PROLOGUE
The sun set in slowly and emitted it's rays upon the grande castle wherein King Harold sat upon the throne pondering the meaning of his incessant nightmares.
He stood up from the throne and strode towards the window where he got a full view of the kingdom he was governing,a lot seemed to have changed since the last twenty years, but it didn't change for good as there was nothing as retarded as the growth of the economy.
There was a sly grin on his face as his mind went into a reminisce about the days he wasn't even near to the throne,he had never felt like a tyrant he was the young man who strong-willed and a little bit desperate.
But these nightmares were a cast of dire portents, they conjured images of the day of reckoning, he feared that he was losing his mental stability, for the first time in the whole of his lifetime he wasn't in control.
"What strains the honourable sire"
A cackling voice suddenly said and jolted him out of the reverie he seemed to be in,he turned around and came to behold Amethyst, the court sorceress,a woman of wit and great power,a woman who had the most appalling appearance,a woman he had grown to hate because he himself had hated the truth
"Nothing your prescient eyes can't see or hasn't already seen" he responded to her as he re-took his seat on the throne.
At the sound of these words the powerful crone smiled
"The truth is always an antidote to whom it pleases"
"I don't remember sending for you" Harold retorted
Amethyst's face contorted into a snickering smirk as she took a step closer to the king
"The forces stronger than the waves of your tyranny have sent me to you"
"I am not a tyrant!"
"Says the man who could be so heartless to claim what isn't his and in a profane manner. Your attrocities are just too great for the books you are unclean!
"You are not welcome in this court as long as I rule, your foreseeing is not needed,do yourself a favor and leave before I have the guards throw you out" the king shouted
"What worse can you do than the ones you've already done, what worse is lewd than your past and why is your soul this inclined to ruin? Harold you have desecrated the citadel and your dreadful act has brought distress on this kingdom. (The king was on his feet now, fiery eyed with a spear in his hand) I have been asked to warn you of your impending ignoble demise, concealing the evidence of your scandal won't aid you neither"
" Silence! you're saying too much you filthy woman" Harold barked out but Amethyst would lend no ear
"You fate has been sealed" she continued
"Retrace your steps back to the cathedral and repent, the prophecy is nearer than you think,at least be worthy of a decent funeral and die a honorable death, humble yourself and ask to be purified. He who knows the truth feels the ruth, those who know the path,stray from wrath, he who has ears let him hear, he who can hear should beware least doom be more than near. If life was a..."
But the crone couldn't say anymore as the king's spear went straight through her neck and she fell to the cold, hard floor to meet with her cold, bloody death.
King Harold looked at the sorceress body impassively and turned to the direction of the dark hallway
"Clean this mess up" he ordered the guards and began walking through the dark and cold hallway, heading to his chambers precisely
"Shall I say your action is uncalled for, unsurprising or expected as usual"
The king stopped in his tracks and turned around it was Aldreda dressed in a velvet tunics, favored closed-toe shoes, trailing coats made of linen with lappets hanging over her shoulders. She had auburn hair, almond eyes and rosy lips.
"This is none of your business woman,retire for the night"
"Which isn't my business, tell me is it watching you cause the people of this kingdom hardship and strife or watching you kill the most powerful sorceress in BeckensWorth"
"I am not the cause of this kingdom's economical instability" the king defended "that dirty hag was vain,she never saw any good in me".
"Because there is no good in you Harold" Aldreda shouted " I watch you transform gradually into a faceless monster, you grow worse by the day and can't you see if you are blind can't you remember. This is not what the kingdom was twenty years ago but now wars besieged us, corruption and debauchery are the order of the day, there's barely food to eat, this land is cursed! This land has been afflicted with the curse on your head"
"Watch your words woman" Harold roared and charged reflexively at her
"I'll make it easy for you" Aldreda said and tossed a dagger at his feet "kill me like you killed Amethyst, killed me like you would have when I was pregnant with the prince,kill me like you killed the archbishop,kill me like you killed all those innocent people,there pick up the dagger and silence me if you have the guts to Concealing your bane would do nothing but prolong your suffering"
"I have no bane" Harold screamed
The queen dowager chuckled under her breath and moved closer to the king, stopping a few steps away from him
"You're so pathetic, I'm even suprised I still haven't gotten used to witnessing you kill people, you have done such horrible things,if the world wasn't watching you, you would have killed me and my son just to bury your dirty secrets, you brought a curse upon this land and now you have the temerity to raise your hand and strike the one who told you truth to death,her blood will surely haunt you"
"You can go on and recount the history of BeckensWorth all you want" Harold said and started walking away "I remain king until I breathe my last"
"No you remain a bad apple in the royal family"
Aldreda shouted after him
"Mother!"
Aldreda's heart almost jumped out of her mouth at her son's sudden call_she adjusted her composure and turned around to meet with his handsome face
"My sweetheart when did you get back" she exclaimed, smiled and threw her arms around him
"Not long ago" the prince responded as he disengaged from her embrace "I thought I heard you screaming"
"No I wasn't" "she lied and started leading him out of hallway
"So how was village today" she asked as they went up the upper bailey
"The people were really kind and I think they like me"
"I love the sound of that, you'll make a really good ruler"
"Yes,I guess so too" the prince said and giggled
"So did you find a girl today"
The question sent him into a spree of laughter "I am not looking for a girl mother, I'm not ready for a relationship yet. I can't devote anything to the growth of any affair.
"That's a really good idea son " Aldreda complimented with a heavy heart and the most unsettled mind.