A Tale From Lanoria: The Princess of Barough

Chapter 21: Twisted

"As far as I am concerned, you've done nothing to prove you are remotely worthy of the title of prince, let alone king!" She hissed quietly. "I swear to the gods that if you step one more foot in my kingdom again, your life will end!"

"Oh yes, from here you're really going to be able to follow up on that threat," Tyir muttered sarcastically.

"I know Donovan will come and save me. My castle will still belong to me, and you'll have nothing."

"I will have Barough! Anyone who gets in my way will be killed!"

"You will never have my kingdom! You invaded my home like a parasite!"

Tyir shook his head, "That is my kingdom! Your father was too weak to hold the throne."

"HOW DARE YOU!" Oriana roared. "My father was a mighty king! He was ambushed by mercenary cult members! He fought valiantly! You said it yourself!"

"No, he died like the pathetic man he was. I made sure of that personally when I ran my sword through his heart. I had my courtmage burn his remains, so there was nothing but a charred skeleton."

Oriana's face paled, and she instantly felt ill. "No..." her voice filled with pain as her eyes watered with tears. Overcome by rage, she stomped right up to the bars and reached through, intending on attacking him. Tyir backed away from her angry swings, as she had nearly reached him. "YOU'RE A MONSTER! He never did a thing to you!"

"He was in the way. I needed the throne to be empty so I could be the ruler of Barough and offer it to aid in the great cult's work! You are a weak girl. You need a real man, a real king. You need me." Tyir replied to Oriana, keeping his distance from her angry swings.

"You're not a real man! You're not a real king! You're a scheming bastard!! And I don't need you!" She huffed as she gripped the bars tightly. "You proved it time and time again! I'm honestly not surprised you haven't plotted to kill your brothers and take Winter Haven like the snake you are!"

When she mentioned his brothers again, he whispered, "You think I haven't thought about it? My brother Arne is smarter than me; he sees through everything I do. My oldest brother, Harold, is a great warrior. I have no way to take them out, you dumb woman. If you're so damn smart, then let me hear your ideas? Oh wait, that's right, you're too sweet to do anything like that! Let me guess, we should just make them peach pie and hug it out?"

Ignoring his taunts, she never looked away. "If I were you, I would get out of here while you still can. This is going to end, Tyir, and you're not going to like it. My mage will come for me! And when he does, he'll take more than just your head for what you've done." she hissed.

"Really now? Do you really think he is going to come and save you? He doesn't even have a way to find you. Even if he did, do you really believe he has the power to invade the capital city of Winter Haven, Nivis?" that he felt so sure of. 

"He will be killed before he even makes it to the castle walls, along with any army of Barough he brings with him. It's over, Princess. No one is going to save you. Not Donovan, not Killian, not anyone! You're all alone, and I am going to turn you into a loyal pet. It's just sad; you could have been so much more." Tyir replied to her.

"Do you think I'll just so stupidly and willingly submit to you? Especially after what you admitted to me?!" She growled at him. "You're never going to have any part of me or my kingdom, and you'll never be king of anything! I will make sure all of Lanoria knows of your treachery!" She was hopeful that her beloved would come for her. She believed that Donovan would burst through those castle walls like the invincible mage that she believed that he was.

"I am just going to have to break you. Rape you and beat you. Have my psionic mages scramble your mind until all that's left is what I want. Your spirit will eventually break, and when it does, I can shape you into the woman I want."

His voice was so cold and his threat so real that it sent a shiver down her spine. A frown came across his face as the Prince paused. "I never wanted to do any of that to you... but you have left me no choice."

"You're nothing but a demon, Tyir! You belong with those cult members! You're just as disgusting as they are. I can't believe I ever had any feelings for such a grotesque monster!" Oriana yelled back.

He frowned and replied, "Compared to your courtmage, I am a saint. You know what you have to do to become an archmage in Medeis? You know how many people you have to kill? He has probably slaughtered children to get where he is. It's just too bad we cannot ask him right now. The man you look up to is a cold-blooded killer."

She shook her head furiously. "He would never hurt a child!" she protested. She tried to defend Donovan, but even she didn't know who he had killed.

Tyir simply shook his head before saying, "You said you thought about marrying me before. Now you're calling me a demon. It seems like you have already fallen for a demon once. What's to stop it from happening again?" he asked.

Oriana just shook her head before saying, "You don't know him!"

Tyir frowned at her reply before saying, "And you do? Tell me, Oriana, do you really think a man like him is capable of any form of real affection?" Those words made Oriana freeze. 'Does he actually love me?' She thought pathetically to herself. He had never mentioned it to her before, and a sense of doubt washed over her. Tyir could see the look on her face and continued on.

"Face it, Oriana, you're not a good judge of character. You're a naive girl who is easy to trick. He has you blinded to the person he really is, just like I did. A dumb, naive woman like you could never be a great ruler." His words pierced her heart like daggers.

"I'm doing just fine in my kingdom, thank you! Go find someone else's kingdom to infiltrate!" She didn't want to continue having that conversation because she was feeling frightened of what was to come next. Seeing the state Oriana was in, Tyir felt satisfied.

Moving away from the bars, Tyir began to walk away. "I already have your kingdom. There is no need to look any further. It's late, and I am tired. I will be back in the morning. If you're civil, I will give you breakfast. But first thing in the morning, regardless, I will be making you my woman," Tyir said as he walked towards the dungeon stairs. 

The sound of his steps grew quieter and quieter. Until they disappeared completely, leaving Oriana in nothing but silence. Had it not been for the beating he took from his brother and father, Tyir would have been in the mood that night.

When she was all alone, Oriana sank to her knees, defeated. It was cold, and it was quiet. It didn't take long before the dungeon halls began to fill with the sounds of her soft crying. There was nothing of comfort down there, only her thoughts and the cold breeze that would occasionally waft through. She eventually had to move to the farthest corner from the window and tuck herself into a small ball to stay warm, wrapping herself up in Donovan's cape.

She held onto her necklace with one hand and gripped the cloak with the other. All she could think about was Donovan while she pulled the material tightly around her. She hoped he hadn't given up on her and that he could find a way to get her. She prayed to all the gods for their blessing. 

"Blessed mother Novada, I beg you, guide Donovan on the right path." Oriana prayed quietly. "Please be safe wherever you are, Donovan."