The Ballad of Adler Young, Canto 2.5

>The Sight Adler sees: Be EVERY BIT AS BAD as the build up is leading us to believe.

For a few seconds I didn't fully realize what I was looking at.



I think I exclaimed something like "EALA!" as the truth suddenly hit me that the charred corpse sitting on the throne was all that remained of my half-brother, Estmere. I turned away in horror and despair.

>Adler: "No, no. It couldn't have ended like this. Not like this. This is all just a horrible dream. It has to be."
>Adler: First grief, then rage.
>It's a trick, must be! Your father's dying wish was for you to look after Estemere, and you wouldn't fail your duty this way!
>"I never wanted you to be hurt, bro. "

"Poor Estmere!" I blubbered into my sleeve. "He didn't deserve to end like this. He was just a good-hearted, fun-loving lummox. Our father tasked me to look after him, and now .. oh, how could this have happened?"

>Adler: A single traitorous thought echos through your mind. You may push it aside, but the seed is planted and the damage is done. "None of this would have happened if you'd done things the unseelie way to begin with."

"Yeahhh ... how could this actually have happened?" I wondered, after drying my eyes. "Ixies! Some of you witnessed these Unseelie events. Tell me what transpired."

"The Queen pooked his Majesty into the Hall," an Ixie replied - via Elfmind for some reason. I looked around but didn't see any of the swarm that had followed me into the chamber. "She claimed it was for his safety, to protect him from thee and thy army. But the fox Tailipo was here, and contrived to reveal to his Majesty the truth about himself and the Vulpitanians' thaumaturgy."

"Alice was here?" I muttered darkly. "And did Edessa not try to prevent .. this?"

"The Queen put forth a few feeble arguments, and then merely stood by whilst his Majesty sat upon the throne in an effort to prove his Elfliness and Kingship. Upon his demise, she pooked away, and the Tailipo absconded."

"I see," I growled through clenched teeth.