Paying The Piper
an excerpt

Beneath the pale, watery light of a sickened moon, Queen Amelin stumbled over the rough, twisted ground at the edge of the kingdom. Panting, weary, her feet caught a gnarled, ancient root and she fell to her knees, hands before her scraping the earth. as she stood, she wiped her palms against the grainy fabric of her stolen dress and grimaced at the sting. brushing aside the tangled locks of auburn that fell before her eyes, the desperate woman plunged onward, fighting for her footing as she navigated the hostile terrain.