The Wind Lords

Harsh Reality (Chrysanthys)

The sun shines through the window and alights on my face as my eyes flutter open and I jerk to a sitting position. Slowly, I untangle myself from my sheets and go to the closet for a bathrobe and slippers. Stopping briefly to look in the mirror, last night's horror has left faint traces of fear on my face. It is the same nightmare I have had these past few nights.

Composing myself, I head downstairs to the bathing room, like I always do. Then it strikes me, I am a prisoner in this house. My rooms are large and beautiful with many tapestries and fine artwork depicting valiant heroes and lovely maidens. The bed is full of soft pillows and silk sheets. Fancy lace curtains cover the windows that lead to the balcony of my tower.

But this is not my home, it is still a gilded cage,and I want nothing from Rathim that he can twist into hopes of marriage. Rathim surrounds me with a palace fit for a queen, but I do not want it. I long for my old room and the bathing room my mother had made when I was young. My mother's bath house was a thing of wonder and beauty. It was magically coaxed into the earth in an oval shape. It is shallow at one end and led gradually to a deeper portion where you could just sit and soak in the magically heated water. There were sweet-smelling plants there that were soothing and decorative. There was peace and comfort in that one little room.

Instead, what I receive is a handful of young girls who lead me under guard(The guards of course are the same muscled men who opened the doors for Rathim during the ceremony), to a bathing pool that is heated by pipes and machinery. It is made of stone and tile. No lovely plants hang here, it is alien to me. Slowly I allow myself to be disrobed as I step into the pool. Standing there numbly, I allow the young girls to do their work. Their Ceremony is at least two years away. They are eager to embrace it, and talk about it with the same innocence I used to possess. I know them as I do every person in this city.

Tansy is the most mature of the girls. She is tall with tawny colored hair and striking brown eyes the color of honey. She has an easy manner about her and a light hand when lacing up a dress. Ollis is the youngest of the group and very shy, almost timid. She is almost grown out of her awkward stage and possesses a lithe form that men will admire in the years to come. Her soft doe colored eyes reveal her gentle nature. Resa is a good hairdresser, she does not pull hard on one's head and she is very creative. She is short with hair the color of the rising sun and bright blue eyes that are very expressive. Lissa is very gentle and likeable. Her dark black curls are thick and always braided. Her gray eyes were watchful and appraising. My mother had been training her to be a Matchmaker, she possesses the unique talent to do so. She is also Rathim's sister, but I hold no grudge against her for that. The girls are friends and it shows in the way they can easily poke fun at each other without hurting anyone's feelings.

My long, silvery hair begins to shine as it is scrubbed clean of oils and dirt, then I am washed with imported oils and scented water that the finest ladies use in other cities. I allow the girls to go about their work so they will not be punished for my stubborness as they have been when I arrived, and refused their very presence. I was remorseful when I heard that they had been reprimanded for not seeing to my needs. It isn't their fault I am here now. I step out of the bath and into the robe they prepared for me and begin my walk back to the room. The girls follow behind me slowly, their conversation is drowned out by my thoughts of what will happen when they are gone. I know he will come to see me this morning and ask me to join him for breakfast. Fingers, deft and sure pile elegant clothes on me and gather up my long tresses and style it to the master's liking. Rathim has Resa fix it the same way every night, he likes the way it catches the sunlight. The girls talk among themselves, and I watch their youthful abandon with some regret as they depart, wishing I could join them. Suddenly, I am alone again, and it is not long until I hear his boots on the stones outside my prison. He enters, though I do not turn to greet him.

Rathim's broad shoulders and handsome face should have been enough to have any woman he wanted. Anyone woman but me, I am spoken for. He is just behind me now, I feel his breath on my shoulders as he inhales the scent of my perfume. The urge to move away from him is strong, I know he can be a dangerous man.

"Will you come down to breakfast today?" he asks softly. His voice is deep, almost pleasant. He is always pleasant, at first.

"No." I reply, moving away from him and toward my vanity table.

"Then you will not eat." He says quietly, his voice deepening a little more.

"I will accept the consequence." I says oftly, though by now I am admittedly a little hungry.

"You are only hurting yourself, Chrys. Let me make all of this change. I can make you happy."

"I have hurt no one Rathim." My responce is quick but to the point, his face reddens.

"That was an accident. I was frustrated. There was a lot of emotions that day. You were hardly cooperative." he responds trying to throw guilt my way. When I have nothing to say, he presses further.

"Have you changed your mind?" He has an air of authority around him that a natural leader would posses. He thinks that my imprisonment and the death of my mother will sway me to marry him. I cannot forget what happened, and I cannot forgive him either.

"No. I can not marry you, Rathim." My words are the same as they have been every day and night I have been here. He tenses behind me, I feel him struggling with his temper.

"Chrys, there is no one else for you. Here, you can live like a queen, you'll have nothing to want for. You cannot believe your mother will make it back to your people can you? We all saw what happened." His words bring me back to that day. It is my turn to be angry now. After my abduction from the ceremony, Rathim took the control of the city through force of arms. He runs it by military force now. No one speaks against him, not even the council.

My mother tried to reason with him after the ceremony, she even pleaded. My mother has never begged before. Her fury was unlike any I have ever seen when Rathim would not see reason. She is always so composed and serene. That night she was like a tempest. I heard their argument as I was being taken upstairs. She told Rathim she'd summon an elven army to come for me. She told him my life-mate would come for me. He told her to bring the elven knight. She left the hall quickly, then she summoned her great eagle, Marhutah. I didn't even know she had such a creature living nearby, and she fled to seek aid from our people. I heard Rathim order volley after volley of arrows to be launched at the eagle in flight. I saw them get hit, I saw them spiral down from the sky hundreds of feet and crash into the forest below. Who could survive such a fall? I close my eyes to block the memory from coming back completely. I turn back to Rathim now.I have only myself to depend upon now until aid comes from the elven city I have never seen.

"Rathim, I will live long after you have turned to dust. You can keep me here as long as you like. I am not yours, and never will be." My violet eyes bore into his. I am my mother's daughter after all.

"You are here!" He yells into my face, his rage showing itself just beneath the surface of this finely veneered human as he gestures to the window to a faceless person that he cannot discredit "You don't even know his name! You haven't even seen him, how can you know I am not right for you."

"Because you have a life-mate, she is expecting you. There will be nothing for you if you do not ask pardon for the insult on Ansilla's family. They will still carry through with the betrothal if you apologize." My words fall on deaf ears. He does not see any one but me. Ansilla is my best friend and I have to try for her sake to set these things right.

"Chrys, please." He doesn't even finish his sentence. The longing in his voice is there, but I will not acknowledge it.

"I have nothing left to say Rathim. My answer will always be no." I turn to walk away from him, and the fury beating in his breast breaks free. He grabs my arm and whips me around, ripping the bodice of my dress accidentally. Bruises already begin to form on my delicate skin. I do not show my suprise, I do not think he intends to hurt me, but I cannot be sure.

"I could have what I want Chrys. I could break you to me like I would a wild horse." He growls into my ear menacingly as his hands slide down the side of my dress. I stiffen, my hands shake, but my eyes, my mother's eyes, remain steady.

"Break me as you would a horse then. Take this body, you will not have the satisfaction of my assent." My voice quivers once, but I do not flinch.

With a hoarse cry of frustration, he flings me aside and storms out of my room, the door slamming loudly as he leaves. I lay on the floor for a moment as I gather my composure. Too stunned to cry, I stand slowly and brush back my hair, paying no heed to the torn dress or the bruises. Picking up my small harp, I move out to the balcony and stare at the guards that dominate our once peaceful village. It has changed so much, I cannot even see the Great Seal from here. It should dominate the town square, all I can see is the guards walking back and forth. I stare out at the sky toward the mountains where my true home is supposed to be. Slowly, I pluck at the strings and absently sing a song about my life-mate.


His name is Jacareth. He rides the great eagle, Torsain. It is all I know right now about my life-mate. I know very little of him, but I share that with no one. It is something I feel in the deepest parts of my soul. I am sure somewhere, he must feel me too.
The name alone gives me hope and courage that I will escape my prison. If not for my mother's specific request that I await elven aid for my rescue, I would try every day I draw breath to escape. I have already mapped in my mind's eye the three routes out of the city, its seige points, the changing of the guards, and when Rathim rides out on patrols. He insists on doing it so he can prove his "benevolence" toward his hometown. For now I wait, but I must act soon. Rathim will not be patient forever.

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