Chapter Thirteen

No spoilers! :)

We had been speed-walking down glowing, immaculate hallways, (I could barely keep up with both of them), when we came upon what apparently was the right door. There were two guards standing outside, each in elaborate armor wrought in silvers and golds.

“Excuse me, gentlemen,” said ‘his majesty’ formally. They nodded respectfully and stepped to the side, allowing us access to the very mysterious room. (Much sarcasm, by the way.)  He pushed the heavy, square doors open to reveal a large-ish room that walls and tables covered with weapons.

Orenda spoke without looking at me. “The security is heavy compared to the rest of the building. I’m not used to having to deal with goons, as current Hecate.”

“Well, aren’t you completely full of yourself,” I bit back.

“It is a good thing we’re in a room full of weapons that I know how to use very well, no?” shot back Orenda.

“Ladies,” warned ‘his majesty’.

“F**k off, your sexistness; just get me outta here and you won’t have to deal with me anymore.” Huh. I guess that was a pretty good substitute name for him. The thought made me snicker a little. His sexistness; dear god, (or was it gods?), I was funny sometimes.

“Or I could just kill you and not bother anymore. The only reason I’m doing this is because I need to get back on the Irish’s better side so I can accomplish a few things.”

“And if I win?”

He laughed. “You won’t; just pick something and I’ll deliver you to your boring existence as a goon for their democratic republic.”

“Didn’t the Greeks invent democracy, though? Alos, I’d like to keep the daggers that I was given upon my entry into Fableland. They were a gift from a rather cute guy that looked to be around me age.”

His sexistness looked over at Orenda, who had been silent during this whole exchange. “Would you care if I indulged the little s**t and just got the daggers? I’d hate to be forced into punishing her for being a pain in my a*s by complaining.”

“Where you go, I go,” she said warmly. Her eyes crinkled quite nicely at the edges and her mouth curved upwards into a small flirtatious smile. I rolled my eyes, not even trying to hide my disgust at this point.

“Oh, save it for later, when you’re not in danger of getting beaten to smithereens by a very pissed off teenager. Are we going to get my daggers, or what?” I wanted to get on with this trial thing that his sexistness mentioned.

He grabbed a bow and quiver off the wall. “Consider it a gift from Tam and Phoebe, two people in the castle that actually like you. We’ll go get that damn pair of daggers, then get to the teleporter.”

Orenda looked at his sexistness skeptically. “You are sure about that? 100%?”

“I’m willing to use a bit more energy than usual to get rid of this kid. Besides, I miss those sprites.”

“Ah, but every ruler does, no?” replied Orenda.

He looked at me, then back at her. “Do not say such things in her presence; she may carry it back to the enemy camp.”

She swallowed. “I-I am sorry, it just-”

“Shut up. You are replaceable, w***e.”

Her lip trembled, and I felt a little bit sorry for her. Okay, a lot bit. But what could
I do? This guy could kill me if he wanted to. The anger that was glowing in my chest, however,  had a different view on the matter. How dare he treat this semi-b***h like that? I took a deep breath of air into my lungs, preparing me for what was probably the stupidest thing that I had ever done.

And the words faltered in my throat, choked to death by my constricting esophagus. I sputtered silently, yet my expression said it all; I was too much of a coward to say anything to this monstrosity of a man.

His sexistness turned around, daring me to make a sound in her defense. Needless to say, I didn’t rise to the occasion. Infact, I sunk to a new low. I stayed there as we headed back to what I supposed was the throne room, and made our way to wherever he was going to take us. Hopefully not something horrible that involved all three of us, with him on the top, myself at my lowest, and Orenda in the spot that is usually reserved for the most powerless of us all.

After what seemed an eon or three, we reached yet another door. The hallways were deserted, whereas before there were at least a few people or guards milling about the passages of this monolith of a castle. This door, however, was different from any other door that I had seen yet far. It looked to be solid gold, or maybe just a very heavy, gilded, metallic material. It was engraved with a myriad of greek mythology figurines, and not the modern-day ones either; these were the real deal- originals, by the looks of it. Or, at the least, were very, very, old.

The walls were also different. Hell, the air felt different, like it was humming with the almost unnoticeable golden light that seemed to be coming from the walls, ceiling, floor, and, most of all, the door. My gaze meandered around the chamber we were in; (it split from the hallway in an open doorway.)

His sexistness placed both of his hands on the door, palms flat. He drew a deep breath and closed his eyes, gathering strength for I knew not what. I looked at Orenda, who just shook her head and looked back at him. I peered at her for a moment more, curiosity burning through me like a fire that could only be put out by knowledge.

The door started glowing visibly, filling the air with more of its, well, beautiful, aura. Sure, it looked beautiful, and made those who were cast in its light even more so, but the way it made me feel was more important. Everything bad that had happened, all of the stress and anger, sadness and confusion, melted away. It left me feeling pure, untouched by the ravages of everyday life and this foreign, exotic land.

Right before my eyes, the gold leaked into the air, leaving the door a grey slate. The carvings were gone, but I had an inkling that they were still around us.

He finally opened his eyes, and looked back at the two of us. “Come,” he said peacefully. He pushed open the door and stepped inside the door, away from us and into the golden light.

Author's Note

So, tell me what you think! I apologize for yet ANOTHER cliff hanger, but I gotta have a way to keep you guys coming back.

Reviews

[Lady Celery]

I've been loving this story so far! Especially your dialogue between characters - it's really witty and entertaining. But I did have a question about these last two chapters: why is Stella so hostile towards the king so quickly? Don't get me wrong, he seems like a complete jerk, but her reaction to him is still pretty extreme, especially since she's a teenager in a strange land. (This isn't a criticism, by the way, I'm just curious!) I can't wait to see where this story goes. I do love a good fantasy story :)

[firabelle]

Stella, to put it frankly, just doesn't give a s**t anymore. I tried to show how much she cares about her father in earlier scenes, like the one that really kicks off the story for both of them. Now that she doesn't have him or Clovis, this is a bit like her defense mechanism, especially since she doesn't want 'his sexistness' to pull what he's pulling on Orenda.

I'm really glad that you're enjoying my book so far, and I'm super grateful that you decided to give me a glance and commenting on my book, too!

[Lady Celery]

Okay, that makes sense! Thanks for explaining.