Princess Of The Skulls - Chapter 14: Chapter 14

The hidden chamber beneath the throne room had been built for exactly this kind of clandestine gathering—warded against magical surveillance, acoustically isolated from the rest of the castle, and equipped with the arcane infrastructure necessary for powerful magical workings. As the seven of us descended the concealed staircase, I reflected on how my mother had likely used this same space for her own preparations years earlier.
Prince Aldric arrived first, followed by Lady Lydia, both moving with the careful awareness of people who understood they were risking their lives just by attending. Master Dorian had been waiting when I arrived, the various components for the oath-swearing ritual already prepared and arranged with military precision.
Matthias, Captain Marcus, and Elena completed our gathering, each carrying the grim determination of people who'd already lost too much to the cult's activities. Together, we represented nobility, military, scholarly, and practical expertise—exactly the combination my mother had identified as necessary for success.
"Before we begin," I said, addressing the group as they arranged themselves in a circle around the ritual altar, "I want everyone to understand exactly what we're committing ourselves to attempt."
I opened my mother's journal, reviewing the key points for those who hadn't seen the full documentation.
"The ritual we're planning will channel the accumulated soul energy of everyone who's died violently in service to the royal bloodline over the past century. That includes my mother, Captain Marcus's family,
Elena's daughter, and dozens of others. We're going to use that energy to sever the magical connections the cult has spent decades creating."
"And if it works?" Prince Aldric asked.
"Then every bound soul is freed, the cult's accumulated power is destroyed, and their ability to continue their operations is crippled. But the magical energies involved will likely kill everyone within miles of the ritual site."
"And if it fails?"
"Then we die, and the cult uses the magical chaos we've created to fuel their work. Either way, the wedding ceremony becomes irrelevant—we'll either have solved the problem or made it dramatically worse."
Elena raised her hand slightly. "Your Highness, what happens to the bound souls if we succeed? Do they simply disappear?"
"According to my mother's research, they'll be released to whatever comes after death. No more binding, no more forced service, no more suffering. True freedom."
"Including your mother's spirit?"
The question hit deeper than I'd expected. Throughout this entire process, my mother's spirit had been my guide and advisor. Completing the ritual would mean losing that connection forever.
"Yes. Including my mother's spirit."
The room was quiet for a moment as everyone absorbed the full implications of what we were attempting. We weren't just risking our lives—we were committing to an action that would fundamentally change the magical nature of both kingdoms.
"Are there any questions before we proceed with the oath-swearing?" Master Dorian asked.
Lady Lydia spoke up. "What about our families? Our responsibilities to other people? The blood oath will commit us absolutely to this mission, but we all have obligations that extend beyond this conflict."
"The oath allows for fulfilling existing responsibilities that don't conflict with the mission," I replied. "But if forced to choose between personal loyalties and completing the ritual, the oath will compel you to choose the mission."
"And we're all comfortable with that level of magical compulsion?"
I looked around the circle, meeting each person's eyes in turn. "Anyone who isn't comfortable with that should leave now. Once the oath is sworn, there's no way to break it except through death or mission completion."
No one moved. Whatever doubts or fears they might have, everyone present had already made their choice.
"Then we begin," Master Dorian said, retrieving the ceremonial blade and silver chalice that would seal our commitment.
The oath-swearing itself was surprisingly simple—each person spoke the words of commitment, allowed their blood to flow into the shared chalice, and accepted the magical binding that would enforce their loyalty. But as the ritual progressed, I felt the weight of absolute responsibility settling over all of us.
When my turn came, I spoke the words my mother had written in her journal: "I swear by blood and bone, by life and death, by all the powers that govern the boundary between worlds—I commit myself to this cause and to the allies who fight beside me. May my soul be forfeit if I betray this oath, and may my death serve the greater good if I prove unworthy of the trust placed in me."
The magic sealed my words with power that resonated through the chamber, binding me not just to the mission but to the six people who shared this commitment. For the first time since my mother's death, I didn't feel alone.
As the final oath was sworn and the ritual completed, Master Dorian addressed the practical aspects of what came next.
"Tomorrow, we spend the day in preparation—reviewing the ritual, gathering the necessary components, and ensuring we're not discovered before we can begin. The day after that, we perform the work during the wedding ceremony itself."
"Why during the ceremony?" Captain Marcus asked.
"Because that's when the cult will be channeling their magical energies," I explained. "The spiritual boundaries will already be thin, which means our work will require less power to achieve the same effects. But it also means we'll be fighting their ritual and ours simultaneously."
"A magical duel," Prince Aldric said grimly. "With the fate of the world as the stakes."
"Exactly. And if we lose that duel, everyone in the throne room dies immediately."
Elena raised a practical concern. "Your Highness, what about the wedding guests? There will be hundreds of people present when we attempt this."
"Most of them will be far enough from the ritual site to survive the magical discharge. But anyone standing near the altar when we begin ." I paused, considering the moral implications. "We'll be asking them to risk their lives without their knowledge or consent."
"Including Prince Aldric's father," Lady Lydia observed.
"Including Lord Cassius, my father, and anyone else who happens to be close to the throne when the working begins."
The weight of that responsibility was almost overwhelming. We weren't just risking our own lives—we were potentially sacrificing innocent people to prevent something worse.
"Are we comfortable with that?" Captain Marcus asked bluntly.
The question hung in the air as each of us wrestled with the moral complexity of our situation. Finally,
Matthias spoke up.
"How many people will die if the cult completes its work?"
"Everyone," I replied. "Eventually. They're not planning to rule the world—they're planning to remake it entirely."
"Then we accept the risk," Captain Marcus said firmly. "Some will die so that all might live."
The others nodded in agreement, though I could see the weight of that decision settling on each face around the circle. We were no longer just conspirators—we were people who had chosen to become killers in service of a greater good.
"Two days," I said, rising from the altar. "We have two days to save the world."
As we filed out of the hidden chamber, each leaving by different routes to avoid suspicion, I felt the magical binding of our oath thrumming in my blood. There was no turning back now.