Straining to hold back the tears of pain, Anastasia too dowsed her burning hands and feet in the bucket of water, taking the edge off the pain. Both the guard and Princess were thankful for the cool air now flooding the room through the open door, helping to numb the pain of their wounds. The knight removed his cloak and methodically tore six strips of cloth from the bottom hem which he then soaked in the remaining bloody water, binding each strip securely around each of their burnt hands as well as Anastasia’s ankles. The wet bandages felt like soothing balm to their damaged bodies. Distracted with tending to their wounds, neither the wind whisperer nor warrior Princess noticed the slowly dissipating breeze coming through the open storage door until it was too late. Before either Knight or Princess had time to react, the door slammed shut behind them, locking them inside.
*
Princess Annalyse – Heir of Alearia
After discovering this watchtower, Annie felt comfortable to navigate the layout on her own, as thankfully most of the watchtowers were almost identical on the inside. After searching a few of the lower levels with no luck, Annie had made her way down to the dungeon to continue her search. Annie’s intuition told her they were getting closer to finding her sister. Annie could feel the bond between her and her twin growing stronger with every passing minute.
The air was stale in the watchtower’s dungeon. Two rows of cells were buried deep into the heart of the mountain. Annie imagined that they would have been used during times of war to house and interrogate prisoners of invading armies. Her sage gifting told Annie that it was as good a place as any to search for her missing twin, however, the eerie darkness and silence of the watchtower dungeon caused Annie to regret her decision to split away from the group.
“We can cover more ground if we split up,” Alecia had reassured her despite Sir Tomlin’s warning that they were safer as a united group. Annie hadn’t seen or heard from the others for some time, but she continued her search, whispering into the darkness repeatedly; “Anastasia, are you here?” Walking further into the depths of the dungeon, only a small candle to light her way, Annie’s sage gifting warned her that something was not right.
“Run! Get out of here! It’s a trap!” A message carried upon the air faintly declared, causing Annie to stop in her tracks. “Sir Lawrence?” Annie whispered into the darkness. “Is that you?” But there was no response. A moment later, Annie heard light footsteps descending the stone steps towards the dungeon. Thinking quickly, Annie blew out her candle and hid in one of the cells amongst a haystack previously used as a prisoner’s bed. Without the candlelight, the cell was in complete darkness. Annie reached out her mind conqueror gifting to attempt to identify her pursuer but was met instead with an impenetrable, adamant black wall. Fear began to overcome Annie’s entire being as she realised how seemingly helpless she was without her gifting to rely upon as a defensive weapon. Taking a deep, slow, silent breath Annie decided in that moment that she would not allow fear to win and in the darkness, she listened and waited as the footsteps approached.
~ ◊ ~
20
Agnes
‘I can sense her, like a missing piece of a puzzle, her gifting calls to my soul. Years of training have honed my senses to seek out my prey. Even without my mind conqueror gifting I can feel her aura. In a matter of moments, she will be mine and I will become a mind conqueror once more.’
Fingers scraping against the rock wall of the passageway, Agnes navigated her way down the forty stone steps she knew would take her to the dungeon floor. There was nothing standing between her and her prey now that her protectors had been dealt with. The lingering smell of excrement soaked into the ground from previously held captives filled Agnes’s nostrils as she reached the dungeon. The smell was surprisingly so strong, despite the watchtower being abandoned since the last attempted invasion during Agnes’s early childhood.
Agnes remembered those days well, despite her young age at the time. She remembered watching the knights prepare for battle in the training yards of the Alearian castle before being dispatched to their designated posts. Another failed invasion attempt by another insignificant, power hungry Kingdom. Countless lives had been pointlessly lost on both sides. To take on the Kingdom of Alearia was suicide. No matter how many dents they made in the King’s army, the Alearian forces always triumphed from sheer numbers. Alearia was a powerful, mighty Kingdom, and it did not yield.
It was watching those valiant knights prepare for battle that inspired Agnes to become a warrior. Even without a Goddess given gifting, Agnes was determined to never be weak. So, she trained and honed herself into a weapon hidden beneath the guise of a meek and mild Princess with no gifting. The Kingdom’s people considered her a pitiful potential Heir, seeing only what she allowed them to see. She watched and waited for her moment to shed her disguise and claim the title and power she deserved.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are little sister,” Agnes taunted in the darkness. “I only want what is rightfully mine. Give me your gifting, and I will show you mercy. I will let you all go free. No one is coming to save you Annalyse. The others are... indisposed... shall we say. You can take Anastasia with you and return to the privileged lifestyle you have so quickly grown accustomed to. But before you get any clever ideas about attacking me with your gifting, know that while I am conscious your efforts are pointless. I have trained my mental defenses and you will not break past them again. You have lost the element of surprise.”
Stalking through the darkness, Agnes could sense she was drawing closer to her target. The hum of power radiating from Annie’s mind sent thrills down Agnes’s spine in anticipation. Daggers poised in each hand, the former Princess stalked deeper into the dungeon corridor, allowing her daggers to scrape against each of the iron doors she passed in an attempt to incite fear in her prey. Stopping short in front of the fifth cell door to the left, Agnes felt her head beginning to throb as a psychic attack was launched upon her in another failed attempt to breach her mind’s defenses.
“Nice try little sister, but you will have to do better than that!” She taunted, throwing her right-handed dagger directly towards the haystack where she sensed Annie was hiding.
A piercing scream filled the dungeon as the dagger found its mark.
*
Princess Annalyse – Heir of Alearia
The pain of the dagger penetrating Annie’s left leg was like nothing she had ever experienced. The darkness concealed the degree of damage caused by the weapon but that didn’t stop the burning sensation thrumming up her thigh. Annie could feel the wound seeping blood through her pants and into the hay. The dagger, thankfully, must have missed an artery or else she would likely be close to death.
The apprentice healer turned Heir, wrenched out the protruding dagger from her thigh and attempted to slow the bleeding by applying direct pressure to the wound with both hands. Annie’s screams were soon replaced by muffled moans and grunts as she attempted to deny Agnes the satisfaction of her reaction.
‘Goddess, if it is your will that I join my family in the After World today, please take me quickly. Agnes will never claim my gifting for her own. I will never give it to her. At least I can pass on from this life knowing that she will never be able to ruin anyone else’s life as a mind conqueror. The last of our bloodline’s gifting will fade away into the eternal light. Perhaps that is as it should be.’
Agnes laughed sadistically in triumph as she stalked across the cell, fumbled around in the haystack and pulled her youngest sibling by her blond tresses out on to the cold stone floor. With her right hand she held Annie’s head back and positioned her remaining dagger to Annie’s throat with her left.
“Give me your gifting or you will never see the light of day again.”
‘Goddess have mercy on my soul.’
~ ◊ ~
21
High Priestess Elizabeth
By fire-wielder light, twenty senior Priestesses gathered in the Alearian city temple. Ravens had b
een sent across the Kingdom two days earlier to each of the five different Alearian temples, summoning the senior Priestesses from each to represent their sisterhood at the meeting. Wind whisperers laid a cloak of air over the colosseum-like place of worship, preventing curious ears from eavesdropping.
“Senior sisters of the Goddess, and temple leaders,” High Priestess Elizabeth proclaimed from the alter towards the holy women filling the first two rows of the vast sandstone temple. “Thank you for gathering here tonight. It is after much prayer and consideration, that I have summoned you all here. As you have all overheard, Queen Amealiana has transcended from this world into the next at the hands of her own daughter. Shortly afterwards, King Titian also entered the After World.
“No one has seen or heard from our Alearian Heir or her fire-wielding sisters since the Queen’s private burning ceremony. Our Monarchy has abandoned us, leaving a foreign ruler to take over. The Brandistone Heir promised us more input into our Kingdom and has instead left us to the wolves. Queen Annalyse of Quillencia has no place leading our Kingdom, and if our Heir will not assume her place as Queen then we need an Alearian who will.”
Whispers around the room began; a mixture of agreement and apprehension surrounding their leader’s declaration.
“I know what you are all thinking sisters. The Crowning Ceremony exists because it is the Goddess’s will. However, our future Queen has neglected to take her Goddess given responsibilities seriously. I do not believe that the Goddess would approve of her chosen Heir abandoning her own people in their time of need.
“The Goddess has called for us to be more than spiritual counsellors to the throne. If Princess Annalyse was as devoted to our Kingdom as I am, she would not have run away. Sadly, she has proven what I predicted all along. Princess Annalyse is not fit to be our Queen. Neither of the remaining Brandistone royals are either. The signs have been written in the wind for a time. First, our treasured Prince was murdered at a public event, then our eldest potential Heir inflicted torment and pain upon our people with her magical gifting. Alecia proved her unpredictable nature when she froze that poor servant to death and Anastasia, though sweet, suffers from mental illness.
“It is our time to act in the name of the Goddess and do what is right for our Kingdom. The time has come for us to take control of Alearia and return our Kingdom to its former glory,” High Priestess Elizabeth concluded.
The Priestesses rose as one from the pews, applauding their religious leader. The High Priestess stood tall and proud from the alter, absorbing their praise, allowing the anticipation in the room to build.
“Sisters. Beloved representatives of our Goddess. I cannot act alone; I need your help,” Elizabeth announced. “I call upon each of you to act in the best interests of your Kingdom. Follow your Goddess given duty. Spread the word amongst your temple sisters and worshippers. Rally the people and we will take control of our Kingdom. In two days, we will meet at the castle gates to protest. We will demand to be heard and we will rally the people. If our peaceful attempts at a resolution do not wield results, we will have no choice but to take further action. We are the voices of our people and we will be heard. In the Goddess’s name, for family and Kingdom, go forth and carry out your Goddess’s work.”
“For family and Kingdom,” the room roared in unison as one voice for one people.
“I will see you in two days at sunrise at the castle gates. Go in peace and serve our Goddess well.”
~ ◊ ~
22
Princess Anastasia
Bounding down multiple stone steps at a time, the fierce Alearian mountain cat leapt, tracking the scent of her twin. Her powerful body jumped effortlessly down staircase after staircase, floor by floor, the others left trailing behind, restricted by their human body’s limits. The mountain cat’s eyesight allowed her to navigate through the darkness with ease. Approaching the dungeon, her twin’s scent grew stronger, mixed together with the tang of blood. Anastasia brushed that thought aside, letting her animal instincts take over.
Reaching the dungeon on silent feet, the mountain cat paused to listen. Her enhanced hearing guided her to where she was sure her sister would be found. The tang of blood mixed with urine overwhelmed the giant cat’s senses as she began stalking silently through the dungeon corridor, following the scent of her sister and the blood.
The mountain cat entered the fifth dungeon cell, and thankfully, the door was wide open. Kneeling on the floor in a pool of her own blood, held up by her hair in the traitor’s hand, was Annie. A knife was held to her throat, and Annie appeared weak, barely conscious as she hazily begged her captor to spare her life. Furious with the scene before her, Anastasia released a mighty warning growl which echoed off the dungeon cell walls.
Agnes turned on the spot, pulling Annie along with her, “what in the realm?!” Agnes exclaimed, eyes wide, turning the dagger she previously had pointed at Annie, towards the giant cat. Without hesitation, Agnes hurtled the dagger through the air towards the fierce beast. The giant cat dodged the dagger and then leapt towards the traitor, pinning her to the ground under her immense weight. Without a second thought, she ripped out Agnes’s throat with her mighty jaws, blood dripping from her maw. Revenge was finally hers.
Annie hit the stone floor with a thud, pain once again reverberating through her dagger wound. The blood flowed more quickly now since she had been previously forced to relieve pressure from the stab site by Agnes during the struggle. However, the sight of Anastasia in mountain cat form was a blessed sight of relief to Annie.
With a flash of light, the giant mountain cat perched upon her victim’s body transformed back into her bare human form. Anastasia pulled the clothes off the traitor’s dead body and threw them on, wiping most of the blood from her mouth onto her sleeve.
“Hello Annie,” Anastasia grinned at her twin before helping her up into a sitting position against the cell wall, Annie moaning in the process. Anastasia noted the deep stab wound to Annie’s thigh. “I thought you were meant to be saving me?” Anastasia attempted a joke whilst resting her hands upon the wound and placing pressure.
“I missed you too,” Annie softly spoke in reply.
“Never mind,” Anastasia chuckled before solemnly declaring, “it’s my turn to heal you this time. Take a deep breath. I’m sorry but this will not be comfortable.”
Annie did as she was told, and Anastasia allowed her fire- wielding gifting to surge though her palms. The Heir screamed as her twin soldered the wound to stop the blood flow. After several minutes, the wound closed over, and Annie released a thankful sigh that the excruciating pain had finally come to an end. With a moan of exhaustion, Anastasia slumped against the wall next to her twin. The two girls rested their heads against each other, taking a moment to recover.
“Annie, I need to tell you something,” Anastasia finally spoke after a few extended moments of silence. “It was Alecia and I that broke Agnes out of the dungeon. I’m sorry I trusted her... This is all my fault. At the time, I couldn’t bare for her to be sentenced to death, but I was wrong. If I didn’t break her out, you wouldn’t have needed to rescue me and mother would still be alive,” Anastasia spoke softly. She could feel the cold tears slide down her cheeks and her shoulders sagged as a weight she hadn’t known she had carried was lifted from her through her confession.
Annie opened her eyes and turned her head to face her sister sitting beside her. “I knew it was you.”
Anastasia sat stunned.
“You care so deeply for everyone that I knew it had to be you,” Annie continued. “It was the right thing to do. Even mother would have wanted her to have another chance but sadly she fooled us all. Her heart was beyond healing, her soul shrivelled. It is not your fault Anastasia. None of it is. We can’t change the past so do not burden yourself with regret because it will only eat away at your soul. Misplaced guilt is a waste of time. It is a trick of our mind that anxiety installs. It is not the truth. But take comfort, that finally Agnes got what
she deserves. Thanks to you we are all free of her. I just pray that the Goddess takes pity on her soul because an eternity in limbo is a fate I wouldn’t wish even upon her.”
Anastasia embraced her twin for what felt like the first time in a long time. “Thank you for forgiving me Annie. Thank you.”
“There is nothing to forgive Tash. Thank you for once again saving my life.”
Alecia burst into the cell, flame in hand, ready for any threat, followed by Sir Tomlin with a noticeable limp, arm wrapped around Sir Lawrence for support. Alecia took in the scene before her; Agnes splayed dead across the floor, Annie and Anastasia embracing, slumped against the wall. With a wicked grin Alecia apologized, “sorry we missed all the fun.”
Anastasia just rolled her eyes at her older sister and replied, “took you long enough… Now get over here and give me a hug.”
~ ◊ ~
23
Queen Annalyse of Quillencia
“Your Highness, the crowds are growing more boisterous by the front gates. High Priestess Elizabeth is preaching traitorous gossip to our people. How do you wish for the Alearian Legion to proceed?” Lord Ashcott, General of the Alearian Legion asked.
Lord Ashcott had served his country proudly during many attempted invasions as the Alearian Army Legion General, and prior to that, as a leader in the Alearian Legion’s command. Over the last two decades, in times of peace, Lord Ashcott had assumed an advisory role, due to his mature age. Following Princess Annalyse’s ascension of the throne as Queen of Alearia, Lord Ashcott would formerly hand over the Legion’s reign to Princess Alecia, who would officially be declared the Kingdom’s first female General of the Alearian Legion. She had been working side-by-side with Lord Ashcott recently, learning from him, preparing to take on her future as Alearian Legion General.
A Queen's Fate Page 9
