Free Marked by Pedro Urvi Page A

bringing the entire continent under her control. None had been able to stop the bloody and relentless advance of the Dark Queen with her unquenchable desire for power—a power that gripped then choked off everything within reach like an immense black tide, suffocating everything in her path.
    The doors of the royal throne room opened and two imperial guards entered the antechamber.
    “Her Highness will receive you now, Your Eminence,” they announced as they bowed in a show of respect before the Supreme High Priest.
    Isuzeni went in to see his queen, never even casting a glance at them.
    Surrounded by her faithful guards and seated on a rich ivory throne that paled in comparison to her exquisite, lethal beauty, Yuzumi looked at him, her face serene. Her silky hair, perfectly coiffed, fell smoothly down to her waist. It was a dazzling jet-black and her enormous slanted eyes were as dark and cold as a winter’s night. The darkness radiated by those eyes—almond-shaped in keeping with her race—was striking. Her skin was snow-white and of a delicacy that always surprised Isuzeni; the yellowish skin tone typical of her ethnicity was nearly imperceptible. Yuzumi’s beauty and power enchanted Isuzeni each time he was in her presence. But above all, it was her dark, arcane power of incredible magnitude that dazzled him.
    “Supreme High Priest,” his all-powerful lady welcomed him.
    “Your Majesty,” greeted Isuzeni, bowing grandly in homage. He squinted slightly and considered her for a moment. How great was the power his lady had amassed...
    A mere ten years ago, the Dark Queen had taken under her sovereignty—by treason and force—the kingdom of Kotami. In spite of being the leader of the poorest and weakest of the nine kingdoms on the continent, Yuzumi had begun the great conquest. It was completely unthinkable, something no one had achieved in more than five hundred years... until the arrival of his lady. The Dark Queen had vanquished and eliminated the nine sovereignties, one by one, and had raised her flag over the capitals of the nine kingdoms. Now everything belonged to her; nothing could stand in her way. The continent of Toyomi had fallen under her bloody power. To ensure the future control of each kingdom, the conqueror had wiped out the entire royal lineage, all the royal Generals and Counselors to the throne and all the members of their families—without exception. No one remained who could oppose her. No one.
    “I believe you have something to tell me Counselor, isn’t that right?” said the queen, in her velvety yet stern tone of voice.
    Isuzeni knew then why he had been summoned, but did not know how the queen had found out about it.
    “There has been an incident related to the Marked...”
    The queen sat up straight on her throne.
    “Go on,” she nodded.
    “Our spies on the great western continent have received information about a possible candidate.”
    “What degree of certainty is there to this information? Tremia is very far away...”
    “Very low, Your Majesty. It is nothing more than a rumor, but the age coincides.”
    “Has he demonstrated the Talent?” asked the queen.
    “Yes, my lady. The young man has shown he possesses the Gift.”
    “Give me every available detail.”
    “The rumors speak of a young man in a remote village in the mountains, in the western highlands, who was capable of killing another young man with just the touch of a finger.”
    “Very interesting... if it were true... That would be proof of his Talent. A powerful Talent. If it is indeed true, of course.”
    “That is what caught my attention, Your Majesty.”
    Yuzumi slowly stepped down from the throne, a pensive expression on her face. Her honor guard immediately came forward and surrounded her. They stood silently, like stone guardian statues. They were dressed in heavy armor, complete with overlays and as black as a moonless night. Engraved on their chest plates was their queen’s emblem: two crossed