The Last Queen of Charn

The proclamation of war got to Jadis as the armies of Affinis crossed the Desert of Aridus. In the proclamation, there was a demand that Jadis not use magic at all and neither would Affinis. Jadis sent back an acceptance of the terms, and sent out her own armies to meet the Affinians. But at night, she went to the tombs of the kings to oversee an excavation there at a certain tomb with a crack on it of an interesting shape. By the fifth night, the slaves had finally his something and they brought it up for their queen to see.

It was, as she had expected, a black coffin. So far, the words of Cadaver that she had heard the other night were true. She ordered the slaves to carry the coffin to her bedroom, then she sent them out. When she was alone, she notice that there was an inscription on the coffin. There were no hinges for the lid of the coffin to swing open on. After examining the entire surface of the coffin and finding nothing, Jadis finally looked at the inscription.

You came this far; it is here you will stop.

The curse within shall remain unuttered.

But sacrifice your blood to the thousandth drop,

Royal blood with common blood uncluttered.

This opens this box where my bones abide

And make accessible the evil within.

If you dare, find the small scroll hidden inside.

Read the instructions given and begin.

Jadis frowned. Word had reached her yesterday that her ill mother had died by committing suicide. At the time she had not regarded the news but now she saw her dilemma. Foolish woman. Now she was the only one left in Charn of pure royal blood and would need one-thousand drops of it to open the blasted coffin. Steeling herself for the pain, she drew her dagger and pierced the flesh on her wrist with it. She deepened the cut until it was considerably deep, then she held her arm over the coffin so that the blood would land on it.

For almost an hour she stood like this over the coffin. She squeezed her arm from time to time whenever the flow of blood slowed down. When the thousandth drop finally hit the bloody coffin, she was too dizzy to stand up straight anymore and immediately collapsed onto the floor. Before she passed out completely, her blurred vision showed her enough to see a crease appearing near the top of the coffin that spread all the way around it. The lid popped off along the crease as her eyes closed.

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"Here, put another pillow under her head."

"Keep that tea covered so that it stays warm until she wakes up."

Jadis groaned and opened her eyes to find that she was still in her bedroom but now she was lying on her bed. The chambermaids instantly realized that she was awake and poured tea in a mug for her. When her eyes were more focused, she looked around the room and realized with a shock that the lid of the black coffin was lying on the floor. Servants were too illiterate to study magic, right? But they could have let someone else in to read it!

"If any of you has seen or revealed anything in that coffin to anyone, she shall instantly be killed," she gasped.

"None of us has gone near the scary black box, ma'am," said one of the chambermaids as she poured Jadis a steaming hot cup of tea. Jadis was too tired to be very anxious and made no protest as the hot liquid was poured down her throat. Presently, she pretended to fall asleep and the servants left the room to let her rest. As soon as they were gone, she gathered all her strength and put one leg out of bed. She stopped to take a deep breath as she put the other leg out of bed.

After another deep breath, she pushed the rest of herself out of the bed and had to grab onto the bedside table. Her legs had not been ready to carry her full weight again. So she got down on her belly and began to slowly and painfully crawl toward the coffin. When she reached it, she pulled herself up using its side and looked in. There was an old skeleton, not doubt the remains of Cadaver the Sorcerer.

In its hand it tightly held a parchment scroll that was yellow with age. With great difficulty that made her break out in sweat, she finally pried the scroll out of its decayed encasement without ripping it. Gripping it between her teeth, she once again slowly and painfully crawled to her bed and used the bedside table to pull herself up. Once in bed, she broke the seal on the scroll and read the contents to herself.

She had barely finished when she heard a commotion outside and a minute later, Aquila, hers and Bellatrix's old weapons-trainer and now the commanding general of her army, entered the room and bowed low.

"Your Majesty," he began, "your regiment of wild wolves has been murdered overnight due to foul play by your sister. We have found wolf's-bane in their food supply and by using a plant with magical qualities, she has broken the pledge not to use magic in the war. The wolves were the last defense of the city and even now the armies of Affinis are attacking us in the streets of Charn."

Jadis was silent. Then she said, "I will go to meet my sister."

"My queen it is too dangerous," objected Aquila.

"Summon my maids," she said.

When he returned with them a few minutes later, Jadis had made her plan. She commanded Aquila to wait outside while the girls dressed her in her richest dress. Then she ordered for her scepter of authority to show who was still in charge. After this, the chambermaids supported her to the front terrace. From there she could see the battle raging and there she waited silently not moving as the enemy advanced.

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Bellatrix stood on the balcony of a deserted house. Its owners had fled before the invading armies and she had seized it as a temporary headquarters. The balcony looked toward the palace and she was waiting for news on the attack. Just then, her husband, Prince Alacer of Affinis, rode up to the street below and stopped his horse. His horse was covered in foam so he must have ridden hard to get there fast. He must have important news, thought Bellatrix. He almost dismounted but then he glimpsed her standing at the balcony.

He waved and yelled joyfully, "We have captured the palace! You should be there when we enter it victoriously!"

Bellatrix happily ran down the stairs and Alacer lifter her up in front of him on his horse. In a couple of hours, they had reached the front gate of the palace and the Affinian soldiers (along with soldiers from countries under the tyranny of Charn and people from Charn who had actually joined them) cheered as their princess entered the courtyard. Her eyes welled with joy that they were finally defeating evil. Jadis stood at the top of the stairs waiting for her. Finally, when they were at hearing distance, Bellatrix said triumphantly, "Victory!"

"Yes," said Jadis. "But not yours."

In a moment, silence descended over the whole world of Charn as Bellatrix and Alacer with their troops along with the servants in all the palaces and all life was obliviated from the face of it.

"Thus ended the war of succession and the rebellion of the traitor, Princess Bellatrix the Sorceress. And Queen Jadis sat down among her fathers and mothers of old until the stones of Charn crumbled and the red sun was extinguished."

Having written this, Jadis got up from her writing desk in her bedroom and rolled up the new scroll. She went first to the library and put the scroll in the place of the one containing the information of the last use of the Deplorable Word before her. Then she went slowly for she was still weak from so much loss of blood to the Hall of Images. The last chair beckoned to her and as she sat down she felt the force of the spells in the room start to work on her as she slept.