A Kingdom of Untold Truths || Dreamnotfound

18

Edit: just wanted to add a TW here. When it gets to Clay's POV there will be a lot of pain/blood. It may be uncomfortable to read, so skip it if you want. The details are necessary for the rest of the story. There is blood in the next chapter as well, but not as much. Thank you for reading and stay safe! I love you all!

George's POV

George cried for hours and hours on end. He cried for his father. He cried for Emberfall's despair. But most of all, he cried for Clay.

George screamed and pounded at his door. There was never a response. George paced his room and tried to clear his thoughts. He showered just because Clay would want him to and he needed to sort his thoughts. Once he finished he approached his door.

"Bad? Are you still there? Can I talk to you for a moment?" George asked through the door.

The door opened after a moment. Bad gave him a painful look. "Did you need something, Prince George?" he asked.

George could tell that Bad was sad, but George was angry. He wanted to save Clay. George reluctantly decided to be on good behavior, so he could leave his room sooner.

"Can you bring Patches to me? She's probably lonely." George asked quietly.

"Of course," Bad said softly.

He left George with the other guard. The guard looked at him with a warning in his gaze.

"I'm not going anywhere," George muttered.

"Good," the guard paused. "I hate to say it Prince George... but with what you described, Dream is probably dead. Either from infection or by the hand of Princess Nihachu."

"Don't say that," George snapped at the guard.

The guard straightened, "I'm sorry Prince, I won't mention it again."

George didn't respond. There was no way Clay is dead, right? He can't be. George shut the thought out. He took a deep breath. Bad returned momentarily with Patches in his arms. He handed her to George.

"Thank you," George whispered.

Bad nodded and he shut the door, leaving George and Patches alone. She purred in George's arms. He sighed wistfully.

"It's just me and you for now, until Clay comes back." George murmured.

Clay's POV

Clay shifted awake the next morning. He groaned at the new pain on his body. The Princess had messed him up pretty bad. There were burn marks all across his back from a metal rod she had heated and poked him with. It was even more painful when he had to sit against the tree.

His shoulder still had the arrow wound and his stomach was unharmed. The Princess claimed she was 'saving it for something special'. He grunted at the thought of it.

The worst wound inflicted, however, was something else entirely. She had ran her dagger across the right side of his face. It created a long, diagonal line over his eyebrow, nose, and upper left lip.

Together, with his old scar, it created an "X" over his right eye. Clay could still see, but he still remembered the blood from the previous night. It had brought up the memory of Sapnap dying. That made the torment worse.

The Princess had laughed at his pain, but she had no clue of the backstory of his scar and to why he was so desperate to avoid her dagger.

Clay shook his head, trying to hold back tears. It was horrible, really. The new scar mocked his old one. It took away the symbolism of his old scar. Clay knew it would make him look away in disgust when he would look in a mirror after this.

"Time for you to go home!" the Princess exclaimed as she came into Clay's view.

Clay looked away. He didn't feel like talking.

"Aww. Poor thing. Aren't you excited to go home?"

Clay didn't respond. He didn't want George to see him like this.

"Too bad. It's time to go."

Clay watched her and her guards pack up. They left the campsite. The two guards gripped Clay's arms tightly, but Clay could tell that they knew he wasn't going anywhere.

They walked all day to the castle. Princess Nihachu talked nonstop, but Clay didn't say a word. The group reached the castle at nightfall.

The Princess' guards knocked the men at the gate unconscious. Clay watched, unmoving and emotionless. He had shut out his feelings days ago. She turned to Clay and clapped her hands excitedly.

"Time for the special surprise I have planned!" she exclaimed.

Clay sighed. He was tired of the Princess and her energy. The guards tied him to the castle gates. He was forced to stand. The cold bars of the gate soothed his burn marks and Clay closed his eyes in relief. It's almost over.

The Princess opened her pack and pulled out a thin piece of wood. "I couldn't use paper, the blood would stain through." she explained as if Clay knew what she was doing.

She turned the wood strip around and showed Clay. It had a message that read:

Take this as a warning for Emberfall. I will be back for my father. Dream is an example of what I will do for my nation. See you soon. - Nihachu

Clay looked at her confused. "Some message," he grunted.

She frowned. "I had to keep it short. The wood is only so big."

Clay let out a breath, "Are you just gonna leave me here?"

"Yep, but only after..." she trailed off and grinned at Clay.

She handed the wood to a guard. He was holding a hammer and a long nail.

Clay's eyes widened. "No wait, please, no. Don't do this." his voice cracked. "Just leave it on the ground."

"But it would look so much better on you!" she laughed.

Clay shook his head, his face contorting with fear. It made the new wound on his face open up. Clay squirmed as blood dripped down his face and clouded his vision.

"Nononono, not again. Not again," Clay whimpered to himself. Sapnap's face came into his vision. He sobbed at the memory resurfacing.

The Princess was breaking him and she knew it.

"Oh look what you did... Oh well. Time for the fun part!" she exclaimed.

The guard approached Clay and placed the wood to his stomach. Clay closed his eyes, tears streaming down his face now. He clenched his teeth together and braced his stomach.

A sharp, blinding pain shot through Clay's stomach. He screamed out on pain. His shoulders shook as he broke down. Clay could feel the uncomfortably long nail in his stomach. His upper body was screeching at him in pain. Clay felt a hand on his cheek.

"I'll see you soon darling." the Princess murmured into his ear.

Clay shook his head violently, his eyes full of blood. Clay passed out seconds later, her laugh echoing in his ears.