Minor design changes: added more floof, made the cape a bit different. click to zoom in, space/arrow keys for next. Backstory heehee (oh gosh I went overboard-): Venetia had never wanted to be queen. She'd always been content to watch her father rule, to play on the palace grounds, always nagging the guards to teach her how to fight. She had held dreams of joining the army, serving her country under her father's watch. That was the life she wanted, that was the life she had loved. But she was the lone heir, and some things were inevitable. (The cold snow clings to her paws as she glances back at the castle's ruins. One last time.) Her dynasty had been failing long before she took the throne. Corruption filtered through the blood of every official, from the tax farmers to the city guards. Unstable relationships with surrounding kingdoms risked blowing away the whole country in a war. The day she took the throne, she had a splitting headache. It was all too much - her father was gone. She was left all alone... to try and manage a kingdom. But she loved her lands, loved them with all her feeble heart. And she tried her best. She tried her best even as famine tore down millions, as small conflicts sparked along borders. She held her own against advisors and guards seeking to manipulate her. It wasn't enough; it was never going to be enough. Three years after she became queen, a group of revolutionaries battered down the castle walls. Now she marches through the snowy north to find the cottage where she'll spend the rest of her days. Exile. She was surprised when she heard the word. Exile. Didn't they want her gone? They let her keep her crown, her cape, her jewels. But never mind that. Surely these revolutionaries know what they're doing. Surely they'll be better rulers than her. She doesn't think she can stand it if they aren't. If despite everything, she has to see her kingdom trampled to dust. Five days later, and off in the distance, there it is - a plume of welcoming smoke, pale against the gray sky. Her guards herd her in, shut the door, and walk off. It's warm, there's food. None of the luxuries of the palace are present, but that's okay. All for the good of the kingdom. ... Every Monday, someone comes to give her supplies and the news. She smiles every time. Maybe this was all for the best, she thinks to herself. The news is always positive. The kingdom is coming out of famine, people love the new rulers, and corruption is being eliminated everywhere. They're winning all the border skirmishes. Technology is increasing. She doesn't think to doubt it until a stranger shows up at her doorstep. It's on a Thursday, which is certainly odd, but she lets them in anyway. He's not a guard, and doesn't carry any food. He spills it all. The new government is a tyranny. Anyone that speaks up they eliminate callously. They fill the papers with propaganda. They're feared, not loved. They only care for power. And she sits here, a complacent figurehead. When she hears it, she feels something shatter inside. It's true, she knows it. She shoves the stranger out the door. Venetia had never wanted to be queen. She shouldn't have been ruling. She still shouldn't be. She laughs as tears roll down her face, stepping outside and laying in the snow. Her kingdom is gone, her father is gone, and there's nothing she can do about it. All that's left is a shell, a sheltered figurehead. A broken relic. A fallen queen. She sighs, and stares at the sky, reaching up as though she could touch it. Venetia's lost everything. Now what? Should she fight? No, no, not unless she wants to be eliminated like thousands of others. She giggles, maniacally. She takes the newspaper and tears it up. Liars. Maybe she'll just stay right here. Let it all play out. Watch from the sidelines for once. Give up on her country, and choose to enjoy freedom. Maybe that sounds nice... "They say the old queen lives on, in exile. If you knock on her door, she'll open it and laugh. She's gone insane from it all, but she'll tell you a story. Her story. Do what you will with it." Art by Design by
