lachesism | ✓

24 - Excerpt From A Story I'll Never Write

Ares lay in the cold, dark and musty dungeon.

She had been given the smallest cell and had been suffering due to her claustrophobia and more so, because of the guards that would drop by to pass the time by beating her to a pulp.

Never once did Ares fight back. She was too weak. Enervated both physically and emotionally. She would just lay on the floor as they kicked her, swimming in a pool of her own blood.

She had long expected Aria's betrayal. She wanted all the riches to herself, and would go to any extent to satisfy her greed.
But Hood?

No. Ares would never have thought that Hood, the one she would go on long walks in the forest with, the one who promised to protect and defend her from the merry band. The one she had given her two most precious treasures to; her chastity and heart. Her Hood.
She had trusted Hood. She loved Hood.

But now, Hood himself had framed her. Hood himself had dragged her through the gravel, into her cell as the entire town watched. And soon, Hood himself would execute Ares as well.

The door opened and light flowed into the room. The sun struck like an arrow of flames, burning Ares' eyes and skin.

To Hood, she looked just like a fallen angel. Fragile and bouyed up in an ethereal golden haze, despite having spent almost a fortnight in the dungeon.
He bent down to touch Ares' porcelain white skin, tainted with deep red, royal blood. A stark, but bewitching contrast.

A weak, bony hand stopped him.

A shadow of her once harmonious voice rasped out, some of the words barely audible. Even her tiny rose petal lips looked pale, but they were bloodied and swollen.

"I would rather be a rotted carcass, the remains of a foul creature's feast, than have my skin touched and caressed by your sinful hands." The fallen angel spat, her eyes shining with the pain of betrayal.

Hood merely pushed her against the hard stone wall and connected their lips. Like two pieces of a puzzle, they fit perfectly.

For Hood, that bliss was short-lived. For Ares pushed him away, using whatever energy she had within her weak limbs, but not before grabbing Hood's sword from it's hilt.

She stood before the man that broke his heart. Ares stared straight through him with her bloodshot eyes. Again the rosebud lips moved. "Long live Robin Hood." She whispered, before lunging Hood's own sword through her body. "The man I loved." "The man who murdered his unborn child..." she trailed.

Ares fell onto her knees, and with the sword still driven inside of her, she smiled up at Hood. It was a bloody smile, her lips a red and her pupils diluted.

"May he and the princess..." she coughed, sputtering blood onto the floors.
Hood, having broken his trance, held up Ares with his strong hands, but it was not enough. "....live in everlasting peace." The former princess kissed the hero on his jaw and fell into his arms. Dead.

The light left Hood's eyes along with Ares' soul. The colour fled his face. His hands shook and quivered as the blood of a dishonored princess tainted them. He stayed there, holding the corpse still in his arms when he said, "I'm sorry...Ares." Then Hood pulled the sword out of his former lover.

That morning, when the guards came to check on Ares, they found the princess held by their leader. They were both, dead. Royal and rebel blood mixed in the pool that surrounded them. On the stone wall, written in blood were the words, "The princess loved Robin Hood, but he could not return that love. At least, not in this life."

Note:

This is the ending of a story I might never write, called 'Robin Hood and The Princess.'
I'm really kinda hoping that this at least made you a teeny tiny bit sad. Extra points to me if it made you cry (i cried writing this).
Inspiration from Anson Seabra's Robin Hood. (And Yes, one of my poems is included in this excerpt.

🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺🌺

Welp. All good (and bad) things must come to an end, and I think this is the perfect place to conclude my story (book) thingy. It's time to say goodbye.
But goodbyes are not forever, are not the end; it simply means I'll miss you until we meet again. ❤️