* * *
He stumbled upon the remains of dead men on this road by accident. He didn't have a set destination in mind, but since he has been declared a traitor of the empire, Commander Austin sneaked his way out of his beloved country and on to the backroads to avoid getting captured by Lord Brad's henchmen.
He found about two dozens of men, lying lifeless on what he suspects as their own pool of blood. Their stench was stomach churning as crows and vultures feasted on their carcasses. And then he found twelve more men who appears to have been killed with arrows.
Arrows that has the blue imperial colors of Arcadia.
It could be from any Arcadian who may have had business going this way and came into trouble with these dead men who, in all appearances, looked like a large group of hunters. But it could be arrows from that one particular Arcadian he hopes to find soon. And hope did flutter in his chest. He doesn't want to think that the princess might be dead already
He may not have enough evidence to support that but he truly believes that the princess still lives.
For the past few days of aimless travel, evading main roads and town squares that Brad's henchmen may possibly be lurking about, Commander Austin is now nurturing a ray of hope. Hope not only for his shot at redemption, but also for the good of all his fellow Arcadians.
* * *
Meanwhile, in the great empire of Arcadia . . .
"Where is she!!"
Lord Brad of Bunloaf County bellowed as he whipped the back of his prisoner. It's been an hour since he started torturing the young man chained by the dungeon wall. To be honest, he really doesn't have the patience for this. He very much prefer to have this useless guard drowning to his death in his own blood.
But this lowly servant of the imperial army is his last lead to find the lost princess. And this young man most definitely needs to be punished as well. Brad has seen just how close he has become to his bride, his future wife. And he doesn't like it one bit. This young imperial guard has no right to be that close to his woman. This stupid guard gets all the princess' smiles and laughs so much it's not acceptable at all.
Lord Brad is the one that the princess should smile at and laugh with every single time.
Only him and no one else.
Especially not this scum.
"Where is my bride!!" Brad hit the prisoner again with his leather whip, more vicious this time.
"S-she's . . . not . . . y-your bride," Shawn, the poor soul held captive by Brad, struggled to reply. He knows that if he is to survive this hell, he must save the last of his energy.
But he just needed to clarify that one.
Which earned him five consecutive whips on his already battered and bruised back. He already has plenty of cuts, blood seeping through it. His face is black and blue, a cut on his brow and under his eyes, his lips busted like a whacked piñata.
"She's mine!!" Lord Brad bellowed at his face.
He doesn't look anything like the polished civilized nobleman he's supposed to be with how wild and dilated his pupils are, trying to scream out his frustrations. He looked a whole lot like an out of control psychopath.
"Send someone for Alejandro, I have another business proposition with him!" He demanded to his right hand man, Pita, "And you," he turned back to Shawn with backhanded smack in the face, "You better shut your mouth or I'll cut off your tongue, you piece of shit!"
He may have wished to be dead a few times already just to end his suffering, but a part of him wants to live and continue to be of service to his country. To continue to live to see his friend become the wise and strong empress she's meant to be.
A huge part of him wants to continue to fight, the true Arcadian warrior in him that doesn't want to give up, give in.
That's why when he noticed the glint of a piece of wire on the ground, he knew he'll be out of this shackles soon and be on his merry way to freedom . . .
* * *
Princess Lauren, or Laura as she introduced herself as, looked around the room.
It was a far cry from her bedchamber in the imperial castle, but then this place is no castle at all.
The house was moderately larger compared to the likes of it but very tiny compared to her majestic home. It has an air of simplicity, of homeliness. Like it was meant to be a place of comfort and refuge in the middle of an isolated island.
And she truly appreciates it now that she's far from the comfort and refuge of her own home.
And also, yes. She's well aware that Dinah brought her to the famed island of Isla de los Muertos. Not because she told her so but because she saw from above the whole skull-like shape of the entire island. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what the place is called.
Besides, she's read many things about the island itself from her books.
"This is my room," Dinah said, taking a few things from the drawers, "It isn't much, but it's mine. You can sleep on my bed,"
"Where will you sleep?"
Dinah straightened up and eyed her, "Will you be okay if I slept next to you?"
Lauren blushed. She's used to sleeping alone in a huge bed. The idea of sleeping in a much smaller bed with someone else is making her nervous. She tried not to let it show, but the pink tint on her cheeks has already done it's job.
"Will you be okay if I slept next to you?" She threw the question back to Dinah, "I mean, it's your bed afterall,"
Dinah studied her quizzically. Both of them are still basically strangers, but somehow neither of them feels any hint of animosity towards each other. Somehow, they've earned each other's respect after the events of the previous night.
"Nah, it's okay," Dinah turned to leave, "You can take my bed. I'll be in the back, downstairs if you need anything,"
Lauren was left alone in this small unfamiliar room.
And indeed she does feel very much alone.
And lost.
All her life, she has always been surrounded. Her parents, her tutors. Her guards and her handmaidens. Her animals and her gardens. She never felt so alone and so lost like the way she feels right now standing in the middle of a stranger's bedroom.
But this is barely the time for her to mourn her losses; her parents, her friend Shawn, her trusty steed Dash, and most likely and soon, she might just lose her empire to Brad. She really needs to come up with strategy to get her revenge.
She knows she can't waste time because Brad is definitely not wasting his, working his way to find her and eventually, rule her empire at the same time. She knows from the get go that that is the ultimate reason why he wants to marry her. A shot at becoming the emperor himself.
But she also knows she is no use at all if she tire herself to the bones in a mindless travel. Her whole being is exhausted, her heart, her mind and her body. Despite all these, Lauren is still set to follow the only lead she has about Simon's whereabouts. Simon has connections to powerful people all over the world. He is a humble and amicable man that everybody likes, a cultured and well-travelled man whom a lot of people respects.
Princess Lauren needs his support and his connections for when she attacks Brad the Bunloaf asshat.
But for now, she'll appreciate the bed offered to her for a much needed respite.
* * *
It wasn't that long before she closed her eyes when she heard a firm knock. She was like a few minutes into her sleep when she heard it.
But her response was automatic; her hand grasped the hilt of her dagger she placed right under the pillow, ready to draw it at whoever attacks from the door.
"Dinah?"
The door opened and a beautiful ebony skinned girl entered.
And scowled at her.
"Who are you and why are you in Dinah's bed?" The girl demanded.
Lauren did not loosen her grasp on her dagger. Who knows what this girl might do to her especially when she's obviously not happy to find some stranger in her friend's bed.
"Laur . . . -ah. My name is Laura," she replied quietly, her hold on her weapon underneath remains firm.
The girl studied her, with a frown of disapproval. Clearly this one isn't as welcoming as Dinah. But not really as hostile as the Grumpy Panda-Fish she talked to earlier.
If anything, the girl seems more like a jealous girlfriend.
"Dinah offered her bed for me to rest upon. My horse was killed last night by what your friend called the serpentinas, and she was being kind enough to not leave me alone there without any means of escape from a group people that aims to attack us," princess Lauren felt inclined to shed a little bit of light on the issue because she honestly doesn't want to be the object of another girl's jealousy.
She's had enough of that from the other ladies of the court back in Arcadia.
"She said she'll be in the back downstairs," Lauren added after a moment of silence.
"Oh," the girl still seemed wary but at least she's not scowling at her anymore, "I apologize for disturbing you. I thought Dinah was here and there's something we need to discuss with her,"
"It's alright. And I apologize as well for my intrusion in this house, miss . . .?"
"Normani. My name is Normani and no need to call me 'miss'. You can go ahead, back to your sleep, Laura, I'll head downstairs to look for Dinah,"
The girl eyed her for another awkward moment before nodding as she left, gently closing the door behind her. And if her eyes doesn't fool her, Lauren could've sworn she saw a small smile curving on Normani's lips as she left.
Now alone with her thoughts, sleep seemed to have abandoned Princess Lauren completely. She has read many things about the famed island of Isla de los Muertos, from its scenic natural beauty, the rainforests, waterfalls and maze-like caves, to the diverse creatures that populates the area. She's also read that Isla de los Muertos is a trading point among bandits, smugglers and pirates, a so-called underground hub for mercenaries and swindlers and every sort of criminals.
She doesn't want to make any assumptions but she can't help but wonder, did she just make an acquaintance with a bunch of criminals or what?
* * *
🙂