The Pain that Made Her Beautiful

PMHB ch25

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Warick was astonished at Apollo’s sheer cruelty and violence. It was even hard for him to grasp what had happened to Neorah. There wasn’t even a simple explanation for it. What hurt Warick the most, however, was the look on Nayeli’s face as the Roman guard, also known as Apollo, had so forcibly dragged her down the hallway. Her screams were heart wrenching and Warick could barely handle the sound of them. Even after he had locked her in the room, Warick could still hear Nayeli’s sobs and moans of loss and sadness.

Apollo had thrown the ultimate blow the next night. He had come to Warick and Avel’s room and said, “Warick, my brother, forgive me for doing this to you. I was ordered to. I had no choice. I wish it were not necessary, I have come to hold you in high esteem.”

“If you, Apollo, held me in any esteem at all, you would not have taken my freedom from me. As such, Apollo,” Warick said sarcastically,” or should I call you master, do not pretend you are allowed, nor even have the right to call me ‘brother’.”

“Well then, in that case, Warick, I believe that you may remember me warning you about protecting a certain asset of yours, don’t you?”

Warick’s mind flashed in recognition. Why would Apollo do this?

“What’s it to you?”

Apollo got an evil glint in his eyes and said, “As you are my slave now, I may call you a cockroach, I parasite, whatever you would prefer, but, as that asset is also under my jurisdiction, I may do as I please. I thought you were paying attention to my warnings and advice, Warick. I am sorely disappointed in you.”

Apollo’s exaggerated and forced sympathy made Warick’s insides churn and twist with anger, apprehension, and deceit. How could Apollo do this to him? How could Warick have been so blind to his ulterior motives? “Why?” “How?” “What?” these were all questions that were swimming through Warick’s head along with the resounding, “How could he!”

However, no matter how much he interrogated them, fate, destiny, and their sister chance would never give up their secrets, they were not to be broken or beat. All Warick could do was to pray to all gods, known and unknown, that the three sisters of fatality would be kind and take pity on his humble human status.

Warick stood and looked Apollo straight in the eyes, “I know that you are saying this to make me angry, but, as angry as I may be right at this point, you will not vex me. I am not an object to be controlled, I am a human being, and, because of that fact, I will treat you as such and give you the respect that is due to a man of my same status and position.”

Warick watched Apollo’s eyes fill with wonder; however, as soon as it had come, it was gone. Apollo’s eyes narrowed dangerously and Warick felt the punch he had been expecting long ago. It was followed by the quick and enraged words, “You pretend to be my equal! That is preposterous. You will never be my equal again.”

The ache in his gut where Apollo had punched him was now throbbing. Warick was sent to ground by the doubling-over strength in Apollo’s arm.

After his words, Apollo began to walk away, but as he reached for the handle of the door, he stopped and said, “Warick, don’t forget to protect your assets.”

The words were simple enough, but the way Apollo had said them made Warick’s stomach sick and bile threatened to exit his intestines. As the door was closed and subsequently locked, Warick realized that he would never escape the onslaught and enslavement of the Roman Empire; he had instructed Hermun to continue on, no matter what, and go home. Warick had a small army with him while he surrounded himself in the men who had decided to leave their families and join Warick and Hermun on their father’s request. Now, however, there was not a single soul to come to his aid that was not more than forty or fifty miles away, especially by now.

“Warick, what did that…man mean by ‘protect your assets’?” Avel asked. When he spoke, he almost spit out the word ‘man’. He could not believe that he was back to being led by shackles, and Warick understood why.

“Nayeli.” That was the only word that Warick could get his tongue to form. He was just too scared.

“I see… what is it with that girl and you, Warick? There is absolutely no sense to it. Why does she captivate you so?”

Warick wasn’t even sure how to answer Avel’s inquiry. He was so enthralled by Apollo’s words still that he was too worried to care anyway.

“What?”

“Warick, you heard my question, why her?”

“Honestly, my friend, it makes as little sense to me as it does to you. But, I do know one thing, as soon as I laid eyes on her, my heart no longer remained in my chest, but hers. I think it was something that she said to me—“ Warick’s voice trailed off and he remembered the silkiness of Nayeli’s hair between his fingers, the velvety softness of Nayeli’s skin against his palms, the oil that coated her delicate eyelashes, and the feeling of Nayeli’s tender kiss.

“Warick, hello, are you still in there?” Avel’s words lifted Warick from the tender memories.

“Yes, yes of course,” Warick said absentmindedly.

“Uh… Warick, what did she say?”

“Oh, right, ok. Umm…”

“So…?”

“Do you remember when, right after her town’s raiding, I became impatient with her and brought Ryan with me to… umm teach her a lesson?”

“Yes, I do, clearly, because Hermun poked at me the whole time you and him were gone trying to get me to spar with him. What’s the significance?”

“Well,” Warick said, remembering Nayeli’s words as though she had just spoken them. Her words had hit him so hard that it was a life altering experience for Warick to understand that every one of them had incredible truth, as terrible as it was, and held tremendous power, “She was at the last if her unraveling and she got up, threw off her garment and said, ’Master Warick, you are not just the master of me on the relation of me being your slave, but you are now master of my body. Be kind to my body that it is not used to the wants of the flesh. I am yours.’”

“What, is that supposed to mean something to me, Warick?” Avel said gruffly.

“I don’t know why, but they hit me, hard. It was as though she were saying, ‘I’m yours and, because of that fact, you must protect me now, body and soul, for it is now your responsibility.’ That means that, because I am responsible for her welfare, I am also responsible for her abuse at the hands of my brother and, now, this too!”

“Oh… I see,” Avel said. His words had an element of understanding, on with sympathy, but with the keen knowledge that Warick knew the cold hard reality now of enslavement.

“Is that really all you are going to say to me, Avel? No wisdom? Nothing?” The way Warick asked his questions did not emanate sarcasm or mockery.

“I don’t know what to tell you this time, Warick, other than; this is your burden, and, because you now understand the incredible amount of gravity that goes with each of your decisions, make your decisions wisely and well informed.”

Avel’s words made Warick feel even smaller than before. They hit him hardly. Before he had time to contemplate their meaning, however, Warick heard a door open, letting out a weeping woman’s sobs; Warick knew what was going on. He stood, but, before he even had a chance to take a step toward the door, Avel spoke, “Warick, stop. Think about what you are about to do, will it benefit you or her in the long run?”

Warick knew Avel was right, and it killed him to acknowledge; he sank to his knees grasping his forehead as unexpected tears began to stream from his eyes as he silently cried to the, now loud, sobbing of Nayeli’s predicament.