The Broken Crown

Tales of the Past

One of the most common lies we tell ourselves is that everything is okay. I find myself another victim of that lie in this moment, the environment around me making it easier for me to accept that lie as everything which once bothered me is so far away now. The gentle rock of the waves against the boat feel calming to my anxiety from the past few days, my eyes drawn into the deep blue water of the sea as the thick mist ahead promotes no sign of clearing ahead. From plane to boat, the journey continues to the pack lands of Eternal Shadows, an elf steering the boat in the right direction as all I can see is mist in the distance. River was friendly the plane ride over, offering little conversations along the way as it seemed like he genuinely tried to get to know me better.  Yet I was not able to get much out of him, still missing pieces of his past as I wonder how his past brought him to run a pack of elves and werewolves. 

"If you look ahead, Evelyn, you will begin to see the pack grounds soon," River's voice calls out from the back of the boat, sitting beside the motor as he continues his side conversation with an Eternal Shadows pack member. 

Following his advice, I look ahead of the boat, trying to see what lies behind the mist, waiting for my first sign of land. I try to search for any sign of a tree or even a wall, but as the mist begins to fall into the deep waters below, I see something much more than a simple tree or wall. Ahead of me lies a wall toppling three stories and built of white stone, a gate opening ahead for our small boat to drive through, and a rocky cliffside extending towards the end of the island as a palace takes up much of the inclined land. I expected much of this territory to be made of ruins from the past rulers of the land, but I only see new buildings. 

Our boat goes through the gate, the doors shutting to the outside as I look to the harbor with colorful boats, from sailing to fishing to even small yachts. The harbor is built from stone and wood, shops located around the harbor on a long boardwalk which leads up to the main road of the pack land where shops, offices, and homes are located. The main road continues further to the main gates of the palace - an actual palace with turrets, ivy growing along the walls, grand windows to shine light in, and walls surrounding the masterpiece. 

Looking over my shoulder to River, my shocked expression is no surprise to him as he begins to help tie the boat to the dock we have arrived at. A small party of five men greet us at the dock, dressed in pastel colors and greeting River with bows of their head. They treat him like some king...and this pack land resembles that of a king's own city. "Gentlemen, meet Evelyn Matlock, a member of Evercrest Ridge. She will be staying with us for a few days to tour the city." 

The elves look back at me with questioning glances before returning their gaze to River. The first elf to speak is dressed in pastel blue, the language which leaves his tongue unfamiliar to my ears as another two men begin to unload the boat of our luggage. River responds to the elf in the same tongue, speaking it just as fluently as I begin to wonder about his upbringing. 

Elven is one of the hardest dialects to learn, much yet master. Sure, I have never heard it spoken before, but for River to speak it just as well as an elf, it makes me wonder if he learned it since he was a child. What kind of child learns elven when they are a werewolf? 

Reaching out his hand, River helps me out of the boat as it rocks gently back and forth. "I can show you around the city later once we get settled in the palace." 

"Palace..." I comment, my voice almost a whisper, as if trying to recognize that this pack has a palace instead of a pack house. 

"I hope you do not mind walking in this weather, I know it is a bit chilly, but the walk is not too long." Nodding, I follow River from the harbor as his small crowd of five elves follow us. With River and I at the beginning of the pack, I feel out of touch in this strange land, as if at some zoo exhibit, looking at the way of life this pack lives. As we begin to walk up the main road, I spot a few gardens behind houses, exotic plants being grown as I know they are being used for spells. There is a small forest behind the gardens, a few werewolves in wolf form running out of the forest as they recognize that their alpha has returned. The further River and I walk, the more people come out of their houses and look to their Alpha, bowing or curtsying to him as this is no way people would treat their alpha. Why do they treat him like a kind. River is not a king...yet. He may as well be after the crown which broke years ago in flame.