eyes fixated at the crown laying on the ground. I didn't move, didn't blink, didn't speak, just stared as tears streamed down my face.
"What a shame you can't run away this time, no?" she paused for a minute possibly thinking her words through.
"Leave, Cilith." I said my voice ragged, tired.
"Or what?, tell me Seira, you'll break me, oh or perhaps kill me, tell me I'm truly just dying to know." She spit.
"Why are you here, cilith? You couldn't have just come to me to went out your anger."
I said, my eyes not once faltering way from the crown.
"I came here to give you a choice, it's simple, rule or die. your choice". She said as she got up. "You have about an hour before the conclave starts."
She stopped before the door, only to look back once again.
"Or you could be the coward your mother was and run away."
with that she rushed out closing the door behind me. I didn't react, I got up, My mother was not a coward, she was she was just scared not for herself, for me.
I'll make sure they know that.
I'm not like my mother. I'm afraid, not for myself, but for what's about to come next.
"My fingers trembled as I lifted the crown. It was heavier than it looked - heavier than my fear. I set it on my head anyway. 'I can do this,' I whispered. A lie. A prayer. Maybe both."
A soft knock arrives at the door. "Come in" I said finding my voice.
"The conclave is about to begin, you are requested to come to the Theatenden" An oblivion guard said his head bowed before me.
"What conclave?" I ask.
"The reckoning begins in the mid of night, after the death of the crown holder, It requires the supposed king or queen to decimate 10 hunaams with their eyes covered, to to demonstrate their capacity to extinguish life without hesitation, remorse, or the luxury of sight."
"And if I refuse to do so.?" I state as a question, my voice as calm as ever.
"Displaying any sign of weakness will mark you for death, neither your strength nor your resolve will save you."