Fallen Queen

Fallen Queen is a part of Tales of Arkain.

## Synopsis

This story focused on Queen Keera, and her regrets.

## Story

Mother will keep you safe. She will protect you. She will watch over you. She will never mistreat you. She will always look after you. She will never know hate for you, only love. Her heart is yours to keep. You are her daughter and heir. You are the one who will take her place. You will make her proud. Be a good child to make her happy.
These were the words Keera's mother had taught her when she was a child. The same words she had taught her own daughter as well. But unlike her own mother, Keera had failed to live up to these words. She was not there for her daughter when she was needed. She never protected Renova. She never watched over her. She did not treat her well. She did not look after her. She did not show her love. She did not dedicate her life or heart to her daughter. Whyever would Renova have wanted to make her proud or happy? And now, Renova was dead - as was Keera. But her daughter was taken by the shadow. Keera could not tell her how sorry she was.

Keera had failed them all. Her mother had expected her to be both a good ruler and person. She was a terrible ruler who just let the nobles deal with everything and she made the king of Rengar cheat on his wife in exchange for his support. Her people had expected her to be leading them into a glorious future. She reverted the political changes of her mother a few centuries in because the nobles were offering valuable gifts. Her daughter expected her to watch over her and trust her. She spent little time with her only child and locked her up when disobeyed. If her mother would have lived to see this... She had spent her last days not at her home but at the court of Rengar. The price she had to pay for the soldiers of Rengar protecting her borders. Instead of building up the military of the Elves as the high-ranking officers had begged for many centuries, she had done what her mother had tried to prevent: She asked for the protection of the Humans, no matter the price. And then was was slain by the betrayed Rahandir Drakeskull. Could she blame him? No. She had done nothing to prevent her lover from killing him. She was as much to blame as the king of Rengar back then was. Now she was back as a living dead. And once again, the blood of her people was on her hands. She had taught Renova badly so her daughter was just as unaware of the Demon Slaves in the eastern part of her kingdom as Keera was - who knows, maybe those had already been infiltrating the ranks when Keera was still queen? It mattered little, either way, the blame was on Keera. Many got corrupted by the Demons - and during the war they were all slain, either by the Golden Guard or Keera and Ornasion. This battle had not only cost many lives, it also devastated the forest.

Keera had made a decision. She had taken control of this part of the forest in the name of her unliving master, the Watcher of Arkain. A sad smile appeared on Keera's face. She had hoped that she could make up for her deeds in death. She created a new elven kingdom in the Dead Forest, a kingdom of death. She had hoped that she would be a better ruler to the dead than she had been to the living. She had succeeded. She was a better queen of the dead than the living - though there was less to be done wrong. But did was she really a good queen of the Elves now? Yes, the dead did not complain, but that was surely not because of her skills or deeds as a ruler. And her people? The ones that were alive? The ones foolish enough to come here? A soldier entered the throne room that Keera had set up in her new royal palace.

"My queen, another group of the living has crossed the border." she reported. "Where are they?" Keera asked. The soldier stepped aside. Two other soldiers entered the room, carrying a corpse. They threw it on the ground before Keera's throne. "They refused to be taken alive." the soldier continued her report. Keera sighed. "Bring them to the necromancers and leave me alone." she ordered. The soldiers nodded and left the room, taking the corpse with them. Not a single elf that had entered the Dead Forest had reached her alive. They either tried to run - which resulted in them having to be killed - or they fought - with the same result. No, the living entering the Dead Forest were doomed as soon as they happened to come across any of Keera's subjects. The living did not know of Keera's little kingdom in the Dead Forest and she wanted to keep it that way. The living had other issues. And what about the Elves who were smart enough to stay in their part of the forest? They were ruled by Larine after Renova's death. She had been a respectable, if somewhat unabashed ranger once. Now she had become infatuated with Gardon Bloodclaw and was his puppet queen in the Elven Kingdom. Keera's people had suffered herself as queen, then the daughter she raised rather badly and now a puppet. They deserved better than that. Keera wanted to act but she was not sure what she should do. Go to war? No, her people would only suffer even more if another war was started. Keera leaned back and looked at the ceiling of her dark throne room. "Why could I not have been born as the daughter of a lesser noble or a peasant even?" she asked. But nobody answered. She was alone, after all. She stood up and walked towards the entrance to her throne room. The portraits of former rulers of her people were hanging at the walls. They had been taken from the manors of the nobles who had allied with the Demons. Keera stopped in front of the door. On the left was a picture of herself, when she was still alive. It was like looking in a mirror. Sure, she looked more like a monster now than she looked back then but... she could see the many flaws behind that beautiful sight now. In life, she had been too blind to see this. On the other side... Renova. Her daughter. She was gone. Keera did not know what this Brian had done with her but... she could not be raised. Keera closed her eyes. "I can only hope, my child, that you are finally at peace. And that you can forgive me."