The Princess in the Opal Mask

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Not everyone who attends the coronation wishes the young queen well.

As the townspeople gather in the great hall of the young queen’s palace, many object among themselves. Construction has just begun. The great hall is the only completed room and already her palace is by far the grandest structure in Allegria. The townspeople see the glass windows—the first in the city—and glimpse the blustery, inky night beyond. They wish their own homes were so sheltered.

The wind howls and flickering candles paint shadows on the walls. At the end of the hall is an altar, which displays the young queen’s crown, as well as the large stone that started it all. The First Opal. The jewel glints in the candle-light, showing veins of gold cracked through deep blue, as if lightning is trapped inside. A man whispers that if he had discovered the opals in Galandria’s soil, instead of young Eleanor Andewyn, it would be his coronation they’d all be attending.

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