THE FORGOTTEN HEIR

SHADOWS IN THE PALACE

The palace of Aramore no longer gleamed with the same brilliance after the attempt on the prince’s life. Though candles still lit the marble corridors, their light seemed feeble, as though struggling against the encroaching shadow of suspicion. Servants walked with bowed heads, fearful of speaking too loudly. Guards doubled their patrols, swords drawn at all hours. The air itself felt heavier, poisoned with mistrust.

Kayan, now acknowledged as the heir, found little comfort in his new chambers. Gold embroidered curtains shielded him from the night, yet he still woke often, gasping from dreams where unseen hands reached for his throat.

The King’s Anguish

King Aldren had aged overnight. At council meetings he slammed his fist upon the table, demanding answers.

“Find me the viper that dares strike within my own walls!” he thundered.

But each noble swore loyalty, each captain pledged their watchfulness, and yet… no culprit was found. The assassin had slipped through the cracks like smoke.

Whispers began to spread. Perhaps the boy is cursed. Perhaps the gods did not wish his return.

Aldren silenced them with rage, but even he, in the deepest recess of his heart, feared what destiny might demand of his son.

Confession to Liora

One evening, Kayan stole away from the grand chambers to the familiar servants’ quarters, where Liora scrubbed at linens with her sleeves rolled up. She looked up and smiled when she saw him, though her hands stilled at the sight of his weariness.

“You should not be here,” she whispered. “The halls crawl with eyes.”

“I cannot breathe there,” Kayan admitted, his voice low. “Every corner hides a shadow. Every glance feels like a dagger. I miss…” He paused, searching her eyes. “I miss the days when my only worry was whether the floors were polished enough.”

Liora’s heart twisted. She reached out, brushing his arm. “You are not that boy anymore, Kayan. You are heir to a kingdom. With that comes envy… and danger.”

“But what of love?” he asked softly.

Her breath caught. His gaze was unflinching, steady in a way that unnerved her. “Love,” she said finally, “rarely survives in palaces. But if it does… it becomes the strongest force of all.”

In that moment, beneath the hum of torchlight, Kayan drew her hand to his chest. The thud of his heartbeat was fierce. “Then let ours be strong enough.”

Mirantha’s Desperation

Elsewhere, in her opulent chamber, Mirantha raged. The failed poisoning had humiliated her. The King’s wrath now searched endlessly for traitors, and though suspicion never touched her, the failure seared her pride like acid.

She summoned her maid, eyes wild. “If poison fails, then I shall use fear. If fear fails, then I shall use war.”

That night, Mirantha met with three nobles long discontent with Aldren’s rule. In the shadows of a forgotten tower, they bent their ears to her venomous whispers.

“The King grows weak,” she murmured. “His heart is clouded by sentiment. But I… I can lead you into a new reign. Stand with me, and when the boy is dead, power shall be divided among us.”

The nobles, their greed outweighing loyalty, agreed. But Mirantha did not stop there.

Desperate, she sent word beyond the palace walls to a figure feared even in whispers: the Shadow Seer, a mystic whose dealings with black magic were forbidden in Aramore.

“If the boy cannot be killed by mortal means,” Mirantha vowed, “then the gods themselves shall be turned against him.”

The Rival Son

Mirantha’s own son, Prince Deylan, had grown under her constant whispering. For years she had filled him with envy, telling him he was born to rule. Now, with Kayan’s return, he felt himself slipping into obscurity.

Mirantha fed the flames. “Look at how your father neglects you now,” she said, her voice soft but cruel. “All his love poured onto that peasant prince. Do you not see? He will rob you of your throne.”

Deylan clenched his fists. “I am the rightful heir.”

“Then prove it,” Mirantha urged. “Do not let him steal your crown. If you are truly my son, you will fight for what is yours.”

The Eavesdropping

One night, wandering the corridors in search of solace, Kayan overheard two guards speaking in hushed tones near the library.

“They say another attempt is coming,” one murmured.

“Who would dare, after the King’s command?” the other whispered.

“The Queen’s allies grow bolder. This palace will drown in blood if it continues.”

Kayan’s heart pounded. He stepped back into the shadows, every word carving fear into his soul. The plot was larger than a single assassin it was a net, tightening around him.

The Omen

Later that week, Kayan awoke to find a symbol scrawled in ash upon his chamber door: a serpent devouring its tail, the mark of the Shadow Seer.

Selene paled when she saw it. “Dark magic,” she breathed. “Someone has invited forbidden powers into this palace.”

Kayan touched the mark with trembling fingers. For the first time, he understood: his survival was not just threatened by daggers and poison. Forces darker than he could imagine now hunted him.

Closing Scene

That night, as thunder cracked over Aramore, Mirantha stood before the Shadow Seer himself  a  figure cloaked in tattered robes, eyes burning like coals.

“Bring me the boy’s death,” she commanded.

The Seer’s voice was a hiss. “Then you must pay the price. For every soul taken by my art, another must be offered in blood.”

Mirantha’s lips curved into a cold smile. “Then take whatever you wish. So long as he is erased.”

The storm raged outside, and in the heart of the palace, Kayan dreamed restlessly, unaware that the darkest chapter of his life was about to begin.