Chapter 8: THE FATE OF THE EMPRESS-2
But our love it was stronger by far than the love
Of those who were older than we-
Of many far wiser than we-
And neither the angels in heaven above,
Nor the demons down under the sea,
Can ever dissever my soul from the soul
Of the beautiful and the gorgeous Annabel Lee.
For the moon never beams without bringing me dreams
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And the stars never rise but I feel the bright eyes
Of the beautiful Annabel Lee;
And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side
Of my darling- my darling- my life and my bride,
In the sepulchre there by the sea,
In her tomb by the sounding sea."
― Edgar Allen Poe
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"Rosella calm down, I also love Jayden as my own child. I won't let anything happen to him" Austin soothed her' "and you", he whispered very slowly. Though there was no mutual love between them, his Empress has always stood by his side in every good or bad occasion. Can't he do a little for her?
"That I can see well. In the race to kill me, today Jayden became the prey. What would Your Highness do if you get harmed the next time? Just imagine Austin, what if they feed you the infertility drug by mistake! It would be a memorable moment!!! If you can't control them then it doesn't mean that I would be the same. It's been so long that they are running like unrestrained mad bulls, now it's time to turn them into sheep!!!" Rosella was hellbent on setting an example.
"I will not interfere then. You can do as you wish" saying this Austin went away to check on Jayden.
"Jiuli send a message to all the concubines and the maids to gather in front of the Phoenix Palace by 9 pm. I will check on Jayden and have some rest" Rosella also went inside.
9 pm, Phoenix Palace
All the concubines and maids have already gathered in front of the Phoenix Palace. There were low murmurs here and there because everyone knew that the fiery Empress hates indiscipline. Rainne was a new and young concubine around eighteen. Emperor Austin took a fancy to her innocent charm and took her in his harem.
Because of being favored, other concubines hated her. Concubine Merlia was a different case so they steered away from her but the new concubines were not so fortunate. So, this young concubine was unaware of the Empress' temper, her intelligence, and perception. She thought that removing an unfavored Empress would not be so difficult. After hearing the false rumors from other concubines that Empress Rosella is innocent and forgiving, she painstakingly made a plot to murder Rosella.
But now Rainne was shivering and sweating. If the Empress had not died, then how could she have summoned everyone to her palace. Moreover, after hearing the order in the afternoon, Rainne had no idea about how she slept for five hours straight and was woken up by her maidservant only before entering the Phoenix Palace.
She had a beautiful dream of becoming the new Empress. She was so confident in her plan that she didn't make any backup plan in case her plan fails. And now she could only pray.
After fifteen minutes, Emperor Austin and Empress Rosella came out. Today both of them seemed to be in a very bad mood. So the concubines didn't dare to make a single noise.
"I will come directly to my point. There was another murder attempt on me today. Though I am unharmed, Jayden has suffered. I am going to make an example out of the culprit to warn each one of you to not trifle with me or my loved ones!" Rosella calmly stated.
The concubines were shocked. Since no such news came out of the Phoenix Palace so they were unaware. Moreover, who was daring enough to target Jayden? They knew that he was the apple of Austin's and Rosella's eyes. Even Merlia also treated Jayden very well.
Empress Rosella was the most powerful woman among them, there was no doubt in that. Even one glare from her could send some of the fragile concubines running to the hills. And at this moment they were doomed.
Empress Rosella strode over to the trembling concubine Rainne and grabbed her hair and pulled her to the front.
"Little Rainne, my sweet little Rainne how naive you are! You actually thought that this foolish scheme could kill this Empress? Dear, you were not the only one who had tried and will not be the only one who will try to murder this Empress! Have you any idea what happened to the previous ones?"
9:45 pm
After, all the begging drama, Rainne was now outside the torture chamber. Empress Rosella again grabbed her by her hair, dragged her in the chamber and tied her to a pillar. "After my return gift, you will not be able to recognize yourself!!! Jiuli take out the cloth from her mouth. I want her screams to be heard by everyone and bring me my hunting knife. I will carve a beautiful crown on her face!"
It looked like the Empress was possessed, she looked out of control and she was radiating a demonic aura. Though Emperor Austin has witnessed one of Rosella's lighter punishment, Merlia had not witnessed any. She was feeling excited. On the other hand, Austin was feeling uneasy.
And that night for hours, painful and terrifying screams reverberated in the whole palace. The next day, Merlia enquired about Rainne. Though she went to the torture chamber to see the punishment, after watching for a few minutes she fainted there.
All the concubines along with Merlia were informed by Jiuli, " Informing all the concubines, Her Majesty, Empress Rosella personally carved a crown on Rainne's face and then peeled off her skin with a hunting knife. Then she was left in a half-conscious state, suffering immensely from intolerable pain and in the early morning, her half-alive body was fed to the wild rats in the dungeons. After a few hours her corpse will be sent to her home that is the Revenue Minister's residence" After telling them, Jiuli walked away.
After that incident, the murder attempts on Empress Rosella have decreased at least from the concubines' side. As after seeing the disfigured corpse of Rainne, all of them were terrified and some of the delicate ones had nightmares for days...
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PRESENT
Prince Nicholas' face instantly became pale! He could not allow it to happen! In no way, Rosella is supposed to die! All his love for Empress Rosella started surfacing up from the deepest parts of his heart. At least till now, he had the comfort that even if Rosella is not his, but she is still alive. Although her condition may not have been very good, she was living.
The thought of never seeing her after these nine hours terrified him! That one time was enough to give him a fright! He had vowed to himself at that time, that no matter what situation is, he will not allow Rosella to die! He will take care of her always. He had promised his Empress Mother to protect this girl with his everything. Though he couldn't take care of her personally, he can not let her die. He cannot let her slip from his hands!
All his memories of their time together started clouding his mind.
......
"Prince Nicholas, you are so good! You are not allowed to give presents to other girls!" a ten-year-old Rosella told him
"Prince Nicholas, if you are in danger then you can call me. I will save you from all these clingy misses! Anyways, I hate them too!" pouted a thirteen-year-old Rosella.
"Nicholas, I love you. I promise you that no one can take your place in my heart. I will be with you always..." confessed a sixteen-year-old Rosella.
......
Nicholas tried very hard to suppress his strong emotions of love, worry, panic and guilt. Alas, the emotions were so strong that he couldn't stop himself and strode towards Empress Rosella.
Suddenly there was a sound of air piercing and an arrow embedded itself just in the path of Prince Nicholas. All the soldiers inside the hall became alert as well as Nicholas!
"I told you, Empress Rosella, as soon as I hear a single word about your helplessness, I will come back!" a masculine and velvety baritone echoed in the throne room.
Soon a tall and lean muscular figure was seen in the hall. The man's face was hidden behind a mask but no one could deny that he would be as handsome as a God by looking at his exposed features. Especially his eyes, which were a unique Emerald color, were very captivating as if they could hypnotize others. He gave off a roguish and an other worldly aura that charmed everyone in the hall.
Only Empress Rosella's face became pale after hearing his voice. "He came..."
And BOOM!!!
The whole throne room was filled with smoke and gas.
"It would be really interesting…
CREATORS' THOUGHTS 
Sapphirechelsea237
Sapphirechelsea237 AND done! We will move back to their past in the next chapters. Comment and enjoy reading! :)
We also saw the entry of a new and special character! Can you guess?
Weekly Power Status
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