Sacrifice

Chapter 1 : The Awakening

"It's a shame the princess is so beautiful. Her beauty is about to be short-lived." A faint unfamiliar voice rouses you from deep sleep, abruptly plucking you from dreamland and forcefully dumping you back into reality. You're vaguely aware of the semi-conscious movement of your eyebrows drawing together in reaction to a cool metal being pressed against one of your cheeks. It's thin and heavy, and you're almost certain you feel a sharp point pricking at your smooth skin. "I can't believe the princes get to share her every day. Some people are born lucky without deserving it."

"I think she's having a nightmare," another voice speaks. This time it's familiar, but it's only a soft murmur. You can't seem to recall who it belongs to but it sounds comforting. It's distant and almost foreign, sounding as if the person were speaking underwater.

"How much time do you reckon we have before the first prince reaches us? Enough for a quick one?" Another unfamiliar voice snickers suggestively. This voice sounds much closer, almost like you can reach out and grab the person. Their appalling innuendo sends an icy chill racing down your spine and a dreadful pit sinks heavy in your stomach as your gut instantly warns you that something is most certainly not right.

"You should wake her," another distant voice urges.

Finally, your eyes blink open in alarm, searching around the dark room for the sources of the voices. When your gaze finally lands on two tall men lurking over your bedside, your eyes widen in surprise, mirroring their reactions, and your heart lurches in your chest. A breathy gasp tumbles past your lips and suddenly, the simple task of breathing seems like an impossibly laborious task.

"You woke her, idiot." One of the two strangers hisses just as you sit up and scramble off the bed away from them.

"Who are you?" you command in an unwavering tone, loud and steady, contradictory to the fear overcoming your insides. You frown when your words don't seem to feel like they're your own. There's no doubt you're the one talking as you can feel the faint vibrations and tremors of your own vocal chords. But it also feels like someone else is speaking for you, like someone is speaking through you.

The two men are standing near the only exit of the room, blocking any chances of your escape, so you resort to backing up slowing in the dark, trying to bring yourself closer to the desk to grab any stationary item to use as a temporary weapon. Yet, even in the dark, the two men are quick and agile in the foreign setting - almost as if they've studied the layout of this room.

"I'm afraid we don't have time for introductions, Your Highness," one of the men clicks his tongue in a taunting manner as the other snatches you easily. He grips tightly at your arms to prevent you from fighting back. You hate the way your body freezes in a sheer moment of panic and you try desperately to kick at him and stomp on his feet. But your attempts fall useless when he picks you up and shoves you back onto the bed. Now, the man holding onto your arms has them pinned down by your sides and the other man is sitting on your lower legs to prevent you from kicking. His natural weight is causing an unbearable amount of discomfort to shoot down your shins, but you try to thrash your body around nonetheless.

"Heeseung!" The name tumbles past your lips naturally. You scream desperately, hoping to gain the attention of the prince sleeping in the bedroom next to yours. Your body is now fully in fight or flight mode, and the adrenaline is pumping through your system unnervingly. However, part of you doesn't seem to understand the dull feeling of sadness and despair sitting in the back of your mind. The obscure emotions almost feel misplaced.

"Shut her up will you?" the man holding your arms barks, tossing a piece of cloth over to the one sitting on your legs. Panic bubbles up further in your chest when he leans down toward you and you take in one last deep breath to scream even louder for the oldest prince.