In the great grand hall of Selrion, the three princesses stood before the king. In a corner on a glossy table, was a wooden box containing three different coloured pebbles (red, green, blue)—it was a trying time for the kingdom, so a relic had to be retrieved to restore normalcy. It had to be retrieved only by one of the princesses, and the one who chose the red pebble would automatically be chosen for the journey.
King Nazar(a king who appeared tough on the outside but soft within) stood up, voice shaky and heavy with sorrow, "One of you must retrieve the eye of the bones, our kingdom—Selrion is dying and that relic is our only hope." "I know this is a dangerous and demanding task," he continued. "But I have no choice, one of my precious daughters has to go alone. If she makes it back unscathed, then she will be the next heir to the throne; since I’ve no son."
One of the Queens, Queen Morgan—an arrogant and vile woman, sly as a fox, muttered and gestured to them "Step forward princesses and pick a pebble from the box. Do not look into the box." They walked and picked from the box.
Who had picked the red pebble? It wasn’t Princess Luna nor Princess June, it was Princess Violet!
Violet the youngest, was the quiet and calm one, just like her father. She always stood in the shadow of her elder half-siblings, no one had expected her to pick the red stone. Her mother was the fourth and last wife of the king.
In search of a son the king married her mother, however she couldn’t bear a son also like his other wives, still the king loved her more than the others and refused to remarry. His other wives, instigated by Queen Morgan, became envious and plotted against Violet’s mother—she was accused of treason with undeniable proof and was banished from the kingdom.
King Nazar was helpless, neither he nor Violet ever saw her again. From then on, the king gave all his love to Violet, she was infact his weakness.
"Violet! Oh no, why did you have to get the short straw?" King Nazar exclaimed, almost breaking down in tears.
"My king, there are guests here and your other daughters too , don’t act this way. She has been chosen, so she must go." Queen Morgan said.
Princesses Luna and June mocked her as they spoke in hush tones, "She is so unfortunate, there’s no way she’ll make it back in one piece—that I’m sure of."
Violet still in shock, froze on that spot. She wanted to run, and scream about how everything was unfair to her. Her father rushed to her, drew her into a hug and whispered, "Do not worry, I won’t let you go. Let the kingdom go to ruins, I don’t care."
She wiggled her way from his tight embrace, "I must go, I have been chosen. Just pray for me."
The maids immediately took Violet away to prepare her for the journey, she had to leave at first cockcrow. She had never lived outside the palace, how would she cope in a thick forest?
By morning she was ready—dressed in green armor with a small bag of essentials and provisions for the seven-day journey.
"There are lots of distractions, don’t lose focus. The trees are your only friends there, listen to them when they whisper." The gatekeeper warned.
Violet nodded and with a final breath, she stepped into the forest. She had walked for hours on end in the dead silence, with birds chirping , it felt like eyes were everywhere. "Everyone thinks I’ll fail, they are probably right." She said aloud.
"I beg to differ Princess," a husky voice came from behind.
She swiftly spun around, dagger drawn and ready to attack, "who are you?"
A cloaked figure emerged. "I’m Thor, the guardian of this forest. Now I see why the relic chose you."
"What do you mean?” Violet asked as she lowered her blade slightly, still on guard.
"The relic chooses the one with a calm and genuine spirit," he replied, gesturing her to follow. "The relic has waited decades for its owner, it has belonged to you long before you were conceived in Queen Theresa’s womb."
"That’s my mother’s name, do you know her?" Violet asked dumbfounded.
The man chuckled, "Your mother was born from the roots of this forest, she doesn’t even know it. That’s a story for another day, we must hurry and retrieve the EYE—once the veil closes, I fear you might be stuck here with me forever."
After days of walking and fending off evil spirits, the EYE OF THE BONES stood before them, floating in a grove surrounded by green light. "Now possess what belongs to you Violet," the man said urging her to take it.
The relic glowed brighter as she went closer, when she took it, a new strength came upon her.
She returned to Selrion, shock swept through the entire kingdom, the king threw a grand feast to welcome her. Queen Morgan and her co-wives were banished and sold as slaves for falsely accusing Violet’s mother—Queen Theresa. And soon, the kingdom returned to normalcy, the skies were brighter and the crops greener.
After king Nazar ruled for a hundred and twenty years, Violet took over.
Her reign was recorded in history as the greatest ever. She was the first and last woman to rule Selrion. Violet was known as the sovereign ruler.
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