Atherian Tales: The Blood Slave

Chapter Eight

It's been a few weeks now since I was captured and brought here to the Imperial castle. The days have turned out to be very mundane and repetitive. Elias wakes me in the morning and after our usual spat of him jerking the blankets from me and exposing my warm body to the rigid morning air, we exchange a few unpleasantries towards each other then I pull myself up from my bed. I always take my time bathing and getting dressed just simply for the fact that my slow movements make him wait and frankly, makes him angry. A few times I dare say I have actually witnessed smoke coming from his ears.

After our regular morning routine, Elias escorts me to breakfast. Lord Thelios has allowed me to take a seat next to Anna who has quickly become a dear friend. Lord Thelios is always at the head of the table and the dark haired woman who was in the blue dress the first time I saw her, is always to his right and is none other than Perscilla. The woman Anna warned me about.

Perscilla is around five years older than me and seven years older than Anna. Perscilla was one of Lord Thelios' first pure bloods and I believe she wears that title with pride. She had grey eyes and a thin frame. Her features were usually hard and sharp. She carried herself in a way that would suggest she came from royalty or at least that her family was in high standings from wherever she was taken.

Most of my encounters with Perscilla were not friendly. She either turns her nose up to me or speaks harshly. She tells me I'm only a child and I could never satisfy the lord like she can. I never tell her that I have no desire to satisfy the lord mainly because she would only convey the message to Thelios himself in hopes he would punish me. I have grown to agree with Anna and her opinion of Perscilla. She truly is a sour human being.

One morning as Elias was escorting me back to my chambers after breakfast, we passed Perscilla and her escort Morison. They were going to the courtyard to have a small walk. As we walked past, Perscilla slid her foot out in front of me when I hadn't noticed. I tripped on her foot but before I could make contact with the cold stone of the floor, Elias caught me mid fall. That put a damper on Perscilla's game. She began to give me a sour look until Elias whipped around glaring at her and wether I could see his look or not I felt the ice cold chill that radiated off it. Morison quickly escorted Perscilla through the hallway and away from us.

When it came to the afternoon, the other girls and myself were escorted to lunch. When we were finished with our meals, we were taken to the west wing gardens. The first time I had seen the gardens made me stand still in my spot. My feet were unable to move like I had been glued to the floor. My eyes stayed wide and unblinking as I stared at the garden. It had looked exactly like my dream.

The labyrinth that was made from tall rose bushes with the black to green roses stood in front of me. The smell wafted past my nose taking my thoughts back to my dream. Upon entering the maze, I moved in front of Anna and Perscilla and our escorts. I began leading the way to the garden clearing, using my dream as a map to make it successfully.

When we did arrive to the clearing, there sat the very bench that Elias had rested us on. I fell dizzy then and was escorted back to my chambers for the remainder of the day. Anna still asks me why I looked so ghostly white. I haven't told anyone of my dreams for the sake of myself and my sanity. I didn't know what to believe about the whole situation with the dream and reality being exactly the same and I wouldn't expect anyone else to know what to believe either.

Today started the same with the morning waking and the blanket pulling all the way to the breakfast and the usual waves from Anna and the nasty glares from Perscilla. However, instead of being escorted back to my chambers once our plates were empty, Elias veered the opposite direction and walked me straight to the east wing. I knew we were going to the sunroom.