by Jade Royal
“The king has a right to rule the kingdom as he sees fit,” Kapono gritted. He was giving every weak excuse that would make it seem justifiable to not return to Emberdom. How could he return there? He knew the moment he did, the memories would completely flood back to him, crippling him with even more pain. Not only that, but he was wearing clothing from head to toe. No one outside of Emberdom questioned him, even though it was unnatural to be seen with so much clothing on. if he entered Emberdom dressed like he was, the news would spread like wildfire. And forget showing up in Emberdom without the disguise. There was no law banishing him from Emberdom but if the king new he was around and felt threatened he could pass an immediate law for Kapono’s capture. How could Kapono ever show his face after the things he’d done? Hell, maybe the townspeople wouldn’t need the king’s orders to riot against him. After seeing the bodies of lifeless women and children, he knew there was no forgiveness for his crimes.
“You know that’s not true. There are people that need you.” Neva peered at him. Her eyes roamed his entire body before landing directly on his right pectoral. As if his presence didn’t frighten her one bit, she began coming towards him.
“Don’t,” Kapono tried to warn her. Cut off from civilization the way he was, he’d lacked physical touch of anyone. Truthfully, he wasn’t sure he could handle being touched. What would Wrath want him to do if someone touched him? Grab onto them and squeeze tightly to cause pain? Twist their arm? Draw their blood?
“Neva—” Kapono took a step back but Neva didn’t stop. She was looking at his chest as if she could see beneath his clothing. Neva placed her hand, palm down, on his pectoral. Kapono’s body stiffened. The touch of a female that was not Ashbel felt wrong. But he didn’t realize how much he missed the touch of any other being until she placed her hand on him. There they both stood, standing in front of each other quietly.
She’s touching us Kapono. I don’t like it. Tear her hand away and push her back. We’re Wrath. We don’t like getting touched. Kapono clenched his fists, choosing to ignore the voice in his head. He was frozen in place. The spot where Neva had placed her hand was a special. What made her touch him there? In that specific spot?
“Her soul yearns for you. If you don’t see a reason to go to Emberdom for any other reason, at least consider going for her.”
“Your power is making you see and feel things that aren’t there,” Kapono whispered. His heart began to ache as tears threatened to sputter from his eyes.
“I don’t understand what you mean,” she said, looking up at him.
“Going to Emberdom will do nothing for her. I was too late the first time. And so, what? I should take back the kingdom in her honor? That will do nothing but remind me of the failure I was for not saving her in the first place. There’s no use in going back to that godforsaken place but pain,” Kapono grunted. Neva shook her head. She pulled her hand from his chest and clutched her temples.
“My powers work just fine, and they’re real. I know what I feel. Her soul yearns for you. And if you don’t go to Emberdom she’s going to be lost to you forever. The woman with the bright orange hair.” Neva backpedaled, creating a large distance between them.
“Everyone in Emberdom needs a savior. The king will slowly ruin this land.” Neva’s last words to him were to hopefully hammer it home that he had power that he needn’t forget he had.
“What does that mean?” Kapono whispered as Neva began walking away. Lost to him forever? Neva didn’t wait around to answer his question. Kapono’s head began to pound, Wrath becoming irritated by the interaction with the woman. Kapono didn’t know what to make of the words she’d spoken, but he knew one thing for sure. Going to Emberdom was too difficult. It was out of the question. He realized for the first time that Ashbel’s soul might be at unrest because of what he’d done and how viciously she had died. But what would going to Emberdom fix? Was Neva trying to tell him that Ashbel was wondering around Emberdom as a spirit; aimlessly and lost? If he in fact did lose her, where would she go? Why wasn’t her spirit finding peace? Kapono was of dragon blood. He didn’t deal in magic or the afterlife. He didn’t know how the answer to rescue a troubled soul. Kapono just hated the fact that it was his sweet Ashbel that was troubled and at unrest. She deserved peace more than anyone. Kapono just didn’t know how he was supposed to give it to her.
“ASHBEL!” Mage Bourbon’s roar shook the entire castle. Ashbel rolled her eyes and slowly scooted down from her bed. Her bedroom in the servant’s quarters was small but it was comfortable. Mage thought that giving her a small room with bare essentials would have made Ashbel miserable, but she actually loved it. When you’d lost as much as she had lost, material things held no weight. As she walked by the mirror in her bedroom, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the dim scar at her abdomen. It broke her heart every time she saw it. If not for Mage, she would have had a sweet little boy in her arms already, and married to a king who would love her beyond physical depts. Instead, Ashbel was serving as Mage’s personal slave like some sick joke.
“Where are you Kapono?” Ashbel whispered as she left the coziness of her bedroom. Ever since Firya told her that she’d stumbled upon a man with violet eyes, Ashbel had gotten her hopes up. Every day she thought that she would receive word from Firya with exciting news that Kapono was waiting for her. No word ever came. After the first year passed, Ashbel was slightly deflated but she held onto hope. Another year has passed and she wasn’t sure how long she could remain hopeful. Mage was beginning to catch onto her plans of helping the last of her clan mates escape, and he was beginning to trample on her. She could barely take a bath without him bawling her name.
Even though Mage was bawling out her name, Ashbel didn’t rush. She would never rush for a man like him. One day, she would have his blood on her hands and that would be the best day in her damn life.
“Yes?” Ashbel asked, when she pushed open the heavy oak double doors that led to his chamber room.
“Where have you been? Did you not hear my call?”
“I was resting. Which I am entitled to. My schedule does not start until five in the afternoon after my morning chores and I make lunch. I was in no hurry to answer your call seen as I am not on duty,” Ashbel stated calmly.
“Is that so? Well how about this? You will work all day and all night, whenever I need you! No breaks unless I permit it!” Mage glared at her, anticipating the horror in her face from what he’d just decreed, or even for her to beg him to change his mind. Instead, Ashbel just kept her hands clasped behind her back and smiled.
“If that is what the king wishes,” she shrugged.
“You are so irritating,” Mage growled. He shot a single flame of yellow fire are her, resorting to abuse just to get a reaction out of her. Two years ago, that may have worked. But today, Ashbel closed her fist around the yellow flame and extinguished it with her orange flames.
“What is it that you need?” she asked casually as if he hadn’t just launched a flame at her.
“Prepare my clothing so I can appear in front of the royal court. Punishments must be doled out this day.”
“Punishments for what?” Ashbel asked.
“Disobeying the at work order. Several females have dissented from their duties to the kingdom and I will not let that slide by easily.”
“Duties?”
“Everyone in the kingdom is being assigned work roles. Whether they like it or not, they must obey. In particular, females of the Burning Flame dragon clan have refused their work orders.”
“And what work have you ordered them to do?” Ashbel questioned.
“Chamber maids. It’s a very simple task. Take care of the members of the royal court. But it’s as if they want to see me be upset. How simple is it to follow rules? Now, they will just have to take their punishment.”
“Why are you forcing work orders? Why not let people choose their own way of life? You’re forcing merchants to sell only to the rich, and leaving the poor with only the t
hings that are left which are just the scraps! All the women in Emberdom have been forced into some sort of servitude and because they realize this is how their life will be in Emberdom they’re beginning to take flight and move to the outskirts of time. Instead of just letting them go, you’re forcing them to live in Emberdom and now you’re trying to stretch these work orders across the entire Fireland. What are you trying to be?”
“A supreme ruler!” Mage shouted at her. “Don’t tell me how to run my kingdom Ashbel. Last, I recall; you and your good for nothing prince couldn’t even protect the castle from a simple invasion. I’ve had the army on my side, I’ve had spies as attendants and servants and no one was the wiser. You know nothing about what it takes to rule. If you give people a choice then one day, they can easily riot against you. In my kingdom, I make all the choices! I tell people when and how to think. And look how mighty fine that is working out for me? Prepare my clothing at once, and get out of my face,” he snapped his fingers.
Ashbel scoffed at him rolling her eyes as she retreated to his large closet to retrieve his clothing. She didn’t mind being a slave because she knew that one day this was the only way she could exact her revenge on the man. Being close to him gave her openings that no one else would have. However, she hated that other young women were subject to his morbid way of thinking, forcing them into servitude and prostitution simply because his rich friends said they needed women to willingly put out. It was sickening. Mage knew nothing of the economy and he was slowly running it into the ground. If only Ashbel could get people to fight back. They were too afraid. Without a strong ally, a fight with the king would mean certain death.
Until there was a fighting chance that Mage wouldn’t cast down a genocide on the kingdom, no one would fight back. Ashbel wanted to change that. Many nights she plotted sneaking into his bedroom to slice his throat, but nothing was ever so easy. She wasn’t powerful enough to overtake him and if she died, it would only be in vain. She didn’t want to let down any of the females that were rooting for her to find a way to free them all.
Setting his clothing out for Mage, Ashbel had to stand in the corner while he undressed. She didn’t know what sick game he was playing but, was he was trying to tease her with his body. Ashbel wasn’t quite sure why he would feel the need to do that. Hell would have to freeze over before she would ever find anything attractive about him.
“You should be lucky Ashbel. Any other king would have raped you a million times by now,” he stated, standing in front of her completely naked. Ashbel looked at his flaccid flesh. He was satisfactorily sized, but Ashbel had seen better. Kapono. Mage had nothing on her husband.
“Don’t see how you can rape someone when your body is clearly disinterested. Either you truly despise me or you just medically lack the ability to show any response,” Ashbel huffed. Mage glared at her. His rising anger began to steep the room with heat.
“You dare insinuate that I am not man enough?” he grumbled. Ashbel didn’t answer. She didn’t need to. He understood perfectly what she was insinuating.
“I am so detested by you that my body will not ever show excitement. Remember, I could have killed Kapono and taken you as my bride and given you my seed to carry. But the Red Dragon and Red Breath clan have been walking around this kingdom as if we’re all to kiss your asses. Growing up, I was told I would never have a chance to be king, or that I would only be a carpenter or end up working for the king because the people in my clan didn’t have blood that ran deep enough. I decided to change my fate and look at me now. I won’t ever plant my seed in the very person that belonged to one of the clans who didn’t want to see anyone else in power. I rebuke that notion. That is why I haven’t touched your disgusting body! But you have just made a deadly mistake by trying to attack my manhood. Get the hell out of my sight. Report to the great hall.”
Ashbel was thankful for being relieved of being in his presence. She had no idea what he was planning, but with a sick mind like his, she opened her mind to expect anything. The great hall was in the main wing of the castle, used as a gathering place when they held balls and other parties before entering the grand ballroom. Walking around the castle gave Ashbel anxiety, seeing the halls and the rooms where she used to spend time with Kapono was triggering. Knowing the affect, it would most likely have not on her but others, Mage walked around the castle with that smug look on his face. His mansion was a fine place to operate as the king out of, but because of his past, because of his need to overtake the two most powerful clans, he wanted to sit in the places they’d sat to prove that he truly did conquer them.
The doors of the castle were drawn open. In the courtyard, onlookers were beginning to gather. Mage had apparently made an announcement that allowed for the towns people to gather and look in on the great hall of the castle. Chills suddenly began to rake Ashbel’s skin. Her stomach bubbled and quaked with unease, telling her that something was not right. Mage hated townspeople around the castle. That was why he had erected gates. If he invited them to look in it was because he wanted an audience. For a man as vain as him, having audience didn’t mean anything good. He wanted to show off. He wanted to enforce his position as the king.
“Why is there a crowd gathering?” Ashbel rushed up to one of the male servants who was standing at the door in order to keep people strictly in the courtyard and not pass the threshold of the castle.
“I’m not sure Miss Ashbel. But I have a bad feeling. Very bad,” he replied.
“Me too,” Ashbel whispered.
“Make room for the arrival of King Bourbon!” The loud announcement came from another attendant who was walking ahead of the king and calling everyone’s attention. Mage strutted straight towards the front of the castle. He stood a few feet away from the open doors that took up ten feet of space. When open, it gave everyone in the courtyard a widescreen view of what was going to take place inside.
The people inside of the castle gathered around against the walls of the great hall, keeping the center clear. Mage looked around at all the people in his presence, making eye contact with them steadily. Ashbel peeped a few onlookers shivering. She didn’t know if that was out of fear or just plain old disgust. Even without being the king, Kapono never looked at the people of his kingdom in that way. Killeon always looked at the people with warmth but he exuded a sense of solidarity and strength that made people feel comfortable and safe. Mage behaved without care of the people. He only cared that they knew his own strength.
“My goal is to make this kingdom one that can rival any kingdom in Kosmos. But in order to do that, everyone must allow my guidance. Everyone must follow my rule and trust that I will lead us through the great path of greatness.” Mage paced back and forth slowly, enunciating each word he spoke with the steps he took.
“As fair and just a king I am, and though it pains me; dissenters will have to be punished. We cannot be great if we do not think as one mind and follow the rules as such. After today’s demonstration, I do hope that it will be finally understood that I run a zero tolerance kingdom. I want order and I will settle for nothing less.” Demonstration? Ashbel guts began to churn even harder. What was the king really planning?
Mage lifted his hand and waved it causally as if signaling for something. Everyone was craning their necks to see what it was that the king was calling for. Ashbel’s mouth fell open. The sound of wooden wheels against the stone floor was rickety and uneven. Three massively sized wooden crosses attached to a large wooden platform on wheels. The torture device didn’t churn her gut as much as seeing the three women of the Burning Flame dragon clan tied up against the crosses as if they were being crucified. Ashbel’s eyes were bulging out of her head. Sweat dripped down her back from the sheer terror she felt. It wasn’t that she was afraid of Mage, she was afraid of what his tyrannical ego would cause the women who stood up for the right to live their life as they saw fit.
“Punishment will reign down on all those who neglect to follow the rules I set for this kingdom. But
punishment isn’t just an imprisonment sentence. There are things far, far worse.” Mage sneered.
He held his hand out, palm up. A ball of fire sparked in the center of his hand, slowly growing and expanding. When the ball of fire was large enough, Mage put his other hand atop his own ball of yellow flames. As if his flame was putty, Mage began to shape and stretch his flame until it became a long, winding whip. His sneer became a maniacal grin. This man was insane. Ashbel should have known it back then but now, looking at the way his lips curved into that deranged smile made her heart hollow out. He was downright terrifying because of his psychosis. A man that crazed should be locked away.
“Witness! Punishment for standing against the king!” Mage turned to the strung up women, wielding his whip of fire.
“DON’T!” Ashbel called out above the whispers of the crowd. She didn’t care if she was defying the king in front of others. She refused to stand by and just watch this kind of punishment.
“SILENCE!” Mage looked at her directly. His eyes were intense and dark, but that psychotic smirk never left his face. Without looking away from her, Mage stretched his arm back and then brought it forward, snapping the whip. The whip of fire lashed against the skin of all three women at the same time as if Mage could defy gravity with his fire. He continuously lashed at their bodies, cutting their flesh with the sharpness of his flames. Flesh once free of blemishes was now being torn apart by the viciousness of fire. Screams of agonizing pain filled the great hall, echoing out to everyone in attendance.
“Please stop it! That’s enough!” Ashbel began to rush forward, willing to stop this torture no matter what it cost her.
“Hold her back!” Mage ordered. A guard grabbed her around the waist, clutching her against his body. He squeezed her abdomen tightly, as if he was trying to cut her in half altogether.
“Let go of me,” Ashbel gritted, fighting out of his hold.