Chapter 2 - Shadows in the Citadel
The stone corridors of the royal citadel, once a warm home, had transformed into a labyrinth of hostile strangers. Evelyn walked like a ghost through her own ancestral halls. Whenever she passed the portrait gallery, she stared up at her own oil-painted visage, only to find that the canvas had subtly blurred, the face shifting into an generic noblewoman's likeness under the spell of the curse.
Captain Benjamin of the Royal Guard intercepted her near the armory. His hand rested heavily on the pommel of his broadsword, his jaw clenched. He had been ordered to keep an eye on the "trespasser" wandering the restricted wings, yet a subtle flicker of confusion lingered in his stern grey eyes.
"You shouldn't be here, girl," Benjamin warned, his voice low and gravelly. "The King has ordered the inner sanctums cleared of unauthorized personnel."
"Benjamin, look at me," Evelyn pleaded, stepping closer, though she knew the futility of it. "You trained me with the rapier. You patched my shoulder when I fell from the stallion chestnut. How can you look at me and see a stranger?"
Benjamin flinched slightly, rubbing his temples as if fighting a dull, throbbing migraine. The magic guarding the spell fiercely resisted any cognitive dissonance. "I don't know you," he repeated, though the conviction in his voice wavered. "And yet... leave it be. Go to the outer courtyard before I am forced to lock you in the dungeons."
May you like
Evelyn realized pleading with human minds caught in the grip of the spell was useless. The amnesia was absolute, reinforced by dark enchantment. There was only one place left where Evelyn could test the truth.
The ancient dragon sanctuary, nestled deep within the volcanic peaks behind the citadel, untouched by court politics and ancient royal decrees.
