The emperor stared at his plate for a moment as his wife watched him.
"Are you well this morning, Your Majesty?" she asked carefully.
"I saw it happen this time," he offered her a worried look. "Everyone disappeared right before my eyes and then I was suddenly just… here."
She reached out to place her hand over his and sighed. "Perhaps it is time to speak with someone at the Academy of Magic?"
"No," he returned to his breakfast. "I cannot show a weakness to anyone."
"And what of your trip to the Magician's Tower to speak with Queen Catira? Perhaps she would know something?"
"I will think about it," he offered her with a smile. "Speaking of… I think after my meeting at the tower, I might head to Brega for some hunting."
"I've heard that King Byron has been ill, and that Prince Anian is gaining support to take the throne in the event of his untimely death."
"I've heard the same," he took a sip of his morning tea. "At this moment I'm more worried about our young mages losing their magical abilities. Our Empire depends on magic for our defenses, I fear an invasion should we lose many more."
"I pray your audience with Queen Catira proves beneficial for us all."
He lifted her hand to his lips and brushed them across her knuckles before smiling. "Thank you, my moonflower. I can always count on your counsel."
***
Four generations ago, the Eastern Continent of Adhara consisted of five kingdoms: Brega, Vana, Greater Kalan, Lesser Kalan, and the island nation of Midir. The five lived in relative harmony until one day, the King of Lesser Kalan, Leo, died. Leaving no male heir, the kingdom was thrown into turmoil until his elder brother, the King of Greater Kalan, Tora, decided to absorb the nation and marry off the dowager queen and her daughters to his closest friends, whom he made dukes.
Tensions grew in the rest of the continent to the point where King Malek of Vana agreed to an alliance with Kalan for protection and money, in which the duchies of Dernon, Kent, Sweetgrass, and Angelite were created, leaving the King and Queen royalty in name only.
Hunger for complete domination for the continent grew until war erupted. Now taking up three quarters of the continent, the Kalan Army defeated and demilitarized Brega swiftly overtaking the entire continent-save one nation.
Midir was an island nation of the Magi, self-governed by a non-hereditary matriarchal system that followed the Laws of Magic rather than the Laws of the Realm. However, after one meeting with Queen Deandra, The Thornless Rose of the Magi, King Tora fell deeply in love. Marrying the magical queen still allowed him to absorb the land of Midir into the new Navan Empire, yet he allowed her to remain the sovereign of Midir and thus making their union Year 1 of the Navan Empire.
Tora Marcus Boris Navan, The Fierce Tiger of the Navan Empire ruled for fifty years, his son Nicholas Mikael Todd Navan, The Fearless Fox ruling for 31 years after him. No one even questioned the death of his younger brother Christos when he died in a bizarre accident just before the heir to the throne was announced…
Nicholas sired four children between his wife, Empress Marie Anna Phyllis and his two honorable concubines, yet after his son Prince Maynard was killed in a military training accident, The Humble Lion Leonis Jessup Theo ignored his elder sisters completely to become the Third Emperor of Navan. When Leonis' concubine gave birth to a son before Empress Anna, she was so determined that her son be the next emperor that she attempted to assassinate the young prince several times. Finally, she was executed, and the innocent prince exiled, leaving the spot as the Fourth Emperor job to Virgentarth Aiden Draco, the Great Dragon.
Virgentarth, who hated his name and begged everyone to call him Aiden...
Jessica smirked as she turned the page of her notes. The Navan Empire in the east… the Vitellius Empire in the west… Dasos… Valen… sometimes she was blown away by the world she had created for her characters. "Catira and Virgentarth…" she sighed. "Sorry, Soraya… this sounds too good. Okay. Let's do this."