In her heart, the queen looked at the arrogant elves who thought the world was theirs, but she herself was part of a long line of queens and kings who ruled the entire southern continent and much of the elven forest.
But with 90% of the population gone, she had truncated her remaining military power into a nearly invincible elite guard and a web of intelligence and influence through guilds, arenas, manhunters and wyrm hunters, the first dragonslayers.
She greeted Prince Hagen, who was a king in his tribe but a prince like all elven warlords.
They were called elves, but most of them were black, and it was their cave-dwelling, city-building lifestyle that won them their lives.
The wood elves were only a handful and remained above ground but obeyed the "houses" of which the black princes were representatives.
Unlike their white-skinned counterparts, the wood elves their equipment and knowledge was much more sophisticated.
The wood elves were ruled by the dark elves and did not even know that they had a culture, gods and a pantheon. Let alone that they were enemies of the dark elves.
All the warriors and holders of the druidic knowledge of the woods was lost forever.
They grew up together and worshipped the same gods together.
They all worship one of the 7 aspects of their goddess Lolth. 6 of the forms is a kind of giant spider and the 7th is a light skinned elf girl, worshipped by the wood elves.
Some of them worship Aurelia but in secret, so that the Drows (dark elves) don't know it.
They arrived in a vast plain, immense and in many ways similar to ancient, neolithic Tartary.
In front of them stood GGigantija and flags indicating the ruling families were set up in such a way that all were put on an equal footing, at least for this religious center.
The elven and Hagen princes and Queen Tarakmis had gathered in the great nave of the heavenly temple.
The top of the vault was open, so that the stars could be seen, and the dignitaries were seated on precious chests covered with thick bear furs.
On a dais, the shaman arch-priest used to hold show masses, thus putting forward what justified his authority.
Apranax was assisted by bald priests dressed in precious draperies reaching to the ground and hiding their feet, symbol of the earth.
A long cane with a red ruby surrounded by a halo was placed on a kind of altar, which looked more like an altar of sacrifice.
"For several generations now, the Cone of Darkness has been striking randomly and without warning at areas near and far.
These forces of darkness corrupt and transform those unfortunate enough to find themselves under the projection.
Animals have been known to undergo a kind of corruption, and evolution into a monstrous form.
Some humans were marked and most were taken by madness but all had a special mark, just like the humanoids.
They continued to live normally and under the supervision of our order, but they all had some kind of improvement in their intelligence. It is not known at this point if they committed subsequent acts of barbarism. Many having been banished on sight or executed."
He paused for a moment so that the front ranks could confer.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
Acolytes brought in a large table with rich dishes only available to the higher caste nobles.
In the background, his musicians played muted music to lighten the mood and mark the pauses as at the mass of our time.
Apranax clapped his hands and waved his scepter/staff in the direction of sculptures showing a snake devouring a small winged human.
"Aurelia is alive and all hope is not lost. We have had divinatory and prophetic contacts.
She would have been freed by a pure soul but also a child of the great serpent.
We must find this creature. Aurelia told us via the oracles that the child of the great serpent would be a winged serpent but a child locked in the heart of the monster.
We need to capture the creature alive and it will guide our hero to stop the black mountain.
Otherwise, creatures ever more nightmarish than the other will come out of it endlessly until we disappear."
The appearance of monsters had taken unbearable pace for the population, but was also a blessing for adventurers.And this led to the creation of the first guilds of hunters and mercenaries.
Then after a long pause, Queen Tarakmis stood up.
"Archpriest of GGigantija, you speak of heroes... but where is he? "
The man could not answer.
"The oracle has not yet answered. It must appear at the darkest moment."
Hagen wanted to speak but a look from the elves made him understand to keep quiet.
But he thought of the persecuted tribes of hunters. But it was obey or be a slave... the humans were being decimated and only Queen Tarkamis could do something.
He whispered a few words to a servant and the servant went away, out of the attention of the elves.
A discreet message reached the queen and she spoke again.
"There is a tribe of barbarians just east and north of the mountain...they are survivors...perhaps there are strong and powerful men in the tribe?"
The elf archpriest/chamber didn't really agree but replied, "We'll know in time..."
But the queen could not stay without knowing more.
"Archpriest Apranax, you tell us to spare a good-hearted monster... but we don't know anything, let alone a hero... and then... what for?? we have the adventurers' guild, and the Wyrm hunters. The monsters are profitable... they give magic crystals for the elves, and their carcass feeds well and can be used to make leather goods and for making healing potions and antivenom! "
Apranax: "We have received a prophecy that we have not yet been able to decipher. It is a sort of testament from the gods.
There is an artifact, which looks like a horn that would be in the heart of the black mountain and that could freeze or refreeze the monsters and stop its activity.
It is used to activate and deactivate the eternal ice.
So if the hero finds the horn, he will be able to reseal the mountain permanently and thus prevent from awakening what should not be awakened."
Queen: "But how do we get into the mountain... it's just a crystal with no door!"
Archpriest: "We know nothing about it...nothing more except that it takes the sacrifice of a pure princess to enter and with the help of the creature who knows how to enter..."
Thus the prophecy of Aurelia was born in the Neolithic cathedral.
When everyone dispersed, the queen sat down with her guard in one of the few heated rooms in the building.
She was looking at an obsidian object, but it was very hard. A scale?
She was obsessed with it.
She could feel the power and magic emanating from it. Even Thur had never seen this object, which she kept with her at all times, protected by a black fur sheath and probably being an artifact of the black mountain she admired.
"If I had the power...I would slaughter those damn elves!"
She was in her room and had taken off her helmet, revealing a pale face and long black hair.
"What a beautiful object... it looks like a wyvern scale but bigger, harder and more beautiful. I feel like it absorbs and returns mana, more than a monster's heart.
In her contemplation she was distracted by the sound of knocking at the door.
"Thur?"
"No, it's Hagen!"
But the scale had fallen from her hand and punctured the top of her foot a little, leaving a drop of blood.
She quickly rinsed the drop off with a saliva soaked finger "Damn!" But she was relieved that the object was not damaged.
"May I come in, Your Majesty?"
The beings of this time were rough and cut with a knife and the prude or shy attitude had no place in this world.
"Enter, Hagen!" She purposely omitted the title prince in disgust at his submissive attitude.
She sat on her bed and Hagen on a chest.
Queen: "Is this about the barbarians? Their village was deserted and there were traces of wyverns.
Hagen: "The elven spies noticed two wyverns circling the line of hunters moving southwest. They are going to their death... The wyverns in the sky and the slashers in the south. They are the great predators and only wyvern hunters are able to survive in this hostile land."
Queen: "I think these barbarians are either stupid or less stupid than you think."
Hagen: "An extra cairn has been erected in the valley of the wyverns. So I think they are idiots."
"Mhhh. Either it's suicide or something must have happened, you should follow them"
"Queen, our freedom is only illusory. We are slaves but we give ourselves the illusion of freedom in soldiers... Unless an expedition is ordered, I await orders from the Dark Blood house directly from the Sad Prince".
Queen: "Then resupply my men, we leave at first light. "