A lone sphere in the sky orbits the very purpose of existence through the thick of a barren sea. In waves of black, it holds the burgeoning weight of the universe in its radiance. To the observers of the earth, it used to be known as a star. It was a common occurrence to see such light scattering across the skies back then. People all over the planet looked out to the light of the universe with requests, and the stars would always twinkle back an answer. This new star, however, was different from those other blots in the inked sea. It was the only star to exist among the infinite wastelands of the cosmos. It spiraled with the light of its siblings that had died in the face of time. It swirled the heat of all that remained in a vast wall of frost. It was the brightest star to ever watch over the earth, but it would not be long before the waves came to bury the last of the light.
Staring out to the star with a fixed, steady gaze, Keir studies its frozen stance in the heart of a bleak sky. Even with the black strands of hair covering her view from the weight of the wind, she wonders how long the star will be able to hold up its own. Keir faces the direction of the wind as it brushes ash onto her sable trenchcoat and climbs into the cracks of her tattered shirt. As if she never took her eyes off the sky, the kingdom ahead was no more than flickers of black and white. A dozen merchants beckon her as she starts her walk down the center of a dusted street. Dozens more roam around her with whispers that talk of her presence. She catches frequent glances of awe and admiration across the sea of people, and she smiles with pride with a gentle wave to the bypassers. Passing another shop with little interest in its products, Keir listens to the heavy crackling of the wind as it blows ash furiously into the atmosphere.
She covers her eyes with her forearm as the breeze whirls the flakes of a gray winter into her hair. Her footsteps slow against the might of the gust, but she remains steady against the hollow soil of the earth. She awaits the wind to dissipate to rest her arm by her side again. As she looks out to the bustling street another time, she is met with the impact of a body as it tumbles its weight into her chest. Keir releases a sudden cry of surprise and causes the world to shift its gaze to her attention. The people of the streets pause their gatherings and witness the princess of a nation as she meets the ash face to face. Keir grips the shoulders of the person that weighs her down and glances at them with a grimace. She meets the brown eyes of another woman and pushes her weight aside. The woman falls to her knees and rises shakily. She brushes off the gray from her navy garments and reaches out to Keir with a worried voice constricted with fear.
"I'm so sorry, Your Highness," the woman cries out. The people of the streets watch the woman in dismay. "I hadn't meant to hurt you!"
Keir shakes the flakes of a lost civilization out of her hair with little regard. Rising to her feet and ignoring the outward hand for help, she inspects the woman with a disappointed expression. "Do be careful of where you walk. You never know when this earth is going to crack beneath your weight."
Keir twists her cold glance into a warm smile and continues her pace along the street, leaving the woman with an apology disguised as a threat. In this kingdom, however, anything that was once threatening to humanity has become puppetry to the new world. The flakes roaming the air had once been monuments of history. The ashen structures that climb to empty skies were once citadels of glory. The people now walk through clouds of dissolving memories without any care to admire what they once were. Humanity was known to be the reigning species of the world and wanted to triumph above the stars. That dream has lost its value in the same way the world has lost its color.
Of all the divides humans had introduced to establish their identity, only one society remains among the debris of a war that brought the species to the edge of extinction. With so little life left on a forsaken planet, there is only so much conflict to face before divides burn into isolating tombs. No bridge is ever left unbroken. The only light left to endure over this grim, violent world remains in the star. For the kingdom, that light rests in the hands of the one who will be crowned sovereignty. Keir is one side of a double-edged sword that aims to the contested throne. The people watch her every move in inspiration as humanity once did to the skies. Somewhere deep down, however, she grasps the true fate of this world. She dreads the moment when her people find their own dreams brushing as ashen grains against the face of the end.