🦋 CHAPTER ONE 🦋
°° The Whisper Before Dawn °°
The dawn in Avernia always arrived softly, like a secret being told. Golden light filtered through the silk curtains of the royal nursery, brushing over carved wooden toys, small embroidered cloaks, and shelves filled with stories of ancient heroes. It was in this gentle morning glow that Queen Elanora sat between her two daughters, brushing their hair with patient, loving strokes.
Seven-year-old Liabelle swung her feet restlessly, her tiny silver crown slipping down her forehead.
"Mother," she complained softly, "does my braid have to be so tight? I can't even think properly."
Across from her, thirteen-year-old Lauren laughed, tossing her long, blonde hair behind her shoulder. "You don't think properly even when it's loose," she teased.
Liabelle puffed her cheeks. "That's not true! I'm very smart."
"Yes, sweetheart," Queen Elanora said warmly, guiding the small braid into place. "You're both smart. But smart girls need to sit still when their mother is trying to make them presentable."
Lauren picked at the silver pendant on her neck—etched with the sigil of their kingdom, a lion crowned with fire. "Mother… why do we have to attend the council meeting today? They never let us talk."
"Because it's important for you to see how the kingdom works," Elanora replied. "One day, you will both carry responsibilities heavier than these crowns."
Liabelle blinked, wide-eyed. "Heavier? Like rocks?"
Lauren snorted. "More like the whole kingdom's problems."
Elanora's smile dimmed, though she tried to hide it. "Something like that."
Lauren caught the change in her mother's expression. She always did. "Is everything alright?" she asked quietly.
Instead of answering, Elanora cupped her eldest daughter's cheek. "You have your father's eyes. Always searching, always questioning."
They all turned as King Aldric stepped into the nursery, his cloak trailing behind him like a rolling storm. His armor was already on—polished midnight steel trimmed with gold—and his expression, usually calm, carried a shadow that even the morning light couldn't chase away.
"Father!" Liabelle hopped up and ran to him with the force of a tiny hurricane. He caught her easily, lifting her to his hip.
"You promised to play lion riders with me today!" she said.
Aldric forced a smile. "I haven't forgotten. But perhaps later."
Lauren stood up slowly, brows knitting. "Is there trouble in the kingdom?"
Elanora shot the king a warning glance, but Aldric rested a large hand on Lauren's shoulder.
"There is… movement at the eastern borders," he said gently. "But it's nothing for you to worry about."
The family walked together through the long crystal hallways of the castle. Magic thrummed faintly beneath the marble floors—the heartbeat of Avernia itself. Outside the tall windows, the kingdom spread like a painting: forests that shimmered with emerald fireflies, rivers glowing with moon-lilies, and distant snowy peaks where Avernia monsters once slept.
But today, something felt wrong.
Lauren noticed it first: the way soldiers marched faster, the way servants whispered, the way every council member avoided her parents' eyes.
Inside the throne chamber, the council bowed deeply.
"Your Majesties," said Lord Fenwick, his voice strained. "The Shadowmarch has breached the outer villages."
Liabelle tugged on her mother's dress. "Shadowmarch? Is that… bad?"
Elanora picked her up, holding her close. "It's nothing you need to fear, little one."
Lauren looked at the maps being unrolled, the markers moving dangerously close to the heart of the kingdom.
"Mother," Lauren whispered, voice shaking, "are we going to be attacked?"
Elanora didn't answer immediately.
Then she whispered the softest "Yes," so only her eldest daughter could hear.
That night, Avernia burned.
The alarms shattered the castle's silence, horns blaring through every corridor. Flames erupted from the eastern walls, black as pitch and roaring with unnatural heat.
Lauren woke to the sound of her mother's voice—urgent, trembling.
"Lauren! Liabelle! Wake up, my loves!"
The two sisters scrambled out of bed as Queen Elanora rushed to them, wrapping cloaks around their shoulders.
Liabelle clung to her leg. "Mother, I'm scared."
"I know, darling. Stay close to me."
King Aldric burst into the room, his armor scorched, a cut on his cheek.
"Elanora. They breached the gates."
Every word was a hammer.
Elanora's grip tightened on her daughters.
"What do we do?" she whispered.
Aldric looked at his girls—his entire world.
"You take them to the hidden passage," he said firmly. "I'll hold the courtyard."
"No!" Lauren cried, grabbing his arm. "Father, you can't—"
He knelt down, bringing himself to her height, and held her shoulders.
"Listen to me L, You must protect Liabelle. You must survive."
Tears blurred Lauren's vision. "Come with us. Please."
Aldric smiled sadly. "My duty is here."
Liabelle's tiny voice cracked. "Papa?"
Aldric hugged both daughters at once, kissing their foreheads. "My little stars… I love you both more than all the magic in this world."
Then he stood, sword blazing with enchanted gold.
"Go."
Elanora grabbed the girls' hands. She led them through smoke-filled corridors, past fallen guards, through hallways that once smelled of lavender and now burned with the scent of destruction.
Behind them, the king's roar echoed:
"For Avernia!"
They reached the moonlit garden where the hidden passage was carved beneath a statue. Elanora knelt in front of them, brushing hair from their faces.
"My darlings," she whispered, voice breaking, "no matter what happens tonight… live. Grow. Become the future this kingdom needs."
Lauren felt it then—her mother's hands trembling.
"Mother, you're coming with us," she whispered fiercely.
Elanora shook her head.
"I must seal the passage behind you. It cannot be opened once closed."
Liabelle burst into tears. "No! Mama, please!"
Elanora hugged them both so tightly her shoulders shook. "You are my heart. You are my hope."
Footsteps thundered behind them—dark, heavy, inhuman.
Elanora lifted the stone lid. "Girls—inside. Now."
Lauren pulled Liabelle down into the narrow passage, tears boiling down her cheeks.
"Mother!" Lauren cried. "Don't leave us!"
Elanora gave her one last, beautiful smile.
"Survive, my daughters."
The lid slid shut.
And the world above them fell into silence.