“Tell us,” shouted more than one person in the audience.
“I intend to,” grinned Alahara to a chorus of laughs. “Emperor Marak, one of the three human leaders, brought sixty men to the Island of Darkness to assure our escape. Without his help, we would probably have perished. And I hope you listened closely to that. I did not say that the Emperor sent sixty men to help us. He brought them with him. Marak put his own life in danger to make sure that King Avalar was safely freed. Whatever your reasons are for not wanting to help the humans, do not ever tell me it is because the humans would not risk their own lives to help the elves.”
Princess Alahara fell silent and her eyes dampened as she recalled the harrowing escape from the Island of Darkness, and how Marak had come to the rescue. The crowd fell silent as they waited for the princess to continue. There were no longer any hecklers and not a protest sign was visible. Princess Alahara turned and walked back across the stage to the king. She wrapped her arms around her father and hugged him. He hugged her back as the crowd burst into applause.
* * *
As Princess Alahara continued to rouse the populace, Princess Alastasia raced into the throne room. She slid to a halt when she saw Kanis struggling with the queen. Kanis had the queen pressed against the railing of the throne room, and Alycia was desperately trying to hang onto something lest she be thrown over the edge. The princess did not hesitate to act. She immediately cast the Kieran compulsion spell on her aunt. Kanis screamed, her hands going to her head as her body fell to the floor. Alastasia glared at her aunt as she concentrated her power into the spell.
“Stop it!” shouted Alycia. “You are going to kill her.”
“And she was trying to kill you,” Alastasia spit out venomously. “She has no right to hurt you.”
“Stop it!” demanded the queen. “Stop it this minute.”
Princess Alastasia snarled, but she dropped the spell. Two knives immediately slid into her hands as she walked warily towards her aunt. Kanis groaned and looked up at her niece. She saw the knives in her niece’s hands and the anger in Alastasia’s face. Her face palled as she struggled to her feet.
“How dare you treat me this way?” Kanis shouted at Alastasia.
“How dare you try to kill my mother?” snarled Alastasia. “It is only by Alycia’s grace that you are still alive, and I fear that I won’t be able to control myself much longer. I shudder to think of the long humiliating trial that you are going to cause this family.”
“Trial?” balked Kanis. “What are you talking about? We just had an argument. That is no reason for a court to hear about it.”
“Save your lies for someone who does not know you,” snapped Alastasia. “We know all about Maraton, Levitor, Salfour, and you. Did you truly think that you were dining in private at the Banyan last night?”
Kanis suddenly dropped her eyes and stared at the floor. Tears came to her eyes, but the princess could still sense the defiance in her aunt. Kanis backed away from her niece until she was up against the railing.
“How could you turn against your own sister?” asked Alastasia. “Is nothing in life sacred to you? Is power your god?”
“Leave me alone,” whimpered Kanis. “You cannot make me stand trial. I am the queen’s sister. You can do nothing to me.”
“Wrong,” retorted Alastasia. “My mother may be willing to let you go, but you also planned my death and the deaths of my father and sister. You will be put on trial. I will demand it.”
“No,” Kanis shook her head violently. “You have to let me go. I could not stand a trial. Please. I will admit everything. I do admit everything. I wanted you all dead so that I could rule Elvangar. Is that so bad?”
Alycia gasped at her sister’s admission. Tears rolled down her checks as she realized that Avalar had been right after all.
“Alycia, please,” begged Kanis. “You can make them understand. You have to let me go. I am your sister.”
“You are no longer my sister,” Alycia replied, her voice wooden and fragile. “I would have forgiven you anything, but you are heartless. Even now after you have been uncovered there is no remorse in your soul. You are only worried about the humiliation of being called to account for your crimes. You disgust me.”
As Alycia turned to leave the room, Kanis shouted defiantly. “You will never humiliate me,” she declared as she climbed up on the railing. “I would rather die than be humiliated.”
Alastasia raced forward to grab Kanis. While she wanted her aunt punished for her treachery, she did not want to see the woman die. Before the princess could reach her, Kanis threw herself off the platform. Alycia turned in shock at seeing Kanis fall from the Royal Tree. She stood stunned for a moment and then walked over to Alastasia and hugged her tightly.
“I am sorry, Mother,” Alastasia said softly. “I know that Kanis was your only sister, but perhaps it is better this way after all. We must always think of what is best for the elven people. While I did not relish the thought of a public trial, I did feel that it was necessary. If Kanis was merely let go, she would have continued to plot against you, and I could not bear the constant threat to your life.”
“You and your sister will make finer queens than I could ever be,” Queen Alycia sobbed. “You always stand up for what is right in this world, no matter the cost. I am so proud of both of you.”
Below the Royal Tree, several members of the crowd screamed as they saw the body fall from the platform. Avalar and Alahara turned in horror as they saw the crowd pointing towards the base of the tree. They broke their embrace and dashed off the stage. While Avalar was a swift runner, Princess Alahara arrived well before him. She knelt next to the crumpled body and turned it over. She sighed with relief as she recognized the face of Kanis.
“It is not mother,” she said to the king as he arrived. “It is Kanis.”
“Praise Kaltara for your mother’s safety,” Avalar said softly.
“And Alastasia I expect,” added Alahara. “We saw Kanis in the throne room with mother before I came up to speak. Alastasia raced to join her. What do we say to the crowd?”
“I wish to spare the citizens from the disgrace of the actions of a small number of malcontents,” the king replied. “This nastiness is almost behind us. I will speak to the people. I want you to take over here. Have the guards treat the body of the queen’s sister with respect. There will be a dignified burial this evening. Let her death be recorded without dishonor.”
“I understand,” nodded Princess Alahara as guards converged on the fallen body.
King Avalar walked back to the stage and stood silent on the edge for a moment to gather his thoughts. The crowd was deathly quiet. When the king finally spoke, his voice was soft, but carried well through the silent crowd.
“Kanis, sister of Queen Alycia, has perished this day,” King Avalar declared in a sorrowful voice. “While her fall from the throne room brings great sorrow this day, let her death show that the elven people are not immortal. We die everyday, even in the safety of our homeland. Elves will also die in the coming struggle with Vand, but we must not let it shatter us as a people. I pray that Kaltara will watch over us in the coming days.”
King Avalar halted his speech and gazed at the faces of the gathered citizens. He let his eyes rove over the assembled crowd, and he was touched by the sympathy he saw in their faces. He smiled inwardly as he felt pride in his people. Despite their fears, the elves had not lost compassion for their own, even for one whom they did not know well. He knew that compassion would be extended to the humans in the future.
“The Royal Family will be holding a quiet ceremony this evening for the burial of the Queen’s sister,” Avalar stated. “The ceremony will be open to anyone who wishes to attend.”