Chapter One

One

Her heart was beating with irregularity as she began her approach down the hall to the heavy, ornate doors that opened up into the throne room. Her long, dark hair was pulled back into a tight braid, and her prismatic violet eyes scanned her surroundings as she moved forward. The leather vest and cotton shirt that she wore underneath her bronze, etched armor was already damp with sweat and the matching greaves that she wore felt heavy against her skin, more so than usual. As she came upon the doors, two of the guards were stationed on each side, their helmets revealing only their eyes, which were cold and stern. They rested their swords on the ground in front of them, hands on top of the hilt.

            The guard on the left regarded her as she approached with a nod. “Lieutenant.”

            He glanced down briefly at the documents she clutched in her hand and then fixed his gaze back on her eyes.

            “Avien,” Tandine replied, returning a curt nod.

            Tandine stood tall and waited for Avien to step aside to open the doors. He glanced over at the other guard, whom she did not recognize, and he opened the doors for Tandine. She regarded him with a rigid glance and made her way through the doors. She took a moment to absorb her surroundings so she had a moment to collect her thoughts. The stone walls were encrusted with chunks of amber and draped with royal tapestries. Windows of stained glass surrounded the walls, depicting imagery of Marric’s father, Palaeus, and angels blowing horns into a multicolored sky.  King Marric sat upon a gilded throne encrusted with jewels and black goose down pillows. His chestnut curls fell around his round face, resting upon his broad shoulders. The faint wrinkles in his weathered skin seemed to be deeper than usual, and his light blue eyes were fixed on Tandine as she moved forward.

            Marric regarded her with a warm smile as she knelt down before his feet, a few loose tendrils of hair falling forward as she bowed her head.

            “Your majesty,” she said with a slight quiver in her voice.

            “Lieutenant, this is a rare visit from you. To what do I owe the pleasure?” Marric asked, summoning her to her feet.

            As she stood and raised her head slowly, her eyes met those of the king. Her voice grew steady as she spoke. “I have news of treachery, your majesty.”

            Marric’s expression grew stern as he took in the information that Tandine had presented.

            “Whom is the accused?”

            “The guard captain, my lord.”

            Marric furrowed his brows and leaned forward. “This is a serious claim, Lieutenant. Are you certain of this?”

            Tandine nodded, the documents in her hand suddenly growing very heavy. Marric eyed the parchments in her hand and motioned for her to hand them over. She raised her hand, trying to keep it steady as she handed the evidence over to the king’s outstretched hand. As he read the documents that she presented, she watched his eyes scan the page in disbelief. The wrinkles in his forehead deepened as he looked up at Tandine.

            “You are certain that these documents are accurate?”

            She nodded. “Yes, my lord. I was very thor�'.”

            Before she could finish her sentence, a loud slam echoed throughout the throne room as Menlaias, the guard captain, came barreling in the throne room, a smug look on his face. His crimson cloak billowed behind him, steel armor glinting off of the sun shining in streaks through the windows. He had both guards from the doors in tow, their hands gripped firmly on the hilts of their swords tucked into the scabbards at their sides.

            “My lord!” he said as he approached the throne, regarding Tandine with a nod. He held a rolled parchment in his hand. “Surely, you are not going to let this traitor stay within your midst. She has double crossed you.”

            Tandine froze, taking a moment to process Menlaias’s accusations. He pushed past her and bowed before the king, his eyes gleaming. “Your Majesty.”

            Marric regarded Menlaias with a nod and replied, “Guard Captain.”

            He gestured for Menlaias to hand the parchments he clutched over to him. As Marric unrolled the parchment and began to read, his eyes grew wide. He looked at Tandine, and motioned to Menlaias’s lackeys. “Tandine, I am disappointed. Why would you betray your kingdom in such a way?”

            Tandine glared at Menlaias and turned to the king. “Menlaias is a traitor, my lord! I don’t know what manner of falsified documents he has presented you with but I assure you that it is all lies.”

            Marric shook his head, and handed her the parchment that the guard captain had presented him with. She took it with slightly shaking hands and dread filled her chest as her eyes scanned the page.

            “How do you explain this Tandine? This is a detailed proof of payment for magical items bought in Nora’s shop, complete with ritual instructions on how to bring Tenebris up from the Underworld, signed by you.”

            Tandine did the best that she could to hold her composure, but her voice wavered as she pleaded with the king. “That is not my signature! This is forgery, my lord!”

            Menlaias stood with his hands clasped behind his back and said, “Then how do you explain your many trips back and forth between Nora’s shop? You are not a mage, nor a witch. What use would you have for such items, Tandine?”

            Before Tandine could respond, Menlaias procured another parchment from inside his cape, and handed it to the king. “This is a requisition order for a witch, one whom is a known enemy of this kingdom, which she has hired to perform this ritual. This is her signature, and this was found in her quarters. If you note the time on the order, this is during the midnight hours when she was conveniently unaccounted for.”

            Tandine glared at Menlaias and replied, “I was at Nora’s trying to find a countermeasure for your ritual and trying to find a way to stop you!”

            Menlaias only smiled and looked at his guards. “Avien and Dominic can confirm all of these facts, my lord.”

            Marric fixed his eyes on the guards and asked, “Is this true?”

            They both nodded and Tandine’s blood began to boil.

“I’ll kill you!” she shouted as she lunged at Menlaias, knocking him to the ground. He shielded his face from her incoming fist and caught it, twisting her arm and rolling her over to the floor. Avien and Dominic moved in to restrain her, and took a firm grip on her arms. She tried to wriggle free but they had a death drip on her.

            “You see, your majesty? She is delirious. Surely you cannot allow her roam around by herself. She will harm someone.”

            Marric furrowed his brows and stood up, his tall and burly form towering over Tandine.

            “Tandine, you should be executed for this betrayal. However, I will need some time to contemplate how I would like to handle this situation.”  He nodded at Menlaias. “To the dungeons with her.”

            Tandine glared at Menlaias as he bowed before the king one last time and said, “I will personally oversee the escort, your majesty. She will not escape punishment.”

Marric sighed and sat back down on his throne. He rested a hand on his forehead, leaned on his elbow and looked after Tandine as the guards dragged her out, kicking and screaming.

            “See to it that she doesn’t.”

            Tandine cried out, “Your majesty! This is a mistake! You must believe me!”

            As she turned to Menlaias while the guards dragged her through the doors, she looked at him with narrowed eyes. “I will see to it that you pay for this, Menlaias. I don’t know what your plans are, but I will not allow you to raise the lord of the underworld.”

            Menlaias smiled and turned to close the doors behind him. “You won’t be around long enough for me to suffer any form of punishment. He is going to rise regardless of any assistance, and it would be in your best interest to pledge your allegiance to him. Give up the fight Tandine. You could join me, live like a royal.”

            He turned back to Tandine, his dark eyes fixed on hers. His long dark hair fell over his chiseled face and the corners of his mouth turned up into a smirk. If she wasn’t seething with hatred for him, she might actually find him attractive. He reached out and rested his hand on her waist, leaning in close to her. She struggled but his guards continued to grip her arms behind her back.

            “It really is too bad that you have to be in this position, my dear. I would quite fancy having you in my bed.” He reached out with his other hand and rested it on her face.

She turned her head with a snap and dug her teeth into the webbing between his thumb and forefinger. “I would rather die than be any woman of yours.”

Menlaias glared at her and responded with a hard backhand to her face. “That can be arranged, foolish girl.”

She turned her head back and smiled. “You just wait, Menlaias. You won’t live to see Tenebris rise.”

He leaned into her again, his mouth just inches from her ear. She could feel his warm breath on her skin and the tingle that spread through her neck. “And neither will you, my dear.”

Reviews

[Mayank]

Wow! this is one of the best stories I have read so far here, it's gripping and the plot is teeth gritting. Loved the setting of characters, off to the next chapters.

[nerdcutie]

I love it. It really has a mysterious twist to it and I would definitely like to read more of it! I am not much of a storywriter.. poems are more my thing and I would love it if you could go and read and maybe review it. :*

[TheTempestWitch]

Thank you! And I will absolutely review your poems!