Arshalous stared at the king, rigid with shock, seething with horror as she realized what the king might ask her to do, loathing at the unpleasant prospects, and fear of the dark doom that had fallen into the room, of the taste of...sneaking and plottings that filled her mouth. Lightening flickered across the tapestried walls, thunder clashed, and a dark presense pressed heavily upon her. The king looked intensely at her and he clutched at something against his chest.
Rising to her feet, Arshalous stood and faced the wall. "This powerful lady," she said softly, "was shocked when she heard the king's story. Though she held no love for her cousin and wished to see him fall, she feared what the king might ask of her. She knew that dark things were being whispered, plots that might very well end up unhappily, leaving nothing but regret and sorrow in its wake."
Slowly she turned, staring into the king's eyes. "The king was right when he said that the lady had no where to turn. The lady could feel the walls of a prison enclosing her, could feel the shackles clanging shut. She knew it would not be wise to refuse her king, and besides, the thought of bringing her cousin down into the dust was like sweet wine laced with poison. Trapped between desire and fear, she knew that there was but one answer she could make. She told the king that she would help him when the time came. And that, my lord, is all that I know of this story of love and betrayal."
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