บท 2: Away from the Castle
Freya was the king's sister. The fairest of all demons. Her beauty was second to none. She had emerald eyes and shiny red hair. When Freya saw the look in Beatrice's eyes, she knew something was wrong.
Beatrice rarely got worried about anything. She believed everything happened for a reason, but seeing the look in her eyes, she knew something was definitely wrong.
Sending the men off, she turned to her;
''what is it?''
''Follow me,'' Beatrice said as she walked as fast as her legs could carry. Freya followed.
''It better be worth my time…'' Freya said as Beatrice opened the door to the room, and her lips dropped intantly.
''Surely it is,'' Beatrice whispered, walking into the room.
Neera turned to the door when she heard it creak open. By the door, was the woman who brought her there and another, who was insanely beautiful.
Neera stood up when she saw them, she gripped her bag tightly, getting uncomfortable with the way they were looking at her. Was it only because she looked like the
''You don't say…'' Freya exclaimed, walking closer to Neera. She tipped her jaw upward and took a closer look at her;
''She is not her, Beatrice. '' Freya said, surprise in her eyes.
''And she's not a demon either.'' She knew her brother's wife well, the only demon whose beauty could compare to hers. She was as beautiful as the morning sun, and her voice as sweet as the chirping of birds, and she knew very well what her death did to her brother for centuries.
Zavian adored Delilah. He worshiped the ground she walked on. She was the only woman who could bring him to his knees, the only woman he had ever loved. But she died during the Blood War. Their father, the devil, had killed her to punish Zavian for his rebellion.
Zavian had watched her disappear before his eyes, and Freya knew how much pain her death had caused him.
It has been 500 years, and he had started to get past it all. He had begun to heal. But what happens? A woman who looked almost exactly like Delilah appears. Freya shook her head. Zavian must never see this woman. A lot of things would go wrong if he does.
Freya let go of Neera, and she turned to Beatrice.
''Which other demons saw her? '' Only demons who had lived that long knew what the king's wife looked like.
''None, a few saw, but they did not take a close look at her. '' Beatrice said.
''Good. Let no one else know of this. '' Freya said;
Neera stepped backward when she heard her words;
This was more than just looking like them. Something was wrong. She trembled as Freya walked towards her, her eyes were turning red, and her fingernails getting longer.
''What are you going to do to her? ''
Beatrice asked;
''I'm going to kill her. Zavian is finally coming to himself after all these years. I don't want him getting distracted by his dead wife's look-alike, who is obviously not her. And you know, he had already agreed to get married to one of the princesses from the eight kingdoms after several years of persuasion. If he doesn't, there might be another war. We cannot risk him seeing her, it would get ugly. ''
Neera's bag fell to the ground, tears gathering in her eyes. What did she do wrong? Why would they kill her? Who did she look like? What was going on?
She asked herself a thousand questions as she wept silently. She looked around the room. There was nowhere to run to, and even if there was, she couldn't run faster than demons.
''Freya, the poor girl did nothing wrong. It's not her fault that she looks like the dead queen. You can send her away, to the farthest kingdom, where he would not find her. Killing her is too extreme, don't you think? '' Beatrice was a lower demon that had never killed a human before. And she couldn't stand to see a frail child killed without a reason.
Freya wasn't listening. Her fangs appeared, and her claws reached out to Neera's neck.
''Please, Freya, there is another way. She's just a poor child!'' At that moment, Beatrice regretted why she had called Freya to see the child. She should have just sent her away, herself.
The original demons also had the power to see the past of humans, so when Freya touched Neera, she saw a glimpse of her past and what she had gone through, and she couldn't bring herself to kill her.
Her claws disappeared slowly, and her teeth became normal.
Neera had already said her last prayers as she closed her eyes waiting to take her last breath; when she heard Freya.
''Alright, you win. ''
Freya said and Neera opened her eyes in shock; was she letting her go?
She thought as she looked at Freya;
''Forget everything that happened in this room.'' Freya compelled her.
Neera blinked, and the next second she couldn't remember anything that just happened. She looked at the two women in the room, utterly confused, but more confused by the fact that she was crying.
''Send her away, make sure he doesn't see her. If he sees her, you're dead. ''
Beatrice breathed out in relief as she watched Freya leave the room.
Neera was puzzled; when did that woman come inside and what was she talking about?
Beatrice turned to Neera, ''Stay here till nightfall, don't leave this room no matter what. Do you understand? ''
Neera nodded. Although she had a lot of questions to ask, she did not dare ask.
…
''There is a chariot waiting outside the walls. Do not let anyone see you, especially the king.'' Beatrice said to the soldier. He was the only one she was sure wouldn't ask too many questions, and he was a drunkard too, so he wouldn't take what was going on too seriously.
''Where is the girl?'' he asked, pushing open the door.
Neera was sitting in a corner of the room, hugging her legs, her bag of clothes by her side. When she heard the door open, she stood up;
''Oh, what a fair lady. '' The servant exclaimed, he was human, so he didn't know who she was. Her beauty was like that of the immortals, but seeing how lowly she dressed, and that Beatrice was asking a human to take her out of the kingdom, he figured she wasn't.
''Get going now. '' Beatrice said. They didn't have any time to waste. The king left the castle but would be back soon. She wanted them long gone before he returned.
''Get your clothes, you are leaving with him. '' Beatrice ordered Neera, and she did exactly as she was told. She wanted to ask where they were taking her, but kept her lips shut. Asking too much questions would only bring her trouble.
Neera followed the man quietly. He was short and his steps staggered, he reeked of wine, and she kept a distance.
''So what did you do? '' the man asked, as he led her through the back of the castle, ''why did Lady Beatrice want you out of the castle so badly? ''
Neera's eyes widened. She was leaving the castle?
''I don't know,'' she replied. Maybe that was for the best. She thought. Would they take her back to her family?
Neera's heart sank; she wasn't sure her parents would be happy to see her.
''You must have done something very wrong. Lady Beatrice is a rather peaceful demon compared to the others.''
Neera did not reply. She couldn't remember anything she did wrong. She had followed all her instructions without asking questions.
The man led her out of the castle, through a narrow path where no one was. Soon she could see the high gates. Neera turned and took one last look at the castle, engraving it in her mind. If they returned her to her family, she would tell her sisters about the magnificent castle. She thought.
Before they could reach the gates, the giants opened them. Neera was confused. They weren't close to the gates yet. Why were they opening them?
''Oh no, '' the servant who accompanied her exclaimed; his eyes looking around for an escape, but there was none; they were already too close to the gate to hide, and besides, no one dared move when the king passed by. He couldn't risk getting killed because of a few pieces of silver.
''What is wrong? '' Neera asked,
''It is the king. ''
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