Words Written in Blood
Chapter One
A/N: Written because Lucia fans like to make remakes of Part two of Radiant Dawn, and I felt left out. Okay, not really. This was just a random idea that I had when replaying Part Two Chapter Two today.
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"Duke Ludveck, a visitor is here to see you. She claims to know you..."
"Well, let her in then!"
"But, Milord, what if she's a spy?"
"Don't challenge my authority! Bring her in, I said!"
"Y-yes, sir!"
The servant quickly exited and returned with the previously mentioned woman. Ludveck watched as she walked up to him, her long azure hair framing her beautiful face. She looked so gorgeous...
He was snapped out of his daze when nudged by his servant. He then realized that Lucia was standing right next to him. She stood so close to him...
But what were those things next to her? Laguz? Laguz?! How he despised those filthy sub-humans, but oh, they would have something coming for them, just you wait.
It was then that he noticed the impatient look on her face, and he decided to speak.
"Well, well... My dear Lady Lucia. Quite a way from home, aren't we?"
"Please do excuse the sudden visit, Your Grace. We've traveled quite a long way... I hope it won't be too much trouble."
He hadn't even heard the whole of what she'd said, due to the day-dreaming state he was currently in.
"Don't be ridiculous! I could be nothing but delighted by a visit from you, Lady Lucia."
He moved closer to her.
"Although I must admit... I would be all the more pleased if you had come such a long way just to see me."
When he tried to put his arms around her waist, she pulled away from him, taking a step back.
"...You are too kind, Lord Ludveck."
"Please feel free to take your ease. You are welcome to stay in Felirae as long as you desire."
In fact, you will stay, because that is what I desire.
"Now, I will have Nathaniel here show you to your rooms. Unfortunately, we have a lack of rooms currently available, so it may take awhile to get them prepared. I hope that won't be a problem."
"Not at all, my lord."
--
When Nathaniel returned, he found his lord staring out the window.
"Lock the girl in her room; we're not taking any chances."
"So you think she's a spy?"
"It's quite possible actually. But if we can keep her out of the way until we eliminate the queen, then I think I'll have a quite nice bride."
"What will you do with the sub-humans?"
"Take the tiger, cat, and raven and cram them in a cell in the dungeon. Lock the heron in a room and make sure she is well cared for. After I take the throne, we can 'rescue' her to get the sub-humans' nations on our side."
"But, Milord...why would we want them to be on our side?"
"So they won't expect us to stab them in the back and turn them into slaves, of course!"
Both men let out sinister laughs.
This will be way too easy!
--
"So you want us to meet outside the castle after midnight?"
The five guests all waited in what was to be Lucia's room. The three women all sat on the bed, atop the extravagantly decorated bedspread. Mordecai leaned against the wall next to the door while Nealuchi sat in a rocker near the window.
"Right. Ludveck doesn't have many guards, so it should be fairly easy to sneak out. Once we're all together, we'll make for a cave south of here. The duke uses it as a storage room, and we may be able to find an important document in there."
Just then, they heard a loud knock at the door. They looked at one another worriedly; had someone heard them?
Lucia swallowed the lump in her throat and called in a shaky voice, "C-come in..."
The door was opened to reveal Ludveck's servant.
"I'm sorry to bother you, Milady, but rooms have been prepared for our ...laguz... guests."
"That's quite alright. Thank you."
She watched as her four friends followed the man out of the door as it closed behind them. She laid down on the bed and sighed. She might as well try to get some rest before that night...
As she laid there, she couldn't help but notice how soft the bed was. And despite how ridiculous the comforter looked, it was actually quite warm. The pillows, too, looked odd, but they were extremely comfortable, so she fell asleep rather quickly.
--
As Lethe walked down the hall with the others, she felt that something was wrong. The servant suddenly stopped in front of a door and pulled out a key.
"Princess Leanne, your room."
He opened the door to reveal a room that was almost as nice as Lucia's.
That figures. After all, Leanne is of the 'inferior' race. No, Lethe, you can't just assume things. Maybe all this was a result of how fond he seemed to be of Lucia.
That man is such a creep! I mean, with the way he was trying to hold Lucia even as she tried to step away from him... She's obviously not interested in you, jerk!
She was forced back into reality by Leanne's voice speaking in modern tongue.
"T-thank you."
The others watched as Leanne disappeared inside and the door was shut behind her. They then continued down the hall, descended two flights of stairs, and came to a dimly lit room. The smell of metal filled Lethe's nose and she could hear a faint dripping of water.
"Here we are..."
The three laguz looked at their surroundings. Lethe and Mordecai could see pretty well, but Nealuchi was just left in the dark. Was this some type of dungeon? Suddenly, three men appeared and shoved them into a cell. Lethe fell to the ground and her cheek met with a sharp rock lying on the floor. Blood gushed down her face to the dirt-rock mixture below.
She heard their cell door being closed behind them. The servant laughed as he made sure the laguz were locked up tightly, then he walked away.
We should have known...
--
Leanne was still walking around, examining the room when she heard footsteps outside. She froze when she heard someone messing with her doorknob, but rushed to the window when she heard a click and the footsteps disappeared.
She could hardly see through the heavy rain that was now falling. Hadn't Lucia said that there wouldn't be many guards out? Why then could she see many torches accompanied by shouts and footsteps moving around down below? Something was definitely wrong...
--
Lucia awoke shortly before midnight. She got up, put on a pair of flats she had in her bag, and walked over to the door. She reached for the handle, but when she went to turn it, she found that it was locked...from the outside...
What's going on here?!
She suddenly felt someone put their hands on her shoulders. She turned around to face Ludveck, a wicked smile on his face.
"Did you enjoy your rest?"
"Ludveck, what's going on?"
"I've had this room prepared for you ever since I became the duke of Felirae three years ago."
"W-what?"
"I always knew you'd come to see me someday and I'd need a place to keep you so you couldn't escape. So I designed this room..."
She tried to back as far away from him as possible, but only succeeded in colliding with the door. He inched closer to her and took a few strands of her hair between his fingers.
"You don't actually think you're going to keep me here, do you?"
"Now, Milady, don't be foolish. Of course you'll remain here."
"My brother will come and--"
He put a finger to her lips.
"Your brother will never even know you're here. But if he does find out and insists on searching my home, I will just have you sent to the palace of another noble under my command.
"Once your brother and the queen have been disposed of, I will make you my queen. You'll wear a beautiful tiara, and more importantly...you'll have me."
Ludveck leaned in and pressed his lips against her cheek, causing her to smack him across the face, hard. He jumped back in shock and she was able to get out of the corner he'd placed her in. He glared at her and then moved towards the door, opening it and walking out of the room. Before closing it, he turned back around to face her.
"Whether you like it or not, you'll be my bride."
He slammed the door and Lucia heard it click behind him. She stood there, frozen, for quite a while. She was about to turn around when she heard the rustling of paper beneath her door. She walked over and saw that a note had been stuffed through the small opening underneath the door. She picked it up and began reading.
My dear Lucia,
I'm sorry for all the pain I have inflicted upon you. Please accept my apology and know that I will do everything in my power to help you escape.
She gasped when she looked at the signature. It couldn't be...
--
"Milord, the laguz have been taken care of."
"Thank you, Nathaniel. When the time if right, we'll be able to get rid of them one way or another."
"Of course, Milord."
"And then, the throne and Lucia will be mine! No one will be able to stop this rebellion..."
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A/N: Yeah, I can't believe I'm writing a Lucia/Bastian fic either... But anyway, here are the notes on this actual chapter... First of all, as can be assumed, Nephenee, Brom, and Heather didn't go with them to Felirae. I have other plans for them. Also, I nearly said that Lucia put on her high-heels instead of flats...which, considering whenever I walk into a hospital or such my shoes are really loud, I figure it wouldn't be a good idea since she's trying to 'sneak out'. Okay, well, that's it. Feel free to tell me what you thought of the first chapter!