Two Thousand Years

by M. Dalto

  “Apparently. Did it make you feel any better?”

  “Absolutely!” She smiled.

  He chuckled.

  She returned to her meal, offering him a pear-like fruit that he declined with a wave of his hand. He again closed his eyes, but Alex was nowhere near ready to cease her interrogation.

  “What are we going to do now?”

  “Now we shall live in perfect harmony while my brother rots in a cell,” he responded while his eyes remained closed.

  “You know you can’t do that.”

  “Can’t I? I am the Crown Prince after all.”

  She glared at him, knowing well he couldn’t see her, but now that she had a moment to reflect, she discovered something was gnawing at her.

  “Do you think it was too easy?”

  He opened his eyes and met her gaze. “You brought him back here. Do you think that was an easy task?”

  She shook her head. “That’s not what I meant. It was almost like he was waiting for me, as if he knew I was coming, looking for a way inside. They never bothered to question me, or searched me, or...shit.”

  “What?” he leaned up on his elbow.

  “Nothing,” she grumbled as she glanced around the room. “I’m just remembering my knife. I had it in my hand when we went through the Key.”

  “Maybe someone gathered it up in all of the confusion,” he consoled her as he lay back down, again closing his eyes. “We can inquire later on.”

  Despite her husband’s obvious attempt at sleep, she was no longer in the mood for further idleness. Moving the food tray aside, she stood slowly and soon felt as though she put on ten pounds overnight.

  “What are your plans for the day?” he asked, half-asleep.

  “Me? Oh, I’m going to visit the prisoner.”

  Treyan’s eyes shot open as he leaned up into a sitting position. “Alex, I was just down there! Being anywhere near him is only going to make you upset! It’s not worth it.”

  “I need to talk to him. Something about this still doesn’t feel right.”

  “You need to let it go. He’s here now, and he’s not going anywhere. We’ve won.”

  She shook her head. “No, there’s something else. Something more going on than he’s telling us.”

  “As you wish, Empress,” he conceded as he lay back down. “I, on the other hand, am going to take this moment of silence to relax for the first time in a long time.”

  “Then you do just that. I'll make sure I'm quiet when I return.” She leaned over the bed and gave him a kiss before preparing herself for her visit to the dungeon.

  The dungeon cells lined the walls of the hallway that led towards the palace's infirmary. Being within the lowest depths of the palace, it seemed darker than she remembered them, or perhaps it was only her mind playing tricks. She brought a candle with her to help guide once the sconces burned themselves out for the night.

  They had put him within the first cell closest to the stairway; she believed it was also the smallest.

  Reylor lay on his back upon the wooden slab meant to be a bed, his hands locked behind his head while he rested on them. He was looking up into the darkness of the cell as she approached, and only gave her a glance as she came into view.

  “Good evening, Empress.” He smirked. “To what do I deserve this honor?”

  “Do you confess to the crimes you have committed against the Empire?” she queried, her voice straining to remain confident.

  He laughed. “Nice try, Empress, but your husband wasted his day trying the same tactics. Neither of you will receive the satisfaction of a confession from me.”

  She stared at him through the bars. “Have you not even the smallest sliver of remorse?”

  “I regret nothing, Empress.” He turned to look at her, his red eyes glowing in her candlelight. “Not one thing have I done that I would not do again.”

  Her patience was wearing thin. “You'll die here, you know.”

  “You believe that, don't you?” He swung his legs down and sat up to face her. “Let me clue you in on a secret. He may talk like someone who wants vengeance, but Treyan will never kill me. It's not within our code.”

  “And what code do you have?” Alex scoffed. “You murdered Mallia!”

  “The mistress?” He paused for a moment. “Yes, that was an unfortunate turn of events, but I did not kill her.”

  “And now you're going to lie on top of everything else?”

  He shrugged. “Suit yourself, Empress. You'll soon see.”

  “Soon, you'll be dead! You'll be tried, and I'll see you hanged myself.”

  “Better do it soon, then.”

  “What makes you so confident?” She clenched her fists at her sides, feeling her blood pressure begin to rise.

  “Haven't you figured it out yet?”

  “Figured out what?”

  He stood and motioned to the cell around him. “I'm exactly where I want to be.”

  She glared at him.

  “Alexstrayna, your children will be arriving very soon, and I told you I would be there when they were born. Why would I dare leave now?”

  She stepped away from the cell, suddenly feeling very protective of herself and her unborn children. She wrapped her arms around herself, a chill working through her.

  “This was your plan all along, wasn't it? You knew I was coming to bring you back.”

  He merely leered at her sudden realization.

  She charged the cell, her hands grasping the bars until the knuckles turned white, the blood running down her fingers as her wound reopened.

  “I'll see you die before you ever come near my children!”

  “Is that what the Annals say?” he mocked as he approached the bars, his face lowered to meet her eye-to–eye. “For all you know, Alexstrayna, those babies could very well belong to me as much as they are Treyan’s, which makes you mine as well, and there is nothing you or your Prince can do to change that.”

  “You never give up, do you?”

  “No, Empress. I'm the one who is winning, why would I give up now?”

  She ground her teeth as her heart pounded against her ribcage. Her hand throbbed and her abdomen ached. After all he had put her through, after everything she had seen, she would not allow him to see her rage. In a haste, she blew out her candle and turned to walk away, refusing to waste on him anymore of her time.

  “Alexstrayna?”

  “What?” she screamed, turning to him in a fiery rage.

  He smiled at her ferocity. “Now that I think about it, you never did thank me for my wedding present.”

  All she could hear was his maniacal laughter as it echoed behind her while she ran up the stairs and as far away from him as possible.

  Even Treyan couldn’t calm her pacing once she returned to their room.

  Alex entered in such a fury that he was jostled from a sleep so deep, he grabbed his sword as though the palace was under attack.

  “We need to do something about him, and soon. He has something planned, I know it.”

  “Alex, you have to relax,” he urged as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

  “He said he’s exactly where he wants to be…for what? Who says something like that while they’re locked in a dungeon cell?”

  “My brother?”

  “Case in point.”

  Treyan walked to her and stood within her path, hoping to slow down her pacing. “Alex, please.”

  His appearance before her seemed to surprise her, and it quickly snapped her out of her pacing rage.

  “I told you not to go down there exactly for this reason. It’s not good for you. Any of you.” His hands gently went to her belly.

  “Treyan, something is going to happen. Something big, and something soon.”

  “Well, I can tell you one thing that is definitely going to happen.”

  She let her hands drop down to meet his. “I suppose at least one thing is inevitable.”

  He made sure he caught her eye. “How are you
feeling?”

  “Fat? Like I’m driving a wide load? I don’t know…it seems like a lot has happened in a very short amount of time.” She let out a sigh. “Do you think it will be soon?”

  “Maybe?” he shrugged. “Your body could be catching up for the time the Annals lost, or…”

  “Or?”

  “Or the next Empress is close to being born.”

  That opened her eyes. “How? What makes you think so?”

  He shrugged slightly. “I’m just saying it’s possible. The birth of our children happens in correlation with the birth of the next Queen Empress. It’s the cycle the Prophecy demands to keep the Empire prosperous. At least that’s what the Annals tells us.”

  She had to sit down as the weight of her realization fell upon her.

  Treyan helped her to the bench at the foot of her bed and sat beside her. He couldn’t help but laugh. “Don’t tell me you forgot you were pregnant?”

  “It was hard not to, but I will admit the actuality of it hadn’t been at the forefront of my mind as of late.”

  Treyan nodded.

  Alex looked down at her belly, rubbing the growing bump affectionately, knowing that any day now her children would be born, but her mind quickly betrayed her, and the rubbing stopped as she began to consider the dark, negative side of reality.

  She looked to Treyan as the blood drained from her cheeks.

  “What if…?”

  “Shh…” He reached out and brought her to him, wrapping her in his arms tight as though he anticipated her bout of internal despair. “We’re not going to speak about it. They are our children, and that will never be challenged. We will love them as our own because they are our own. We will raise them as we should, and no one will keep us from that. Do you understand?”

  She nodded into his shoulder and let him hold her for as long as it took to convince her that everything was going to be fine.

  46

  Treyan wasn’t too far off.

  A week later, news came from the Councillor that the birth of the next Queen Empress would soon be upon then, and preparations for her arrival would need to take place.

  When asked how he knew, all he was able to tell her was that the Annals had told him, and they could not question the magic of the Prophecy.

  They prepared for the birth of an unknown child within the Otherrealm, and one of her sons would need to find her while the other remained behind keeping the Empire safe for their return.

  She had to wonder what part Alex and Treyan would have in that.

  The day of the ceremony had grown warm as Alex stepped onto the balcony. While Treyan remained with the Councillor, assisting with the necessary final preparations, she dressed herself in one of her finest gowns with a maternity cut, the silver material flowing about her like mercury as the sun sparkled on its inlaid gemstones. She had curled her hair and piled it atop her head, making sure to place the crown of the Empress just right upon her head. With matching earrings, necklace and bracelet, she was the vision of perfection, at least by the Empire’s standards.

  The gardens below were an exceptionally lush green, and she could smell the blooming roses from where she stood. She closed her eyes and soaked in the heat from the suns, savoring the moment as if it could be her last.

  She wondered if the army within the Borderlands felt it too.

  In the distance, beyond the tree line, they knew Reylor’s forces were gathering. Without their lord, the mages were restless, and the minions without leadership were carelessly entering the Empire’s lands, anxious for the opportunity to retrieve their leader.

  That time would never come.

  The victory was hers.

  She promised Treyan the sentencing would be dealt as soon as the new Empress was born. Before then, preparation for the birth of the twins would be their top priority, and that time was close.

  “Empress?” a voice beckoned from behind her. She glanced over her shoulder from her place on the balcony to see the Councillor standing within the entryway. “It’s time.”

  “Just a moment,” she responded, a slight smile upon to her face as she accepted whatever Fate had in store. Giving her Empire one last acknowledgement, she swept her skirts around and returned through the doors from whence she came.

  Bria waiting for her inside and closed the terrace doors behind her with a soft click.

  The Councillor took her arm and led her to his chambers, where they would watch the new Empress’ arrival through a viewing orb. Treyan was already there, waiting by the door, and took her arm upon their entrance.

  She smiled at him, noticing that he, too, was in his ceremonial best.

  “You look amazing, Empress,” he whispered into her ear as he led her to her seat.

  “As do you, my Prince” she purred. “Though I don’t know why there’s so much ceremony when it’s just us.”

  “Who needs an excuse to dress up every once in a while?”

  They shared a chaste kiss before taking to their seats, knowing the fun and games could be saved for afterwards.

  Before them, the orb was already a swirl of colors and light. Alex’s eyes fell upon it in eager anticipation, watching intently, afraid of missing a moment, and she wondered if this was how Saratanya felt the day she, herself, was born.

  The room fell silent as the scene within the orb came into focus, and she felt as though she needed to strain her eyes and crane her neck to catch a glimpse of the chaos surrounding the birth of the successor to the Empire.

  There she was: brand new, pink and crying, and perfect.

  Something sparked in Alex’s psyche, however, and she leaned up for a closer look.

  Something wasn’t right.

  Upon a more in-depth inspection of the heiress to the Empire, the audience soon discovered the newborn was not a female at all.

  It was a boy.

  The new Empress was an Emperor.

  “How can this be?” the Councillor exclaimed in disbelief, his shock evident in his tone.

  Alex only screamed in response.

  Within her abdomen throbbed the most excruciating ache she had ever felt. Doubling over in her chair, she did all she could to keep from falling out of it. From her knees to her shoulders, every inch of her being shuddered in agonizing pain. She had no strength to move herself but didn’t dare even if she could.

  Treyan was by her side the moment she screamed, but it wasn’t until he gasped in horror that her fears were confirmed.

  Something was wrong, she knew it the moment the first contraction hit, and as she looked down to the puddle of blood that began to seep through her dress, then panic began to sink in as another wave of agony fell upon her and she cried out in anguish.

  47

  Treyan carried Alex back to their room while her body convulsed with each contraction. Her screams rang throughout the palace, and she didn’t care who heard her. Bria helped her out of her dress and into a more suitable nightgown while the Councillor summoned the healer to assist in the inevitable delivery. The plans for Alex to deliver in her room rather than the infirmary when the time came had been previously made, so the supplies necessary were already stashed within the room. The idea behind it was less Reylor knew, the better. As it was, her screams would be notice enough; he didn’t need to know of something potentially wrong.

  She was brought to her bed and propped up with pillows to help relieve the pain as spare blankets were strewn around her in preparation for what was to come. She tried her hardest to breathe, but the world around her was seeped in chaos and she did all she could to keep from biting off her own tongue.

  She knew the babies were coming, and they were coming fast. Yet, things were not as they should have been. She sensed the magic there.

  This was Reylor’s doing.

  And it was going to kill her from the inside out.

  She rendered herself hoarse as she screamed for Treyan. Having been in the hall to instruct the guards on duty as to their orders, he ran into the room
and was by her side in an instant, but she could tell by the look on his face that the situation was taking a turn for the worse.

  Bria and the healer alternated between placing cool cloths on her head to keep her fever down and wrapping her in blankets to keep out the chill, but the contractions kept coming, and she was still losing blood.

  Treyan stayed with her, holding her hands as he tried to keep her breathing, but as the hours passed the Councillor required his attention and the two walked from the room. She didn’t know how long he was gone. Every second felt like a lifetime. But when he returned to her side, the look in his eyes told her the outlook was not positive.

  “Alex,” he whispered, his voice soft, but she could hear the fear beneath it. “The twins cannot be born on their own. They are going to need assistance, for their well-being and…” he paused and swallowed. “And yours.”

  Another searing contraction coursed through her, and she gripped Treyan’s hands tight while her body writhed.

  “You need…to get…them out…” she gasped through her deep breaths.

  “We have no anesthesia, but I can put you to sleep. There is no guarantee it will work, or that you’ll…” he couldn’t finish the sentence, but Alex knew.

  She had always known.

  With a nod they quickly went to work.

  Treyan stayed close, holding her against him while the Councillor and the mistress assisted the healer with the birthing preparations.

  Soon, the Councillor approached Treyan, placing a hand on his shoulder as he quietly nodded. Alex could feel Treyan’s body tense, but she found herself more than ready to proceed.

  Treyan leaned over and gave her a kiss on the lips and then rested on her forehead, where he remained while he chanted quietly.

  Alex felt herself drift away slowly, finally at peace while the hours of distress began to wash away.

  Until the cold, harsh, searing torment of the healer’s knife tore into her abdomen, sending her subconscious into an endless pit of anguish and desolation.