corlis
The lights of the chandeliers hanging from the ceiling cast a soft glow that made the shadows dance across the ornate walls, those walls adorned with massive paintings pulsing with history and pride.
In that velvety silence, only the sound of Corlis and Nile footsteps could be heard, as if they were the only ones moving in a palace where time had frozen.
Corlis, walking with confident but tense steps, approached the queen's chamber door. On either side of the door stood two guards as still as stone statues, their eyes fixed on the void, showing no sign of life except for their quietly rising chests.
But what caught Corlis's attention was something else: behind him, at both ends of the wall facing the door, stood two additional guards. He wasn't used to this number at the queen's chamber; though the full security detail consisted of four, they normally worked in two shifts. A question mark formed in his mind, had she requested additional security?
Corlis turned back to the door. He exchanged a brief glance with Nile, who picked up on the signal effortlessly. The knight stepped forward and knocked three firm, deliberate knocks like someone who knew exactly what he was doing, but had no idea what awaited him behind the ornate wood.
The queen's voice finally came, faint but audible. The tone carried something heavy... or perhaps weary.
The guards opened the door simultaneously, their hands gripping the handles and their eyes cast downward, as if looking inside was forbidden.
Corlis took a deep breath and adjusted his posture as if donning a mask for a royal performance. His dry throat failed him for a moment, and he tried to swallow the lump choking him without letting it show on his face.
Then he moved forward with slow but steady steps into the room, while his heartbeat raced as if it wanted to leap out of his chest.
Nile entered behind him, his military steps landing on the floor with a measured sound.
Before them, the large room stretched like a miniature throne hall, its high ceiling adorned with golden engravings, and heavy wine-colored curtains covering the sides of the glass wall.
The bed was draped with a transparent golden canopy, and in front of it stood silver couches surrounding a gleaming wooden table.
The queen stood before the window, gazing at the star-studded night sky. The reflection of the light on the glass blended with the scattered lamps of the distant city streets.
Despite the distance, Rania felt the stars were closer to her than those earthly lights, as if drawing a calm from them that the kingdom's streets could never give.
She bowed her head slightly, as if bidding farewell to a fleeting moment of clarity, then turned calmly.
She began walking toward the center of the room with assured steps, each one whispering the weight of awe.
The edges of her luxurious purple gown gently brushed the marble floor, producing a faint sound.
Corlis, standing upright beside Nile, felt a rising tension crawl into his chest with every step the queen took.
It felt as if she was approaching to subject him to a public reprimand. His body remained still, but his mind was ablaze with visible anxiety.
Rania stopped just a few steps away. Her face remained calm, impassive, serious—revealing nothing of her inner thoughts.
Her gray eyes slowly moved between Prince Corlis and Knight Nile, as if weighing matters, or seeking a way to speak without revealing what she was truly thinking.
Before she could say anything, Corlis gathered his courage.
He knew silence would serve him no good, so he spoke up with a voice carrying honest hesitation: "I'm sorry… for lying. I stayed up late last night, which is why I didn't wake early. And even when I opened my eyes... I didn't remember the session until Nile reminded me."
He paused, as though the words had stuck in his throat. His fist clenched, fingers unconsciously gripping the side of his tunic.
Then he continued, voice heavier: "My selfishness made me search for a way out of scolding... by any means. Even if the scolding was justified, due to my own negligence."
His tone made it clear that he was struggling to speak, fighting not to stutter—deliberately pressing each word from his lips.
Amid his confession, Nile's voice cut through formal, calm, yet respectful: "Forgive the interruption, Your Highness... but I don't think Her Majesty summoned us for such a matter. There's no need for this much tension."
Corlis was taken aback, lifting his gaze toward the taller man, a light surprise on his face and a silent embarrassment creeping into his eyes.
Then he turned back to the queen, waiting for her to speak.
fixed her gaze on Corlis, then Rania said in a calm voice, though charged with precise intensity: "Knight Nile is right… but it's good that you admitted your mistake."
She paused briefly. The next words were slowly forming inside her, as if she were inscribing them in her heart before speaking them.
She interlaced her fingers in front of her stomach with slow, measured movement, as if trying to ground herself before revealing something deep, then spoke: "I never thought I would say this… but I no longer feel safe in this palace."
Her eyes shifted for a moment toward the window, then returned to settle on an imaginary point in the air, recalling a familiar feeling that was barely bearable. "Do you know that feeling? The absence of safety from within? Even if the place is filled with guards… there's still something missing, something unseen that feels threatening."
Her tone was calm, yet carried something fragile within.
She looked at Corlis and Nile without focusing directly on them, and said: "Every time I sit on the throne… the first thing my eyes catch is the door.
I don't know… is it an inner call to escape that place? From the faces that stare at me with hypocrisy from every corner?
Or is it just because the door faces the throne, as if to remind me every time that I have an exit?"
She fell silent briefly, fiddling with the edge of her dress for a moment as if trying to gather her scattered thoughts, then straightened again and continued in a calmer voice, but one that felt more like a confession: "I don't know why I'm saying something like this… maybe because this is the only room where I can take off the queen's mask,
and let Rania speak, not the ruler, but the woman who no longer has anyone to believe in."
Corlis only remained silent, staring at his mother with widened, fixed eyes, his tongue tied. He had never seen her like this before. His mother, who had always been a wall of strength, was now unveiling herself in front of him.
She had always suppressed her feelings inwardly like an unbreakable dam—but it seemed that dam was full and beginning to overflow.
Nile placed his hand over his chest, as if to steady something within him, then bowed respectfully, and said in a voice full of unquestionable sincerity: "I feel what you're going through, my queen … vortex didn't just plant his influence, he's extended his roots into this palace until the walls themselves whisper to him.
Nothing is hidden from him anymore. it's as if we're living on land that already belongs to him."
He raised his head, looking at her with eyes that bore no betrayal of loyalty: "But do not forget… the House of garow, with all it has, is at your command.
From the moment the late king placed his trust in us, we swore to protect the royal blood of House D gar , no matter the cost."
Rania was moved, her gaze mixed with fatigue and gratitude.
She responded with a soft, low voice, but one filled with honesty: "Thank you, Sir Nile… I have no doubt of your loyalty.
You are the only family I truly trust. That's why I entrusted you with what is dearest to me."
The queen turned her gaze toward Corlis.
He was silent, listening with all his being, his eyes moving between his mother and Nile like someone trying to decipher the meaning behind the words.
He seemed like a third party with no choice but to listen, yet he couldn't stay outside the circle any longer.
He cleared his throat slightly, then said in a voice that tried to sound steady: "Is this about vortex 's plans? Did you discover something new?... Is that what's made you so worried?"
Rania sighed slowly. She stood as if bearing an unseen weight, and said in a calm voice filled with worry: "If only it were that… If only I knew. But vortex's intentions are always beyond what can be seen. All I have is a feeling… an inner feeling that a storm is coming. and that disaster is closer than we imagine."
She placed her hand over her chest, as if trying to calm a racing heart.
She took a deep breath, then continued: "He left me no choice… I tried to avoid this path, but it seems I'm forced onto it. We've lost the support of the noble class. and there's only one final move left in our hand."
Corlis and Nile exchanged looks, anticipation filling their faces.
Then Corlis asked, a thread of worry cutting through his voice: "And what is that move?"
The sound of sea waves seeped into the room, as if passing through the thick walls.
That sound, despite its violence, seemed like a heavy lullaby soothing the queen's inflamed nerves.
She stood calmly, her back slightly relaxed, her hands interlocked before her, as if trying to gather the scattered pieces of a heavy memory.
She spoke in a low tone, but one laden with heartache: "After the king's death, I met with my brother, the king of the Southern Sea Kingdom.
I thought he came to console his sister who had just lost her husband. but it soon became clear that his visit wasn't out of familial sympathy or grief.
What he brought wasn't empathy, but an offer… an offer I never imagined I would hear from him.
He asked me to help him take over the Western Sea Kingdom, to build him a bridge to annex it into his kingdom, through what he called a 'union between the two kingdoms.' For a moment I thought he was joking. but his eyes… were not the eyes of someone making a jest.
His eyes carried something non-negotiable, fierce desire, a wild will I had never known in him before. I couldn't understand how he thought I might agree to that, to be the bridge he walks across to a throne… that belongs to my son."
She stepped forward, as if pushing away the memory, then continued: "A conflict broke out between us, unlike anything we had even in childhood. And since that day. our relationship has not been the same.
In fact, it has turned into a blaze. I think… he's come to hate me."
Nile, who was standing next to Corlis, ran the palm of his hand over his neck in an attempt to dispel the heat that had begun to choke him. He asked, his eyes narrowing cautiously as he looked at the queen, "Is the only path before us to accept Your Highness's offer? Wouldn't that mean that Prince Corlis would lose his right to the throne either way? What you're trying to avoid will happen regardless."
Silence prevailed for a few seconds, as if only the waves held the right to speak. The light from the large chandelier reflected off the light sweat forming on the queen's forehead, so she raised a handkerchief and gently wiped it. Then, in a voice mixed with caution and resolve, she said: "That is not my goal. I have no intention of giving up Corlis's right to rule. All I seek is to change the course of the conflict... Instead of us being the ones facing Vortex, I will push my brother to stand against him.
I will go along with his ambitions temporarily, open the path he desires, just until he eliminates Vortex for us. And when Vortex falls, we wash our hands of everything, without ever being the obvious party in the game."
The lights were gleaming on Nile's yellow sword, reflecting brightly. Nile repeated the queen's words in his mind, hesitating, uncertain if what he was about to say would be appropriate, especially for someone in his position. But after a moment of silence, he said in a firm voice: "Why don't we just kill him? If we cut off the snake's head, its tail won't frighten us."
Corlis was clearly surprised; his eyes widened. He hadn't expected such a suggestion to come from Nile. But the queen showed no surprise. She moved calmly toward the table, took a glass of water, sipped from it slowly, then sat on the couch. "Getting to vortex's head is difficult. He is always surrounded by his guards, especially that one called Gareth. The two of them have a relationship that spans years.
Gareth used to be a mercenary in Mercenaries of Deterrence of Aggression with vast experience. His forces are not to be underestimated."
She paused for a moment, then added: "Also, if we fail, he'll use the attempt as an excuse and claim I tried to kill him without cause, which would rally support for any retaliatory move he might make."
She looked at Corlis, as if sensing what was going on in his mind. the heaviness that had begun to show on his face since Nile proposed his idea. It was as if the words she had spoken had only added to his guilt.
Corlis stepped toward her slowly, his gaze preceding his steps, soaked in a regret that needed no explanation. His features bore the weight of unspoken questions, and his body bent slightly as if apologizing for a burden he never chose. His green eyes shimmered with suppressed sorrow, locking with Rania's gray ones as if searching within them for forgiveness.
He knelt before her quietly, raising his hand to hold her limp one, clasping it between his palms, then leaned forward to place a soft kiss on it—a silent confession of all that he couldn't say. In a broken, faint voice, he asked: "Do I deserve all of this?"
Rania smiled with tenderness, then pulled him into an embrace, saying, "Only you hold the answer to that question."
The queen slowly withdrew from the embrace, as if clinging to the lingering warmth in her arms. She straightened up, taking gentle, measured breaths. In turn, Corlis adjusted his stance quickly, trying to pull himself together and break the weight of the moment with a comment laced with mild humor: "So that means you won't let me go with Nile to his friend's wedding?" he said with a light smile, his gaze turning to Nile as if asking him to explain.
Nile replied in a firm voice, devoid of hesitation: "It seems this isn't the right time. I'll decline the invitation as well."
The queen paused for a moment, as if considering the idea from a different angle. "Not a bad idea," she said quietly, though her tone carried a decision. "Summit Palace is no longer as safe as it once was. The summit has become a gathering place for everyone, and anyone can now reach it... This is a good opportunity to get Corlis out of this place without arousing suspicion, and to keep him away from the whirlwind of schemes, until things calm down a little."
But Corlis erupted with his words, his tone driven by more than mere objection; it was a desperate hold on what remained of his sense of duty: "I can't leave you here alone." He said it softly, but it was clear, as if his heart spoke before his tongue.
The queen turned to him. This time her tone was sharp, decisive: "You must. vortex won't do anything to me. he has nothing to gain. The target at the end of his arrow is you."
She then moved with steady steps toward Nile, leaving Corlis standing behind her. His eyes dropped to the ground, staring at the shadow of his tall figure stretching before him, as if it held an answer he couldn't find elsewhere. His shadow was the only constant in a world spinning around him.
For moments, it seemed to him that the answer might lie in retreat. The idea of giving up the throne had crossed his mind before, in scattered moments. he had never spoken it, never written it down, only let it swirl in his head like a vortex with no exit. Perhaps he was never born to rule. Perhaps vortex was more fit than him. Yet still… he couldn't break his mother's gaze, nor imagine letting her down after all she had endured for his sake.
"There is one last thing I want from you, Sir Nile … a very important request."
She fell silent, keeping her gaze fixed on his face, watching his reaction as if testing the edge of a drawn sword.
But Nile remained calm, his posture straight, his features composed.
He nodded slightly, then said in a calm voice that contrasted with the tension beginning to creep into her eyes: "At your command."
She took a short breath, then said without changing her tone : "You used to teach Corlis to fight at certain times, didn't you?"
Nile blinked slowly, then nodded again and confirmed in a composed voice with a thoughtful tone: "Yes… I believed that gaining some physical strength might help grow his confidence in other areas… but it wasn't serious training."
Rania interrupted him quickly, as if time were pressing against her and leaving no room for hesitation. She didn't allow a pause between his last word and her first, and said in a tone that felt more like a plea than a command: "I want you to make it serious."
She took a step forward, the spark in her eyes resisting extinguishment, then continued: "As you heard, I want you to train Corlis, to become his mentor, to make him stronger. I want him to be a warrior king."
Her hand clenched her robe unconsciously, and her gaze didn't move from his eyes, as though she were testing his ability to understand and execute at once: "Ever since the age of warrior kings ended, kings have become mere throne-sitters… their role limited to politics, meetings, issuing orders. They have authority, yes, but they lack true strength… the strength that enforces that authority when things spiral out of control."
Rania slowly lifted her gaze, her eyes sweeping across the hall as if searching for ghosts of the past between the walls.
She paused for a moment, then raised her hand deliberately, her voice emerging with the weight of history: "Moonlight D gar did not gain power from authority, but gained authority from power. Her name alone was enough to make the sea tremble."
She clenched her fist in the air, as if summoning the spirit of that legendary empress, and continued, her voice gradually filling with fervor: "Though she was human, the merfolk followed her without hesitation. It wasn't because they submitted, but because they respected her strength and her ability to lead."
Excitement crept into Rania's voice without her noticing, as if the heat of her words was melting what remained of her composure. She raised her hand in a sharp theatrical gesture, and her gaze ignited with unwavering confidence. She said in a decisive tone: "Corlis must become strong, and he has all the potential—he is the heir to Moonlight's power. There are moments when politics are useless, when words fail... what you need then is the fist. He must prove himself. To everyone who laughed, to everyone who whispered that he doesn't deserve the throne, that he isn't worthy."
"Let them crumble before him. Make them witness that Rania D gar did not give birth to a weak king... but to a king who will reunite the Sea Kingdoms and restore the D gar name to its former glory."
Suddenly, a sharp buzzing sound pierced the silence of the room, followed by a faint thud like a treacherous dagger.
A sudden arrow ripped through the air and lodged in the queen's neck.
In a moment that felt longer than time, Queen Rania collapsed slowly, as if the earth was stealing her soul from beneath her feet.
Blood rose into the air like a spark of fate, before she fell heavily between the arms of earth and betrayal.
"Mother!" Corlis cried, his heart collapsing before his body. He rushed toward her, falling to his knees, holding her trembling face with shaking hands.
The arrow was embedded in her neck, and her voice came out choked, as if life was slipping out of her bit by bit. Her breaths were broken, her eyes moving as if trying to say something... or to say goodbye to something.
Nile, who had frozen for a moment in shock, locked his eyes on the arrow—it looked familiar to him. He quickly scanned the room for its source, but there was no sound, no movement. The walls were silent, yet they concealed treachery.
Corlis's broken voice as he whispered, "No... don't go, don't leave me…" mixed with her ragged breathing, as if time itself was dying between them.
A new buzzing roar suddenly erupted, and a barrage of arrows burst from the wall as if they were in the middle of an ancient war, heading straight for Corlis, hunched over his mother's body.
There was no time to think. In a flash, Nile launched forward like a shadow, drawing his blade as he spun his body in front of Corlis.
He clenched his teeth so hard it seemed they might break.
He swung his sword in a wide arc, like a violent gust of wind born from the blow, forming an invisible wall that deflected all the arrows, which shattered on the ground like rotten metal leaves.
"Guards! The queen has been hit! Inside, now!" Nile shouted, his voice filled with a fury and shock that left no room for delay.
The door burst open violently, and four guards stormed into the room with speed, swords drawn, their eyes searching for an unseen enemy, while the queen's blood still dripped before them like an unfinished sentence.
Nile knelt beside the queen, staring in horror at the arrow lodged in her throat.
"Bring the physician! Now!" he shouted at the guards.
But none of them moved. They approached him slowly, with steady steps, their eyes void of fear… and void of loyalty.
Nile rose to his feet, his eyes scanning their faces, something inside him screaming:
This isn't how soldiers trying to save their queen behave.
"What is the meaning of this?!" he asked, his tone as sharp as a blade. "Why aren't you responding? The queen is dying!"
Then the silence was shattered by the words of one of them, spoken with a chilling coldness: "You're the one who killed the queen, Nile."
Time froze for a moment. Corlis raised his head, unable to comprehend what he had heard. Nile, for his part, gasped in fury: "What did you say?!"
But the reply came in steel. The four guards drew their swords and pounced on him like hunters who had found their prey.
Nile drew his blade and shouted, "Damn it, what's wrong with you?!"
The four guards launched at once toward Nile, like starving wolves who had found their prey.
Their swords crossed in a single flash and attacked him like a storm. They swung their blades at Nile's chest, but he deflected the blow with a swift motion.
His body tilted backward as if to prevent a pillar from crashing down on him, his foot holding firm to the ground as he pushed the attack away.
His neck veins were taut, and his chest trembled with fury. He shouted while resisting their repeated blows: "Stop this immediately! I can still save the Queen!"
But their eyes didn't blink. They showed no hesitation. Their mission wasn't protection, it was murder.
A sudden kick struck Nile from the side, slamming into his stomach with force and knocking him back several steps, nearly toppling him. At the same moment, another punch landed on his cheek, making blood burst from his mouth—yet he held firm. But before he could regain balance, he saw something that froze his heart.
One of the guards had bypassed the fight and was heading toward Corlis, sword raised, preparing to strike his neck. Corlis was in shock, eyes wide, completely unaware of what was happening.
Nile's eyes widened in shock, and he moved from his place instinctively, like an arrow. He grabbed the guard's raised arm, twisted it in his grip, spun around him, and yanked the sword from his hand in a swift motion, then kicked him hard toward the wall.
The guard's body slammed against the wall like a puppet, and at that same instant, Nile threw the sword behind him. It pierced straight into the man's chest, and blood rushed out onto his clothes. The guard choked out a short scream, then collapsed.
Nile turned toward the rest, his eyes burning with fury, as if a fire had ignited within. He shouted, shaking the room: "This is high treason! You're trying to kill the prince?! Have you sold yourselves to vortex?! You're behind all of this!"
The dying queen's eyes were fixed on Corlis, silently pleading with him to flee. She slowly raised her hand and gently touched his cheek, while he clung to her, whispering her name, refusing the reality closing in on him.
In a silent moment amid the clash of swords, Rania D gar passed away. Her ashen eyes lost their light, and her hand slipped from Corlis's face and fell to the floor, declaring the end.
Corlis let out a scream that pierced to the bone, as if he was being torn apart from within. A scream Nile understood all too well, and realized he was too late.
Under the flickering glow of the chandelier, Nile stood surrounded by the remaining three guards, his body spattered with blood that wasn't his. The sword in his hand was an extension of his rage, his loyalty, his grief.
One moved from the left, the other charged from the front. Nile let his sword flow to the side and spun, striking the first in the chest with his elbow, then slammed into the second. They exchanged fierce, rapid blows—silent as suppressed rage.
Nile raised his eyes to the chandelier, then pulled a small dagger from his belt and hurled it at the chain's base. The massive chandelier dropped like a heavy meteor and crashed into one of the guards, crushing him beneath its iron and shattered glass.
Nile ran toward Corlis, who was still kneeling beside his mother's body, his eyes blank, his hand clutching hers as it grew cold. Nile said loudly: "We have to escape now."
He approached and grabbed Corlis by the arm, but the boy clung to his mother's corpse, refusing to move. His eyes searched her cold face for any trace of warmth. "Corlis! The queen… is dead! And if we stay here, you'll die with her!"
With all the strength he had left, Nile lifted Corlis into his arms. He ran toward the massive window, and without hesitation, he charged through it, shattering the glass and leaping from the Summit Palace. Fleeing the treachery that now filled its walls.