Like Light and Dark (by Miriam & Erich) – 16

“Yes!”, Crystalline admitted, still shocked, and nodded eagerly. She straightened her back and sat up tall in the marble throne while she made up her mind. “Dimir, Master of Eyes! I have decided. I do trust you with the Rojo brothers affair. However, additionally, I feel that it is my duty as a young queen to introduce myself to Primabella and get to know her in person on a diplomatic mission. You can take care of the Rojos until I visit their court as well and assess the situation myself. I do not like the idea of handing over my responsibility completely. I prefer to take the matter into my own two hands and see what I can achieve by doing so.”

In the back, Crystalline could hear Sofiya gasp in awe and even Matron March looked speechless, surprised by this decision and the amount of determination she had stated it with. Lady Lyanne, on the other hand, was beaming brightly again and validated her: “Good, Queen Crystalline! People will love to see that their ruler is taking initiative and won’t just lean back and fall asleep in her throne! This is great!”

“Alright, my Queen! If that is what you wish… I will gladly implement the task, and should you need support dealing with Primabella, who is by far the most stubborn Duchess this world has ever seen, know that I am only one call away… you can count on my shadowy support!”, Dimir responded and swiftly turned around with a flap of his cape to resume his seat at the table and dismiss his dark agents back into the void.

Only the Master of Shields, who was supposed to report next, did not seem very happy with the way things had evolved. He cleared his throat and spoke up with a stern look on his face: “Excuse me, my Queen Crystalline, but I don’t believe it is very intelligent to walk straight into the lion’s dent without any proper preparation or previous experience. If you were to ask for my advice, I would want you to stay right where you are. You still need some time to grow into this throne!” When Lady Lyanne shook her head at him and rolled her eyes, appalled by such bluntness, he just bellowed: “What?? Just because I am the only one who knows about the actual threats that lurk in the wilderness outside of this Valley? No, you better trust me when I say that it is too dangerous for a young Queen like Crystalline to embark on such journey. Besides, if Primabella is really as stubborn as Dimir claimed, I think we are way past the point of diplomacy. What we need, then, is a memorable demonstration of power and authority, so the Duchess finally learns her lesson: we are not lambs to be slaughtered but lions to be feared.”

“No!”, Crystalline said clearly. “I am against using violence at this point. We will not start a war or fight any battles (yet). My message is: as long as we can, let us communicate peacefully and mitigate the situation effectively. An armed response is not necessary and might only lead to more turbulences.” Despite her insecurities throughout the meeting, Crystalline felt an unexplainable power rising up within her. It was as if she suddenly knew exactly what she was made of. Just like Matron March had reminded her: SHE was the QUEEN!