The Underbelly (First Draft)

Drama Queen

I pushed past the small man that was guarding the door, I looked behind and saw my father gesture forwards and so I continued on the long dank corridor. The smell of damp permeated the air and I wrinkled my sensitive nose in disgust.

I came to a stop at the end of the corridor at the plain wooden door and I heard my father following me and I hesitated for a moment more before pushing the door open. I stepped through into a large plain room, there was a hollowed circular table set in the centre of the room, ringed by chairs.

Most of the chairs were occupied by various men and women, the rulers of the Underbelly. There were also men ringing the room in dark uniforms with masks pulled over them. Guards I presumed. There were quiet conversations spoken across the room just before I entered but upon my entrance, many of the men and women sitting in the chairs turned their attention to me, their eyes alight with interest.

However their eyes were quickly averted once my father had entered, I saw now why he wanted me to go in first, he wanted me to be aware just how people would view me without his influence, I had no doubts whatsoever that they would use me for their political gains after seeing their reactions.

We made our way to two seats that were empty beside each other, I ended up sitting beside an elflike woman with her high cheekbones and raven coloured straight hair. She looked at my father imperiously, "what is the meaning of this Alistair? Why are brining your children to this meeting?" My father smiled at her good naturedly but I could detect a little hostility emanating from him, "my good Felecia. I expect my children to take my place in the ruling of the Underbelly one day and how will they know how to do it if they don't know how to deal with dry old hags like yourself?"

Felicia gave a derisive snort in reply but before she could rebuttal a young silver haired man spoke, "as untactful as that was Mr Funto, Madame Felicia is correct, how are we to know if she is to be trusted? Why not even a few weeks ago she was seen consorting with the enemy!"

I felt myself bristle inside by I remained calm, well somewhat. My father was rapidly losing his patience, "I will not have an insolent pup like you speak out of turn!" The young man looked at my father with blazing eyes but before he could retort angrily an elderly man spoke with a fatherly scowl resting on his forehead spoke, "Alistair must you try to bring the worst of us out when meeting your daughter for the first time? I can only imagine what she must be thinking!"

I felt all of the eyes that were looking at me subertly previously now gaze openly at me as the elderly man directed attention towards me, I squared my shoulders and drew myself up to my full height, "my name is Merissa and I am Alistair Funto's eldest daughter and I am here to meet the other rulers of the Underbelly." I paused then decided to follow my instincts and continued, "and to be brutally honest I'm not impressed. You're more like frightened and squabbling children then the mighty women and men who I was raised to fear."

A thick bullset man rose up abruptly and began to stride towards me with rage puncturing each step, "listen here you little bitch," he reached over to jab at my chest but I never let anyone touch me without my permission. I grabbed his finger and pulled it up until it cracked at the ninety degree angle. His wide face went white with pain and he went down on one knee. Two men as big as him rushed from the shadows of the wall and went to apprehend me, with swift jabs of my left hand they went down in a flurry of limbs and loud cursing. One reached for my exposed ankle but as soon as he made skin contact my gift ripped across him and made him convulse and he thrashed away from me. No one made a move towards me after that.

I looked over the crowd of the elites of the Underbelly and felt cold rage roll over me, "listen and listen well. You are all preparing for the war against the Surface but your chances are laughably abysmal." I had their attention now, the electricity in the room was almost visible as the tension cracked up a few notches, "you don't stand a chance in the conventional sense, but that doesn't mean we can't win with unconventional tactics."

The elder man who was gently reprimanding my father a few minutes spoke up then, "how do you suggest that we do this then young lady?" I tried to ignore how much the young lady remark bothered me and focused on the question, "simple, we use people like me and my father."

The uproar that followed took a while to settle down, some people were calling me crazy saying that my gifts have given me a god complex, it was the lady called Felicia and the young man who's name turned out to be Henry were the biggest advocates of that theory while my father and the elderly man were trying to discuss the merits of my plan.

Eventually my father lost his patience, "ENOUGH!" His voice reverberated throughout the secret council chamber and it was not just his loud authoritative voice that was lending him his powerful presence, I could sense his gift becoming agitated as he became irritated with the other Underworld bosses.

"We will vote on this now, now those in favour-". A loud bang interrupted my father and an unwelcome familiar figure stood in the doorway of the council chambers. Jeffery looked at my father with the look of someone that is the bearer of horrendous news, "the Underbelly is besieged. They've found us." His voice was dead and monotone, then his scarred face contorted and he glared at me, "and she is the one who led them here."

Oh shit.

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