New Old Hell
Chapter 2
"Oh, Creator! It hurts, it hurts so much!"
"Push, Nikki, it will hurt but you should push. The baby needs air!" Cara was sitting on the bedside. Nikki held her hand, she squeezed it so tight that it seemed that bones would start to crack, but there was no such pain that a Mord'Sith couldn't bear. The sorcerer was in labour and Cara was the one and only who could be beside this woman at this moment. Of course there were two midwifes who watched the process but still Cara was the one responsible for the life of her lady. Nikki was in labour for nearly 24 hours if there was a watch at that time and Cara was beside her from the beginning.
"Will I see him? Cara, please, let me see him for the last time," she begged.
"Yes, you will see him. He'll be here any moment." The Mord'Sith assured her though the absence of Lord Rahl infuriated her as deeply as Nikki wanted to see him.
Suddenly the door opened and he came in still wearing a raincoat and dragging off his gloves. He watched everybody coldly and went right to his mistress.
"You come, thank the Creator, you're here." Nikki whispered and then cried of pain. Cara fixed him with a look of scorn.
"Yes, I'm here. Now everything will be fine." He kissed her sweaty forehead.
"I can see the top of his head. Lady Rahl, you need to push, now!" said one of the midwives. Nikki screamed and pushed.
"There's too much blood." whispered another woman holding the child's head.
"Push again!" the midwife commanded.
The scream of the child sounded in the room.
"It's a boy," told the woman taking him carefully and showing him to the mother.
Nikki's pale face smiled. "Dylan," her lips said barely and she stopped breathing.
"No, no, you won't die on me!" Cara's harsh voice hissed. She took every living power in her and breathed it into Nikki but nothing happened.
Doors and windows closed instantly like from a sudden wind. A midwife fell on the floor suffocating, the other woman died the same death. Lord Rahl was standing near his wife's bed and the Mord'Sith saw how magic streamed from Nikki's body right in his chest. She saw a light aura around the man but she felt herself so tired and powerless that only one thought travelled in her sick mind Dylan must survive. He must live. She grabbed this little creature and the world around her went black.
She opened her yeas to see a very intimate atmosphere of People's palace dungeons. She didn't know how much time has passed since she was unconscious but her aching joints told her that maybe a day had flown away. Again she found herself hanging from the chains in cold dungeon. Her full bladder couldn't hide the water inside her, so a little stream of urine ran down her thighs strictly to the sewage in the floor. The woman wasn't ashamed of it. It brought her relief. She wasn't ashamed of her nudity. She's got too used to it at her younger age when she joined the ranks of the Mord'Sith's army. Cara saw everything clearly. The sound of footsteps made her look at the person entering the room. It was her, a blonde woman in all shining glory of power and control.
"Madame Denna, nobody dies these days as I see," Cara tried to smile but she failed.
"Yes, "Madame" for you, pet," the woman in dark red leather approached.
"Now I understand why Rahl preferred to stay far from his wife as long as it was possible. Nikki isn't a match to you in bed, I guess."
"A sorcerer isn't a match for a Mord'Sith." Denna answered, her gloved hand slightly caressed the other woman with the agiel. Cara shivered.
"Why is the right hand of Darken Rahl wasting her precious time on a rotten Mord'Sith?" She asked as nothing has happened but her hoarse voice betrayed her.
"You partially answered the question. Lord Rahl wants you at his side and as you became too weak recently I'm here to make you stronger whatever it takes. He told me you've lost your Breath of Life. It's a shame for the powerful Mord'Sith. I'm here to reteach you. From now on you and I will be hand and glove." She poked Cara with the agiel.
"What happened to the child?" Cara asked between coughs.
"I'm asking questions here not you, pet!" Denna smacked the woman one more time.
The torturing lasted for weeks. She didn't understand how much time went by. She was so tired of this. Every cell of her body hurt, she didn't know if she could still feel her joints because it seemed to her that her arms were as heavy as lead. She lost consciousness several times but when she opened her eyes picture was the same. The woman in dark red leather worked on her body with the agiel. She could tell that Denna was as exhausted as she herself was. Cara lost many pounds and now she was nothing more than bones covered with skin. If that thin bloody and dirty cell material could be called so. The Mord'Sith died three times. She waited for the moment when her body would be beyond saving and finally the torture would be over. Cara would be free. Her brain started to play tricks on her. Sometimes she couldn't realize where she was and what she was doing here and it scared her. She screamed just to know that she was alive, to hear her name, to remember who she was.
"Don't call the Mother Confessor! The line of confessors has stopped its existence. She has betrayed you, the Seeker and the Wizard have betrayed you as well. You are nothing but a bug under my boot. I can smash you when I want and how I want!" This chant she heard many times from Denna. It soothed her that she still remembered though memories became thinner and thinner.
"My Lord, soon she will stop breathing. I cannot do anything. I've been retraining her for three months but I failed. I cannot reach her. I don't know what she thinks about. She's like a stone, no feelings at all. Now she refuses to eat and when I gave her water last time she puked it back. She's going crazy. I'm sorry, Lord Rahl." Denna avoided eye contact with her master. She was too afraid to be punished by him. She remembered very well what could become of a Mord'Sith who failed to do her duties well.
"What did she ask you about the first moment when you started the retraining process?" the man questioned calmly.
"She asked about Nikki's child, My Lord, why?" Denna was confused, how she didn't realize it before.
"Then we'll give her what she wants."
Why were they giving her a bath? Did time finally come and she would die soon? Did they understand it? Cara was amazed to feel warm water on her torn cold skin. It can't be true. She's dreaming. It's just a dream or maybe she is dead and the Creator took her? No, this is false. She should be with the Keeper in the Underworld not here in warm water with slaves washing her body. They gave her a rough long gown. It was so comfortable after three months of wearing nothing but her flesh on bones. Two Mord'Siths brought her into a room with hay in one corner and left her alone. The man with the child came into the room.
"Cara, do you remember him?" Rahl showed her the baby. Cara's faces cracked into a smile. Her dim eyes began shining again.
"Of course I remember him, Dylan. Can I take him?" She stretched arms to the boy which now resembled two shrunk branches.
"Yes, you can." He gave his son to this sick, tortured, partially crazy woman and he was sure that whatever could have happened to her, it didn't matter how weak she was but she wouldn't drop the baby. "What would you do to be with him, Cara?"
"I promised his mother to take care of him."
"What would you do?" Darken Rahl insisted.
"Anything." She answered hoarsely.
"You will train hard to deserve leather and agiels then you'll marry me and only after that you will keep your promise to Nikki." He told firmly and took away his son.
It took her one year to regain her leathers and two agiels. She wasn't weak and pathetic as before. Still she found herself hanging down from chains in dungeon. It happened because she displeased Denna. Instead of giving high-ranking official a night of pleasure Cara preferred to use her agiel in all intimate places the man had. It caused his death but she gave him an opportunity to live though a life of a eunuch. After few hours of waiting in the same position she became bored.
"Hey, there! Can you just begin torturing me because it is a little bit cold in here and I want a hot bath after that." Cara said into emptiness.
"The same acerbic tongue as I see." He said loudly entering the room. "And the same seducing body." The man touched her breasts.
"What do you want?" She wanted to sound unaffected but goose bumps quickly covering her body proved her wrong.
"Your last mission didn't go smoothly. I think it is time for me to remind you some things a woman should do." He replied kissing and biting her plump lips.
She didn't need to be reminded. The Mord'Sith knew too intimately both sides of the coin. She remembered her first time with a man. She was twelve. Each girl had her own puberty period and as they were always ill-treated and trained all day long their period also started when they were fourteen or even sixteen. They were rivals with Denna. She was one year older than Cara. Snake their tutor expected Denna to become one of the most influential Mord'Siths. She recommended her to Lord Rahl not as his security or executor of outstanding plans. She was too young and inexperienced though smart and artful. She recommended this young girl to be his cute face – a girl he could play with, his young little lover. It must be recognized that Denna lived the part and was very proud to be a pet in attendance to her master. Cara was the direct opposite of little villain. She was too honest, clumsy, frank and rude. Where Denna used carefully considered tactics and strategy Cara went right through. She was tough and liked to do things alone but soon everything had to change.
Once she had a fight with Denna and called her a high-ranking whore. Denna just made fun of it. Nevertheless, a week later Cara woke up in her bed and her sheets were covered in blood. As she lived with other girls the news spread very fast among the Mord'Siths' temple. Poor Cara tried to prove that it wasn't what they thought but she failed. The rule was one and for everybody. Since the girl had her first period after sometime she should have with other girls with the same problem her first time with a man. It was a kind of initiation. Soldiers from Dragon Corp were invited to deliver the girls from their burden. The young Mord'Siths had to fight each other. The one that won the fight could choose a man according her taste others hadn't this possibility. As Cara was the youngest among these girls she thought bravely but lost. Lord Rahl this time was also attending their initiation and to Denna's great disappointment he chose Cara to sleep with him. For the young Mord'Sith it was a victory. They were trained to worship the master and that time Cara adored him. That night he was gentle to her. She spent many nights with her Lord. After that sometimes he was rough and rude other nights he was delicate to her until he betrayed her and sold the young woman toWarlock Dracul for a precious magical knowledge. Her life became a nightmare…
The Mord'Sith felt that chains were moving. She thought that the man wanted to move her lower just to be in appropriate position to f… her. That's why she was really astonished as her feet touched the cold grid of sewage and the man unlocked her chains.
"Tomorrow you will be my wife. Today you can have your hot bath. I want you to look fresh at the ceremony." Lord Rahl took off his cloak and put over her body covering her nudity.
Cara was puzzled. She wrapped in the cloak and left the room.
To be continued…