Franklin looked at Finn with a devilish smile, his eyes glinning with amusement.
"Oh no, Finn. There will be no Castle Quest tonight. You have work to do in the morning and you have your studies with Master Thorne tomorrow. So, there will be no Quest for you tonight. It's time for bed."
Finn's face fell, and he let out a loud "Aww..." as he turned to Amber, trying to plead his case. "Mum, please... I don't wanna study tomorrow. I wanna play Castle Quest with Aria..."
Amber looked at Finn with a knowing smile, her eyes sparkling with gentle amusement. "Finn, Finn, Finn... you know you need to study. That's final. Listen to your father."
Finn scrolled, his face red with frustration, as he muttered under his breath, "But Castle Quest..."
Franklin's voice was firm, but with a hint of amusement. "Finn, I said no Castle Quest. You can play with Aria another time. Now, off to bed with you both. It's getting late."
Aria stood up, smiling politely at Franklin and Amber. "Thank you, Lord Franklin and Lady Amber. I'm a bit tired, anyway."
Finn sighed, trudging behind Aria as they headed towards the stairs, their footsteps echoing in the grand hall. As they climbed the stairs, Finn whispered, "This isn't over, Aria. I'll find a way to sneak out and play Castle Quest."
Aria grinned, whispering back, "I'm counting on it, Finn." She giggled
Franklin shouted from the dining hall, "Finn! I said no Castle Quest tonight. Now get to bed."
Finn's eyes widened, and he froze on the stairs, realizing Franklin's hearing was way too good. Aria stifled a giggle, her eyes sparkling with amusement.
Finn's face turned bright red as he nodded to Aria and continued up the stairs, each going to their separate rooms.
Aria smiled and slipped into her room, while Finn trudged to his, muttering under his breath,
"Note to self: never underestimate Father's hearing..." He said with a grimace
Back in the dining hall, Franklin got up with a glass of wine in his hand, walked over to the window, tilted his head slightly, and pinched the bridge of his nose. He let out a long sigh, his eyes closing briefly in exasperation.
"This boy is so much trouble... he's giving me a headache," he said, his voice laced with frustration.
Amber walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist, a warm smile on her face. She giggled a
and said,
"You know, he's a lot like you when you were at that age," her voice filled with amusement.
Franklin raised an eyebrow, a hint of a smile on his face, his eyes crling at the corners.
"Is that supposed to reassure me?" he asked, his tone skeptical but playful.
Amber smiled up at him, her eyes sparkling with mirth. "Maybe a little. You turned out okay, didn't you?" she said, her voice teasing.
Franklin chuckled, wrapping his arms around her, his face softening. "I suppose that's true," he said, his voice low and content.
Franklin and Amber started laughing, their amusement fading as their expressions turned serious. Amber asked Franklin, "So what do you think the real reason is that Vintan sent his daughter to us? It has to be something serious for him to do that."
Franklin's expression turned thoughtful, his eyes narrowing. "I believe the dwarves are attacking the elves," he said, his voice low and serious. "I've heard rumors that they've partnered with the demons."
Amber stammered to speak, her eyes wide with shock. "That... that... I... I don't believe it. My mother wouldn't just side with the dwarves to attack the elves for no reason. There must be a reason. This is impossible."
Franklin's expression softened, his voice gentle. "Lyra's motivations aren't always clear, Amber. But she's a calculating queen. If she's involved, there's a bigger game at play."
Amber's face set in determination. "I need to talk to her, Franklin. I'll send a message to the Demon Realm and find out what's going on."
Franklin nodded, his eyes filled with understanding. "I'll support you, Amber. We'll get answers."
Amber pulled a strand of hair from her head and threw it to the ground. Instantly an image of a woman appeared who was sitting on a throne. She spoke with a smug tone of voice. "Hello daughter. Nice to see you again. It's been a long time hasn't it? How is the human world treating you?"
Amber responded without hesitation. "Mother, is it true that you are siding with the dwarves to attack the elves? Please say it is not so."
Lyra let out a dark, humorous laugh. "Dear daughter, if I say, I wasn't attacking the elven kingdom, that would be a lie because. I am, and I'm going to annihilate the elves. Those creatures have no right to exist. They're too self-centered, too condescending. They believe that they are God's chosen. Well, I believe otherwise and after I wipe them out, I will wipe out the dwarves as well," she said, chuckling darkly.
Amber's face twisted in horror, her eyes welling up with tears. "Mother, stop! You can't be serious!"
Lyra's expression turned cold, her eyes burning with intensity. "I'm more serious than I've ever been, Amber. The time of the elves is over. And soon, the dwarves will fall too."
Lyra continued, a sly grin spreading across her face.
"And after the dwarves, it's the humans. However, if the humans agree to sign a pact with the demons, well... they may survive. What do you think, daughter? I'll save your little lover Franklin and your half-spawned demon brats. How much is it now? You have seven, yeah? That's seems about right. You had two daughters and five sons, yeah, that's about right."
Amber's face was a mask of horror and disgust, her eyes blazing with anger. "You're insane, Mother. I'll never let you harm them."
Lyra's laughter was like a crack of thunder, her eyes gleaming with malevolence. "Oh, Amber, you can't stop me. I'm the one with the power now."
Franklin stepped forward, bowing low before the image of Queen Lyra. " if I may speak, Lady Lyra. What has caused you to behave like this? This isn't like you. Have we done something to offend you? Please tell us what we did so we can set it right."
Lyra's eyes glinted with amusement as she leaned forward, her voice taking on a sly tone. "Ah, Franklin, you've grown bolder, haven't you? You wanna know what you can do to stop me? There's only one thing you can do... I'll tell you."
Amber's eyes were fixed on her mother, her face tense with anticipation. "Mother, please... just tell us."
Lyra's smile grew wider, her eyes sparkling with intrigue. "Oh, it's quite simple, really. I want My grandson Finn, he's about five, isn't he? Hand him to me and I'll spare the kingdoms of the mortal plane.
Amber's face turned pale as she stumbled to speak. "Ma... mother, what do you want with Finn?"
Franklin stood up, his heart racing. "Lady Lyra, Lady Lyra, why do you want Finn? You could have anything, we... we have. Why would you want him?"
Lyra's laughter was like a dark wave, her eyes gleaming with amusement. "Oh, it's simple, really. I see potential in that boy. He could be the next demon king if given the right training. He has more demon blood in him than the rest of your half demon spawns."
"I know this is a hard decision, for the two of you to make. To choose either to save the kingdoms you're friendly with, are to hand over your child. It's a tough decision, even I wouldn't know what choice to make if it was me. So I'll give you ten years to think it over. Either you hand Finn over are I destroy the human planes of existence, And whoever I don't kill, I will enslave. You have ten years. So Choose wisely."
Lyra said, then she laughed darkly and disappeared.
The silence that followed was deafening. Amber's eyes welled up with tears as Franklin's face set in determination.
Amber's voice cracked as she spoke, "Franklin, what are we going to do?" Her eyes searched his face for answers, but he just shook his head, his expression grim.
"We'll figure something out, Amber. We have ten years. We'll find a way to protect Finn and the kingdoms." Franklin's words were reassuring, but the doubt in his eyes was hard to miss.
Amber nodded, a mix of fear and determination on her face. "We have to tell the others. The Council needs to know about my mother's threat."
Franklin nodded, his jaw cliked. "I'll send word to the Council. We need to start preparing for war."
As Amber and Franklin were preparing to tell the Council and the other kingdoms what Lyra was planning, she appeared before them again, a snare on her face. She laughed,
"Do you really think I would allow you to start a coalition army to form against me? I'm telling you this now, if you go to anyone or any other kingdom and tell them what I told you, I will see this as a betrayal and I will immediately attack the mortal plane. Is that understood? Tell no one. You have two choices, either you hand Finn over to me within the ten year mark or I will destroy everything."
She said with a menacing tone of voice, before disappearing again.
Amber and Franklin exchanged a terrified glance, the weight of Lyra's warning settling heavily upon them. "What do we do now?" Amber whispered, her voice trembling.
Franklin slumped to the ground, defeated, his voice trembling. "We... we don't have a choice anymore, Amber. We have to give her... we have to give him... give her our son."
Amber's face crumbled, tears streaming down her cheeks as she collapsed beside Franklin. "No, no, no... we can't... we can't let her take Finn." Her body shook with sobs as Franklin wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight.
The weight of Lyra's ultimatum crushed them, leaving them shattered and helpless. The silence was only broken by Amber's muffled cries, the sound echoing through the empty halls.
"How could my mother do this? How could she be so cruel? I don't know why she's doing this," she said, sobbing harder.
Franklin cupped her face in his hands, his eyes filled with sorrow. "My dear, I don't know what she's planning, but we have no choice in the matter. We have ten years to prepare Finn for this. Ten. And let's do the best we can until then."
Amber's gaze locked onto his, a glimmer of desperation in her eyes. "But what can we do, Franklin? She's a demon queen. What chance do we have against her?"
Franklin's voice was low, resigned. "There isn't anything we can do... it's all in that boy's hands now."
Amber's gaze snapped to his, a spark of desperation igniting within her. "No, we can't just give up. We have to try something."
Franklin's expression was somber, his eyes filled with a deep sadness. "We have to be realistic, Amber. We have ten years to prepare Finn. Let's focus on giving him the best chance possible."