A Kingdom Of Dreams Audiobook

[Lenora Rademacher]

KingLudwig II of Bavaria was an enigmatic figure who was deposed in 1886, mysteriously drowning three days later. Eccentric to the point of madness, in the years before he died Ludwig engaged in a worldwide search for a new kingdom. One separate from Bavaria, a place he could retreat to and rule as he wished. But a question remains: Did he succeed?

The carriage door opened and he shifted his bulky weight off the silk-lined bench and maneuvered himself out the small door into the night. One of the footmen offered a hand as he stepped down onto stairs that had been positioned on the ground for his convenience.

A man approached. Short, bespectacled, with a whiskered face, wearing a dark suit. He looked the part of a Herr Professor but he was actually the director of the Bavarian archives, trained as a lawyer and historian, and one of the few people Ludwig trusted.

The guide pointed out that Ludwig visited the palace only a few days each year, from September 29 to October 8, for an annual inspection of the work progress. So the grand staircase had rarely echoed to the tread of feet, the rooms barely knowing the sound of human voices. When Ludwig had been there, the staircase had always been littered with lilies and roses. One of the visitors asked why and the guide shrugged, explaining it was just more of the fantastical that the so-called Mad King of Bavaria had loved to be surrounded with.

They entered a state bedroom paneled in white, all aglitter in gilding, the rounded bed alcove fenced off by a golden balustrade. Gilded stucco mythological figures adorned the ceiling. The windows were framed by red velvet draperies lined with gold embroidery, which, according to the pamphlet Cotton perused, had taken seven years to make. The bed was large enough to accommodate a dozen people. When finished it had been the most ornate room in all of Germany, the first to be completed at the palace in the early 1880s. But no one ever slept here. Instead, it had been created only for show.

Right now was just foreplay with Slender and Sinewy trying to act like tourists. The rest of the group included four Chinese and two other ladies speaking French. Usually Herrenchiemsee would be packed. Hundreds of people visited each day. But that was in spring and summer when the hedges were high, the fountains spewed sheets of water, and people filled the gardens and grounds. This time of year was not tourist season, which more than anything else explained why Slender and Sinewy were here.

The group moved to the next room and he watched as Slender and Sinewy admired the grand Hall of Mirrors. The guide was saying how Ludwig had built his version larger than the one at Versailles, stretching it to ninety-eight meters. Nearly three hundred feet. Its walls were a swirl of light gray and green stucco marble. Seventeen arched windows lined each side. The ones on the right opened to the front of the palace, the ones on the left were faux and gave the room its name, containing only mirrors. A barrel-vaulted ceiling with murals spanned its entire length and supported thirty-three cut crystal chandeliers. Another forty-four candelabra stood at attention down each side.

He was always amused at how Ludwig was described as either a tyrant, a lunatic, or an incompetent. But none of those labels were correct. Today he might have been characterized as bipolar, or a manic-depressive, and treated with medication, living a long and productive life. But no such assistance had been available in the nineteenth century. His father, Maximilian II, had been stiff and pedantic, keeping his distance, dying far too soon. His mother had been someone who never understood him. One observer at the time noted that his dark eyes swirled with dreams and enthusiasm, his fine forehead, elegant address, and dignified presence winning him instant admiration. But his faults came from a bit of megalomania, a debilitating indecision, and a love of change that seemed common to his age. Eventually, the world fell upon him, with political infighting and his own insatiable desires compounding his troubles. Ever so slowly he lost a grip on reality, withdrawing into himself, his castles, and the night where he became a king from a fairy tale, a mythical figure of poets, this grand hall proof positive of that obsession.

Photography was not allowed inside the palace, though two of the four Chinese toted cameras around their necks. Expensive looking, too, with high-intensity flash attachments. Cotton made a mental assessment of the possibilities ahead and decided one of those cameras might come in handy.

The room was a perfect square with a doorway in on one side and another out, opposite, on the other, consistent with the French style of rooms-to-rooms with no hallways. The walls were white-paneled with more gilt carvings. A large portrait of Louis XIV dominated the wall behind an ornate writing desk. Two astronomical clocks sat on console tables to each side. He knew about the large rolltop desk from the pamphlet. Made in Paris, 1884. Inspired by the one in the Louvre that had belonged to Louis XV. It had been delivered after Ludwig II died in 1886 and had remained here, inside the palace, since around 1920. The guide told the group about the room and the desk, repeating some of what he already knew.

The guide seemed focused on her spiel and did not notice that she was missing two members. Slender and Sinewy had remained in the study and he needed to give them a few moments of privacy. He stood just beyond the doorway that allowed access between the two rooms, far enough inside the dining room that the guide was happy and the two behind him were not disturbed.

Across the study, in the doorway leading out, a third man appeared, his blond hair more mowed than cut, the bright face clean-shaven and glowing with good health and outdoor life. He wore a dark pullover shirt and jeans, matted to a muscular frame, his waist-length, fleece-collared bomber jacket open in the front, a black scarf around his neck.

Snowfall is large[1] and regal,[2] with shiny[3] white scales.[4] She has dark blue eyes[event 2] and curved white wings.[5] She formerly owned a heavy, metal crown, described as being too large for her head and weighing as much as a small polar bear.[6] It was studded with diamonds and metallic spikes that looked similar to icicles.[event 3] She wears a pouch around her neck that contains a copy of Qibli's enchanted earring.[7]

According to Winter, Snowfall is "abundantly blessed with mean smugness."[8] When Winter was raised to first circle in the Circle rankings, Snowfall was fuming and gave him a glare that "should have melted all of the ice in the palace courtyard."[9] She also smirked at him afterwards, as if she did not expect his new ranking to last even a week.[10] She was described to smile outwardly, but her voice was all murderous stalactites,[11] sugary-sweet and mocking.[12] Luna describes her as "flipping terrifying" and thought that she could defeat the HiveWings by herself simply by coldly staring at them.[13]

Despite her rough exterior, Snowfall struggles with a lot of isolationist worries, anxieties, and fears. She is scared, but in a powerful, reactive way; she acts out very dramatically whenever she is upset. She has gone through enormous trauma due to the IceWing plague and her mother's death, and is heavily driven by anxiety and fear. As a new queen, Snowfall was terrified of any threat to her kingdom.[event 4]

After she became queen, Snowfall was easily annoyed,[14] stressed,[15] rude,[16] cold,[3] anxious,[17] distrustful,[18] and indecisive.[19] She often felt as though being queen was similar to living inside a snowstorm that never ended. She tried her best to start each day with a list and a plan and energy to solve all of her problems, but was always buried in them before nightfall.[20] She felt overwhelmed[21] and pinned down by the responsibilities of being queen.[22] Lynx also noted that Snowfall had not smiled since the beginning of the plague.[23] She was panicked by all of the things that might go horribly wrong,[24] and often woke up feeling more tired than she had been before.[25] She became heavily insecure about her ability to rule due to the events of the Battle of Jade Mountain, when she was exposed to the thoughts of her subjects that were doubtful and worried about her authority as queen.[26] She often felt a sense of suffocating dread when reminded of the gift of order,[27] and her everyday life was full of anxiety.[28] She was insecure and easily bored.[29]

Snowfall's nights were long, and she felt a constant pressure inside her head, knowing the gift of order was always waiting for her and feeling as though her every move was being watched.[30] She believed outside dragons were inherently dangerous,[31] but still felt a twinge of guilt after sending the Pantalan refugees away from the Ice Kingdom.[32] She felt begrudgingly sympathetic towards Hazel,[33] and after the gift of vision transformed her into Atala, she began hoping that the SilkWing's family would remain safe.[34] She found it difficult to accept that she cared about the Pantalan dragons[35] or wanted to explore the Hives of Pantala.[36]

After her experiences with the gift of vision, Snowfall is still proud,[37] imperious,[38] sarcastic,[39] commanding,[40] naturally grumpy,[41] gruff,[42] irritable,[43] and impatient.[41] However, she has become more empathetic[44] and believes that other dragons are not as evil as she had once thought.[45] She became less paranoid[46] and afraid,[47] protecting her tribe with strength[48] and indomitable ferocity.[49]

When Darkstalker enchanted a scroll to tell the news of the IceWings, it was revealed that Queen Glacier was dead and Snowfall had become the new queen. The scroll also said that Snowfall had brought the entire IceWing army to Jade Mountain to fight the NightWings.

Snowfall, Hailstorm, and Narwhal were later shown demanding the Jade Mountain staff to tell them Darkstalker's location, while berating them for Darkstalker's escape in the first place. Winter appeared in front of them, which shocked Snowfall, who demanded to know how he was still alive. Winter exclaimed that it is not important and began helping his friends convince her not to fight the NightWings. Before she could consider, NightWing scouts with gifts of speed appeared and started attacking, throwing the discussion away and officially beginning the battle. Narwhal was killed while blocking the NightWings from her, but Snowfall kept herself relatively calm throughout the battle while launching her own attacks. She was later teleported back to the Ice Kingdom along with the other IceWings, due to Anemone's spell.

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