Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from Prince of Persia. They all belong to Ubisoft.
I've decided to change the rating to M due to intense violence in later chapters and a part of this chapter. You have been warned.
Italic text is used for thoughts, dreams and flashbacks.
Only Time Knows
Chapter Five: Into the Palace
Finally, after it seemed like they'd been running forever, the Prince and Kaileena stopped to rest deep within the forest that surrounded the outskirts of the city. No one would find them out here unless they searched thoroughly. They'd be safe for a day or two.
They settled near a spring, where they both replenished on water. The Prince hadn't realized how thirsty he was. He sat back against a rock and stared blankly at the lake.
"I should've been there. I should've saved her," he said. He looked at the amulet she'd given him. It seemed like so long ago now.
"This amulet will serve as protection against anything you may encounter there. It has special powers you can use if you need. And also…it's a reminder of me."
"And this thing, it was supposed to help me protect her. I always promised her I'd keep her safe and I failed to do even that!" Angrily, he threw the amulet as hard as he could. It struck a stone and shattered.
"There was nothing you could do," Kaileena said, "You didn't even know where she was when she was captured."
"That's just the thing. I should've known. She shouldn't have been out there to begin with. If I had been…It's all my fault. I should've apologized, begged her to stay, then she'd be safe right now." He turned to Kaileena. "I've got to go after her. I've got to save her."
Kaileena nodded, "Yes, of course you must. But it'll be dangerous, I should come with you."
"No!" he said a bit too sharply. "I'm sorry Kaileena, as I would love to have you by my side, you're a great warrior, I can't. I will not lose you too."
"You're not all powerful Cyrus; even you can't stand up to a whole army all by yourself."
"I don't care. I will her back, and I won't put you in danger to do it. If I have to die to save, then so be it," he said. "I want you to stay here, where it's safe. When I've found Farah, I promise I'll return. Can do that for me?"
Kaileena nodded.
"Good. It settled then. But for now, we both should get some sleep. It's been a long day."
And with that, the Prince lay down on the cold, dirty ground and tried to get a decent night's sleep. He was asleep in moments and Kaileena stole the chance. She glanced at him once more and vanished into the foliage.
Farah woke up some time later with a pounding headache. How long she'd been out, she didn't know. She tried to sit up, but realized that she was strapped to a gurney, with metal clasps around her chest and waist and could hardly move at all. Her hands were free, but the controls were far out of reach, so even if she wanted to escape, there was no way she could. Not that she really thought about it now, for she was much too weak.
She laid a hand on her sore head and looked at her surroundings. It appeared to be some kind of cell. In the palace dungeons perhaps? She didn't like the look of the tools and machines that lined the walls. It finally dawned on her as to where she was. A torture chamber!
The Empress sat back in her chair comfortable. Everything had worked out perfectly.
One of her minions, a sand creature, like that which had inhabited the Island of Time, approached her. It took only a little while to create a sand creature, and in the few hours since she'd met the Dark Prince, to the time of the attack on the palace, the Empress had created a small number of them for her own personal needs. They were unlike the army the Dark Prince commanded, which was full of humans who'd been subject to the Sands of Time and had transformed into sand creatures. Her army had sand running through their veins, through their souls. They had no humanly emotions or attachments. They lived to serve the Empress herself, and took orders from no one else.
This one in particular, a small raider, bowed before her and waited for permission to stand once more.
"Raise," she said and he obeyed.
In a rough voice that emanated from all her creatures, the raider said, "Your Highness, all the prisoners have been put in their cells. We await further commands as to how to deal with them."
"They will be left alone for the time being. Feed them regularly, but other than that, leave them be," she replied professionally.
"And what of the girl?" he asked.
"She is the only one you need concern yourself with. She is to have absolutely no contact with anyone, is that understood?"
"Yes, Mistress," he replied, "Is that all?"
"No. Make sure she tells you where to find the Prince of Persia. Torture her if she does not give up his whereabouts. Do whatever else you wish to get her to talk. Beat her, rape her, kill her if you have to!"
"Yes Your Highness," he said. Bowing again the little raider left with the command.
The Empress grinned. She'd make Farah's life a living hell. She only used the excuse of wanting to find out where the Prince was to make it logical that torture would be used. She didn't want the Dark Prince to think she was just in it for the pure joy of it, which she was, of course.
A human servant brought her a drink without a word, and she sipped it slowly. Soon, she'd have everything she wanted: the Prince, a kingdom and perhaps, if they were lucky, the whole world. And she would not have to get her hands dirty in the process, not if her tricks on the Dark Prince continued to work.
"Help…" Farah had been trying to call out for hours. But no one seemed to hear her and eventually, all she could produce were weak whispers. She couldn't sleep, though she'd tried to. The sound of screeching metal and dripping water kept her alert, and almost drove her mad. The torches that were set along the stone walls had burned quite low and were near their end. The chamber was dark and the slight shadows cast by the faint light danced around the room, causing goose bumps to constantly run down her spine.
Finally, she heard the sound of the chamber door opening. But it was too dark for her to see who it was who had entered. The intruder's breathing did not sound human. It was ragged and harsh, sounding as if it came from behind a mask. In the darkness, she could just make out its form. It was relatively small, and muscular. It walked over to the control panel and hit some switches, releasing her from the gurney. She was thrilled. He'd come to save her. But she was too weak to move, or even offer a thank you. She just stayed there and waited. The creature came towards her and she could see his silhouette taking something from the belt around its waist. A glint from the torchlight revealed it to be a dagger.
Farah grew worried and tried to get away, but she was much too weak that though she willed her body to move, it stayed still as if it were a thousand pounds.
In a rough voice, the creature said, "Tell me where to find Prince Cyrus of Persia."
Truthfully, she said, "I don't know where he is."
"Liar!" the creature said and without hesitation it drove the dagger into her arm.
Farah cried out in pain and begged him to stop. "Please, I'm telling the truth, I don't know where to find him."
"Well, perhaps this will remind you," the creature replied. He grabbed her wrist and threw her to the floor. Coming closer the raider kicked her a couple times and then ordered for reinforcements to hold her still as she tried to struggle. They were rough with her, yanking at her hair and scratching at her skin until it bled. They beat her ruthlessly and she could soon taste the bitter taste of blood in her mouth.
All Farah could do was try her hardest to escape and beg for mercy. Among her attackers, one really strong creature came forward. From what she could see, his face was covered in a cloth and his body was stained with blood.
An executioner, she thought in horror as he walked towards her slowly. Setting the axed he held aside, the executioner knelt beside her. Struggling against the powerful grip of the raiders, she turned her face away when his came close.
"Don't look so sad Princess," he said in a deep, fierce voice, which he made sound almost kind. "You'll ruin that pretty little face of yours."
He grabbed her face in his rough hand and forced her to look at him.
"Now, how about you tell us what we want to know?"
"I told you I don't know!" she replied, "And even if I did know, I'd never tell you."
Much to Farah's disgust, he replied by planting a harsh kiss on her lips, right through the cloth mask. She let out a terrified, muffled cry and tried pulling away. She knew what would come next.
"Let her go!"
The rage in the mysterious voice caused Farah's heart to stop for a brief moment. Her attackers instantly let go and allowed her head to fall to the floor painfully. They cowered away from the shadow that now stood in the doorway. She squinted in the darkness to see who it was, but failed.
"What is going on in here?" he demanded.
"We had strict orders from the Empress," a little raider offered.
"What orders?" he asked, the rage never leaving his voice.
"To extract information from her about the whereabouts of the enemy by any means necessary."
He ignored him as soon as his eyes fell upon the beaten princess. He rushed to her side and held her protectively in his arms.
"I don't care what orders you've received from the Empress, you hear me and obey. If I ever catch you harming her in any way, I assure you that you will find a fate worse than death at my hands."
And with that, the sand creatures darted out the door without a second look back.
Holding her close, he apologized, "I'm sorry they hurt you."
Farah didn't reply. She just sat there and held onto his cloak with a weak hand.
After some time sitting in silence, she finally spoke up. "Who are you?"
"Someone who loves you. Someone who knew a long time ago. Someone you thought was gone."
She pulled away from him slightly and looked at his face. She let out a small gasp when she saw who it was. It was the man who'd attacked her in the forest. But more importantly than that, it was the Prince. Well, he at least looked like him, sort of.
"Prince Cyrus..?" she asked hesitantly.
He nodded, "In a way."
Gently, she stroked his cheek. It was grey and looked to be rotting in places, and yet, she wasn't afraid at all. He closed his eyes, drowning in her touch.
She knew what he'd been talking about without even having to have it explained. She knew, without a doubt in her mind, that this was the part of the Prince his other self had told her a year ago was dead, or at least dying. And yet, here he was. It seemed that he was able to leave the Prince, having his own body and mind.
"What happened to you?" she asked in a whisper.
"I've fallen. Just like so many others. I've fallen into the grip of the Sands of Time. They've made me powerful, but at a great price. They've made me evil, and they've destroyed my body and my face. I'm hideous."
She shook her head. "No. In fact, I don't think you've ever looked more handsome."
The Dark Prince leaned his forehead against hers. "I've missed you."
"And I've missed you," she said. And she realized that for the passed three years, she'd never really known just how much she'd missed him.
"I promise you that I won't ever leave you again. I'll be here, and I'll protect you. And soon, I'll be free of my other self. I'll be a separate person completely. All in a matter of time."
"But how?" she asked.
"Once the Empress dies, the Sands of Time will be created. I can use them to give me immortality. Then even if Cyrus dies, I will not go with him, the Sands will protect me.
"Don't talk like that," Farah said, "You are not a monster. I love you, and if you will be like this forever, then I love you like this. Because no matter how you look on the outside, you're still the same man I've fallen in love with on the inside."
He tucked away a strand of her hair and smiled, "No wonder I love you so much. You're always so kind to people, always looking for the good in them."
But she shook her head, "Not always. When I first met Kaileena, I wasn't very open to having her around. I was getting too jealous. I guess nobody's perfect huh?"
"No," he said, "But you're the closest thing to. And you were right about her after all. She took his love away from you. And he took you away from me. But we're together now, and that's all that matters."
Farah sat up straighter, wincing at the pain in her sore, bruised body. The Dark Prince gave her a look of concern, "How are you doing?"
"As good as I can be I suppose," she replied with a weak smile.
"I'm so sorry. I don't know why they attacked you like that, but I assure you I won't let them again."
Farah rested her head on his shoulder, "What's happening?" she asked, "Why is the world falling apart?"
"I'm afraid it's partially my fault. I wanted all the things that were taken away from me, including you. I just…didn't want it this way."
She looked up and him and kissed him quickly.
"What was that for?" he asked.
"Oh, no reason, I just wanted to kiss you. Is there a problem with that?"
"Not at all," he replied.
"No more of this upsetting talk. We're together again, I don't want to spoil it do you."
He shook his head. "Then…what do you want to do? I'm afraid I can't let you leave. It's chaos out there and I don't want to risk losing you."
"I understand. Besides, right now, I have no intention of leaving. I think I can think of something we can do."
"We're sorry your Highness, but he came too soon," the raider apologized for the thousandth time after he reported that Farah was still alive and they had extracted no information from her.
The Empress was pacing in front of her throne, growling silently. In anger, she kicked the throne, leaving a dent in its side. Her fists were clenched so tight she could feel her nails puncturing the flesh of her palms.
"We're sorry Empress," he squeaked, "He told us if we hurt her again he'd make our lives hell."
She glared at him, her red eyes burning, "Sorry? You're sorry? Well sorry isn't good enough! You want to see hell? I'll show you hell." And in a flash of light, she shot out a blast of energy which struck the raider and he exploded in a burst of sand, his hit pitched squeal echoing off the hall's large walls.
She turned to the others asked, "Is there anyone else who does not wish to continue their jobs?"
Nervously, the other raiders, keepers, blade dancers, executioners, and assassins shook their heads.
"Now go. She'd better be dead or it'll be your lives, do you hear me?"
Simultaneously, they all said, "Yes Mistress," and walked off.
When they were gone the Empress tried to calm down. Breathing deeply, she relaxed and looked at her hands. On each palm there were four half moon shapes oozing with red blood.
Casually, she tidied her hair and left the palace. She had a feeling that if the Dark Prince was with Farah and his stories about having a connection with the real Prince were true, then someone would be waking up some time soon, and she needed to be there…
The Dark Prince locked the cell door from the inside, so no more of those sand creatures could bother them. He picked Farah up and carried her over to the corner of the room, where it was a bit darker. He was still ashamed of how he looked and decided that the less she saw of him, the less chance there was that she'd change her mind and not want anything to do with him.
Setting her down carefully, he stepped back.
"What's wrong?" she asked.
"Nothing. Just…are you sure you're up to this. You seem quite weak and after what those goons did to you…I just don't want to hurt you even more."
"Quit worrying about me," she said, "I've told you before that there's nothing you could do to me that would hurt me," Except leave me for someone else, like Cyrus did with Kaileena, she thought to herself.
"Only if you're sure," he said kneeling beside her.
Smiling, she replied, "Read my lips," and proceeded to kiss him passionately, leaning backwards slowly.
As quietly as she could, Kaileena crept through the bushes back to where the Prince had gone to sleep. She didn't want him waking up and asking a lot of questions that at the current moment, she was not willing to answer.
As she came upon his sleeping form, she realized he wasn't having a peaceful sleep.
The Prince was having odd, disturbing dreams. He dreamt that the Dark Prince was with Farah, and all he could do was watch as his alter ego held her and kissed her, and it made his blood boil.
As well, it was more real when he could almost hear the sounds in the palace cell. The dripping of water, the screeching of iron prison bars, and the crying of the prisoners in those cells.
Kaileena watched as all this transpired, watching helplessly as he struggled in his sleep, clutching the earth around him due to whatever he was feeling.
Suddenly, as if being struck by lightning, he snapped awake. Breathing heavily, he gazed around, as if making sure that this was real and he was no longer dreaming.
"Are you okay?" Kaileena asked.
He looked at her, confused. A second later, he nodded, "Yes. I think so." But the truth was, he wasn't. He could still feel this odd sensation that he couldn't place, or didn't want to place.
"Good." She sat down next to him. "I worry when you struggle like that. I worry that one day you're going to hurt yourself."
He smiled, "Thanks for caring Kaileena. But as much as I want to assure you nothing will happen, I don't know anymore. I wish everything was like it was years ago, before my nights were plagued by nightmares and my days by war."
He got up and walked over to the water, splashing his fevered face.
"You're worried about her, aren't you?" he heard Kaileena ask. He knew instantly who she was referring to.
"Yes, I am," he said, "and I hate myself for allowing her to fall into that bastard's hands. I vowed that after what happened three years ago in the Sultan's palace, that I would never let her get hurt again. That I'd always be there to protect her."
"You need to stop beating yourself up about this. You can't change the past. All you can do now is try to get her back."
"You're right. I know, you're right. But still…"
"You're worried he's going to do something to her."
The Prince nodded. "If he's put one hand on her, I swear he'll pay dearly. That's what worries me the most. That's what my nightmare was about."
"That he harmed her?"
"Not…exactly." He seemed embarrassed.
"What then?" she pressed. He gave her a look that told her what he could not put in words. "Oh…"
"I have to get her back. I can't lose her. I promised myself. I should have been there."
Finally, Kaileena snapped. "Ah! Stop it!"
Startled, he asked, "What?"
"Just stop it. Stop beating yourself up because you couldn't stop that creep from taking her! I'm tired of hearing about it. He's got her and guess what? There's not a damn thing you can do to change that! So just suck it up and get on with it!"
"Kaileena!"
"No Cyrus, I'm sick and tired of you talking about her! Get over her! She's mad at you, remember? She's probably happy with him, because she's mad at you. Don't you get that? That's why she was taken in the first place, because she was trying to leave," Kaileena shouted.
Her words stung like a thousand needles, mostly because they were all true. "You don't understand," he said quietly, "what it's like to love someone so much and not be able to do a damn thing about it. To want nothing more than to hold them forever and not be able to. You don't know what it's like to love someone."
With tears in her eyes, Kaileena said, "You're wrong Cyrus. I do know what that's like. I have loved someone…
"Who?" he asked, "Who have you ever loved?"
"You…"