Crimson Wonderland

Ch. 1

Sallette Adiar only wanted to be free.

She wanted to feel the wind playing tricks with her hair, she wanted to run barefoot over the grassy plains, she wanted to taste the water that slithered across the valley and above all, she wanted to explore the world. The world beyond the colossal stone wall, she had only seen maps and read books about the cities and places in Pirnacia.

Her finger slightly grazed a damaged stone in the wall, and she wondered what if she smashed it? Would she be able to see beyond? If only she had the courage, but to be burnt to death was not exciting in the slightest. So, she sighed through her nose and tugged her cloak's hood on.

She wandered about, her lilac dress brushing against the high grass as she made her way to her mare. The smell of roses reached her nostrils before she saw the bed of flowers. The roses were a beautiful shade of crimson, the same shade as blood, she decided to pluck a few, even if the thorns nipped at her skin.

When she finally made it to the jittery animal, she carefully placed the flowers into her satchel and mounted Fieta. She did not rush the mere as it scampered across the valley of Bahra. Sallette pushed her hood off and savored the sweet breeze of Spring. She knew that once Fall and Winter grasped for the control of the lands, she could and would not ride.

The Adiar estate had to be only a few gallops away, and she could already hear her father scolding her for being late. She couldn't blame him, she already knew that servants were serving piping hot plates of delicacies.

As soon as she noticed the manor blooming up ahead, she implored her mare to gallop faster and faster. Sallette hurriedly hopped off when she saw the stables and left Fieta to Maxmius, the one in charge of the horses.

She scurried along, ripping off her cloak and discarding it in the garden, desperate to get to the dining hall in time. Sallette sucked in a shuddering breath, slapped her cheeks and pinched her nose before entering the massive room.

Her father sat at the very end of the table, his hands holding a piece of paper tightly. It had to be another summoning of the Lords of the area.

“Good evening, Papa” she softly said, dropping into a curtsy. Duke Adiar only acknowledge her with a flick of his wrist, before solely pouring his attention to the paper. Great, he had to be in one of his moods.

Again.

“Good evening, sister and father” Fieditch, her elder brother, chirped as he strolled into the room with a book underneath his armpit. He lazily sat at the Duke's left and smirked.

“May I ask, dear brother, why are you smirking?” her sister Marthyana noted, before taking a seat next to Sallette.

“I met with Duke Simazkirs son,” the boy shrugged and then cast a glance in Sallette's direction, “and we saw a beautiful little lilac fighting against the wind, we almost got to it, but unfortunately, we were too late.”

Sallette winced, and her heart began hammering against her rib cage, so harshly that she believed it might c***k bone. She decided to stare down at the empty plate before her and to clench her jaw so tight it hurt.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, Sallette's other siblings began pouring in. Women to the right and men to the left. Only the Duke and Duchess were allowed to sit at the ends of the table, however Duchess Adiar had been absent for more than five years.

“It seems,” Duke Adiar spoke, regaining the attention of his ten children, “one of you will be leaving this manor before Winter is here” the man got up from his seat and rummaged through his pocket, only to pull out a cigarette.

“You're marrying one of us off?” Alekandera, the youngest, asked.

“Not you, little one, worry not,” the Duke snapped his fingers and his began his smoking session “I'm afraid, Sallette is going to leave us soon. She shall marry a soon-to-be Emperor”

Sallette's head shot up, her eyes widening. This had to be a lie, a joke. It couldn't be possible. How could her father agree to such a thing?

“But there are no Emperors here?” Winston tilted his little head.

“She'll be a sacrificial bride, won't she?” Fieditch asked, clenching his fist tight.

“Not sacrificial. She shall marry the Crown Prince Laurent, the current Emperor has demanded so,” the Duke bobbed his head, puffing out dark clouds of smoke.

“Are you insane?” Marthyana's chair crashed to the ground as the woman got up.

“My dear children, it is hard for me to send away your sister. It truly is, but I cannot go against the Emperor, he has already threatened me. I have been putting off this marriage for ten long years, I cannot stop it. I deeply apologize”

Sallette stared at her father for a long while, he had been protecting her for three hundred years, she knew he had tried. So, she found it within her to speak, to say something and when she did, the words that tumbled out of her mouth were shocking.

“I will marry him,” she announced, getting up “I will protect you all, I promise, and once I am Empress I shall tear down that wall and give everyone the possibility of being free. We are not animals, my dear siblings, we have been imprisoned for so long that we have forgotten many things”

She offered them all a reassuring smile before continuing with her speech, “The humans have forgotten our might, our power. I shall remind them, but I shall not drill fear within their minds. I am an Adiar and I shall keep my chin high”

She grabbed the wine glass that hadn't even been touch and raised it. She hoped that her words would help her siblings and father, but deep down, she knew that she was speaking to make it easier for herself as well.

“To a brighter future” was all she said.