But bloodshed is what I want…and I always get what I want. Noelle smiled at his speech, and scanned the group again. Tobias had unknowingly brought a lot of men to meet their deaths. They all stared at her with undisguised contempt and she longed to wipe the look off their faces.
“You thought I was joking when I said I would make you pay, didn’t you?” She grinned. She wanted to make sure they were aware of when they’d signed their death warrants. “I will make you pay for your actions.” She said spitefully and proceeded to turn around.
“Noelle. We have you beat. Why don’t you just give up? A quality of a good ruler is to admit defeat. If you understood that, you would have surrendered by now.”
She stopped in her tracks and scoffed. “You really think you came here to win, didn’t you?” Noelle erupted into a fit of maniacal laughter, and as soon as she stopped, she stared daggers at the group of men who were gathered at the foot of the palace steps. “You will find that is not the case.” When she motioned to her side, Damien’s arrival created a great amount of shock that she had hoped to evoke. With another signal from the princess, Damien jumped off the balcony and landed more than fourteen feet below.
Sir Tobias Eaton’s eyes widened in shock, to match the others who shuffled where they stood and even their horses whinnied uncomfortably. At the presence of the woodsman, the horses had been completely spooked as their riders struggled to keep them under control.
Damien’s eyes glowed a brilliant red as he regarded the men silently. His sword was placed tip down onto the ground and he rested his hand on the hilt.
Tobias stared at the demon in front of him and gulped, an attempt at getting his nerves under control. He’d made terrible mistake. He wiped his brow and cast a glance at his fellow house heads who looked even more scared than he did. They seemed ready to run away at any moment. He grasped for something to say, to strike a nerve with Noelle. Guilt. “Princess, you employ the services of a demon? You dare tarnish your father’s image and good name so soon?”
“You sound scared, sire.” She mocked him with a smile.
“I’m not scared, I’m just cautious. There is a reason this dark magic was outlawed. It corrupts. It poisons the user steadily and continuously, little by little. Please. Send this creature away and we can speak.” Tobias looked over at his fellow heads and they nodded in agreement.
“You all deserve to die for attempting to take away my throne!” Noelle exclaimed.
Once again, Tobias looked at the demonic creature. He had come too far to give up now. If he walked away, he would be the laughing stock of the kingdom. He felt his initial confidence spike back up and he tore his gaze away from the creature and returned it to the princess. “You forget, princess that I have with me a total of 300 men. All you have is one demon. I can see that your stubbornness has pushed you into stupidity, so I will say this one last time. Our demand still stands: Surrender or you will be removed by force. Your choice.”
Princess Noelle smiled at the man’s pathetic attempt at bravado. She had Damien present to assist her, but there was something else she had on hand that was sure to surprise them. She suddenly began murmuring several words under her breath, which concluded with her screaming out a final incantation that no one recognised. Suddenly, the ground around the palace began to tremble, and one by one out of the ground erupted seven creatures that struck fear in the heart of every man who stood within the palace walls. Noelle wore a triumphant smile as she unveiled her secret weapons.
The seven goblins she had conjured were known to most who did, as the Seven Deadly Sins, or the Sinty. They were ruthless, and existed solely for carnage and chaos. Noelle could sense that they were eager to fulfil their purpose.
“Nothing to say?” Noelle asked.
Tobias watched in silent horror as the goblins surrounded them.
Damien still hadn’t moved.
“Well, I have something to say.” Noelle grinned. “I’ll remain in this palace as its sole patron and ruler of Tibethia. As for you, I will keep the oath I swore to you.” She glared viciously into the pleading eyes of Tobias and the other family heads. They’re so pathetic. With one smooth gesture, she gave her final command before walking back into the throne room. “Kill them.”
The screams that followed would forever haunt the dreams of most inhabitants of the kingdom.
Present time. Miles away from Tibethia. Along the coasts.
* * *
The air tasted of salt and seagulls flew around, landing and taking off in random patterns. The port was alive and there was a general buzz of activity as the seamen went about their various activities.
Phillip and Esther Anna had gotten up early and immediately prepared to begin the journey, wanting to put as much distance between themselves and Tibethia as possible. The journey to find the port had been less than smooth and they’d had to go around on a longer path to get to the coast without being detected. They’d run into a couple of guards at a point, and had needed to double back and take the long way around.
Anah Carly had come to Esther Anna to inform her that the leading families were making a move against Princess Noelle. Esther Anna and Phillip were irked by the nerve of it all. The king was barely two weeks in the grave and they were already shambling over the throne. While the queen knew it was part of the norms and traditions, it didn’t take long for them before proceeding to act like barbarians. Greed like that irked the prince and it was hard for him to sympathize for them. Though it did look promising, that this might keep the princess occupied for a while.
Esther Anna wished there was some way she could reach out and warn them. Noelle LaChance could be stopped and the kingdom would have been saved from a truly terrible fate.
Anah Carly had vanished soon after and they’d set off on their journey.
The pair hid behind an abandoned boat and watched for a while, making sure there were no guards waiting for them at the port. They scanned the area until they were confident that they were not in any way walking into a trap.
Prince Phillip stepped out of hiding and she followed behind him, making sure to keep her head down as per his instructions.
They walked up to the first man they saw, and informed him that they needed a ship. He asked for their requirements, though it was written on his face that given the opportunity, he may rob them of their last penny. It wasn’t until he eyed the Prince’s sword that he seemed to change his mind. He directed them to another man who informed them that he had rented out the last ship he had that fit their requirements that morning. He proceeded to offer them a couple of other vessels, but they refused. Prince Phillip was not a very accomplished seaman and was partial to a specific type of ship. They needed one that was light and fast and could manoeuvre the terrible waters with relative ease. He didn’t intend to man the ship himself, but he needed the vessel any way in the case where he was forced to take the helm.
They spoke with several other before giving up, and as they grew tired, they moved to a small section of the port where food was sold. Phillip purchased their meals, which mostly consisted of fish, and they sat down to rest and enjoy them.
Esther Anna chewed silently, and thought about the situation back at the palace. She was sure that the confrontation had already taken place. She only hoped that the leading families got out in one piece, but had a bad feeling that they were subjected to evil beyond their wildest imagination. By the end of the day, the people’s eyes will have opened to the true nature of the princess. The Lamp of Light would give them an edge when they found it, but the only thing in their way so far was the fact that they could not obtain a ship to set sail.
“It’s good,” Prince Phillip said, breaking into her thoughts.
The queen nodded absently. She had been eating for a while, but not really tasting the food. She was just going through the motions, but her mind was too busy assessing other things. She took another bite and felt the rich flavour of the meal and closed her eyes with a nod. It had been a while s
ince she’d tasted food as good as this. “Yeah, it is.”
“Are you worried we won’t get a boat?” The prince asked.
The queen looked up at him with wide eyes. It was as if he could read her mind, and she thought that perhaps getting her memories had given him some sort of insight into her thought process, and he now knew how her mind worked. It was amazing and she appreciated not having to say things while he sorted the problem on his own. She nodded slowly.
“Don’t be. Rest assured, we’re going to get a vessel and get out of here in one piece.” Phillip smiled and took a swig of his drink, some wine which was a little harder on his palate than he was used to. He offered her some too, to help with her light-headedness. As a fairy, his metabolism was way stronger and he could process copious amounts of alcohol without seeing anything but minimal effects.
Once he was done with his meal, he sat back to enjoy the wine.
Meanwhile, Esther Anna struggled to get through half of her plate. The food tasted good, and she was very hungry, but she was having trouble concentrating on the food. As she ate, her free hand idly fiddled with the necklace around her neck as she thought about the unusual encounters with the men this morning. After doing the best that she could, Esther Anna pushed the plate aside, unable to continue with the meal. She sat back and took a sip of her drink. She frowned as it struck the back of her throat, and she felt a heat in her chest. The affects were already getting to her so she put it down and brought her eyes back out to the sea.
Esther Anna pondered what wonders awaited them when they would finally set sail. She watched the waves lazily roll about. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that Prince Phillip was equally taken by the waters. It dawned on her that Phillip had led the way since they emerged through the lake at Edmond’s Pass, and it seemed that he was so well-versed with the human world. “Have you been here before?” She asked.
Phillip turned to look at her, and after a moment, he nodded with a deep sigh. “I have.”
“Well…I believed the fairies didn’t venture out too much from your kingdom.” Esther Anna was careful with her words but she watched his facial expressions.
His face was almost unreadable until he laughed. “Oh, we venture out. A lot, actually, for reconnaissance and things like that. We may not interfere with certain affairs or be disturbed ourselves, but we like to be aware of potential threats. There are a lot of people who would do anything to find Fandrela since our magic is one of the strongest in the world. If it were turned towards evil, no one knows how much damage can be done. Its best kept a secret and contained. Power corrupts. Just look at the Princess Noelle.”
Esther Anna nodded in agreement. “Was there ever a time when your existence was little more than myth or speculation?”
He hesitated a bit before answering. That information wasn’t made available to anyone, especially not a human, but Phillip could make an exception for the queen. “Well. Yes, I guess, but that was a very long time ago. The other kingdoms were terrible to our kind, and we just decided to keep to ourselves rather than being manipulated and drawn into one battle after the other in the name of being allies. We decided to pick our own battles. I’m not saying we were better than the rest, no, we had our problems too, but it could not just compare to what some of those other kingdoms were up to. We got eventually faded into obscurity. The rest of the world simply thought we’d died out, but we thrived, just separate from the human realm.”
Esther Anna thought over his words for a while, as it was truly an interesting story. She wondered what being born in a world where everyone knew that fairies were real would have felt like. It would have probably felt normal, but to her, right now it seemed purely magical. She felt the excitement bubble in her chest as she envisioned various scenarios, visiting the fairy kingdom when she liked, having fairy friends. It would have been an amazing world if they were an active part of it as she grew up.
“Humans are the ones who drove you into seclusion?” Esther Anna kept her eyes low.
Phillip threw back his head in laughter.
The queen looked at him sharply. Did he find something funny?
“Oh, my dear, you are so adorably naïve. What I would give to see the world through your eyes,” Once his laughter subsided, he looked over and saw that she was frowning. “I’m sorry, that was insensitive. There are other kingdoms aside from the ones inhabited by humans, Esther.”
He was right. There was obviously a lot she didn’t know about the world. She wondered if those kingdoms had all stopped interfering as well, but it would be a big addition to her cause if she could get help from them. She turned to Prince Phillip. Esther Anna felt a lot safer with him around, and she didn’t think she would get anyone else as dedicated to the mission to stand by her side.
“Okay. Rest time over. We still haven’t asked them over there.” He said, pointing to the far west of the seaport side. There were men there who seemed idle along with a scattering of ships to select from.
She got up and stretched out, but she felt slightly bloated, though it was only minor discomfort.
The sound of an approaching ship caught her attention and she turned and saw a majestic ship approach the harbour. Esther Anna remembered her father’s ships. A lot of them had been sold when the kingdom had been in economic trouble, but she knew that with would have done what he could to procure more.
As they walked over to the men, Phillip caught sight of the first man they’d spoken two talking to the third. He smiled, in no time, the story of the two strangers searching for a specific boat and ready to pay in cash would have spread.
Things were going as planned.
Present time. Kingdom of Tibethia. Castle grounds.
* * *
Noelle sat on the throne. She relished in the screams of the men who had sought to take the palace away from her, and was certain they wouldn’t see her as an innocent little girl anymore. As the screams rent the air, she smiled, and relaxed in her throne, feeling more accomplished than she had felt in a long time. The thrill of watching the confidence die out of the eyes of Tobias Eaton made her feel better than she had felt in a long time and she loved the feeling.
The air was choked up with dust by the time the screams finally ended. The goblins had their orders and had annihilated the men that had accompanied the heads of the families as they were reserved for a ghastlier fate.
Soon enough, Damien appeared to give his report. He was instrumental to her final show of strength. He bowed as he relayed to her that the other members of the leading families had been gathered in front of the palace. The screams died down and the heads of the families stared in horror as their families were carted in, tied up and afraid. They were starting to realise that she more than intended to do what she had threatened and there would be no stopping her.
She smiled at the report and gave him leave. He bowed and sheathed his sword. The blade’s thirst for blood had been temporarily sated but he knew that very soon, it would hunger for more. Its need and want was insatiable. He bowed one last time and vanished, off to the forest to resume his watch. He had been away from his post for longer than he intended after all.
Alone now, Princess Noelle relished the silence. The only sound that could be heard was the uncomfortable whinny of horses who had lost their riders and rode aimlessly around the palace. She would have them gathered up later.
She knew the people were starting to gather, but she was sure that the sight of the sinty guarding the prisoners of the recently concluded war would keep them at bay. They wouldn’t dare come close to creatures such as that. They were only now, just beginning to realise that she was way more than just an innocent princess who was being bullied.
She loved being underestimated, but she knew that from henceforth, that would no longer be the case. She had shown her true strength. Thrown her strength around and it would come with consequences of its own. She resigned herself to crossing that bridge when she got to it. For now, she had a people to address, a
nd an execution to conduct.
Noelle got up slowly and walked outside onto the balcony. A small, scared murmur had picked up amongst the people. They looked up fearfully as she approached, seeing her in a totally new light. Even the bravest of them who stood at the forefront could not meet with her eyes.
A few metres in front of the crowd of people knelt the heads of the leading families. To the right were the families, tied up like criminals, the wives and children who wriggled and struggled against their binds.
The princess breathed in deeply. She had won. She read absolute fear in the eyes of many of the people who looked up at her and she loved it. There would be no stopping her now. She had succeeded in establishing herself as the ultimate power in the kingdom, singlehandedly taking on the leading families with their seemingly unending resources and coming out victorious. They knew who their leader was, there was no denying that.
They had watched as the Seven Deadly Sins along with Damien had torn through their small army as if they had been a crown of tied up scarecrows. The fear of not knowing what she planned to do now that she had them all, coupled with the knowledge of what she could do made for a potent mix of panic in which she now relished.
“Sir Tobias Eaton, what has become of your army?”
The man looked like he was about to drop dead before her and the goblin Wrath stood beside him, seething and frothing at the mouth as it waved its weapon.
“P-Please, your highness—” He started but was interrupted by her piercing laughter that caused him to shudder.
“Sir Tobias, is that you talking or your last-born son? What has become of your voice?”
The family head closest to Tobias began to weep. His family, a short distance away began to cry as well. Soon enough, the whole lot was in tears.
She looked at them and shook her head. They were all so pathetic and she disliked the entire lot even more. Why could they not take their punishment with the same bravery with which they had approached her and asked her to step down? She already knew the answer. It hadn’t taken any bravery at all to walk up to her and ask her to step down. All it had taken was greed and the fact that they didn’t think she could do anything.
Magic and Shadows: A Collection of YA Fantasy and Paranormal Romances Page 108