An Unusual Meeting, An Unlikely Romance

Chapter 1: Imprisonment

"Lady Luciela! Lady Luciela!" My most trusted adviser called me. I turned to her and smiled.

"Hello Natiran. Is something wrong?" I asked, noticing a note in her pale hands. She shook her head, causing her long, light blue hair to sway with it, and handed me the note before rolling my eyes at the contents.

"So, Karis is starting to try for the throne? Tch. Insolent fool. Why do they insist on trying? I'm the only one of them that's related to the original king." I snorted, before handing her back the note. Natiran nodded and took the note before burning it in her hand. Looking back now, I should have seen it. The look in her eyes was one of resentment, not of a loyal follower.

"If she thinks she can just waltz up and take the throne, then she is dead wrong. Organize the troops. We're heading out to take what is rightfully mine." I ordered in my rage. Natiran nodded, and I could have swore I saw a smirk on her face seconds before she turned and left the room.

About fifteen minutes later, I was in dress better suited for fighting than what I normally wear. I commanded the troops to march out to the former king's castle. I noticed Natiran hesitating a bit before she approached me.

"Lady Luciela? May I speak with you before you claim the throne?" She asked innocently, her ice blue eyes sparkling. I nodded and followed as we walked around mansion slightly. She took a deep breath and spoke after a few minutes.

"I just wanted to say that you had a good run, huh? I mean, you were so close to the throne." She said, causing me stop for a second.

"What do you mean 'were'? We're going to go claim it now!!" I exclaimed before walking into a room with her. The room was rather empty before the door slammed behind us. I quickly turned around to see Karis. I growled and turned towards Natiran, who was now smiling triumphantly.

"Natiran! What the hell is this about?" I snapped. Both Karis and Natiran laughed.

"Isn't it obvious Luciela? You aren't going to claim that throne. You're unfit to rule us. Even a simple adviser like Natiran can tell that." Karis sneered. That snapped the last thread of control I had. I lunged towards her, but she dodged my attack with ease. I was confused.

"My powers.... What did you do to me?" I said, walking to Natiran. She simply shrugged and pointed to the ceiling. I looked up, my eyes widening at the seal on it. "So, you blocked some of my power.... But how come you're not affected yourselves? The seal affects anyone in it!!"

"Well, putting reflecting seals on amulets work. Quite easy to hide too." Natiran said, pulling out a gold medallion with another seal on it.

"You won't get away with this." I hissed at the two of them. They started laughing again.

"We already have." Karis said before snapping her fingers, causing the floor to glow. Next thing I knew, I was bound in chains. I struggled against them with no luck. I was stuck. They smiled before walking out of the room. I struggled a bit more before the room faded into a simple red hue. That's when I stopped struggling. My powers were gone, my position, everything... I realized then what happened, was due to my own selfish wants and arrogance, but then I was enraged by Natiran's betrayal. Had it been planned from the start?

For centuries, I stayed in those chains, hateful and regretful. As time passed, I slowly lost who I was, knowing that almost all of my power was lost. Even through all of this, I waited, waited for the day that I could break free. And... Eventually... It came. I noticed that one day, the seal on my powers had weakened, even though it was only slight, it was just enough. I focused what power I had left into breaking the chains. It took a bit, but they broke, and my magic was gone, but, now I was free. I stepped from the blue light it had produced onto solid ground before collapsing on the ground in exhaustion.