The air in the room was thick, it was a pressing heat, with no way out. The queen was on the bed, screaming in pain. Attending her were merely a handful of Maids and the royal doctor. No one else should be present when Her Majesty was about to give birth to the heirs. They were to be twins. 

Merely a few minutes apart the two had been born. Just before sunset a boy, his name should be Sol. Just as the sun had set the second child was born. Their name would be Luo.

Exhausted the Queen looked at her babies, lovingly at her beautiful son, he should be the embodiment of the sun, a new light of hope for the Kingdom, a sign of peace, as should be the other twin. Yet the Queen's expression changed rapidly when she looked upon the child of the night. This could not be her spawn. "Impossible, she muttered", tears starting to fill her eyes. The exhaustion and stress of giving birth must have fueled her growing rage. 

"This is not my child", she cried. 

"THIS IS NOT MY CHILD", she repeated with increased Volume, her voice trembling.

With whatever strength she could gather the Queen had leaped up towards the child, attempting to strangle it. 

"This is not my child", she cried a third time, this time with panic and desperation in her voice. "This child is an abomination, it has no features. A genderless abomination. We must kill it!"

The maids by her side immediately restrained her, knowing that holding the Queen the Way might have terrible consequences for them, yet letting the Queen attempt on the life of the King's child might hold a worse fate for each of them. 

While the Queen struggled against the Maids, the doctor took it upon himself to protect the child, he had sworn an oath to care for the well-being of the royal family and this would very much include the newborn to the throne. 

"Please..." the queen's exhaustion returned to her. "The king cannot know of this- this thing!" She started to lose consciousness, "I am begging you, get rid of it..." And with these words, her mind had left her. 

✩✩✩

When the queen had come to, she was left with one child. She didn't care where that cursed child ended up or whether it lived at all. All she cared about right now was that the King never found out about any of this. In her mind, she had only one child, Sol, the child of the sun and heir to the throne.

Shortly after the King appeared in the Chambers. "Estella, my dear. I was just informed of your awakening, how are you, my love? How is the child?" The king was ecstatic, he had so much hope for an heir, a strong boy who could take after him, and the doctor had confirmed his expectations.

"I am fine my love." She was still exhausted, she had rested just a few hours at this point. "Lucian, my dear, I want to name him Sol. He takes just after you, the light of my Life."

"A fine name indeed. Sol it shall be, he will make a fine prince, worthy of his name." The King gently caressed his son's head. "I shall let you rest some more, I will have the maids take care of our boy for now, you worked hard." He placed a kiss on his Wife's forehead before leaving the room to attend to his royal affairs. His Majesty was elated, he looked forward to seeing his son grow into a fine young man, teaching him what his father had taught him, and his grandfathers before him. 

✩✩✩

Sol did indeed grow up up to be a righteous and beautiful you man, his curly hair shimmering golden in the sun, with eyes resembling the blue sky of a beautiful day. He might not be the best fighter, as his father had hoped but he was clever, destined to become a grand leader one day. The young prince developed a strong sense of justice, rumor spread that he had to be the reincarnation of the Sun God, and people claimed to see rays of light radiating off him. 

King Lucian could not be prouder of his son, what a wonderful man he had become. Meanwhile, Queen Estella seemed to have grown more bitter, she had spent the past years making sure her secret never came out, yet wondering now and then if the child was still alive, what kind of life they would have if they were... Her anguish seemed to eat her up, and to that, she seemed to have grown physically weak as well. Her Majesty isolated herself from society, only showing herself in bigger events, fearing to display any signs of weakness.

The Heir's 16th Birthday was now hardly half a year away and with that the blessings ceremony. The event was a formality, however, seen as some kind of national holiday. All citizens of the same age as the Prince were invited to attend, no matter their standing. The ones chosen would receive the blessing of a God who approved of them, as well as all youth to engage in the ceremony would also pledge their loyalty to the crown before the gods.

But all this was sheer tradition, as for generations if anything, only minor gods had chosen an avatar. But alas the entire Kingdom prepared for the Festival, not only at court but all around. Even if the chance was slim, to be chosen would mean an equivalent to a noble title, an opportunity a commoner would not pass up on.

Everyone was in high spirits, except the royal family. The Queen's illness had worsened and there did not seem to be much hope for her to attend the Blessing Ceremony. Neither medical nor divine scholars could work out what had befallen her, and therefore no cure could be worked out either. 

And soon the queen silently passed. The cheery preparations came to a halt, three months before the ceremony. The Kings ensured the Festivities shall proceed as planned, yet he could not hide his grief. King Lucian had loved his wife with all his heart. But just as fast as the word of the Queen's death had spread, a second topic was discussed. The rumor of a second Heir came up, a topic no one had dared to bring up as long as the Queen had lived. The story of the lost Twin, the child of the night.