I just couldn't believe it. Katsuo just sat there; talking his head off in a calm manner like everything was ok. News flash: Everything was FAR from ok!
Oh, my people. My land. Our land. Something had to be done about this, and it was damn sure not what he was proposing to me now!
"You aren't eating anymore. Is there something wrong with the food?"
It seemed like a nice questioning, but looking at him, you could tell he didn't ask because he was worried. Which probably meant that I should have been more careful in eating what was laid out in front of me.
Instead of answering his question right away. I busied myself with taking in the scene around me. We were in my room.
Well, his room now, I suppose. Everything that would have reminded me of what my private chamber looked like had been removed, and replaced with all his collections, which was not much. The most lavish item in the bedroom now was the bed, and didn't that make my skin crawl.
We were in a corner of the room, as far away from the bed as possible, situated on plush pillows of dark hues and shades. Dozens of small trays were positioned between us, and when I entered, I had wasted no time heading for them. He watched me devour the dishes of food and waited as soon as I bit into a meat bun to speak up. I almost choked to death.
When I was under control— thanks to giving myself the Heimlich maneuver, and no thanks to asshole watching me with an amused expression— I decided to be silent, for fear of asking this man if he was mentally handicapped.
I breathed deep. "Let me get this right. You planned carefully, effectively taking my land and enslaving my people. You locked me up for… How long was I down there?"
"A year and five months."
My temper flared high and boiled over. "You locked me in my own dungeon for a year and five months, taking over my land and claiming it to be yours while brainwashing my people and conveniently forgetting to tell them that I wasn't dead!"
My voice started out stead and calm, but escalated on every word that came out of my mouth to full blown shouting. The shock of me actually being in that dungeon for a year and more, topped with the fact that my people had long ago given up hope of being free again, snapped something in me. It made sense now that Kaili was so amazed to see me. After learning the truth, I'm amazed at myself for being able to survive that long.
Katsou just picked at his nailed with a paring knife, not at all daunted by my commotion, and explained in a matter-of-fact voice. "That's correct. If they knew you were alive, then they would have rebelled and attempted to free you. I could not have that, especially so early in the takeover."
I was going to kill him. Right here, right now. He sat there and made it seem like everything he did was the right thing to do, like his actions were justified by the fact that he could do as he saw fit and that it should have been no surprise to me. Just when I had decided to lunge and choke the life out of him, he looked up at me and spoke again.
"You could have all that back if you would agree to my marriage proposal. Your people," he said that with a hint of disregard, and I didn't like that at all, "will be lead again by their princess, who they obviously value so much. You would attend to most of your natural duties, all the while, ruling with me as your lord. All your problems would be solved, and so would most of mine."
I just stared at him. I just couldn't help it. He really thought he had it all figured out. I honestly couldn't say if this guy was just too cocky, or very delusional. Either way, there was no way I was going to agree to this. I would be a traitor to my own kind if I just pretended he did nothing wrong. A stupid traitor at that.
Carefully, I grabbed the bowl of steaming miso soup and inhaled deeply. It brought me comfort. I could tell by the smell that this was my cook's miso soup. I never could figure it out— and he would die before he told me what was in it— but there was a distinct smell that set his apart from other soups. It was definitely one of my favorite dishes from his wide range of culinary expertise. Too bad I had to waste it on filth.
I heaved the bowl of sweltering soup at Katsuo's face. There was not a lot of distance, so aim was not required. He reacted quickly by putting his hand up, but only succeeded in getting his hand and his face seared. He cried out in alarm, just as I rose to my feet.
"If you think that I am just going to marry you and take this tyranny, you are wrong, as well as mentally incompetent!" I heard the doors burst open and heavy footfalls, but I ignored it and kept talking. "I would never marry you, you filth! How dare you walk around this land like you own it and my people? Word will get around that I am alive, and we will rebel to take our freedom back, you little shit!"
I was yanked back, but I fought back out of anger. It was useless though, because seconds later, I was captured by two big brawny guards. Katsou took this time to rise before me, cradling his still steaming left arm against his body. His face from his left eye down was an angry red. Got you!
"You ungrateful bitch!" he screamed at me. There was no hiding it now. I saw it in his eyes. He was too pissed off to hide it. This was a man who would kill waves of people without batting an eye, to get what he thought was his. He was evil personified, and I'd be lying to myself if I wasn't a little frightened at this point. Just a little.
His odious glare filled me with poison, rendering me immobile, even as he backhanded me. Twice. A third and a fourth time. By the time he stopped, I was barely conscious, and his hand was dripping blood. I couldn't focus enough to tell if it was his or mine.
"I tried to play nice with you, but now, I'm going to work these ignorant flea-bitten inbred to the bone! But first, I'm going to sell your scandalous ass to the ugliest, most hateful man there is. Get her out of my sight, and get me some damn medical attention!"
I tried to stand, but my legs no longer worked. All the little energy I gathered since I have been free was expended. I tried to speak, but my mouth refused to move, or do anything but let in and out my breaths. I tried to glare, but suddenly, everything and everyone faded to black.
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I woke up. I was groggy, tired, and once again, hungry. When I tried to move, I quickly realized that I had been tied to the bed. Damn these idiots. Ready to let them know I was ready to be untied again in a rather explicit manner, I opened my mouth. Bad mistake.
The pain that crackled through my face was so strong that I almost passed out again. I let my head fall back on the flat, useless pillow and tried to focus on riding the wave of pain, not sink into it.
Soon, I fell into a meditating state of mind. I was so focused about making the pain go away, I didn't hear to door open and close, or the footsteps that came to an end beside my head. But I did feel someone standing over me. My eyes popped open instantly, and I managed to frown as best as I could.
Mr. Scumbag—just for the simple fact that I could not remember his real name— was above me. He stared down at me coldly, and I stared hotly, our gazes battling and filling the air with tension. I then remembered that I was supposed to be playing the weak woman, so I averted my glower and tried my best to sound a little frightened.
"What am I doing here? Tied down?"
He ignored me. Instead, he turned and began pacing the floor, seeming to be contemplating something. That sent a chill down my spine. He was a big man, and I wasn't anywhere near the strength that I once known. If he truly wanted to, he could very well…
As realization clicked in place, he stopped and looked at me; like he had heard the gears in my mind come to a grinding halt. The evil smirk that spread across his face confirmed my suspicions. Dearest Sand Temple, he was going to rape me.
When he came to a stop in front of me again, it wasn't hard to widen my eyes and appear upset. Because at this point, I was frightened. Very fucking frightened.
"I have to use the bathroom." That was all I could think of to say. If I stayed tied down like this, then there was undeniably no doubt that the inevitable was going to happen.
Walking away again, he came back with a stool and settled upon it. He was so close that when he leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, he was leaning over me. I did not like this one damn bit. I had to change this situation to at least have a fighting chance.
"You look better with black hair. I detest blonds." He ran a hand through the hair splayed next to my head on the pillow. Against my better judgment, I cringed away from his hand and glared at him.
"I have to pee."
His hand dropped back down on his knee and he stared at me. "You know why you're here. You shouldn't have disresp-"
"Oh, spare me!" I snapped, momentarily pulling out ahead of my fear. "He thinks that I disrespected him? Is he so blind to realize what he has done to me? He's lucky I didn't have a chance to chop off those pathetic testicles of his and shove them in his—"
"Charming. That's not the way a lady should speak. Let alone a princess."
He then swiftly cut the rope holding me down with a knife that I hadn't noticed tucked into his boot. A big knife that would have no problem slicing through me, if need be. He said nothing else, so I scrambled off the bed and darted into the bathroom and closed the door. When the lock clicked into place, I sighed in satisfaction, and then realized that if he wanted to get in here, he probably would have no problem doing so.
As I sat down and did my business, because I really did have to pee, I tried to think of ways to escape. Mr. Scumbag was out there, with a knife almost as long as his massive forearm, waiting for me. To do what with, sand dunes only knew, but as far as I was concerned, if things went right, he wouldn't get to touch me.
I was going to have to do something drastic; something that even he, Mr. Scumbag Unshakeable, wouldn't expect of me. Something so shocking, that it had no choice but to work. Ignoring all the protests in my head, I steadied my nerves as best as I could, and opened the door.
My plan was simple: shock and awe. Walk out there with my kimono open. He would get all lusty eyes and stop thinking. I would get close enough to touch him, and just when things start looking great, I'd knee him in the balls and run for it.
Too bad that when I opened the door, he stood there, waiting by the door. Before I could demand to know what was going on, he yanked me up and threw against the wall, hands already grasping and tearing at whatever resisted.
I slapped hands away and shoved at him in a panic, but he was too big, and I was too weak. Reacting instead of thinking, I dropped down to my knees and crawled between his legs when he bent down to force his tongue down my throat. Disgusting swine!
He growled in annoyance and spun around to lunge for me as I rose to my feet and made a break for the door. It was a definite surprise to me when I felt my scalp object painfully at the action of having hair pulled from it. Damn! I wasn't used to having long hair, and quite frankly forgot about how long I was in that dungeon. Of course it grew!
I cried out and slammed into him, my back to his front, when he yanked harder. I fought harder when I felt a bulge in between us, but to no avail. He had me. I was not going to triumph in the strength category.
Being the cut-to-the-chase man that he is, he wasted no time in swiping all the junk off the plain wooden desk and bending me over it. My face smacked the surface and I knew it would swell more than it already was soon.
No. Damn. Way.
There was no fucking way I was going down like this. I had accepted many ways of possible future outcomes, and this was not one of them. As he tore at the oversized kimono, trying to raise it over my hips, my brain went into overdrive, thinking of a way to end this.
I rose up off the desk to fend him off, and he slammed me back on the desk. I saw sparkles explode across my vision, and for some reason, that reminded me off my shiny solution out of this hellish situation: The knife in his boot.
I sagged to the left and reached my hand for the hilt of the knife, praying that this was the right side. At the same time, he had finally succeeded in wrestling the kimono over my hips and slapped my ass. Hard.
"There we go." I heard him say. "Now let's see how tough you are after this!"
He positioned himself, and my hand landed on the hilt. He began to lean forward, and I was in the progress of pulling the knife out. He gripped my hips harder and thrust forward. I unsheathed the knife and turned it in my hand, using all my force to drive it behind me into flesh. I cried out, but I was not alone in doing so.
He tore away from me, stunned, as I turned and swung the knife again in a wide arc. He jumped away, but not before a red angry line could be carved into his torso. The stab on his left that he had his hand covering continued to bleed freely, much to my satisfaction. We stared at each other, both breathing heavily and analyzing the situation.
I was closer to the door. If I tried to get to it, he would come after me. Perfect.
I ran to the door, and he followed, angrily snatching at the knife. I allowed the knife and me to be snatched toward him. As he reached his hand up to hit me, I sent his balls on the stairway up with my knee. He dropped like a stone and howled in pain. I retrieved the knife and held it at his throat.
"If you ever, ever try that again, I'm going to cut it off and do what you tried to do to me with your own prick!" I scream at him, digging the tip of the blade into his neck for emphasis. When he yelped and his skin opened and a drop of blood came oozing out onto the sharp blade, I relaxed the pressure and stood up.
Brazen because I was victorious, I flung open the door and walked out. I felt a sting in my neck like I had been stung by a wasp, just as someone wrapped an arm around my waist. I was prepared to fight back, but then, everything started to go fuzzy. The last thing I saw was Kaili's face, saying something, but I heard nothing.
Damn. When will I learn to pay attention?
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Once again, I wake up in a strange situation. I have a something over my face, but it's not blinding me, just hinders my vision. To be honest, it sort of itches. I try to reach up and investigate, but my arms will not cooperate. I feel sluggish, like I have ingested too much gold water.
I remember seeing Kaili after passing out, and my anger flares, for a few seconds, and then I don't care anymore. Whatever reason she chose to be there was her problem. I was away from Mr. Scumbag, so everything was all good in my book.
I close my eyes and sigh in relief, but low murmuring nags at my relaxation. The murmuring gets louder, and then I realize its talking that I'm hearing, different conversations of all sorts, in diverse enunciations and tones. Oh well, as long as they don't bother me, I will have time to recooperate. I close my eyes again.
The talking does get closer. So close, that it feels like they are right next to me. I try to make my lethargic brain focus.
"This one…special. She…she believes…princess. Not…voluptuous, but she…enthusiasm…talent."
Still in bits in pieces, but I could tell it was a man and was talking about me. I concentrated as hard as I could, zeroing in on the man's voice and ignoring everything else.
"She has the masquerade mask on for a reason, you see. I am told that she is very exotic, and is always trying to make herself mysteriously enticing to men. The going price on her now is five-hundred twenty-five rupees."
They were bidding on me! I struggled to move any part of my body, but nothing happened. It must have been what the sting was in my neck. Someone had drugged me. Upon additional thought, I grasped the fact that it was Kaili who had drugged me. That traitorous diminutive cum-guzzling whore!
I opened my eyes and saw the back of the man trying to sell me. I didn't recognize him as someone I knew, so I tried to search for more faces. Unfortunately, whatever this concealment on my face was constricting my view. It was probably placed on my face to hide all of the bruises and swelling I had acquired over the last few hours of me going toe-to-toe with these frauds.
"I'll pay the price for this girl. She seems to have promise, although a little scrawny for my tastes." A man with said, his voice rough because no one obviously told him about the sand storms here. Foreigners always complained of getting sand stuck in their throats.
"Six hundred rupees. More for the exquisite mask instead of her though."
A hushed laughter filled the space around me. They were all around me. Was that a woman that just bid on me?!
"What is her name, kind sir?" a deep robust voice questioned, usually associate with heavy slobs. Gross. I would cut his chunky fingers off if he tried anything with me.
"Her name is…ah…" the auctioneer looked back at me quickly, and then faced his crowd again. "I don't see why that matters, but if you must know her name, large fellow, it is…Sandraya."
Oh how original! Everything in this land is not associated with sand! I would not have these peasants selling my body to some fat man who is probably more interested in eating than fighting.
I struggled to open my mouth, but was tongue was still very much paralyzed. It felt as if it weighted a quarter of my body weight. I attempted to speak up again, but all that was heard was a low moan. I breathed deep, and tried again, but my voice was drowned out by the large man.
"Fifteen hundred rupees!"
A collective gasp of surprise, and then hurried whispering asking about the man's sanity. He seemed unfazed by the commotion around him, because he said nothing, probably loving the attention thrown his way.
"Sire, are you sure?" the auctioneer questioned. "This is the sixth woman you have bid on and won. Surely, you have the funds for these women. If you are just blowing smoke, then we will not take this in good nature. My lord is a very busy man, and does not like his time wasted."
It was more of a threat than a warning, but till, the man did not seem to be perturbed in the least.
"Then do me the kindness, sir, of not wasting my time by proclaiming these unnecessary forewarnings. My funds are not your concern."
There was a lull of silence. I suspected that it wasn't what he said, more as how he said it. It was matter-of-factly and straight to the point, but his voice was soft and uncondescending. That was an astonishing feat, particularly from such a big man. For unidentified reasons, I began to respect the male.
"Well," another man who hadn't yet spoken started, "I certainly don't think she's worth double the rupees, so I'll pass on her."
There was a rumble of approval. "Too bad I can't afford that much for one slave. She would seem to be so much fun."
A soft hand that stroked the side of my breast matched the soft, somewhat seductive voice of the woman as they all began to move on. I would have recoiled if I were in control of my body. There was no need to try to get anyone's attention, as they were far away now.
Damn. Things were getting steadily worse the longer I stayed out of commission. Even while I was active, I had no idea on where to start to reclaim my throne. I would just have to play by ear until further notice.
Deciding that there was naught I could do right now, I shut my eyes and drifted to sleep. My body ached, my face throbbed to the beat of my heart, and I was mentally fatigued. I would just have to wait and see what happens next.
In my sleep, I dreamt of being tied to the highest building in my land, specifically for the horror of watching everything burn to the ground. I screamed and thrashed about, but could not get free. When a home across from the building I was tied to crumbled on top of a family, I prayed that this was not a premonition.
Good, right? Don't forget to R&R!