Nayla and I were forced to walk through King Degar's town. Our hands and feet were bound in chains and we were pulled forward by a man on his horse. Men, women and children booed at us as we went. Some of them spit at us. Others cheered, commending their King and his men for their victory against our kingdom. Anger boiled within me but there was nothing I could do.
I looked at Nayla beside me. Her head was lowered and she dragged her feet. Her eyes were puffy and swollen. She had been crying since mom and dad were killed and the tears just kept coming. She was too young for all of this. The suffering. The pain. The humiliation. I would give anything to give her a normal life. Our walk of shame went on until we reached the gates of the castle. It was huge. Twice the size of ours, now lying in ruins. King Degar unmounted his horse and the crowd cheered even more. He whispered a few words to the guards in charge of our chains and seconds later, we were being pulled into the castle. Its interior was dampening. Almost sad. We were led up a flight of stairs and through a hall until we came before a small podium. We were pushed onto the podium and the crowd went wild. We were entertainment for them. I was still on the ground when I noticed King Degar’s blood drenched shoes. “Once again, your King has returned victorious!” He yelled with his hands in the air. The people cheered once again. “And these…” He pulled Nayla by her hair causing her to scream in pain. I launched myself at him. Almost immediately, I felt a sharp force pull me to the ground. My chains. “That one's a little fiesty.” The crowd erupted in laughter. I knew he was referring to me. I was thrown to the ground with so much force, I couldn't bring myself to even stand up. “As I was saying…” He went on, pulling Nayla to her feet by her hair. “These are your prisoners. Your servants. Your slaves.” His tone deepened at the mention of slaves and the crowd cheered even louder. I bit my bottom lip in anger. I would rather die than be a slave to this man and his people. He threw Nayla to his side and she landed with a thump beside me. I reached out for her and we clinged onto each other. She had brushes everywhere on her pretty skin. With a wave of his hand, Degar instructed his guards to take us in. We were pulled up by our chains and dragged through the halls. We were led to a small room. It had just one window and a small bed. The guards let us out of our chains, pushed us in and shut the door. Nayla slowly lowered herself onto the bed, crouching her legs to her chest and wrapping her arms around herself. I looked around the small room. There wasn't much to see. In the corner was a bathroom big enough to fit one person. I sat close to Nayla on the bed. I pushed the strands of hair that covered her sweaty face to the back of her ear. It made me realise she was crying. “You have to stop crying Nayla.” I stroked her hair gently. “If father was here, he would yell at you.” I knew I wasn't saying the right words but I never had to console anyone in the nineteen years of my life. “I cannot be strong, Leiya. Every part of my body aches and I am very hungry.” She whimpered. It took us two days to get here. In the cold, without food or water, we rode on a horse for miles. The only thing we had were the clothes on our bodies. “Father always said, they can break your body but do not let them get to your spirit.” My father's words didn't make much sense to me when he said them as they do now. I was still stroking Nayla’s hair when we heard the locks in the door move. She immediately sat up and held onto me tightly. Slowly, the door opened and to my relief, two women walked in. They looked old. Not too old but somewhere around the middle. They each held a bucket and had some items with them. “Do not be scared, child.” One of them said while the other closed the door. “My name is Taera and this…” She gestured to the one that just closed the door. “... is Mudra. We're here to help you clean up.” They both gave us comforting smiles. Nayla slowly let go of me and raised her head up to take a proper look at them. “We won't hurt you child. I have a daughter just like you at home.” Taera spoke softly. I knew she was speaking more to Nayla than to me. “Come. Let's get you cleaned up.” Instinctively, Nayla looked at me for approval. I nodded. The women seemed friendly and all they had with them were clothes and cleaning items. Taera waited patiently for Nayla to climb off the bed and walk to her. “What are your names dear?” Mudra finally spoke, and to me. Her voice was softer than Taera’s. “I'm Leiya, and that's my sister Nayla.” Kaltain Kingdom Helion “Please, your Majesty. We only carried out our King's orders. He was going to kill us if we refused.” He cried at the top of his lungs, holding his neck with his two hands, and swinging his feet in mid-air. I was not about to let them go just yet. No one dared to enter my kingdom secretly and go unpunished. “Who is your King?” Whoever was stubborn enough to send men into my kingdom deserved a little gift from me. “King Degar your highness.” They both cried out even louder. The force holding them up in the air was getting stronger. “The one with a scar on his eye?” I cackled when they nodded in agreement. I tightened my fists and they struggled even more for air. “How about I send your King a small gift?” I grinned when I saw the fear in their eyes. They knew what was coming. “Please your…” I waved my hand to the right, violently throwing the men in the same direction. They crashed into the wall and dropped to the ground. I watched them from my throne, listening to their heartbeat slow down until it stopped. “Calin.” “Yes, your Majesty.” “Severe their heads from their body and send it to their King. Along with a written note that says I'll pay him a visit very soon.” “Yes, Your Majesty.” I got up and retired to my room as the corpses were being carried away.The little window in the room allowed only a small amount of light in but I could tell that the sun had risen completely. Nayla slept peacefully beside me. The bed was small so she slept fifty percent on the bed and the other fifty percent on top of me. Mudra and Taera had been taking care of us since we got here. They would come everyday with our food and make sure we were clean. Nayla was getting a little more comfortable. She would laugh at their jokes and eagerly listen to their stories. They always had stories to tell her and she was beginning to look forward to them. Mudra was a widow with two children. Taera was still married but with just one child. A daughter of about Nayla’s age. A guard would also come to check us once everyday. We were fed just once and left to ourselves until the next day. All we did was sleep. I turned my head when I heard the locks on the door. Nayla also moved. I knew she was excited to see the two women. The door opened to reveal the two women as
Kaltain Kingdom Leiya I rubbed my eyes and opened them slowly. I noticed a candle lit chandelier, directly above me. My brain felt a little fuzzy and I couldn't remember anything. I slowly sat up and my eyes widened when I noticed the things around me. It was a bedroom. A big beautiful one. I started to rub my temple with my thumb, hoping that my memory would come back. It didn't take long before it did. The memory of kissing Nayla on her forehead, promising her that I would be back soon, flashed through my eyes. The events that followed started to come back in bits and in no time, I remembered I was brought here against my will. I jumped off the bed like I had seen a creature on it, and headed for the door. After a few futile attempts to let myself out, it took me a moment to realise I was trapped. I had only one option. Scream. I started to bang my fists on the door, and scream really loudly. “Let me out.” I yelled the words louder each time. “Are you trying to bring my c
Kaltain Kingdom Helion “I feel like a bad guy, keeping you in here for days.” I stood in the middle of Leiyas's room. She didn't flinch when she heard my voice. I suppose she had gotten used to me appearing at random times of the day. “What do you want?” She grumbled, facing the right side of the bed, with her back to me. How rude. She didn't even acknowledge my presence. “I came to see how my guest is doing? I'm not all bad Leiya, I can be good you know.” I heard her scoff as I walked closer to her. I was feared far and wide, but this girl scoffed at me. “If you're good, you would let me go.” She mumbled, with a touch of sarcasm in her voice. I chuckled softly at how smart she thought she was. “I'm not that good Leiya.” I let my myself laugh out loud this time, and I noticed she rolled her eyes. I plunged casually into the chair metres away from her bed. I was now able to see her face properly. Her eyes were puffy, which only meant one thing. “Have you been crying?” Th
Kaltain Kingdom Leiya My eyes slowly opened and I was immediately attacked by the throbbing pain in my head. I tried to lift my arm to rub my temple but I realised soon enough that I was too weak to move. “You're stubborn Leiya." I heard beside me. I slowly turned my head to the left and noticed Helion sitting in the chair a few metres away from my bed. “An attribute that is mostly associated with being brave,” His lips formed into a smile and he chuckled slightly. “But also being stupid." I wanted to roll my eyes at his demeaning tone but I just wasn't strong enough. I didn't understand why my body was so weak. It was like I was struck down by a thousand horses, one after the other. “What happened?" I managed to whisper. I felt even weaker after the words left my mouth. He immediately cackled, making me regret using up my energy to ask. “You hit a wall. My wall." He said plainly, throwing me into a state of confusion. He noticed and laughed again. Deep down
Hepthan Kingdom Nayla I made my way down the aisle amongst the piercing eyes of every member of the Hepthan King's royal house. Before I was left to walk alone, Taera whispered to me that the King lied that I was one of his children so I could be married off. She told me that even though he acted like he was good friends with the other king, who I learnt was called King Raslin, he hated the man and wouldn't let any of his children be associated with him. Which is where I come in. I was the perfect scapegoat to serve as a fake link between both kingdoms while Degar kept his children under his watchful eyes. As I walked, I kept my head dead ahead. I fought within myself to suppress the urge to run away, but I knew it would be a useless and futile effort. I was a small, malnourished twelve year old. I wouldn't get far before I am caught, bound up in chains and thrown somewhere dark and smelly. As I got closer to the altar, my eyes caught sight of the husband I was getting marri
Kaltain Kingdom Leiya The past three days had been recovery days for me. It made me wonder what kind of dark magic was used to create a shield, because just one slam into it was taking me days to be able to stand up without needing assistance. If I needed to get out of this place alive, I needed to practice Helion’s type of magic. As I wondered how I was going to convince him into teaching me, his figure appeared. “How do you feel today?" He asked as he made his way to the chair a few metres away from my bed and beside the window. That was his spot. “Tired of doing nothing.” I mumbled with a sigh. I was getting bored out of my mind doing the same thing everyday. Sleep, eat, take medicine and repeat. “Well, I took you out but you tried to run away.” He said with a smirk. I rolled my eyes, I didn't need to be reminded that I got myself in this situation. “Well you didn't let me go back for my sister.” I saw him sigh like he was frustrated. “When would you ge
Kaltain Kingdom Leiya My body was weaker than usual when my eyes opened. My throat was so dry, I could almost taste blood anytime I swallowed. My vision was blurry and I couldn't even dare to sit up. In simpler terms, I was starving. I knew it was on purpose. He was trying to punish me for what I did two days before. I would have cried out but my pride was not going to let me. I was in fact ready to die if it came to it. I closed my eyes and let my mind wander. It wasn't long before I felt a presence in my room. Hesitantly I slowly opened my eyes. Helion stood at the foot of my bed with a tray of what smelt like food. My tongue began to water in my mouth and my stomach grumbled silently. He walked to my bed and placed the food beside me. I didn't know how he knew I wasn't able to sit up but he held both my shoulders and helped me up. He placed a pillow in between me and the wooden bed head, gently pushing my upper body backwards until I rested up against it. “Why are you
Valinor Nayla Xerian and I finally arrived at Valinor. The castle was almost as big as my father's back in our kingdom. The rooms were brighter and better decorated than at Hepthan. It gave a warm feeling of life and comfort and everyone was so welcoming of me. Almost as if they had been anxiously waiting for my arrival. I instantly knew I was going to enjoy my life at Valinor. Xerian and his mother showed me to my room. The queen was a sweet soul. She was also quite young, younger than my mother was when she died. It didn't take long to notice that Xerian was her first child. She had another child. A girl of about six who kept running around care free. She didn't have to worry about her father yelling at her for wasting precious time fooling around, or having to be incredibly quiet when she was not being spoken to. When I was ushered into my room, I fought with myself to keep my jaw from dropping in awe. It was big, tall and bright. I had a queen sized bed all to myself and a