Voyage of War

Chapter 6

Alphira paced ,back and forth on the lush carpet, in front of the tall looking glass. Her gown flowing behind her.
"How much longer do I have to wait," Alphira grits out between her teeth." I've been sitting in waiting to bring them all to their knees, for ten years already." She stops and looks straight into the looking glass.
"Not much longer ,just a slight delay ,due to a past grudge that caught up to him.'' A male voice resonates from the looking glass.
"I put my faith in your 'race'. I hope you don't let me down."
"I promise..."
"Lady Alphira the noon meal will be served within the next hour. King Casimir requests that you join them." A soft voice from the door cuts in.
"I'll just have to freshen up thank you." Alphira looks back to the looking glass only to find her own reflection glancing back at her.
"At least I'm not in that hole with flat-nosed dwarfs anymore." Alphira mumbles distastfully to herself.
She's come this far, inspite of some minor obsticals. Like the eldest Prince who walked right out of their engagement party without so much as a word and was last seen scrubbing decks in  Nerapirat. Serves him right, walking out on her Lady Alphira, he made it so much more difficult to win the kingdom's trust.

                       *    *    *

Nothing was going as they thought and planned it would.

The big pirate, Captain Amalek's first mate Viraat, stomped down the stairs ,with three other pirates in tow. They bound the prisoners hands behind their backs and tied their left angles to the person before and behind them. They were led to the main deck, where Captain Amalek was waiting for their arrival.

Princess Sybil felt anxiousness bubbling in her stomach, threatening to become full out panic. Her breaths came out short and hurried. Looking over her shoulder she could see Ced's expressionless face, he seemed calm. She squinted her eyes against the fading light. The harbour of Nerapirat was nothing like Aevan's. A dozen ships stood docked, not one of them even closely resemble the other. The docks were shaggy and unkept, as was the sailors. Men falling over their own feet ,clutching a bottle of caramel coloured fluid, as they neared scandalously dressed women. The rest of the people were either getting battered to a pulp or too drunk to get up. Princess Sybil felt revolted at the thought of setting foot on the island of the pirates.

"Like what you see?" Captain Amalek's catches Princess Sybil staring.
"Charming." Princess Sybil replies, sarcasm dripping from that single word.
"Wait 'till you see your buyer." Captain Amalek comments, amusement lacing his words and a sly grin plucks at the corners of his mouth. The next moment they are being led off of the Astria, with useless protesting and attempts to loosen the ropes around their hands.

                       *    *   *

Ced had visited the auctioning yard on several occasions but never under the current circumstance, he was always standing below the podium as a buyer or sitting at a canopied table behind the podium as a seller. They are pushed into the second cell of the last row of the block of cells within the auctioning yard.

Ced fights the panic that threatens to overcome him as he hears the heavy lock on the iron gate closing. A sign of finality and familiarity settling in the pit of his stomach. The same feelings he fled from years before. He stands frozen in the middle of the cell, looking out to the setting sun, too caught up in his own thoughts to notice the two new faces staring at him.

"I'm Rafael and this is my twin Cassandra," the soft voice makes Ced turn to face the two children sitting hunched against the back wall, recognition flashes in his mind.
"Raf? Cassy?" Ced asks, doubt lacing his voice.
"Yes? That is what most people calls us..." Raf affirmed with suspicion.

All at once the severity of their situation hits Ced and he stumbles backward into the wall next to the iron door. Princess Sybil nears to help, he adverts his eyes unable to look her in the eye. A pang of guilt surges through him, he told them to put their faith in him and that was all they had blind faith in the man that saved them from drowning due to an attack from hexes and would again save them from being sold.He failed them ,he failed Princess Sybil and this time he could not run from it.