“Mother, I am fine. This is Ecbert. My new friend. We were playing tag.” I tell her with a huge smile on my face.
“It’s so nice to meet you Ecbert. Did you two have fun?” She said with a small smile.
“Ecbert!” We hear someone yell from across the gardens. We turn towards the commotion, a woman holding her skirts up comes running over.
“Where have you been young man? You are not through with your lesson’s, get your yourself back inside the castle right this instant,” she demanded.
As if just noticing us, she turns her head in our direction giving a disgusted look. “Prince Ecbert, why are you associating yourself with scum? This is just unacceptable; your father will be hearing about this.” With that she grabs him by the ear and pulls him towards the castle.
“I’m sorry mother. I didn’t know,” I tell her trying not to cry.
“It’s okay sweet boy, everything happens for a reason.”
From that day on, Ecbert and I would sneak out in the middle of the night just to play when we were younger and as time went on, we’d meet to have discussions about all the training he was being put through to take his rightful place on the throne.
He always craved adventure and freedom, that just wasn’t the life he was meant to have. I believe our friendship was something he always adored because I was never one to judge. I would just listen to his ramblings and never compare his wealthy, sophisticated life to my own. It was his way to escape. He was my brother through and through, even if we didn’t come from the same parents.
***
“What does it say?” I ask in between sips of my drink.
“It’s not good Jett. We are fighting an enemy that cannot be seen. It lurks in the dark of the night. It is as if it never exists as soon as the morning sun goes over the horizon.”
“What does that even mean? How is such a thing possible? Don’t answer that, because it’s not,” I state, chugging the rest of my beverage, slamming the now empty cup down on the table in frustration.
The dilemma we are currently facing was not over money, land or religion, it was over death. People who live to the southern part of the kingdom were being murdered, brutally.
Ecbert thought that if he stationed soldiers down by the border, the enemy would become frightened and leave. Leave before an all-out war broke out. We had no idea who these assassins were, which kingdom they came from, we wanted to stop the bloodshed before it kept on spreading.
“That’s not all,” Ecbert states. He grabs the bottle of wine and pours until it hits the brim. He takes heavy gulps, draining almost the entire thing in just a few moments. Ecbert was not a heavy drinker, so the fact he was doing so now sends tingles of dread through my body. My foot starts tapping in impatience.
“All those soldiers we sent to the south border, they’re dead. Only one remains alive. The coward who ran instead of fighting.”
“What do you mean they are all dead? You sent hundreds down there.” I all but whisper-shout. I should have been down there with them. I was frustrated at myself. They were my men. I was the one who trained them, taught them.
How could this be?
Ecbert rests his hand on my forearm. “This is not your fault. We could not have predicted this outcome. I need you to seek out Soraya. We need her magic to determine what could have caused this.”
I huff out a breath of irritation. No... No way was I going to be in that sorceress’s presence again. She was conniving, twisted, and used her womanly assets against men to get exactly what she wanted. As beautiful as she may be, she always has some sort of scheme up her sleeve.
“I realize you two have a past, but it’s done and over with. You both need to get over it. We need her to help to restore this kingdom.” Ecbert says with finality. There was no talking to him when he uses that stern voice. His mind was already made up. Fuck. Seeing her was the last thing I ever planned on doing, but for my king, for my kingdom, I’d do as I was commanded and be the bigger person.
“Ready your horse. You will leave as soon as possible,” he says in a loud commanding voice, just in case there are people being nosy.
I stand from the chair I was currently occupying and bow at the waist. “Yes, your highness,” I say in the same loud dramatic tone he just used. That got a smile out of Ecbert. He knew I was being a smart-ass, playing along.
“Leave my sight you, insufferable man.” He says, waving his hand in the air, trying not to laugh while doing so.
We always put on an act like we hated each other. The king did not need any weaknesses, I was sure to be one if people knew just how close we truly are.
I leave the throne room in a hurry heading towards my chambers. I need to get supplies before I make the two-day trek by horse to Soraya’s cottage. She had the option to live on castle grounds, but her excuse was she needed space and privacy to work on her spells and incantations.
I grab my satchel from the chair in the corner of my room. I pack a spare set of clothes and snag my favorite sword along with a few knives I keep strapped to my body. Lastly, I grab my sheepskin flask that holds water, along with one which carries wine. I leave my chambers, heading straight to the kitchen. I need food that wouldn’t go bad, so bread, cheese and jerky were all packed inside the small bag.
I race to the stables to grab my steed. Gloom was black as night, larger and faster than any other I have come across. He was a shire horse, one of the largest breeds. Two days was amount of time it would take him to get me to Soraya’s home. I would know, I used to make this trip once a month. It’d be a four-day trek for any other horse.
Gloom has my companion since he was a wee little colt. A gift from the king, for besting the rest in the arena for the title of high guard. Ecbert knew I had a fondness of horses, so he gave me nothing but the best.
Gloom was hard headed and stubborn. It took much of my patience to train him in the ways I needed him to be. In the long run, it was worth it.
I click my tongue twice as I approach his stall, and out pops his magnificently large head. He gives me a little shake and neighs. I know what he wants, so I reach into my bag and grab a large red apple I stole from the kitchen.
“Be nice,” I command. Gloom has the tendency to bite when he gets excited and food very much riles him up.
As he eats the apple, I tend to his coat before laying a blanket and saddle across his back. I open the stall door, take the reins and out we go from the stable. This monster of a horse could be intimidating, not everyone can handle such a large creature but me, I love it. I love the fact he was mine, that he trusted me, that we had a true bond that no one could take away.
The journey takes two days as predicted. I arrive early morning on the second day. I follow the dirt path that leads to Soraya’s dwelling. As I crescent over the hill, I see her in all her sorceress attire. My eyes drift to her golden eyes first, they always seemed to draw my attention, even when I didn’t want them to. Her long wavy hair flows over her body, almost hitting the ground. I don’t know how she did it, but it never looked mangled like some of the village girl’s hair. Others in the castle complained about having to maintain their long locks, but never did I see Soraya even attempt to do her hair. It always flowed like this. She is covered in emerald green from shoulder to toes. A gold headpiece sits on top of her head and jewelry lines her body, showing just how powerful and wealthy she is.
Her arms were splayed out in the air, hair was flying in all directions with a sudden gust of wind that didn’t stop. Her eyes are closed, head tilted up towards the dark and stormy weather that was fast approaching. Her lips were moving and even though I couldn’t hear what she was saying or read them from this far away, I could feel her magic rushing through me.
Coils of vines and roots fly out of nowhere underneath the ground below me and I try to dodge them, but it is no use. They wrap around both Gloom and I, binding us. We are completely immobile and held hostage.
Soraya snaps back to reality as soon as the vines trap
Gloom and I. She squints her eyes in my direction, gliding towards my position, pursing her lips, clicking her tongue three times. When she is up close in my personal space, she runs her pointer finger down my chest.
“Did you come to beg for my forgiveness?” She says with a gleam in her eyes.
“What are you talking about? Beg for your forgiveness? I did nothing wrong. I came here on the King’s orders, nothing else.” I scoff, rolling my eyes. “Let me go, Soraya!” I yell at her, trying to get out of her reach, fighting the binds that were wrapped around me.
“You should have apologized years ago, but you’ve avoided me at all costs Jettsoir. What did I do to deserve such hostility from you?” she says with pouty lips.
“Are you mad women? You enchanted me! You put a spell on me to be in love with you! Then you were sneaking up to King Ecbert’s chambers, trying to whore yourself out to him, and yes, I said trying, because he never took you up on your offer. Did he? What was the goal Soraya? What were you trying to gain?”
Her eyes grow wide and then anger flared within the depths as she yells in a commanding voice, “SILENCE!”
Everything around us goes silent. No trees blowing in the wind, no critters scurrying around, just utter and complete silence.
I try to speak to her, but my voice is lodged in my throat. I always knew this woman was dangerous, but I didn’t know how powerful she was until this moment. She takes a step back and begins to pace back and forth.
“Jettsoir, I know why you are here.” She looks at me under her lashes and has a grin on her face. No. It couldn’t be. She wouldn’t do that. She must have seen understanding in my eyes because she gives a little laugh.
“You see Jettsoir, the kingdom never appreciated me. I was a bottom feeder, lower than those disgusting peasants. One thing that I have that they don’t, I have power. I refused to be treated like scum, like I am worthless. I took things into my own hands. Those beings that are killing off the kingdom. I released them. I am their queen, they do as I command, or I send them back to where they belong. This kingdom will be punished for the wrongs they have done to me.” She smiles like the evil being she truly is, sounding so proud and full of herself for killing hundreds of innocent bystanders. She approaches me slowly, coming close to my ear.
“You want to know what you’re up against?” she whispers in my ear. She snaps her fingers and the sound of everything returns. She wanted to hear my response. I remain silent.
“They are demons,” she whispers seductively. I give a little huff laugh not falling for any of this demon nonsense. She raises her left eyebrow at me, as if saying, “Oh you don’t believe me?”
“This will be fun, Jettsoir.” That creepy smile is back on her face. She steps back and pulls out a knife from under her skirts. She takes the knife and slices her palm, watching as blood starts to drip on the soil at her feet. She takes a breath and squeezes her fist in a tight grip and then releases it, creating more blood as she walks in a circle.
Soraya starts chanting in a language I have never heard before. It was a rough, gurgly language. The wind starts picking up and that’s when I realize I need to escape while she was distracted. The vines lost some of their strength, so I reach into my britches and started cutting at what was keeping Gloom stagnant.
I whisper soothing words to keep him quiet and calm. I notice flames erupt in the soil where she released her blood moments before. The wall of fire was so thick I couldn’t see through it. I honestly didn’t want to. I needed to work faster, for there was no time to waste. I continue to cut at a fast rate, hoping that I can get the both of us free. I free Gloom and slap his rear.
He knows he needs to go back to the castle. We practiced this scenario plenty of times, if something was to go wrong. It was the only way for Ecbert to know that something had happened, whether I be in trouble, danger, or even my death. We’ve never been in a predicament quite like this. I can only hope Gloom does as he is trained.
She finishes her chant and looks at me. The smile on her evaporates as soon a she notices Gloom is gone, her golden eyes go wide in shock. I am still somewhat suck in the hold, but I am close to getting completely free. She doesn’t bother fixing the vines and roots. She simply snaps her fingers.
Out of the flames appears the most hideous creature I have ever seen. The beast is at least seven feet tall to my six, he looks somewhat human but his skin is black as night, scaled over like a snake.
His eyes are the brightest green, it looks like two emeralds staring into your soul. His tongue keeps coming forth out of his mouth, it’s long and pointed. His nails are long and as sharp as my finest blade. The most shocking thing about this creature are the large horns that protrude from the top of his head. I was shocked and stunned silent, mouth hanging wide open. In all my years, I have never seen anything such as this.
“I would apologize for the pain this may cause Jettsoir, but I’m not sorry in the least.” She smiles, holds out her palm and blows.
The fiery circle diminished and all that’s left is scorched earth. My binds release and I fall to the ground. Before I can even process what is happening, the demon rushes to me. He turns himself into smoke and enters my body through my ears, nose and mouth.
The pain is so intense I can’t catch my breath. My bones are breaking, reforming into something grotesque. My insides felt like they were being stabbed through or burned from the inside out, knowing that something unnatural was trying to take hold of me.
My body was doing everything it could to fight off the parasite, but I couldn’t fight something such as this. It was the first time I knew what true fear felt like. I tried to remain conscious, but the agony was too intense.
The last thing I see before everything goes dark is Soraya’s face as she leans down to me. “I hope you enjoy the dark, my love. Darkness is what awaits you”
This was not over. I will get my revenge. Someday, somehow, she will pay, and she’ll never see it coming.
Chapter 6
As lost as Alice. As mad as the Hatter.
-TheMindsJournal.com
Haven
The night passes me by in the flash of an eye. Music echoes through Sanctuary, filling not only the bar, but my ears as well. Remembering bits of my past only made me want to do one thing - forget all of it. I understand that experiencing things that are difficult are somehow supposed to make you stronger, but in the end it’s only that horseshit. Maybe it did. Maybe it didn’t. The only thing that I can take from all of it is the pain and agony that I lived through.
I wouldn’t wish it upon anyone, not even an arch nemesis, if I had one.
I spend the night occupying my mind with work, trying to drown my pain away. Hours pass by, the bar that was once filled with many men, only has maybe a dozen. That’s when I look up and realize I’ve completely forgotten about him. How could I even allow myself to forget about him? Flirting with him most fun I’ve had in ages. I can’t remember the last time I’d been this free spirited.
There’s something about him that I just can’t quite put my finger on. I don’t feel the need to hide myself, or the things that I feel. Granted, I will. I’ve hidden my darkness for so long, it’d feel wrong to suddenly let it out now. It’s not like I’m going to run up there and confess all of the deepest, darkest, most fucked up parts of my past, but I feel comfortable around him.
Sure, it might be odd that I’m saying how comfortable I feel around a stranger. We don’t have to argue that I’m fucked up in the mind, because I totally am. Trust me, I won’t argue with you there.
What I’m saying is that I feel many things, things that I don’t quite understand. Yet there are things I do, like my need to be as sassy as fuck with him. He’s like a puzzle that I ache to figure out, and I’m going to put all his pieces together until the picture is whole.
I’ve only ever used men for one thing, a distraction. My body has never been for me, only for them, and I’ve used it to try to forget the horrors that I’ve experienced. I?
??ll never learn, though. Never will I be able to forget what I’ve survived. In the past, I may have tried by using men but that’s only taught me one thing...it doesn’t work. So, why do I feel the need to fuck him? Maybe this time...I’m not looking to forget. Maybe I’m just looking to get lost in someone, in him.
I grab a bottle of moonstone from under the bar where Fern and I keep it stashed. It’s our drink of choice, and the key ingredient for making Dragon’s Breath. You can only make it if you know a dragon shifter, and luckily, I happen to know one very well. Sapphire, the owner of the bar is a dragon shifter. Only Fern and I know, and the only reason Fern knows is because she walked in on Sapphire blowing on a drink for me one night. Keeping that big ass mouth of hers shut is constantly a struggle. Fern is always talking, honestly, she never shuts the fuck up.
Sapphire doesn’t trust many people, if any, but when poachers are trying to skin your hide, steal your eggs or cut off your scales...I think I understand why. I grab various elixirs from around the bar and head in the back to Sapphire’s office, it’s small, but decent sized. Before coming back here I checked to see which patrons were around, if a chosen few were here I wouldn’t even be asking her to do this.
I walk into her office after lightly rapping on the door with two drinks in hand.
“Need me to blow you?” Sapphire smirks, peering up from the stack of papers laying on her desk.
“Be gentle, and don’t blow it too hard.” I wink, setting the drinks on her desk.
“A loving caress of the tongue, gotcha.” She moves her head from right to left, scales slowly forming over her face, as a clicking sound forms from the base of her throat, sounding like a match as it’s rubbed against a box, engulfing in a small flame. She blows on top of the glasses, fire shooting out of her mouth in a calculated movement. She shuts her mouth, moves from side to side and her scales start to fade, returning her back to look as if she is just a mere human.
“Oh, I can’t imagine what art you’ve put on them today” I laugh, thinking of how she reminds me of a barista in a coffee shop. When I first discovered she was a dragon shifter and asked her to help me make Dragon’s Breath, she created intricate designs on the top of the foam.