Rumors, they say, spread like wild fire in a dry bush. And in the continent, rumors were a part of the people. It only took an hour before the news about Henry’s death reached the ears of the Arcadian citizens and to the authorities later. A meeting was conveyed and Crescia and Valoria were put to blame.

"They plotted his death and faked it as suicide!" A council member gave his opinion.

"I heard that His Majesty, King Alexander and The Crescian queen wanted to make the three kingdoms an empire. His Majesty must have declined their proposal hence their plot." The members nodded in unison.

The king of the royal court, who acted as the ruler currently in absentia of the royal family, seemed deep in thought. Such news could not only struck a war but also a revolt.

"We must bring Her Majesty and the princess back here before something bad happen to them. Who knows they might be their next target?" Another chimed in. All the council members looked at him waiting for his decision.

After a moment of silence, he raised his eyes to look at the expectant council members. He was advanced in age, the wrinkles on his face proving to be a living testament. His eyes were rooted deep in their sockets yet they held the same vigor like that of a child. Save for his silk robes, his body screamed of nothing but old age. Wisdom was what had placed him in the place he was currently.

Lord Augustus had served not only one but two kings in a row. He let his gaze sip through the eyes of the inexperienced council members who had acted simply on impulse. According to their point of view, Arcadia should wage war against Crescia and Valoria before they would be forcefully confiscated into the empire.

"We’ll send a troupe to Crescia to fetch His Majesty’s body and Both the Queen and Princess. Until then, no further action will be taken until Crescia proves her innocence."

The members started murmuring amongst themselves clearly not happy with the decision.

"My Lord," a council member called. "His Majesty had renounced Her Highness, princess Roselyn as his daughter and the princess of Arcadia. According to the law, only she can succeed her father but..."

He left Lord Augustus to fill in the rest of the details. The old man looked at the young man skeptically. "Her Majesty can ascertain that Roselyn has been reinstated as the princess," he said even though he wasn’t sure about it. But he knew no sane mother could state otherwise.

"This meeting has been adjourned!" He said struggling to stand from his seat. The council members dispersed but that didn’t mean it was the end. They would meet at the royal court to discuss the fate of Valoria and Crescia, and the decisions they made there were final, unless opposed by a royal family member, a king or queen to be precise.

*****

Felista was folding her clothes as usual in her room. She had been an early riser these days but this particular day had an ominous feeling to it. She placed a dress on top of the folded ones but stiffened. There was this gut feeling she had. Something was definitely bad today.

She was quick to toss the thought away when a knock landed on her door. With a slight frown, she made for the door to find Isadora standing there, all alone!

"Good morning Your Majesty," she greeted eyeing Isadora suspiciously. It was already very early in the morning and it was unlike her to visit Felista. Simply put, the two women were not that close to each other though they never harbored bad feelings for one another.

"Can I come in?" Isadora asked with no hint of smile on her face.

"Sure. Why not?" Felista stepped aside for Isadora to walk in. She watched suspiciously as Isadora touched her clothes in admiration. There was this letter she was holding and for the briefest of seconds, Felista thought she recognized the handwriting.

"Your dresses are beautiful," Isadora said. She looked at the smiling Felista, guilt stabbing her like a knife when she imagined that same smile would be replaced with something else in a few minutes. Lord! This was hard than she had thought.

Telling someone that a person they were used to seeing each and every day, a husband at that, was not as easy as she had thought. She had thought losing her parents was painful but she was just a child back then. She wished Felista was a child asking her where her husband was at that moment and just as people used to tell her when she was young, she’d point at the sky and say, "Your husband is somewhere safe in the sky. He’s having a good life and would visit sometime." But it was just that, imagination!

"Thank you," Felista said. She had noticed the sad look on her face from the moment she walked in and it disturbed her.

"Is something the matter?" She asked just to confirm her fear.

Isadora turned to look at her but the guilt was unbearable so she ended looking at the letter in her hand. This would be the only way she could pass the message to her.

"Your husband told me to give this to you and Roselyn," she said stretching her hand.

Felista’s face turned a few shades darker, a thousand questions running through her mind but she took it anyways.

Isadora’s eyes watered expecting for the worst. She could see the fear on Felista’s face as she opened the letter, fear that this might be her husband’s last words to her. She had read the letter earlier and knew the weight the contents of the letter carried. It must have been a family’s fiasco that dealt everyone a great blow emotionally.

It began with a raised brow, then to her face twisting in surprise and what Isadora could guess was accelerated heartbeat, tears followed with it. In the middle of reading, she couldn’t take it anymore and collapsed in fear! Fortunately, Isadora was swift to catch her before her head could hit the cold floor.