It was a clam quiet night in the middle of early summer. The sun had just set and the stars were starting to come out. No one in the city was sleeping, however. Tonight their queen was giving birth to her third child. Everyone was excited. Even little children realized that this was a moment for celebration. All over the city parties were being held as they waited to hear that the child was born. The city was in the heart of the Moon Elf kingdom.

Usually at this point most of its citizens were fast asleep. As the different parties went on the city seemed to hold its breath the closer to midnight it got. They had received word from the oracle that the baby would be here today. When the stars were in the sky clearly the citizens began to get nervous. Perhaps the baby had not survived.

Childbirth was hard on elven women and few would be surprised if the baby or the mother did not make it. Everyone was hopeful though. Just before midnight a cry broke out through the castles. Queen Silvermoon had given birth to a beautiful baby girl. King Aidris and Queen Silvermoon named her Pegasus.

Messengers ran throughout the town spreading the word of the new baby. People cheered and gave many toasts and had hopes that this baby girl would grow up fine and strong. She was sure to be the future face of the kingdom. The king smiled at his daughter.

“She is beautiful. I love the both of you, Silvermoon.” He smiled looking up at his queen.

Silvermoon smiled. Her long blonde hair was being brushed out by a servant as she relaxed in the bed. She was happy that Aidris accepted the daughter. It was not uncommon for kings to be unhappy about daughters. Of course Silvermoon had provided two sons already and they were both grown enough to take the throne if needed.

Porthio and Gilth knocked on the door softly and peeked in. Silvermoon smiled at her sons. She waved for them to come in. Her deep blue eyes were tired, but full of love. Today couldn’t be any more perfect. Aidris got up to show them their new sister. Gilth, the oldest, took her first. It was at that time Pegasus opened her eyes for everyone to see.

They were deep blue just like her mothers. The only difference being they had silver flakes in them. They all smiled. It was a sign from the gods that this girl would be destined for great things. Word of the baby spread past the kingdom before the sun started to come up. People from all over were rejoicing that the Moon Elves had a princess at last. Some other elven kings started to make plans to arrange their son to marry this girl before she was even a day old.

***

“Pegasus, don’t lean over the railing like that.” Silvermoon shook her head.

Her daughter had grown up to look just like her. Except her eyes of course. Pegasus was had a different spirit to her however. She loved hearing about adventure and could barely sit still half the time. She was an adult now. At the age of 132 it was odd that she had not been married off yet. Pegasus had lived a sheltered life for the most part.

Her father had grown more distant over the years. Each year more and more suitors came to ask for her hand. Her father couldn’t convince her to take any of them. As different wars waged and other tragedies hit the kingdom her father had grown more and more irritated. Finally he gave up. He had banished her to a distant part of the castle so that he would not have to see her again. Anyone coming to ask for her hand was sent away.

Silvermoon knew that she was just a free spirit who wanted to know what it was like to be on your own somewhere. She completely supported her daughter. Luckily her daughter had been born an elf. The elves were more liberal than other races at the time. Women had a say in their lives as elves that they didn’t have as humans or other races.

“Mother do you think father will be at dinner tonight?” Pegasus asked after she stopped leaning so far over the railing of her balcony.

“I don’t think so dear. Why don’t we plan something just for the two of us? Porthio is away on a diplomacy mission and Gilth is off visiting his wife’s family. So it will be just the two of us anyway. What would you like to do?” Silvermoon asked looking up from her sewing.

“Let’s go sleep in the woods like father and the boys do. It sounds like such fun.” Pegasus smiled and clapped her hands. She loved the idea of camping.

Silvermoon sighed and bit her lip. She couldn’t tell her daughter no, but she knew it could be dangerous. “Alright, but we will need to take guards with us.” She said after a long silence.

Pegasus was overly excited. She had been asking to go camping for over a hundred years now. She ran to her mother hugging her tightly and smiling. She was so excited she couldn’t even speak. She ran inside and started to get ready right away. Silvermoon smiled shaking her head.

“That girl will be the death of me.” She laughed a little and headed inside.

That night they were getting settled in their camp. They had brought four guards to watch over them. Since it was summer near Pegasus’ birthday they didn’t need tents and slept out on the ground. Mother and daughter stayed up in to the late hours looking at the stars and telling the stories of each. Finally they both drifted off the sleep. That’s when things started to get strange.

The guards were meeting near a tree and talking quietly amongst themselves. They watched over the queen and princess quietly. Towards the middle of the night when the moon was full and high in the sky one of the guards dropped to the ground dead. The others were instantly on high alert. A second guard suddenly died. Then it happened. They were suddenly over taken by Drows. The women were grabbed roughly with linen sacks put over their heads. The two guards that were left were knocked out cold.

The women fought as best as they could against the strong hands. Suddenly a long curved knife slit the throat of one of the women. In their dark language it could be heard that they were talking about a contract to kill one of the women. They quickly tied the other to a tree cutting her left leg along the outside in one long slit. The woman cried out then soon passed out from the pain.

In the late morning when the two guards that were left finally woke up they quickly set to trying to figure out what had happened. They removed the bag from the woman tied to the tree and looked for the other. The Drows had drug the body down the path little ways to the river where they left her with her head in the water to ensure she was dead. The guards were not sure which was which.

They quickly pulled the woman out of the river and removed the bag. There staring back at them was their queen. This meant that the princess was still safe. Grabbing both women they rushed back to the kingdom. The city was in mourning.

Their queen had been lost. Pegasus blamed herself for what happened. The only other person who blamed her was her father. He locked her up in the dungeon claiming she had caused this to the point it might as well had been her who drew the knife. Pegasus didn’t argue. Instead she sat down in the corner of the small room and vowed she would never leave or cause any other person harm again.

Years later King Aidris died. Gilth as the oldest son took up the throne. He decided to release his sister who was now 142. She had spent ten long years in the dungeon. Her hair had grown long in that time reaching to the floor. She kept it in a strict bun however. The woman who had once been carefree was now withdrawn and silent.

No one had heard her talk for those ten years. She looked deathly thin even for an elf. Her brothers worried about her. They had never felt the way their father had. No one, but Pegasus and Aidris felt like she had killed Silvermoon. It was out of their control. Her father had been driven mad by jealousy of Pegasus’ and Silvermoon’s relationship and how close they were.

“Pegasus you need to marry. I have arranged for one of the best husbands. He is the prince of the Sun Elves. We have been allies with them for many generations and this will make it a more permanent bond. I know you do not want to marry, but it is what is needed for the kingdom.” Gilth was trying to be gentle about the subject, but at the same time the woman was 142. She was well pass the age to be married even by elven standards.

She simply nodded and continued to nibble at the small bit of food she had been eating. Gilth sighed looking to his brother for support. Porthio nodded.

“He is a good man. I’ve met him before. He has good priorities. You’ll like him I think. They live in huts like some other natives. You’ll like that. It will be like an adventure.”

“I will do as is needed of me.” It had been the first thing anyone had heard her speak in those ten years.

With that sentence it was clear that their sister’s soul had been broken. The brothers looked at each other worried. They had never seen their sister so docile in their life. This was a woman who had demanded to take archery lessons with her brothers. She had learned how to use a sword against their father’s wishes. This was a woman who thought for her own and did not just blindly follow a man.

There was nothing left to it however. She had agreed and nothing could be done to change the way she was. They knew that her mind had been at stake when her father had her thrown in the dungeon, but they had been unable to do anything about it. They had tried for years to get him to release Pegasus. They had even come close to treason. That would mean the lives of not only themselves, however, but of their loved sister as well.