The Musk of Carmet: The Taste of Claret

"My health has been failing me gradually With the late king gone to the skies, and the heir to the throne no longer. I am alone. Many have eyes staring daggers at me. I could perhaps be murdered at any time. Poison in my meals, so called "accidents." The nobles by my side want nothing more than power, and for a new monarch. My son has no interest in being either a Prince, or King. Though I'm sure he would also want me dead too. He wishes to live a quiet life by the countryside and marry a country girl. Though, I don't think that he realised that I, too, wanted to become a simple housewife. I, too, wanted to step down from the throne, and roam around the markets while eating rye bread. Alas, the world wont go in your favor all the time. Ah, Nikolai seems to be off again in the royal courtyard, dazing off with a book in his hand. My, must it be nice to not have a care in the world."

Crown Princess Rena of Xelford, The youngest monarch of the Xelforium Kingdom, may as well be the youngest monarch to die. Crown Prince Juno of the Thrones. Once blinded by love, gave up his entire kingdom for the sake of Rena. Luckily for her, she too was sick in love. Though, after the both sickly lovers had done their proclamations, "King '' Juno was killed head on protecting his lover, A stab to the abdomen, and a great fall. Queen Rena's wedding day turned out to be an entire devastation. But, as the newly proclaimed Queen of the Xelformium Kingdom, and the Queen of Thrones. She had no time to mourn, no time to cry, no time to take care, nor even look at Nikolai. Thus, they both grew apart, only tolerating each other's existence because they were "mother" and "son."

.....

"Your Highness, please consider making Nikolai Crown Prince!"

"Your Highness, with all due respect your health is failing, please consider stepping down from the throne."

"Your Highness-"

"Enough! Enough, stop with your baseless chattering. I am the Queen of this country, and I am also the Queen of the thronelings, you do not have any right to interfere in my choices. I am concluding this meeting. Do not send any letters to me regarding the new heir to the throne, I will consult Nikolai myself, or I will find a new heir. Until our next meeting, gentleman,"

The meeting room was filled with silence, a chilling silence of death. The noblemen with their heads down, infuriating with anger, "How dare the Queen insult us, How dare she, How dare her." -Is what the silence seemed to be spouting. As the Queen left, The Nobles rose, dead staring daggers at the doors from where she left. They may as well already be planing a murder, a murder of the century.

Rena has said something she shouldn't, she regrets everything almost too quickly. Too quickly everything has fallen, too quickly one word has changed her fate. Rena returned to her office, sulking a bit. She flopped on her chair while one of the maids prepared her tea for stress relief. She wondered if there was anyone in this world she could trust. Anyone in this world who she can depend on but herself. She trusted Juno, she loved Juno. But nothing could go her way. She was a child when her father wanted her dead, she was a child when she heard that her father would kill her mother, she was a child when she learned that the only person here in this world is her. She was a child with no freedom.

Nikolai laid in the soft bedding of grass while the sun would slowly give him warmth as a blanket. He was reading some of Shakespeare's plays, The Tempest and Hamlet. Nikolai often read these two and often quoted them, mostly on The Tempest. He wanted to have a happy and comical relief ending like The Tempest, not a tragedy ending like Hamlet or Romeo and Juliet. As Nikolai laid there deep in thought. He got up and decided to go back to the Royal Institute of Athenaeum. One of Nikolai's most beloved places in the suffocating palace he lives in. Nikolai could get away from anyone, and everyone, enjoy his time reading books, ancient scrolls that his mother collected over time. Nikolai's mother, Everyone had thought that the Prince and the Queen hate each other, no not even hate, but don't recognise their existence. Though it may seem that way, Nikolai would actually get very flustered when Her Majesty the Queen would walk by. Is my hair right, am I walking perfectly, is my posture fine?? ,he would continuously think. Nikolai never hated his mother, no, he just didn't know how to approach the stone cold emperor. He had the misunderstanding that Queen Rena hated him. But he never once thought to ask her. He never thought to ask for some private time, he never thought of why his father died. Not once, not ever.

As Nikolai walked down to go to the Royal Institute of Athenaeum, he saw his mother go out of the meeting room of the Nobles in a scurry, flustered, on the peak of breaking down. Nikolai quickly came to an abrupt stop as soon as he saw her. Should I comfort her? Should I ask her what's wrong? What should I do? Nikolai, you see, spent more time being indecisive than actually making a choice. He didn't know what was right and what was wrong. He didn't want to know. When the foolish minded Nikolai was deep in thought, the Queen had seemed to regain herself and quickly hurried to her office. He waited for a good minute before he saw the Queen disappear in the cold dark alleyway before he started to get a move on too. As Nikolai was walking, he noticed a small crack in the door and finally decided to take a peak. He hasn't ever seen what the Meeting room of Nobles are like so he was excited. Yet his excitement quickly turned into sheer horror. He took one good look at that creak on the door before stumbling a little. What was in that room was not just love for the queen, or any kind of professionalism. But half drunken noblemen with documents "against" the queen, a map, and a vandalised picture of a cross mark on the queen's neck. My Word, Nikolai thought in sheer horror, they were planning to kill her. Yet not only kill her, but humiliate her in front of the Thronelings and the Xelfords. So that the government can fall in their hands. Nikolai decided to lean in a little closer after composing himself to hear more about their plans.

"Ehhh we'll just use this evidence against that wench during that debutante ball of that god horrifying duke's daughter."

"hMPh, then what, the witch has so much power she can easily kill us if she wanted to."

"Then just hire some mercenary from the black market, they'd be willing to do anything for a couple copper coins."

"Then what, should we kill that mercenary too?"

"No, just pretend that we wanted information from that Witch Queen, and we wanted to know why she did that, then when that mercenary beggar slits her throat, we will be the ones to arrest him for treason."

"What about the Queen's son, what do we do about that useless skin of flesh?"

"He can't do anything, he's a naïve, selfish, stuck up brat who's too afraid to even ask for water. Leave him, we can decide what to do with him later on."

…

Nikolai ran, ran and ran to her mothers office room in terror, shock, sure he dosent have that great of a relation with his mother, but at least he needed to inform her that she was going to be killed this weekend at the debutante ball. He slammed open the door, Rena in shock almost dripping her tea. The maids whispered as Nikolai quickly went to the desk of her mother and slammed his hands on it, nearly spilling the ink.

"Mother, forgive me for coming up to you without any notice, and now please forgive me for being so frank-."

"Nikolai what are yo-"

"Mother! Don't go to Lady Andressa's debutante ball, please, if you go you will be-"

Just then, a the nobles from the Royal Courtroom appeared, supposedly worried for the Queen

"Your majesty, we heard a loud noise, are you alright?? Are you hurt?"

"Gentlemen if I may I specifically said that I don't want to see any of your faces, and if you can't already see Prince Nikolai was talking to me, pay your respects to the Queen and never barge in my office again.

"Your highness we only-"

"Leave, before I call the Royal Guards."

The Noblemen scoffed, then had turned to Nikolai, with the same look they gave to the Queen before she left the Royal Courtroom. Nikolai was next. He knew that the nobles wouldn't leave, at least not yet. He knew that if they heard that he knew about their plan to kill the Queen, he would be killed right then and there. What should I do?, I don't want to be killed, I don't want to die either!

"I'm terribly sorry Nikolai, why do you not want me to go to Lady Adressa's debutante ball?"

Nikolai could already feel the states from the nobleman, his vision started blurring, he didn't want to die.

"N-no mother it-it's nothing I'm sorry I just-I need to go now. Please be careful"

Nikolai made the ultimate choice to hide the fact that her mother, the Queen, would be humiliated, and killed.

So came the debutante ball of Lady Andressa. Nikolai shamelessly decided to show up to the ball, thinking whether or not he should protect his mother, accidentally spill a drink on the Noblemen of the Courtroom's clothes, or perhaps find that mercenary. After the opening vows and congratulations to Lady Andressa's ball. So came fourth the for a very tense hide and seek came, where was that mercenary, where are the nobles, where is the wine, where is the champagne and finally, When will everything start. Nikolai decided to keep a few meters distance from the Queen. So that he could keep an eye on her, but that was impossible, many of the dukes, duchesses, viscounts, viscountesses kept swarming around Nikolai, each of them introducing themselves to him as for a future marriage proposal. Nikolai was in a rush, he didn't have time to look at the Viscounts daughters, He needed to stay by his mothers side. He needed today to end up like The Tempest, not Hamlet. Nikolai kept looking left, right, up, down. But he couldn't find anyone suspicious.

It had been 2 hours so far. Just one more hour before the ball was over. Nikolai started to think that his mother would live through today thankfully, and lowered his guard. Just then, he saw a mysterious figure rushing through, alarmed, Nikolai had quickly put his drinks away, and quickly hurried over to that mysterious figure, zig zagging his way to the crowd, Nikolai finally grabbed his wrist

"Let go of m- OHH, Prince Nikolai of Thrones and Xelford, please pardon my ,behaviour."

"Where do you think you're doing, Duke Hanesworth?"

"My, my, your majesty, why do you seem so alarmed? We are not going anywhere."

The more Duke Hanesworth tried to pull away, the more Nikolai held on.

"Ahahaha, Your Majesty, if I may, you seem to be holding on to me quite tightly to the point where it is starting to hurt."

"I won't allow you to go, Duke Hanesworth, whatever your planning regarding the queen, you will be punished severely. Give up."

A ballroom filled with chatter started to become lush with silence. Her majesty soon realised where the feud was taken place, and went to the matter in hand.

"Nikolai, Hanesworth, why are you both now causing a scene here, it is Lady Andressa's debutante ball, please show some concern."

"Ah, your majesty please forgive me, It seems as though His Highness Nikolai seemed to have a misunderstanding.

Nikolai was caught. He couldn't do anything now. Perhaps he really made a mistake in coming here, he couldn't save anyone, when he couldn't save himself.

"Im, sorry mother…" Nikolai said in a quiet voice. He lost. Everything in this world is now gone. Soon his mother, and then, his kingdoms that his father left for him to rule over. All was gone. Everything. Nikolai saw a figure running on the corner of his eye, the queen standing in front of him and Duke Hanesworth. He bolted his head up quickly, this was his chance, he could save his mother today and see her breathing tomorrow. The mysterious figure had seemed to notice that Nikolai was on to him. The Duke of the Royal Courtroom? The mercenary? Nikolai couldn't see properly. Just then, he noticed something, Duke Hanesworth on his lower back was sending some kind of hand signals. Nikolai needed to get to his mother, he let go of Duke Hanesworth's hand in a rough manner and quickly ran to his mother.

"Nikolai? What is the matter?" He didn't have time to answer that. Just then, a mysterious figure appeared in front of him from the side of the crowd, Nikolai was taken back and quickly drew the sword from his hip, the crowd started to panic, no one shielded the Queen. Nikolai quickly slashed through to what seemed to be the mercenaries back but missed. He was too fast, The mercenary quickly bolted towards the Queen, Rena was doing her best to calm everyone and calling the royal guards to notice the mercenary. Nikolai ran straight towards the mercenary and rose his sword to go in for the kill, with a pure bloody intention he was read t-

"I don't want to die."

Nikolai paused. Paused his movement, paused everything the mercenary already was to the Queen and slashed his dagger across the queens neck, slitter her throat, as her freshly cleaned cut head rolled on the ground stopping at Nikolai, the crowd started to dispute even more, some of the nobles apprehended the mercenary. While Nikolai stared at his mothers head, her expression not a pleasant one, eyes wide open with blood dripping down her mouth and a bloody carpet. He stared. Into the void. This is what his indecisiveness led to. This is what his decisions led to. This was his wish and he got it. He didn't die. But fate wasn't going to give him the way of his life. He picked up his mothers head as gently as possible, one hand on the back of her head, and the other on her cheek.

This was not The Tempest he had wished for.

But the Hamlet he despised.