Chương 1: BETRYAL
I stand at the altar and now face Siar, my love. He is naturally as handsome as ever, his dark, viridian eyes, white blonde, silky hair and sharp jawline. His broad, tall build towers above me, clad in the traditional Icar'a-Rai crest and ivory wedding wear. Today will mark the day of our marriage, our love. I will become his Princess, and one day his Empress. Finally, I can leave the dreaded La Whistria name behind, along with it's rather controversial past.
As the priest speaks slowly and monotonously, Siar catches my gaze. He lips turn upwards in a warm smile. I return the action, squeezing his hand ever so slightly. Everyday I wonder how Prince Siar Du Icar'a-Rai himself would choose me, a white haired, Vivanti, illegitimate daughter, over the rest of the peachy girls of the kingdom. I am almost honoured to have received such love by the very heir of the Empire.
"Now, Audenzia, Lady Royal La Whistria, do you agree to this marriage and to love Prince Siar Du Icar'a-Rai, through sickness and health, until death you part?"
"I agree to this marriage." I say, joy seeping into my voice. The priest nods, and turns to my beloved,
"Prine Siar Du Icar'a-Rai, do you agree to this marriage and to love Audenzia Lady Royal La Whistria, through sickness and health, until death do you part?"
I notice that my fiance pauses very briefly, before replying, "I agree to this marriage." I do not dwell on it, however, for our bright future soon awaits. As he presses lips against my own and pulls me close, I know that my life before will mean nothing in comparison to the one I will lead now with Siar.
__________________
"Your highness, do your maids perhaps offer a jasmine scented tea?" Lady Firina, daughter of Cardinal Reice, sits opposite me, along with a couple of our friends, as we engage in our usual afternoon tea session. Shortly after I became princess of the Icar'a-Rai Empire, I received almost as much adoration as hate from those close to royal family in terms of wealth and status. As soon as I became Siar's wife I was forced into a world where you could trust virtually nobody. Every move you make, every action you take, every word you speak within aristocracy could destroy your reputation forever. Strategy was crucial in a land full of false truths and false friends.
I smile sweetly and nod.
"Why, I'm sure I could ask them to bring it at once. Do excuse me, ladies." I rise from the table and leave the room briefly to talk to my lady in waiting, Herloi.
"Ah, Herloi."
"Your highness."
She greets me with a quick curtsy, long, crimson hair falling slightly over her shoulder. As she meets my eyes, she grins widely.
Herloi and I had met shortly after I became betrothed to Siar. She was young, orphaned and scared; I had taken her under my wing. Unlike many, she didn't care about my white hair or dark skin - she saw me as a person, which to this day I value greatly.
She lifts herself, brushing long bangs out of her eyes, "How may I be of service?"
"The ladies in the drawing room wish to be served jasmine tea. I'm sure the maids have got that stocked somewhere. Request it please and bring it up here at once."
"Of course, Your highness." I watch the younger woman lift her magenta skirts and hurry down the western hall. I smile before turning around to re-enter the drawing room.
Before I do so, however, I pick up on voices. Hushed, giggling voices. What could they be talking about that required such secrecy? Pressing my back against the doorway to the drawing room, I surreptitiously eavesdrop on the words of my friends.
"Every single day I just wonder," I hear Firina speak, "Just how could Prince Siar of all people marry some girl born of such...such illegitimacy?!"
"Yes, yes." I hear Duchess Mia reply, "I tell you, she is following in her mother's footsteps, seducing a man of high status in order to better her own life. She's of Vivanti descent, after all. Those darskinned women are whores! They always have been."
"It's a relief Her Highness's mother kicked the bucket." Yvina, Mia's older sister, mockingly sneers, "Let's pray Audenzia will meet the same fate as her dear-"
Restraint is unnecessary at this point, I think. Letting go of my self control, I storm into the room, blazing with fury.
Those girls are incredibly shallow. I know that. But let's be honest, they're all I have. I knew from the beginning how the Empire would be skeptical regarding Siar and I's marriage. My mother grew up in the land of the Vivanti, a clan of magic users in the east known for their piercing, periwinkle eyes, white hair and dark skin. Nobody likes them. Nobody likes us. It's always been the same. We are curses, bad luck, sons and daughters of the devil himself. If most of the Empire had their way, they'd want us dead in the most brutal way possible. These girls here are no different. And the worst thing is, they still pretend to be my friends, simply for the favour of Siar.
It seems as though I have been too kind, after all. Now they must see me as a doormat, someone they can walk all over as they please.
They are so, so very wrong.
I watch the ladies stand with urgency, curtsying low and pitifully.
"Y-Your Highness, Princess Audenzia, we-"
Approaching Firina, I raise a gloved hand and slam it down against her cheek. As I do so, I feel a familiar warmth surge within my arm and shoot down towards my fingertips. Before I can even stop it, lightning sparks forward from my hand, and the room flashes a bright white. I strike Firina so harshly she falls onto the table where our tea and cakes are situated. Glass and china silverware clatter and crash to the floor.
The remaining girls frightfully back away, eyeing their friend as she trembles helplessly on the floor. The woman's maroon tresses are now scorched and dead at the ends, as black as coal and as brittle as ever. Firina's emerald dress seems to have also taken some damage, the sleeves torn and darkened. I even feel a pang of guilt as I finally inspect her face. Where I had slapped her is a raw, bleeding burn mark, still steaming and glowing slightly with the remnant of my Vivanti magic.
I glare at the rest of girls, "So this is how you treat your future Empress? Fine. You see a Vivanti? A whore? Fine. If that is what you see, then that is what I shall be."
I step forward and lift my hand again. They watch the soft turquoise glow emitting from my palm and back away once more. That is when the begging begins. A chorus of cries and sobs and desperate requests for forgiveness. For mercy. For me to give them another chance.
They are foolish, the lot of them!
I crouch down to Firina's level, "You. The whore is you. Firina. Look at you - a little cardinal's daughter. Nothing more, yet everything less. And you dare to talk about me? You're a bitch. A little, dirty, whorish, bitch."
I spit the last words, hoping it sounded as livid and vile as possible.
Firina scrambles to get up. Before she turns to run I grab her arm, fingers encircling her exposed wrist. I feel the warmth flow to my fingers again, watching the blue steam rise into the air as my hand burns into her pale skin.
"Tell a soul about this incident, and I shall have your head on a platter." I glance to the rest of the party, "Is this clear?"
They nod, still sobbing. How pathetic. all bark and no bite.
"As far as I'm concerned, little miss Firina here fell right into the tea pot and burned her face. I hope you're prepared to pay for the damages."
I let go and the group waste no time in exiting the room. I fall back into the cushions of the chair I was previously sat on, sighing as I pinch the bridge of my nose. Just as I do so, Herloi enters, holding a tray which balanced another teapot and a glass holder of teabags. She takes one look at the mess and sets the tray down on a table by the door.
"My lady? Are you all right?"
"Quite." I wave my hand dismissively, "Fetch a crew to clean up the mess. I will have a bath now."
"Yes! Right away!"
___________
"You What?!!"
I wince as Siar punches the wall next to our bed within our chambers, "Why would you do such a thing, woman?!!"
My husband of now twelve years is stood angrily, heaving with rage in his navy nightgown. He looks more or less the same as he did back then, with his blonde hair and tall build. The only difference now is his dark green eyes that seem almost black with anger. His smooth white skin now has lines etched faintly into his forehead and underneath his eyes; subtle stubble is beginning to form along his chin and jaw. The scowl now adorning his handsome face made him now look utterly hideous. It didn't suit him, but it was the face he bore normally these days. Because of me.
Since my marriage, the hate I received only got worse. Once upon a time, dear Siar would be there to comfort and reassure me, and promise that things would eventually get better. As the years passed, he's become more cold and distant.
I used to think I understood; after all, his father is sick - his coronation as Empress Siar IV was right around the corner, as was the inevitable passing of his dad.
But now?
It almost seems as if his father's sickness doesn't bother him. In fact, it seems as if the only thing that bothers him is me, and my apparently irritating complaints.
Naively, I had informed Siar of the events that took place this afternoon, regarding Firina and her rather bitchy mouth. Perhaps I had acted more violently than intended - before marrying into the royal family I had promised to restrict the use of my magic as a Vivanti. I'd done well, more or less, up until now.
I believed Siar would finally begin to understand if I told him about what they'd said. About me. About my late mother. But he did not. Like the time before, and the time before that, and so on, Siar didn't care.
He never cares.
"Why don't you ever defend me?! Just once?!" I snap back. I fiddle nervously with my fingers in my lap, tapping my foot.
"Defend you?!! Why should I do that?!!"
Annoyed, I stand from my seat on the edge of our bed, gesturing towards him, "Because I. Am. Your. Wife." I hiss coldly, "You said the vow. You agreed to marry me. You married me knowing the Empire would hate me, yet you do nothing but bathe in ignorance." I try my hardest not to let out a sob, "They all hate me, but you are never on my side! I don't understand! Help me understand!"
He's silently seething, I can tell. It's a few more seconds before he speaks, "You're right."
I breath a soft sigh of relief, "So you see? I endure such insults and behaviour every day-"
"I should've never married you."
"I..."
My mouth hangs open and my jaw is slack. It takes a moment for my mind to process what Siar has just uttered.
"Siar..."
"Don't put all the blame on me, woman."
"Woman?! How dare you address me as such-"
"Quiet!!" He bellows, "Did you not think before getting yourself into this?! Did you not think that maybe - just maybe, you would receive this kind of treatment by becoming my wife?!!"
"You told me you loved me..." I whisper. He doesn't answer. hurriedly, I approach him.
He doesn't mean it. He can't mean it.
I don't even get to touch him before he flinches and sidesteps away. I gasp and tremble. Siar leaves the room quietly, however slams the door with immense force as he exits. Dropping to my knees,I run my fingers through my hair.
This is all our marriage has been lately. Passionless, pathetic.
Loveless.
This isn't what I envisioned all those years ago.
Not much can be done, I think. I will give yet another futile attempt to make amends with him tomorrow in the morning.
I miserably climb into bed, facing the cold, empty side my husband would normally slide into. Dwelling on it would only make me feel worse, I think as I shut my eyes. I imagine my mother, her darling smile and her soft, eastern accent as I drift off, clutching onto the velvet duvet covering my shivering frame.
______________
The ground is cold, hard and damp when I wake again. I sit up with a start, panting and frantically looking around. It's dark and quiet.
Where am I?
"S-Siar...?" I whisper pathetically into the darkness. Shivering, I stand on shaky legs, running forward and right into an iron bar facing me.
I stumble backwards. I must be in a cellar of some sort. But why?
Why am I locked away?
My firsts close onto two of the metal bars keeping me in. I search for the warmth, I try to reach for my power, but I can't find it. Letting go of the iron, I look down at my barely visible hands. Where has my magic gone? And why aren't I in the palace?
"Audenzia~"
I look up with a start. A faint light approaches my cell, along with two pairs of footsteps. The moving light then stops, and the room is now clearer to me. I was right earlier on, for I am in fact in a cellar and locked inside. The floor is a black and crumbling granite, damp with rainwater from the leaks above. The iron bars containing me are rusted and almost green-looking in the light of the torch. As I look down again at myself I realise that I am completely in the nude, my nightgown non-existent.
Approaching me now is a rosy cheeked woman. Her hair was long, wavy and a familiar honey blonde. Her gentle bangs caressed her forehead, just a few inches shy of her full eyelashes and amethyst irises. Her long, slender nose was turned upwards at me in a sneer, and her slender fingers rested comfortable on her round, bulging belly.
Criala Voitria. My half sister.
"S-Sister?!" I gasp, "Criala, you must help me! Please, tell me what is going on!"
She opens her mouth to speak...
Then laughs.
She laughs mockingly, not even a hint of empathy in her voice. I begin to tremble, clutching my arms over chest to protect myself from the cold.
"W-What...no..."
"You fell right for it, my love."
Emerging from the darkness, Siar strides over to stand by my sister. I shake my head vigorously, but he only smirks.
"Our time together is over."
"What do you mean?!" I cry, "How could you lock me up like this?! Why would you do this?! And you!" I turn to Criala, "What is the meaning of this?! Why-"
"We're engaged. To be married. Betrothed."
"In love."
I shriek and shake the bars frantically as I attempt to escape. All the two do is laugh. They laugh and laugh. At me.
"Why on earth would I want a Vivanti? Quit the delusions, Audenzia."
"You told me that you loved me! You said it, Siar! So why is this -"
"We should make this quick, darling." Criala steps in, "You've been asleep for three days. The Empire is well aware of your violent nature against those around you, as well as your own sister."
"I never touched you!! Never!!"
"Quiet." She hisses. Reaching forward she snatches a couple strands of my white hair, yanking me forward, "Who the fuck do you think they'd believe? A Vivanti over a pregnant member of high society? Don't make me laugh, whore."
"I..."
"Your execution for treason is later today. Prepare yourself, sister."
"Execution?!! What?! E-Execution?!" I am hysterical now, sobbing, crying, begging; just like those bitches were on that day.
"E-Explain this! Please! Please, Criala!"
I beg and scream. I cry and I shriek. I yell, I shout, I sob. I do this as they leave me again in the dark, cold cell, I do this as the hours go by in isolation. I do this as they return with guards, who shove me out of the cell and into the light. I do this as I face Firina, Mia, Yvina, and hundreds of people as they drag me towards the guillotine. I'm in inonsolable, lost in denial, as I kick and fight, desperately searching for my warmth, only for it to not appear in my greatest time of need.
"Criala! Siar!! Please! Don't do this!"
The I day I die is hot and humid. The air is thick with heat and the atmosphere is deafening, people cheering and chanting as they watch me, their princess, their lady royal, face the clutches of death decades too early.
My voice is hoarse and croaky by the time they manage to rest my head down on the guillotine. From the higher seats towards the ends of the crowd I spot them both.
My husband. My sister. The two I believed to love me the most.
Forgive me, mother, I think to myself, for I have let you down and destroyed my future.
I shut my eyes through my tears as something cold and sharp abruptly slices into my flesh.
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CheZ_CheZ
CheZ_CheZ Hello hello hello!!
Thank you for reading Chapters 0! Hopefully this is the start of many chapters to come! I will be releasing at least another chapter this week just to get the story on the road before I begin weekly updates! Other than that, I hope you enjoy ALR~ as much as I enjoy writing it! I know right now my writing isn't particular the best (I haven't actually written for ages tbh) but hopefully the story will be interesting enough for you to keep reading!
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