The sounds of nervous, cautious whispers filled a beautiful chapel as fey creatures of various sizes and types patiently sat below in their seats. They were all gathered for what was supposed to be princess Aurora's wedding to the prince of Ulstead. Despite her being a human she was brought up as Maleficent's daughter and loved by all.
Little did the creatures know that they were not celebrating the love between the princess and prince. They were about to be slaughtered in the most brutal way simply because they were not human. Their voices and whispers were suddenly silenced by the sound of doors closing from the balcony above.
In walked a petite, red-haired woman who appeared relatively young with her hair tied back to perfection. Her face appeared innocent almost like a doll with big blue eyes. Her smooth pale skin added onto her innocent image however she gave off a dangerous, dark aura.
Gerda smirked when she caught sight of their frightful eyes as they followed her walking form from below. Her heart pumped with excitement once she neared the pipe organ. The beauty of the musical instrument was key to doing what needed to be done. It held the poison within the pipes that would kill off all the creatures.
Gerda gracefully sat down on the chair and took a deep breath before allowing her small fingers to lightly caress the keys and play a tune. The creatures had expected it to be a beautiful piece but instead were greeted by a deep, sinister sound that instantly caused unease within the room. Many clung to each other's hands in an attempt to calm their growing fear.
They gasped when a loud swooshing sound vibrated throughout the room and quickly searched for the source with their glossy eyes. A huge red ball of a dusty substance had flown out of the pipe connected to the organ. Gerda shivered in excitement when her finger tapped another key causing a second wave of red dusty smoke to fly out of the pipe organ.
The room then filled with terrified screams as the creatures that came into contact with the smoke burst into a pile of ash and dust. It was an instant death brought upon them by the hands of Gerda who eagerly continued on playing the pipe organ with glee. She felt a thrill of happiness as the screaming continued. They deserved it all. She looked forward to this day and knew she was doing her kingdom a favor by ridding it of the disgusting creatures. The slaughter continued on for nearly an hour, ridding the room of the largest fairies in the group.
Her thoughts were suddenly paused when her pipe organ stopped working. She angrily slammed her finger down on the key but it was no use since no sound was coming out. Her eyes glanced up and noticed the heads of vivid blue flowers sticking out of each pipe. One of the filthy creatures had sacrificed itself in order to save the rest of its kind. Gerda then stood up and quickly climbed the pipe organ till she was high enough to reach the freshly bloomed flowers. Her hands attempted to reach up and pull them out but was suddenly interrupted by two tiny winged fairies who angrily attacked her from behind.
She tried swatting them away but screamed once her hands lost their grip on the pipes. Her body fell back and slammed into the solid ground. The last thing she saw was memories of a little boy smiling up at her as he held her hand. The memory was a reminder as to why she needed to kill as many of the creatures as possible. Her mind then blacked out and soon the memory faded.
Gerda was awoken by the sound of someone opening a stone door and quickly glanced up. In came a brunette female fey who was only several inches taller than her. She appeared to be quite young with a heart-shaped face and medium-sized horns. Gerda's eyes cautiously studied her following every moment the fey made.
"My name is Celtra. You are to come with me to get cleaned up." The small female fey announced in a quiet voice with her brown eyes studying her.
Gerda briefly overlooked her before attempting to stand but hissed in pain when her throbbing ribs sharply protested the movement. The fey moved to grab her but was stopped by a violent wave of Gerda's hand.
"Don't touch me! I-I'm capable of helping myself." Gerda said in a tight voice.
After a few minutes of struggle Gerda finally managed to stand with her legs wobbling from both fatique and pain. She had spent most of the night fighting off the stabbing aches and open wounds her body received from the hideous creature. Celtra then nodded her head and motioned for Gerda to follow. They exited the dreadful room and started walking down a dark passage within the cave. The walls were lit with torches giving enough light for Gerda to study her surroundings. The walk itself was taking a toll on Gerda's damaged body.
Her legs were shaking with every movement and she felt dizzy from hunger. Despite it being cold she was somehow drenched in sweat. One of her arms was cradling her cracked rib as if it would ease the pain but it didn't. She continued to limp behind the fey but suddenly stopped when she realized they were about to walk up some stairs. The female fey noticed Gerda's hesitation and paused.
"Borra had these stairs made specifically for you since you can't travel the way we do." Celtra said as if her words were supposed to put Gerda at ease.
"Oh how very thoughtful of him." Gerda sarcastically responded rolling her eyes.
Celtra stared at her in confusion before turning around and guiding Gerda up the stairs. They both continued up at a slow pace due to Gerda's injuries. Once they finally reached the top Celtra pushed open a stone door revealing a small room with stoned walls. In the corner was a poor attempt of a bed with a thin blanket that looked like it would provide no kind of warmth. The bed itself was nothing more than dried hay on top of a large rock.
In the middle of the room was a stone tub filled with water. The only positive aspect of the room was that it had a small window revealing a view of the mountains and land below. However, the window was barred to prevent her from escaping. Below the window was a small wooden table and chair. Gerda shivered when she felt a cold breeze blow past her from the window.
"As you may already know, I'm instructed to bathe and heal you of your...injuries." Celtra said in her usual quiet voice.
Gerda looked at her with caution and irritation wondering why on earth would she need to be treated like a child and bathed. She also wondered what the female fey's intentions were towards her. She must've been aware of the genocide Gerda committed against her people so it was questionable as to why the creature appeared so at ease with her assignment.
"Why on earth would I need to be bathed by you like some child? I'm fully capable of caring for myself and would not need any help from you." Gerda stubbornly hissed at the fey with narrowed suspicious eyes.
"Because Borra had put me in charge of watching you. You are his prisoner and can't be trusted with such tasks. Now you either follow my instructions or perhaps he may pay you a visit himself if you disobey." The fey responded with more sternness in her voice.
Gerda felt her cheeks redden with anger mostly directed towards Borra. She wanted to drown Celtra in the tub but knew she was currently incapable of doing much. She also knew it was not wise to defy Celtra and risk Borra paying her a visit. Without another word Gerda allowed the ripped clothing to slide off her shoulders.
She felt self-conscious and exposed as she stood naked in front of a complete stranger. Gerda immediately wrapped her arms around herself in an attempt to conceal as much skin as possible. She quickly got into the tub and was thankful that she now had coverage from the water but was also uncomfortable by the water's cold temperature.
The fey handed her a rag and bar of soap allowing Gerda to clean herself. After fifteen minutes of scrubbing and rinsing her matted hair, Gerda was done. She was then handed a rough, scratchy towel and a new hideous garment of clothing that resembled a chemise. Gerda yelped in pain when she attempted to put the garment on. She looked down and was shocked when she noticed a large, ugly dark bruise around the rib that Borra struck. It reached all around her abdomen making her wonder how bruised her neck and jaw must've been. She quickly glanced up at Celtra with wide eyes. The fey was staring down at Gerda's injuries with pressed lips.
"Take a seat on the bed and I shall try to heal it, you might have some broken bones." Celtra quickly said gesturing towards the bed.
Gerda limped over to the bed with her hands squeezing the piece of clothing together when the pain intensified. She shakenly sat down on the bed trying her hardest to ignore her aching ribs. She managed to cover any exposed skin with the chemise but left her bruised ribs showing. Celtra then began healing her with her hands hovering over the bruised area. Gerda hissed when she felt and heard bones being mended together.
Celtra was unable to heal the bruises left on her neck, and ribs but did manage to heal the cracked bones. Gerda instantly threw on her garment. The material itself was rough and scratchy. Thankfully it wasn't too thin so no one could see through it but she still felt very naked. She was given no undergarments and the piece of clothing only reached her knees. The sound of water draining captured her attention.
"On the corner of the room is where water will continuously flow for you to freshen up with after using the garderobe. You will be provided with rags to properly clean yourself afterwards." Celtra said motioning to the area she was speaking of.
Gerda remained quiet and stared at Celtra with a stoic expression hoping she would simply leave her alone. Celtra appeared to catch on to Gerda's blank expression and nervously clasp her hands together.
"Food and water will be brought up shortly." Celtra quickly said before heading to the door but then paused when she was in front of it.
"One more thing...it would be wise not to anger Borra. He's known for having a temper and wouldn't hesitate to inflict more pain upon you." Celtra warned Gerda.
"Do you take me as one to be easily tamed by him? I will make him pay and it would be wise if you stood out of my way when the time comes." Gerda said glaring at Celtra with irritation.
Celtra looked at Gerda for several seconds before opening the door and exiting the room. Only then Gerda sighed and walked towards the barred window. She gazed outside taking in every detail of the green landscape and blue sky. She felt as if she was at the top of the world and had no idea how she would get down below if she managed to escape this place.
She would have to map out the area and somehow make a small weapon of some sort for protection. Back in Ulstead, she was widely praised for being skilled in constructing weapons to kill the fey. Did that brainless creature really think putting her in this room was enough to hold her imprisoned? She shall be out of this filthy place soon or perhaps sooner than expected.
Gerda flinched when her door was opened and in came a male fey with a disgusted face when he caught sight of her. He tossed her food on the floor and then slammed the door shut when he left. Gerda looked down feeling her blood boil when she found a moldy piece of bread and a cup of spilled water on the floor. She angrily kicked the bread across the room and threw the cup against the door.
She ran her fingers through her hair feeling her emotions boil and began pacing around the room. She wanted to kill every last one of them starting with Borra. That vile, dense creature would most certainly be the first to die. After some time she angrily laid down on her poor excuse of a bed and curled up into a ball. The sun was beginning to set, meaning soon she would be left in complete darkness. Once her body calmed down she fell into a deep slumber filled with nightmares and a pair of glowing yellow eyes.