Page 99 of Enchanted Crown
“No,” she admitted. “I am the youngest in the past five reigns. Keeping the vision of a deserted Corsha up was vital to our survival but exhausted the previous king. In his wake, I was the strongest Enchanted, thus had to take the throne early.” All that was heard in her pause was the clomping beats of the horses’ hooves. “This might sound self-serving, but I do not mean for it to. Corsha values the strength of our Enchanted as that is what keeps us safe. So no, most of my citizens do not take issue with my age.”
She was barely more than a child, but with the weight of her visions, I was certain she hadn’t had much of a childhood at all.
“I am sorry, Queen Aurelia.”
“Please call me Relia, you will eventually anyway.”
This—this was going to take some getting used to.
“What are you sorry for though?” she asked.
“That my father’s actions robbed you of a normal childhood.”
She turned to look at me, giving me a quick smile. “Thank you. I may be young, but I am wise enough to know that neither of us have lived easy childhoods. But neither of us would change it either. It was needed to save our people.”
Even in the darkening light, I caught the look Dex sent me. Like he was thinking she was a bit mad.
Was she though, or did she justknow things? My father had been going mad toward the end of his reign, erratic in his behavior and decisions, and this felt different from that.
I asked the queen, “Can you explain your visions more to me? It sounds rather exhausting.”
She began, “How often each Enchanted of Corsha receivesvisions varies. Some of us are better at receiving than projecting. That is me, though I can do both. Our former king was placed at the throne for a purpose, he was better at projecting at a time in our history where we needed it most. He too, could do both.”
I felt a shiver run down my spine. Odd that they were each in place in power right when Corsha needed it most.
She let out a sigh. “It does become exhausting. There are many possible outcomes to many different problems. Some of what we see doesn’t make sense given our circumstances and won’t until far later. I always keep a journal nearby, jotting down what comes to me, even if it is nonsense.”
There was a long pause while we all thought on that.
“At our late dinner when we arrive, I will explain more of how we evaded the dead king’s evil. If you will excuse me, I need to spend some time in meditation. Listening and watching for whatever visions may come to me.”
That was the end of our talking on the way to the castle.
The castleitself was hard to see in the night. Where Wylan’s castle seemed intent on swallowing the mountain top whole, and Halikaara was built imposingly tall for the shifters, Corsha’s castle was separated from the volcanic mountains and placed in a beautiful valley, more meager in size.
I was exhausted. Being away from Esta was bad enough, traveling in this damn cold weather was a whole other issue. I’d used my magic to warm me for the last hour of our trip, not at all used to the cold after spending so long in Dra Skor.
But the good news was that Corsha was never poisoned. Corsha did not need to be healed. Part of me wanted to load right back on that ship and head home to Dra Skor.
Yet the power of Corsha’s Enchantment and so many unanswered questions kept us here.
As soon as we handed off our horses at a lovely looking barn, we were ushered to our rooms by a guard. We were given four connecting rooms in one of the lower floors of the castle. One for John, Amory, Dex, and myself. They were furnished well enough, but I noted again the lack of electricity.
Was Wylan the only country in the realm with it?
“Dinner is in five minutes,” the guard told us. “We are sure you are wanting a warm meal and then some sleep from your long day of travels.”
As he left Dex snorted a laugh. “Like I am going to be able to sleep here.”
He had a point. I wasn’t sure I would sleep well again until I was next to Esta.
The queen was already in the dining room we were soon delivered to, smiling at us as we entered. “Please,” she gestured. “Dive right in. It has been a long day.”
“It has,” I had to agree.
“The storm will unleash itself soon, but do not worry. We will all be safe this night.”
“And tomorrow night?” Amory asked, back in her human form.
