The Investigation Chronicles (Completed)

Sinner

"I love the feeling of sinning, breaking the laws that bind us."

Azael -

Born to a kingdom of failure was a death sentence. There were seven kingdoms that lived in harmony for centuries. That was no longer the case. An eighth kingdom was created, only for the people that were a threat to society, a prison of sorts.

Yet, not everyone in the eighth kingdom belonged there. Many people were placed there without proper trial or a judge hearing their plea. Within a few decades, the population in the eighth kingdom swelled. With the quantity of people, the kingdom could no longer govern them.

Azael became a slave at a young age, his parents removed from him once he was able to fend for himself. The eighth kingdom did not care for their inhabitants. It did not help that the ruler was incompetent and only cared about having the best castle in the land. Knowing that the best way to survive was to be silent and wait, Azael became a proper slave and moved up the ranks.

Within a few years he was able to make his way up to serving the royals. This was something not many slaves could do, but only the smartest were able to see a loophole. Slaves to royalty were treated more humanely, and the only ones that were given a bed. Unlike the lowly slaves, these slaves rarely made friends, serving their masters until they passed out at the end of the day.

Azael had been placed in a large royal household that had many slaves. His friends slowly grew from none to a small trio. Cael and Melek along with Azael were the top three slaves in the house, often teaching the newer slaves. Their masters loved them like they were their own children, allowing the three to spend time together instead of only working.

"Come with me," Master spoke and the three boys scurried to follow suit.

They whispered to themselves, wondering what was going on. Master led them to one of the guest bedrooms. The trio had only cleaned the room before, so they were confused why they were there. Three outfits were handed to them as Master picked up a small box.

"The reunion of the kingdoms will be held on the solstice this week. The kingdoms have asked their royal court to give them their best slaves, so I will be gifting you to them. Here are your belongings," Master handed the box to Azael and kissed each of the boys on the temple, "you have 10 minutes to gather yourselves. The car is outside."

Azael looked at the other two who quickly changed into their new clothing. He looked at the clothes with disgust, they were too proper, too unlike him. Once given a glare from Melek, Azael changed quietly and dispersed their belongings. Placing the box back in the closet, the three walked to the car.

"Hello gentlemen, my name is Rae and I will be your driver and your bodyguard while you are in public. This will not take long, so please relax and enjoy the ride."

Cael was the first one to fall asleep and Melek quickly followed. Azael stayed awake and watched the town go by until they were in the wilderness. The trees were luscious, reminding him of the rooftop garden and plants that adorned the masters home. Azael became restless and was about to ask to stretch his legs when they reached the castle.

"Welcome to your new home."

Rae pulls into the driveway and picks up Melek and Cael with ease, carrying them to their separate rooms. Azael followed closely behind, waiting to be shown his room. He followed Rae back downstairs and was shown the parlor he was supposed to sit in. With a swift turn, Rae goes back to the car to put it away.

"We got some new flesh in here boys! Come on love, follow me." A tall woman beckoned for Azael to follow her.

Meekly, Azael stands up and follows, silent with his head down and hands behind his back. The woman abruptly stops and Azael gulps, not raising his gaze as he waited to be called upon. Shuffling grew louder as whispers began to echo in the large room. Azael was able to see the bags under his eyes from working endlessly the last few days, mentally cursing at himself for making his Masters look bad.

"Look," a deep voice boomed and Azael shivered.

"He's young, can't be older than your kit Naz," one of the men whispered to the woman to his right.

The whispers became louder until the rulers began to have full conversations. Azael dropped his gaze, knowing it was no longer necessary for him to hold the man's gaze. The woman beside him gave a reassuring smile and placed her hand on his shoulder. She left quickly once someone else entered the room, their footsteps growing louder as they moved towards me.

"Look at me little one." A hand gently nudged up Azael's head so that he would be forced to look up.

Azael was sick of everyone touching him, he wanted to go back to his Masters. Instead of retaliating, he didn't look at the man in front of him. He knew that he should have, but he was hoping that the man would realize he was not the right slave to keep here.

"You're a feisty one, I like that. Xan," the man pauses and turns around to face the group, "he is mine."

Azael's eyes widened as he tried to fight the man's grip that tightened around his waist. He was escorted to the front of the the group of people. His head hung low as he waited for the man to leave his side. Mumbles began as a bowl was brought from the back room.

The man holding onto Azael thanked the slave before going behind him. With Azael's wrists in his hands, the man began to massage them. He tried to squirm out of the man's grip, but it only tightened. The man whispered soothing words into his neck before placing his hands into the liquid.

Azael tried not to scream at the sudden pain that engulfed him. He knew that the rulers had strong magic, but he had no idea that it was like this. The liquid began to flow into Azael's hands and he whimpered quietly. The liquid began to solidify so the man wrapped his arms around Azael's waist once more.

"The liquid will solidify our bond, it is not permeant, yet." Azael looked down at the reflective bowl to see a mark appear on his neck.

Deliriously he asked, "Apollo?" before collapsing into his arms.