ICE

135. The Oath

The palace seemed to transform overnight. The pitter-patter of stressed footsteps flooded through the corridors at all hours of the night, mixing with disembodied voices that shouted incoherent orders. Any specific decor that had been arranged throughout the palace for mourning purposes was removed. The moment that daylight crept across the sky, the period of mourning had officially ended and the sounds of chaos faded.

It was a new day, and a new era for the kingdom.

Ravenna struggled to remain focused on the spell-book she held tightly within her hands. Her gaze zeroed in on the scribbled words — Caelan's handwriting and small marginal notes brought her some semblance of comfort. She stared at the words without actually reading them or absorbing any information.

She just needed a moment to think.

If the ceremony went smoothly, Ravenna would officially be the second most powerful person in the kingdom. However, even with all of that power, she would still be unable to prevent Vyses and Lyth from being executed. She also doubted that she would be able to prolong the execution date any further without directly intervening.

The moment her title became official, Ravenna would need to act fast to rid herself of Eoin and take full control of the kingdom.

A gentle knock sounded at Ravenna's bedroom door, disrupting her thoughts. It opened to reveal a somewhat excited Alyss. "It is coronation day," the young girl announced as she entered the room.

Nervousness plagued Ravenna's stomach. She set aside Caelan's spell-book, hiding it discreetly beneath her pillow. Alyss stepped further into the room and whisked her away toward the bathroom. Ravenna was bathed, dressed, and fed a hearty breakfast of eggs and pastries before she could even blink an eye.

The moment that she was deemed ready, Alyss escorted her to the royal cathedral, where a somewhat sober Eoin awaited her.

Eoin and Ravenna both found themselves seated in the sanctuary, each in beautiful thrones encrusted with thousands of sparkling white-diamonds. A heavy crowd of noblemen and women overflowed within the North and South aisles of the nave. Each person wore brightly colored clothing — a stark contrast to the darker tones of mourning that had clouded the Capitol's fashion as of late. The archbishop stood in front of both Eoin and Ravenna, on one of the steps that connected the nave to the sanctuary. From what Ravenna understood, this was to be her position the entire ceremony. This position would allow the archbishop to roam the steps back and forth as she spoke, without ever really obstructing the view of the future king and queen.

On either side of the thrones stood a Blood Knight, which made Ravenna a little more nervous than she already was. Each Blood Knight balanced a cushion colored deep violet atop their hands. Sitting atop the cushions were two extravagantly designed crowns.

The larger crown was a beautiful sight to behold. The mitre of the crown was split into two half-spheres of open metal work that rested atop a circlet of massive diamonds. At the apex of the central arch, there was a diamond rosette created from fifteen petals. A large spinel rose from that central arch, surmounted by a cross of five diamonds. Thousands of diamonds were arranged into unique patterns across the entire surface of the crown.

The second crown was much smaller in size. It featured an abundance of sparkling diamonds set within brilliant silver festoon and fleur-de-lis designs. Color-stained sunlight reflected against each individual diamond, creating thousands of tiny rainbows that danced around the room. Ravenna's heart fluttered violently inside of her chest as a loud fanfare announced the start of the ceremony. The archbishop stood in front of them, facing the crowd of excited onlookers that overflowed through the cathedral. She started to speak about what great wonders Eoin and Ravenna's reign would bring forth to the kingdom.

The archbishop stepped in front of Eoin first and asked him to recite the required oath. Eoin sucked in a deep breath. His nervousness and hesitation was palpable to Ravenna. His gaze flickered toward her for a moment. She smiled at him.

He recited the oath flawlessly. The Blood Knight beside him stepped forward and gently placed the larger crown atop Eoin's head.

The archbishop then stepped in front of Ravenna. She smiled warmly at her. "Are you prepared to recite the oath?" she asked.

Ravenna said, "I am."

The scripted words flowed easily from Ravenna's mouth. Once she was finished, the archbishop grinned and the second Blood Knight stepped forward. The smaller crown was placed gingerly atop Ravenna's head.

Her lips stretched into a beaming grin. She gazed out upon her people, upon the smiling, happy faces that cheered for her. A pearl of pride swelled within her heart.

It was done.

Within a single week, Ravenna had risen to the highest social status within the kingdom. The kingdom of Kahl now sat within the palm of her very hand. No one could refuse her. No one could oppose her.

No one except Eoin.

~

hey there friends!

I hope that everyone is having a good week so far! This chapter is a little shorter than normal -- sorry about that! I actually wrote this maybe a month ago? So I genuinely can't remember why it is shorter, haha! It is very necessary though. We have finally hit one of the major plot points: Ravenna is officially a QUEEN! 

Things are only going to get more fun from here! 

Also. Can we take a quick second to talk about how this book is about to hit 1 million reads? Like. What. I'm honestly mind-blown right now!

I really appreciate you all taking the time to read this book. Your support and love and feedback honestly means so much to me. I genuinely don't have the proper words to express how grateful I am for you!! Thank you so much! 

I hope that the rest of your week is super awesome and kick-butt! I know some are/have started back at school. I hope that you are staying safe!! ❤❤

ash ❤