The Queen did not speak until the doors were shut.
The chamber felt smaller with the three of them inside. The lamps burned low, their flames steady, and the silence stretched long enough to make Zaina shift where she stood.
Imani kept her eyes on the floor, hands clasped tightly in front of her.
The Queen looked from one girl to the other.
"Explain," she said.
Zaina lifted her chin.
"I went to the forest."
"I can see that."
"I needed to know what was happening."
"You needed," the Queen repeated,
"to disobey every order given to you."
Zaina's jaw tightened.
"Something is wrong. You felt it too."
The Queen's gaze sharpened, but she did not answer that. Instead, she turned to Imani.
"And you."
Imani swallowed.
"I… I didn't want her to go alone."
"So you helped her."
"I—yes, my Queen."
"You covered for her. Lied to the guards. Allowed the Princess to walk into the forest at night."
Her voice remained firm
"Do you understand what danger you invited?"
Neither girl spoke.
The Queen stepped closer.
"There were armed men in that forest tonight. Not hunters. Not villagers. Warriors."
Zaina's eyes flickered.
"You saw them?"
"I did."
"Then you know I was right. Something—"
"That is not the point, Zaina"
The Queen cut her off.
"You were not sent. You were not guarded. You were not prepared. You acted on impulse and nearly paid for it."
Zaina opened her mouth.
"I wasn't afraid."
"Well, next time you better be!! "
Imani shifted uneasily.
"We didn't think—"
"No," the Queen said.
"You did not."
She straightened, her expression hardening.
"You will both remain in this chamber today. You will not leave. You will not receive visitors. You will not send messages. You will sit, and you will reflect on the weight of what you have done."
Zaina frowned. "What?"
"You heard me."
"That's not fair. The scouts—"
"You will not attend any meetings."
Zaina stepped forward.
"Mother—"
"No."
The single word stopped her.
Imani glanced up nervously.
"My Queen… Kalu—"
"You will not see him."
Imani fell silent immediately.
The Queen folded her hands behind her back.
"Two guards will be stationed outside this door. You will not cross them."
Zaina exhaled sharply.
"You can't do this"
The Queen did not reply.
A knock sounded.
One of the palace guards stepped in and bowed.
"Your Majesty. The scouts have returned. The council is gathering."
Zaina's head snapped up.
The Queen only nodded.
"I will come."
Zaina looked away, frustrated.
The Queen moved toward the door, then paused.
"You will remain here. Both of you."
She stepped outside and spoke to the guards.
"No one enters. No one leaves. If they attempt to pass, you stop them."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
The doors shut.
Inside, Zaina paced once, then again. Imani sank onto a cushion, wringing her hands.
"She knew," Zaina muttered.
"She grounded us before they even arrived."
Imani sighed softly.
"She always knows."
The palace hall screamed with tension when the Queen entered.
The King sat at the head of the chamber, elders gathered around him. The scouts stood in the center, dust covered and visibly shaken.
One of them—Kalu spoke to the Hand of the King before stepping forward.
The Queen took her place beside the King.
"Report," he ordered.
Kalu bowed.
"Your Majesty. We reached the eastern boundary before dusk. The stones… they've been broken."
A murmur moved through the room.
"Broken?" an elder repeated.
"Yes. The symbols carved into them were slashed."
Another scout stepped forward.
"The ground was disturbed. Old markings overturned. Some stones pushed aside completely."
"That is not possible,"
one of the elders said.
"Those seals are bound."
Kalu shook his head.
"They're not anymore."
Silence settled.
"Did you see anyone?" the King asked.
"No, Your Majesty," Kalu replied.
"No camps. No traps. No men."
The Queen spoke then.
"There were men."
Heads turned toward her.
"You saw them?" the Hand asked.
"Yes."
The King looked at her.
"Where?"
"In the forest. Near the inner boundary."
She kept her voice steady.
"They moved like trained warriors. Not hunters."
"And you were alone?"
The king asked, surprised.
"I went to confirm what we feared," she said simply.
No one challenged her further.
The room shifted. What had been uncertainty now hardened into something more serious.
"If outsiders crossed the seals…" one elder murmured.
"Then the protections are weakening,"
another finished.
The King leaned forward.
"This has not happened in generations."
"And if it has happened now," the Queen said,
"then we must assume the balance has been disturbed."
"Zaina was right"
The elders exchanged uneasy glances.
"What do you suggest?" the Hand asked.
The Queen did not hesitate.
"We perform the Ritual of Renewal."
The room stilled.
"That ritual has not been conducted in decades," one elder said.
"Because it has not been needed," she replied.
"The boundaries were strong. The spirits at peace. That is no longer the case."
Another elder frowned.
"It is complex. Risky."
"And necessary," she said.
The King studied her.
"Explain."
"We summon the elders. We cleanse the land. We appease the spirits. We restore the seals."
Her voice remained calm but firm.
"If we do nothing, the forest will continue to weaken. More will cross. And next time, they may not leave."
Silence followed.
The Hand of the King nodded slowly.
"She is right."
"And we do not stand alone," the Queen continued.
"We send word to our allies. Quietly. We invite their presence. Their support. If rivals test our borders, they must know Amari is not vulnerable."
That shifted the mood again.
"An alliance…" Elder sogba murmured.
"A precaution," she corrected.
The King leaned back, considering. Then he nodded once.
"We prepare the ritual."
The decision settled over the room.
Messengers were called. Orders began to form. Elders spoke in hushed tones.
The Queen stood beside the throne, her expression calm.
But somewhere beyond the broken boundary, unseen eyes watched.