Nadine's Journey

Chapter Two

Abbadon

"Dammit," I bring my fist hard onto the velvet-covered table. That royal brat, my niece, is alive. Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! My fist hurts now from banging it on the table. That wench did not kill Nadine. I should've known that she was too soft. Damn women. I should have hired a man. Women and their damn sentimentality. Damn the fates. Damn my brother for getting what should have been mine! He got the kingdom; he got the wife; and he got the perfect child! At least I caused that wench to take the princess. I want my brother to suffer. If only that insolent wrench had killed the princess. Alas, we don't get everything we want.

It was only by chance that I came across the truth. Last night when I scried, searching for the location of anyone with royal blood or a relation through marriage just because I was bored, I got quite the shock. Instead of the visions stopping after seeing my damn brother, his wife, and myself, the visions revealed a girl who had raven black hair with blue crystalline eyes. At first, I thought that I made some mistake. I scried three more times before finally accepting that that damn wench had failed to carry out the task that I gave her. She did not kill the princess. I just could not allow such a mistake to continue, so of course I conjured up several shadow-walkers and ordered them to kill any person in the small village, home to my niece. I visited the village after the attack, just to give further orders. Unfortunately, I had to return before I could see if my niece was truly dead. Hopefully, though, they got the job done.

The shadow-walkers could suffocate a man just by enveloping them in their embrace. Of course, like all magnificent creatures, the shadow-walkers do not like a clean kill. They like their victims to suffer before dying. So they developed a dagger-like blade made of their essence to make their victims suffer. The blade is like poison... once thrust into a person's body, it starts to suck all the happiness from the person's aura, and then the essence leaks into the victim's bloodstream, causing maximum pain. It would make the victims feel like they were burning from the inside out. They are delightful creatures... and wonderful assassins.

They killed her... hopefully. I just need to scry one more time. I prepare a bowl of water and then mutter the familiar chant. Then my brother and his queen show up in the water, sitting in the throne room, listening to the pathetic pleas of filthy commoners. Then the most handsome man appears, a mirror image of myself, of course. The water dims a bit, lifting my hopes up to the stars. Then my spirit descends into the depths of Hades' realm. A picture of my niece walking through the woods appears, her hair flowing in the wind. "NO," I scream. "How did she escape my skilled assassins. It should be impossible. It's unheard of. No one escapes me. My anger lashes out, sending out a striking force that makes the room look as though a twister went through my belongings.

All is not lost, though. The girl will die. One way or another-- no matter how many times I try and fail-- I will kill her. She will die at my hand. A smirk reaches my face. I know just what to send after her next. This will be fun. Just imagine what my brother will feel when he finds out that his precious baby girl was alive this whole time, living in his kingdom; and he could've found her if he had looked hard enough. And then the look on his pathetic face when he finds out that she has died. Oh, victory be mine. And it will be so, so sweet. My brother must suffer, so the girl must die. I need to fetch the ingredients right away.