Everyone stood as the music filled the hall with a solemn air.
All looked stoically forward in search of Her Majesty's royal entrance.
Noble's eyes swirled chaotically as she took in Counsel's words. The rebellion wasn't happening at some future date after Noble had carefully planned each facet of the plan.
It was happening now without her knowledge or approval.
"Counsel, how could you?" Noble whispered, hoping the music would drown out her voice. She winced. She had no idea that he would act on her words so quickly. "How could you not have told me?"
"I tried earlier, but we were interrupted." Counsel answered, his mouth barely moving. "Would it have changed anything?"
'YES!' Noble wanted to scream. She would have told them to stop, wait, and let her decide what should be done in her name. This was moving too fast, too uncontrolled for her liking.
When Noble told Emira that she would not miss the ceremony, this was not what she had in mind. The stand she took, if any, was meant to be passive-agressive at best.
This was not a good time!
But really, was there ever a good time for a revolution?
No.
Noble could try and make a vain attempt to stop the plot and regroup or she could take as much control of things as the situation would allow. The former would likely reveal the plans to Emira. That would ruin any element of surprise.
'But the second option is going in blind...I don't like that either.'
It was still the better option–the only viable one at this point.
"I don't like that you sprung this on me," Noble sighed at last.
Counsel's forced smile grew even more strained. "As much as I would like to take credit for this, I am not the one in charge."
"Then who..." Noble needed to know.
"You are, of course." Counsel paused as the music came to a sudden halt.
A man in white came and stood at center stage. He wore the emblem of the Beast God on a headband tied around his long white hair.
A moment later, two more figures joined the first. On Alyx's arm, Emira walked in from a side entrance in an Emerald dress covered in gems. The late afternoon sun streaming in from high windows hit the Queen at just the right moment for the jewels to scatter the light in every direction. Emira looked like she was covered in green fire.
Except for the gold bands on her wrist and simple necklace, everything about her looked fundamentally altered. She looked like a being from another world.
'I mean, she is...' Noble reminded herself. 'And a powerful being at that.'
Emira reached the throne and released Alyx's arm. He bowed deeply and exited the dais.
The man in white, Praef, also bowed before turning to the crowd. His robes lifted and Noble could see four hairy hooves where feet should have been.
'A gift from the Beast God or an Awakened Ability?' Noble had no time to ponder as the man launched into his speech.
"All hail Her Majesty Emira, great and glorious leader and ruler of the esteemed kingdom of Crestfall for a century."
The lower crowd responded with various levels of agreement while the gallery remained silent. The guests took their seats as Emira claimed her place on the throne.
The priest droned on about Emira's accomplishments and victories. Noble had to force herself not to listen. She needed to focus on whatever was about to happen.
Even though Counsel had avoided telling her the mastermind behind the rebellion today, Noble almost immediately found the culprit. The energy emanating from him was too great to simply be a follower in this plot. He was filled with triumphant rage.
'I hope his confidence pays off.' Noble tried to remain patient.
Part of her wanted nothing to happen during the ceremony, and the other part wanted action now. This was the same anxiety she faced during the Dreamscape tournaments.
Waiting was the worst.
At last, Praef wound down his speech and turned to Emira. "It is time for the affirmation. Who will speak on your behalf?"
The corners of Emira's mouth twisted upward. "Lord Alyx will speak."
A collective gasp took the Great Hall and Lord Alyx stood from his seat with a sly grin.
"I am honored, Your Majesty."
Noble sat in shock. While she hadn't wanted to give the speech, now the moment was taken entirely from her. The people around her began to murmur. None were louder than the Old Guard overhead.
"Stop!" Lord Gavin stood from the gallery. "This man is not from the Royal family. Will you keep your own flesh and blood from saying what she desires?"
"My niece affirmed me the last time." Emira glared at the leader of the Old Guard.
"So you suppress her voice this time? Let her speak unless you are afraid of what she will say!" The old man puffed out his chest.
"I fear nothing. I am Queen and I decide how things will go." Emira pursed her lips in warning.
But Gavin was not deterred. "Until this ceremony is over and you are recrowned, you are not our sovereign. We have this rule for a reason. To evaluate what is best for the kingdom. High Priest Praef, do not ordain Emira a third time when there is a more worthy candidate for leader! You have ruled long enough, Your Majesty. It is time for a change in regime."
Holding up her hand, Emira looked at the gallery evenly. "A change, indeed! This is not a democracy. You do not get to choose who leads." She turned to the guards in the gallery and pointed at the offender. "Get him out of my sight."
Before any of the armored soldiers could respond to the Queen's command, another member of the old guard stood to block the path.
Then another. And another.
By the end, all but a half dozen of the Old Guard stood in support of Gavin. The elders' grim expressions gave the soldiers pause. This was not the simple removal of a single person. They pulled their swords but were reluctant to enter the crowd.
Emira's calm expression faded, as her eyes lit with flames. "You wear the colors of the kingdom and yet you are traitors to the crown. I will see you all dead for this."
Gavin took his cape and flipped it over.
The upper side was emerald as Emira had pointed out, but the underside was a radiant blue.
It was turquoise. The same color as Noble's new dress.
On cue, those standing in defiance Guard turned their capes. The brightness of the blue clashed with the deepness of the green.
"It is time for a new kingdom and a new crown." Gavin held his fist high in the air. "Step down and let your niece reign. All hail Queen Bren—"
Gavin was unable to complete his speech as it deteriorated into gurgling, unintelligible sounds. Smoke poured out of his mouth before he dropped to the floor in a charred heap. He had been burned from the inside out.
That was something Noble had noticed when Emira's flames had covered and nearly suffocated her. The Queen's fire consumed oxygen but somehow did not need it to burn.
So she could start her fire literally anywhere, even in the depths of the ocean.
Or inside Gavin's stomach.
Emira scoffed as Gavin's smoldering corpse was dragged from the room.
"Now that the trash has been taken out, does anyone else have anything they wish to say?" Emira looked toward Alyx.
He whispered to the row behind them with a stern nod.
The Hopefuls around him tentatively applauded the Queen. "Hail Queen Emira!" Some of them shouted.
The group rallied into a fervor, yelling praises to the Queen and insults toward the elders for their insurrection.
While they cursed the Old Guard, unfriendly soldiers poured in and surrounded those clad in turquoise. Emira must have carefully selected who would guard the gallery. She had left her enemy trapped.
A soft smile formed on the Queen's beautiful face, but it did not reach her eyes.
"That's enough," she said, silencing the room. "Do any of the rest of you wish to challenge me? Or since your ringleader is dead, do you wish to wait until the ceremony is over to meet him again?"
The men and women of the gallery stepped forward, ready to give their lives as well in support of Lord Gavin's claim. They too would die in vain and unarmed. Emira clenched her fist, her eyes lighting with the fire that would soon be in each of their bellies.
But before any of the elders could answer the Queen, a lone figure from the front row approached the throne.
Noble's eyes swirled with determination.
"Their leader is not dead. I am right here, and I challenge you for Crestfall's throne."