The Shadow Beasts: The Sunclaire Chronicles

by Eleanor M. Byrne

  “Wear this.”

  Looking down, one of the maids placed a pair of blue shoes next to her feet.

  “They aren’t that high, so you shouldn’t be in any pain when you dance.”

  She froze when she heard the word ‘dance’. This gown, the jewelry, and the makeup all led to one conclusion: there must be a fancy dinner party or ball on the agenda. Emily, so recently feeling pride at becoming proficient at hand to hand combat with weapons, would now make a fool out of herself on the dance floor.

  “Dance?”

  “Oh yes, the Sunclaire annual ball,” said a maid. “Everyone throughout the kingdom comes to enjoy food and music. And diplomats, from our allied kingdoms. Isn’t it a lovely idea?” She gave Emily a smile and actually winked at her.

  Emily was speechless.

  Emily stood outside the ballroom, terrified to enter. So many people were already crowded inside. Every time a person would enter, a soldier in a dress uniform on a raised platform would announce the name and title.

  She couldn’t go in, and she had no idea what she should do.

  “What are you doing standing out here?” a deep voice asked gently.

  Emily gasped, clutching her new ruby necklace and she turned around to see Lionel. She gave a slight laugh and relaxed again. Lionel was still wearing his armor, but his beard was trimmed. She wondered why he was dressed in that attire and hadn’t bothered to change. She certainly had been made to.

  “You can walk in with me.” He grinned at her. “First time is always a bit scary.”

  Nodding, she linked arms with him, allowing herself to be led through the wide doors. Blinded by the brightness of the light in the room, she squeezed Lionel’s arm. Smiling down at her, he patted her hand.

  “There’s nothing to be afraid of.”

  The announcer seemed to yell in a booming voice, “Here is Captain Lionel of the royal guard accompanied by Lady Emily Grey.”

  People didn’t even glance at them. They were all in their own little bubbles, busy talking to those around them. Lionel was right, it wasn’t as scary as she thought. Looking about, she noticed Clover was in the corner watching the crowd. Walking over to her, she smiled politely. She hoped that Clover would be kind to her.

  “Hello,” she said. “This is such a beautiful ball. Did you help plan it?”

  “Me? Ha.” Clover snorted. “Do I look like a someone who would do that?” She raised an eyebrow.

  “True. You look like you want to kill somebody most of the time.” She glanced around to see if she could see the prince.

  “Is the prince here yet?”

  “No, they should be here soon.”

  “Prince Declan, Heir of Sunclaire, and her royal majesty Queen Amelyn Sunclaire.” The announcement was just then being made.

  Looking around the room, the prince and the queen spied Clover and strolled through the crowd of people toward her and Emily.

  Everyone around them bowed in respect as they passed. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Clover drop to the ground, her hand against her chest. Not knowing what to do or say, Emily too curtsied, low to the ground. The Queen glanced at Emily with unreadable eyes.

  “It is an honor to meet you, Your Majesty,” she whispered.

  Emily knew that if she were perceived as disrespecting the Queen in any way, she could be killed. She had spent the last few weeks in the library studying the history and customs in this world. In this world, no one was completely free.

  “You may rise.”

  She looked at the queen and marveled. With long blonde hair carefully arranged on her head and a long swan-like neck, she had a commanding look to her. The diamond tiara woven intricately into her piled braids contrasted beautifully with the braid of emeralds that wrapped down the length of her bare arms. Everything about this woman had the connotation of royalty.

  “Your Majesty?” The prince was speaking to the queen.

  “I said, you may leave, Clover and Declan. You should mingle. Get to know these people more. A future king can’t rule a nation without the support of the nobles.”

  Clover gave one last bow before disappearing into the crowd followed by the prince. Emily felt helpless and alone without Clover beside her. How does one act in front of a member of the royal family? The Queen seemed to notice her distress and smiled warmly at her.

  “I heard that you were part of the group with Kator.”

  “Kator?” Emily was confused a moment. “Oh, you mean James,” Emily hastened to add.

  Emily saw her chance to discuss James and the wrong she felt had been done.

  “Your Majesty, if I may be too bold to ask… could you possibly allow James - I mean Kator - to be released from whatever bounty you have put on him?”

  The Queen sighed and gently touched Emily’s cheek. Her eyes looked weary. There were emotions swarming there that Emily could read, emotions not typically deemed as ‘royal’.

  “I wish I could, child, but it isn’t my decision. My son is the person who ordered the capture of Kator, not me. It is his decision to make.” The Queen glanced over her shoulder at the guests. “I must leave you now. There are guests to greet.” She smiled at Emily. “It was nice to meet you the person Declan has been obsessed with.”

  Emily was startled at that. He was hardly obsessed. But what exactly was she being groomed for?

  Now she stood alone in the room. People swirled around her dancing with their partners, but she was left alone. She couldn’t completely blame them. Clover and Declan had told her that these dances were meant to bring in all the important figures within the kingdom, but there still existed that hierarchy. That would never change, particularly at such a lavish event, built around rules and following the expected norms.

  Finding the balcony, she stepped out to breathe. Her hands and back had felt moist with perspiration when she talked to the queen. She swept her gaze across the people inside the ballroom. A steady breeze swirled around her, chilling her warm body. Being in the castle was turning out to be an interesting experience for her. She still didn’t trust Lionel, Clover, or the Prince Declan, but they treated her fairly.

  She could see the prince walking through the balcony doors. He seemed to pause for a brief moment before he headed in her direction.

  “How are you enjoying the party?”

  “It's a lot different than partying in my world.” She grinned at him. “You should go there sometime.”

  Before Prince Declan had a chance to reply, Clover came charging out of the ballroom. She whispered something in the prince’s ear that Emily couldn’t catch. Giving Emily an unreadable look, she went back to the lively party.

  The prince quickly returned. “Fortune is ready to see you.”

  She stared back at Prince Declan. “Excuse me?”

  “The Searchers. You have to learn about the Searchers.”

  The prince looked around. “They have infinite knowledge. That’s what they claim, in any case. Their full name is The Searchers of the Order. I asked them to find out what your origins are.”

  Emily looked at him surprised. “I am a human from the other dimension.”

  “Really? I heard from Jonathan about your abilities. That proves that you are not from the other dimension”

  As Prince Declan walked away from her, he turned.

  “I am going to find out the truth of your bloodline.”

  Chapter 9

  Thunder boomed outside, causing her to jump. Through the narrow windows in the stairway, she could see the sky burst brightly as lightning struck the ground a short distance away. Her only source of light came from an old rusted lantern she had been handed a moment before.

  “This is crazy,” she grumbled to herself.

  They had sent her up from the ball to see someone called Fortune. Earlier today, as she was readied for the ball, she heard the servants talking about this “Fortune” as they were cleaning her chamber. They spoke about her as a woman of many secrets. When the maids noticed her listeni
ng, they stopped their chatter. Since she wasn’t allowed to leave her room, she couldn’t go to the library to look for any reference to Fortune.

  Emily paused for a moment looking ahead at the winding dark stairwell. She felt the tug of intrusive thoughts. Don’t go up. Run away. Don’t. It was a cycle that didn’t seem to end.

  At the top landing, she ran her hand along the cold stone walls. Her hand hit something metal. A doorknob. She had been told that this was where Fortune stayed while visiting the castle. Shivering, she pushed open the heavy door.

  Only the dark welcomed her. No light could be seen inside the room and Emily bravely stepped inside. She could vaguely make out the shapes of furniture positioned around the room but there was no one.

  “Hello?” she called out, her voice bouncing off the walls.

  As soon as the words left her lips, a fire immediately sparked and started in the fireplace. Emily reached for the door handle behind her. She didn’t want want to stay here any longer and it didn’t seem that anyone was here. She felt the blood drain from her face as she realized that the door was gone. Her hand touched only the cold stone wall that stood where the door had once been.

  Before she could think of her next move, she felt bony coarse hands wrap around her neck, squeezing. Thrusting her arms back and pushing forward against the attacker, her hands moved wildly in open space.

  Had it been a ghost? Did they send her up here to get rid of her at the hands of some spirit?

  She felt her body go limp, her head emptying of all thoughts as she was transported away.

  “My love, isn’t she adorable?”

  A woman gently touched the child’s head and gazed at her lovingly. A man stood next to the woman and smiled proudly. They both watched the little girl play at their feet with some toys.

  “She has your hair, dear.”

  The little girl had just turned three and the family had decided to throw a party for her. She looked a lot like her mother. pale complexion, combined with silky reddish hair. She had inherited her mother’s beauty, anyone could see that. The girl’s mother was slim and graceful. But she was so much more than that.

  People throughout the kingdom spoke of her extraordinary kindness and empathy. She deeply felt the sorrows of her subjects and worked tirelessly to help them have a chance for happy lives in a just, equitable system of laws and supports.

  The queen had hoped that her daughter would grow up into a strong and graceful ruler instilled with a sense of fairness.

  The child’s bright blue eyes came from her father. Her father was powerfully built with a youthful face. He, too, had a strong belief in right and wrong.

  Now he was grinning as he picked up his daughter, tickling her.

  “What are you doing, little one?”

  The girl giggled, kicking to escape. “Stop it, daddy.” He placed her back down on the ground.

  “So what do you want to do today, Rayna?”

  “The garden!” The child, Rayna, pointed toward the window. “Flowers!”

  The couple laughed and they followed their daughter down into the garden. Rayna immediately set off after a crowd of butterflies. After a little while, the girl ran to her parents and showed them the tiny red flower that she had picked.

  “Yes, it is very pretty,” the mother said.

  An armed guard appeared in the garden. “Your majesty,” he whispered and said something else into her father’s ear. He promptly turned and followed the man into a doorway that led into the castle.

  The little girl noticed her father leaving and ran to her mother. Before the mother could say anything, the father came out and motioned for the Queen to join him. Rayna stayed outside, an anxious servant at her side until her parents returned. They walked slowly to where she was making piles of small stones. She could see her mother and father looking down on her.

  The playfulness was now gone from their faces.

  Gasping, Emily awoke, sitting on a couch. What had she just seen? Something from the future? Or from the past? She noticed that there were candles lit and a fire burned bright in the fireplace. A figure stood in front of the candlelight against the wall, its shadow dancing.

  “Who are you?”

  Despite her attempt to calm herself, she heard her voice break as she asked, “Are you the person they call Fortune?”

  Emily saw white teeth flash from an eerie smile. Emily took that as a yes and swallowed. She tried to speak more forcibly.

  “I was told you are able to tell me about my bloodline. Do you know why the prince is so eager to know?”

  As the woman walked closer to her, Emily was able to make out her face. Dark hair was put up in a bun and her black colored eyes shone. She looked seemingly normal to Emily until she looked at the woman’s hands. As Fortune pushed back a lock of hair, Emily could see that her hand was wrinkled and bony, almost translucent, and so very different from the rest of her young body. What had happened to this woman, she thought. A wave of horror rolled through her.

  Fortune followed Emily’s eyes and laughed ruefully.

  “This is the price I had to pay for using my abilities. With my gift, I can dive into the mind of any person. The best way to do that is by physical contact.”

  Fortune smiled again. “But it does take a toll on my hands.”

  “Sorry to hear that,” Emily managed to spit out. “Wait! It was you! You were the one who tried to choke me on the street in my world!”

  To her surprise, out of the corner of her eye, she saw that the door had reformed. It had returned. Emily quickly scrambled over the couch, in its direction. Getting away from this woman would be nearly impossible. This exit was blocked by her, but she was certain that she would be strangled again if she didn’t get away. Would the door be locked? Could it just as suddenly vanish again?

  Fortune was speaking.

  “No, I am not going to grab your neck again. This time, we are going to use another technique to pry into your mind.”

  “You’re not going to strangle me again? You’ve done it twice now.” Emily eyed the woman the suspiciously. “You promise?”

  “Give me your hand.”

  Cautiously, Emily reached out and gingerly placed her hand into Fortunes’.

  White light engulfed her. It felt like she had fallen through a frozen pond. A blast of ice seemed to shoot through her, slowly freezing her body. Before she could say anything, the world around her melted away. She felt sucked into a misty place where she couldn’t see anything clearly. She tried to say something but found herself incapable of speech.

  The fog before her was taking shape in the form of human figures. Little by little, Emily could see her surroundings. It looked like a library but not one she recognized.

  Rayna sat on the floor looking through the pages of a massive book. Her parents sat nearby, watching her as they themselves paged through a larger, dusty volume. The five-year-old could tell that something was deeply wrong. Over the past few days, she had noticed that a lot of people were entering the castle.

  She carried the book to her parents.

  “A horse!” She pointed to the picture on the page. “And a knight.”

  Her father bent down and patted her on the head. “My child, your mommy and I are busy right now. Why don’t you go to the garden to play?”

  Nodding, the little girl left the library and headed down to the garden. She began to stroll on her favorite path. There were always a lot of worms on this path. Maybe today she would be lucky. She could bring some back to her father.

  A woman suddenly came out of the shadows of the trees. Rayna smiled in joyful recognition and wrapped her arms around the legs of the tall woman.

  “Windy!” she exclaimed happily.

  The lady let out a sigh with a slight edge of annoyance. “My name is Wind Blade. It’s not Windy.”

  “No! You’re Windy,” Rayna insisted. “Wind Blade is a funny name.”

  Wind Blade rolled her eyes as she looked down at the princess. “Yes,
princess.”

  Emily finds herself back in the white, frozen pond of light. She can’t move. Images and emotions swirl about her. In the morass of sensations, another scene more fully comes together before her.

  Emily finds herself back in a large room filled with a dark haze and flames. There is a massive chair, the throne, barely visible at one end of the hall. Great gusts of smoke seemed to move through the air though it didn’t affect Emily. Through the smoke, she could easily see people running around her. Flames licked the edges of the ceiling and beyond her, columns of fire seemed to tower. From far away, she thought she caught the sound of metal against metal.