“How is this possible?” the Queen demanded. “And how do you know all of this Lôrît?”
“Because I helped him,” he sighed.
The Queen glared at him for a moment.
“Had I known, Your Grace, I never would have agreed to it,” Lôrît pleaded.
“Silence,” she ordered. “None of us knew. None of us! But we all had the patience to wait. We all believed there would be a better path. Now, you and Îarik may have condemned us all.”
The rest of the council stared at Lôrît in shock.
“Lôrît, you are hereby removed from the Council of Leadership and you are forbidden to leave the city. I will speak with you later. For now, remove yourself from my presence,” Queen Mysel ordered.
***
Marc, Trystan, and Emrys stood patiently in the throne room waiting for the Queen to appear. Her advisors stood around them. A few of them appeared to be missing.
Queen Mysel entered and crossed the room, almost gliding with an inherent grace and nobility. She stopped and stood in front of her throne. The two elves guarding the entrance to the throne room closed the doors.
“My lords,” the Queen said. “I have reached a decision, but first, I have something to say to each of you.”
The Queen moved to stand in front of Emrys.
“Master Myrddin. You were once a close friend of my people and my mother in the days before Arthur. Regardless of my decision or outcome of this war, I hope we can rebuild that friendship once again.”
Emrys nodded his head to the Queen. “I as well, Your Grace.”
Mysel stepped over and faced Marc.
“Prince Marc. I can see the love you bear in your heart for your kingdom and your mate. You are a good man. I pray you never lose yourself to greed or power, for if you do, you would stand to lose everything in the world that you hold dear.”
Mysel stepped in front of Trystan.
“King Trystan. You are a strong and brave young man with a pure heart. I do not envy the difficult choices you will have to make. Always trust what your heart tells you and, in the end, you will find true happiness.” The Queen gave him a soft smile. “I’m very grateful to have met you, Trystan. You alone have restored our faith in mankind.
“Your Grace, you have earned both the trust and support of me and my people. We will fight by your side and swear our allegiance to you.”
Queen Mysel kneeled before Trystan and Marc. Her advisors followed her lead, kneeling as well.
“We cannot thank you enough, Your Grace,” Trystan said.
Trystan breathed a quiet sigh. Certainly, some good news had come from their arduous journey.
“I know you must be going, but there is one last thing I must warn you about,” Mysel said. “Unfortunately, Morgaine has obtained the Myrkurári curse.”
“What does that mean for us precisely?” Marc asked.
“It is also known as the Curse of Demons,” Emrys said, his expression sobering. “If Morgaine releases the curse, it will open a portal to the demon world.”
“The demon world?” Trystan asked.Could it possibly get any worse?
“Another realm,” Emrys said. “Much like where I am from, but this realm is home to creatures cursed with death and dark magic, including demons, hellhounds, and plague dragons. Imagine limitless numbers of these creatures pouring into our world, killing mercilessly and almost impossible to stop. Iôr Thraul currently rules the demon realm. For thousands of years, he has wanted to take over the earth. The guardians have managed to keep him and his army confined to his realm. If Morgaine releases him, it could be the end of this world and humanity as we know it.”
“Then clearly, we must stop her from releasing the curse,” Trystan said. “Queen Mysel, thank you for everything you have done and are about to do. My hope is that we can win this war against Morgaine and her dark army.” Trystan tried to be hopeful, but if the demons were to be released and were as terrible as Emrys described, he feared the worst.
“We must be going now,” Emrys advised, “if we are going to make it to Camelot before dark.”
“There is a tunnel that exits near Avalon. Take three of our shadow wolves. They know these caves and will get you to your destination in mere hours. We will see each other soon. May the Guardians protect you,” the Queen said.
As they walked out of the room, the three men nodded to Teleri and Lôrît waiting outside.
“Lôrît,” the Queen called. “Come in, I have something to discuss with you.”
Lôrît entered the room and closed the door behind him.
“Teleri, Queen Mysel gave us leave to take three of your shadow wolves. Will you show us where to find them?” Trystan asked.
“Of course, Your Grace. Follow me.”
