**The beginning of the end536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEplfd2iay3
Those warning words still rang in her ears, the hermit told her what she must know, the truth and nothing but the whole truth. ''You will have a son, he will be strong, brave, a handsome young lad fine at heart and full of kindness and good will'' she remembered the hermit say ''But he will never sit on the throne, he might be born of royal blood but his place is not there'' Then the warning followed after the prophecy shattered her hopes into little fragments of emptiness ''Don't try to tamper with fate, his destiny goes a long way because if you do, it carries an inevitable price, a burden so heavy to bear, full of regrets that will leave your heart in nothing but shreds of desolation, one that makes you wish you've never done it in the first place'' 536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9CPeJSvMfL
Raya's face burned with hot tears that stung her blue eyes as it poured out, her hope was lost, gone in the twinkle of an eye, she felt the painful pangs of defeat as it bit deeper into her heart, she tried very hard to keep in the pain but she couldn't, heavy sobs escaped under her breath as she tried to talk while the hermit observed her misery. ''Why?'' Raya found herself asking, ''I want a son''.
''Yes you do and you shall have one''
The hermit's reply rang through her mind before she found herself back to life, it was very early in the morning, all alone under the covers on her bed with no companion on the other side. She could hear the chirping birds, scolding voices of the head maids as they ushered the younger maids and the scurrying movement of their feet as they made their way to her room.
''Morning your imperial highness'' the voice greeted as the doors opened, Raya could hear all but didn't respond, a little wave from her gave them the answer they wanted.
''Very well then, what are you waiting for?'' the head maid's cold voice queried the younger maids and they took to work immediately.
''Open the windows, the doors too, let in some fresh air, get the bathwater ready....'' Her voice trailed off as Raya stood.
''No need to rush them Caitie, they will clean up later'' she ordered. ''Tell them to leave while you get the bathwater ready, I have court issues to attend to so make sure to prepare the car because I will be off in an hour''
''Right and breakfast?'' Caitie inquired.
''Save that for later, royal duties first.'' The younger maids were surprised to see the Queen wanted nothing this morning, Caitie sent them off as she was told while Raya pulled off her night dress in preparation for a bath. She looked at her features in her favorite ornate mirror and she hasn't aged a day, watching closely at her shiny raven hair as it fell past her shoulders, her crystal like blue eyes admired her smooth olive but pale skin before a fresh and calming morning breeze brushed past her fair and flawless face, her raven hair billowed in the breeze before she tucked it back in, the soft gentle breeze that caressed her face made her remember too much already.
As if she was trapped in a trance, she remembered him, the one she loved and shared her heart with, long before he left her and the Wyvern Empire for the world beyond.
She rarely slept when he was with her because his smile, the cold feeling of his arms wrapping around her and the gentle touch he gave kept her awake most of the times even before it was daylight. She tried so many times to imagine that feeling of ecstasy she had always felt without him but she couldn't, it wasn't possible. Serian Erisxon was gone, leaving her with a shattered heart and true to the hermit's words, sons, two of them and an ageless empire to run. She viewed the Empire as a beautiful but an in-consumable bottle of poison because she inherited the right to govern the ambitious clans in the desperate and lethal empire's politics. Her mind wandered far before she finally managed to pull it back, Caitie was already back in the room.
''Everything's ready'' she announced.
Raya tried not to rush everything but she kept to her words, under an hour she was done, she tried to stop by Dominik's room, her second son but she reasoned he might not be awake yet, although their kind, vampires, hardly slept. His was a different case because he seems to prefer resting during the day. Raya shrugged off the thought of visiting him, already out of the imperial palace she requested for no company, saying she wanted to be alone and she gave her excuse as well, only her chauffeur was to drive her because she wanted her time alone with her husband where she was to visit him before going to the imperial court.
He was dead alright but many knew of how much she missed him. Soon, Queen Raya found herself near the alabaster tombstone again, her pale ring adorned hand roamed the smooth edges of the monument as she removed the withered wreath in front of it and replaced with a new one. Like every other cemetery, tombstones were present in the imperial cemetery but it was very few, scanty but well reserved as a large memorial park.
''It's been ages Serian'' she said calmly, however her own plans was perfectly aided by her excuse. Silently she made her escape unseen from the calm, peaceful scenery to where she sought for her salvation in secret.
******
The air smelt mold and damp in the small space he called his private office, where he had kept her waiting and hidden away from the prying eyes of others. Raya waited impatiently for him, her patience was getting lean and it was weaning away quickly although she was there early under the pretense of attending to court duties. Her crimson painted fingernails drummed on the old piece of the squeaky furniture he called his table, Raya has always frowned at the idea of meeting him here, it wasn't her first time of meeting him in this cramped up space, she has always hated the Bombards Creeks even though she had a lot of memories here but hopefully she wanted to believe their next meeting won't happen here. The room might not be as welcoming as she wanted but still her eyes darted towards the table where the glass stood, filled with the red thick liquid.
She had pushed it towards the edge with the hope of making it fall off, however her nature couldn't just let go. Raya's fangs bared hungrily at it while her throat burnt in the desire to taste maybe a drop of the blood or maybe the full content in the glass, she had skipped breakfast but she couldn't bring herself to do it, starving herself was more preferable than taking a sip of it in a shabby place like this, it was a total blemish on her royal lifestyle, as a royal vampire she demanded honor for herself.
''I see that the glass is still full, it's just the way I left it''
Raya's eyes darted towards the source, it was him and he was finally here.
''You kept me waiting George'' she answered with her voice showing a hint of anger. George chuckled, his pale hands were bloody, full of the filth of human blood and he had a cat-o'-nine-tails coated with fresh blood in one hand, it was obvious he just melted out an ugly punishment on a slave who refused to cooperate, his bloody left hand rubbed his shiny black hair as he took his seat in front of her, his blue eyes stared in hers, both was identical to the other.
''Should I take a no for the drink?'' he was referring to her untouched drink. Raya looked away
''Maybe later but now it's strictly about business''
''It's always business'' He frowned in disappointment ''Right?''
Raya could see his emotions, it's never easy for him to hide this away from her but she ignored it, instead she leaned in slowly to talk to him in whispers.
''Here'' she whispered thrusting a red envelope into his hands.
''This is what I promised you and I want to believe my package will be delivered at dawn, an hour earlier than your last delivery'' George looked at the red envelope bearing the royal wyvern seal in front of it, he sulked as anger kept filling up the emptiness inside him, one that made him wanted to leave the envelope in nothing but bits even though it carries what he always wanted.
''Is this how I'll keep living?'' Raya could feel the pain spitting in his icy voice, the venom in his voice pierced through her cold heart.
''For how long will you keep denying your own? For how long will I keep selling what's left of my heart because of you, because of this?''
He probed referring to the red envelope. Raya was calm but within her, she felt a steady throb of pain in her heart, she reached to hold his hands but he pulled away.
''Don't'' he replied and shot his gaze to the floor, Raya moved closer and he could feel her cold breath on his face.
''Believe me George, the last thing I'll ever do is to forget my own. We've all made sacrifices for this and it's for our own good, you'll get your reward but I need you to be patient. Please you can't back out now, I need you''
''You need me to keep being your pawn right. Here in this filth. In the lowly Bombards Creeks while you rule your prestigious empire huh?'' he fired back.
''No. I have asked once and I won't stop asking for your help, without you I won't have gone this far'' she replied softly and watched as his hardened expression calmed.
''I didn't ask for this'' he sighed and turned to face her .
''I know but I need you'' Raya gave him a conspiratorial smile and slightly pressed her hand against his, he didn't pull away this time.
''So do you have any news on him?'' He asked after he finally managed to return a smile, Raya understood what he meant.
''Yes, he returns to the empire as we prepare to welcome a new age under him''
****
Outside the office to the lowly Bombards Creeks was the choking stench of filth, sweat of the laboring human slaves, the smell of their blood and rotten flesh as whips ripped through them. The streets roared with noises of the forsaken, stampede of rushing feet, the metallic sounds of the old cars engine and cursing voices of the slave merchants as they pulled out the last of their early deliveries to the Bombards creeks.
''Let me go!'' A half caste girl retorted sharply as she wrestled off the strong grip on her. Her face was drenched in tears and on her lips she could taste the dried blood on it as it mingled with sweat.
''Leave me alone!'' she shrieked angrily as one of the merchants tried to pull her back in line with the other slaves.
''Shut up bitch!'' he silenced her after giving her a heavy slap in retaliation. She was trouble and had caused them a whole lot of it. She fell back on the cold streets of the Bombards Creeks with a loud thud, her face burned up with heat as she felt more fresh drops of tears roll off, he yanked her up and pulled her back in line with the others as cold chains clasped on her wrists and ankles rattled violently. Frightened, she looked around the new world she was in and everything in response gave her a forbidding view, the Bombards was a place cut off from the rest of the Wyvern Empire, it's mostly inhabited by the forsaken and it serves as a underground venue for illegal deals, dark magic practices and cheap slave trades, the famous ones amongst others.
''Round 'em up, get 'em all into the cage'' one of the men ordered while the others forced each pair of the new deliveries into the waiting iron cages. ''keep 'em coming'' the order continued as more filed in into their cages, the slow and exhausted ones were either whipped to keep the pace going or dragged in.
''This isn't happening, it's not real''
The girl mumbled to herself as she was being pushed in with a partner.
''It's just a nightmare and you will be out of it in no time'' The red haired girl beside her sobbed loudly, she knew who the girl was even though she never talked to her. Her face was drenched in tears, scratched and slightly reddened from the bruises on her left cheek while her hair was wet and tangled up in rats-tails, her once beautiful floral gown was already in shreds, worn-out into rags.
''I want to go home!'' she cried as she banged her fist hysterically on the cold iron cage ''Please help! Help me!'' she cried.
''Lu! You have to stop this'' The half caste girl warned as she tried to pull her back, she noticed the red haired girl was drawing too much attention to them.
''Leave me alone Imani, since when did you start caring?'' she shrieked and continued banging her fist hard on the cage. ''I want to go home''
''You don't have a home!'' Imani shouted back at Lu
'' I do!'' she fired back.
''No you don't, I don't, none of us held captive here does and you know that too well, don't you?'' Lu was silent.
George took a quick glance at his wrist watch, he was very sure the last of his early deliveries already arrived, he's been busy lately trying to meet up with more slave demands from his buyers because he offered them more at a cheaper price. He traded off more to the Wyvern merchants who in turn sell the slaves at a generous amounts to the nobles in the Empire because none of them would descend low to buy directly from someone in the Bombards even if the price came cheap. He reminded himself he had an appointment to keep and to also secure Raya's exit from his office without anyone knowing of her presence there. He was on the verge of letting Raya out of the office through the underground exit he had made especially for her when he heard Erik's voice after a knock on the door, Raya's eyes questioned his loyalty when she heard the knock.
''Who else knows about your private office, I thought you said it was out of bounds''
She questioned immediately but in a hushed voice.
''Relax it's only Erik'' He tried to calm her down as she sighed.
''Just ask him what he wants and get me out of here quickly'' George wasn't having the best of time with her at all, he sighed as he walked to the door and reached for the knob.
''Wait! You can't open the door, ask him what he wants and tell him to leave'' she ordered in whispers.
''What is it?'' He asked in a flat toneless voice
''Sorry for the bother but you have a guest, Miss Agnor is here'' George sighed, Agnor was one of his main Wyvern dealers. Known to be one of the best candidate for the most sought after regency title among the major clans and she sold almost directly to the imperial house. The truth about the matter was she cannot be kept waiting.
''I get it, try to keep her busy for a few minutes. I've got something going on here'' he replied keeping Raya at a safe distance away from the door, he doesn't want Erik suspecting a second presence in the room with him.
''Sure boss, I'll get to it'' Erik responded before he left while George listened to his footsteps as it echoed away.536Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0Yn7ZqNFV9
