Blood Inked

Chapter 3.. Princesses of Valngasia

Everything was at peace; the world was perfect.

The sun had risen high up into the sky, blazing with all its glory. The wind blew gently, the birds chirped, the trees swayed in perfect harmony. Everything was green and colorful, if the palace florists saw this they would be filled with envy. A water fall poured down from a mountain top into a stream. It sparkled and shimmered as an invitation to seek its depths. Without hesitation she dived into the stream, enjoying the contrast of its chill against the warmth of the sun. Eloah had gifted her with paradise, a glorious sight undisturbed by anyone but her. A world created for her, hidden from the rest of the world.

She buried herself deep into the stream and emptied her thoughts.

When she swarm up for breath the sun had disappeared and the clouds had darkened.

Night was coming.

It was the fastest transition of daylight to nighttime she had ever witnessed. The moon rose in place of the sun, glowing its brightest light then gradually darkened to a yellow. She watched in despair as the yellow moon turned red.

The blood moon.

The water became thick and heavy. Everything was changing.

She looked at her hands; they were covered in blood. She screamed and tried to wash it off in the river, but they never came off. She watched in horror as the water fall turned to blood. She looked up at the peak and saw bodies hanging from the trees with its branches protruding out of them. She screamed and ran out of the river.

The world had been corrupted. The world had turned red.

The blood was everywhere, no matter where she ran to, no matter where she hid; it flowed to her. The bodies of the dead were everywhere and their blood flowed to her. Soon, she was standing in a pool of blood, she gave into hysterics and screamed until her throat became hoarse.

"Awake !" a voice commanded, and the whole world froze for moment. Adria looked around for the owner of the voice, but there was none.

"Help me." She cried as the pool of blood at her feet became an ocean and she sank into its depths, carried away by the ocean of blood.

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Pain.

A pain so intense it was a wonder how she was conscious. It coursed through her body and made her wish she had not awakened. It created a path through her body, touching every joint and every nerve.

"I need you to wake," a voice whispered softly, "you've been asleep too long."

She tried to open her eyes but her whole body burned with a searing heat, a cold wash cloth was placed on her head soothing and cooling her down. She forced her eyes open and looked with unseeing eyes.

Quickly, she shut her eyes and tried to force herself back to the safety sleep, but the nightmare kept replaying itself beneath her eyelids.

The Princess.

Her eyes snapped open and she forced herself to a sitting position. Gradually, she remembered what had happened. Death had come for her. Had the Princess survived the encounter?

"Very interesting," her head turned to the direction of the voice. "It was obvious that you are in extreme pain, yet the thought of Yurla causes you overcome it all. Such loyalty is rare."

Adria clutched the blankets closer to herself as she watched the stranger study her curiously like of his most successful experiments. The stranger was not a physician or a slave, he wore the clothes of the elite society and he carried himself like a person confident of his authority. Although he was extremely handsome, it was his eyes that drew her the most, an impossible color of silver grey. It was commanding and enticing, she felt the urge to fall on her knees and pledge allegiance to him. His eyes showed restrained and controlled power, she felt pity for the ones he unleashed it on.