THRIVE: Book One

Chapter 4- The Gods

As I'm roughly pushed down the hall, I realize I have never been inside the temple before. During festivals, they would allow people inside, but ratty girls like me were always shunned away by the guards. Although I despise the people who live here, I can't help but admire what I see, gazing at the intricate patterns carved into the walls and ceilings. As we continue down the twisting halls, I try to stay alert but quickly lose track of how we have gotten this far. Eventually, we make it to a dark stairwell, and I see another guard waiting for us.

"Quon, where did this one come from?" he asks as he steps forward and looks at me. I just glare at him as he looks down at me.

"The market, she was accused of stealing from the Garrin yesterday," he explained irritatedly. Quon seemed just as muscular as the guard that had brought me here, and I knew there was no way I could take them both on. I'm not sure why, but he kept staring at me with a strange grin as if trying to study me.

"Well, this will be interesting; we haven't seen a girl come through in quite a while." He laughs and gestures down the stairs. "Master Zade and Mistress Serene have both seemed anxious lately; I guess we'll see who decides to take her." After that uncomfortable exchange, Quon began to shove me down the stairs into the dungeon's darkness. Aside from the faint light from a single torch, I couldn't see a thing. As we suddenly stopped in front of a cell, the guard opened the door and threw me to the ground, knocking the wind out of me and easily bruising my spine. I moaned in pain as they slammed the door behind me and took the torch back upstairs with them. I choke on the dusty air as I try to catch my breath. It's pitch black down here, and I can't even see my hand in front of my face. There's no point in finding a way out; I know there isn't one. As I try to stay calm, I try to remember what my brother told me about what they do to prisoners.

Guards usually escort prisoners into the throne room after being kept locked up for a while. Then it's then decided by the royal family whether you'll be set free or if you should be killed for your crimes. If they choose to kill you, it's usually done by King Ruthus right where you stand, or in worse cases, he decides to hand you over to his daughter Serene. No one knows what happens after Serene takes you into custody, but she is known to be stubborn and aggressive, and everyone knows never to cross her. She has the mind of a sociopath, and there are rumors that she enjoys torture and human experimentation. Some might even say she's the goddess of death. As much as I deny their divinity, it's hard for me to argue with that assumption. Calem has told me that most people hope that if they are sentenced to death that it's done by Ruthus and not Serene, knowing that it's far quicker. Zade is a different story, he only seems to take an interest in young women he wants to keep, but as I've heard, it has been quite a while since that has happened. It's strange, Kaya was taken two years ago, and I have noticed that since then, he hasn't seemed interested in new girls anymore.

Kaya. I suddenly realized that she must be here somewhere too, but as it is now, there's no way I could try to find her. Helpless and scared, I sit silently in my cell with nothing else to do but ponder my demise for what feels like a few hours. Suddenly, the guards come in and force me out, binding my hands behind my back. Even the dim torchlight from the hallway feels overwhelming after being in that darkness, and I stumble as I'm pushed up the stairs. The halls are even brighter, practically blinding as I'm forced forward. The further we go, this place seems to twist every which way, appearing more extensive than I had ever imagined. I began shaking in anticipation of what was coming, so much that I feel paralyzed and fall to the ground. The guard seems irritated as he quickly lifts me to my feet, pushing me forward without saying a word. Soon, I can see the entrance to the throne room at the end of the hallway. As we walk in, I see Ruthus, his wife Cassandra, and his daughter Serene, leaving two empty thrones to each side. As I hesitantly step forward, the guard pushes me to the ground.