The Mad Queen

Chapter Forty-Nine: The Capital

Any man who wishes to join us must obey our rules. They must understand their place. They must understand that they are not worthy to even be looked at by the goddesses upon their return. They shall serve us. They shall worship us. They shall look at us as the divine creatures we are and in the presence of our beauty, they shall be reminded that all men are nothing. It is a mans place to kiss the ground we walk on. To beg us for our forgiveness after the crimes they and their gods have committed against us.  Any man who speaks against us shall die.

~Daughters of the Tainted Holy Script

The room stays silent for a few moments before the man lets out a low chuckle. Shaelyn's eyes stay focused on him. He is younger than she thought he would be. In his mid-twenties by her estimate. His skin has a slightly tanned glow to it. His hair is dark brown and falls scruffily around his shoulders. The features of his face are sharp and he stands tall.

"You think that if funny, thief?" Fallon asks in her cold sneer. His eyes fall on her. He sighs and shakes his head.

"You rich folk are all the same," he chuckles. "Entitled," he shrugs with a smug grin on his face. Shaelyn raises an eyebrow.

"Entitled?" Rayana asks.

"You have everything you need in your shiny castle yet here you come. To the slums, to the people who have the least to give and the most to lose. The fact you came to us for help makes me think that what you have in mind is dangerous and you don't want to risk the lives of your spoilt rich friends. So don't bother spouting that shit about helping people again. We see right through yo..."

"Is he actually going to make a decent point anytime soon?" Fallon interrupts with a bored sigh. The man goes silent and Shaelyn tries not to smile. He goes to speak again but Fallon sends him a harsh, cold glare. "Swallow your pride and shut the fuck up," she tells him. "We didn't risk our lives coming here just to hear you spout bullshit about us being spoiled little monsters," she tells him.

"You may be a princess, but down here the only people we take orders from are him. He is the boss. Speak out of turn again and I'll cut out your tongue," a small woman next to the man says. Fallon's eyes fall on the new woman, the bored expression not leaving her face. She examines her. Small and scrawny with messy, light ginger hair and muddy pale skin.

"Be quiet and let the grown-ups speak," she tells the woman. The woman's eyes seem to light up with rage and an ugly snarl twists across her face. Her hand moves in a flash as she throws something toward Fallon. The girl moves so fast that their leader standing next to her doesn't have time to stop her before the blade is flying through the air. Fallon catches the blade with on hand only inches from her chest. The room gasps as they realise what has happened. The woman who threw the blade still stares defiantly at Fallon, though their leader hovers slightly in front of her, protecting her. 

Fallon snarls.

"You don't want to play this game with me, little girl," she warns. The girl spits on the floor.

"Fuck you," she snarls. Fallon sighs and throws the blade back. The weapon cuts through the air in a flash. Less than a second after leaving Fallon's fingers, it buries itself in the girl's right shoulder. She lets out a scream and falls to the ground, clutching at her wound.

The leader reaches for the girl immediately.

"It's not fatal, I'm sure you have healers here who could deal with it," Shaelyn tells him. The man glares at the three princesses, his face twisted in rage.

"You're lucky she's in a good mood. The punishment for trying to assassinate a Princess, well, it really depends on how creative the king is feeling on the day of the punishment. We'll let you use your imagination," Rayana tells him. "Now are we going to have a civil conversation like adults or are you going to keep acting like a child who hasn't got his own way?" She continues. The young woman is taken away, still whimpering and he stands. His hands now covered in blood.