Sherlin gets me ready all pretty for the introduction ceremony. The white gown flows through my body clutching me at the right places, accentuating the parts underneath. I look at myself embezzled in the right amount of jewelry.
The gold intricate designs woven on the gown, bring out the hazel brown in my eyes, and the plunging neck gives enough amount of luxury to my breast, yet, something is missing. I stare rather suggestive at the piece of fabric on me, as Max trudges into the room smirking.
“The Queen’s ready.”, our eyes meet in the mirror, his almost green as the spring.
“Something’s missing”. I say as his eyes travel on the fabric. His gaze still burns my skin, more so today as I walked over the lane of my memory the entire night.
My heels click on the marble floor, as I walk frantically across the throne in the courtroom. I hear the door click, the councilmen trudging in as if it was a leisure talk. They take their seats, faces uninterested in the instructions they received before coming here. I sit on the throne drawing my sword to the side and placing the tip on the ground. The council straightens up as they see the sword in my hand. I smirk at the audacity of these men. “I hope you all know the reason why you are here. I would like to hear all your inputs on the situation.”, I say pointing my chin at them to start. “It’s a war, they have fifty-thousand soldiers, we have seventy-five it’s an easy win.”, the war leader chirps in shrugging his shoulders at the input. I frown at the statement,
If wars were won only by power, people wouldn’t need strategies. They are won by wit. The wit, that told me the only way to win this will be - deceit. King Benjamin is not a kid, especially when it comes to war. It’s no secret that we would win this, with seventy thousand army men marching right on his ground. There was more to this war than it showed, something King Benjamin planned to get his way through in this war. I need to find just that something.I place my crown on the pillow, marching towards the meeting suit of the palace. The plan was simple, yet convincing the person will put forward demands. I crane my neck, as the guards open the door to the suite.“General Marcus. Nice to meet you”, I enter greeting the man sitting on the chair in his entire glory. General Marcus, war general to King Benjamin&r
The sun rises, on the day of the full moon. My heartbeat is erratic, nerves clutch onto me in nervous shrieks, as deep breath pounds against my lungs. Max places a hand on my shoulder asking me to calm down. “Max, I have never fought a war.”, I say. He is the only person who can witness my weakness. I know I can beat King Benjamin, but what I am more concerned about is General Marcus. I don’t know what his wits might have prompted him, rather what the betrayer in my kingdom have to feed him. He can turn my way easily, and I need to be careful. “You are strong, you know that. You can take hundreds of King Benjamin’s down.”, I chuckle at his assurance. I take his hands, pulling him to sit down with me, “Your the only person I trust.”, I say placing my head on his shoulde
I drag my feet to the palace. Betrayal clutching against the inside of my gut. My eyes blaze the fire, as I feel the burn rising to my heart, enveloping me through the cold of the dark night that spreads its silver on the ground.I won't spare anyone for the mistakes. I’ll show them what it takes to challenge the queen.I enter the grounds of the palace.The wood screeches under my feet, as the swords drag creating a scrape on the wood. Blood drips from the dagger, the distant howling of wolves evident as I enter the palace grounds. Heads raise, eyes widen; to only kneel when the soldiers look at me in the eye. I walk to the center to see a few of General Marcus’s soldiers ready to charge at me. I point my sword at the one soldier who dared to walk a step toward
The sun dances over the edge of the shiny rocks lined on the borders of the lake. Red chrysanthemums litter the place, kissing the feet of the passerby. Women and girls are gathered around the place scattered in bunches, whispering, murmuring the questions that run through their heads. The main being - Why did Queen call us? I clear my throat as I walk to the center of the garden.Eyes shoot up in my direction filled with questions. Nervous.But none looks at me with a mock, and somehow I feel proud for the sense of achievement.“I am glad all of you could take time from your busy day to see me”, I say. I see the look on their faces contort. I understand why. I bow my head, pulling my lips into a smile.
The streets of the kingdom are decorated with sparkles that fill the entire town. Happy vibes surround the village as every person enjoys the music, dance, entertainment, and everything that is lined like some huge festival. Indeed it is a huge festival - a festival to celebrate the women of our kingdom, the hard work they have been putting in since last week. Every woman was diligent, they turned to the gardens of the east wing sharp at 4 in the evening. They went through rigorous tests, learned how to hold weapons, learned finances, and so much more. And most important, none gave up. So, this day is the celebration of their work, and also the announcement of the new council candidates. Drums roll, as Sir. Andrew announces my arrival amidst the crowd, they kneel flowers flowing m
I asked them to get acquainted not get close to each other. I stomp my feet as I walk inside my chambers my skin prickling with jealousy. In only three weeks, Lycan and Max got so close to each other that they particularly spend every second with each other. I pull the wine glass off the table gulping down the entire content in a single go. Just now I saw him touch her hand, as she was practicing archery in the garden. I am sure you don't have to touch each other to learn archery. The worst part about this is I can't get rid of Lycan.Well, she is a sweetheart. She listens to everything I say and has been diligently practicing everything for the past three weeks.Great.I slump on the chair, a loud groan leaving my lips.
Chapter 18:Music fills through the walls of the room, feet tapping, hands clapping. Laughter echoes inside the place as all the women in the room enjoy the night. I swirl my wine in my hand, looking at all the women dancing on the floor, my mind still stuck on Max and his growing closeness with Lycan.What if they start dating?Isn’t that good, he would have someone, and I will no more need to worry about someone considering him close to me. But he will no more be yours.Its like a debate between my mind and heart, both stubborn about their decisions, and I close my eyes, groaning at the image of Max and Lycan together.The music tones down, as the crowd cheers. I ope
Every day Max gets up to ask only one question, “How do you know we were going to have a baby girl”, and I just shrug saying, “Mother instincts.”, and he pouts like a child folding his hands over his chest. It's been a year since I am married to this person pouting beside me. The day I came into consciousness, he pulled me down to the temple in the middle of the village, and in the witness of hundreds of people in my kingdom, he married me. There were no huge rituals, customs, or grandiose spread along with the city, and yet it was the happiest day of my life. Since, then it’s been like I am having a second skin that walks, sleeps, and eats by me every second of the day. It was hard to explain to the entire kingdom, what went down in the palace, but I was happy they accepted everything along with me and Max. The coronation was no different. As soon as I was healed, the kingdom decided to crown me as the Queen, and I made sure to give Max, a position that made him stand as my equal
“They are going to kill Adria today”, the healer says as I raise the dagger to pierce into his body. I freeze in my spot listening to his words, as my heart goes into frantic actions. “But, I can help you. I know where they will be taking her. I can help you”, he says and I yank his body up from the ground. “If you lie to me once, I will make sure this dagger settles deep into your heart the very moment.” Threat spills through my words, as his body trembles in my arms. The healer guides me to the dungeon of the palace, “She is in there?”, he says. Dragging his body beside me, I enter the eerie gravel-littered space. I could see trails of blood that run along the floor as if someone was dragged mercilessly on the ground. Something settles along my throat, not letting me breathe properly, as I walk towards the blood-stained floor. As I walk into the depths of the place, I could hear echoes of crying and laughter. Different kinds of heartbeats beat along the walls, but the nearest t
“The yellow potion killed him”“Max, tell me it's a lie and I will believe you”, I say clutching his palm in my hand. The heat radiating from them was comforting, and I nuzzle into his skin to seek comfort from everything that was going on. He pulls his hand away from mine, raising the bottle of the yellow potion to his eye level. A gulp resonates from his throat, his proximity to me letting me hear every tick of his heart. My eyes never leave him, they take in every moment of his muscle. I know he was thinking something, what exactly was never a question because I was waiting to hear he was not guilty. His eyes suddenly trail to the door, as a silhouette shuffles along the window, and he places a hand on my lips. Dipping closer to my ear he whispers, “It’s not me, but act like it's me and throw me out of the chamber.”, he says. I pull back looking at his face relief and confusion playing a weird blend on me. His eyes look at me softly and warmly, telling me he would explain thing
“Yes, she is telling the truth. Evander loved me, he adored me, treated me like the queen I am”, a glint of madness crosses my mother's face as she talks. “But, he was a mere servant who forgot his boundaries. Your father was never available for me Adria, he never used to look past the strategies of war. Even when he needed to satisfy himself, he used to go around hiring women and concubines. I was never enough for him because I couldn't give him a son, but trust me Adria it wasn't my fault, it was your dad. He was incompetent.”, she says as her eyes grow frantic looking everywhere around the room. “Ask anyone? Anyone.”, she says breaking into laughter. “Funny he could never even impregnate one of his concubines, and he used to blame me for not giving him a son”, laughing like a maniac she shuffles to the ground sitting with her head in her hands. “That’s when I found Evander. First I forced him, then blackmailed him in Adria’s and Max’s name, and then when I showed him my broken
“Yes, I love you Adria”, he laughs shaking his head in disappointment as tears roll down his cheeks. “I started following you two years ago. Your every move, your every habit, your every need, and in a blink of an eye I knew your strengths and weakness. I saw how you held yourself high before men, confident and not bowing to them. I saw how you enjoyed it when they feared you, especially after they underestimate you. I saw how you wanted to carve your respect in everyone's mind. But I also saw how you were running from your own mind.”, the tears clutch onto the edge of his lips, as he looks deep into my eyes. “You were running from the one person you love. Eyes speak Adria, and your’s were the loudest when you saw Max, admiring him from afar. And I always wondered why you could never see my brother with those eyes. The dots never connected, if you loved Max, then why did you fool Evander”, dipping his head back a chuckle escapes his lips. “And guess what my answer was just tucked i
TRIGGER WARNING: Sexual abuse, assault, and Graphic abuse.Azrael walks in from the door his face in a mock, his eyes staring me up and down in hatred and it is not what haunts me, it's the other person clinging onto his arm that burns me with rage. I scatter forward but the splinters dig in my skin pulling me back to place. “Oh, look at the Queen all helpless”, mom says as she walks beside Azrael her eyes scattered with a glint at the misery she sees. The phosphene in the air is cut, a sudden cool spreading all over my body relieving me of the pain. I eye the ground breathing at the dwindled pain when I see feet stop mere inches from me. My chin is pinched between fingers so hard that it would probably leave a bruise, as they jerk my face up to look at the person standing before me. His fingers leave my chin. Tracing the cuts on my shoulder blade, Azrael presses his fingers onto the wound, and a hiss leaves from between my lips. “Does it hurt? Tell them sweetheart”, he says, with
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------TRIGGER WARNING: Sexual abuse, assault, and Graphic abuse.The chapter contains scenes of sexual abuse, graphic sexual assault, and other kinds of violence. Readers are requested to skip the part if they do not feel comfortable reading any form of violence. Your mental health is above and beyond anything in this world.-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------A body crashes into mine from behind, and as if the torture from the front was not enough he started to push his dick into my rear hole. My body had split into two at this point, as the metallic smell in the air grew dense with every passing second. The men used me as they please, in every fucking possible way they could have contorted my body in, and at this point, I was unaware of how many times I had been taken. I could feel them slide in and out, one after the
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------TRIGGER WARNING: Sexual abuse, assault, and Graphic abuse.The chapter contains scenes of sexual abuse, graphic sexual assault, and other kinds of violence. Readers are requested to skip the part if they do not feel comfortable reading any form of violence. Your mental health is above and beyond anything in this world.--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I feel my skin melt as the rod touches my body, the pain in me brimming the threshold I could hold until I am shoved away from the gate. “I am not letting you die just yet”, a voice echoes in my ears, and I squint my eyes to look at the face in the orange light that scatters around in the place. My vision clears as the pain from the burn subsides now that the rods were not in direct contact with my skin, and I see the men that dragged me here. I don't know who t
I place my hand over my stomach, as my eyes take in the flatness of it through the mirror. It is just impossible to wrap my head around the possibility that there is a human being growing in there, and that very small being has the flesh of the one person I love the most in the world. A smile crosses my face, the idea of me growing bigger and bulkier with a person in me sounding like a ridiculous tale. My hand caresses the region over the fabric, anticipating what size it will grow, how large, what will I look like, and how will Max… hold me?Will Max ever hold me? My senses wander with the question. The idea of pregnancy is not that absurd, what disturbs me the most is whether I will be able to give this small bean the life they deserve. A twinge of guilt holds me, nervousness picking up at my senses as I think about Max. Something seems off, what exactly is out of the question. But there is an inner voice that somehow yells at me, that something very bad is about to knock on my d