As soon as Alexander left the room, Athena immediately shuffled to her feet and put herself in order before leaving for her chambers. There was nothing to do today as she had dismissed everyone and asked them to take the day off. Now, she regretted why she had said that. She had been enjoying her afternoon eating scones and reading a sultry book- all thanks to Alexander for putting ideas in her head and spiking her curiosity -when Alexander had stepped into the room and disrupted her solitude. Even as he left her to her own self, she found it hard to concentrate. The words she read floated in the air, but her brain was not porous enough to absorb it as Alex had left an impression on her. Even as she sat in her King size bed, she felt restless. She wasn't used to this. She wasn't used to Alex being around, wasn't used to the fact that his presence made her restless and edgy. She needed to do something about it. Only a few more days and he would be gone.
Later in the evening, Alex was called down to have dinner and while he refused, Athena passed theinformation that it was an order and not a request.For the sake of her pride, as a few delegates were gracing the table, Alex decided that he was going togo.But then, he had no good clothing.As he dressed up in his normal footman outfit, a servant was sent to his room, bearing clothes of thefinest linen in his arms."The King asked that you wear this for dinner. She doesn't want to see you in this tattered clothing."Alex fixed a look on the servant. "Her words or yours?""Hers."Alex nodded and strode towards the servant who was staring in his eyes like he wasn't afraid of him. Itamused Alex a lot because he was going to enjoy the shocked look on everyone's faces, how he wouldbe treated with so much fear and trembling when he finally revealed his identity.But for now, he basked in the amusement of being treated like a commoner and not for
The next morning, Alex was feeling quite okay. The treatment had hastened his recovery and he couldmove around. The first thing he had in his head was to go find Fiona. They weren't done with theirbusiness and he really needed to find the girl and finish up whatever they had started. He was hellbent onfinding whoever had hurt his Athena.He woke up as early as six, knowing fully well that Athena would be asleep or still in her chambers.She spent most of her mornings there, bathing and having her breakfast so it was rare to find her in thedining room.Once he had dressed up, he left his room and went out of the palace through the servant's quarters. Noone would see him as the palace quarters would be empty due to the fact that they had all resumed theirdaily duties.The grass was still damp from the morning dew and he made sure to avoid wetting his boots since theywere almost going bad. He needed to avoid water at all costs.The roads were void of activities save for so
"This is where weapons are made for the Kingdom?" Alex asked as they entered the workshop. It was filled with ash and smoke and soot. Everywhere was black due to the constant use of fire and the shingles were bad. Water would definitely leak into this place constantly especially during the rain. "Yes." "It looks really bad. Was the previous King before Athena not aware of the state of this place?" Fiona shrugged and lifted up a really heavy hammer. She placed it gently against the wall. "My father probably informed him." At the mention of her father, Alex felt sad for Fiona. Not only had her father been killed, he had been killed for molesting young children. He wondered how Fiona would think of him if she found out. But he wasn't going to say anything. Infact, he acted ignorant. "So you said arrows are made here," Alex reminded her. "Show me where." Fiona led him into another room. In this room, there were jute bags filled with spearheads that
The whole room became immediately silent as Athena entered. Minutes ago, the men had been speaking in low tones, how Athena was making a mess of things and how being a woman King was messing things up but as soon as they heard familiar footsteps coming towards the meeting room, they all hushed in silence. Athena's face was drawn tight. She was unsmiling. This was her usual expression but it seemed like it was more intense today. Everyone made sure to compose themselves as they were not ready for their blood to be spilled. They all stood up and bowed to her in reverence. Ignoring them all, she walked up to her throne and took her seat before facing the congregation of men. "Why has this meeting been called for?" Morpheus, one of the spokesmen who had been appointed by the late King, stood to his feet and cleared his throat. He was a man of great speaking voice. "We called this meeting to remind you about the coronation. It is only right and customary that you
Alexander spent the rest of his evening in his room, pondering and brainstorming on who might have fired that arrow at Athena. No matter how angry he had made her, he still cared about her and wanted to find the culprit. When it was evening, his stomach rumbled and he stood to his feet. He hadn't eaten all day and he needed to put something in his belly. So he stepped out of his room and walked through the corridors towards the kitchen. His face was still tight and unsmiling so no one dared speak to him. When he got to the kitchen, he went straight to Tiffany, one of his favorite cooks. "Hungry, aye?" The dark skinned woman asked. Her curly hair was wrapped with a woolen scarf. Alex nodded. "I haven't eaten since morning." "Wait for me in the dining room. I heard that the Queen— King lets you dine there." They both exchanged a chuckle. "I think I would love to eat here." Tiffany shook her head. "The King has forbidden us from eating here i
"I see that you've been rendezvousing with that Fiona girl again?" Alex was just standing to his feet when he heard her distinct voice behind him. He sighed and turned to look at her with a bored look. "And how is that a problem?" Athena blinked. She hadn't expected him to ask her that. But she was good at composing herself and she did so. "It is a problem because she is in my premises. I do not want her here and she seems suspicious." "Suspicious?" Alex gave her an incredulous look. "Why would you think that?" Athena shrugged. "She might be the one who shot the arrow. I feel it." "But you aren't sure. You have no right to speak of what you know nothing about." Athena laughed. "How many days do you have left? I'm tired of seeing you around here." Alex felt a pang of hurt in his chest as she said that. "You're always chasing me away, right?" Athena nodded in affirmation. "I don't want you here. I also don't want this ring and we're never go
Athena's eyes blazed with so much fire. Alex had never seen her this fierce. He could smell the jealousy and hurt coming off her and the more she suppressed it, the worse it became. Her fists were clenched and the soldiers who stood beside her immediately retreated, giving them both privacy. Alex was not going to offer her any sort of clarity. He wanted her to vent everything she was feeling so he just stood where he was, watching her with interest in his eyes. "You believe I have slept with Fiona and you also believe I have slept with Kali. I am a footman and you have not failed to remind me that I am and put me in my place Athena. You have made sure you want to have nothing to do with me and you have also shown it to me." "That's because I don't care about you!" "Why are you mad at me for moving with these women if you don't care about me?" Athena stopped. It seemed like it had dawned on her. She staggered backwards and clamped a hand over her mouth for several
"It's the men's combat game, Athena!" Damien said as he watched his Alpha strap herself with knives. She placed a diamondback knife in her boots and wedged a dagger on her arm. A pair tantos sat on the insides of her jacket and when she turned to face Damien, she smiled. "How do I look, Damien?" She asked. Damien shook his head and turned away from her. He hated the fact that she was excited for the combat. There was nothing to be excited about! She was literally putting herself in the face of danger and beckoning on it to come to her. "I don't know what to say, Athena. I do not feel comfortable with you participating in the men's combat category," Athena walked to the window and opened it. It was nearing evening and in about an hour's time or so, she would be out there, facing her opponent while everyone watched. If she was being honest with herself, she was really scared. Scared of the unknown. What if she got beaten to a pulp. What if she got paired with someo
"What the hell is going on?" Kayla gasped as she heard the announcement the master of ceremony made. Kayla came to stand beside her. "Did the King just ask her to participate in the male category?" "Yes, he did," Kayla replied, sounding really shocked and worried. "Why would he do that?" "Because the King does what he does according to what his subject wants," A guy came and stood behind them as he spoke. Melodie gave him the stink eye. "She's not his subject. She's the King of Antarti!" The boy laughed like he was mocking her and Melodie glared at him like she wanted to kill him on the spot with her eyes. "You think. He's ruling the Lycan Confederate and can make any degree. Besides, she asked for it with her whole feminism shit," "And who the hell are you?" Kayla stepped forward in a defensive stance. "Oh," The boy touched his chest in a mock polite manner. "My name is Lawrence. I am the Prince of The Lycan Confederate," "And what are you doing here?"
Athena stood alongside other contestants. Most of them were women and she frowned. Was this category just for women? Just then, she saw Eucaria standing at the other side of the line. The lady waved at Athena and scurried to stand beside her. "I had no idea you were participating," "Well, I am. Why is it just women here?" Eucaria shrugged. "This is a women's game. It's less brutal than combat and the rest," "That's bullshit," Athena said. The women around her gasped but she ignored them. "Why would they allow that?!" "There's actually no time for you to ask questions," A lady, dressed in combat outfit but looking like she was the referee with a whistle around her neck, came forward. She stared at Athena who matched her look without fear. "Once I blow the whistle, you all run towards the ropes hanging off those rocks on the other side of the amphitheater. Use it to lift your bodies off the ground and jump once you're about two meters in the air. Note that lit
Kayla and Melodie were still waiting for Heyli to come back to them with good news when they saw her climbing one of the seats above. Kayla stepped forward and Melodie squinted her eyes as she watched Heyli take a seat beside Athena and Alex. She looked guilty and as Alex spoke to her, she only nodded. "Did she actually leave us here?" Melodie asked, suddenly feeling offended and betrayed by their friend. Kayla wasn't going to believe that was it. "I don't think so. Heyli won't do that to us. She's probably trying to negotiate things with Alex," "But she's seated there!" Melodie cried. Some people from the team looked at them and Kayla immediately apologized. "Let's just hope that's not the case," Melodie turned and looked at her. "Maybe that's the case." Kayla kept staring in Heyli's direction, hoping their friend would look at them and signal that she was going to return soon. But that wasn't going to happen because the master of the ceremony already stepp
As early as five in the morning, the girls were awoken by the ringing of large bells. "I woke up at six back at home," Melodie said as she groaned and sat up. "I hate this time arrangement." Melodie noticed that Kayla wasn't in bed. Heyli had woken up for a few minutes before laying back down and falling asleep immediately. "Kayla?" "I'm bathing!" She called from the bathroom. Melodie climbed out of the bed and went to the bathroom door of bathroom. "Why didn't you wake us all up?" "I did. You both sleep like a hibernating snail. We have to prepare quickly, by the way. We're going to be manning the surroundings of the amphitheater. Handing weapons and change of clothes and help to the injured. I just hope nothing goes wrong," "What might that be?" Kayla's voice lowered. "A beast might be released. That would fight with one of the contestants. Someone told me a few warriors were killed the last time," Melodie's heart sank. "What?" "Yes," "Is this what I
Heyli fell into his arms. She had no idea what was controlling her but she knew that his arms was where she wanted to be. Nowhere else but his arms. As she walked into his arms, he fully engulfed her in a hug and placed his chin on her glossy hair. "Did you use a new perfume?" Heyli drew away a bit. "Yes. How did you know?" Loki smiled and pulled her back in. "You love vanilla and that's your signature. But you're using something fruity," Heyli swallowed. "Well, Melodie suggested u used a different one and it was actually nice," "Because of Miguel?" Heyli shrugged. "I guess." "You guess? Or you did so because of him." "Do you want us to turn this into an argument?" "Not an argument. I'm mad." Heyli gave him an incredulous look. "Why?" "Because you are making yourself look good for another boy. It makes me want to go after him and rip his limbs apart so you don't find him attractive," Heyli gasped and burst into laughter but before she could sa
One thing Heyli loved about this place was the fact that she didn't have to go through gates. The doors directly lead out to the streets and once she was hit with a cold gust of wind, she closed her eyes and sighed in relief. "The Lycaon Statue," She muttered under her breath. That was where Miguel said they were going to meet. Pulling up her gown, she climbed down the stairs and turned to the northern side of the road. The streets were void of people but amber lights flooded the roads and she was able to see under them. She actually didn't need any light to see but she needed to see Miguel. Somehow, she didn't trust her sense of vision to lead her to the right person. As she hurried down the road, she made sure to look back. Someone might be following her. No one was and she hastened her footsteps. She just hoped Hathaway had forgotten about her. As she turned her head to see if anyone was following after her, she bumped into a hard body and nearly fell on her kn
The suit was lit by scented candle lights. Athena sat on the Chippendale chair that faced the windows and she stared up at the night skies. She had spent most of her day in this room. It was oddly comforting. The walls that were repainted by the sunset and the twilight. Then she lit the candles, ignoring the lights she could turn on through the switch. There was something about candle lit rooms that made her feel like she was floating. She stood to her feet and walked to her as dinner was almost near. She wanted to be early so she could mingle with the other ladies who had been smiling at her when she was taking a walk in the afternoon. This was to avoid being in close contact with Alexander. There was something he was hiding from her and if he didn't trust her enough to tell her, she wasn't sure she wanted to have anything to do with him. As for Damien and Loki, theirs was still loading. She didn't have time yet. She took out a pale green dress. It was one of her fa
"He asked me to see him by eleven tonight so he could tell me the complete story of Lycaon," Heyli said as she pulled off her dress. Kayla wiggled her brows. "That story must be really interesting for you to actually sneak out by eleven," Heyli chuckled her chemise at Kayla who caught it in her hand and dumped it on the bed beside her. The girls were back in their room as soon as the clock struck seven. Heyli hadn't seen Loki throughout the day and neither had she seen Athena or Alexander. Melodie was just stepping out of the bathroom. Her body was wrapped in a towel. "Kayla's right. I can't believe you're going out by eleven just to see a guy you don't know," Heyli became defensive. "His name is Miguel," Kayla and Heyli exchanged looks before bursting into laughter. Heyli glared at them both but she said nothing. She wrapped a towel around her and went into the bathroom. She took her time there, opting for the soft scented shampoos for her skin and floral shampo