Val constantly worried. Her friend had not been seen for over a day now. The Emperor’s Palace was only a few hours away; she should have been there by now. Aurora was the only friend she had ever made in her fifteen years on the cruel place people called Earth. She stared out of the window of the bar, which was covered in mist and condensation.
‘Want another drink?’ The bartender asked her. ‘Well, what would you like? We have all sorts of things here. You are sixteen right?’
‘Yes, I am.’ Valentin lied to the kind man. ‘I would like a glass of the finest wine you have in the kingdom.’
‘Alright.’ The man looked through the cupboards. Each cupboard was specifically labelled: CHEAPEST, CHEAP, AVERAGE PRICE, BIT EXPENSIVE, EXPENSIVE, FINEST. ‘Aha,’ He came back towards her and held a green glass out in front of her. The label said: Lyrun Maklin - Gerisian for ‘Wine of the Century.’
‘Will this be adequate?’ The bartender asked her, sounding as if he was laughing; Val could not tell because his thick, grey moustache was above his lips.
‘That would be perfect, thank you.’
‘That will be 957 Kyrt.’ He held out his wrinkled hands. 957 Kyrt? I only have 125 Kyrt. I will have to ask him if I can pay after the drink.
‘Is it all right if I pay you after I have finished the drink?’ Val asked him.
‘Yes, yes,’ The bartender gestured his hands about, ‘Just so long as you pay me for it. These new tax regulations are putting my business on edge. Last month, I had to pay the bloody Empire 95% of my wages. I am lucky that my brother has got a job, else this place would be shut, and I’d be on the streets. They can’t keep doin’ this, else they’ll spark a revolution.’ The bartender returned to the counter.
Interesting, Val thought, The Empire need large sums of money from everyone. Surely it means that they are facing losses. Does this mean that the Empire is failing? Val’s eyes lit up at the exciting prospect. She took a sip from the glass of the fine wine, almost spitting it out with disgust, but then remembered she was in public. Instead, Val poured more of the foul taste down her throat. As vile as it tasted, it numbed the pain, she could see why people drank it so often in these tumultuous times. By thinking about the pain, she relived it once more.
⤖
Val was no longer in the bar, she was in the house from her childhood. The house that contained so many bad memories, most of which she vividly thought of in her mind. A knock was on the maroon door. Val knew what happened next. As much as she wished she could change it, there was nothing Valentin could do. Her mother opened it.
‘We are here to take your daughter,’ It was the voice of a Sentry. All of their voices were the same: monotonous and showing a lack of emotion or empathy. ‘We have identified her as a potential user of magic.’
‘No, I will not let you take her from me!’ Her mother got out a long knife from her pocket. ‘You will have to get through me to get to her.’
‘I am afraid I must, it is my duty to protect the kingdom, I wish I would not have to do this, but my leader has made it a requirement to do so.’ The Sentry took the knife from her.
‘On whose authority?’ Val’s mother stepped back, protecting her child from the reach of the Sysryion Empire.
‘The High Emperor. Please step away, madam, I do not want to hurt you.’ His face was reassuring; his intentions were quite the opposite. If Val’s mother gave her daughter to them, she would possibly be murdered for possessing magic-like qualities.
‘I will not let you anywhere near her! The High Emperor can rot in the depths of the Underworld because there is no way that I will ever give you sick people my child!’ The Sentry took a deep breath and stabbed her.
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‘Mama!’ Val was sobbing, crying floods of tears. They had killed her only protector. ‘NO!’ The Sentry kicked the corpse aside and stepped towards Val.
‘I am not here to hurt you,’ He held Val’s hand, ‘I just want you to come with me.’
‘You, You murdered my mother! I will not buy into your lies! You are a sick and twisted person!’ Val ran out of the house through the front door, which was wide open. She knew that she could not outrun a Sentry, so Val used a simple spell to become invisible. It worked, and just barely, Valentin escaped but paid a terrible price. It was the price of freedom.
⤖
Val drank so much that night she almost killed herself. That was why Aurora Arkov was her hero. She had fought off the Empire and had tried to destroy it. Val’s younger self admired her bravery, for she knew that she could never be that brave.
‘You said you would pay me after you’d finished the drinks,’ Valentin looked up, to see the angered face of the bartender staring right at her, ‘It has been 4 hours and 17 glasses of wine later. Give me money now.’
‘Go fuck yourself,’ Her slurred, drunk self told him, ‘I am not giving you a single Lreta.’ She put on her coat and left the pub.
‘Hey!’ The bartender called, chasing after her. They ran through the streets of Razgaroth, the streets that had fallen victim to the Reign of the Empire.
There was an incredible downpour that night. The walls of the castle were just seconds away. The bartender continued to pursue her. Once she reached the gates, Val could climb over them and escape that way, after all, the Emperor was away.
‘Get back here, destaya! You owe me 1200 Kyrt!’
There it was. For the first time, Valentin Morosa was happy to see the cobbled castle walls. She was just a single second away from the gates. Val prepared to vault the gates, before making the leap of faith. She ended up on the other side of the gate, escaping the bartender.
‘You will pay!’ The bartender said before returning to his pub again.
Phew. I cannot believe I just did that, me of all people! Val walked through the door of the Palace, expecting Sentries to be guarding them but today, there were none. Strange, usually the Sentries monitor the Palace. They never have breaks or holidays so someone must have been here. Val stayed cautious upon entry of the Palace.
‘Aurora!’ She called, hoping that her friend would be there, for that was where she said was going. The last time they spoke was exactly a day ago. Grief rushed through Valentin’s mind, constant possibilities roamed freely around her mind. ‘Where are you? Stop trying to hide from me! I know that you are in here!’ There was no response of any sort. It seemed that Aurora Arkov had lied, she was not here. The door slammed shut as Val walked in. Huh, maybe I should go back to the Outpost. She might have returned in the time that I was gone. Before she almost left, the girl heard faint footsteps from above. Someone is here. The young woman crept up the spiral staircase to the Spire of the South, as it had been called in the media. As she ascended each stair, a different noise would play out. I should not be here. Val was not one to play by the rules, so she continued. At the very top, the crescendo had finally stopped. She looked around, nothing here. Before going back down, Val noticed something in the corner of her eye: a human. The noises she had heard from the staircase were heard once again. It was them. They made the noises.
‘What are you doing here?’ The voice startled her. She turned to face him. Thick iron bars were in front of him; he was a prisoner here.
‘I do not talk to prisoners.’ Val started going down the steps.
‘No, I did not mean it like that. Please come back. I am terribly sorry. I can tell you why I was placed here, for it is an interesting story.’
Since she had all the time in the world, Val let the prisoner recount and retell his tale.
‘It started when the Empire truly rose, in the early days of the Empire. I was part of the Empire until I saw how corrupt it was. Thence, my friend and I took the children who possessed magical qualities away from the Empire, however, they saw through our plan. We had crossed Ursyl, but the Empire had pursued us. My friend sacrificed himself, telling us to go. That was the last I saw of him, until recently. He had survived; the Empire had moulded him into a Sentry, and they brainwashed him. Luckily, the children were safe. We battled, and I won. My best friend died in my arms.’ The prisoner wept.
‘Then what?’ Val was intrigued to hear the entirety of the prisoner’s tragic tale. ‘Please tell me what happens, I will do anything.’
‘Anything?’ The prisoner’s eyes lit up. ‘I will tell you the rest if you let me go. Would that be an adequate deal?’
‘Certainly,’ Val took a blade from her pocket and jammed it into the lock. It twisted, and the prisoner was free.
‘Then, I heard whispers that something bad was coming, for it is. The only way I knew how to warn the Emperor was to tell him in person, and so, when he opened the gates to this palace of luxury, I was the first to enter it. After searching the castle, I knew that he was gone, or so I thought. I killed his Sentries, for they stood in the way, and then, I tortured them to find out where he was: the Tunnels. I sent the body of a random citizen on the coast, and luckily, he saw it. I attached a letter from my master. Finally, I spoke to him, warning him of my master and his ambitious plans, which got me to where I am today. But now, you have set me free. I deeply thank you, child, for the Emperor would have tortured me for information.’
‘It is okay, after all, you are a hero!’ Valentin smiled at him.
‘A hero.’ He repeated the words and chuckled to himself. ‘Well, I must depart. Goodbye, I hope that your life is as good as mine will be in the coming weeks.’ He threw her down the staircase and kicked her. The prisoner strutted to the exit, opening the gates of the Palace before he left. Val crawled towards the exit, but the loss of blood had made her unconscious. The prisoner was free and had played her since the very start.