He frowned and laid a hand on her head.

'That must be some part of that prophecy thing...' he mused.

She smiled. That was a part of the prophecy about her return to power. If this part was true, the rest was probably true too.

"Well, everyone. Let's move on. We have a kingdom to save." She put aside her guilt and put her mind to work on a detailed plan. Together she and this motley band had to defeat a great wizard, and that would be no easy task. Her secret weapon, the one she had gained by mistake at the edge of eleven, would be her last defense. "Let's go." She led them to a temple which bore on the door a crest that was achingly familiar to the princess. A golden crown over a raven. The temple was dilapidated and falling down, surrounded by blackbirds, crows and ravens. She put a hand on the dusty seal on the door. " . . . Adrian . . ." Written under the seal were runes, the old language of Auroroli. In the common tongue they said,

' Scattered to the four winds are four brave crowns. The first lies here, the curse awaits as well, waiting on the right hand to break the ancient spell.'

Lacuna watched the murder of ravens closely. Such birds were usually a bad omen. But Uroki had murmured a name, which distracted him from his dark thoughts. 'Adrian?' he wondered.

Then it dawned on him. Honora's eldest...Adrian, the crown prince. He had been a sweet boy. But after that usurping mage had shown up, the Princes had vanished without a trace.

She hadn't seen Adrian in years. He'd been twenty when he and the other princes had vanished. His bright green eyes had always been strong and unwavering. The Raven had been his favorite bird, and the gold crown signified his rank as crown prince. But what was this curse? She pushed the door open. It creaked and scraped across the stone floor.

Jinx watched in slight amazement but held her surprise behind a guarded gaze. She watched the doors swing open the seal parting into two pieces. The Crows and other scavenging birds flew away but only a couple of meters. ''Such a Disgrace'' she thought a glare laid upon the birds that were nearby and circling above. "What are we doing here?" she asked politely watching Uroki.

"There is a clue to my brother's whereabouts here. I'm going in." She walked through the door and into a main hall. There were rows of tarnished stone pews running through the semi dark room.

Jinx followed her warily, looking around her for danger. She looked at lacuna before stepping forward quickly reaching Uroki's side. "A clue? how? where?" she asked her curiosity and confusion showing "He's still alive then?" she asked pointlessly waiting for an answer.

ooc: sorry bout that

Lacuna crept after the women, daggers drawn. He was a little wary of temples, understandably. Any building that was sealed usually held something bad. And this crumbling monolith was no different. Regardless, he would not let Uroki and Jinx venture forth with out him. What if there was treasure?

Uroki looked back at Lacuna and smiled. Then she turned back to examining the place. "I don't know. Adrian could be alive. He and my other brothers disappeared when Azrael took Auroroli. I'm hoping theres a clue here somewhere, since it said so on the door."

P.S. Keeley, it's Lacuna, not Lucana. If you could correct this it would be much appreciated, as Jhori is biting my head off about it.)

Lucil clanked beside the group clad in her armor "The crown prince." she murmured, his eyes falling to the floor as she clanked along... the birds had not frightened her.. nothing really did anymore. She felt confused by the sudden thought... if the prince was still alive... why had she not heard a even a whisper on the wind of him...she was usually much better at gathering information.. still... one cannot know all the secrets of the world...

Uroki walked into the center of the room, where, through a hole in the ceiling, a beam of light fell onto a statue of a large bird. She studied the statue for a moment. At the bird's feet was a single black feather.