The Black Assassin

The Coronation of a King

Aven's POV

12th day of Septimus, 1229

City of Faregothe

Almost Midnight

I blinked hard. The light from the eight hundred candles on the altar were burning my eyes. I quickly closed them and pretended I was listening to the high priest's muffled prayer.

"... and let Jannerus be a great ruler, just as his father, King Tenassius, was before him. He honored his legacy, and we believe Jannerus will do the same..."

I flicked my eyes at the surrounding faces in the hovering light. None of them knew really what great a moment this was. Slowly, I bowed my head and prayed that this would not be the last king of Faregothe. It had once been my father's job to protect all the kings of Faregothe in his lifetime—now it was mine.

The task of preserving his life had ultimately fallen into my hands since Raskul's death. We had always been the keepers of the kings, from our first, King Staifen Habashar, now down to his latest descendent, Prince Jannerus, about to ascend his throne.

Our bloodline was bred for war. From the moment we set foot in the castle as the king's bodyguard, we could take down a full army of well equipped warriors. Trained, sheltered from the outer world, and stolen at birth... we were a special breed only picked from the finest: the Arowan Family bloodline.

It was the quietest moment in Faregothe when the Crown of Ages was settled on the new king's head. Every room in the castle was bathed in complete and total blackness. That was to honor the solemnity and the gravity which came with taking the now vacant throne. Also, the city was in pure darkness as they waited for the bells to peel over the West Tower.

My black eyes traveled to the prince's face. He was perspiring under his heavy cloak and his shoulders were shaking. It was duty that brought him here, not choice. I knew Jannerus had not wanted to become the next king. It was his older brother, Makus's right. But Makus was dead.

I lowered my head, pursing my lips. His death was my fault. I had been supposed to follow him and his brother to the outer gardens one afternoon, but Jannerus had ran away from his brother to the Capperon Hall—the place where all the official counsels were held. I had given chase, thinking Makus would be alright—but I was fatally wrong.

I wished I could take back that move. Jannerus would have survived going into the middle of the counsel, even if he had interrupted his father's speech and gotten in trouble. But I could never have guessed that assassin would come over the wall and kill the Crown Prince. I could never have known—but it was my place to know, to anticipate those things. And I had failed.

His father, Severus, had forgiven me at once. It was his son, and heir to the throne, but he knew I had made the right choice. Makus was capable of defending himself, but Jannerus had always been weak since his birth. Severus honored my thoughts for the welfare of his family, and only mourned his son's death in moderation. He did not get angry at me, nor at his wife. But I think Queen Emiliae, his step-mother, would never see me quite the same again.

As I stood in my place of honor, beside the Arowan crested seat, I remembered my sister, little baby Eya. She was in the back of the church, and I knew she was probably standing on tip-toe so she could see. Our mother, Heaven, was the queen's cousin, and so she was an honored guest at the palace during all seasons. She had began to live here when my father died, and hence, I was able to keep a careful watch over both her and my little sister—my favorite, the fairest one.

I had grown into my duties with surprising ease and grace. They even surprised me. There was never a king who gratified me more then Great King Severus, but he had passed away during the second year of my guardianship. It put a bitter taste in my mouth. I had every hope his son would be as great a ruler. Even though Jannerus was weak, I saw a great strength in his character and build of mind. His mother loved him greatly, and I knew that somehow the situation, as dire as it was, would make them both.