More than twenty soldiers stood in neat rows in the throne room of the Royal Castle. They maintained impeccable discipline under the intense gaze of their king, seated on the throne. The hall was adorned with crystals and gilding, creating an atmosphere of grandeur and wealth.
Despite the grandeur and solemnity of the surroundings, the atmosphere was permeated with tension, which could be keenly felt. The air was filled with bitterness and vigilance, with a hint of pine, just like everything in the Forest Kingdom. The special energy filling the space reminded everyone of the proximity of the mighty forest and its mysterious magic.
In the center of the hall, kneeling surrounded by guards, was a young woman of 25. Her hands were bound with magical vines, and her head was lowered, indicating that she was not a welcome guest of the ruler. Light brown hair fell and obscured her face. The deafening silence of the hall was interrupted only by the monotonous sound of blood dripping onto the stone.
After a moment of silence, the young woman slowly raised her head, revealing her face. Her eyes, filled with sadness, shone turquoise, reminding everyone of the magical power she possessed.
"Are you finished?" came the slightly hoarse bass voice of an elderly man. Tall and dignified, he wore a crown on his head. Frederick de Forest, His Royal Majesty, the ruler of the Forest Kingdom.
"I have learned all I could, Your Majesty. Further interference will kill her, and we won't help the prince," said the squeaky voice of the slender mentalist.
"Well, I believe we have heard enough. She has admitted to seeking help to sabotage the prince's engagement. We know the consequences. I find her guilty of attempting Sebastian's life. Send this girl to the dungeon. If the prince perishes, we won't need her," his words were cold and resolute.
After his final words, the king looked once more at the woman with undisguised disgust and left the throne room, leaving the guards to carry out his orders. The decision had been made.
Once the king had departed, the guards visibly came to life and aimed their weapons at the woman.
"Come, milady, your new accommodations await. Pray to all the gods you know that His Majesty comes to his senses, or neither the ancestral artifact of the de Forest family nor your allegiance to the Sea Kingdom will save you," the captain of the royal guard said.
"Yes, my lord," the woman replied, swaying as she rose from her knees and slowly made her way towards the exit. Her movements were uncertain, and her expression reflected a mix of pain and despair. She no longer knew exactly when she had given up - at the moment the engagement was announced or sometime after that. The boundary between the future and the past had become blurred and inconsequential.
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Everything that had once seemed important and stable to Alex was now shattered. Her life, like the broken fragments of a castle, had scattered, leaving her alone. Alone with her pain and the pitiful fragments of memories of past happiness.
As she continued walking through the castle corridors, a spark of hope still smoldered in her heart - perhaps she would find the strength to rise from the ruins of her life. Perhaps she would find herself again and discover a new future, even if it would take time to heal her heart.
Alessandra de Savoyar, or simply Alex, was the only woman of her kind and possibly the last. According to some, her appearance might have seemed ordinary and unremarkable for an aristocrat. She had light brown hair, a round face with a slightly oversized nose, fair, almost pale skin, and green eyes. Her height and figure were average, with no pretensions to grace or exceptional attractiveness. She was neither curvy nor thin. The phrase "ordinary and unremarkable" could apply to her appearance, but not to her magic and position.
Alex staggered into the small stone room. It was damp and cold inside. The room contained a wooden pallet and two buckets. The conditions were far from comfortable, but it was all she had.
Alessandra had been stripped of her previously fortunate position and locked in these primitive conditions.
"Captain, please," Alex whispered, addressing the young guard. "May I have some water to wash the blood from my face?"
The captain, upon hearing Alex's request, did not immediately react. He looked at the bloodied face of the woman and gave her a cold gaze, then filled a bucket with water, dismissively waving his hand.
"A water mage," the woman thought.
Alex slowly approached the bucket and began washing away the traces of the mental assault. The cool liquid slightly revived her and cleared her mind.
The situation she found herself in was far from ideal, with no allies left. Now she had to solve her own problems, of which there seemed to be many. "I can't help you anymore," the mage said coldly and sealed the cell, activating the protective barrier.
Alex sat on the wooden pallet, wiping the blood from her face and hair. She delved into her thoughts, trying to understand how she had ended up in the dungeon of the Forest Kingdom. She asked herself questions to which she couldn't find answers. What should she do? Was there a future for them? The determination to fight for freedom gradually gave way to apathy. She felt that the narrow, lightless dungeon symbolized her inner state - a confined space devoid of light and hope. Alex lost faith in herself and her ability to overcome the obstacles that lay before her. The only way forward was to rely on herself and harness her own strengths.
With these thoughts, she lay down on the pallet and drifted into the realm of dreams. It was necessary to rest a bit after such a horrific day. In her dreams, Sebastian's face appeared, but it was different - unfamiliar, distant, and cold. He was the only one she had left and the last thing she lost.