Zoey waited one eyebrow raised as she used her talents to make sure the next words Nana said were not lies. So far, her old nanny had spoken nothing but the truth, and it had left Zoey at ease. However, with all she had learned, that ease was slowly fading away.
“I chose Zephyr for you, his disposition and his cunning reminded me so much of your father that I knew he would grow to love you if you were both kept close. It took many favors to make it happen. Seeing you together when you arrived showed me that I had chosen well. It helped that the Jaguar Kingdom owed myself and your father a few favors.”
Zoey stood speechless for a moment and then turned her back on Nana. The faint smile that graced her lips made her profile into something thoughtful and beautiful. Zephyr would be everything she needed for this mission. The ante had been upped, and she had one of the best weapons at her disposal. Belting her leg sheath in place, Zoey set her throwing knives and her throwing stars into their proper places. Feeling for the built-in sheath in the back of her dress, she slid her short sword home. Normally she would carry far more, but the Tailor had only been able to add so many spots to this new gown. She was glad she had the other gown made, for she had a feeling that Sasha's party would be a harder task than first suspected.
With her head back, she gave a small wave of her hand. The time for tales and history was at an end. Zoey would visit with the woman who claimed to be her mother, and then she and Zephyr would plan a way to carry out their task and a few of Zoey’s own. Power would change hands; if not now, then it would change hands once she completed her training. She was so close, all she had to do was play the killing game for a little bit longer. Her last mission should be to rid herself of the beast her sister was destined to become. If not her hand, then one she could trust, but could she really trust anyone but Nana and Zephyr anymore? Could she trust anyone for that matter?
Her heart had been battered and bruised for so long she wondered if she would ever heal. The rage, anger, and violence she had been forced to endure by her new teacher’s hands had left her weary, but her resolve would not waiver if she were to free this land from her stepsister’s clutches. It was the old adage, with a gnarly twist, one Zoey had felt only came in storybooks for children. Yet, here it was in real life, and she was the one chosen to face it. It all seemed unfair, but then again, life wasn’t fair.
Zephyr’s door slid open on silent hinges before Zoey ever knocked. His face shows worry and a desperate need to the questions burning in his eyes though he knows they have no space in the hallway to talk in. A small shrug and Zoey lets him know with her eyes and body that his questions will have answers but now is not the time. He shows no reaction and falls into step at Zoey’s side, his presence a comfort as Nana hurries before them to show the way to Queen Elise’s chambers.
Zoey can no longer think of the queen as a mother or even a friend. She sees nothing but a mark in her mind's eye and realizes how easy it would be to remove Queen Elise from this absurd equation. Her training rings in her ears. She must watch her mark and find the path that would afford her the greatest possible outcome for success. A murder out of rage would only implicate her before she was ready to have her secret known. She would play the long game as her opponents played their own game. She would become an opposing force without them knowing it, and like the darkness, she would descend and see her enemy down the long road of death.
As they approached Queen Elise’s chamber, shrill screams could be heard from the hallway. The words were so loud and so harsh Zoey didn’t have to wonder what had upset her pretend mother. Her precious Sasha had still not arrived, and the first of the celebration parties was to begin in but a few scant hours.
“You will find her and bring her home. Make sure her gowns are ready and that she is rested. Are we understood?” She screamed. A faint reply could be heard before the door to the queen’s chambers opened wide, and the court huntsman strode from the room. His face holding a perfect imprint of the queen's hand, where she had slapped him. Zoey had to fight her laughter; the queen was just as childish as her daughter. How this cruel, heartless creature had ever ruled this kingdom baffled Zoey. Yet even Zoey herself was subject to the queen's whims.
Zoey knocked on the chamber doors after the huntsman had let them close. There was no need for her stepmonster to know that Zoey had seen her tantrum. She had learned long ago that even embarrassment could cause consequences with the queen, and she had no time to held in suspicion.
“You may enter Zoey I smell your sword oil from in here. Come, let me look at you.”
Zoey entered the doors, her eyes cast down so as not to look at the queen directly. It was rumored that it made her angry when people stared at her face to ready to judge the eye she had lost to an assassin so long ago.
“Zoey, my girl, you have grown more beautiful than I have expected. Come closer, for we have much to discuss.” Queen Elise purred. Her tone was even and measured as if to hide her displeasure that Zoey had grown into anything but the ugly duckling she wanted. She seemed disappointed that the woman before her stood tall and proud, but most of all, beautiful even with her mismatched eyes. Zoey stepped forward as if nothing was wrong as if the woman in front of her hadn’t stolen both her parents from her as well as her birthright. At that moment, Zoey relished her training with the assassin’s guild; it had given her far more than any parenting this foul creature in front of her could have offered.
She kept her face neutral and was even able to fake an embrace with the evil queen. How like the tale of Sleeping Beauty or Cinderella Zoey’s life had become, except it was all far more complicated than the tomes read to her as a child. There was no prince to whisk her away to his castle, there was no happily ever after. The was only more death before the light would finally shine. Zoey wondered half heartedly if she could survive such peril. In her heart, she knew she had no choice and would make the best of her situation no matter the cost.
“How have you been mother? You are as beautiful as I remember you,” Zoey said, fawning over her stepmother as she would have when she was just a child.
“I have been well, but it seems that we have a problem to deal with,” Queen Elise replied. Her shoulders taking on an angry arch. Letting Zoey know to tread carefully with her next question.
“How may I be of service, my Queen?” Zoey asked as she bowed her body low in a gesture of respect. It hid her grimace at the niceties that had to spill for her lips.
“Your sister has come up missing. We received a message this morning from the headmistress of the magic school stating she had been held back a day for lessons she needed to finish, yet no one can reach her or the headmistress. I want you to retrieve your sister and bring her home. Do not let her see you doing this. Maybe use your handsome assistant instead. She would be livid if she knew that I sent you to check on her. She believes you to be a bodyguard, not a warrior. Don’t worry, she will learn,” The queen said with a dismissing wave of her hand.
Zoey had to swallow her fury like a rock stuck in her throat. The queen could send her own hunters to retrieve dear Sasha, but instead, she made Zoey dress up to be given instructions on retrieving the wench herself. She had no idea why the gods hated her, but she felt cursed by their whims and saddled by people with evil dispositions. It was worse than when she was a child, and everyone would remind her of how she was loved but always doomed to be second best.
As she marched her way towards the door, Queen Elise called out,” Make sure she is here before sunset, dear daughter; she has a celebration to prepare for.” Zoey resisted the urge to turn and launch one of her throwing knives at the queen’s heart. She had a mere handful of hours to accomplish this feat. It was damn near impossible if you asked her. It was at that moment that Zoey longed for her chambers back at the assassin's guild. Anything to get away from the mess she had arrived in.
“Zoey, let me handle this, I can retrieve the brat princess and be back in a flash. That way, you don’t have to worry about getting your hands dir
ty. It will give you time to relax and unwind from our travels earlier,” Zephyr said.
“Are you sure, Zeph? I can go along too; it’s no trouble,” Zoey replied, trying to hide her angry tone from her closest friend.
“I can tell you don’t want to go, besides it looks like you have some discoveries of your own to deal with. You must promise me one thing, though,” Zephyr said with a smile.
“And what is that, Zeph?”
“That you fill me in when I return with the brat princess. I can feel your heartache, and I don’t want you to face it alone,” Zephyr replied.
“Deal, and stay safe, Zephyr. I can’t lose you too,” Zoey replied before heading towards her chambers. She wanted out of the dress and to eat again if she could. This whole trip was turning out to be a nightmare, one she could have never imagined. Queen Elise was nothing but a monster, and what she had thought of as her sister just a bastard of her creepy uncle. She would make him pay for his mistake and her father’s demise. As she stripped off the dress, she realized she wasn’t alone.
“What are you doing in my room, Malenhiem?” Zoey all but roared. She held her short sword in front of her, her shift the only thing covering her body.
“ I have come to welcome you home, dear Zoey,” Malenhiem explained a greasy smile on his face as he took in the state of her undress.
“Get out!” Zoey roared and launched a throwing knife close enough to cut his cheek open. Malenhiem held his cut cheek with malice in his eyes as he ran from the room. Once he was gone, Zoey turned the lock on her door and sat on her father’s bed and cried. What was wrong with all the people in this place. She used to look forward to returning to her home, and now she wished she had never returned.
Zoey closed her eyes and prayed to her favorite God Eros that love and peace would find her heart. She felt a sense of peace before crawling into the bed and letting sleep claim her tired mind. Her tear-stained face pressed tight into her pillow.
Chapter 15
Malenhiem
Malenhiem retreated to his lofty tower above the royal wing, his pacing angry and stressed. His precious Sasha was missing, and her guardian was taking a nap. What was the point of training an assassin princess, if she didn’t care about her charge? He raked his greasy unwashed skin, running dirty hands through his greasy foul smelling hair. Bits of his scalp flaked away as he scratched the dirt from his head, all the while striding hard and fast across the room. He would see princess Zoey dead, she was a spoiled brat, and if one hair on his precious Sasha’s head were harmed, he would make sure Zoey suffered for it.
She had always been the master lich’s nemesis. It was her words that made Queen Elsie banish him to the tower so long ago. She was the reason he had to watch his glorious Sasha from a distance. He was never close enough to befriend her, teach her, or show her the death magic he had to offer. She was meant to be his queen, yet the words of a four-year-old had ruined all his plans.
His steel blue eyes flashed with the memory, his scrawny milk white body held shoulders that betrayed his menacing form. He could still hear the words Zoey had spoken, “He stinks mommy, and he is always trying to play with Sasha. I don’t like the scary man.” Such a simple phrase ended all his chances to woo his future wife, for she was a powerful being. The very beast of destruction. His wife from so long ago had finally been born.
All these years spent making medicine and tinctures for the Queen and her servants only to have each one tested for poison. The mistrust had left him bitter, and his cruel black heart beat with a misery only experienced once so long ago when Princess Zoey had uttered her complaint. He would see his plan to fruition. He began to skip and rub his hands together in glee. If he could not win the beast with his magic, he would win her through destruction.
Having years to spend alone in his tower, he had set forth a plan that would take both princesses out of the equation. Once his beloved the beast was freed, she would have no need for Sasha’s body though she might choose to keep it for fun. Oh, what fun the lich would have binding and torturing such lovely skin, the thought left him salivating. His laughter had reached a disturbing volume, startling one of the serving boys. The boy watched as the old healer paced talking to himself, his eyes narrowing in suspicion. He would have to watch the old man closely with both of the princesses' home, for that was why the queen assigned him in the first place. Malenhiem, so caught up in his made scheme, could do nothing but imagine the gift he was about to bestow on Princess Sasha. It would allow the beast more control than the beast had ever had before, and his gift for Zoey would take the gift of truth and magical sight from her multi-colored eyes. His plan was perfect, but first, he had to find his beloved Sasha. If he couldn’t find his beloved’s vessel, he planned to rent the castle in two. His laughter increased again, and the servant boy decided the queen needed to know what Malenhiem had been muttering to himself the last hour. So lost in his glee, Malenhiem never noticed as the lone serving boy slipped from the room and took to the shadows.
Not all assassins looked like grown adults. Sometimes a child is your greatest asset, and Arturo had proven his worth ten times over. His beloved queen would hear him because she had wondered why a master lich was hiding in her castle anyway? She knew Malenhiem’s powers far outstripped even her strongest court magicians, yet she had allowed him to remain out of fear. What Elise had not known was that it was Arturo himself who had botched the kill order on the queen that day, and his punishment had been to enter her service in the shape and guise of a child servant. He could not show her his true form or risk death from the master. He had one task and one task only. He had to keep the queen alive until both of the princesses had served their purpose.
Once the throne had been restored to Zoey, Arturo would be free to become himself again. As the head dragon at the guild, he had thought his job prestigious, and now he longed to live in his adult shape and not have to go through this life in the guise of a child. He wanted his room at the assassins guild, and most of all, he missed the fear in the other apprentice's eyes when he would be called in to teach a lesson to one or more of the students.
He would thwart Malenhiem and make sure he paid. He would not allow him to free the beast or destroy the light that was Princess Zoey in Astra. He would raise an army to counter the lich if he had to. Astra must survive. In the background of the tower stairs, Malenhiem’s laughter was the only music that drifted through the narrow staircase.
Chapter 16
Zephyr and Nyx
Zephyr left the castle, moving at a god-like speed. He knew the location of Sasha and would retrieve her as fast as he could. He needed to be with Zoey at this moment. Her mind was tortured by all she had learned from Nana. He traveled in his own form and left Zephyr’s mind free of what would transpire next. Eros moved and stretched in the breeze as he flew. It had been a long time since he had spoken with Nyx, and his heart trembled at the prospect.
He had always loved the night and the goddess herself though he had never told her of his love. She was a compliment to the magic he wielded and a haven for lovers. For the night brought words that could not be said in the light of day. He paused in his flight to wonder why the goddess held the beast princess. Could it be that they had the same plans? Eros picked up the pace, arriving at Nyx’s school of magic.
Using his god-like senses, he let his mind feel out the presence of his one true love. He caught her in the furthest tower of the school, embattled in a magical spell that needed but a touch of love to be successful. He flew closer and looked inside. Nyx stood her head back, her arms spread wide. Small beads of light bled from her skin and rained down over the body of the sleeping beast princess. Eros could see by her work that Nyx was trying to remake the girl’s memories. She was trying to fashion a conscience where none had ever grown.
The beast was pushing back in an attempt to protect the vessel it rode, but Eros would see Nyx successful before he whisked Sasha away to Queen Elise and to see to his own charge. He admired his l
ove's current form and let it fill him with a lust for her goddess-like form. It was the lust of love that he needed to help her complete her spell. He could only hope it would work and that the beast would not find a way to break it.
Slipping through the window like a thief in the night, Eros approached Nyx and took her into his arms. He wrapped the lust he felt for her, and the love in his heart channeled it through her into her magic. Her body shuddered under his touch and collapsed in his arms as he kissed his way to her breast. When his tongue met her nipples, Nyx’s eyes snapped open.
“My love, you have found me,” Nyx cooed. The beast princess would sleep for another hour or more before she would awaken. Nyx had to hope her plan to teach the princess compassion, and love had won out. Nyx was horrified to see what Sasha had become over the years. A gluttonous magic eater and creature from the abyss. Something about her beast rang with dyer warning through Nyx. It was as if this was something Nyx had fought before. She had to hope she wasn’t too late. That Eros found her at the height of her magic and lent his own was a great blessing. She would enjoy her love of the night and send Sasha where she belonged. Too many had tried to interrupt her sleep, letting her know that Queen Elise was looking for her daughter and was furious that she had not been returned. The queen would just have to get over it, as Nyx bowed to no one.
Chapter 16
Sasha and the Beast
Sasha awoke to a strange purring sound, she could not see or feel anything. Her mind accepted it, and she thought, “So, this is death.”
“No child, this is a state of in-between, a limbo if that is a better description for you,” A voice purred. Sasha swung her head from side to side, but her senses were null and void in this limbo space. All was darkness, and even though the voice felt like cool soft silk, she could hear the danger and familiar tone of warning within it.
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