Skyeler crawled through the chilled passageway as silently
as possible. Her palms and knees rasped against the cold stone as she moved.
She moved as fast, with as little noise as possible. Her desperate escape being
made to evade her captors.
" Please, don't let them find me." She prayed in a whisper.
The dark tunnels were icy, cheaply crafted marble and stone, not much seen in
the depths of them. No place to put the torches or any source of lighting for
that matter, the tunnels were simply there to escape if ever under attack.
Barely large enough for a full-grown adult if they squeezed, it was cramped and
chilling. The hush of fear hung in the crisp frostbitten air, her breathing was
light as she was used to this much movement being the princess. She was young,
but the age of 10 not ready for the life about to come at her.
A light pierced the tunnel up ahead as she saw the opening she was going for.
At that moment something silky and sticky pressed against her face. She felt
the patter of small taps on her cheek. She froze a moment her eyes wide and
then sat back almost hitting her head. Letting out a scream of terror she began
fiercely tearing at her face.
"
SPIDER!!!!" She swiped at the web caught on her face panicing and knocked
the spider flying from her cheek. She quickly hushed and looked behind her as
her scream rang through the tunnels in a long everlasting echo.
" God don’t let them hear that!" She begged in a raged voice, she
began to move again this time faster not caring if she’s silent or not. They
would have surely heard her scream and would try to cut her off. Fear still
gripped her as she reached the opening and pushed a few bricks out of the way
to peer into the room. The bricks made a small cracking and crumbling noise as
they hit each other. The room was large with marble walls and crimson drapery.
A warm fireplace glowed from the hearth and the sweet scent of apple pie filled
the air, she knew she was near the kitchen. A smile grew upon her thin Childs
lips. She glanced about as much as she could to see if anyone was in the room.
Her vision was blocked to her right by a large chair. A moment passed and she
sat in silence looking into the room her mind trying to decide wither or not to
go in. With great hesitation she finally made her decision. With another weary
glance across the room she slowly crawled out of the small opening, trying
desperately to be silent. She felt the grip of large hands around her sides as
she was almost fully out. Again she let out a deathly scream this time more a
plead than a scream of fear.
" NOOOoooooo!! Please no let me go!" She howled and began to kick her
feet. Now in the light, her captor gazed over her, she was a muddy looking
child, red brown very untidy hair and a set of the deepest scorch brown eyes
ever seen on a child. She was dirty and dusty and she wore boys clothing. She
stared at him a moment and then began to kick and throw her arms about as he
lifted her up to arms length.
" Hush child you are mine." He said in a deep ruddy tone. He was
about 6 feet tall, long brown hair tied back and soft looking brown eyes. He
had golden tanned skin and high cheekbones, his build was that of a king
almost, he had broad shoulder and a broad chest clothed by a hunting tunic.
" LET ME GO!" She attempted to kick at him again but she was small,
when she stood her fullest she was only 3'7 even at her age that was a very
small height. Many feared the young princess would never grow. Her kicks missed
her legs to short to reach him, his hands gripped under her shoulders now
holding her away from him. She attempted to bite into him her eyes wide and he
dropped her a moment but caught her before she hit the ground.
"Stop that or I will drop you, out the window!" His voice became
harsher and she shut up and looked to the ground and in a whisper murmured.
" My knight will come, you may have betrayed me but my other knight shall
come!...right Lance you will come for me.... " She words were low and
mumbled but he heard them and chose to ignore them.
" Its time young one..." He grinned and exited the room with her in
his clutches. He strode down the corridors no one to be seen as they were all
preparing the feast for the night. Each corridor was made of exquisite marble
and silver pillars, each pillar was covered in many engravings detailing
historic event. Skye had now shut up and stopped her pleading; the man who held
her in his grips had tossed her over his shoulder. He stopped a room and opened
the large oak door. Skyeler by now, had fallen asleep, this child could sleep
anywhere, anytime even when her life was in danger.
The door creaked with age as the hinges called out for oil,
the screeching of the hinges awoke the child and she looked around wildly as he
stepped into the room. He grabbed her and put her down and turned her to face
into the room. She let out an ear-piercing scream and turned to run but the man
slammed the door shut and glared at her.
" No child, this is it I have won stand down." He said in a light and
mocking tone.
" NEVER!" She said and sent a fist flying at his lower regions, by
now he had grown to expect this and simply sidestepped the fist. The tiny girl
backed up a bit and growled deep in her throat.
" Come now I grow weary of these games Skye,” He said in a sturdy tone.
" NO! " She said and attempted to try and dive under him and to the
door, her grabbed her leg and held her upside down hanging in the air. " I
don't care what you want you will listen to me young lady!"
Skyeler whimpered and hung there by one leg, she crossed her arms and glared.
" Come now, off with that fitly shirt." He said and using his other
hand grabbed her arm and flipped her upright and set her down.
" Boss me around will ya...NO!" She growled and kicked at his leg.
The kick landed and he growled and picked her up and walking into the centre of
the room. The scent of honeysuckle filled the air with its sweetness and
Skyeler look at terror in what she was dreading.
" DANIEL! Please Brother don’t! NOOOO" Skyeler screamed as she
starred at the giant tub filled with sudsy water.
" You brought this upon yourself little sister." He said and dropped
her into the bathtub, a splash of suds and water dripped over the edge and
Skyeler was totally submerged underneath its warm depths. She stood up and her
head and shoulders burst the surface of it and she gasped the air growling.
" HOW COULD YOU!”? She coughed and spat up bubbles.
" I told you, you are going to have a bath and look like a lady for my coronation tonight."
Daniel turned away from her and strode to the door and locked it. He was hit
suddenly, with a large sopping mop of clothes in the back of the head, the
water dripping coolly down his neck and tunic. He did a little dance and pulled
them off and tosses them to the floor , turned and glared at the giggling child
in the tub.
He studied the dank clothing for a moment, his eyes brushing over the dirt ground into it, the boy’s style, and then the embroidered letters, A.J.
“ Have you been stealing that boys clothing again?” He asked, turning to face the child who sat arms crossed, looking rather upset in the foamy water.
“ No.” She said flatly attempting to look innocent. Her lip protruded in a sulky way, her eyes burning with loathing of the tub. The water was her enemy, as it is to most children of her age. To her it only waists all the time she spends purposely trying to get caked with mud to get a rise out of her brother. She depended on him for everything, food clothing, caring, and fun. He was her knight in shining armour. He was the only thing she had after her mother and father died, and she never wanted to loose him. They often played together, when Daniel should have been doing his work as heir to the throne, he was usually found playing with Skyeler chasing her who knows where all over the kingdom. To her life was all play, if she wasn’t frolicking with Daniel she was with Lance or Sterling. Lance was her half brother, bastard to her father. She loved him dearly, she played with him all the time. Different than with Daniel though, when she played with Lance she actually played a lady, no matter what. He was the only one who could get her to bath without her having a fit. Sterling, was her cousin through the second marriage of her father. Not blood related, but close in friendship. He was always one step ahead of her, knew exactly what she wanted for every occasion. To her he earned the titled “gold”. Of which she called him so. She was known as Silver, second to the thrown, second in the summer challenge courses and second in most everything she did. She never came in first, which often bothered her but never overly so. As long as she got sweets she was happy.
“ Skyeler…wash your hair don’t just sit there sulking.” His tone was a merry one, not upset not angry at her rudeness to do anything. She ignored him almost, sitting in the tub growling under her breath. He walks over to the tub and pulled his tunic off with little effort. It slipped from his hands and landed on the ground silently. He took the bar in his hands, a honeysuckle scented rye bar. He grabbed her by her arm pulling her to the edge of the tub.
“ Fine then my lady, under you go.” He pushed her under the water, the child going under with no fighting. She sat up gurgling suds and more as he stood her up and began to scrub her hair with the honeysuckle bar. Her groans were very obvious as she tried pulling away with no effect. His grasp was tight against her skin her struggles pretty much doing nothing but anger her further. He finished with the bar and it slipped from his hands into the water with a splash.
“ Why must I be clean? Mud feels so good in your toes.” Her words were spoken with a child’s whine, pleading to get out of the waters depths.
“ Because as princess of this castle you must at least act your part. You like to play right? If you can ‘act’ like a lady all of tonight I will reward you with the biggest pudding cake you’ve ever had.” His words obviously struck her like catching a bouquet of flowers at a wedding. A wide grin spread across her young face as she head him speak of desserts.
“ Promise?” She said with an excited voice.
“ I promise!” He said dunking her under to rinse her fine auburn hair.
He lifted her from the tub, water trailing across the floor as he swung her into a warm blanket to dry off. She hugged the blanket around her pulling it over her head to scrub her hair dry. His eyes fell over the dress laid out for her. It was an emerald green dress, puff at the hips with a high collar, puffy shoulders and lacey cuffs.
Her teeth chattered a bit, more because she forced them to trying to give Daniel a guilt trip for making her bath. He silently picked her up, carried her a few steps and plunked her down before a mirror and vanity. The top of the vanity was covered in treasures of all sorts. Lace bracelets, gold chains and necklaces, Jewelled emblems, pendants, rings and earrings. Bath salts and hair brushes also lingered its top, Daniels hand closing around one and lifting it to Skye’s hair.
“ Now sit still and don’t squiggle.” He said sharply, knowing very well the child tended to wiggle like a worm lost in a puddle. She seemed to sit as still as possible, watching her reflection. It seemed to take hours, the moments passing by like snails racing over the castle perimeters. Truthfully it was only a few minutes, her hair was less tangled than he expected, every time a knot was pulled she’d let out a tiny squeek and try to wriggle away, but every time he’d put a hand on her shoulder and she’d stop the moving. Getting her in a dress was a harder thing to do, she seemed to hate the thought of it.
“ NO!” She hissed, taking to a corner of the room and clinging there. He approached her, holding the dress in one hand, a grin hidden in the other to keep the child from seeing him enjoying it.
“ Come on, You have to be my lady tonight. Wont you be my little lady?” He said sweetly, his voice rather overly sugared.
“ Not in that!” She retorted, bolting for under his legs. Again he caught her, swinging her up into the air and over, catching her by the waist and holding her there. She wasn’t in the blanket anymore, instead he’d managed to clad her in bloomers and a chemise.
“ Don’t make me hang you on a rack and leave you there all night.” His words were sharp, and she knew all to well he would hang her up for a few hours.
“ FINE!” She screamed at him, a grumpy look over throwing her face.
It took a moment to get it over her wiggling form, but she sat up now coated in the emerald dress. She took a few steps, her nose wrinkled face askew with the fact that she was being forced to wear a dress. Her face lightened a bit, the feeling of freedom sweeping her legs. She remembered her place and put on her “ still mad” face. A knock at the door made her jump, promptly slipping on some water and falling onto her posterior.
“ Yes?” Daniel took to the door, cracking it open to see who it was.
“ May I have a word sire?”
It was their cousin SterlingThe man was quite striking when you first set eyes on him, golden blond hair, baby jaybird eyes. She couldn’t see what he was wearing, but raised a hand to wave to him. Sterling’s eyes caught the wave, and he returned it with a grim smile. She has always loved to spend time with him, joking and dancing. He had taught her to fence a bit. Something amiss hung in the air. Daniel excused himself from Skyelers presence and set to the next to room to speak with Sterling. It was a few moments before anything was heard. The silence very unnerving for the small princess. A loud crash from the next room caused her to let out a small scream. She moved to the wall, pressing an ear to it. She heard nothing at first, but then, the faint sounds of clashing metal met her ears. She made for the next room, slipping through the partially open door silently. Her dress almost caused her to trip, but she caught herself and met the scene before her with terrified eyes.
Swords play, a duel between her brother and her cousin. She remained silent, unable to move or even twitch, all autobility stricken from her. This wasn’t a mere sparring exercise, the swords clashing were in anger, each ringing horribly through the air. The thought of even breathing had left her, heart leaping as each man blocked or made a strike. Sterling made a demanding stroke for Daniels stomach, the connection of flesh and sword made a whipping noise, Daniel letting out a howl. Everything rushed back to her, movement, breathing, voice. She let out a scream, drawing the attention of both the swordsmen.
“ Tis your little sister Dearest Daniel.” Sterling’s words were dipped in loathing, his eyes fixing on the girl.
“ Skyeler get out here.” Daniel made a move towards her, as if to try and push her out of the door and to safety. Sterling acted on this, Making a deep and forceful jab for Daniels stomach. His eyes seemed to pop out of his head, the sword making its mark and exiting the other side. It flashed in her mind like slow motion, a scream escaping her lips. She was at his fallen side in a moment. Sterling hanging back with a grin of vicious victory spread on his usual kindly face. Blood was pooling around him already, the sword still strung through his form. Tears spilled her cheeks, burning with the pain of his wounds, even though it was her who cried. Tiny threads of fear began weaving themselves to her form, catching her arms and legs, ripping through her and gripping her very essence. It seemed to sew itself through her so tightly, it made moving ache, her voice choked by it.
“Da.. Daniell….”
“..My.. My lady ..” His voice seemed very faint, almost as if he had already given up. She pulled his head into her lap, the effort of it burning her soul with the brand of his limp form.
“Please no…” Her tears tipped form her chin, marking his face. He wasn’t crying, holding them back to prove himself even in the face of grimm reaper he would not cry.
“Do not.. cry My Lady, My Small one… I shall return to you…In your dreams…” His words were becoming more choked, as if he was forcing them, almost silently from his lips. His eyes were half closed, their deep warming gone, replaced with a stillness she had never seen in them. She gripped his hand, burying her face in it. He gently trailed his fingers across her cheek, resisting his painful yearning to shed tears.
“Do.. Do not let him take from you, what he has me… run…” A cough stopped his weakened voice, but he continued, pressing the words out with desperation.
“Please… My Queen always reme….” His words stopped, his hand suddenly lost all strength and grew heavy in her hands. His finger stopped caressing over his cheek, the threats of pain and fear yanking tightly, making her cry out.
“ Daniel No!” She flung herself forward on him, clutching his bloody clothing and whailing with sobs. Sterling didn’t make a move to stop her, he just watched. Grin faded from his face.
The blood stained her arms and hands, as she frantically yanked on his clothing the sword still stuck through him. Minutes of endless torment passed before Sterling spoke, his words almost regretting his actions.
“ Little one, silver, I am so sorry…. But I took what I deserved, the thrown. You are to young to lead, thus I shall do it for you… You WILL listen to me, You will do as I say and never tell anyone what happened tonight. You will say a messanger came to the room, took Daniel to the next and you found his body like this. My Name shan’t be mentioned or it will mean even more pain for you, and your brother Lance.” He hissed his words at her, but she didn’t seem to be listening. Her mind was clouded with the thoughts that she’d never be hugged by him again, never be able to hear him wish her goodnight, never be able to laugh and play with him. Her tears burned her face even more now, her eyes staring at the sword that marked him dead.
“ I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!” She flung herself forward, pulling a few times on the sword to get it free of his stomach. Sterling didn’t seem to worried, his arms crossed his black cape sweeping before him. She held it up, its weight very difficult to hold in her tiny hands.
“ I hate you! How could you! We accepted you as family, treated you like blood! And you kill him in return!” She charged forward, the sword weighing her heavily. Sterling’s foot struck out at her feet, knocking her down and causing her to loose her weapon.
“ I can deal with Lance as I did with Daniel if you wish, tis your choice. How you act tonight will be the definer of Lance’s fate.”
What happened from then on will always be a blur to her, how she found the strength to carry on through the night she will never know. She did however, play her role perfectly, told Sterling’s story to everyone. That night at what should have been Daniels carination he was crowned king, her heart torn in two that she couldn’t do a thing to stop him. Sterling didn’t have the girl killed off though, instead her treated her like he would treat his own little sister. She didn’t return the kindness, she always cast him evil child’s glares, hating every bit of the man that had stripped away her pride. She received an owl one night, from Lance. It told her to go along with what ever Sterling wished, to become what he wanted of her. She was to slip all information to them through owl messages, to be their spy until she thought she should leave. That lasted almost two and a half years. She slipped messages to them secretly, delivering Sterling’s war plans to the hands of the enime, what had become known as “ The Rebellion”. The rebellion was against Sterling’s rule. Sterling’s blood lust for war had caused much pain to spread through the country. His ruthless guards did as they pleased, raping and stealing, not caring for the peasant folk.
Alexander James, once her greatest friend, became her first betrayer. He was one of Sterling’s guards, also, a rebellion member. He Told Sterling of Skyeler’s acts, how she was delivering message and she was confronted with it. Her heart was cold by now, hating the palace and every bit of Sterling’s rule. She easily lied and denied it, Sterling so bent on earning forgiveness from her, believing her lies. That night she disappeared from his service. Only to resurface years later, not as an princess, but as a child , trying to reclaim the birth right she swore to protect.
[
Sign my GuestBook ] - [ Read my GuestBook
]
[ GuestBook by TheGuestBook.com ]
|
|
|
| |