This is a oneshot comprised of 10 mini-chapters. It aims to explain a portion of the story that is frequently skipped. The idea came to me recently when I was thinking about how there are often so many aspects to stories that we overlook due to our biases. I hope that you will keep an open-mind throughout the read, and let me know what you think of my interpretation of the events.
-Prologue-
His dark head was bent over his desk as he studied a large map of the Southern kingdoms. Rebel armies were moving to the West toward the coast, and he had made it his personal business to prevent the impending attacks on the sleepy hamlets of the coastal regions. The distinct squeak of the heavy doors alerted to an intruder and distractedly he raised his head to address the newcomer.
She was adorned in heavy silks and satin, jewels dripping from her hair, neck, and wrists. Her long tresses were swept up into mountains of curls and glittering beads. The look in his eye told her that they both knew that she had dressed up for him.
"You should not be here without a proper escort," he started haughtily as his gaze swept over her before returning to the map.
"Fortune favors the bold, my lord," she replied boldly as she took another step toward the desk.
"Yet the bold shall fall in the wake of their pride. I could have you thrown out," he retorted before adding "if I so wished." He knew he would never be able to throw her out now. Not when she was standing so close, looking as she did. He was brutal, ruthless, and cunning, but he was not blind. She was as striking as a temptress came.
"At the risk of impropriety…" she started.
"Yours or mine?" He interrupted, his eyes still glued to the map.
"Mutual. At the risk of our mutual improprieties, I have come to offer you aid in your quest to protect the West coast. You have not forgotten that my family hails from the West, have you?" She asked knowing his answer.
"How could I forget? The whole kingdom speaks of it," he murmured darkly.
"You hurt me with your reluctance, my lord. Have you not found me to be pleasing in your eyes?" Her throat felt dried yet she had shed enough tears for the man before her to spill more now. After studying him for years she knew he hated tears from a woman. Steeling herself, she knew that she had to be strong in order to be worthy of his love.
"What I find pleasing in you I have found pleasing in many," he deadpanned even as he finally allowed himself another peek at her graceful form. Her shoulders were squared despite his frosty remarks, and he could not help but to pity her for a moment. It was true that he found her more than pleasing aesthetically yet that had been all. He had no yearning to learn of the woman beyond the breasts and the narrow waist. He took no pleasure in the gleam of her twinkling eyes. He knew it was wrong to be so indifferent toward his betrothed yet it was all he could muster—the faint indifference of a man without love yet with infinite hope for something more.
She told herself that he had not meant to hurt her with his cruel words yet she still felt the stabbing sounds of his words cut into her young heart. She knew her beauty was more than satisfying for any man, and for many years she had trained herself to be the sort of woman he could appreciate and love. She told herself it took time for him to see how much she tried to please him… So instead of giving into hopeless tears she steeled herself once again, a constant activity these days it seemed, and gave him a simpering smile.
"That is a start, is it not?"
He had to give it to her. Lesser women would've fled his study minutes ago in tears and hysterics yet the woman before him was still holding strong, slowly chipping at his defenses.
Sighing, he acquiesced for a moment, suddenly tired of the games they were playing. He moved over to make room for her by the desk so she could study the map along side him.
She was ecstatic and could barely hide the spring in her steps. Her heavy adornments suddenly felt weightless as she glided by her future husband's side. Her bright eyes scanned over the chart as her mind captured the marks of armies and bases. Her own family owned a large portion of the Southwest coastal area and she predicted the rebel's advance through her own home country. The situation was far from dire yet was serious enough to garner the attention of her beloved.
"There is an overpass through the gorge that the rebels may try to use… there are caves near the western entrance that only the native people in the area know of that the rebels may hide in," she said slowly as she traced the gorge with her long finger.
"Will the peasants rally to their cause?" His pleasure at her useful knowledge was hidden by the expressionless gaze he gave her.
"I do not know, sire. My parents prevented me from understanding why the rebels were attacking in the first place," she explained.
"The rebels are attacking because they question my right to rule. You know of my past," he said simply before taking his eyes off her again.
"Yes, but your blood is of royalty, and those stories of you are false. Surely they understand that you…"
"Not everyone is as understanding as you," he interrupted.
She was quite for a moment as she watched him study the path she previously traces with her finger and was secretly satisfied when he jotted down notes about her observation. Her glance wandered back to the strong planes of his face, the straight edge of his nose, and the sloppy black hair that spilled over his collar. The likenesses her parents made her memorize from a young age were masterpieces in their own right yet the real thing was so much more raw and handsome.
"Is there anything else you would like to show me?" His bored tone broke her out of her reverie.
"I…I…" Her eyes darted back to the forgotten map.
His sharp sigh drew her attention back to him, and the look in his eyes made her breathless.
"I will marry you, so you may put your fears at rest," he said although his tone was not reassuring.
"It's not enough," she whispered. The indifference of his demeanor was almost unbearable. Was her love not enough? She had dedicated her life to him. She had prepared for almost two decades to please the man 15 years her senior. More than that, she was desperately in love with him, through and through. But his words did not bring her pleasure or peace. She knew she deserved more.
"What more do you want of me?" He asked wearily. Twenty-five years of war was wearing him thin yet the life it provided was simple and clean. What the kingdom pushed him to do now was more taxing than any battle or strategy. Taking a wife and producing an heir to protect his throne and to carry his family name was another obstacle he was determined to accomplish unfettered. Yet the moment the council delivered their choice for wife to him, something in him had hesitated. There was an odd pull at what he could only imagine to be his heart and despite his constant reassurance that this was for the best, something was keeping him back. There was no other great love in his life nor was there any reason he would reject the maiden chosen. By all standards, she was a great choice for both his political and private agendas. But still, something had prevented him…
"I want you to want me for your wife. I love you! Why is it not enough?" She confessed.
"Of course I want you for my wife," he insisted although he could not meet her eyes.
"I'm not a fool, Endymion. I know the council chose me because that had been my parents' agenda all along. But don't you know how I've spent my life loving you?" She was pushing the tears back again, but it was getting so hard. He was so close yet she had never felt farther away from him. He hardly felt as real as her childhood daydreams of him. Oh, how he would take her into his arms for a waltz in those dreams!
"I do not know what love you speak of and that is why I cannot give it to you," he retorted exasperated.
"Tell me you'll try to learn of love, Endymion. Tell me my life was not wasted! I would go mad with the knowledge that you are capable of loving someone else other than me. Surely you uphold meritocracy as your personal honor. Surely you know that no one else has worked harder for your love!"
"I have nothing to say other than that I have never loved another." He honestly felt bad for the girl. She was enamored with him, and almost everything in him told him that he was a fool for not returning her love. Almost everything told him to pull the shaking girl into his arms and reassure her that he will come to know and to love her as she deserved. But the one bit holding him back was enough to keep him leashed from the drunken effects of pity. He knew he would not touch her tonight.
"Don't hurt me, Endymion. I have yearned too long to be denied now, and I will not be able to control myself," she said softly with sudden clarity. But her words were lost on his ear as he had already turned from her and back to his documents.
"Go to bed, my lady. You must get your rest before our guests from Lunaria arrive in the morning. You'll be pleased to meet the imperial court, and we can't have you not looking your best now can we?"
Before Endymion finished his words, the heavy door had already creaked shut again and his fiancée was gone.
-Un-
I woke up with a sense of foreboding deep within my chest. It felt like a fever dream only I was completely awake and conscious. It started with a tightening in my chest and as I sat at the edge of the bed trying to control my breathing, the vision began. There was a man cloaked in dark robes who was sneaking out what I recognized to be a chamber in the castle. He was small-framed and moved nimbly across the hallway as he made his way to his destination. I gasped silently when I saw that it was Endy's bed chamber in the East Wing that he was moving to as I tried to stop him even though I was still physically shaking on the edge of my bed. When the man stopped at Endymion's ornate wooden door, he raised a small slender hand and knocked twice only to be welcomed to Endy himself at the door. I waited for him to demand why the man was bothering him in the dead of night but what happened next I never expected. Endymion crushed the figure to him with a passionate grip I had never seen in him. The shocking action must have surprised the man as much as it had me as he raised his arms to push Endy away. My mind whirling, I could not comprehend Endymion's strange actions and could only numbly watch him hold the hooded figure to him. The pale white arms that were meant to push him away now clung instead. But suddenly the man's hood fell and now I could see that it had never been a man to begin with. Pale silvery strands of hair escaped as the silk hood fluttered downward and promptly, my fiancé's large callused hands were trapped within those thin strands. The last glimpse of my vision ended with Endymion pulling her into his dark chambers before pushing the door shut with his foot.
I was drenched in cold sweat and my chest was heaving. It felt as if I had held my breath during the whole vision and in truth I wouldn't have been surprised to know that I did. What did the vision mean? Who was the mystery woman? I did not know but I resolved to find out. Surely it was too vivid to be my sole imagination, and judging by Endymion's apathetic indifference with me, I knew I could not afford to ignore it. Calling my maid Vanja to draw me a hot bath, I tried to quash the residual fear lingering within me. For the rest of the bath and breakfast, I could not get the vision of the blonde with my Endymion out of my head.
-Deux-
Endy was absent from breakfast and after inquiring of his whereabouts, the servants told me he was still attending to preparations for the Lunarian court's arrival. I found him in the grand hall as attendants surrounded him waiting for last minute instructions. The court wasn't due until noon, but I knew how important perfection was for the finicky kingdom that made its home on the moon. And I knew how important gaining their support would be for Endymion's military and political campaign.
He saw me before I reached him and surprisingly give me a small smile before turning back to a stableman at his side. By the time I came before him and curtsied, he had dismissed most of the attendants surrounding him and when the others saw me, we were left alone. A brief respite for the both of us, I thought happily.
"You look great this morning, my lady. The court will be most pleased with you," he complimented smoothly. I felt my insides flutter against my better judgment. I knew he had treated me cruelly ever since I arrived here, and just because he was able to utter a few sweet words in my ear…
"I am most pleased with you," he added.
But what sweet words they were, I thought again.
"Thank you, my lord," I replied blushing deeply. I hated the crimson red that adorned my cheeks when I blushed, but I could not help it. I also wondered what had gotten him in such a good mood, and before I knew it, my thoughts went to the vision and I could not help but to wonder if his good mood was the result of a good lay with some pretty wench.
The smile promptly fell off my face.
"What ails you, lady?" He asked frowning slightly at my changed mood, but before I responded, a courier was shouting for his attention from the balustrade.
"My lord! The court has been attacked! The rebels intercepted them and attacked! One of the messengers from the envoy rode hard to alert us as the rest stayed to fight!"
Endymion's face hardened as he sprinted up the stairs toward the messenger. His guards came in and joined them on the stairs as they must've heard to. Plans were made and the men all left for their destinations. I was forgotten. He had not looked back.
For a moment I was sure that the vision had been from last night and that it had been real. Resolutely, I sought out the head servant in charge of the keep and told him to bring every young woman with pale blonde hair to my chambers. I gave him an hour to do it, and then I strode away regally only to pace nervously behind closed doors.
-Trois-
He returned bloodied yet satisfied. I had waited for his arrival ever since my unfruitful search for the blonde woman in the castle. Whoever the wench was, she was not employed in the keep.
But my thoughts about his possible infidelities were momentarily forgotten as he appeared at the entrance looking like Adonis himself. My heart rate increased as his eyes fell upon me though it did not linger.
"Milord, it relieves me to see you safe," I said to fill the distance between us with the sound of my voice. It came out dry and scratchy to my ears.
Nodding he gritted his teeth, no doubt thinking of the rebels who caused the bloodshed.
"They are lucky to have not harmed anyone from the entourage," he murmured darkly.
I walked toward him to better assess him in the dim lit hall. The candles flickered gently over his hard features. He looked distracted, and I could not help but to wonder if he was thinking of her, whoever she was. My heart beat fast enough to ache.
"If there is anything I can do to ease the load upon your shoulders, my lord, I am at your service," I offered hoping to draw a reaction from him. He could easily detect the thinly veiled innuendo if he paid any attention. Although my betrothed had yet to touch me and is in theory not supposed to until the eve of our union, I knew his body desired mine. Every able woman can detect a man's desire for her, and even my conservative parents recognized the need to teach me such things. They knew how hard yet how crucial it would be to hold Endymion's attention.
"You are kind to offer, my lady. Perhaps you can see to the moon court. One of the ladies is similar to you in age, and I feel she could well benefit from your companionship," Endy replied unmoved.
I was hurt by his lack of response. His body could want mine yet his mind and soul was indifferent. I curtsied and turned on my heel. I did not want him to see the disappointment in my eyes or to see it in his.
-Quatre-
The moon princess sat behind an opaque tapestry, her face hidden from my view. I thought it was rude at first until she revealed that she was not allowed to reveal her face by the order of the queen until she was introduced to court at dinner, especially now more than ever after a rebel ambush. We spoke of frivolous matters as neither of us wished to discuss more about ourselves. She seemed rather distant and spoke in a quiet voice as if she was fearful of being heard. Something seemed quite off but I was too distracted to notice. My pride was still smarting from my previous encounter with Endy, and I was unable to spend too much attention on the woman behind the cloths.
From what I gathered from the conversation, her name was Serenity, and she was the firstborn princess, and heiress, of the moon kingdom. She was visiting here with her court under the guise of a diplomatic visit when in fact it was to discuss the possible troop support the moon would grant to help combat the rebels. I knew this already as I had gather bits and pieces from Endymion, but it was almost all that the woman would reveal to me besides inane questions about the weather and routines on earth. I bid her goodbye a few hours later both mentally and physically bored with her detailed questioning about a variety of scholastic topics I had no interest in. My realm was politics and she asked questions about science and earth medicinal practices. As I made my leave, I do not know if I had imagined a sigh of relief from her.
-Cinq-
I had all of my maids attend to me in preparation for the feast that night. The mysterious moonlings would be present, and I knew my absolute grace and presence was essential in making Endymion look both competent and well-established. I pondered briefly about Serenity and what she would look like. She sounded like quite the bookworm, but I suppose her intelligence could be misleading as I was oft found with war maps and history books strewn about me in bed. I wondered if she had a betrothed as well and what sort of ruler she would become. And then Vanja pulled a bit too sharply on a strand of my amber hair, and I stopped my daydreaming.
By the end of the laborious preparation, I was decked out in my finest dress with satin petticoats and an invory corset that amplified my bosom. I was unable to see what Serenity was wearing today, so I was curious to see if moonlings dressed similarly. My silk slippers slipped onto my feet, and I made my way to Endy's study where I expected him to be sipping on his usual cognac as he prepared himself for the evening. It would not be the first time that his servants dressed and attended to him in the study. The man practically lived in there that I'd often imagined that it would be on his library setee that our marriage will be consummated. The thought thrilled me, but my pleasure was abated when he was absent from the room.
Unable to seek for him elsewhere, I made my way to the dining hall in order to oversee any last minute details hoping all the while to run into my love there.
-Seize-
I was seated on his left side at the front table when the moon court was introduced. I almost missed the introductions as I was busy studying him out of the corner of my eye. When he had come in almost a quarter hour later than expected I had not expected to see him even more distracted looking as before. I could not be sure but the expression in his usual turbulent azure eyes was awe. Of course by the time the feast began the expression had retreated into the depths of his heart, and a dull glaze of indifference returned to his surface. Sadly, I knew that it was with this same indifference that he regards me, and it was jealousy that fueled my desire to find the cause of his sudden mysterious interest.
When Serenity was announced, my attention snapped away from Endymion to settle on the woman being escorted into the dining hall. She was very buxom, almost as much as I, although a few inches shorter than me. I noted with some dismay however when I noticed her face was still covered in an unrevealing veil. When the candle lights hit in certain angles, it was possible to see certain outlined features of her face but nothing definitive. I suddenly wondered if the princess was unattractive and was ashamed of her appearance.
She sat with the grace of a princess although there was jerkiness to her actions that caused some eyebrows to rise. She seemed to be quite unhappy to be there or at least unwilling. Her seat was sheltered between what appeared to her royal guardians although none of them looked much older than me. Each was beautiful although rather distracted at the moment. One stood out in particular and it was the woman in orange. My first thought was that the color did not suit her at all as her skin and hair was much too pale for such a color. However, my attention was quickly distracted before I was able to get a better look at her as I could literally feel Endymion stiffening beside me.
His face looked no different than it had mere moments before yet his stormy eyes showed a different story. There was a spark there as he studied his goblet. I could see his fingers exerting great force upon the heavy goblet. Had it been made of lesser stuff, it surely would've shattered. I was curious as to the sudden change in my fiancé that I barely noticed what happened during dinner. There were the usual conversations between acquaintances and the moon entourage spoke mainly to each other. Endymion remained quite throughout and I was surprised to see that he never looked at the moonlings or in their direction.
'How odd,' I thought.
"Is something troubling you, my lord? You seem…drawn," I asked in a quiet voice.
"It's nothing. Are you enjoying your meal?" He replied as he tried to change the subject.
I was quiet for a moment before I pressed on further. It could blow up in my face, but I trusted that his decorum would prevent him to be too angry at my eager prying.
"I enjoy it as always, but perhaps you should ask our guests from the moon if they enjoy our fare as well. You have yet to speak a word to them though you helped save them the same day."
He looked thoughtful for a moment before raising his goblet to signal an announcement. I was pleased that my beloved was taking my advice and had taken it very well.
"Friends and comrades, I would like to officially welcome our guests from the Moon Kingdom. The valiant efforts of this morn will not be forgotten by them or by the Silver Alliance." He paused for cheering from his men, but his eyes were fixed upon the moonlings.
"I hope our guests will enjoy the hospitalities that Earth has to offer, and I will begin by asking the princess if our fare is to your taste?" He raised his goblet in the direction of the moon princess.
However, before the veiled woman could speak, the woman in orange already opened her mouth.
"This is absolutely incredible. Everything is so full of taste and color and life!" She exclaimed even as she put more food into her mouth. She must have been eating throughout the entire speech!
Several noticeable gasps went up in the room, and one of the loudest was from the moon princess herself. I didn't blame her since it seemed a very callous and déclassé thing for a guardian to do. I glanced up to seek Endymion's disapproving glance but could not find it. It almost seemed as if his eyes were dancing with laughter.
The moon princess gasped "Mina!" before the girl in orange realized her folly.
Her pale cheeks immediately flushed red almost to the color of my hair as she slid down her seat some. I had a hard time imagining her as one of the infamously beautiful yet deadly guardians.
The princess spoke again, this time at Endymion.
"Forgive my guardian's … over-enthusiasm. Although I agree that fare on Earth is quite magnificent," she said smoothly albeit indifferently. It could have been my imagination but her voice sounded different than previously although it could very well have been due to the increase in volume. I wondered if she remembered me even though I could not see her eyes through the veil, the presence of which was really starting to bother me.
Endymion nodded graciously before downing a sip of wine as a toast before sitting back down. There was a light in his eyes that did not disappear for the rest of the meal, and I secretly hoped that it was pleasure of me and my timely advice that had him so happy.
-Sept-
My sleep was restless as my dreams left me disoriented and frightened. I woke up in the dark of night with the sheets in a pool about my sweaty body. Heart pounding, I tried to recall what had awoken me. I only remember the sound of a woman's voice tugging at my subconscious.
In the dream I was in a dark place decorated with heavy tapestries of black and emerald. It was cold and clammy, the air nearly suffocating. I was moving slowly as if my skirts were weighed down by water. Then I remembered a tall statuesque woman who spoke to me. I could not remember the contents of our conversation, but whatever it was it had upset me as I began to cry. Then the sadness gave way to anger and the need for vengeance. I had never felt so much hate from myself in my life, but I had also never felt so sure of anything either. The woman spoke to me some more, and what she said woke me up. I could remember no more almost as if something was preventing me.
I fell back on my bed in a sudden feeling of despair. I felt as if I was going mad. Suddenly I thought I heard the sound of a woman's laughter followed by the joyful nickering of two horses, but before I realized it I was asleep again.
-Huit-
Endymion stormed into my room the following afternoon without preamble. I was so shocked to see him in my bedchamber that I dropped the strategy book I was reading on the floor. Without a word he came toward me, overpowering me with his large frame. My heart pounded so hard that I knew he was here to finally take me as his true betrothed.
His kisses were so bruising and so passionate that I felt joyful tears leak out of my eyes. It had been worth it to wait so long, I thought lovingly as he pushed me to my bed.
"Endymion," I murmured as I watched him undress me and then himself. The light of day exposed both of us as he held me in a passionate embrace. His touch was skilled and careful but his eyes were wild. If I wasn't so caught in my passion and relief, I would've noticed the distant gaze of his stormy blue eyes. It would be the greatest mistake of my life, this seemingly inconsequential oversight would herald the change of my life and I missed it in his arms.
Our coupling ended as abruptly as it began. He dressed quickly and slid out of my chambers, leaving me naked and vulnerable.
I would not see him for the next several weeks and was too proud to seek him out. My mind began its downward descent into madness.
-Neuf-
Tonight would be the last night the moonlings resided in the palace. Negotiations were wrapping up, and although even I was barred from attending the secret meetings, I often saw the princess and her entourage leave from the conference chambers. There was something odd about the troupe each time however, and I could never quite put my finger upon it. I had enough on my mind as it was.
The dreams worsened each night I laid prostrate upon my lonely bed. Torn between thoughts of Endymion and his treatment of me and the uncertain events of my future, I laid awake in a semi-conscious state. However, my reluctance to rest also stemmed from my fear of the woman in my dreams. She returned each time my mind drifted into slumber and looked more real every time until finally once I opened my eyes and swore that she stood beside my bed.
But it wasn't just her in my dreams. She led me around her domain, a place so infinitely dark and disturbing that I was sure I was being shown a living hell. Some of the things I saw were too awful to describe. One man was stretched across a torture rack as red-haired minions pulled out his intestines while he watched in silent horror. Another woman was beaten by larger demons with horns and scales. And yet, my guide led me on… over the weeks, I began to realize that the most horrifying aspect of the nightmares was that I was in fact enjoying the scenes of torture and murder. It empowered me. It provided satisfaction. I could not explain it that the odd, stomach-churning feelings in my gut was not revulsion, rather I felt a sense of satisfaction and justice. That was the fear that gripped me in consciousness…the fact that I was the monster.
My day-dreams were interrupted when suddenly I noticed something odd about the moon entourage. The veiled princess looked rather odd today. Instead of the buxom blonde I had gotten used to over the previous weeks, a shimmer came over the princess and for a second, I thought I saw black hair rather than gold hair under the veil. The entourage stopped in odd wonder as well, and then with a quick curse from someone, the shimmering ended and the princess looked normal again. I looked to my left and right to see if anyone had noticed the incidence. No one had, but I was confused and intrigued. That was when I noticed that someone was missing from the entourage… the woman named Mina was not with the other women.
I was on my way to the library in the East Wing when I bumped into her. Before I could utter my apologies, I saw that she was Mina, one of the moon princess' guardians. She blushed very red, and I saw that she was a very beautiful girl who looked rather immature to be such a powerful warrior. She must have seen the doubt in my eyes because she tried to move past me swiftly.
"Forgive me, lady Mina. I don't think I've yet to make your acquaintance. I'm lord Endymion's fiancée," I said congenially thinking I had hurt her feelings.
She blushed even more furiously now.
"I'm pleased to meet you, lady Beryl. I'm sorry for not seeing you just now. I was just rushing from the library where …" she paused and looked down while I waited patiently for her to finish.
"You have an excellent collection of … well, everything on Earth," she said instead.
Good gracious, this was the one of the finest warriors in the galaxy?
"Well that's very kind of you to say. I hope Endymion and I and have helped to make your stay pleasant," I replied politely.
Her smile seemed a bit strained and her voice a bit scratchy as she murmured agreement. It was very odd to see her behave this way. I interpreted her flushing face as distress.
"Did you need some help back to your princess? Perhaps you have difficulty navigating in this castle as even I get lost sometimes," I offered.
But she shook her head of light blonde tresses and curtsied before moving past me. She was a very odd woman indeed…
I was still thinking of our odd encounter when I saw Endymion in the library. He seemed very pensive and barely looked at me as he swept past and out the door. I was invisible to him! I could not help the torrents of tears that flooded down my cheeks, and despite my best efforts to reassure myself that his distance was explained by stress of the revolts, I could not cease my sobbing.
Crying tired me out and against my better judgment I curled up upon of the large armchairs in the library to rest my eyes. I hoped that my mind would be too spent for the woman to visit me in my dreams, but I was wrong. She came and changed my life.
-Dix-
She woke me up with a cold tap of her finger upon my shoulder. The touch seemed to seep coldness into my skin and I rubbed it unconsciously to warm it. She held the finger to her lips in a signal for silence and pointed to the window. It was dark out with a full moon lit in the sky.
Under the moonlight she seemed fiercer as the moon casts shadows across her features. She beckoned me to follow her from my resting place, and almost entranced by her, I complied.
We stopped at the door with her ear pressed against the ornate door and me waiting patiently beside her. She was waiting for some inaudible sound, and I wondered why I was still following her direction. Perhaps I thought she would show me another gruesome torture or bloody execution or perhaps I was simply curious and too tired to care. Finally she beckoned me to open the door.
Stepping into the dim hallway, she led me towards the right in the direction of Endymion's rooms. I began to worry now… was he the one being tortured now and would I be able to save him? My heart rate increased as I quickened my steps. I rounded bends and corners in the windy corridor, passing by everything else. It was finally the moving figure that broke me out of my trance. It was a small man cloaked in dark robes who was about to reach Endy's chamber! My vision flashed across my face as I watched the nimble one raise a small slender hand and knock twice in reality. I looked to my side and saw the woman next to me, urging me with her eyes to watch the scene unfolding in front of me.
Endymion emerged at the door…and I knew what would happen next… he crushed the figure to him… the two entwined themselves around each other as they kissed and embraced.
My insides were churning and my eyes burned. I knew that I had come to the end of the tour and that the woman was showing me my own torture. She showed me that my life's ambition, my dreams were being crushed by the pale blonde in my fiancé's arms. I had no future. I had no husband. I had no love. I was alone.
She might has well have pulled out my innards and cut me up alive.
I stopped breathing when the woman revealed her face. It was Mina! The blonde moonling! Puzzle pieces began to fit into place: Endymion's behavior that first night at dinner, her odd behavior at the library, his distance from me, and finally, his unexplained and unbridled passion. I had been the replacement, but no more.
"She will die," I murmured quietly.
The woman spoke to me, and for the first time I understood and remembered her words.
"They shall pay for the treason they have committed, and you shall regain the kingdom that should've been yours. You are not ready to defeat them now in your fury as you have no knowledge of even your opponents. The woman before you is the heiress to the moon, a princess disguised as a guardian. The man before you is the heir to Earth, and the man who's scorned your heart and soul. I have shown you the power of pain that there are worse things than death. To kill her now is to do her an honor she has not earned. You have much to learn my child, but you must accept my help…"
"Why?" I whispered brokenly. It was true that I was angered beyond all belief, but a part of me died with each second of watching. He was pulling her into his chamber now… my heart broke into a million pieces.
"You have no future here now. There is nothing left for you. Do you accept the new life I'm prepared to give you?"
I turned away from the wooden door, using every ounce of my will to not run to the door and pound upon it until my hands fell off. I saw that I had no more choices, no more chances. I shed everything my parents pushed upon my shoulders. I destroyed all my regrets and hopes. All I had left was my anger and my desire for vengeance.
The first step was the hardest, but with each following step, it became easier until I felt nothing at all. Only two thoughts ran in head now. Two thoughts that had nothing to do with the impending havoc I would wreak upon their land or of the cruel betrayal by the only man I would ever love. No, these two thoughts were mine alone. For the first time in my life, I allowed pure selfishness and consideration for myself. I realized that life had just begun. Like an infant babe fresh from the womb of life, I took my first breath of sweet air and screamed.
"My name is Beryl, and I am free!"