The Chronicles of Protan (Book 1): The Shadowed Man

Chapter 15

Breeana entered the dining hallon the ground floor of the west wing of the Sar’s palace. The stone, oak and chandeliered dining hall was quiet as she entered a few hours after dinner. Servants had already cleared away the dishes, and they could be barely heard in the pantry on the opposite side of the kitchen. Sar had thrown a feast that evening for the sergeants of the troops that had taken control of the Yakuza House. His three high generals attended as they always did, as one of them was head of security of the palace. 

After an enormous feast of wild game such as boar and the native poultry kootkluk; vegetables like horse-radish, their native onik, and tomatoes; and endless barrels of the Realm specific ale borr, these nights were always topped off with the finest and cleanest of women for every soldier and general. These women were, more often than not, the most expensive and exclusive of prostitutes Sar had on demand at the snap of his fingers. The palace had many bedroom chambers on the upper floor on the west wing, many large enough to be used as group orgies, and this night was no different.

Naturally, Breeana had been invited to all the festivities, but she refrained from the sexual activities this evening, not that group intercourse was ever her preference. After a walk in the courtyard, she returned to the dining hall to escape the noise and bustle that consumed most of the palace for the past two days it seemed. She was far from tired or sleepy, so retreating to the opposite south end tower to her room was the last thing on her mind.

She sat with her elbow on the table, and with its hand against the side of her tilted face, deep in thought. Her eyes followed the violet sorcery ball she had taken the night of the raid. She rolled it up and down the table with her opposite hand. Her mind was in different places ever since Yakuza’s palace, but mainly Connor’s orders to keep a specific coffin quiet, and her need to see Crush. There had been too many personnel about the palace, so a visit to Crush hadn’t been possible as yet. It needed to be as secretive as possible as to not attract unnecessary attention during a slightly stressful time for her father.

Loud drunken voices from the hallway broke her from her thoughts, and as they grew nearer, she shoved the sorcery orb in her cleavage, as she had no pockets in the sleeveless v-necked vest, or the dark tights she wore this evening. The voices entered the dining hall now, stumbling over each other with jugs of beer that spilt as the men laughed like, well, drunken men would. Breeana stretched, arching her back in the chair, and the grunt she gave off caught the attention of the three on the opposite end of the table. She sat back again, resting her hands on her head.

“Who’s there,” said one of the three. The hall was dimmer than it was during the feast, and the combination of that and intoxication made it difficult for them to identify her from the opposite end of the twenty metre oak table. 

She didn’t reply, so another said again in a louder voice, “He said who’s there?!” Their Sian slurred pathetically, and when intoxicated, the language was sounded crass, and almost inaudible to those unfamiliar with it.

“Nothing to see hear soldier. Find yourself another whore,” she responded irritably.

Her tone was her biggest mistake, for as we all know, a drunken man never backed down from a fight. “Ooooh and she has quite a mouth doesn’t she,” they all but sang and laughed. For any other woman it would’ve been threatening to have three Kaldutan soldiers, intoxicated and sexually aroused, about to force themselves on them, but Breeana had been hardened her entire life. This situation was nothing new to her.

They walked closer, chanting and taunting, and one of them eventually saying, “So how are the kitchen maids doing this evening? Or wait, wait, are you lost? Can’t find the bed chambers?” and they broke into hysterical laughter as they drew nearer. Breeana didn’t say a word. She remained sitting with her hands behind her head, eyes closed.