Just as Aracnos had told her, the book was one of a kind and Tianna found herself quickly immersed. The contents were nothing like she expected. They were personal and it felt as if she were asking questions personally to the previous Queens.

First of all, this wasn’t the first time that the queen had been looked down on and ignored. The council had been formed at that time because the Queen’s right hand had too much power and was using it against the Code of the Queens.

Code of the Queens? That seemed important. Tianna searched for more mentions of the Code, and quickly found a journal entry.

“I was brought up to believe in the Code, but when I took the throne I was thrust into a battle of politics and power. As a Queen my role is to be an example and unify the magical species of Althaedor but I fear I will spend all of my time fighting worthless battles instead. The dragons and humans are especially hardheaded, though the fairies don’t fall too far behind.”

So the code involved unifying magical creatures? Tianna turned the page to read more, but nearly dropped the book when the door opened.

“It’s me,” Densooth announced, “I tried to knock, but I believe this door has soundproofing magic on it so you wouldn’t have heard. They seem desperate to keep you in the dark.”

“Densooth?” Tianna asked. Out of instinct she hid the book as soon as he came in.

“I came to check on you as soon as I found a chance,” Densooth told her, and closed the door behind him, “I never expected them to treat you this coldly, but that may be my fault. Here in the castle the council and the advisor are always at odds.”

“What exactly is the council?” Tianna asked.

Densooth paused and studied her for a moment. “The council is a group of representatives of the various kingdoms in Althaedor. Each kingdom wants to be as close to the Queen as they possible can. This is why they despise anyone in my position.”

“I see,” Tianna muttered, “Was there any particular reason for your visit?”

“Yes. I wanted to hear more about how you got kidnapped. Weren’t you in Belleas? I find it hard to believe that the Belleas Company would just let you be taken so easily.”

Tianna described the circumstances behind her kidnapping. How she had been alone for just a bit and they appeared as if they had been waiting and lied to her about the Black Wolf to convince her to come willingly.

“So they intended to frame the Black Wolf for all of this,” Densooth mused, “Anyone would believe them based on his reputation. I am surprised that Belleas did not provide you with better security or a plan for such situations. It is unlike them to be so lax.”

“Is it? I thought they were fairly attentive but they never brought up anything about security. Maybe they only told Jerath,” Tianna guessed.

Densooth frowned. “That’s possible. I have to check something. Try not to go anywhere while I am gone. This might be important.”

“What is it?” Tianna asked.

“I’d rather not make you worry in case it is nothing,” Densooth replied and quickly left the room before he could pester her further.

What was that all about? Tianna was a bit confused and although she noticed that she had not been locked in this time she decided to go back to reading the book she had hidden. The Study of Queens of Althaedor continued with a passage about the first Queen.

“Just when the first Queen was at the peak of her rule, the Black Wolf appeared and tricked her into giving him the Gray Tower, a tower created by the kitica to protect the most valuable of prophecies and knowledge.After achieving his desire, he vanished.”

Was it the same Black Wolf that Tianna was running from? Perhaps the Black Wolf was a title that was passed down secretly through the generations. And what were kitica? Tianna assumed it was a magical creature but she had never read mentions of them in any other book before. Perhaps Aracnos would know.

She kept reading in hopes of finding some answers but there were no more mentions of the kitica. However, she did come across another mention of the Black Wolf rather quickly. It almost seemed as if the study was as much about the Black Wolf as the Queens.

“Only two generations after being established, the council had begun successfully restricting the Queen until she was little more than their puppet and an idol to show the people. After attempting to use her influence to start a war with the merpeople, the Black Wolf appeared and destroyed the council. There was no council for three generations, but history continued to repeat itself.”

Tianna shuddered and almost dropped the book. She quickly flipped to the title page and examined it. There was no mention of an author, translator, or even compiler. There was only the title and an otherwise blank page.

After carefully hiding the book, Tianna approached the bookshelf in hopes of catching a glimpse of Aracnos. Before she could do so, the door to the room burst open and the haughty man from earlier entered along with some rather important looking people. All of them looked at her as if she were a nuisance suddenly foisted upon them.

“The council greets the lost princess,” a sharp eyed woman announced with a frown, “I am the vice-head of the council, Velcorna Alodan.”

The woman had brown hair with a hint of ginger neatly tied back, and everything about her spoke of a perfect noble woman. Most of the others were the same.

“Nice to meet you,” Tianna replied. It was better to at least attempt to be polite for now, however her reply seemed dissatisfactory to them.

“This is a complete mess,” one of the council members in the back muttered, “After so many years of the Queen being a recluse we finally find the princess and she is a country bumpkin.”

“A country bumpkin is better than a snobbish brat. This we can work with,” another argued, “We just need to secure the line.”

“Secure the line?” Tianna asked with a foreboding feeling.

“Naturally. As the heir to the throne it is your duty to marry and carry on the line,” Velcorna prompted, “After what happened with our last Queen we cannot risk another catastrophe. You are plenty old enough to marry. I had my child at your age.”

“Marriage is a bit sudden. Can’t it wait until things settle?” Tianna tried.

“I am afraid not,” Velcorna shot down, “If you do not have an appropriate husband we will not be able to acknowledge you as Queen. That being said, we can’t wait much longer. I think it is fair to say that if you cannot take care of that by the end of the year, then someone else should take the role of Queen and stop the all but empty position from rotting away.”

With those parting words the entire council left as quickly as they had come and locked the door behind them.