"My lord," the grand doors opened just as the dark-skinned servant entered into the throne room.
Lord Xhair had been in the middle of a conversation with a tall orc wearing dark armor. It was the leader orc with the scar across its face. At the woman's entrance, the two paused their conversation and glowered over in her direction while she strolled towards them.
"What is this lack of respect you're showing interrupting grown men as they are discussing important matters?" Lord Xhair snapped with venom, eyes daggered to kill trained on the servant.
The woman swallowed nervously feeling a strong chill rack through her body and timidly bowed at the throne. She placed her forehead to the ground. "I apologize, my lord. I have received some news that you must hear at once."
"Well, don't hold your tongue now." Lord Xhair growled at her.
She raised to her knees, but remained looking at the ground. "There is someone wanting to speak with you of the alarm that was sounded earlier."
"Who are they?" Lord Xhair asked, sitting up straight in his throne.
"I'm not sure, my lord. They just informed me that it was urgent that they spoke with you."
"Send them in." Lord Xhair demanded.
The servant nodded, "Yes, my lord." Then she was on her feet and heading back out the door.
When the doors closed behind her, Lord Xhair peeked over at the orc, who was still squinting at the door waiting for whoever this person was to enter through.
"R'gug," Lord Xhair called to the orc standing alert beside him.
R'gug turned to look at him, with his face completely emotionless. "My lord?"
"You and your group searched the area and found nothing, correct?" Lord Xhair asked.
"Yes, my lord. We found nothing." R'gug answered giving his noggin a nod.
Lord Xhair only hummed, slowly rocking his head back and kneading his goatee.
The grand doors opened again with the servant walking in followed by a skinny figure wearing a torn, brown cloak. A hood covered their head, casting a shadow over their face. Two orcs flanked behind the stranger just in case they tried something daring. The servant led the stranger directly towards the throne, then moved out of the way to kneel at the side of the platform.
When the stranger reached the Lord, they went to their knees to bow. "My lord."
Lord Xhair raised a hand, "You may speak."
"Yes, my lord." The stranger, obviously a woman, said then raised back to her feet. "I come bearing urgent news. A few hours ago you were alerted by another fellow guard, however when you all reached the spot, there was no evidence of any altercation. Am I wrong?"
R'gug stared at the woman with a serious face. "No." He answered.
"Well I have one answer to your problem: Magics." At hearing that, everyone in the room hissed.
"Magics. Impossible." Lord Xhair spat distrustfully. There was no way a magic could have penetrated through the unstoppable force known as Fall border. He hadn't had a magic walked these grounds since 11 years ago. After that, he had been successful to never come across one again.
"Yes, my lord. Magics." The stranger nodded.
"And how, pray tell, do you know of this?" Lord Xhair said, squinting his eyes at the woman. Could it be possible that she could be telling the truth?
"Because I saw it with my own eyes."
"And how do we know that you are trustworthy?" A light husky voice came from behind Lord Xhair's throne, and out strutted a slender, feminine orc. She wore a long, burgundy skirt with bandages wrapped around her bust area. The slender orc strutted around the throne platform, swaying her hips and came to circle the stranger like a predator waiting for its prey. "Especially when you give off the impression of being an outsider."
The stranger just stood still and remained silent as the orc continued to circle her, inching ever so closer.
"Aadhis," Lord Xhair called to the orc circling the woman, causing the orc to look back at him.
"I'm sorry, my lord. I'm just enjoying my leisure time." Aadhis purred, giving the lord a crooked smirk and pushing a dark hair loc out of her face. "However, not everyone can be trusted, my lord. I am only looking out for us."
Aadhis turned back to the stranger, placing a hand on her hip as her dark orbs bore at the hooded figure. "So what be you, stranger? Trusty or betrayer?"
The figure only lifted her head up, with her features still being shadowed over, and looked to Lord Xhair, ignoring Aadhis completely. "The reason that I am sure is because I too was attacked by those monsters before they attacked your soldiers. I watched as they tore through them like they were nothing."
Lord Xhair lifted in his seat, with an intrigued expression. He kneaded his goatee again peering at the stranger. "Just who are you? Remove your hood."
The stranger nodded, then slowly reached up to take ahold of the hem to the hood and pushed it back. Gold hair flowed from her crown to the insides of the cloak. On the left side of her tan face around her eye was scarred. It looked like a burn scar. The scar was healed, but was still pink as the skin hadn't finished knitting together. However, this stranger was no stranger as Iilane peered over at Lord Xhair trying to keep her anger at bay.
"My name is not important, but if you would let me, I can prove to you just how trustworthy I am. I have evidence." Iilane stated.
Lord Xhair stared at her, taking in her burned face.
R'gug huffed from the lord's side, "It won't hurt to check."
Lord Xhair sat back in his throne, eying the stranger and Aadhis who was staring at the girl as well.
"Very well. R'gug. Prepare an army to accompany this woman to the field. We'll give you a chance to prove to us your loyalty however," Lord Xhair stated, as his features turned menacing, "if I find out that these accusations are not true, it will be your head on a pike."
Iilane swallowed then bowed over, "Yes, my lord."
Aadhis chuckled at the girl, then began to walk off. "I shall join too. This will be interesting."
Lord Xhair looked to R'gug, "Take her with you and keep and eye on her." He instructed the orc.
R'gug nodded, then stepped from the platform and right up to Iilane. "After you." He growled.
She turned around and they started marching toward the door. R'gug was behind Iilane and missed the girls satisfied smile. Those doves were going to pay for what they did to her and she was definitely going to enjoy watching them suffer. Just mark her words.
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23
Behind blue eyes
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The kids burst through the door of the house, basically tumbling over one another as they all entered. K.O slammed the door shut behind him and slid down to the floor sprawling out to take a breath. The others were in similar positions also attempting to get some rest.
K.O turned his head and looked at Rockie, breathing heavily. "This is... all your... fault... stupid." He got out in between taking gulps of air.
"You're...," Rockie started to retaliate as he turned to face the blonde, trying to catch his breath as well, "... Stupid."
"You're both stupid," Maya jumped in and rolled over onto her elbows to lift up. She looked over at Belle, only to see an empty spot. She looked around the room, but didn't see the water mage. She hadn't even noticed her leave the room.
Belle slowly made her way through a draped open doorway. The tattered clothe acted as the door. Inside, laying in the middle of the room was a mattress. It was completely covered in dust. On the sides of the mattress were candles in various forms lining the wall. She glanced around as past mirages played out before her eyes. Everything was exactly the way it had been left from all those years ago.
Sniveling, she took a breath while wiping a lone tear that rolled along her cheek and then tore her eyes from the room over to a small door in the far right wall. She strolled over to it and wedged her fingers between the cracks forming the door before wiggling it open. Once it was opened, she squatted then crawled into the small space. She touched the wall at the back of the closet feeling for something and slowly smiled when she touched a board of wood.
"This your secret hideout?" Maya asked, then had to suddenly bite back a laugh when Belle jolted upright banging her head against the ceiling of the closet.
Belle groaned as she crawled out from the closet and rubbed the top of her crown. She glared over at Maya and then let out a deep sigh.
"No, it is not a hideout. It's…" Belle said then stopped.
Maya stood there waiting because it seemed like she had something else to add, but Belle's expression only darkened.
"You can talk about it if you want?" Maya put out there, taking a soft step towards the other girl. "I'm all ears."
Belle just sighed again.
"Or not. I won't pressure you." The redhead settled on, throwing her hands up in surrender.
Belle slowly shook her head, "It's not that. It's just hard to get out, but it's crazy you know." Belle said, then stood to her feet. She turned to Maya. "It happened so many years ago. You'll think it would be easier by now."
"Well, considering I'm not sure what's going on in that head of yours girlie, I wouldn't know." Maya said taking steps closer to Belle with a small smile on her face. "We all have went through something in life that we just can't let go." She stopped when she was standing in front of her. "But you know what you do?"
Belle let out a huff with a roll of her eyes, "What?! Get over it?"
"Move on." Maya answered taking glee when Belle made a face. "Everyone knows you can't truly get over something that happened in your past. Our past is what makes us who we are today and trying to get over it is like telling you to erase what makes you you. Move on. Grow stronger from it. It's okay." Maya said soothingly placing her palms on Belle's shoulder. Though she didn't know what truly happened to her sister, she got the gist.
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Belle stared at Maya, honestly seeing a different side to the girl. Don't get her wrong, Maya wasn't a complete douche towards people's feelings. She just was more to showing tough love with a lot of obscene language. So hearing her actually being humble was mind blowing. Belle turned around to face the dusty mattress and spotted a blanket, also covered in dust, laying across it.
"Before I came to Dove Clan, I had a family. A mother and a brother," Belle started, staring deeply at the blanket.
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Flashback...
"Belle," a soft voice called out to the small lump huddling under the brown, worn out blanket. "Come on honey, it's time for lesson."
"No," a small muffled voice yelped out.
"Nwo," another voice, toddler like, piped in.
Make that two lumps, as the woman standing in the doorway now noticed a smaller lump next to the other. She chuckled amusedly.
"And why is that?" The woman asked.
"Because it's scary." the bigger lump said.
"Yeah, swary." The second lump seconded in.
The woman huffed, crossing her arms. "And what, dear daughter, is so scary about your lessons?"
At that, the blanket was thrown off revealing a five year old Belle Kiss. She stared at her mom, her blue eyes shining with tears. Her mother had brown skin, with long, bouncy black hair and shimmering blue eyes.
"Everything," the little girl cried out then sniffled, "but mostly the orcs."
"Yeah, orsh." The lump beside Belle wriggled until her two year old brother flung the blanket from over his face and looked at their mother too, smiling. He had brown skin with curly, black hair.
Her mom looked at them almost heartbroken. Everyday she prayed for better days, not only for herself, but for her children first and foremost.
Belle let out little sniffles while wiping her wet eyes, "Every time I walk to lesson, they're just standing there. They're so big and mean. Everyone is scared of them. Last week, one of them came and took one of our teachers away during lesson and she never came back. The same happened to my friend, Allie Mae." The girl explained with fresh tears running down her face.
Her little brother, now sensing that whatever was being said was serious, began whimpering as his brown eyes filled with tears. "Don't cwy, BeBe." He said, placing a small hand on her arm.
That did nothing but make the tears start running down her cheeks faster looking down at her innocent brother. He still was a baby so he didn't understand the life they were in, but in a year or two, he'd be right in the boat with her. Petrified.
Her brother's whimpers got harder, before he just starting bawling.
"Oh no, my babies." Their mom hurried to scoop the two into her arms and cradled them as they rocked on the bed. She started humming a soothing tune, waiting for the crying two to simmer down while silently shushing them every now and then. Soon the only thing filling the room were small hiccups and a humming melody. She continued to rock them, and looked down at her children. Belle's face was completely red and her eyes were puffy.
"My sweet, sweet children, whom my heart bleeds for daily. Do not cry over mediocre things. Let's not waste tears for things we cannot change." She murmured running a finger under Belle's eyes to wipe her tears, then moved to her son's. "When I was a young girl, my mother would come and just hold me at night. She would sing my fears away and cuddle off my cries. One night, my mother and I were snuggled up. I was nestled upon her lap as we swayed back and forth in the wooden rocking chair my father had made for her. I remember looking up at her, and I asked "Was life ever going to get better?" I could tell that my question had my mother stuck, because all she could do was stare at me."
"What did she say?" Belle murmured against her mother's bosom.
Her brother now had fallen asleep.
Her mother let out a breath, "Life is a cycle with the promise of death. It's up to you how you make it."
Belle scrunched her face in confusion. "Huh?"
"I said the same thing." Her mother laughed, then tickled at Belle's side gaining a smile from her. "Life can be hard, Belle, but always remember. As long as your family is behind you there is nothing that can take your joy away."
Flash-end
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"She did everything she could to protect me and him, yet sadly I can't say the same for myself. I loved them." Belle said lowly.
Maya just stared with a question ready to fall off her tongue. Though she was almost terrified of the answer, her curiosity was winning the battle. "What happened to them?"
Belle choked out a laugh that sounded more like a sob and exclaimed, "I happened. What happened to them was because of me. I was five when I had started feeling sick. The me now would have guessed that I was coming into my magic, but the me then would have never thought of it. One day, I was stuck in bed with a fever so high my body was on fire. My mom had just finished pleading to the orcs that I was sick and was not able to go to lesson. Lesson was mandatory for all Fall border's civilians and if you missed it, the orcs were obligated to gather us from our home. I think it's mostly to keep their eyes on all of us." Belle said then cleared her throat to continue.
"Soon after, I realized what was happening to me when I sneezed and bubbles appeared out of nowhere all around me. I was so scared. Terrified really. Scared for my family. Scared for me. Scared that somebody was going to find out and tell Lord Xhair, so I hid it. Practiced my magic a little right through that closet over there." Belle said pointing over to the small door.
"Your mom never knew?" Maya asked, listening intently to the story being told.
Belle nodded slowly, "She eventually found out when I was making bubble shapes thinking I was alone. She just told me to be careful. She was actually the one who carved out the closet for me. With her acceptance, I guess that kind of made me happy and a little more confident with the curse I was given. Made me feel a little less like a freak."
Belle made a tight face. Now that she was bringing up her past, the emotions that she had locked away were beginning to resurface.
Maya looked on in sympathy. "Being a magic isn't a curse, Belle. Or make you a freak."
"Well, here it's a death sentence, so I'd say it's a curse." Belle quickly retorted. "Honestly, so is trust. The main rule my mom ordered me to follow was to never tell anyone about it. The most important one I was forbidden to do ended up being the start to my hell."
Belle walked to the bed and grabbed the blanket off of the mattress. Cobwebs snapped from the blanket being moved after so many years. Belle sat on the mattress and curled the blanket into her lap.
Maya waited a second before following to sit beside her. The dirt would definitely drive her insane, but Belle needed her more right now.
"Back then, I had a best friend. We pretty much grew up together. Her family stayed in the house right across from ours." Belle said as she stared vacantly at the wall before them. "We did everything together. Sat by each other in lesson. Ate with Miss Lenie. So of course I thought I would be able to tell her anything without being judged. One day, when we finished with lesson, me and her winded up being alone in our learning room. I took that opportunity to finally tell her. I was so scared, but underneath I was a little excited about having magic. I wanted to share it with her. So I did."
"I'm guessing it didn't go as planned," Maya said, attempting for a light joke. She heard slight rustling and looked over to see K.O, Rockie, and Drew silently standing in the doorway listening too.
Belle gave a tight nod as her focused remained forward. "She acted like it was amazing, even though I could tell she was scared too. Before I knew it, the next morning, before we had awaken, the orcs were breaking into our home and yanking me, my mom and brother from our bed and tossing us outside. Her guilty face was the last thing I saw before we were whisked away."
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Flashback...
Belle's small body was flung into a cold, dark dungeon. She tumbled across the stone flooring, crying out as she scraped the skin from her knees and elbows, until the back wall stopped her. Pain spiked up her already bruised body and the girl started withering on the floor. Belle quickly sat up and curled her body against the wall as she eyed the orcs standing behind Lord Xhair.
The man stood there in the open cell door, eying her like she was a monster he couldn't wait to be rid of.
"Disgusting," Lord Xhair spat out, causing Belle to cower deeper into the wall as much as the stone would allow. Lord Xhair turned on his heels to exit the cell and whispered something into the ear of one of the orcs standing guard on the other side of the bars. Giving the girl one more glance, Lord Xhair walked off and out of Belle's peripheral leaving her staring up at the two menacing orcs in terror.
One of them stepped into the cell and stomped towards the little girl causing her to let out a hard whimper. The orc reached down and grabbed both of her arms with one hand. Belle struggled in the orcs stronghold.
"No, let me go." She cried out attempting to snatch her hands away.
"Shut it," the orc growled, yanking the girl off the floor and up to some shackles hanging from the roof. It clamped her hands tight into the rusted, metal shackles leaving the girl to dangle suspended by her arms.
Belle continued to let out little whines from the pain shooting up her arms from hanging.
The orc stared at Belle with a crooked smirk. "I eat you."
"You know we not eat prisoner." The other orc grumbled from outside of her cell.
"Not yum eat." The orc responded, turning around to eye the one outside. Belle couldn't see around the orcs head so she couldn't see what they were doing.
"Ohhh," she heard the other orc say then chuckled. The orc in front of her turned back around, beaming all of it's black teeth at her like a predator.
Belle felt her stomach drop.
"Leave the girl alone before I have both your balls." A husky voice came and in entered Aadhis. She strutted towards the cell and glared at the orcs. "Get out of here." She ordered and the orcs were quick to disappear from her presence.
She then turned to sneer at Belle. Without a word, she closed the gate and locked it and then started to leave.
"Wait!" Belle called out and regretted it when Aadhis eyes daggered back at her.
"What?" Aadhis seethed.
"W-where is my mom?" She timidly asked.
"Safe." Aadhis answered then walked off leaving Belle alone with the darkness.
Three days
Three days she was left hanging in that dungeon, surviving only on her will to see her mom and brother one last time. She really hoped they weren't there to see what would happen to her.
Belle was jerked from her sleep when she heard metal rattling and then the cell door flung open. Aadhis, followed by another orc, stepped inside the cell.
"Wakey wakey," Aadhis chimed loudly, grinning at the girl waking up.
The orc with her strolled in and unlocked the shackles releasing Belle to fall to the floor. They tied her wrists up and led her from the dungeon out into the corridor until they reached a giant door. Aadhis pushed it opened and they walked out.
Belle blinked at the sudden brightness from being in the dark dungeon for days.
Belle looked around frightened. So many people were standing out watching. Watching for her execution. The girl couldn't help but cry when the orc pushed her towards were Lord Xhair was waiting at the edge of the wooden platform. His face remained expressionless while peering down at her. Belle's heart thundered within her chest the closer she stepped towards the edge. The orc abruptly nudged her too hard, sending her tumbling almost over the edge before Lord Xhair clamped a hand down on her shoulder.
Lord Xhair then looked over his shoulder and gave a head nod signaling for something.
Belle's eyes widen at that and looked over when she heard a door creak open and saw two orcs stomp out carrying her mother and brother.
"NO!" Belle cried out, then looked up at Lord Xhair pleadingly. "Please! They didn't do anything."
"Shut up you demon." The man growled out sneering down at the crying child.
But Belle continued to cry and scream, watching as her crying mother and bawling brother were walked towards a pile of wood with a giant log sticking up in the middle.
"NOOOO," Belle wailed jerking her tiny body against the lord holding her. "No! Please let them go. Please." She continued begging the lord hoping he'd show her family some kind of mercy. Even if she had to be the one to die.
The orcs tied them up tight onto the wood post, then backed away.
"This is a warning for you slums," Lord Xhair shouted, projecting his voice out to everyone in the crowd. "Monsters deserve to die and those that help them deserve to die as well. Let this be a warning to you."
Lord Xhair looked to the orcs who were lighting the torches they now held. They looked to the lord and when he nodded to them, they faced the crying mother and son, then tossed the torches to the pile.
Belle stared on and watched as her mother mouthed 'I love you' to her before the flames landed in the pile and consumed them alive.
"No! MOMMY..."
Flash-end
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"I had to watch as they both were burned alive. Their screams... The smell...," Belle mumbled out forlorn.
"After that, I remember just waking up and seeing water everywhere and the people who were spectating had been washed a few feet away from me. I didn't think about it. I just got up and ran. And ran. The hole that we came in through was how I got away." Belle finally blinked her eyes, feeling drops roll down her cheek and looked over to see the four staring at her. "I barely escaped unscathed. I was cornered once I ran into the woods and one of his men slashed me across my stomach with a axe. The only thing that save me was me falling back into a hole. When I woke up, I saw sunlight for the first time in my life and crawled out. I was in so much pain and had lost a lot of blood, but all I knew was to keep moving. To never stop. I just remember walking before I passed out, then I woke up at the guild."
Belle rubbed a palm against her eyelids to rid her face of the tears which were pouring now. She hated crying. She was already weak enough, and didn't need to add tears to the mix. Something warm wrapped around her shoulder before she was pulled into Maya for a crushing hug.
"I'm so sorry," Maya whispered into her ear.
K.O walked over and hugged her other side, then Drew stepped up and hugged her front.
Emotions overwhelmed the water mage till she just let her tears fall and silently cried.
Rockie fidgeted on his feet as he just watched them, torn between anger and guilt.
The moment went on for a few seconds, but did not last long. Without warning, a piercing scream rung from outside. Then there was a loud crash.
outro: The letter, Kehlani
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Dove Clan Family
Ace Hole
age: 21
weight: 400 lbs
height: 8'3", 251.46 cm
eye color: dark brown
hair color: black
magic type: fighter
likes: fighting, training, eating and EARNINGS
dislikes: quiting, losing, and being broke
guild sign color: black
Ace is the goofy serious type. A huge cheap stake so ask to borrow nothing. To anybody else, this muscled, four armed giant will come off as terrifying, but in reality he's really sweet. Ace is one of the strongest members in the guild and Kings' go-to man despite his young age. He joined the guild at the age of nine after a tragedy fell on his and his twin sister, Sharmaine's village in Clover. Since then, Ace strove to get stronger to protect the ones he loves. He's cool, just don't mess with his earnings.