"Wake up, you wretched witch!” The guard shouted, through the bars of the dungeon's door. “With great power and authority, King Theoden demands your attention!” The suddenness of the guard's deep, burly voice broke the silence of the dungeon, startling Seraphina awake.
Seraphina winced in pain, she had been locked in the dungeons under the castle and tortured endlessly. The cell was absent of visible light and her eyes strained to make out anything in the shadows. She had no way of knowing how much time had passed since she had been imprisoned, although it felt like an eternity. The guards hung her naked body on a hook by her bound wrists, as if she was venison being tenderized for dinner. The lashings had been endless, repeatedly tearing through her skin, her back was a mass of gashes and cuts that were oozing infection, filling the air around her with the pungent smell of putrid flesh, and coppery blood. The guards, clearly reveling in her pain and humiliation, would laugh and spit at her, taunting her as she was helplessly suspended, unable to do anything to protect herself. She found herself in and out of consciousness. Her body weakened and her mind foggy, she felt her life slipping away with each passing moment, but then she heard his name.
“Theoden finally came!” She thought to herself, a single name was enough to spark the light inside her that was so close to going out.
Theoden was the second Prince of Elberethion, a large Kingdom that was supposed to be hidden away from the rest of the world. Long ago Elberethion was filled with magic, mages and creatures with incredible powers, they lived there amongst humans peacefully. But as time went on, the old King got jealous and greedy, as humans always do, and began to covet the power that the magical creatures possessed. He wanted to control them and their magic, and so he set out to find ways to gain access to it. He tried to manipulate and bargain with them, but when that failed, he resorted to force causing a great war to break out. The humans were no match for the creatures and their magic, so the King ordered his knights to push the creature's forces back to the forest at the edge of a meadow with the help of hired mages who were promised a safe haven in the Kingdom when the war was over. The mages cast their spell on the Kingdom of Elberethion, hiding it away from the creatures and the rest of the world. Without the magic energy from Elberethion the creatures became feral and stalked the forest waiting for their chance at revenge and the magic that once filled the Kingdom slowly disappeared becoming nothing more than a story moms told their little ones before bed.
Seraphina met Theoden on her 18th birthday in that very meadow on a beautiful spring evening, just as the sun was setting. When Theoden first approached Seraphina he told her it was fate and she agreed, it felt as if destiny was unfolding before her eyes. He whisked her away to his castle, giving her a job as his personal servant so that he could be close to her, vowing to never leave her side, seducing her with promises of a future with him. She had faith that he would not allow her to be wrongly accused and would fight for her innocence. However she was confused, Theo wasn’t the Monarch, his uncle King Sebastian was, Theo wasn't even the heir to the throne.
Just then, the loud metal doors opened, flooding the room with a blinding light. Seraphina slowly opened her eyes and tried to adjust to the bright torchlight. She could make out the silhouette of a man standing in the doorway. He was tall, broad-shouldered, and he exuded an aura of confidence and power.
“Tsk..Look what they’ve done to you...” a familiar voice spoke.
Seraphina immediately recognized his voice; it was the voice that had whispered promises in her ear not long ago. She had yearned for it everyday since being imprisoned. She felt a rush of emotion as the familiar voice reached her ears, it was a voice that lived in her memory, and yet it felt like she was hearing it for the first time.
“Th-Theo!” her voice cracked, “There has been a mistake! Tell them I've done nothing wrong! I am innocent, you must tell them!”
“SHUT YOUR MOUTH YOU FILTHY WITCH! HOW DARE YOU SPEAK SO CASUALLY TO OUR KING! YOUR WORDS ARE AN INSULT TO HIS MAJESTY!” The guard shouted as the crack of his whip echoed throughout the dungeon, reverberating off the cold stone walls.
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
Seraphina felt her skin split open as the whip ripped into her flesh. Screams resounded through the air, echoing around her. Her body went limp, she was beyond tears, all she could do was surrender to the suffering, helplessly suspended in agonizing pain and despair, unable to even cry.
“Let her down and Leave us,” The familiar voice ordered, waving his hand at the guards.
Seraphina was roughly dropped to the ground and forced to kneel on the cold dirt floor, her head bowed in submission. She gritted her teeth and held herself upright, mustering all the strength she had to not fall over.
As the heavy doors crashed shut, the man stepped closer, with a torch in his hand. He knelt down slowly, carefully lifting Seraphina’s chin with his finger, she could now see that it was in fact Theo, her Prince. His blue eyes twinkled in the torch's flame, the fire brought out every intricate detail, causing them to shimmer with an almost otherworldly radiance.
“Oh my poor sweet Seraphina, they ruined you”, Theo caressed her cheek, his hand was warm, her face fell into his touch, savoring the moment.
Theo leaned forward, he delicately placed his lips close to her ear and spoke softly, “Thank you Seraphina, you made me the King”.
The moment his statement reached her ears, an indescribable terror washed over her.
“Ww-what do you mean Theo?” She was struggling to speak. Each passing second seemed to stretch endlessly, the unknown implications of his words loomed large, heightening her sense of vulnerability and helplessness.
“You killed my uncle and his entire family.” He chuckled. “You set them ablaze with your magic while they slept in their beds”. His voice was still smooth and calm speaking such atrocious words, his lips curled into a revolting smile. “You understand what I am saying don’t you Seraphina? You Killed the King and his Heir, and since I am next in line the throne is finally mine”.
Seraphina's eyes widened, her beautiful green eyes that had once been full of life now appearing dim and lifeless. Her dry, cracked lips quivered as she tried to form the words, but her voice was barely a whisper. She felt a deep sense of despair, a heavy weight crushing her chest, making it hard for her to breathe. She tried to speak. “Nnnnno I....”
Theo grabbed her face violently, digging his fingers deep into her skin. She tried to plead with him, but he tightened his grip, effectively cutting off her plea. She could feel her words dying in her throat. His fingers dug deeper, pushing against the delicate bones of her face, she whimpered in pain.
“Of course you did, Seraphina!” He laughed maniacally; his face was lit up with a heinous grin. “You're a filthy witch, you were working for those beasts who hide in the forest. You were sent to kill the royal family so the creatures can steal the throne like they tried to do centuries ago!” He pushed her face away forcefully as he stood up and backed away.
“My sweet gullible Seraphina, you were a lot of fun! I once even contemplated taking you as my concubine.” He let out a long sigh, “Your magic would have been useful to me if you knew how to use it properly, but I no longer had the patience, and I was getting bored with you.”
He leered at Seraphina with a look of disdain and disgust, she lowered her head, she did not have the strength to meet his gaze any longer.
“So, I had to change my plan. Instead of using you for your magic, I used your magic to frame you for the murder of the King and Prince.” His words were cold and calculated, as if he had rehearsed them in advance. There was no emotion behind them, only a steely determination to deliver his message. It was difficult to comprehend how someone could be so unfeeling.
Seraphina had put all of her trust and faith into him, believing he would one day be her Prince Charming, but instead, he had sentenced her to the misery and suffering she was now experiencing. It was a cruel twist of fate that left her utterly heartbroken and devastated.
“I was on the verge of giving up on my dreams of taking the throne from my uncle.” Theo’s voice now patronizing and callous. “But then I made my way up to the top of that hill and there you were, I could feel a power emanating from you like a beacon, calling me to you. As I reached the summit, and looked out across the meadow, I saw you amongst the flowers, playing with your magic, the sun setting behind you. It looked as if you had set the sky on fire. The moment our eyes met; I knew that you were the one who would make me King. I just had to figure out the best way to use you.”
Seraphina could not utter a word; her heart was heavy with an aching pain like nothing she had ever known before. This anguish was more excruciating than the lashings of the whip which had been her constant companion, it was a deep and relentless kind of pain, one that made her feel like she was slowly being broken apart from the inside out.
“Tsk, you are nothing but a stupid girl,” he scoffed, “A gullible, stupid girl, so desperate for love and attention. You allowed yourself to be taken advantage of Seraphina, believing the words of a man you hardly knew, like your life was some fairy tale. Your naivety has cost you.”
Theo pulled his sword out of its sheath.
“Goodbye stupid girl”.
Everything went dark.