The King's Persecution

Chapter Nine

Music is "Brothers" from Fullmetal Alchemist. 😍

That man...the man that single-handedly shattered my world. He broke up my family and scattered them to the winds. In one night, one dance, he stole our bread winner away and ruined our family's chances of ever escaping this kingdom.

And it was all because that woman couldn't see that the ball was a waste of her time. She insisted on using precious resources to craft a dress, seduce the man and cause him to fall in love with her in a single night. Who does that? Right?

I initially though this wouldn't last long, but alas, I was proven wrong and was forced...to go into hiding. For after my sister abandoned us, she quickly turned her attentions toward getting rid of us...blotting us, her family, out of her life forever.

They made a strange pair, the shadow drifting along and the young woman hobbling on a broken, wooden staff. No words passed between them. A slight uncomfortable silence hung in the air as the phantom of the mansion escorted Eliza back to warmth...but not safety.

Eliza bit her lip, frustrated at her slowed pace with the staff. She could only hobble, barely hobble at that with the staff being as short as it was. But her new gait did succeed at taking her mind off of the night's events...which she still struggled to comprehend.

Who is this phantom? Does he truly have two minds? Does he remember anything when the different voices take over?

She turned her head to face the phantom as he floated beside her. He certainly didn't look as crazed as he did when the blindfold was off. Did his state of mind have something to do with his eyes being covered?

"How...do you...remember what happened back in the cabin?" she stammered out, not looking at the phantom's reaction. "It seemed like you were two different people, one with the blindfold off and another with it on...but that doesn't seem right. Maybe I'm exhausted...and I probably am, but my idea here seems really far fetched...wouldn't you agree?"

The phantom guided her up the stairs and into the mansion again. "Eliza..." he said, "I'm sorry to answer your question with a question...but...what did you mean by 'I haven't found a way to kill him yet'?"

She stopped, struggling to keep the staff underneath her arm. "I...I guess we both have some explaining to do... and I have an apology to make..."

Making their way into the house, she set the staff down and crumpled into a chair. That walk took a lot more out of her legs than she elected...but she was determined not to let the phantom see...for the confessions she would be making would be far more personal than she wanted to do.

"I...I was sent here to kill you."

She didn't see any change in the phantom's expression, not that his face expressed much in the first place, so she went on, the words spilling out of her faster and faster the more she said.

"The king, you see, he threatened to kill my niece, the only member of my family I have left. He also hinted that my parents were alive, although the Maker knows if that's even true given what I've seen here so far. So...I agreed to come...to protect the only family I've got left...and to possibly save the rest?"

Glancing up at the phantom's imposing form, she realized his position had changed. He was slumped down, as much as a phantom could crouch in the chair, holding his head in his hands.

"I see...you're just like the rest of them."

"What?"

He drew himself to his feet, standing at full height, towering over her as she was forced to stay seated in the chair to prevent herself from collapsing. "You're just like the rest of the people the king sent in here. He's been trying to get rid of me ever since he created me..." His voice trailed off as he whipped around sharply and strode toward the exit. "I shouldn't have said that."