A spreading shadow
A thick unnerving darkness had fallen over the lands of northern Bree. Dark clouds had come over the hills to the east and it would seem as if a storm was to come. It was during this night that events transpired that would start the change, things that would invite the vast shadows of the north and welcome its rule.
Nalokha thought back on that very night, how the child in her hands had been given to her by Lady Hawthorn. A gift to reassure that the lady’s husband would muster against her and recklessly hunt her down. When the Hawhthorns stood there, at the bottom of the steep cliffs by the waterfall she had felt a soothing darkness in one of them. A familiar darkness, the will to serve. After what seemed to be an age, the Hawthorns trying to get their son back, Nalokha told Emdar, lord of the house, the truth. She told him that his wife always had served her, that the woman never had forsaken her loyalty to the Queen of Shadows. She told him that the child had been given a gift to her and that if he should raise a blade against someone it would be against his wife. Of course he did not believe her words, but she could see the struggle in his eyes. As Nalokha spoke further the lady Hawthorn, realizing what she had done, begun to cry and fell to her knees in hope of redemption from her husband. But as the man drew his blade and stepped towards the Red Lady with intent to take his son by force, the lady Hawthorn got to her feet and with a grin of satisfaction on her lips stabbed her husband in the throat. Deep the blade took and with blood gushing from his mouth the lord fell onto the could damp rocks and passed into the shadows. Seeing the act of service once more done by this, the woman she had raised, she gave the woman back her son. “A life for a life” she said, “As the deal was”.
Those serving House Hawthorn ran towards their lady, taking her son and sending both the child and its bigger sister back to the Auburn Halls. They then turned against Nalokha herself, anger and sorrow in their hearts. But when the Queen of Shadows raised her hands and called upon the dark ancient powers of the world they faltered, hesitating and fearing what she would do. But the lady Hawthorn had seen this before and in an act to try and convince her household servants of her innocence she attacked Nalokha with a great fury. The two women fought on the slippery rocks by the waterfall and as lady Hawthorn leapt at her adversary and tried to stab her in the shoulder, the Red Lady grabbed hold of her and threw them both from the cliff.
“I saw how Anrianne fell to her death, smashing her skull against the sharp rocks at the bottom of the fall.” She said to Morgang who layed in one of the beds, badly wounded for trying to aid his mistress. “Rejoice, the traitors are dead and soon their house will be forgotten”.
The old man gave her a weak smile before raising his hand and showing that he wished to be alone. As Nalokha shut the door behind her she could not help but to feel amused at what was to come, no one would be prepared for what she would unleash.
“From the darkness they shall come, this, is my hour…” she said to herself as she sat down on her throne and watched the servants lighten the many candles, fires and braziers in the vast hall.
