Part one : Dusk
غروب
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No woman lasted till dawn. This was the life Parisa Elaheh was entering. A life painted with different shades of black. Different shades of grey. But never any shade of white. Women never live to see dawn, was what Parisa was told before she made her decision. And now she stood there contemplating her choices. Trying to understand what her life was and what it was about to become. From freedom to a caged life. No matter how much she despised her decision, she knew that the only reason she had volunteered was to save her family. To destroy the monster and set her brothers soul free.
Parisa's mind travelled back to the small cottage on the farm, where her and her family lived. Where her brother use to live. Not long after her fifteenth birthday, Parisa lost her brother to the Roman-Persian war. A war for power. A war to magnify the power of both empires. And now, almost five years later, her first love was about to be drafted for the same war. The same war that took everything from Parisa and her family. Leading on from those events, she made a plan. A plan to end the war. To stop her lover from being killed in the same tragic way. And so, she sacrificed her life, but she was about to be the first woman to live past dawn.
Marrying the Shah meant that she had to live in a particular way. It meant that there might be a chance that she was to never see daylight again. Shah Arman wasn't known for mercy, quite opposite actually. He was known for being cruel and careless. He was known for starting the very same war that took Parisa's brother from her. He was known for horrible acts. He was also known from marrying a woman every week and killing her before dawn. However, no one knew the reason to this doing. Some said he was cursed, whilst others said it was a sacrifice to the Huma bird. Parisa, however, thought the only reasonable answer would be his cruelty. His heartless mind. That could be the only answer to such cruel acts. Afterall, he was the monster. The monster Parisa wanted to destroy.
"Shahbanu," the maid called Parisa quietly. Shahbanu. The name used for the queens. Parisa slowly turned her head towards the maid, acknowledging her presence. The maid did a slow curtsy before having the courage to speak again. "Shahbanu, I need to get you ready for the wedding," she spoke a little faster this time. Parisa nodded in agreement. When she was little, she would dream of this very day. The day she would finally marry the one she loved. But she had never imagined it to be so dry and painful. A few months ago, her and her first love, Afshin, had talked about the same day. He had told her that he would ask her hand in marriage in the most special way. He had said that he would scatter rose petals all over the ground, with beautiful candles to light the night sky. Back then, Parisa had laughed at such gesture, but now she desired it. She needed it. But life had failed her. The Huma Bird had failed her.
"Please, do not call me Shahbanu," Parisa informed the maid. The maid looked hesitant at first, but Parisa's stern look persuaded her. "Just call me Parisa," she added. The maid nodded before leaving the room. The room was small but bright. Too bright for a castle designed for a monster. Parisa had never seen the Shah. She had only heard of his appearance and acts. But she knew he wasn't far off from a true demon.
✸
When Parisa had told her mother about her idea, her mother had stared at her in shock.
"Janedel, please don't do this. Don't walk into the mouth of a lion bare handed. Afshin will survive this war," her mother had pleaded her. But Parisa no longer believed in hope. She knew she had to take things into her own hands. Her own bare hands, just like her mother had pointed out.
"Mama, I have to do this. For my sake. For Afshin's sake. For our countries sake. I promise you I will live to see dawn. I will live long enough to kill that monster. I will live long enough to take that throne from him and stop this war. I will do it, whether you agree or not. I can't live to see every single one of my family members die in this stupid, useless war. I won't. And I will do this, even if I'm bare handed," Parisa had answered her mother. Her mother knew she was right. She knew that the war had to be stopped. But she didn't want to see her daughter die too.
"Then please don't kill him. Don't let dirty blood be spilt on your hands. You are my noor, my dear girl. Don't let the darkness steal it from you. Don't destroy a wrong with another wrong. I won't stop you, so please my dear girl, live for as long as you can. Change everyone's fate with light never with darkness," she had concluded. Parisa wanted revenge. She wanted that monster to feel the same pain she had felt, and her mother was right. You can't fix a wrongdoing with another wrongdoing. She was going to make that monster suffer in ways she had. Death would be peace for him, so Parisa Elaheh was about to offer him something much worse. A heart.
✸
When the maid walked back into the room, Parisa broke away from her thoughts and looked at the maid's hands. The maid was holding out a beautiful silk covered gown. It looked extravagant. The silk itself was a beautiful turquoise colour and was embroidered with expensive pearls. The edges of the dress were folded and embedded with a string of silver silk. In the maids' other hand was a magnificent jewellery set made from silver and pearls. The Shah must really love pearls, Parisa thought. Although she loved pearls too. That was probably the only thing they had in common.
"Lady Parisa, this is the outfit you are to wear tonight. And this is the jewellery set the Shah has handpicked specially for you," the maid said.
"What an honourable way to die. Buried in pearls," Parisa assumed sarcastically. The maid gave her a silent smile before placing down the gown onto the bed.
"My lady," she called again, "Your handmaiden will be here shortly to do your hair, but for now I can help you get into your dress," the maid informed Parisa. Parisa didn't like the idea of someone dressing her up. For nearly twenty years, she had put her own clothes on and done her own hair. But now someone was supposed to help her with such a simple job.
"No dear, its's okay. I can do that myself. You may go and have a quick rest," Parisa said noticing how tired the maid looked. The maid had swollen eyes and a horrible posture from the work she had done.
"But Shahbanu ⏤" the maid said hesitantly.
"I'm being serious, you look horribly tired. Go have a rest I can do a simple job like this by myself. And please don't call me that," Parisa insisted. But then the maid nodded in appreciation.
"Thank you, Lady Parisa," she said before bowing and leaving the room. This room was about the same size as Parisa's old room. It was covered in mirrors and gold. The walls were so tall, Parisa could barely see the ceiling. She then slowly grabbed the soft silk gown, slipping her old clothes off before wearing the gown. Once she wore it completely and fixed the strings, she turned to look in the mirror. The girl Parisa saw in the mirror was barely her. She looked elegant and noble, which was quite different to her actual appearance. The gown fit onto the body like a glove. It hugged every single one of her curves. Her mind jumped back to the turquoise dress Afshin had bought her. It was quite like this one but never as expensive. Only then it was that she realised how much he was going to miss Afshin. How much she was going to miss her old life. When she left her home, she said goodbye to her parents but never said a face-to-face goodbye to Afshin. She was scared that if she saw him, she was going to back out from her plan. So instead, she wrote him a letter:
My Dearest Afshin,
I am so sorry that I must inform you about the changes in a letter. I am scared to face you with such shame. I made a deal with the devil Afshin. From tomorrow night, I will be the Queen of Persia. A title I would have dreamt of only in my dreams. I know that every bride to marry into this family hasn't lived to see dawn, but I will. I will live long enough to save us. To save you from this war. I will live long enough to bring justice to my brother and many other young men that fought beside him. I will end this cruelty. I must tell you that I love you with all my heart and that I will always keep on loving you no matter where I am. All I want to ask you is to not come looking for me. Don't try to save me my love. I will succeed and even if I don't, I will die trying. So please, don't come. And don't try to change my fate. Soon you will hear that I lived. That I managed to become the real ruler. That this war stopped. You will hear it. So, move on from me. Escape and live the life you deserve. And don't wait for me.
Love,
Parisa Elaheh.
When Parisa had folded the letter, the paper was completely soaked in tears. Tears drained from her heart. But she knew she had to leave her old life behind if she was going to end this war. She quickly wore the pearl jewellery set, looking in the mirror to reveal her full outfit. To her surprise, the outfit looked fascinating on her. At least if I die, I will die the most beautiful girl this land has seen, she thought with a bickering laughter. She wondered if his other brides looked as beautiful in this dress. She wondered if they had felt pain when they died. Had they felt peace? Is there such thing as peace?
The door calmly opened as a girl with date coloured hair entered the room. She was a few inches shorter than Parisa. Her eyes were a flattering green. It reminded Parisa of their family farm. The never-ending green was so horribly beautiful. The girl eyed Parisa carefully before shutting the door behind her.
"Shahbanu," the girl said acknowledging Parisa, "I am your handmaiden," she said introducing herself. Parisa took a step towards her, carefully examining her.
"Please don't call me that," Parisa reminded them against, "I am Parisa, and you are?" she asked politely. The handmaiden did a small curtsy before speaking.
"Azin, Azin Yigitoglu," she introduced herself. Turkish, Parisa thought. She knew Azin must've been Turkish because of her surname. It reminded Parisa of a friend she had when she was younger. Lila Yigitoglu. Lila was a little older than Parisa, but she was the only friend Parisa had. But just like everything in life, she lost Lila too. She now had Azin. She hoped she could befriend Azin. If she was going to make her plan successful, she needed alliances.
"You know my lady; you are by far the prettiest bride to enter this palace," she complimented Parisa.
"Thank you Azin," Parisa thanked the handmaiden. Compliments like these were always ironic to Parisa. What is the worth of beauty when everyone is going to end up in the same place when they die? But nevertheless, she appreciated the compliments. Even if they were false, it gave her hope. As Parisa sat down, Azin took out her tools and began working on Parisa's soft brunette hair. She placed small sliver flakes around the basket braids she had created. Once it was finished, she handed Parisa a small silver mirror to view the finished product.
Parisa's hair looked stunning. It was beautifully braided around her hair and decorated with silver flake leaves. She was speechless when she looked at herself. A beautiful girl who had volunteered to die. A foolish beautiful girl that had volunteered to never see dawn. Ever again.
"You are the only girl who has actually appreciated the work," Azin revealed, "All the other brides are usually crying or being snobby by now. You, Parisa, are very different. Refreshingly different," she added. Azin was very brutally honest and Parisa liked that about her. She hated people who acted fake around her. She appreciated honesty in life. She appreciated people shining reality back down at her. It taught her many life lessons she would have never learnt with lies. Better harsh truths than beautiful lies.
"And you, Azin, are the most outspoken and straightforward person in this palace," Parisa answered with a small laughter. Azin smiled at her. But the smile was truly genuine.
"Wait till you meet the Shah then," she said sarcastically, "that man is brutally honest. Although, I truly appreciate that quality. It is the only quality I appreciate to be honest," she continued. Parisa paused for a moment trying to imagine what the Shah, her soon to be husband, was like. But no words came to mind. No words other than monster.
"I don't think monsters have human-like qualities," Parisa pointed out. It was true, monsters were nothing like humans. Monsters were however, once human too. A caring soul drained for the worse. It was almost as if they had their hearts snatched from their chest. A heartless, cold soul walking in a mortal body. Azin couldn't help but laugh at Parisa's response. Unlike the other girls Azin had met, Parisa wasn't afraid to speak her mind. She wasn't afraid to speak her opinion. As powerful as that quality was, it was also just as dangerous. Just as alarming. And that, could be the reason of her death. But Azin could tell Parisa was here to live. She could see through Parisa's real intentions although not so clear. Parisa wasn't quite so easy to read but Azin tried anyways.
Once Parisa was ready for ceremony, Azin walked her out of the small room into the enormous hallways. The hallways were silent; however, a large amount of sound came from the ball room. The massive room the ceremonies were held in. The closer it got to dusk, the closer they walked towards the ceremony. The louder the music became, the louder the sound of Parisa's heartbeat became. She could feel her hands shaking and her knees wobbling. She wanted to refuse and run away. She wanted to run back onto her family farm. She wanted to be with her mother again. She wanted to be safe in Afshin's arms. But she could never have any of those things again. Once they reached the ceremony, they stood outside the massive door waiting for the guard's signal.
Azin quickly fixed the pearls on Parisa's head before moving to the side of the door, away from her. Parisa closed her eyes for a few moments taking in the everlasting decision she had made tonight. Once she opened her eyes, the massive door was pushed open to reveal a huge ballroom packed with guests. Parisa held her head up trying to seem confident in herself, when in reality she was about to melt away from fear. As her eyes scanned the room, she looked straight ahead at the figure standing in front of her. The man looked about the same age as Parisa but a little bit older. He had a bright white and turquoise coat equipped with nearly fifty medals. Parisa noticed his recently cleaned shoes as she walked closer. She didn't dare to look him in the eyes. Not once did her eyes meet his.
He was the Shah, and she was just another victim of his cruelty. She slowly walked towards him as the guest held their gaze onto Parisa. They were all amazed by her beauty.
"A goddess," one man whispered quietly, but loud enough for Parisa to hear it.
"Too bad she is going to die before dawn," the other man whispered. She heard that one too. Parisa almost heard everything beside her own mind. Her mind was foggy and messy, yet so organised. When she stopped in front of the man, she finally looked up into his eyes. His eyes were a never-ending spiral of grey. They were dangerous. They were cruel. They were beautiful. His face was sculpted perfectly in a perfect shade of peach. His cheekbones and jawline stood out beautifully. He had a small smile, imitating Parisa's fright. Parisa however, looked into his eyes dead and silent. She kept her expression still and stiff. Not once did she change it.
"Parisa," he said gently nodding his head. His voice was calming and rough. It made Parisa shiver continuously. His grin grew wider, but Parisa's expression remained the same. He then turned to look at the priest when Parisa let out a deep breath she realised she had been holding in. After a few speeches, the priest announced them married. And as tradition, Parisa dipped her pinkie in honey and placed it into the Shahs mouth. In return, he did the same. Now, Parisa was the Queen of Persia and the wife of Shah Arman. The boy born in cruelty and girl raised in dove feathers. Two different worlds united as one.
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ladies and gentlemen, chapter one is finally done. kinda long tho, but let me know abt ur thoughts comment them pls