Darkness Falling

Book One: End of Days - Chapter Six

1
The bus ride sent chills down Eleanor’s spine. The freshman…Cindy wasn’t there, and it was leaving Eleanor feeling damn uneasy. At least she had the new memory of lunch with Tobias. She frowned, wondering why she wasn’t enjoying it more. He was such a nice, gorgeous guy, and having lunch with him had been so great.

Something’s up, Eleanor thought. I should be enjoying this much more. And I felt so good this morning! Even got some sleep.

The bus parked at her stop, and Roger extended the flashing stop sign. Eleanor left her seat and slowly made her way to the exit.

“Hey, kiddo,” she heard Roger say.

Eleanor turned and smiled at him.

He smiled back, warmly, “Cheer up.”

“I will,” Eleanor walked down the steps and hurried to her front door. She unlocked it and walked inside, making her way to the cupboard where she got a package of crackers. She walked to the couch, tossed her pack off, and reached for her VR headset in the cabinet. She thought about going to the Golf Course, but it had been raining for several hours.

“Besides,” she said aloud, “I’m just putting myself in danger over there.”

Eleanor put the headset on…

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2

In the kingdom.

Queen Avice was walking through the hallway quickly, and Amilia was struggling to keep up. The queen felt like a dark veil had been lifted, and her soul felt free. It rushed over her immediately, and she hurried out of her chamber.

“My lady,” Amilia began asking, “Where are we going?”

“To see the king,” Queen Avice was practically trotting.

“My lady, you’ve not spoken to him in some time.”

“Then it’s high time I do so. His war room is here, to the right, is it not?”

“It is, my lady. Let me get the door for you.”

The queen did not wait, and she approached the war room, the guards standing idle. They did not want to stop her. They didn’t fear for King Alban but worried about themselves. Heads can roll when a queen is on a tirade. She opened the door, swinging it aside as she entered the massive room. The knights and the council all stopped talking, everyone directing their attention to her.