The new Buckingham Palace looked exactly like the old one had from the air. The last remnants of the construction site had almost gone, only a large fence remained, to be removed before the official opening next week.

The pilot brought the Boeing 787 Dreamliner round in another long circle over the city as he waited for clearance to land. The Mall was still closed off, Green Park and St. James’s Park remained eerily empty. This was his first flight here since the day the old palace had been destroyed.

He thought back to the large crowds that had spread out as far as he could see below him that day. They cheered and celebrated as King William had been crowned.

He remembered the flash and fireball emanating from the palace, spreading like a wave, engulfing the thousands of individual specks, before the roar of the explosion reached him through the sky. He remembered having to correct the plane as it was hit by the turbulence, minor at that distance. His was the last plane to land before the airspace was shut down. He was in the sky long enough to glimpse through the smoke and flames and see the black hole were the palace had once stood.

Next week the monarch would be able to take up residence in the centre of London again. He banked once more and began his descent into the airport.

Written as part of Sunday Photo Fiction. Write a story of around 200 words based on the photo prompt given (above). For more details visit HERE.

To read more stories based on this week’s prompt, visit HERE.