Broken Destiny

Part One

  Every day I wake up facing the harsh reality that I can never turn away from my so-called destiny. According to my father, it's my destiny to take over the responsibility of ruling over a kingdom. Each day he tells me while having that sour alcohol breath of his, "One day you'll be just like me, ruling over this kingdom and being remembered as an amazing king!" In response, I'd mutter, "Minus the alcohol breath." That night I got beat, by him. You're probably thinking oh poor kid he's being abused by his dad, well this happens way too often. Every time whenever I say these small comments in his presence he would look at me with those dilated gray eyes. Then he would he would cough while heading towards the nearest room in the castle. I would follow in obedience. You could hear my footsteps echo throughout the hallway, but no one would ever hear them or maybe he didn't want them to be heard. Right as I walked in I would lean against the door closing it preparing my back for the worst. It would happen so often that sometimes there would still be scabs all along back from the previous beating. 

 It might seem like I'm putting it off to the side as if I don't care about how serious this is, but it's been happening more often now. As of yesterday, I'm now officially sixteen so you would expect me to stand up to him. I've learned to back down eventually.

After two strikes he puked onto the floor and threw his whip to the side while also trying to catch himself. As he ordered for a servant to clean his mess I struggled to put my white shirt on over the fresh cuts. I walked out of the room trying to clear all those horrible thoughts about my dad. No matter how much I hated him, he still sometimes acted like a regular father and king. Something I will admit is that in all honesty, he is a good king because he always seemed to listen to every little complaint his people had, and somehow in every way possible he would try and make their wish come true. To the people of the kingdom he was like their savior, to me he was a drunk man who never cared for his kin.

Another little secret of his, of which he had many, was that I was a mistake. My father was a dashing man to many of his suitors. This would always seem to get him into trouble with his parents. Each night he would bring home a different girl, each being very blinded by the fact that they wouldn't ever be seeing him after their one night. I only know this because each time I get beat, there is always one servant waiting for me in my room with bandages and warm towels. She helped clean my wounds since I was young, and also during these long visits she would tell me stories about my father.

She told me that one night there was a beautiful girl with long, wavy almost ice-white hair and kaleidoscope eyes. My father led her by the hand throughout the castle having fits of laughter. They were both soaked from the heavy rain, but somehow it seemed to make them even giddier. It was just another girl to my father, but to her, he was like her true love. As she snuck out of the castle back into the fierce wind and rain she finally realized she wouldn't be seeing him ever again.

This didn't even seem to touch him, and he seemed to be just fine with that. But fast forward nine months and there she was again kneeling down at the castle doors. Somehow she had gotten past the several posts of guards. My father seemed to barely remember who she was, but as she looked up into his handsome face he immediately remembered every detail of that one night. The one night that would change his whole life. She slowly stood and held out her shaking arms to reveal a small bundle. A tear fell down her rosy pale cheeks. Her eyes seem to plead for him to take the small bundle out of her arms. He obliged and lifted the blanket to reveal a small baby, a boy.

As she fell to the ground her last words were, "They're coming." At first, he was shocked and just stood there holding the screaming child in his arms. Guards took her body that night and buried her deep in the woods, but no one was allowed to be there. Father was said to have engraved her name in private, and even set up her own personal funeral. The night of the funeral there was said to only be two people that attended. My father and the child of the mysterious woman whose name only my father knew.

At first, he did try to be a good parent, but he was young and not because of his age but the way he acted. After trying for only four weeks he gave up, went to war with my grandfather who died the first night of battle, left the servants to watch after me, and tried to run away. In the end, he returned because he was in line for the throne, not because of me. As time passed he learned what it was like to be king, and that was what made him grow up. The only problem was that it was too late for him to raise me himself and the right way.

All those years of watching me grow up from the sidelines led up to today. Now as I walk through the lavishly decorated hallways of the castle I can feel the burn of the soft cloth sucking on to the metallic blood. Every inch of my body screams out in pain as I bite down on my bottom lip. As I reach the large gold double doors that lead into my room I hear father and an unknown voice speaking in hushed tones under the balcony. I lean over the railing trying to hone into what they're saying.

"My lord, there seems to be only two kingdoms left who are willing to marry off a princess."

"What happened to the other ninety kingdoms?"

"Your son has deemed unimpressed by any of the princesses. He either says that they are not 'his type' or just very peculiar. This could be his last chance to truly have a future as a king, and without a wife, there will be no heir to take his place."

"There will be no excuses, he will choose between the two princesses whether he likes them or not."