{TITLE} Pt. 7

Part Seven.

         She didn't sleep. She enjoyed the absolute silence so much that just the thought of drifting off into a slumber and leaving such solitude behind made her sigh. And so Keela sat in the still room, listening to the quiet air. The occasional thump or echoing bang disturbed her silence once or twice, but it was overall peaceful.

         She stared at the sun beams as they turned into rays of silver light and the cell became dark and dim. A chilly breeze entered the room and Keela smiled softly—Autumn was coming. It was her favorite time of the year. Not only was the climate more pleasant and the colors beautiful, but fall also meant that she could gather information and escape in the winter. The long cold season created ideal conditions for an escape as the cold didn't bother her too much and the snow didn't slow her down, while it brought her chasers almost to a complete halt.

         As she thought about the future prospect of collecting more Kingdom secrets and trading them to the Nation, her thoughts drifted to her most recent hand-off. Keela would have loved to do it in the winter and then maybe she would have had more time to roam the area in peace before being taken by the Morks again. But unfortunately the attack on the Nation was drawing near and delivering the information in the winter wouldn't have given the Yomcecrad Nation enough time to prepare.

         Then she thought about what had happened only hours before; how her closest and only friend was still going to face the threat of Audivae and Jayzone; how Elli had changed so much in those few moments, completely terrified at the thought of death. Keela considered it rather foolish to be afraid of dying—on the contrary it was actually something she desired. But she didn't want to go into that, so she turned her thoughts to the royal brat and the warning she had given that morning.

         “Be ready,” she whispered, mocking the princess in her tone. “What does she mean?”

         Perhaps the questioning tomorrow would me more of an extra torture session. If so, it wouldn't help the Shanmorc daughter—whipping never really bothered her much. Maybe it was time for her to start doing the servants' chores. But had it already been six weeks? As she counted the days in her head, she thought about the ridiculous policies for the prisoners.

         After six weeks of imprisonment, torture and interrogations, every prisoner does manual labor for the Kingdom—they work the prisoners into talking. But because the traitors and Crads are more likely to run away, they do chores with the servants—people, mostly from the Southern Kingdom, who work in the palace under terrible conditions—so that they are surrounded by palace guards and stone walls. It was laughable, really. Working inside the palace gave Keela an unbelievable amount of access to confidential information. But it was often difficult for the Crads and traitors to do their jobs, as the servants were threatened by the Kingdom to keep the prisoners in line and watch them like hawks. If they were caught helping the prisoners in anyway, their family would suddenly become smaller or non-existent. Still, that didn't always stop some of them from letting the traitors snoop around; and the Kingdom was wondering how the Nation was winning.

         Yet, was the Nation winning? Keela herself had handed the Yomcecrad's plenty of tools and knowledge to lead them to victory, but the war still wasn't over. And as far as she knew, she was the only one who had collected information and escaped in years. Still, there was the upcoming defeat that the Kingdom was bound to face. Keela smiled as she imagined the Shanmorc troops' shock and surprise when their men were outnumbered ten to one. She was confident that this loss would surely put a dent in the Kingdom's forces and the war would soon be over.

         A sudden knocking on the back wall interrupted her happy thought and she instantly froze, not making a sound; Keela even held her breath as she listened intently to the silence. Then after a quiet pause an all too familiar rhythm echoed around the room. Keela exhaled, relieved to have some news from the outside world.

         She stood up, faced the back wall and jumped her highest to reach the bars on her small window. Her grip tight on the metal rods, Keela pulled herself up with all the strength she had so that she could see out of the window—barely. On the ground below her, about seven or eight feet down, stood a man with dark hair and pale skin wearing a black coat. He looked up at Keela and his expression seemed relieved or even grateful that he was in her presence.

         He spoke with a light German accent, “I'm glad to see you're doing vell—”

         But Keela shushed him. She glanced behind her to make sure there were no disturbances in the hallway. Then she turned back to the Crad before her and said “Nein Englisch.”

         He smiled slightly and they spoke in German.

         “You have news?” she asked, a little worried that her German was rusty.

         “Yes,” he answered. “The Nation is ready to face the Kingdom invasion and we are currently adding more artillery to Australia.”

         “Have we had any problems?”

         A crooked smile played upon his serious expression. “No,” he said. “The Kingdom has no idea that we know.”

         Keela felt a great weight leave her body and she sighed; worthless information was one of the few things that she worried about.

         Now her arms were beginning to shake as she supported herself above the floor. “Anything else?” she asked, wanting to sit down again.

         “Yes,” he said, his tone slightly softer and he took a couple steps forward, making it even more difficult for Keela to see him. “Early this coming spring, the Yomcecrad Nation plans on attacking the palace.” Keela's eyes grew wide as he continued, “We're bringing out all of our reserve troops and training as many new recruits as we can—this is our one shot and our last chance.”

         A real attack on the Kingdom, on the palace. This could be it, she thought. The final battle.

         A sudden stirring in the leaves startled both of them and he spoke quickly, “I must leave. Good luck, Keela.”

         She nodded and he left, walking briskly and quietly, disappearing into the cool mist of the early morning. Keela let herself drop to the floor and eagerly sat down, her head spinning.

         The first sun rays of dawn reached her window before she realized what tremendous news she had just been given. She smiled at the prospect of the Nation being victorious and the war over.

         The sun continued to rise and the familiar patch of sunlight crept its way into the cell. Keela's thoughts drifted around so much that she could hardly remember anything that had happened the day before. But Audivae's threat soon returned to her mind and she racked her brains trying to figure out what she meant. Several hours had passed before she had the opportunity to ask the princess herself.

         The second the door swung open, disturbing Keela's solitude, she asked, “What did you mean by 'be ready'?” She did not look at the girl she hated, though if she did, and if looks could kill, Audivae would have been dead before she hit the ground.

         Yet—sadly—the princess did not drop dead. She instead smiled and shook her head. “If you want to know what I mean,” she said coldly, “you'll have to figure it out yourself.”

         Keela's jaw clenched. Audivae walked around the cell so that she stood before the traitor and for a while she said nothing. Keela waited for the all too familiar phrase and once Audivae uttered the usual words—“Are you going to talk today?”—Keela kept her same expression and her same silent stare.

         “You do realize that if you don't talk,” Audivae said, “there are going to be consequences?”

         Keela huffed. “Aren't there always consequences?”

         The royal brat smirked. “This won't be an extra whipping session, Keela,” she said softly. “I'm quite confident you won't be able to brush this off to the side and ignore it.”

         Keela grew suspicious—Audivae knew something she didn't and she wasn't comfortable not having the upper hand.

         Audivae continued, “Now, we need to know what you gave to those Crads.” She started pacing, causing Keela to follow her with her eyes; Keela could simply look at someone and in a few moments know what they're thinking. But Audivae had inherited the Shanmorc family trait of lying rather convincingly. Keela had yet to figure out how to read the princess, but she was getting there. And until then, she would survive.

         “You see, if we don't know what information you gave them,” Audivae said, “then we won't know how we can prevent a...mishap...that could damage the Kingdom.” Keela rolled her eyes. She had heard all of this before. “You have the power to prevent that from happening, Keela,” she said, now standing in front of her again. “All you have to do is tell us and you can spare yourself from much suffering.”

         Her tone was falsely sweet and worried for Keela's well-being. Whatever Audivae had up her sleeve, Keela was sure she could handle it.

         “And what might this 'suffering' include?” Keela asked. “More burns, cuts, bruises?”

         Audivae grinned and shook her head. “First I want to know if you're willing to cooperate or not,” she said. “Then we'll discuss the consequences.”

         Keela didn't bother wasting time by pretending to think about it. “Audivae,” she said, “in our history together, have I ever cooperated with you?”

         She shook her head, a smirk behind her deep brown eyes.

         “Then, my answer to you is,” Keela said, shutting her eyes and relaxing against the wall, “history repeats itself.”

         She didn't hear Audivae move for a moment but after a few silent seconds, loud, thumping foot steps entered the cell. Keela cracked her eyes open just before she was yanked upwards by her forearms. A tall, bulky guard stood before her and firmly grasped her hands. However he didn't tie them behind her, as usual, but instead tightly bound them together in front. Keela liked the new freedom she was given but was confused as to why Audivae would let her move so easily—it was probably just a new guard.

         “We're going to go visit someone,” the princess said as she lead the way into the hall. The guard followed closely behind, leading Keela along by some slack on the ropes around her hands that acted as a leash. “Well rather you are,” she continued. “I'm afraid I won't be able to join in on the fun.”

         “Who is this 'someone'?” Keela asked as they drew close to the guarded door that opened to the rest of the palace.

         “Oh, just a friend of the family,” Audivae answered. “He's a typical male,” she said. “And a man whore. He'll take any girl he can get, no matter how young or old and whether she wants to or not.”

         Keela couldn't see her face, but she said a feeling that the princess was smiling as she said it. What an evil brat, she thought. And what a sick bastard. Though it didn't surprise her much that such a disgusting man was a friend of the Shanmorc family.

         When they entered the main hall of the palace, Keela noticed the air was cleaner and fresher than the disease-ridden stench that filled the prison hold. The overall temperature was more pleasant as they turned right into a much nicer corridor. Large windows let the mid-afternoon sunlight flood the hall and the brightness was something Keela was not used to. She squinted from the pure golden rays as a sharp pain jabbed at her eyes. The large guard in front of her yanked at her leash as she started to fall behind.

         “And why am I to visit with this man whore?” Keela asked, tightly squeezing her eyelids against the light.

         Audivae did not answer, but again Keela had the feeling that she was wickedly smirking.

         It wasn't long before the three reached a large redwood double door fantastically decorated with carved vines and fruits. A giant Shanmorc Kingdom seal was embossed in the center, split down the middle by the door. The Kingdom motto twisted and flowed around the brass door handles: The Perfect Society, The Perfect Kingdom. Keela didn't have much time to be disgusted at such a narrow-minded saying, for the huge door was pulled open rather quickly by the giant-of-a-guard and she was roughly shoved in. She couldn't easily catch herself with her hands tightly bound together and she hit the stone floor with a hard thud. Her hands were throbbing from the impact along with the thick ropes cutting off her circulation, as she looked around the room.

         It was very big, nearly seven times the size of Keela's cell, but it was rather empty and bland. There were no decorations or portraits on the white walls, just two large windows overlooking a valley. The only thing that wasn't white was the light brown rug that stretched underneath the king-sized bed. There was also a deep brown desk with the biggest shelf Keela had ever seen sitting next to it in the far corner. She could only imagine what kinds of files were on that shelf.

         Above the bed was an oak headboard with the initials R.S. Sitting on the bed was a man Keela was not familiar with and across from him was none other than Prince Rylan. It seemed Keela had interrupted a conversation between them.

         “Rylan,” Audivae said from the doorway, “I didn't expect you to be here.”

         He gave her a look. “It's my room,” he said, a hint of annoyance in his voice. “Why are you here? And what's Keela here for?”

         Audivae grinned and turned to the other man sitting on the bed. “Chad, are you satisfied with your accommodations?”

         This man—Chad—nodded, the blonde curls on his head swaying slightly as he did so. “Would have been nice if I had some company, though,” he said, smirking.

         Keela scoffed to herself—what a pig.

         “Well that answers Rylan's question: Chad, Keela is here for your company,” Audivae said.

         Keela's eyes widened as the words echoed in her ears. The one thing she feared—Audivae had figured it out. She whipped around to face the princess just as the guard was about the shut the door. “You bitch!” she said, her tone filled with rage.

         Yet the royal brat only had a sinister grin on her lips as the heavy redwood door was shut. The deafening bang from the closing door wasn't nearly as loud as Keela's thumping heart. She continued to scream even though she knew Audivae couldn't hear her.

         “Come back here!” she shouted, struggling in her attempt to get off the floor. “Come back here and face me!”

         Soon her cries were no longer coherent, though they became louder as she felt a firm grip around her waste. She screamed and kicked and wiggled, trying to writhe out of Chad's arms but it was no use. Still shouting, her legs flailing about, Keela was dragged across the stone floor, picked up and thrown on the bed. She looked around, desperate for help, but there was only Rylan who was now standing away from the bed. She struggled and writhed around while Chad used the slack rope from her hands to tie her to the headboard. He then lay on top of her and Keela could hardly move. She kept screaming though she knew it wouldn't help her or get Chad off of her. He put his hand firmly over her mouth and her cries were muffled, but by no means did she stop.

         “Shh, shh,” he cooed, an evil grin on his face. “Just calm down.”

         And, though it was completely against her instinct, she listened to him. Keela's breathing was slow and heavy with random, sharp intakes of air.

         “If you lay still,” Chad continued, “I promise it'll be much more enjoyable for both of us.”

         No, she thought. She didn't want this. Again her eyes darted around the room, searching for anything that would help her. Rylan's blue eyes caught her attention, but now they were not shinning brilliantly as he looked at the ground. Realizing he wasn't going to help her, Keela decided to help herself. The fire in her core ignited with a blazing rage and for a brief moment all fear left her.

         Summoning every once of courage she had, she moved her jaw so that her upper teeth were exposed. With all her might, she clamped down hard on Chad's hand, sinking her teeth deep into his skin. Chad yelped and jumped back, removing his hand from over Keela's mouth. Ignoring the salty taste of blood on her tongue, Keela frantically tried to slip her hands out of the rope that bound her to the bed. She pulled, tugged, and twisted but the roped held firm. Blood begin to drip from the raw and torn skin on her hands. Keela hardly had a chance to escape before Chad was on top of her once more. Again she screamed and cried out. He didn't put his hand over her mouth, probably since it was bleeding profusely and throbbing with pain.

         Tears started to leak out of Keela's eyes as fear took over her mind and body. She wasn't aware of what she was doing, only that she wanted it to end. Please, she thought desperately, I'll give anything, just make it stop.

         She was crying and shouting, struggling helplessly against her ultimate fear. Suddenly a cold feeling turned her skin to ice as Keela felt a hand touch her stomach. Her screams ceased as shock came over her—this was really happening.

         “There, that's better,” Chad whispered venomously. His good hand slowly slithered up Keela's thin and frail frame. She wanted to shout or scream, to somehow black out the reality of this horrifying moment. Yet she found the fear that consumed her prevented her from uttering a sound. She struggled to breathe normally, her heart pounding at an extreme rate as her eyes opened wide in terror. Chad's hand, continuing to make its way up her body, touched the ridged shape of her ribs that protruded from her skin.

         “A little on the skinny side,” he said, “so I guess I'll just have to be more careful with you.”

         Keela whimpered, at last able to make a noise, and Chad's smile grew wider. She scrunched up her face and did her best to bury it within her arm, yet it was so tightly pulled back from the ropes, she could hardly cover her nose. They icy hand crept further still and again Keela lost her voice, completely engulfed by horror. When his fingertips reached the fabric that tightly wrapped around her chest, Chad merely wormed his way underneath the folds. His hand seemed even colder now, as if ice itself was resting on her skin. She tried to ignore the motions Chad was making with his hand, but the external and internal pain was too much to bear. As he touched such sensitive skin, Keela's eyes widened.

         This can't be happening, she thought, screams echoing inside her mind, unable to escape her lips. But it was happening and there was no way for her to run away from the situation. Chad was going to cause unimaginable pain to her. What he was doing now was nothing—indecent caressing of areas that had never been explored before wouldn't even compare to what she would soon feel, she knew that much. Her skin tingled all over uncomfortably and she tried to keep her legs closed, her knees touching and her muscles tense. Chad continued to have his fun, his hand constantly roaming around her upper body, but always returning to her chest. It was clear from her expression that Keela was not enjoying this, but that only seemed to please him more and it wasn't long before she could feel him hard against her.

         Now his hand was slipping down her stomach again. Though she was relieved he wasn't touching her chest anymore, she knew what his next objective was. The icy snake slithered down her body, past her waste, closing in on her hips, and Keela suddenly found her voice.

         “Please,” she whimpered and for a moment Chad's hand stopped. She couldn't remember the last time she said 'please', but begging seemed to be working. “Please...don't do this....”

         Yet Chad smirked, his true evil nature showing in his grin. “Do what?” he asked innocently—he was toying with her. His hand started creeping again, very slowly moving down and it reached the string from her moth-eaten pants. Easily slipping underneath the worn, thin fabric, he reached another layer of cloth. Much like the wrap around her chest, Keela had cloth tightly wound around her lower half, ranging just below her hips down to an inch or so of her inner thigh—it acted as her makeshift undergarments. As tight as it was, however, Chad managed to snake his hand underneath the layers.

         Again consumed by shock and fear, Keela gasped and struggled to cry out as the icy fingertips touched the most tender skin. It was the most uncomfortable thing she had ever experienced and as he roamed the unexplored area, unbearable pain shot through her—she couldn't believe people actually enjoyed this. Though she tried to keep her legs locked, Chad only forced them apart, time after time.

         “You mean, do this?” he asked, making a sharp movement with his hand and Keela cried out in immense pain. With hot tears streaming down her cheeks, leaking out of the corners of her eyes, Keela whispered unheard words to herself. She shut her eyes away from this room, away from this time, away from Chad and what he was doing to her.

         “Don't cry,” he said, curling his lips. “We're just getting started.”

         At this, Keela's eyes shot open and Chad's hands moved rapidly. He reached for the tie on her pants and in one fluid movement he was already pulling them down. He then grabbed the torn hem of her shirt, yanking it upward. She frantically screamed and cried, giving it one last attempt to get him off, but he wouldn't stop.

         “Stop!”

         Keela could hardly hear the word as it was masked behind her own piercing screams. Yet it was loud enough that Chad had heard it and he ceased what he was doing. The room was completely silent now except for Keela's soft whimpers and sharp breaths.

         “Get off of her,” he  said, his tone demanding and angry.

         “Come on, Rylan,” Chad said, an evil laugh in his voice, “it's just a bit of fun. You can have her next if you want.”

         Rylan did not move but instead glared at Chad with a hard expression. “I said, get off of her,” he repeated, softer but more deadly this time.

         Chad's smirk fell from his lips and his expression faltered, yet he didn't get off of Keela—he didn't move at all.

         Rylan began to get angry. “I'm not asking you as a friend, I'm ordering you as the Prince!” he shouted. “Get off of her! Now!”

         After a pause, Chad slowly but surely sat up and got off of the terrified traitor. He stood up, hand still oozing red, and stepped away from the bed.

         “Go back to your room, Chad,” Rylan ordered, his tone quiet but filled with rage.

         Without another word he left, gently closing the door behind him. Keela wasn't watching any of his as it happened, still compelled by fear to keep her eyes shut tight. As the door closed, she cracked her lids open only to see a figure briskly coming toward her.  Again she scrunched up her face and turned her head away from the figure as she felt him brush up against her. Then suddenly her arms were able to relax and her hands were not forced together. She opened her eyes and saw Rylan standing next to the bed, the bloody rope in his hands.

         Keela quickly sat up, pulling her shirt down and her pants up. She scoot up against the headboard so fast she thought she saw Rylan flinch out of the corner of her eye. When she had settled with her knees drawn up to her chest, Keela could still feel the intense pain shooting through her—and her throbbing wrists weren't helping to make anything feel better. For a moment Keela sat there, breathing heavily, trying to comprehend what had just happened. It all washed over her in a single moment, and, overwhelmed by the situation, she rested her head on her knees and cried harder than she ever had before. She spilled out all the fear that consumed her in the form of salty droplets that leaked from her eyes and rolled down her cheeks.

         Her own wails filled the room. Though she was in such a fragile state, scared and alone, when she felt a gentle touch on her shoulder she knew it was not meant to harm her. Keela leaned toward the person that now sat next to her on the bed and buried her face in his chest. She didn't care that it was the prince that held her and that by nature they were enemies. He was here for her right now—nature be damned.

         Rylan put his arms around her and let her cry. Prince Rylan holding the traitor, Keela, in her weakest moment. And that's how they remained for over an hour.