Queen Rhaynera's Arc

Chapter 1 of 1

Queen Rhaynera had ruled beside King Deplorable for three years, yet Camelot still had no heir. Each council meeting ended with the same empty chair beside the throne: the place she imagined for their child. Her husband found her in the old birthing tower, where a cushioned bed waited beneath carved stone. He set both hands on the bedframe. His beard hid most of his face, but not his worry. “Every lord watches us,” he said. “They count our days.” “I count them too,” Rhaynera said. “I want our child to rule after us. I will not leave Camelot to men who think a crown is a prize.” King Deplorable took her hand. “Then we stop waiting for luck.” Rhaynera had summoned the tower’s healers before dawn. They brought hot water, clean cloth, and a bitter cup made from herbs. The oldest healer warned her that the treatment might help her conceive. It might also make her sick enough to lose weeks of strength. A petition bell rang below. Rhaynera looked toward the door. The court needed judgment on taxes, grain, and border guards. Camelot needed its queen standing beside its king. She lifted the cup. King Deplorable caught her wrist. “You do not have to prove your worth to me.” “I am proving it to Camelot,” she said. “And to our child.” She drank. The liquid burned her throat. Within moments, pain gripped her stomach. She bent over the birthing bed while the king held her shoulders. The healers worked fast, pressing cool cloths to her face. By nightfall, the pain had eased. Rhaynera sat upright, pale and shaking. The oldest healer knelt before her. “The treatment has taken hold,” the healer said. “You carry a child.” King Deplorable dropped to one knee beside the bed. Rhaynera pressed his hand against her belly. For one breath, the tower held only their silence. Then the healer lowered her eyes. “The queen must remain in this tower until the birth. If she rides, argues in council, or faces strain, she may lose the child.” Rhaynera looked past the narrow window toward Camelot. She had gained the heir she wanted. By morning, she would have to surrender the rule she shared with her king.